Full Circle
Seven years ago, I began writing a story inspired by
labyrinths. I had absolutely no idea
that this creative experiment would result in a trilogy of novels, many talks
at schools, libraries and festivals, and a writing residency on a Finnish
island!
When you begin walking a labyrinth (which, unlike a maze,
has one path to the centre) it seems straightforward. There are no decisions to
make. You just follow the path, or so it seems. The centre doesn’t seem too far
away at first and the path seems to be taking you straight there, but suddenly
it turns. You find yourself continually walking away from the centre, but you
have to let go of frustration and trust that you will get there in the end. This
is a nice metaphor for writing a book, I think. You set off on the path, are
diverted and seem to go backwards, but if you stay the course, you work your
way to completion.
Last week I travelled around Scotland and spoke to schools
about the inspirations, stories and pictures that are behind The Blackhope Enigma, The Crimson Shard
and most recently, The Shadow Lantern.
I told them about all the places where
my creative path had been diverted and how I often went backwards instead of
forwards, but that this is an important part of my writing process.
As I stood onstage at one school, looking out at eighty
eager faces, I realised what a long way I had come. At the start of this
writing journey, I struggled with reading my stories aloud to listeners (too
fast, too breathless!) but now I love it. I couldn’t have imagined the stunning
places I would read aloud in, from the Outer Hebrides to the West Sussex coast,
from the Great Hall in Lennoxlove House to the cosy tents at the Edinburgh
International Book Festival. Visiting each place and meeting its readers has
been an amazing privilege brought about by the excellent support of Templar
Publishing.
I was a bit unprepared for another realisation: that it felt
different (and very good) to speak about the trilogy as a completed whole. I
had come full circle. Of course I wanted to introduce The Shadow Lantern and to explain why the story excites me so much,
but it was wonderful to place it in context. And I particularly loved meeting
pupils who brought me a pile of all three books to sign, then ran to sit down
and start reading from the very beginning of The Blackhope Enigma. It was a slightly odd and very gratifying
feeling to see a row of children buried in one or the other of my books.
After I had
answered the last question, signed the final book and waved goodbye to the
pupils, I ate a huge piece of cake and drank a whole pot of tea in Edinburgh’s
Looking Glass Books. I could have sat there all afternoon but there was
something niggling at the back of my mind. The pupils and lovely bookseller had
told me about a labyrinth in George Square, very near to the bookshop. I could
not think of a more fitting end to my book tour than to walk a new path.
I was the
only one there in the pouring rain. Entering the circular replica of the famous
Chartres Cathedral labyrinth and following its path, I was once again struck by
how it wove close in, then far away from the centre. When I reached it, shoes
soaked and umbrella dripping, I paused: here I was at the powerful core of the
intricate tiled pattern. Where would my imagination be transported next?
As I
retraced my steps and left the labyrinth, I experienced the joy of having come
full circle and the anticipation of finding the next point of embarkation on
the writing journey.
