The power of writing your own story
My friend Julie Willard read my novel, Unlikely Neighbours, and then gave me Hidden Talents by Erica James to read.
‘Have you thought about writing more? she asked me. Looking at the near-500 pages in my hand, I realised she meant a longer novel. (Mine is around 200 pages.)
It was a question, I pondered, as I read Hidden Talents.
I really enjoyed the book. The characters became like friends, all well penned and I felt I pretty much knew them by the end. The storylines, whilst quite dramatic in places, are gentle with you and everyone turns out to be basically good even if they have had their moments.
It is about a group of writers who meet once a week and, to that extent, it was very interesting for me as I started writing in the same way. Dulcie is a retired sixty-something and decides to advertise for local writers to join her on Thursday evenings. As they read their work to each other, you hear storylines of infidelity, marriage breakup, romance and dramas various.One thing that struck me about the newbie writers was that they were writing their life stories. They say that to begin with you should write about what you know, and this was definitely a case of that. It meant that the members of the writers group inadvertently got to know each other through their life stories.
I thought about my own writers group and wondered if the same thing had happened. Perhaps it did but in my naivety, I hadn’t realised. Although, John’s book, which was a sci-fi thriller seemed an unlikely scenario for his own life! However, his book on the struggles in Northern Ireland which started in the late 1960s was more likely to be a cathartic scribbling, as he grew up during the troubles.
When you write from experience you write from the heart and this makes your work more powerful. Whilst it doesn’t have to be a completely true story, many people’s ‘real’ story is rich material to draw upon.
You may also find interesting:
Appréciez-vous la cuisine française ?
If you live in Westerham Kent you are lucky enough to have the authentic French dining experiences on your door-step. They even have grumpy waiters. The food is excellent and I’ve eaten there a good number of times as I used to live in Westerham.
The Grey and I popped in for lunch the other day and had their shellfish salad (lots of yummy food) and a glass of wine for very little money – excellent value.
I remember this brasserie when it was half the size it is now (they bought the shop next door a few years ago) and they crammed in as many tables as they could. You might arrive hoping for a romantic dining experience and find yourself sitting just a few inches from the couple on the next table hoping for the same thing. It’s funny though, after a while (and a glass of wine or two) you forgot about it and had a great time anyway. Now, there’s plenty of space I think the tables have even got a little bigger.
The Rendezvous makes an appearance in my first novel, Unlikely Neighbours. In fact Westerham is in fact the fictitious ‘Hartfield’ in my mind as I write. The restaurant plays a much bigger role in my next novel to be published soon as it is home to the dashing Pierre. When The Grey first read the first draft of the novel he was convinced that Pierre was real and the owner of the Rendezvous so he booked a table and sure enough the owner dressed smartly in a suit was wandering around ensuring all was well. Trouble was, he had a beer gut and wasn’t what you’d call handsome so I think he finally believed me when I said he was made up!
You may also find interesting:
