my 'shed'

So, I had a great summer, but I am so glad to be back in my studio, moving on with my novel. I realise now that what I thought was me going a little bit bonkers was, of course, lack of writing.

The large house in Edinburgh we stayed in was entirely full all of the time. Not only did we have the whole of The Author cast staying, but we had assorted families, friends, students and lovers from all over the world. Maximum count was 17 for three days.

The house was big enough to swallow us all – it never felt full. But I had two problems with working in that environment (aside from sheer first draft fear, of course, which must always be fought, but against which I need suitable armaments). The first drawback is that I am basically a very sociable sort of person, so if there’s a kitchen of people sitting around chatting on offer, I’m going to take it up. Second,  I do need my own hideaway space – possibly because I am spoiled with my shed at the bottom of the garden, so writing sitting in the bed I share with Mr Crouch while he gets on with his work next to me is never going to work. Also, I had littleson with me all of the time, and had to keep on taking him out to see great theatre, circus and comedy shows. Life is hard.