After my husband and son have left the house, the day is mine and is generally full of books and words; also neglected housework and uncooked recipes.
Somehow, I have negotiated for myself ownership of the spare room, which now houses my desk and shelves of books, papers and research. Large amounts of the day are spent there, with varying degrees of output. At the moment, I’m editing my second novel (set in Regency/modern day times) A painful and protracted undertaking, when it’s all too much, I remind myself that a historical novelist is perfectly justified in spending a bit of time reading and browsing the internet for future research…especially if that means halting the edit at say, page 197, having realised I need to rewrite five of the existing seven paragraphs.
I’m compelled to write about people and events that have been lost or forgotten over time. When I discovered my maternal grandfather was one of four thousand Jewish immigrants expelled to Russia in 1917, I was inspired to write A Painted Samovar to memoralise this little-known episode. Of course, it is a work of fiction; my grandfather never spoke a word about his experiences, but it’s important to me that the history should not be forgotten.
I do have days away from my desk and on those I will most likely be doing something for our community library of which I am a passionate supporter, volunteer and trustee. I love pretty much all aspects of my various roles in the library – whether I’m on shift and serving customers, making a list of new books to purchase for the library shelves, constructing a themed book display or doing some committee work. I also love the free biscuits.
In the library, I run The Chalfont Writers’ Hub, a social gathering of local writers who meet once a month for encouragement. We are generally either moaning about rejections and writer’s block or celebrating our successes. In 2016, we were proud to produce an anthology of short fiction stories (St Peter’s Shorts) and have sold over 100 copies so far – all proceeds to the library.
After a day at my desk or in the library, of course I settle down with a book late at night, always hoping that somewhere, somebody else is settling down with mine. I am an Indie Author but I can always dream…
A Painted Samovar by Sarah Roux: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Painted-Samovar-Sarah-Roux/dp/1999795709/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1528377700&sr=8-1&keywords=A+painted+samovar+by+sarah+roux
A Painted Samovar by Sarah Roux gained 2nd place in The WforW’s Georgina Hawtrey-Woore Award
www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk