I spent the last week of June and first week of this month in a cabin at the top of the South Island. A change of scenery can be inspiring, as long as there aren't too many distractions and I can maintain some kind of routine.
The cabin was wonderfully cosy
I pre-prepared a lot of meals and brought a toaster and pressure cooker to make other quick ones!
Books to put me in a middle-grade mindset
My dictation and reading area…
…with a view of nature and the sound of birdsong
Being close to nature helps to clear my mind and being able to exercise in it helps me generate ideas, or solve problems.
Part of my brainstorming walk up hill
A couple of years ago I wrote FAB Club 2 in Tenerife, where I was able to swim every day in a tidal pool (Motueka does have a tidal pool, but it wasn’t really warm enough to swim!). This time the location near Motueka was surrounded by native bush with a convenient hill to walk up and I was able to cycle into town for supplies or to go to a cafe. I was also able to take time out and meet up with my friend who lives in Mapua.
The cabin is in the centre of this photo (note the neighbours who have bare land, orchards, or plantation forest).
I am sure that the location helped my subconscious produce the story that it had been thinking about for the last year. I am very excited about this book and I can't wait to see what my niece and nephew think before I send it out to my editor.
