It always pays to do some research, even, when as I am, you are creating your literary world. My novels are set in a post-apocalyptic but not dystopian future England, very roughly Edwardian society meets Tudor politics. This means that I can play a little bit with how things are in relative safety and the … Continue reading Ely… The visit that nearly unravelled my plot…
Crossing the courtyard I waved to a couple of the carpenters who were working outside the hall. At one end of the great hall was the private theatre the Bishop maintained. I let myself in through the wicket in the double doors leading backstage. A barred window at the far end of the space showed … Continue reading Chapter 2 – Stage Door
Boredom had won and driven me out into the Old City with some of the usual suspects. Waking up on the couch in Diego’s scruffy flat was a painful experience. My mouth tasted foul. I had a crick in my neck and bruises on my ribs from things I had slept on. The tatty blanket … Continue reading Chapter 1 – October, Anno Domini 2153
This lockdown time has been stressful in many ways. The lack of liberty, not seeing friends, uncertainty about our jobs and prospects. All very bad. We have to try and find what small comforts we can. Something I have been doing a lot more of is walking. This has been partly forced since I was … Continue reading Mindful Walking…
As a novice novelist I am making plenty of mistakes. I am, it turns out, fallible. This is a shock to the system that I will recover from in time. Maybe. In 2030 or so. The whole process of writing my first book was great fun, I enjoyed choosing words, creating pictures in my mind, … Continue reading Positive Feedback?
I have made use of dance in my plot, because, well, it has a long tradition of appearing in literature. Dancing allows people to be intimate, almost private, in a public space, it is a good opportunity to converse - used to great effect by Jane Austen for one. All very convenient for moving a … Continue reading After The Deluge… Part 4: Dance
From the home of Machiavelli I have drawn the way in which an individual, without necessarily officially having power, can control the State. Lorenzo the Magnificent ruled early Renaissance Florence through a mixture of patronage, place men, rigged ballots and calculated violence. Yet he officially held no political office. Bronzino and workshop artist QS:P170,Q4233718,P?,Q7803, Lorenzo de Medici, … Continue reading Italian Inspiration Part 2
So, after thinking these thoughts about a possible post-apocalyptic world over the three previous parts, where did I arrive and why did I pursue it as the background to my novel? I have assumed that a global pandemic has wiped out ninety plus percent of the world's population in the early second half of the … Continue reading Why Post-Apocalyptic But NOT Dystopian? Part 4
Jeremiah Hope 