Guest Post - Jan Ruth: Locations & Inspirations
As a writer I am often asked where I find my ideas and inspiration; how do I start to build a whole new world full of make-believe people, and most importantly, just what are they going to do to make themselves so interesting?
I guess you could say I have around forty years experience of make believe. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t reading, and writing. After a period of false starts, I realised that the craft itself had to be learnt and that has taken perhaps half of my lifetime to date. I am still learning and evolving, and always looking for new inspiration.
I am lucky to live in this part of the world. The Celtic history of North Wales is a powerful part of the landscape. Someone said that ‘the centuries of men’s hands on the same stones put the feeling into a place.’
My passion for the Welsh landscape and the day to day things that make me laugh, are just as important as the characters in my books, and I guess all of this is a part of me; and that is the part that the reader will hopefully connect to.
My mention of centuries and landscapes makes me sound as if I write historical fantasy! Far from it. Much as I admire many other genres I tend to be very rooted in truth and reality, and reflect a lot of my own life experiences. I am also a very slow writer; if I have an idea, I tend to incubate the germ over many months, and the characters always come first. During this period, I talk to myself a lot, but maybe that’s down to something else!
I write contemporary romantic drama; my three titles are all set in the local area. White Horizon is centered around Lake Crafnant, Midnight Sky is rooted in Rowen and my first novel, Wild Water, hovers between Conwy and Cheshire.
My main characters tend to be in the forty plus age group, and I write mostly about the complications of relationships. I guess they are love stories, quite romantic but never fluffy. There is always a touch of humour, quite often of the black type, and the odd murder, rape and manslaughter. So, not the average visit to North Wales!
If you cannot decide if these books are for you, you may want to try my FREE book: The Long And The Short Of It , which is a selection of short stories and includes the first chapter from all three novels. No promotional material. (It is also available through Amazon 77p/99c)
I guess you could say I have around forty years experience of make believe. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t reading, and writing. After a period of false starts, I realised that the craft itself had to be learnt and that has taken perhaps half of my lifetime to date. I am still learning and evolving, and always looking for new inspiration.
I am lucky to live in this part of the world. The Celtic history of North Wales is a powerful part of the landscape. Someone said that ‘the centuries of men’s hands on the same stones put the feeling into a place.’
My passion for the Welsh landscape and the day to day things that make me laugh, are just as important as the characters in my books, and I guess all of this is a part of me; and that is the part that the reader will hopefully connect to.
My mention of centuries and landscapes makes me sound as if I write historical fantasy! Far from it. Much as I admire many other genres I tend to be very rooted in truth and reality, and reflect a lot of my own life experiences. I am also a very slow writer; if I have an idea, I tend to incubate the germ over many months, and the characters always come first. During this period, I talk to myself a lot, but maybe that’s down to something else!
My main characters tend to be in the forty plus age group, and I write mostly about the complications of relationships. I guess they are love stories, quite romantic but never fluffy. There is always a touch of humour, quite often of the black type, and the odd murder, rape and manslaughter. So, not the average visit to North Wales!
If you cannot decide if these books are for you, you may want to try my FREE book: The Long And The Short Of It , which is a selection of short stories and includes the first chapter from all three novels. No promotional material. (It is also available through Amazon 77p/99c)
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