At the end of last year, my family had decided that we would go for a family holiday to Fiji in June. We had it all planned: flights, accommodation, swimming costumes and blow-up rings for the kids to float around in. We were all looking forward to the break.
But then along comes a global pandemic, and we had to say farewell to our vacation. Our flights were cancelled, and a credit given. Our accommodation was refunded. I felt terrible for the hotels in Fiji which are all struggling, given that tourism is a huge part of their economy, but we couldn’t exactly go there.
We have started to look at local options, and I couldn’t help but think to myself that my ideal vacation would be somewhere warm, and alone, with my books for company… but with a family you can’t really tell them you just want to be away from them in the holidays! The 3yo and 2yo just don’t get it.
I’ve always found writing an escape, and I suppose it’s a tourism experience for me, in a way. I like to discover new places, and if those places are only in my mind, writing them down takes me to them to visit them. I know that plenty of people feel the same way when reading books – they like fantasy novels because they can go somewhere completely different from their own lives. Romance readers do the same. Historical fiction readers love the escapism of not our time. It’s all about the armchair travel.
Writing a book not set in our world is a huge pleasure for me. My current character is in a world roughly based on fourteenth century England/Ireland, except with hints of magic waiting in the wings, and a demonic army. She’s on a journey, walking through the world with a pack on her back, and as she walks and discovers the world around her, so am I. I like showing forests and rivers that are so similar to our world, yet have ever-so-slightly different plants and birds.
I’m an adventurer at heart, although I’m more an armchair adventurer these days. When I was younger I loved hiking and going into the wild outdoors, while these days I crave my comforts. I blame small children, yet I know that when they’re bigger and less inclined to run off, we’ll be going camping and teaching them the same things that my character is learning, although probably not to the same degree.
I’ve always loved the idea of being self-sufficient, and not relying on the conveniences of modern life, and having my character do all this is how I get to live that way (without actually leaving my dishwasher and washing machine behind) – and I thought as I collect research on how characters moved and behaved and what they learn while adventuring, why not publish them too? There’s always a chance other writers might like the resources in one place, and they might enjoy the “travel” aspect while we’re all stuck in lockdown at home.
Stay tuned for more updates!