strolling through setting

Sunday mornings are all for me and the little one. But in my over-organised way, I have to spend the time achieving as many things as possible;  just being a mum isn't enough.  So we usually go for a walk, and then I can feel that I'm doing something towards my fitness level, and helping him to love the outdoors as well as being with him and chatting about anything and everything together.
(To be honest, that's quite one-sided anyway).

This Sunday I put him in the back carrier, and in between pulling my hair and patting my head, we did manage to talk about several things of interest including the cockerel which the baby seemed concerned I might have thought was him. ( 'Doodlerdoo not me, Mummy'.)  He has to call back my attention, because my mind wanders  - I take the breathtaking views for granted, having grown up with them, and my mind tends to wrestle with plotting, instead.  It's a shame, all that beauty wasted, but this, after all, is my setting.

It's my setting, and it's also the setting for my novel.  It made sense to me, to write about a place I know, especially for this first piece of work.  At the writing event I went to a couple of weeks ago, some writers suggested that rural writers had a tougher struggle to get published, and that some of the big name publishers were prejudiced against Northern novels. As if there weren't enough hurdles on the path to publication...but perhaps it's not true.

This Sunday I did something I'd never done before on one of these bimbles through the town and hills, and took my camera.  It seemed a bit odd, since I was alone (I can hardly count the baby on my back, as it was obvious I wasn't photographing him).  There are always so many things I want to remember, and it isn't feasible to keep stopping and pulling out a notebook, even though the chance to catch a breath might be welcome on some of these hills.  So, whenever  I saw an intriguing house name, or a striking building, I took a snap.  Certain details on the walk caught my attention, and I photographed those too.  I'm going to print these photos out, and use them to add realistic detail to my description of my setting. I think I know it like the back of my hand, but do I really know what's blooming in late March? Can I recall enough little details about the dessicated climbers clinging to house facades to bring a scene to life with just a few words? I think these photos will help - recapture the way the day felt, inspire new stories, enliven my settings.

I just need to convince the little one that multitasking our hour away is a good use of time...