A Story within a story

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During my recent residency at Marchmont Studios in the Borders, I was delighted to visit Polwarth Kirk with acclaimed artist Charlie Poulsen as my guide. We walked there via a path I hadn’t yet discovered, following the curves of the Rambling Burn, where I was able to see some of his amazing ‘growing bridges’ spanning the water. As you know, water is my ‘thing’ and this will be the perfect setting for my current folk horror project. Happily, there was nothing of horror about our walk! It was lovely to chat with Charlie about our respective practices, especially as I could see his iconic ‘Sky Boat’ from the window of my hobbit pod!

At the Kirk (see previous post for more about it) we were approached by a man with a very strange tale indeed. An elderly gentleman with a gentle smile and a very lively white terrier was standing by the gate. He confessed to us that he was fascinated by the church for the oddest of reasons. Sixty-five years previously, he’d visited the Kirk with his wife to have a look around. The place was open, as all churches used to be, but deserted. As they wandered around the nave, they heard strange noises in the bell tower. Even after 65 years, you could see that whatever had happened in there has stayed with him to this day. I’m not sure what the ‘noises’ were – I got the feeling that there was more to this story that he wasn’t telling us. Maybe more than simply footsteps? His wife ran out in terror (never to return; he was there alone) and they climbed into their car, an Austin 10. To add to their nightmare, the car wouldn’t start, and they had to get a push from some farmworkers further down the road.

As he spoke, the man’s gaze constantly strayed to the window of the bell tower, searching for clues, looking for something that shouldn’t be there…

So there you are, a first-hand ghost story to whet the gothic appetite.

No doubt it will find its way into my book…!

Greetings from the Borderlands!

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It’s halfway through February already and I find myself in the beautiful Scottish Borders. I could not believe my luck, last year, when I received an email from Executive Director Lucy Brown, inviting me to spend a whole month at Marchmont Studios to work on my latest project. I am very grateful to all at the Hugo Burge Foundation (learn more about the Foundation’s transformative work HERE) for inviting me to soak up the atmosphere here and become part of the landscape for this precious time!

The beautiful and historic Marchmont House lies a short walk away from the studios

Nothing like writing in a tower!

The novel I’m working on at the moment is a work of folk horror entitled THE BACK OF BEYOND. The title is no reflection on these environs (!) but the place is certainly brimming with qualities and stories that will certainly feed into the narrative. Thanks so much to my fellow resident, artist Anna King, who has loaned me a couple of wonderful old books about the history and stories of the area. Thanks too to Emma, who shared the story of Lady Polwarth, who hid her husband, Sir Patrick, in the crypt of Polwarth Kirk for a month as he was being hunted down by government soldiers after an alleged plot. The couple’s eldest daughter, Grisell, would creep out of Redbraes Castle at night (the ruins can still be seen) armed only with a lantern, and cross the fields with food for her father.

One of many stirring tales connected with the historic Marchmont House and estate.

The remains of Redbraes Castle. Did some Border Reiver take an axe to that door?!

I visited the Kirk on a dreich day and it was easy to imagine how creepy it might have been back then, and what danger might have awaited Lady Grisell, if she had been caught.

I was also fascinated by the story of the Polwarth Thorn, which lies just a mile or two away from the Kirk, in the village of Polwarth. The ‘Thorn’ is actually a pair of very twisted and gnarly trees, said to have sprung from the original, which must have been ancient, as the original Kirk dates from before 1300 (some accounts say there was a church there in the 10th century). It was the custom for newly weds to dance around the thorn tree for good luck and fertility.

I describe my folk horror book as The Wicker Man With Water, and no spoilers to say there might be a Roman goddess in it and one or two sacrifices… I’m now on the look-out for a holy well and some Roman remains…!

The Polwarth Thorn. Another brilliant local tale tells of two sisters, heiresses, who had their sights set on the handsome Wedderburn brothers. Politics and intrigue meant the girls were stolen away by a third party and confined to barracks. The steadfast brothers turned up at their door with horses and men and won the day! A double wedding was performed at the Kirk, and the couples, as tradition decreed, danced around the thorn tree.

Beyond Christmas!

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It’s been a busy few months here at Ireland Towers, with lots of courses and workshops on the go. I count my blessings daily, being able to do the work I love, while meeting such talented and engaging writers along the way.

Book Week Scotland was a busy one for me, with events at the Central Library Dundee and Arbroath Library’s Learning Club. I also ran a workshop as part of the University of Dundee’s Archive Service ‘Change Minds’ project, which encourages participants to research the history of mental health care through the old case books and documents of local ‘asylums’. Quite a difficult and emotional task for some, I’d imagine, and certainly the workshop I led threw up some keen insights and questions about healthcare then and now. I’m a huge advocate for participatory arts for those living with long-term conditions – writing really does give people a voice and a means to express challenging things.

Next year (trying not to think about Christmas!) I’ve been given the amazing opportunity to take a whole month off to focus on me and my writing- yay! Sometimes it’s a struggle to stay on track, given the myriad other things we have to do, so I’m really grateful for this invitation from the good people of the Marchmont Makers Foundation to spend a month-long residency at Marchmont House in the Borders. You can find out more about the Foundation here

Antony Gormley’s ‘Another Time’ keeping watch over the Cheviot Hills from the roof of Marchmont House.

I have the distinct feeling I’ll spend a lot of time watching over the landscape and forget that I’m there to write a book. Daydreaming is just creative planning, right?! My artistic mission while there is to research and write (at least partly!) a folk horror novel entitled The Back of Beyond, which is set in the Borders.

THE BACK OF BEYOND

One day, in the dead of winter, a cross-country train makes an emergency stop between stations in a remote rural location. The driver leaps out in panic to scramble up the embankment. As the puzzled passengers disembark to discuss calling the police, one traveller goes in pursuit. Jared Harper, an Australian backpacker, has plans of his own. He is due to take up temporary work on a nearby farm, but never one to shy away from a difficult situation, Jared sets off in pursuit of the train driver.

He witnesses the man throw himself into a deep, icy pool. Jared, a cold water swimmer, dives in after him, but despite his best efforts, no trace of the man can be found.

Deeply shocked, Jared takes up residence on the farm of his new employer, the enigmatic Molly Musgrave. It is a community like no other. An old man knits intricate patterns that only he understands, the villagers are obsessed with an ancient well-decorating ceremony and why is the war memorial dedicated to young men who perished long after two world wars?

When Jared starts to put the pieces of the puzzle together, he becomes desperate to leave. But will he be allowed to?

THE BACK OF BEYOND is a work of folk horror with a contemporary rural setting, a place where the ancient past is very much alive.

Expect Roman history, Celtic water goddesses, sacred wells, cursed artefacts  and human sacrifice!

Wish me luck!

Before then, I’ll be taking a couple of weeks in Sri Lanka, where we’ll be having a family reunion with son no. 2. Haven’t seen him for four years because he lives in New Zealand, so it will be an emotional one!!

See you on the other side (unless you fancy my Yuletide Writing Just For You. Details here)

Warm winter wishes,

Sandra x

The fruits of our labours…

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On Saturday, I had the pleasure of delivering a creative writing session as part of the annual Apple Day at Hospitalfield, Arbroath. I think it’s fair to say it wasn’t the most clement of days to wander in the beautiful gardens, but every rain cloud, as they say, has a silver lining, and my little group decided to remain snug and dry in the house itself!

Moving from room to room, we found inspiration in every hushed corner of this grand old house, imagining those who had passed this way before us, perhaps dining by candlelight, or scribbling at one of the many sumptuous writing desks. Every painting and object contains a story to be retold by the curious writer…

While we had to deviate from our original plan- to write about the apples, trees and plants in the walled garden -we did find a stunning world of nature in the intricate ceiling of the drawing room, carved from fruitwood by David Maver in the late 1800s. The paintings too offered a wealth of creative ideas; people and their pets sprang to life once more beneath our furiously scribbling pens!

Personally, I have a fondness for the curious object, so this magical bottle of ink spoke to me, and the cherub’s head too…

And since I’ve always been fascinated by the iron ‘talbots’, or medieval hunting hounds, who guard the door of Hospitalfield. I couldn’t resist a haiku dedicated to the poor wet dog, waiting outside in the rain!

Of apples and quinces

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I’m delighted to have been invited to run a creative writing workshop at Hospitalfield, as part of their annual Apple Day, a delicious extravaganza of all things apple! My prep involved a lovely wee wander around the Walled Garden (I love my job!) and was totally inspired by what I saw. They have quince trees!

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a quince in reality and I immediately thought of Edward Lear’s poem’ The Owl and the Pussy Cat.’ I can remember almost every word of it, although I don’t ever recall ‘learning’ it at school or at home. Once of those childhood curiosities. Anyway- here is the ‘quince’ bit:

                         “They dined on mince, and slices of quince,

                          Which they ate with a runcible spoon;

                          And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,

                          They danced by the light of the moon.”

Isn’t that bewitching?! One of my students spoke recently about a strange family teaspoon (we were making ‘Holy Grails’ out of mundane objects, as you do in some of my classes!) and they’d dubbed it ‘the runcible spoon’, which I think is delightful!

I managed to amass a great deal of writing prompts while strolling in the Hospitalfield gardens, so why not come along on October 7th if you’re in the Arbroath area? Among all the apples, you’ll find me peddling plant folklore, old myths and the magic of the ‘what if?’ Simply delicious!

To register your interest, click HERE:

New Course for Summer 2023!

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 WORLDBUILDING WITH FOLKLORE

Fantasy, folk horror and mythology-inspired stories never get old!

Whether you’re an experienced writer, or just taking your first steps in fiction, this course is sure to be a fascinating springboard for whatever genre you plan to explore. The richness of our folk heritage- stories, ballads, rituals and customs- lends itself to constant re-imaginings.

Join me on a mission to create wild, imaginative settings and compelling characters inspired by our age-old lore and landscape.

    Thursdays evenings, 6.30- 8pm from 17th August 2023.

    Course will run online (Zoom), with 8 weekly 90 minute sessions, plus email support and optional single 1-to-1 online mentoring session (60 mins) to discuss your project.

    Each week, we will explore key elements of our folk narratives and the landscapes that have inspired them. There will be writing prompts and exercises aimed at helping you create the fictional world of your own story in convincing detail.

    Week 1 Introduction

    Week 2 Light versus Dark.

    Week 3 Custom and ritual.

    Week 4 Holy Grail(s).

    Week 5: Liminal landscapes- caves, cliffs and waterfalls.

    Week 6:  Criminal seascapes- Pirates and Smugglers.

    Week 7 Creatures & Characters

    Week 8 Designing your fictional world.

    Fee: £80 (£95 with 1 to 1 mentoring session). Payable by BACS, details on booking.

    More info and to reserve your place: sandrairelandauthor@yahoo.co.uk

    It’s Spring!

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    Time for a springtime blog update! The start of the year has been pretty busy so far. I’m just back from the annual Scottish Association Conference, which was such a lot of fun. It was so good to be able to socialise with my Angus Writers’ Circle pals and to meet up with old friends. I’d been invited to adjudicate the Margaret McConnell Women’s short story competition- the entries were amazing and the winners spellbinding (although I just wanted to give them all a prize!).

    I also led a workshop on writing about climate change, coincidentally…because as we speak my new climate fiction book WATERBOUND is out on submission and being read by the very person who might well publish it- an exciting and scary thought!

    It’s taken me a year to get to this stage, and there were times when I wondered if I’d bitten off more than I could chew. Speculative fiction is ambitious, as you will know if that’s your thing. Could my ideas match my ambition? It was so hard to know how far to go. What will phones be like a century from now? How will we be travelling? Will we be super-sophisticated and technologically advanced or will we be fighting over resources? The Council for Refugees has already predicted that we could be looking at some 25 million souls displaced by climate-related disaster by the end of the century- something that we’ll have to face in a humane and compassionate way.

    In the end, I decided that this is a story about family and emotion and the things that matter to us. Human nature remains fundamentally the same, so I decided that as long as that felt authentic, readers would accept my vision of the rest. I hope so anyway!


    In February, I was asked by Sustainability First, a charity dedicated to raising awareness of the human impact of climate change, to take over their Instagram account for a week. A tall order- I’m not that good with my own social media. However, I did it, and I was pleasantly surprised by the lovely comments from followers. Here is a haiku, which was my first post:

    Spring/Summer Writing Opportunities!


    LIFELONG LEARNING DUNDEE:
    FINDING INSPIRATION THROUGH FOLKLORE APRIL 18th  for five weeks; 6.30pm-8.30pm £40/35
    Humans have been finding ways to re-imagine folk tales since the earliest times. This course is a must for everyone with an interest in the creative arts. We’ll look at the various themes and ideas associated with our storytelling heritage and discover, through guided prompts, what they can bring to our own practice. Ideal for writers, artists, poets, musicians and anyone who would like to make new work from old tales
    Book HERE.

     
    WRITING JUST FOR YOU #8  April 5th for four weeks; 6.30pm-7.30pm £45
    Does what it says on the tin! This is the perfect way to enjoy writing for its own sake, without pressure or expectation. Even if you are new to writing, you’ll soon get into the rhythm of it.
    Each week, we will have a chat about the theme of the week, and perhaps look at a poem, take part in a mini-meditation (just five minutes of mindful relaxation) and then settle down for 20 minutes of undisturbed writing time
    For more information and to book, email sandrairelandauthor@yahoo.co.uk
     
    FINALLY…I will be running two 10-week upskilling modules at the University of Dundee (online). Scroll down to STARTING CREATIVE WRITING & THE LURE OF THE DARK (Folklore plus creative writing) for full details and how to apply. There are free places available for anyone working for a Scottish employer and wanting to upskill, facing redundancy or seeking employment .I’m still waiting for confirmation on start dates (usually May for Creative Writing and July for Folklore), but please contact me or Claire Nicoll at c.z.nicoll@dundee.ac.uk for more information.

     


     

    2022 in review!

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    Time has done some funny things this year, hasn’t it? It’s sped by, and yet hung heavy at times. Perhaps we are all still in pandemic recovery. I heard it described as a collective ‘languishing’- and although I do feel like I’ve done a lot of languishing on my couch, trawling through my photos has encouraged me to relive some favourite moments…

    First up, I was so lucky to have been invited to take part in the international Connect and Collaborate residency at beautiful Moniack Mhor. Not only is it the perfect place to rest, recuperate and write, it also gave me the opportunity to make friends with some amazing people from across the globe. Here is Moniack Mhor in sunset splendour and some of my co-conspirators lost in the woods! (Nadine Aisha Jassat, Gemma Rovira Ortega & Carly Brown).Not forgetting the all important glass of red wine poured by my Moniack pals after I finished the first draft of my next novel Waterbound! (Look out for more news on that in 2023)

    In the summer, Angus Writers’ Circle had the chance to undertake a group residency in Arbroath Abbey’s New Scriptorium, as described in a previous post. Here is an image of my Tree Folklore Workshop, inspired by the humble Arbroath Pippin!

    I was very excited to be invited by Fife Writes to deliver two creative writing workshops for Book Week Scotland. One was online and one was IN-PERSON! Myself and my lucky hat travelled to beautiful St Andrews, which was a real novelty after the lockdown years. Here I am, with said hat, at the old harbour…

    There was also that fiery trip to Bloody Scotland! Again, so good to be back in-person. I think we’ve all been caught between longing to socialise and veering towards recluse-dom. I know I have, but once you’ve levered yourself from the couch you realise what you’ve been missing!

    Thanks to a generous award from Creative Scotland, I was able to take part in a third residency (and I thought nothing much had happened in 2022!) in Ireland. Grateful thanks also to the lovely Noelle Harrison at Aurora Retreats for holding such a special place for us all in the Limerick countryside, somewhere close to my heart. Noelle, writing as Anya Bergman, has a stunning novel out VERY soon. Keep an eye out for The Witches of Vardo (Manilla Press). I have read an advance copy and I loved it!

    The book I was working on at the Springfield Castle retreat is tentatively entitled The River Takes Her Name (suggested by my fellow retreater Petra!)

    Legend has it that the ancient goddess Sionnan ate the Salmon of Wisdom, with its nine hazelnuts of truth, in order to gain all the knowledge of the world, only to drown in the river that now bears her name. In 1980s Limerick, nurse Anya Kildare has nine pieces of information which, if revealed, could alter the lives of those around her forever.

     If knowledge is power, and power might bring death, how much would you be willing to give away?

    Intrigued? I’ll tell you more about that, and indeed Waterbound, my great hope for next year, in a future post, but I’ll leave you with some wonderful images of Ireland and finally, finally, Newcastle Noir, which proved a bright and warm and friendly end to the year (despite the title!)

    WISHING YOU ALL THE VERY BEST FOR 2023!

    New! Courses for Autumn

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    Happy news for writers! The Lifelong Learning Dundee programme is out! Lots of very reasonably-priced courses to choose from. Including life writing with Josephine Jules Andrews, flash fiction and short story writing with Sue Haigh and the ever-popular (and vital!) The Business of Being and Author with Dawn Geddes.
    Here are my online offerings, which will follow a similar format to previous years but will be tailored to YOUR novel. A place to workshop your ideas, get some feedback, meet fellow writers and re-energise your project! I’m particularly interested in hearing from those who have a novel on the backburner. Perhaps you have a sticking point or you’ve run out of steam? I’m here to help!
    Each five-week course is £40 (£35 concession), the same rate as it was pre-pandemic, which is a miracle! For the full experience why not book both? Only £80 (£70) for 10 weeks dedicated to your project. Lifelong Learning is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to adult learning provision. We also offer a monthly online ‘Blether’ session so you can get to know your classmates socially.

    Write that Novel, starting Oct 4 for 5 weeks, Tuesdays, 6.30pm-8.30pm

    Edit Your Novel, starting Nov 8th for 5 weeks, Tuesdays, 6.30pm- 8.30pm

    Can’t wait until October?! Join me on September 19th for a four-week dip into Writing Just for You!

    WRITING JUST FOR YOU #6

    This is the sixth block of WJFY, but you do not need to have done the others to enjoy this one. It’s the perfect way to get into writing for its own sake, without pressure or expectation. Even if you are new to writing, you’ll soon get into the rhythm of it.
    Each week, we will have a chat over Zoom (one hour) about the theme of the week, and perhaps look at a poem, take part in a mini-meditation (just five minutes of mindful relaxation) and then settle down for 20 minutes of undisturbed writing time. I will also suggest an Artist’s Play Date for you to try at home, and we’ll chat about that at the beginning of the following session.

    Fee: £45 payable by BACS on enrolment. To book email: sandrairelandauthor@yahoo.co.uk

    Here is the plan!

    Monday, Sept 19th, 6.30pm-7.30pm. Topic: HARVEST and the turn of the year.

    Monday, Sept 26th, 6.30pm-7.30pm. Topic: SEASON OF MISTS…autumn landscapes and falling leaves.

    Monday, Oct 3rd, 6.30pm-7.30pm. Topic: MELLOW FRUITFULNESS…apples, brambles and seasonal food.

    Monday, Oct 10th, 6.30pm-7.30pm. Topic: BOOKS in honour of National Bookshop Day

    Scriptorium Glororium!

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    A great title brought to you by my pal storyteller Ken Johnston, who coined it for the Scriptorium launch. One of those strange words which conjures up all kinds of giddiness! We Angus Writers are, if not exactly giddy, very excited to be starting on a bold new venture- a month-long Angus Writers’ Circle Residency at the New Scriptorium based in the grounds of Arbroath Abbey. What a wonderful, inspirational setting! The Scriptorium has been designed by artist Bobby Niven and commemorates the acclaimed work of the Benedictine monks who once copied and illuminated world-renowned manuscripts on this very site. The project has been made possible by Hospitalfield, Historic Environment Scotland, the 2020+1 committee and many more.

    It was a real privilege to be there this week with my writing buddies Dawn, Elizabeth and Gillian. We had coffee and flapjacks to add to the creative vibe and it was interesting to imagine what life might have been like for the Benedictine brothers in their scriptorium of old. One of the interpretive boards at the Abbey describes the ‘architecture of solitude’, a cloistered existence which would be alien to modern-day writers. We are free to listen to a playlist, eat biscuits, surf the ‘net. Maybe we even enjoy the constant backdrop of traffic noise and hubbub of voices. Life must have been very different for those who had taken vows of poverty and silence, working under a strict regime, with no distractions. Perhaps that’s the secret of producing such gorgeous, transcendental art!

    Scriptorium Selfie!

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