Thea Bennett
3-17 January 2015
My project was research for a novel – ‘Ash’ – which I am about to start – set in Cornwall in the past and the future – which looks at women who are living ‘on the edge’ .The results exceeded all my expectations.
Immersion in the land/seascape sparked an intense rush of ideas for character and plot, and re-invigorated both my imagination and my vocabulary. My female protagonist from ‘the past’ is a Viking, and in a remarkable synchronicity I made contact with a Swedish artist who works and lives in West Penwith, and she gave me leads for further research in Sweden.
Perhaps my most important discovery was that if I work visually, using a sketchbook rather than a notebook, I gain deeper insights into how my research and my experience within the landscape will feed into my writing.
16-01-15 St Just Characters – sketchbook
Boscawen’un – character inspiration – sketchbook
Spume – Cape Cornwall – sketchbook
The wind beats like oars – sketchbook