The pleasure of writing
I still work part-time as a Director (Communication), editing a FCO-related magazine Inside Out and sit on three boards. But writing books is my greatest pleasure. The themes come easily and the words without difficulty. I write when I can – no set daily routine. And wherever I go, I carry with me a small notebook to capture – possibly for later use – sudden thoughts about storylines, snatches of overheard conversations and observations of the world around me. A sign hangs on my study door in Norfolk:
Careful, or you’ll end up in my novel
As for my next novel, let’s see what inspiration I get from the world in which the unthinkable, upheaval, has become the daily norm.
While I still get a buzz from working in London two to three days a week – with colleagues in King Charles Street at the heart of the UK’s 21st century foreign policy machine – it’s always good to return to north Norfolk for the space and opportunity to write.