Work in Progress

 'Progress' is a bit slow, but I am working and enjoying it. Not sure what the finished product will look like - definitely not a 'Riviera' book, or even in that style. I've envisages it as one of a pair of books, the link being that security business run by the two heroes- Nathan and Luke, but it is going to be a while before we get there. 

But writing is not just about actually putting words on paper. Not words that will eventually be read, that is. Knowing I was getting myself into a few knots with the time lines of the various characters in the secondary plot that is the pivot of the story I spent an afternoon sorting out their overlapping time lines and producing a fancy board to prove it. As shown below. Now I have a better idea of what I am doing! Emrys - who is a famous artist - was born in 1924 and was old enough to serve in WW2, which is an important part of the story. The other lines on the chart are the women in his life - his first love, the woman he eventually married and the Shakespearean actress who became his muse in later life. The ramifications of those relationships play out in the contemporary part of the story. It's not exactly dual time, maybe a present day story with roots in the past? While I was doing it I discovered some important facts about the personalities - notably that although it was generally assumed that Emrys and the actress were lovers, in fact their relationship was platonic as they were both married to other people.

I also had to do some ongoing research. I have a list. 

• Obituaries of the great and the good.
• Honours awarded to servicemen for bravery in WW2
• Dates and ages for call up during the war.
• Dates and details of the Nuremberg Trials and Dame Laura Knight, who was an official war artist. 
• The rules of probate
• Herbs with associations with Wicca. What every good witch would have in her rather wild garden. That one was fun, as I did an on-line course and now I know what my 'witch,' Iris will have in hers. 

  

All of the above are essential to the plot but probably won't merit more than a passing reference. They are building blocks that are the foundations for the book. 

And a wonderful excuse for productive procrastination.