Research (or... a great reason to treat myself to a hot chocolate)

Last week I went to one of my favourite places in the whole world (I'm so lucky it's right on my doorstep) to do some research, and I took a few photos...

This is where I imagine my poor homeless girl sleeping. I think it's an amazing setting, albeit a little blustery for her to want to hang around too long. The benefits of research mean I might have to have the character changing her mind about where she sleeps.

Smeaton's Tower, looking east

 Just after I took this photo of Smeaton's Tower - while thinking 'Ooh, it's getting dark' - it hailed and I had to run for cover. One of the great things about the Hoe is you can see the weather rolling in - rain (and hail) usually comes in from the west, and it's fascinating to watch the shower coming closer and closer. This is when I ran to a great cafe to  drink hot chocolate while I listened to the hail and watched the sea going wild!

So, that was my research - now all I have to do is make this slightly run-down, rather strange looking coastline sound beautiful and comforting in my prose.

This is a departure for me - I don't usually put my stories in a specific location. It could all go badly wrong, especially as I'm focusing on the less salubrious side of life in Plymouth. I'll try hard to make it beautiful and exotic at the same time!

Do you write about places you know?

Do you spend time soaking up the feeling of the place?

Does location form a large part of your writing?

Happy Saturday

Today is a great day, because after Hubby being away for two weeks he's back! He's been touring around Europe with a wonderful Belgian singer called Nele (pronounced Nay-lah). So after missing the last fourteen or so gigs that they've played together, I'm going to four this weekend. Sun, music and cider - sounds perfect, doesn't it?

Peter Crawford 

Nele, Nele Needs a Holiday

And here's a song they sing together, recorded when Nele was in England last year. It's a cover of the Civil Wars song, Poison and Wine.

Lucky 7 meme... and some other stuff

Caitin at All About Growing Up and Becoming a Famous Author tagged me in this meme, which I've been following around bloggerland and really enjoying. I love the title of Caitin's blog - it reminds me of all the dreams I had as a child.

Here are the rules:

1. Go to page 77 of your current MS.
2. Go to line 7.
3. Copy down the next 7 lines - sentences or paragraphs - and post them as they're written. No cheating.
4. Tag 7 authors.
5. Let them know.


I'm currently working on a collection of novellas, so I put them all together to figure out which one was page 77.

He edges forward. My breath is shallow, constricted. My face is warm. Why did he have to bring this up? Why couldn’t we just go off into the sunset, happily ever after? In years to come, once we’d settled down and had five children and a dog and a farmhouse in Yorkshire, he could turn round and say, I know it was you.

I move closer and bow my head. My tears are real. They fall down my face in single file. Murray reaches to touch my shoulder. I can’t think straight.

“Did you do it?” he asks hesitantly, barely audible. He draws deep, slow breaths.

This excerpt is quite near the end of the second story. It's lucky I didn't have to paste a page later - it would have given away the ending!

I'm going to cheat slightly, and not tag anyone. I know this is naughty, and that if no one passed the tag on, there wouldn't be a game. But I've read so many, that I know a lot of people have already done this. And I hate missing anyone out of the fun. So, if you want to play, consider yourself tagged. And you're welcome to call me a cheat!

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And now for the other stuff. I rely on email notifications to keep me returning to blogs I've commented on, but I've noticed that on the pop-up comments box that a lot of blogs use, the option to be emailed has disappeared. I just wanted to say, officially - because this has been bothering me for a few days - that I'm not ignoring you. I'd love to know if you replied to my comment, I just haven't figured out a way to remember which blogs I commented on!

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Even as I type, I'm not sure if I want to do this, but here's one of the pictures from my recent photo shoot, which I mentioned in my last post. I'd prefer not to have any comments about it, because I really don't think I come out well. This is the picture Hubby thinks is the nicest.

I had hoped to have my photo taken next to Smeaton's Tower, but workmen were putting the scaffolding up  for its annual clean. Perhaps that's why the day felt so wrong - the image I had in mind wasn't possible.

Anyway... this is Smeaton's Tower...