I need to get back into a daily routine of writing but the glorious ( quite worrying) weather distracts me. Now I am picking damsons by the kilo, courgettes, runner beans, tomatoes and cucumbers. Who knew courgette soup could be so delicious? I am distracted by thinking up new ways of using them. My favourite so far is a sort of pasta primavera with cream cheese and anything we have fresh from the garden. So simple but gorgeous flavours. Our builder has created a new roadside shop for us to sell surplus produce. The damsons, beans and courgettes at rock bottom prices flew off the stall. Our little bit for the local economy.
The feedback since we put our planning permission from the authorities is relatively positive so long as we don’t rent out our guest suite which we have never intended to do. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we will get the go-ahead in September. Then it will be all systems go. I can see more distraction from writing. I must do some before images in my next post.
Our new village book group meets today for the first time to discuss A Man called Ove by Fredrik Backman. This is the third book I have read by this author, each very different but he has a unique style which certainly gets you thinking. I can thoroughly recommend his books. We’ll see what the other members think. I am looking forward to the film of the book with Tom Hanks playing Ove.
The Bluebird Brooch continues to garner positive reviews, still mostly 5* which is delightful. It’s only five weeks until the Boston Book Festival where I will be discussing it and my other books. I think I need to dip into them all to remind me what I wrote. I don’t want any tricky questions because I have forgotten some of the characters.
Last weekend we visited London for the first time since the advent of Covid in the UK. We met family which was delightful but we also met the granddaughter of Sadie. I was nervous. having written the fictional Sadie’s Wars, would her granddaughter be angry with the way I had written Sadie? No. We had a delightful chat about her memories of her warm and generous granny. I gave her the first world war medals that I believe were her grandfather’s. I wrote a chapter in the book around them. The following day, we took a canal trip down the Regent’s Canal and marvelled at the multi-million pound houses lining its banks before finishing at Camden Lock which was heaving with tourists.
My other distraction was being introduced to a local Ukranian refugee and realising that she had both a need and a thirst for learning English. A week later, we have a volunteer tutor to teach her and her husband, and I am joining with another neighbour for supplementary conversation sessions.
Next week, I promise myself, I will get back to writing.
Rosemary Noble - author page 