The Write Place at The Right Place

Earlier this week I joined several other writers on our annual Christmas outing. We went out for a meal. Well, of course we did. It’s what people do at this time of year. Without hesitation we entered our chosen venue. After all, though we weren’t specifically categorised on the plaque in the entrance, neither were we excluded.

While our weekly sessions at The Write Place (Creative Writing School, Dartford) are not always formal they are definitely structured. There was no formality on Monday evening, just a unanimous will to have a good meal with a beverage or two. There was some slight apprehension when we felt our reputation had preceded us and it gave a new meaning to the expression ‘drinks behind the bar’.

This is a particularly enjoyable event as it gives us all the opportunity of learning more about each

other away from our writing lives. It’s easy to assume that, because it’s what we see, that’s all there is but of course the reality is that people do have another existence. What an interesting group of people I see every week, all dedicated to their writing and how lovely to hear about family, (other) work, aims and aspirations.

Our venue was The Horse & Groom in Wilmington and you can see from this image that we all looked suitably well fed. A great choice by Elaine Everest. She certainly picked the right place for The Write Place.

This will be my last post in December so I’d like to wish everyone a very Happy Christmas and a great New Year. See you in 2016.

Links: 

http://www.thewriteplace.org.uk/

http://www.thehorseandgroomwilmington.com/

The Company of Watermen & Lightermen of the River Thames

I had great pleasure  being part of a group privileged to enjoy a conducted tour of Watermen’s Hall by Carol Ratcliffe, Assistant Clerk, a lady who obviously lives and breathes her job and whose enthusiasm was infectious.

We began in the Silver Room on the ground floor where the walls were lined with reclaimed wood and engraved with the names of the elected Masters, from the first, Francis Theodore Hay, in 1827, to the present day. Prior to that the Company was governed by the Rulers.  The Watermen’s Company celebrated five hundred years last year, having received Royal Assent from King Henry VIII and created by an Act of Parliament in 1514. With this Act came the introduction of apprenticeships and to this day the company is a working guild, one of only two, I believe. Livery Companies were by contrast created by Royal Charter. The Watermen were joined by the Lightermen, carriers of cargo, in 1700.

There was much to see in this first room alone but outstanding for me was a model of a wherry, something of which I’d heard but didn’t know what it was, and the story behind it. Wherries were passenger boats in the style of a rowing boat and carried eight to ten people. They could be hailed from their position midstream by someone on the river bank, much in the same way one would hail a black cab in the street today. If they didn’t like the look of you they stayed where they were! It was no easy job and the skill and bravery of these men was outstanding.

Also on ground floor level was The Parlour Room with its beautiful stained glass window and display cases which house some of the Company’s artefacts.

We went up the rather beautiful staircase to The Court Room, the heart of the original Georgian building. It is the only original Georgian Hall left in the City of London. Those of you who are aware of my work in progress, a novel set in Regency times, will appreciate my interest in this particular room. It is thought that there might have been some influence by Josiah Wedgwood as the ceiling is in that style and he and designer, William Blackburn, were contemporaries, though there is no proof that they ever met. The walls and ceiling, at some time painted yellow, have been restored to their original blue, the ceiling picked out in pink and gold leaf. The marble fireplace is believed to be designed by John Sloane and above it hangs the Company coat of arms. Some of the contents of the room are the amazing Master’s Chair, a portrait of the first Master and, in one corner, a fabulous barometer which dates from 1693. To this day the apprentices stand before the Master and other members of the Court to receive their Freedom and become known as Journeymen Freemen.

Moving into the adjacent room we were told that this wasn’t part of the original building but that two adjoining buildings had been incorporated at a later date. These had suffered severely from war damage but the exteriors were intact. They have now been sympathetically renovated and decorated and are used as function rooms for commercial hire, as well as by the Company itself.

Carol gave us many more details. She told us about “The Doggett’s Coat and Badge Wager”,  a sculling race purported to be the oldest continuously run annual sporting event in the world. It is held in conjunction with the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers and has been going for 300 years. We heard of the part the Watermen played in the evacuation of Dunkirk and how their skills then, and on many other occasions, were effective in saving lives. We learned that there are fifty-one alms houses in Hastings used for the benefit of the Watermen and Lightermen of the River Thames or their widows or widowers. 

I learned much about the river which I have lived close to all my life, some of which I hope will find its way into my book. Whether it does or not, this was a day to be treasured; one which highlighted the bravery and enterprise of man and the comradeship of the members of this historical society right through to the present day.

Guided tours take place on Mondays only. I highly recommend that you go.

Link:  admin@watermenshall.org.

As You Like It and, oh my word, did I like it!

I’ve just had the most amazing evening! It began with early dinner at a favourite restaurant, TAS in The Cut, the sort of meal you have at 5.30pm because you’re going to the theatre. It was wonderful but I’m not here to tell you what I had to eat – or drink! However, rather more full than was comfortable we walked from there to the National Theatre to see Shakespeare's 'As You Like It' at the Olivier. It was a first for me, the play not the theatre. Before we went in I couldn’t resist taking this photo from the balcony.

We had circle seats and a wonderful view onto the stage which was startlingly colourful in a way I can’t even begin to describe - but I’ll try. The floor was covered in large bright squares of red, yellow and green, and the semi-circular backdrop was lined with computer screens and desks, at which were sitting several of the cast wearing yellow jackets, almost like those in a holiday camp. Towards the front were chairs and tables like small trestles, laid out café style.

At the end of the first scene the lights dimmed, the brightly coloured floor slid backwards and everything else, computers, desks, tables and chairs, slowly lifted to take the form of a dark forest. A bit of imagination was required here but it wasn’t an impossible shift to see these tall angled objects as trees. Anyway, see what you think. I was able to take this photo because there was a slight hitch and they had to interrupt the performance for about ten minutes.

The comedy was delicious, the skill of the writer unsurpassed, the story as fresh today as it must have been some four hundred and fifty years ago. What was also first class was the standard of the actors (there was only one I was a little disappointed with) and the superb production. Rosalie Craig's Rosalind and Joe Bannister's Orlando were excellent but for me the star of the show was Patsy Ferran playing Celia. What an amazing talent!

I know one isn’t supposed to take photos in the theatre and I wouldn’t dream of doing so during a performance but I just couldn’t resist taking this one at the end.

I couldn’t quite shake off my writerly head though it in no way detracted from my enjoyment of the evening. If anything it enhanced it as I watched the skill with which the master carried out his twists and turns, a thread here, a diversion there, and the whole coming together with such apparent ease. I probably won’t sleep tonight. I don’t mind.

The show runs until 5th March 2016. You won't be surprised to know that I thoroughly recommend it if you have the opportunity to go.

Link:
http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/

Popping in to say 'Hello'

It’s almost three weeks since I last posted here but I promise you I have a very good reason.

When I first began this blog I vowed that I wouldn’t litter it with inconsequentials. It started as, and has ever since been, devoted to writing. The problem is, I have a gremlin sitting on my shoulder, otherwise known as my conscience. I appreciate that those of you who follow me will not be looking at their calendars and deriding me for laziness. And it would be a gross injustice to say I have been idle all this time. However, a good deal of that time has been devoted to a project that is as far from writing as it possibly could be – hence my absence. As this situation is likely to continue for another two weeks I’m sort of reporting in.

Setting the scene with a picture of Fortnum & Mason - established 1707

Following my visit to St James’s Square a few weeks ago (see last post) I boarded the Jubilee Line to Green Park Station, this time to visit Berkeley Square. I have a fancy it is where my hero will live, though that might change. My heroine meantime is firmly ensconced across Piccadilly in St James’s. While the London plane trees looked magnificent, I didn’t have the same feeling of history as on my previous visit to its neighbour. This might possibly be due to the fact that there are several modern buildings which for me detracted from the atmosphere. I admit to a little frisson of excitement when I saw Bill Nighy sitting on a bench in the sunshine when I rose from my own a little way along. It would have been rude to disturb him and his companion so I’m afraid I have no photographic evidence and you will just have to take my word for it. 

Did my duke live here?

Or perhaps he lived in this
rather beautiful building

Charlotte, my heroine and working title, is coming along nicely. Those precious times not taken up with the project mentioned above have been as ever devoted to her and I have written 6,682 words in thirteen days. On the face of it not a great output but, other things taken into consideration, I am more than satisfied.

The inspiration I am getting from my ‘outings’, various very nicely timed TV documentaries and other research areas is filling me with a thrill I have never quite experienced before, though I have always enjoyed my writing. Back soon.

A Sense of Place

Sometimes the disappointment of ‘the best laid plans….’ can lead to something entirely unexpected and very exciting. This is what happened to me last weekend.

Last Sunday, on one of those rare lovely sunny days, and with my original arrangements cancelled, my husband drove me up to town. It was a difficult journey with far more traffic than we’d anticipated – possibly due to the thanksgiving service at Westminster Abbey in memory of the Battle of Britain. We took a different route into London from usual and because of several hold-ups (holds-up?) saw lots of things we might otherwise have missed; and the sun was shining; and we weren’t in a hurry.

Arriving in St James’s Square and finding a parking space – yes! – we walked across Jermyn Street into Piccadilly and found somewhere to have lunch, each having by this time built up a healthy appetite. It was lovely and it was leisurely. The thoroughfare was crowded and we watched the world go by. After a dessert which I shall not describe here for fear of salivating, we went back to the square, the object of the outing being to ‘get a feel’ for the place where my heroine lived back in the 1800s.

I had only the camera on my phone to rely on but it did sterling work. The first thing that surprised

me was how big the square is. Standing on one side I was amazed to see, on peering through the central gardens, just how far it stretched across. The square’s main feature is an equestrian statue of William III which was erected in 1808. Things were already going my way then. As we walked around the perimeter of the gardens it was easy to imagine pedestrians, horse-drawn carriages and riders inhabiting that space all those years ago.

There was an eclectic mixture of architecture and I managed some nice images but what amazed me most was the history of the square, not just in relation to ‘my’ period but incorporating several events over time. I don’t know why I was surprised but I will mention a few here, confirmed by the blue plaques that adorned some of the houses. I suppose the most obvious one to begin with is that of Henry Jermyn, Earl of St Albans, inspiration of much of the building in this area, who died in a house on the site of the one that carries this plate.

A house on another side of the square bears evidence that this was a place popular with previous
prime ministers. In a corner of the square (oxymoron?) stands this beautiful building, where lived Nancy Astor, the first woman to sit in Parliament.

Norfolk House carries a plaque carrying the name of Dwight Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander in WWII. I’ve added it here in the hope that you can read the inscription.

                                                                                             

Love this building

And this one

 Perhaps I have overloaded this post with photos but I was so excited! Not only does St James’s Square carry many historical aspects but it gave me the sense of place I was seeking for my work in progress. I had previously Googled and found many images to help with my research but, wonderful as Google is, there is nothing, NOTHING, like seeing something for yourself. 

I will finish with one more image. It is of the London Library where I understand Georgette Heyer, my inspiration for all of this, carried out much of her own research. How good is that!  

 

The London Library

                                             

To Nit-pick or not to Nit-pick - That is the Question

Grammar and punctuation, the ability to put words together to form a sentence that informs, appeals or just make sense, are the tools of a writer’s trade. I was brought up in an age where there was a correctness that could not be transgressed. Heaven forbid, for example, that one should end a sentence with a preposition!

Westminster Abbey

It’s quite difficult to rid oneself of rules that have been instilled when one is at that sponge-like age

and the teacher was always, yes, always right. I have no complaints. I loved the intricacies of the English language. I still do. But I am older and, I hope, a little wiser. It took me a long time though to ‘give way’. It wasn’t until my stepson was studying English at university that it struck me with resounding clarity that language evolves. It is evolving all the time. A conclusion you might think I’d have come to years earlier but it wasn’t the case. I was pompous! (I’m allowed to say that; you are not)

I never studied mediaeval English at school and when I looked at some of those manuscripts I realised I couldn’t read them. Absolutely could not read them. They made perfect sense in the Middle Ages and some were very beautiful but could I decipher them? No way. And how many of us studied Shakespeare at school? I hope you’ve noticed I began that sentence with ‘And’. Begin with a conjunction! Huh!

A few days ago my husband and I went to see a superb production of Romeo and Juliet. There’s no way people would speak like that today but the language was expressive and its meaning absolutely clear…fortunately Shakespearean English is a lot easier than its predecessor.

I have just begun writing a new book. Those of you who follow this blog will know that I am moving from contemporary romantic fiction to a romance set in Regency times. You will have learned how fond I am of that particular period of history but what you may not appreciate is what a joy it is to write prose and dialogue in such a rich form. There is a romance not just about the period but about the language too. I am having so much fun.

So let’s come forward a few more years…to text speak and tweeting. It really did take me a long time to come to terms with these two methods of communication until I realised that the operative word was – communication. It may not be beautiful but in its own way it’s just as creative, as anyone who tweets will know when trying to convey their meaning in just 140 characters.

I have come to the conclusion that, aside from the niceties, the purpose of language is to get one’s message across. If we can succeed in doing that we open our own world and hopefully that of others. I still cringe though when I see commas in the wrong place and misplaced apostrophes.

How do you feel about this controversial subject? If when you read this you find I have been guilty of these and other errors, please be kind. I’m human too.

From Stormy Seas to a Safe Harbour

As this is a holiday weekend in the UK I'm celebrating by offering Safe Harbour as a free download on Amazon here. I've had such fabulous feedback that I thought I'd share some of the questions I've been asked about the book:

What inspired the setting for your book?

I’ve been on several cruises, each different in its own way, to diverse destinations in various types of weather. Every one, though, had an almost mystical feel about it, an excitement and an awareness of things to come, as yet unseen. There is a romance about cruising that doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the love between two people, though of course that isn’t the case in Safe Harbour. Nothing could be more to the fore than the feelings Beth and Ryan have for each other.

I heard you had a problem with naming your characters?

I didn’t actually have a problem at all. They, on the other, had strong objections to their original names and insisted I change them. As I did so their personalities asserted themselves and my characters became more real to me. I’ve learned over time that try as I may to write my protagonists they always have the last word.

Beth, shows a huge amount of courage in taking the action she did? Are all your heroines so strong?

I like to think so. I’ve never been able to write the type of woman who fawns on her man without having a mind of her own. I believe we’d all like to trust we would take what we saw as the right decision, rather than the easy option. There’s no doubt that Beth does that!

Beth faces a terrible dilemma. Was there no other action she could have taken than the one she did?

I suspect there might have been several. None, though, would have allowed her to remain true to herself and the principles that guide her. I prefer to believe that the heartbreak they go through in the end forges an even stronger bond between her and Ryan.

There is one chapter in the book that is quite sexually explicit. Did you find this difficult to write?

Strangely enough, no. Perhaps had I thought about it I might have done but once I started I didn’t think about it…just wrote to the end. Naturally it needed a bit of editing but I truly believe that if I’d stopped to consider it would have ended up being stilted. I don’t believe it is. In fact, I have received several compliments that it is very sensitively written.

I loved your characters in Safe Harbour. Can I look forward to seeing any of them in future books?

You aren’t the first person to have asked me this question. I felt a strong affinity with Ryan’s sister, Siobhan. I think it’s possible her own story is waiting to be written.

I have Safe Harbour downloaded onto my Kindle but would like a signed copy for my friend's birthday. Is this possible?

I’d be delighted to send you a signed copy. If you let me have your details by email at natalie@nataliekleinman.co.uk I’ll be happy to arrange this with you.  

Is Safe Harbour available to borrow from my library?

Not at the moment but I’m happy to say it will come on stream in March of next year.

What are you writing at the moment?

I’m very excited about this. Having written three contemporary romances – the second is published and my latest is at present with my agent, Lisa Eveleigh – I have decided to take a leap of faith and attempt a romance set in Regency times. I grew up with Georgette Heyer and Jane Austen and I love the elegance and etiquette of that period. This project will be longer in the writing – Safe Harbour took about six months – as there is a huge amount of research to do first. It’s important for my own sake and that of my readers that I get it right.

It’s been a delight to reproduce some of the questions here. Do you have a question you would like to ask about the book?

If you've already read Safe Harbour please tell your friends they can read it for free if they download before midnight on Sunday 30^th August. If you haven't, I hope you enjoy it. I’d love to hear from you.