Inspiration

Where do you get your ideas? I’d love a dollar for every time someone’s asked me that!

Family history, of course. It’s inspired so many of my short stories and, of course, the historical romance, The Heart Has Its Reasons. For that novel, it was a branch of my father’s family, whose secrets were unlocked, relatively recently.

I wrote a short story based on my mother’s mother, who was born in South America.

Of late, I’ve been trawling through the National Library of Australia’s newspapers on Trove, discovering all manner of stories involving more recent ancestors and their Australian escapades. And unearthed yet another scandal! Who’d have thought?

But all the above is currently spare time entertainment. At the moment I’m working on a Young Adult fantasy adventure. There’s ruthless pruning occurring on a manuscript that’s been sitting in a drawer for two years. Where did the idea for it originate? Haven’t a clue! I woke up one morning and it was just there. Of course, it didn’t write itself. Hours of work, critiques from my writing group, rewriting, and it was done. Or so I’d hoped.

Now? More rewriting. Studying current books in the field, because YA Fantasy is not my usual domain. Far from it! Revising, more pruning. Soon the chapters will go back out to my ever-patient and helpful writing group to be picked to pieces yet again.

Lots more work ahead. But I’m enjoying it. Love this story. Then, it’s back to my scandalous ancestors!

The Heart Has Its Reasons is available for ORDER by clicking this link https://www.bronwynhouldsworth.com/books

Enjoy.