Thoughts and words

Upper lips and coolness 2:

In this article, originally entitled "Stiff upper lip - memoirs of a non-combatant" C.A.Goddard reflects on his time at an English boarding school (Ottershaw) in the early 1960s, on stiff upper lips and changing attitudes. A feature of our leisure time at Ottershaw was the Saturday evening entertainment. This took... Read more →

Inspiration from changing attitudes - stiff upper lips and coolness 1

Cecil Roberts (1892-1976) was an English novelist, poet and dramatist. He was a prolific writer and his novels were very popular in his lifetime. He is now almost forgotten. His books include A Terrace in the Sun and the Pilgrim Cottage trilogy. During my teens, I read and enjoyed many... Read more →

Inspiration from the work of others

One of the disadvantages of writing fiction oneself is that it can make you (with the emphasis on the word "can") rather too critical of the work of others. But the opposite can also be true. Just before Christmas 2017 I was searching for an additional present for my wife.... Read more →

Inspiration from disintegration

Imagine you were desperate to get into a relationship. Along comes a suitable candidate - just the right age, the right educational background and sexually attractive, and she seems willing to accommodate you. Sounds great! But there is a catch. In order for you to be considered a good match,... Read more →

Inspiration: the end of the relationship and the feelings of loss that linger...

Memories of old friends/lovers. The end of a relationship and the feelings of loss that can follow and linger for a long, long time. Memories of old friends/lovers are a great source of inspiration for writers. Think of The Great Gatsby, The Myth of You and Me by Leah Stewart,... Read more →

Ispiration from the unexpected

Imagine a chance encounter in a London pub, a meeting with a stranger at the bar and the subsequent discovery that you are the descendent of a well-known aristocrat. Alternatively, imagine that you are on your way to work one day and you encounter a woman about to throw herself... Read more →

Somewhere else entirely - inspiration from a distance

What do Peter Robinson (Inspector Banks novels) and James Joyce have in common with Ernest Hemingway, Oscar Wilde, Victor Hugo, Pablo Neruda, Isabel Allende and Vladimir Nabokov? Well, of course, you might exclaim, they were all writers, weren't they? So much is true - but they also lived long periods... Read more →

Inspiration - the pursuit of happiness

They were interviewing motorists stranded in the snow on the M8 this morning. They all seemed happy. It occurred to me that, perhaps, this happiness came from the anticipation of a free day. It also occurred to me that their happiness might stem from the fact that for several hours,... Read more →