Well, it is Christmas Eve, the stars are brightly shining and the food is nearly prepared and waiting for tomorrow's feast. So, as a Christmas present for all our readers, we would like to share a delicious Crowvus cocktail with you all. This is called a Caledon . It is based on the book of the same name by Virginia Crow. You can find the book here . The components of the cocktail are very Scottish, just like the book itself! You will need: 1. Drambuie 2. Irn Bru 3. Apple and Raspberry J2O Here's a quick step-by-step guide to making your very own Caledon: 1. Pour a shot of Drambuie into a standard-size tumbler. 2. Add some Irn Bru. The glass want to be just over half-full at this point. (Or just less than half-empty, if you're a pessimist!) 3. Fill the rest of the glass with Apple & Raspberry J2O. 4. Now, give it a good stir to mix up all the delicious ingredients and then settle down with a good book (Caledon, obviously!) and enjoy! Please note: this Crowvus...
There is a line in the remake of The Parent Trap when the man (who owns a vineyard) is showing his former wife his collection of special wines: "I'm a man of limited interests". That is sort of like me with books! I have accumulated quite a few old books and it's not just because I love books.
Our oldest complete book is the one above. It predates most of the settings for my books, the Jacobites, and the Great Fire of London. There is something very exciting about thinking about the different people who have read it over the years! I got it because it links in with one of our family's favourite books, The Children of Green Knowe.
And then there are books which directly impact on my own writing. My sister bought me a first edition of Walter Scott's Ballads and Lyrical Pieces, a book which is gifted in my own story Day's Dying Glory. It is amazing to be able to hold the book, getting an idea of things beyond the words: the weight of the paper; the size of the margins where short notes can be written; the intricate swirls and colours of the cover's inside...
And, of course, there are those old books which indulge other aspects of my interests. These interests - as mentioned in last week's blog - go on to inspire my writings in one way or another.
So I think it is not only sensible but also right to gather old books, and certainly a great source of inspiration for an historical fiction writer. Not only do we get to hold the same object we are setting into the hands of our characters, we also get to see the stories and the instructions people received through books then. Remember: all these books were an inspiration to someone back in the day too, or they would never have been published!
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