It's true that the title of this blog does not look like anything to do with historical fiction, but the equilibrium between wildlife and humanity was not always so precarious as it is now. Finding the balance which existed at the time you're writing can be a very useful tool to setting a believable background for your writing. So here are a few mammal considerations... Wild mammals were everywhere - they still are, in fact! Whether you're writing about the middle of a city or the middle of nowhere, it should be a given that these animals will influence life. As well as the obvious and frequently maligned rats and mice, other mammals have cohabited our cities with us. Foxes have always had a partially urban existence, and the building of cities on waterways also often lead to otters and (depending on how far inland they were) seals being resident. Mankind knew how to find wild mammals - there is a continuous development in the scientific study of our wild mammals and this...
Friday 22nd November – Illustrations
I respond best to visual learning styles. I’m always looking
for pictures. Whether it’s a pre-existing landscape just begging to be
photographed, or the words of a writer on the page calling out to be
transformed into art.
I’m not the best artist in the world, but I can make a
decent attempt at drawing. But the hardest thing about illustrating a book is
pleasing the author, while the hardest thing about having your own work
illustrated is relinquishing your hold on it.
So, what I tend to do now is wait to be asked to illustrate
things, or else I illustrate my own stories. Over the last few years, I’ve
offered to illustrate people’s favourite poems for National Poetry Day, and this
year I had my first published illustrations in “Rosie Jane and the Swadgrump”. When
we launched the book in the school, the thing which most impressed the children
was how I’d managed to do the characters' hair(!) and how I’d reproduced the same
character, from scratch, in every picture. Their awe really gave a newbie like
me a massive confidence boost! This was the first time I’d shared any of my digital
graphics with the world, creating most of the pictures in strong, bold colours
using the computer’s shades rather than my own.
One thing I’ve learnt (although, not always done!), is not
to fill a picture. Look at the needs of your audience, and the needs of the
illustration itself. Sometimes, empty spaces aren’t blanks, they’re
vacuums which draw the reader in.
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