I love this time of year, especially when the sun shines yet there’s a nip in the air. It builds my sense of anticipation for the warmer summer days that are yet to arrive.
On my twice weekly run around the suburban streets of New Malden, I look out for laburnum trees and wisteria coming into bloom. Richmond Park’s Isabella Plantation is a 40-minute walk from the flat where I enjoy seeing the lipstick pinks and reds of rhododendrons and azaleas. This colourful spring combined with the early morning light, makes it easier to get out of bed and do some exercise before spending time writing
I’m still working my way through a redraft of a novel with the working title Conversation Classes. It’s set at a remote hotel in northern Italy where professionals are sent for a week’s immersion in language learning to improve their use of business English. It’s based upon my experience of volunteering at Vaughan Town, which you can read about here. It’s interesting when drawing on life experiences in novel writing, to notice where reality and fiction intersect. In this example, the characters and incidents that drive the narrative are imagined but the daily structure of activities is similar to the timetable I followed.
Let’s see if I can now work some colour into the novel from my regular dose of spring blooms.
the writer is a lonely hunter 
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