Latest News
This week’s blog is a little of all sorts of news. We have had a guest staying; the weather has been hot (40 degrees and humid); I had to go over to the next island for a day which always put my writing routine out of kilter, and we have lots of social engagements coming up, so I am all over the place. Still, I have some news for you, so here it is.
I was on Rhodes yesterday.
Guardians of the Poor
That’s the working title of the work in progress, the first of the Larkspur Mysteries. The main character is called Dalston Blaze, and he has a friend called Joseph Eldridge. I wanted a straightforward surname for Joe, but it’s still not 100% certain if the name will stay. Joseph is deaf, and this is the first time I’ve written a deaf character, so I am doing some research.
Without giving too much away, Joe doesn’t appear so much in this book, but he and Dalston will appear in others later in the series. The principal players in ‘Guardians’ are Dalston and Archer (Lord Clearwater), but we are also introduced to other new characters. There’s a young man at the academy called Frank Andino who swears a lot, is of Greek descent, was working as a tailor and is a mathematical wizard. He’s been good fun to have around so he’ll be staying a while.
Then there’s the man who is in charge of the Academy, Barbery Fleet, and once you meet him, you won’t forget him. Other mainstays of the Clearwater mysteries are involved too; James and Silas as lead investigators for the mystery feeding back to Archer in Cornwall, Duncan who appeared late in the last series, and Mrs Norwood, now even more of a ‘New Woman’ than ever. Fecker, Danylo, Nancarrow and the Larkspur staff also pop in and out, because much of the book is set at the country estate and that’s where they live and work.
The gif below is BSL fingerspelling of ‘Larkspur.’
So, lots of old chums, and plenty of new ones, a new villain or two and a new mystery. I am currently approaching the end of draft one with, probably, another 20,000 words to go for the crisis, climax and denouement. I shall be back to the book on Monday and will update you on progress in due course.
Here’s a very rough plan of the Larkspur Estate (or part of it). I may get my map designer to create a professionally drawn plan of the estate to insert into the book. The main ‘block’ (1, 2 and 3) is Larkspur Hall and to the east, through the woods, is Academy House (4). The estate is large, contains a ruined abbey, and includes some of Bodmin Moor.
Now then…
Learning Sign Language
As I said, ‘Guardians of the Poor’ involves Joe, (18) a character who has been deaf since birth. Because the series starts in August 1890, I needed to research the state of play regarding deaf schools, sign language and the life of the deaf, for want of a better expression, and this, I have started to do. It’s fascinating.
Years ago, I was involved in fringe theatre in London and elsewhere. I used to have my own theatre company, and we’d put on musicals. One thing I always made sure we did during a run was to have a performance signed by a professional sign language interpreter. She would come and see the show, take home a script, and then for one performance in the run (or more, if needed), she would stand on the side of the stage and sign for anyone who was deaf who otherwise might not have been able to enjoy the show.
I decided it was high time I refreshed my skills and learnt lots of new ones, so I have taken up a course in basic British Sign Language (BSL). It’s a course you can do in your own time, and it’s all done online, with assessments, so you can see how you are doing. https://www.british-sign.co.uk/ is the website if you want to visit it. So far, I have made it through stage one, which is knowing some history of BSL, the fingerspelling alphabet, and numbers from one to 10. Next week, it’s on to stage two. As I go, I am passing on what I learn to Neil because a) he wants to learn, and b) I need someone to sign to, so it helps me remember.
Workhouses
‘Guardians’ is also partly set in the Hackney Workhouse (in 1890), as I think I said last week. So, I have been calling on the resources put online by a workhouse specialist, Peter Higginbotham. His website http://www.workhouses.org.uk is invaluable for background, history, details and even maps, and the Hackney workhouse has its own page. I’ve also bought some of his books, and am currently reading Voices of the Workhouse, and Indoor Paupers, which was written by a man who was in the Poplar Workhouse back in the 1880s. Again, fascinating stuff, and great for adding in all those historically accurate details I like to include.
And generally
Thanks to the giveaway we ran to celebrate the end of the Clearwater series, interest in ‘Deviant Desire’ and the books that come after it has shot up. In fact, that book went to number on in some of the Amazon charts, and the last time I looked, ‘The Clearwater Inheritance’ was at #36 in Amazon’s new release charts, so that’s excellent news. Thank you for all your reviews, comments and support.
Our house guest has just this minute left, the temperature is in the mid-thirties and rising (and it’s only 7.19 a.m.), and as I took yesterday off work, I must now get back to writing. I have left my characters on the verge of a discovery, and while I was in Rhodes yesterday, I ran the rest of the book through my head and invented the action to come, so I’d best get that written down before I forget. See you next week.
