Jacqueline Day

Well! I was going to tackle Nin’s book, Baleton’s Intimate Circle, a tale of the ramshackle Tabors of Kent and their sub-society 17th century shenanigans, which of course was really my 1970s teenage-written swashbuckling romp. I’ve said elsewhere, the original was painful in its melodramatic breathlessness, but I’ve always fancied doing a grown-up rehash of the idea.

However, Elinor Davies, the excellent editor who worked on both my stories, getting me up to submission standard, suggested I think about taking Slate Heart down the saga route, and now a Libraro reviewer has said the same:

“I really like this! I’m a big fan of historical family sagas and can see this expanding beautifully into such. The Priddie family dynamic with the matriarch and the brothers feels genuine and believable. The Victorian scene-setting is great, I’ve visited north Wales quite a lot and can totally see the landscape. The writing is lively and colourful, and I really want to discover more about Lowri’s journey and developing relationships, especially with Ed (I wouldn’t mind meeting him!!) and Louisa Spooner.“

Is she also lusting after my sailor, Ed? Fantastic – result!!

So I’ve been thinking about that and following a bit of further study on structure and pacing, I have plotted out a follow-up to Slate Heart that I like and think will work. It will involve more research, investigation and the acquisition of more beloved second-hand books about Victorian Bristol, Plymouth, Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, but that is no hardship. I am also pondering telling Flora’s story too at some stage (Lowri’s mother); I think she’s ‘a bit of a one’, as my own mother would’ve said. I already know for a fact that after events in Slate Heart, she had her eye on a blacksmith in Blaenau! Therefore, although this is the first year in many that I’m not having a pilgrimage in person to Porthmadog, it seems I’m going back there in my head anyway.

Another welcome comment left this week on Libraro:

“Good to see more work from this author on Libraro! She’s definitely got a nice knack for historical fiction, and once again the prose is vivid and clear.“

Thank you and yay! ❤️😃