I thought I’d create a collage of some of the photos that I’m using to inspire my Limehouse project. Is this a “mood board”? Don’t know, but it’s useful.
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Looking for inspiration in Limehouse
Just before Christmas I took a trip to Limehouse, part of London’s old docklands. I’m writing about the area for a project called 26 miles. Specifically, I’m writing about one mile of tarmac that runs through Limehouse. The idea behind the project is simple. Take the 26 miles of the official London Marathon route and …
How to sell books
An intriguing package arrived on my doormat yesterday from writer Sarah Salway. It was what I call “granny wrapped”, after my nan who wrapped all Christmas presents in several yards of impenetrable brown parcel tape. I needed a kitchen knife, scissors and patience to open it. But this was not a process I wanted to …
A rather good week, if you’re asking
I was in London’s Free Word centre last week, where the brilliant Throwaway Lines project has become an exhibition. This project is all about turning litter into literature – or litterature, as those of us in the know call it. The idea is simple: give 26 writers 26 different scraps of paper found in the …
Where I write about a Chopper
Would you like a peek inside my messy broom-cupboard of a creative mind? Really? Well… The exhibition I’ve been working on with the V&A’s brilliant Museum of Childhood is now open. Their idea was to tell the story of post-war British childhood through a series of iconic objects. Part of my role was to write …
A turning point at the seaside
I have decided to draw a line in the sand. Running with my dog one morning this week, I thought more about what I might have learnt on my Dark Angels course in Spain. Having made such a big investment – both in time and in cash – in my development as a writer, shouldn’t I …
The one where I interview myself
Oh the narcism. As part of the writers’ collective 26, I’m working with the V&A on a project about british childhood since 1948. Part of my role is to run the project blog, on which I’ve been publishing interviews with other writers. Yesterday I got to interview… me. You can read the results here.
Dark Angels in Spain
I’ve just come back from a writing workshop in Spain. This was the “advanced” version of the Dark Angels course I took in Scotland last November. When I came home from Scotland, I wrote a long blog post about what I’d learned there. So, what did I learn in Spain? It’s hard to say. Dark …
A tapestry, a story
This tapestry has hung on the wall at my in-laws’ house for at least the twenty years that I’ve known them. But it was only last weekend that I had a close look at it. My daughter and I sat in their kitchen and tried to decode the story that it tells. We struggled. It …
Writing that inspires
Things have been a bit quiet here lately. I’ve been investing all of my blogging time in 26 Treasures of Childhood, part of a project I’m working on with the Victoria & Albert Museum. But it’s a public holiday here in England today, so I have a little bit of spare time. Here’s a short …