Jul 29, 2024 | Featured Photos, Updates
At the Community Hub in our village (a small shop set up one morning a week to sell a few essentials and provide coffee and cake to the locals) a neighbour told us that a nearby village were putting on Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest.
A few of us immediately decided to go together. The performance was in Dunsford in the Teign Valley, and the handy name of their amateur dramatic society is, of course, DADS.
It was a fun evening, and the cast did an excellent job. By definition they’re all amateurs, so the audience wasn’t expecting a flawless performance, but the standard was very high. I always enjoy the wit and humour of Wilde’s work, especially all the clever turns of phrase, many of which have become part of our language. But I’d forgotten how densely wordy this play is. Learning the script must have been very challenging, and comic delivery and timing is, I think, one of the hardest things to do well. A tough play to put on anywhere, but in this small village hall, they did an amazing job.
I took a few photos of the village and I hope you enjoy them, Oh, and there’s a close-up photo of an allium beginning to bloom – I spotted it on a neighbour’s allotment and snapped it with my phone.
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Jul 24, 2024 | Featured Photos, Updates
I was fortunate enough to have been given a helicopter ride experience for my last birthday, but since my birthday is in October we waited a while to book it.
I’m happy to say we picked a perfect day to enjoy it. We took off from Dunkeswell near Honiton, and the skies were so clear we could see right across Devon to the coast.
Afterwards, we stopped at Exmouth for a walk along the coast before returning home.
I hope you enjoy the pictures.
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Jul 24, 2024 | Bonus Content, Members Only
This is a very early draft and the book doesn’t have a title.
Most writers don’t share first drafts at all, but I’m happy to share it with members of the site, and that means you’ll need to register or sign in.
In case you missed it, the snippet I shared earlier is here: Snippet 1
Prologue
The Reverend Gregory Southgate stood alone in the Parish Church of St Raphael, the sole place of worship in Embervale. This parish is only one of the four that he serves as vicar, but he often lingers here when his regular duties are done for the day. Of course, all of God’s houses are equally splendid, but there’s something about this small but elegantly proportioned church that speaks to his heart.
Outside, the sun had set at last, the pale light of the evening finally fading. The days were growing longer as spring tightened its grip on the landscape, but the day had been a cold one. There’d been talk of a storm, and though the ancient stone walls had stood firm against the elements for centuries, the roof was a different matter, and the wind was already whistling and whining through the rafters high above him.
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Jul 13, 2024 | Featured Photos, Updates
One of the joys of living in Devon is discovering the leafy lanes and byways, some of which barely seem to be used.
Despite having lived here for well over 25 years, we’re still finding places where we stop and say, “I can’t believe we’ve never been here before.”
Today’s photos are from the Wray Valley Trail, This trail was made on the route of the Victorian railway that ran from Newton Abbot to Moretonhampstead. We ran along it from Bovey Tracey, and instead of turning back at the village of Lustleigh as usual, we picked up the trail and explored. We found this lovely trail and vowed to come back another day and make it to the end.
I hope you enjoy the pictures. There are also photos of the village shop in Lustleigh, because it reminds me of the fictional shop in Embervale, and also the village church because a church features in the upcoming Devonshire Mystery.
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Jul 6, 2024 | Featured Photos, Updates
Or is this life imitating art imitating life?
In the Devonshire Mystery I’m working on, I wrote a scene just the other day in which Alan and a friend (no spoilers) visit a cafe on Dartmoor, the real life Ullacombe Farm. They find the place crowded, partly because a classic car club had chosen the place for their rally. Alan studies the cars on display, taking a fancy to an MG.
This was inspired by a real-life visit to the cafe many years ago, in which the same thing happened to me and my family. We enjoyed seeing the cars, but had to wait an age for our lunch because the place was practically bursting at the seams.
Our recent visit was a little different. There was a small rally of collectible cars, but it was on the nearby moor, and the cafe was actually very quiet. Still, it always strikes me as funny when I write something and then experience something like it immediately afterwards. There was even an MG, and a car like this is an important part of the new mystery.
I hope you enjoy the pictures.
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