Clodagh Phelan's Blog, page 2

The Clowns’ Church

The ‘Clowns’ Church’, the backdrop for a couple of key scenes in The Eighteenth of November, was a real church; the park surrounding it still exists. Having lived in London for ages, a great deal of it in Islington and Camden, I know the area well. So when I was looking for somewhere for Fabriel to find himself, after the fire, I remembered the little park on the Pentonville Road – an unlikely place to find a park. It is in fact the area around what was formerly St. James Church.

When I went...

Another Russian

My parents were both pure Irish. Indeed our family roots are Irish way back to the coming of the Norsemen and subsequently the Armada. Except for one recalcitrant ancestor, reputed to be related somewhat tentatively to some English landed gentry. It’s quite possibly a myth, given that it originated with my Granny Bugger, who was renowned for her snobby aspirations. But that’s another story entirely.

As I’ve mentioned in an earlier post, I grew up listening to and using Irish expressions, wit...

Famous Misquotes – No. 2

“I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

This quote is usually attributed to Voltaire.

But did he say it?

No he didn’t.

It was written by Eveyln Beatrice Hall, who wrote a biography of Voltaire under the pseudonym of Stephen G. Tallentyre.

Fancy that!

Famous Misquotes – No 2.

“I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

This quote is usually attributed to Voltaire.

But did he say it?

No he didn’t.

It was written by Eveyln Beatrice Hall, who wrote a biography of Voltaire under the pseudonym of Stephen G. Tallentyre.

Fancy that!

Sunshine and Shops – researching the recent past

Marchmont Street, where Alice remembered

I am drawn to books that set fictional worlds in real places, real streets, real neighbourhoods. Ruth Rendell, for instance, places the main action ofThe Keys to the Street in and around Regent’s Park. Writing as Barbara Vine, she setThe House of Stairs in Notting Hill and King Solomon’s Carpet in West Hampstead. Charles Dickens uses London as the background to his books.

These and many other writers have had a great influence on me, so perhaps this has...

Clever and creepy

In order to do this book justice, I have to confess that the way I read it almost certainly detracted from the impact it had on me. I read it in snatches, on my iPhone, on the bus. With sometimes a week or even weeks between each reading. Inevitably my experience was disjointed. I believe that had I read it as a paperback, or even on my iPad, with more continuity, my initial experience might have been different. Indeed re-reading it, or rather re-skimming it, I am seeing things I didn’t give...

Get thee behind me, cat!

I love the Internet, and I love wasting time on the Internet – even though it sometimes ends up not being a waste of time. Claire Cameron

Many writers have habits and rituals. Some are sensible – like having set hours for working, always starting the day with a walk or never answering the phone during writing hours. Others are mildly eccentric such as only ever writing on yellow paper or always wearing a green cardigan. Then there are those that sound as mad as cheese. Truman Capote had to wri...

Get thou behind me, cat!

I love the Internet, and I love wasting time on the Internet – even though it sometimes ends up not being a waste of time. Claire Cameron

Many writers have habits and rituals. Some are sensible – like having set hours for working, always starting the day with a walk or never answering the phone during writing hours. Others are mildly eccentric such as only ever writing on yellow paper or always wearing a green cardigan. Then there are those that sound as mad as cheese. Truman Capote had to wri...

A wonderful book – character driven and full of insights

I absolutely hate ‘family sagas’, so while I have heard this novel so described, I have to say that I never even thought of it in those terms. Yes, it’s about a family, but it isn’t a saga, it’s an intricate, insightful story. Indeed ‘Instructions for a Heatwave’ epitomises my feelings about character. No matter what other flaws a book may have, if the characters come alive on the page, if you care what happens to them, for good or evil, you’re more than half way there.

Not that I can find man...

Famous Misquotes – No 1.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?”

Did the Wicked Queen say this in Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarves?

No she didnot.

What she did say was …

“Magic mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all.”

Close.

But still a misquote.