Escaping by Misha Herwin
Mass shootings in the USA, stabbings on the streets of London, the threat of Brexit, the overarching shadow of Trump, to say nothing of famine, drought, authoritarian governments and a rising tide of refugees and asylum seekers; there are times when the world seems such a fearful and threatening place that you want to run and find somewhere safe to hide, or stay in bed and pull the duvet over your head and pretend it’s nothing but a very bad dream. Or, if you’re a writer, you can move away into a world that you’ve constructed; a world where you are in control of events and characters; a world which is both familiar and therefore comforting, but also magical, exciting and full of possibilities. As the news grows more and more gloomy, the nights draw in and the days become colder, I find myself more and more engrossed in my city of secrets. This is an alternative Bristol to the city where I grew up. Something akin to Philip Pullman’s Oxford in his “Dark Materials” trilogy....