Don't forget the Detail

"Don't forget the detail," I always say when taking a writing workshop. A tree is not just a tree. It could be an oak or a willow or a flowering cherry. All are different. All immediately conjure up a vivid picture in the mind. That is what you are doing when writing a book; painting a picture with words.

In my next door neighbour's garden stands a large beech tree. It was present as a fully grown tree on a map of the area from 1912. This tree is probably about 130 years old, maybe more. But s...