Tag Archives: Dorset

PUBLICATION DAY SPECIAL: THE FOREVER GARDEN BY ROSANNA LEY

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I’m a big fan of Rosanna Ley’s books and this was no exception; in fact, it’s one of my favourites. The characters are instantly believable, the descriptions sumptuous and the whole story is perfectly tensioned between three viewpoint characters and two timelines.

The story is told from the points of view of Lara (in the 1940s and present day), her daughter Rose, and her granddaughter Bea, and it revolves around two very special gardens. The first is in Dorset, created by Lara’s mother based on the principles of the Arts and Crafts movement. It is this garden that Lara promises her mother to protect, which is the starting point for the drama that follows. The second garden is one that Lara later creates in Puglia.

The relationships between the women – and their gardens – are beautifully drawn. That Lara left the Dorset garden behind is evident from the outset, but in the hands of such a skilled storyteller, my desire to find out the whys and wherefores made it hard to put the book down. The Forever Garden will not only transport you from Dorset to Italy and back, it’s a journey you cannot fail to enjoy.

I was so entranced by the gardens that I asked Rosanna what her inspiration for them had been, and what her own Dorset garden is like:

 

I’ve always loved gardens. My parents were both keen gardeners and I have happy memories of running around our back garden as a child, playing out imaginary stories, dodging amongst my mother’s washing pegged out on the line and my father’s precious raspberry canes and gooseberry bushes.

Our own garden here in Dorset is not large but it wraps around the house and so I feel cocooned and sheltered – which is good as we live near the sea and it can be very windy! Because of the sea air I have plants that can withstand these conditions such as lavender, rosemary, thrift, hollyhocks and erigeron daisies. I am a fan of the cottage garden and of fragrant plants that attract insects, butterflies and bees – natural gardens and wild gardens. The garden also has two bird baths, two tamarisk trees, a pergola of clematis, honeysuckle and roses and a couple of places to sit and write or think in. And we are very lucky because it also has a sea view…

I was inspired to write about an Arts & Crafts garden after I visited Barrington Court in Somerset. The gardens there were laid out in the 1920’s to a structured design influenced by the famous Arts & Crafts garden designer Gertrude Jekyll. She believed passionately in the beauty of the natural landscape and – like me – valued the ordinary plants familiar to gardeners today, such as hostas, lavender and sweet-scented old-fashioned roses.

I immediately loved the Arts & Crafts concept of the garden being a continuation of the house, and of that garden being made up of several small rooms – each one with its own character and flavour. After all, when we go into a garden, we don’t always want to do the same thing. We might want to grow vegetables and be in the mood for some hard-core digging, or we might want to sit quietly in a soft and beautiful space that enables us to reflect, read a good book or just watch the birds go by.

In an Arts & Crafts garden, plants are sometimes chosen for their colour. A white garden, for example, can create a sense of tranquillity through the green of the foliage and the white flowers which are often considered healing for the mind and spirit. Or they might be chosen according to season. In ‘The Forever Garden’ there is a spring garden full of early bulbs such as daffodils and tulips which represents hope and new beginnings; this symbolism becomes very important to Lara in the story.

I like to think of the ‘Forever Garden’ as an important character in the book. For Lara it is both prison and sanctuary. The garden saves her and it also sets her free.

 

 

 

 

 

 

SUNDAY SCENE: ALEX STONE ON HER FAVOURITE SCENE FROM THE OTHER GIRLFRIEND

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The Other Girlfriend is my second psychological thriller set in Dorset. After a weekend away at Durdle Door ends in tragedy, Lizzie’s world falls part and she battles with anxiety and agoraphobia.

Agoraphobia is so often misunderstood and assumed to be a fear of open spaces, but, as Lizzie discovers, in reality it is so much more and any situation or place where it difficult to escape from can become a trigger for panic attacks.

 

My heart pounded and my legs felt weak, as though they would give way at any moment. All I had to do was open the front door, step outside and walk down the driveway to the car. It wasn’t a big deal. It wasn’t difficult.

Except it was.

‘What are you standing there for?’ Mum asked, giving me a nudge forward. ‘Come on, let’s go.’

I side stepped out of the way, allowing her to pass. She cast a sideways glance at me before reaching for the latch and pulling the door open. I stared out at the world beyond the threshold. Somehow it seemed as though all the oxygen was slipping away through the open door. My breathing became laboured. Quick shallow gasps that didn’t satisfy my lungs.

I heard Mum sigh. The patience she was trying to hold onto was starting to slip. I had to get it together. I couldn’t fall apart in front of her. Not again.

I fought to regain control. But it wasn’t working.

Nothing worked.

The hallway dipped and swayed. Everything started to blur. Tears streamed down my face. I wasn’t even sure why I was crying. It was just a door. Just a driveway. I wanted to run away. To hide. But I couldn’t.

My feet were welded to the spot. I couldn’t move. Dark patches appeared at the edges of my vision. I was going to pass out. I could feel it.

‘Don’t start that nonsense.’ There was an edge of frustration to her tone. ‘We haven’t got time for it.’

I nodded, obediently, as a loud sob escaped. She was right. It was nonsense. I was being stupid. It was just the driveway. The same driveway I had walked down nearly every day for my whole life.

And yet somehow it was no longer the same. I was no longer the same.

Mum couldn’t understand. She’d tried. She was still trying. But the daughter she’d known had simply disappeared. All she was left with was this shell of my former self. Sad. Tearful. Panicked.

She couldn’t understand why. She couldn’t figure out how to fix it. How to fix me.

With every day that passed I became more reclusive and she became more frantic. My failure somehow became her failure. It was a mother’s job to keep her kids safe and well, that’s what she said. But she couldn’t make me well. Plasters and paracetamol wouldn’t work this time. Eighteen years of experience as a mother hadn’t prepared her for this.

Mum thrust smelling salts under my nose. I flinched as my eyes smarted. But I inhaled deeply. I took the little brown glass bottle from her and clung to it, wafting it back and forth below my nose as the darkness gradually faded into grey.

‘Just don’t think about it,’ Mum said as she hooked her arm through mine and pulled me forward, escorting me outside, while my body trembled and each breath rasped in my chest.

It had become her favourite phrase. I wasn’t even sure what it was I wasn’t supposed to think about.

I don’t think she knew either.

 

 

 

Tips For Having Family Fun Without Blowing The Family Budget

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Blowing The Family Budget

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Photo credit: Jerry Wang

The new year is finally here, and people everywhere are excited to start a new chapter in life. The past year was quite a challenge, and we are anxious to see what we can do better this time around. Of course, many of us will be starting with a little less. Our bank accounts may be a bit more lean than usual, and our options, while plentiful, are a bit less certain than we are accustomed to. So we are starting out intending to keep a close watch on our budgets. An article published on Lottoland gives some great tips on how to save money that will benefit everyone.

As the year moves on and you feel the need to venture out with your family, how can you enjoy your time together without spending too much and blowing your fragile budget? We will give you some tips that we believe will help you do just that. 

What’s happening in the area?

Ask around and find out what events are going on in the area. Check with the library for special speakers and shows. Look for music productions, plays, free classes, and children’s films being shown. If you are in Dorset, go to www.visit-dorset.com for tons of ideas that are free and inexpensive. They also have a list of things to do with your kids when it is raining (or sunny), so you are never stuck inside. There is always something going on, and with just a little effort, you will be able to entertain your group with fun and educational activities that won’t cost you anything.

Eating

Food is expensive and it is always a challenge. Sometimes the challenge is finding something your kids will eat while you are on the go. Then there is the expense. In 2022, a lot of parents are buying in bulk and prepackaging their kid’s food in advance. Inexpensive, reusable containers make this the responsible way to handle the issue. Letting the children help teaches them to be mindful of waste and keep the planet healthy. But, for those times when you are going to be out for the entire day or longer, you may not want to carry lunch and dinner with you. In that case, plan your itinerary. Decide ahead of time where you will be for lunch and dinner. Check the restaurants in that area for “kids eat free” times. Take advantage of the schedules. Check the menus online. If they do not have anything, your child will eat, speak to the manager and ask if they will prepare a meal and get a price. Many times they will put together a toddler plate of finger foods for free with your purchase or in the place of your salad or side. 

Let Them Do – Not Watch!

One mistake parents make is taking kids places where they watch others have fun. No kid wants to go to a fair or a carnival and watch other kids ride the rides or play the games. This makes them feel left out. No kid wants to watch other kids jump in a trampoline park, skate in a skate park, or climb on a rock climb knowing they cannot give it a go. So, don’t take them there if you do not want to spend the money to let them participate. Instead, make a trip to your discount or thrift store. Pick up some cheap painting supplies. Then take them to a nice park or beach and surprise them with a painting contest. Make a scavenger hunt listing common things found in a forest and take them to a trail for a family scavenger hunt. Have a photo-taking contest with cell phones. Even if your kids do not have their own phones, you probably have enough old phones around to use, and even 4-year-olds can work a cell camera. You will be amazed at some of the photographs you will see, and it is loads of fun and laughs. The point is, get creative. Try to think like a kid again. Kids do not think about money. They think about having fun. The spare change to buy a soda or a candy is a treat. It is the adults in the group that load everything down with money. 

We are blessed with a brand new year. We are given the opportunity to embrace those we love and to show them what they mean to us. We are given another chance to prioritize our lives. Money is important, but it is not the most important thing in our world. The most important thing is loving and being loved. This is what we need to remember in the coming year. Everything else will fall into place where it will. 

Collaborative post with our partner.

SISTER SCRIBES: CASS GRAFTON ON JANE CABLE’S ANOTHER YOU

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Today, I’m delighted to be talking to author, Jane Cable, about one of her novels, Another You, a moving saga of modern-day family life. Despite touching on the horrors of combat, past and present, it’s a heart-warming tale of one woman’s fight to reclaim her identity and discover what really matters to her.

Marie is the well-respected chef of The Smugglers pub, near Studland Bay, but despite her success in the kitchen, she feels less confident in her handling of relationships, both with her (almost) ex-husband, Stephen, and her much-loved son, Jude.

A chance meeting with an American soldier, just as the Bay is preparing to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the D-Day landings, seems the perfect escape from worrying about everything—if only she could get rid of her debilitating migraines and the sense of the past coalescing with the present.

Another You was a brilliant read, and Jane is a proficient storyteller. Her characters are entirely relatable, their faults as much at play as their strengths. Although touching upon the lingering effects of PTSD and the invisible scars left by all wars, Jane manages to blend in romance, mystery, family relationships and an unforeseen twist towards the end.
The book stayed with me long after I’d finished, and I was keen to ask Jane some questions about it.

I was swept away by your beautiful descriptions of the Studland Bay area of Dorset. Was it the setting that inspired you initially or had you come across the tragic story that took place there during the war first?

Studland was the initial inspiration for Another You. I first visited with a friend in 2009 and fell in love with the enclosed bay with its calm blue waters and high white cliffs. It has a magic all of its own for me – arriving on the chain ferry from Sandbanks (Dorset’s millionaire’s row) you feel as though you’ve fallen down a rabbit hole and landed in another world. The Second World War story only came in at the second major redraft of the book, but when I read about it during my research into the area it spoke to me too loudly to ignore.

The connection between the past and the present is something you do so skilfully in your novels. What is it as a writer that attracts you to blending time periods?

I have always had an interest in consciousness beyond matter and the ways present and past could intermingle; either through the spirit world, inside people’s heads, or by any other mechanism it’s currently beyond us to understand. If that sounds seriously strange it springs from my firm belief that because we can’t possibly know everything we shouldn’t rule anything out. Just think how science continues to advance. As I writer I love the ambiguity of it all and try to let my readers make up their own minds about how it could happen.

On a lighter note, how are your cheffing skills? Are you as good a cook as Marie, because if so, please can I come to dinner?

I’m sorry, but I am no more than an adequate cook – not even the best chef in my own household, to be honest. But I loved researching Marie’s recipes for Another You. And you are more than welcome to risk dinner with me at any time. I’ll get the rosé in…

 

I’ll bring the glasses! Thank you, Jane, both for answering my questions and writing such an absorbing, well researched and beautifully told story about self-discovery, emerging from darkness into light and finding love where you least expect it.

 

 

 

My Writing Process – Helen Baggott

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Helen Baggott is the latest author in the series How I Write, which gives readers, and other writers, an insight into the minds of writers. Not only how they think, but how they work. 

Helen Baggott

 

I grew up in Swanage and although I no longer live in the seaside town, home is still in Dorset. For as long as I can remember, I have always loved history and writing. Before I reached my teens, I recall creating my own magazine – and making my family read it. I even tried charging them to advertise!

I’ve always enjoyed writing both fiction and non-fiction. Despite having some success with short stories, I’m now focussing on non-fiction. I have written articles for local magazines and papers, and now my own book.

Posted in the Past was published in June and it’s the culmination of a project that was as much about research as writing. Through genealogy, I’ve researched the people who sent and received postcards more than a hundred years ago. The cards open the door to our pasts, but what was so surprising were the links I found to events of national and international importance. A housemaid who worked for Edward VII’s doctor was particularly exciting, not to mention discovering Arnold Schwarzenegger was linked to a postcard sent before the First World War.

What is your process of writing. 

Unless I’m in the right frame of mind – something that even I can’t describe fully – a blank page will remain blank. I possibly work best when a deadline looms.

Do you plan or just write?

When I was writing fiction I found that I would sift a story through my mind for days, if not longer, and then type it out. That first draft seemed to always work fairly well – although if you include those sifting stages, it was possibly version 20 that found its way onto paper.

What about word count?

With Posted in the Past I made a conscious decision to simply write each postcard’s story. The length was irrelevant – it was the story that mattered. I didn’t want to pad any of them – sometimes the shorter stories are just as interesting as the longer ones.

How do you do your structure?

I ask myself the questions that a reader might and I answer them on the page. A loose end is a distraction and tying everything together forms that structure.

What do you find hard about writing?

When the mood’s right, the planets are aligned, and I have the perfect cup of coffee, nothing is hard. Without the ideas, writing isn’t hard, it’s impossible.

What do you love about writing? 

Irrespective of whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, I love the escapism, living in another world and time.

Advice for other writers.

Have faith and confidence – to not write when you feel you should is the only time you will fail.

 

Posted in the Past is available on Amazon

www.helenbaggott.co.uk

www.stourcastle.co.uk

@SelfPubSupport

@PostedInThePast

The Chicken Soup Murder by Maria Donovan

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Although Maria Donovan has had great success with her short stories this is her first foray into longer fiction – and I dearly hope this debut novel is swiftly followed by another. It has such warmth and humour – which isn’t bad for a story about murder and death.

Michael lives with his nan in a little town near the sea with its magic hills and the three pebbled dashed semis in a long arc. But everything is turned upside down when the Bulls move in next door and Michael’s magical creative thinking lands him in trouble: why is he the only one who thinks a murder has been committed? Can we believe his story?

As Michael struggles to help himself and the people he cares for to move on, he learns about acceptance and grief, and to what happens to those who are left behind when a loved one dies.

Reading the above you might think that this would be a maudlin, fearful book but its not like that at all. Although Donovan explores the many repercussions of death – on family, friends and neighbours, she has a light touch and paints a varied picture of grief as it is, in its everyday shabbiness and unwashed clothes, in the difficulties of holding on and letting go.

The narrator, eleven-year-old Michael, just about to go up to ‘Big School’, leads the reader through the happenings at the three semis in the street where he lives; his own home where he lives with Nan, Irma the next door neighbour and best-friend Janey and her family at the house on the end.

It would do the novel a great injustice to describe it purely as a murder mystery because it is so much more. It is about what makes a family, what holds it together and how friends and neighbours can be family too. How much they become a part of the very fabric of our lives. I was gripped until the very last sentence.

The Chicken Soup Murder was a finalist for the Dundee International Prize and is published by Seren.

Maria Donovan is a native of Dorset and has strong connections with Wales and Holland. Past career choices include training as a nurse in the Netherlands, busking with music and fire around Europe and nine years as a lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Glamorgan.

www.mariadonovan.com

 

The Business Of Books: Writing In Balance

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the-business-of-books-interviewswithjanecableAuthor Nikki Moore tells Jane Cable why she never quite wants to give up her day job.

 

  1. How much of your working life does the business of books take up?

 

The honest answer is, quite a bit, but not as much as I’d like. I have a full-time HR day job, so writing has to slot around that, as well as my children. Of course there’s also seeing my boyfriend, friends and family, housework, food shopping etc. I have the same commitments as everybody else. I’ve had to be very disciplined and maketime to write. I set several evenings a week aside and also write on weekends; I watch a lot less TV than I used to (although my boyfriend and I are newly addicted to The Walking Dead). When I’m working under deadline – 2015 was a busy year as I delivered five novellas and a 100,000 word novel for the #LoveLondon series – I write any spare moment I can, whether it’s during lunch breaks or into the early hours of the morning. As well as working on manuscripts, I also have to promote my books so I blog when I can, as well as tweeting and Facebook posting regularly.

I used to want to give up the day job to write full-time, but I’ve realised I need to be around people in order to write believable characters and compelling storylines, so now the dream is to scale back the day job to 1-2 days a week and write the rest of the time.

THE BUSINESS OF BOOKS- WRITING IN BALANCE

  1. What’s your business model to earn a living from writing?

I’m not a best-selling author – I hope to be one day – although I’ve sold more books than I ever imagined I would when I started out. However, like many authors, I don’t earn enough to give up the day job yet; my HR career pays the bills.  So my business model is to stay passionate and keep working hard to write the best books I can for my readers, get them published, earn good reviews, promote my books through as many forms of media as possible, interact with my audience including bloggers, build networks… and cross my fingers for luck.

 

  1.  What do you write and what do you consider to be your major successes?

 

I write romantic fiction and am hoping to move into women’s commercial fiction. In terms of successes, before being published I was a finalist in several writing competitions including the RNA’s Elizabeth Goudge trophy (judged by the fabulous Katie Fforde) and Novelicious Undiscovered.  Some of the #LoveLondon novellas have been in the Top 100 short story charts on Kobo and Top 20 in the Amazon UK bestsellers Holiday chart. Having a short story in the bestselling RNA/Mills & Boon anthology Truly, Madly, Deeply alongside best-sellers like Adele Parks, Miranda Dickinson and Carole Matthews was amazing. My debut novel Crazy, Undercover, Love was shortlisted for the RNA Joan Hessayon Award and Valentine’s on Primrose Hillshortlisted for a Love Stories award. But there are other measures of success too; the thrill of a message from a reader telling me they stayed up until 2.00 a.m. to read my book and cried when it was over; being interviewed by my local paper; being asked to co-tutor a workshop with my aunt Sue Moorcroft at Purbeck Literary Festival last year. And sometimes, just finishing a book is a success.

 

  1. Tell me about your latest project.

I’m currently finishing revisions on a women’s commercial fiction book I’ve been working on in the background for several years. I can’t say much, other than people who enjoyed Eat, Pray, Love or Me Before You, or The Fault in Our Stars may enjoy it. I’m also working on an outline for another exciting project. One thing is for sure; whether its revisions or writing something new, as long as I’m writing, I’m happy.

Nikki Moore is a Dorset girl and social media addict who loves reading and writing. Published mainly by HarperImpulse, she is the author of the #LoveLondon series. A member of the Romantic Novelists Association, she is a firm supporter of aspiring writers and is always happy to share her writing experiences. She encourages readers to get in touch too!

 

 

Month 10 of My Reading Challenge By Frances Colville

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The first book I picked up this month was a biography of Thomas Hardy by Claire Tomalin, entitled  Thomas Hardy: the Time Torn Man.  This is not a quick read.  It’s lengthy, detailed, and packed full of information about the life and works of Hardy and the people around him.  But it’s not a difficult read. It’s well-written, the information is interesting and for me provided new insights into the work of a great author. I particularly liked learning more about his first wife Emma and trying to understand how their relationship deteriorated over the many years they were together.

Month 10 of my reading challenge Frances Colville 1thomashardy

Earlier this month I went to a talk at the Cheltenham Festival of Literature by Paula Hawkins, author of the best selling The Girl on the Train.  It’s always interesting to listen to an author talking about his or her work. Unfortunately on this occasion an unguarded question from a member of the audience told me the ending of the book before I’d got to it.  And that is something you don’t want to happen with a psychological thriller. Despite the spoiler, I did enjoy the book. It’s a fast-paced, keep-you-on- the-edge-of-your-seat read. I got a bit fed up with all the changes from one date to another, and I found the three female characters rather too similar.  But I still recommend it – and I gather it’s being made into a film as well.

                                          Month 10 of my reading challenge Frances Colville 2girlonthetraingosetawatchman

And then a book I’ve been looking forward to reading ever since I first heard it was going to be published.  Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mocking Bird which is such an iconic book that I wasn’t sure if anything else could live up to it.  And my conclusion is that it didn’t.  Written before To Kill a Mocking Bird and rejected by publishers, it does read like an unedited early version. It’s more a stream of consciousness than a novel with a plot, and there are some annoying sections when the author switches from third to first person.  I could see how To Kill a Mocking Bird had developed from it, and how much better a writer Harper Lee became once she had found the voice of the child Scout instead of the adult Jean Louise in Go Set a Watchman.  But that doesn’t mean the latter isn’t worth reading.  It deals with important issues in its own right and it’s also a significant stepping stone towards fully appreciating the greatness of To Kill a Mocking Bird.  I’m very glad to have read it.

A book I have spent a great deal of time reading and re-reading this year is an anthology of short stories and poetry to which I contributed, and for which I was co-editor and proofreader.  It’s called Narrative Threads and is a compilation of the work of sixteen Dorset-based authors and poets, known as Story Traders.  Every piece in the book has a connection with the theme of rope, because of the importance of the rope and net industry in our local town of Bridport.  Of course I recommend it – for its variety and uniqueness as much as anything – even though just at the moment I’ve had enough of going through it with a fine toothcomb.

Month 10 of my reading challenge Frances Colville narrativethread

Next a thoroughly enjoyable couple of evenings reading The Future is Ours, one of Margaret Graham‘s early books.  Set during the aftermath of the Second World War and then the Korean War and the run up to the Cold War, a period which has always interested me, it’s a very human story with a delightful main character Rosie. A book which is very easy to read as it’s well-paced and the writing just flows.

Month 10 of my reading challenge Frances Colville 4

And finally something completely different – a family/travel memoir called Grape Expectations by Caro Feely, which describes the new life she and her husband (with two very young children) carved for themselves in a vineyard in the South of France.  Not the best-written book of its type I have read, but it’s a compelling read and I have endless admiration for someone who can achieve so much under some fairly adverse circumstances and still have the strength and enthusiasm to write about it.

Overall, not a bad month in terms of number and quality of words read, and books crossed off my list.  Onward and upward!