Authors Electric

Europa and the bull enter the sea picture credit: Jean François de Troy [Public domain] via Wikimedia Commons Living in a seaside resort, it can be difficult to settle at the computer in August when everyone else seems to be on holiday. But a morning walk along the promenade can be great research. Small boy to his dad: "Why does the sea sparkle?" Dad (clearly the practical type): "It's the sun reflecting off the water." Small boy goes quiet, possibly trying to remember exactly what 'reflection' means, and why he isn't seeing the whole sun reflected in the water just a whole bay full of sparkles? A writer might have answered differently: "They're fairies dancing on the waves..." "A mermaid dropped her purse and lost all her diamonds..." "It's the dreaded sparkle-eye disease and you've just caught it..." "They're last night's fallen stars..." "An evil villain in an...