Image Credit: Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay images. AI shots avoided.
I can guess what you’re thinking here. Something along the lines of Allison, you’re a month early with this at least, aren’t you?
Fair point but I’d say no. Why?
Community
Trick or Treat For Characters
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. Screenshots taken by me, Allison Symes. AI images avoided.
I’m not a huge fan of Halloween, much preferring to commemorate All Saints Day on 1st November, but I did think the thought of Trick or Treat could inspire some story ideas. Naturally there could be some non-fiction articles to write up about the origins of Trick or Treat as well but, for this post I’ve got my fiction hat on. The two items here can be treated separately or together so let’s explore what could be done here.
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 22 — May and June 1951
My Mother’s Diaries: Chicks, Ducklings and Haymaking at Hiltonbury
Life on the farm in May and June 1951
By Andy Vining
Fifty cockerel chicks, a clutch of ducklings, a birthday pair of goldfish and twenty-five tons of hay: May and June 1951 brought plenty of activity to Hiltonbury Farm.
Reading my mother’s diaries today, I am struck by how much she fitted into her days. Washing, ironing, baking, gardening and mending were woven around family visits, children’s dancing lessons and helping my father, John, on the farm. Somehow, there was usually time to put the kettle on.
I was eight that spring, away at St Probus School in Salisbury. My sisters Jennifer, Janet and Heather were at home, and my mother’s diary gives me a window into everything happening while I was away.
Questions To Ask Your Characters
Image Credit: Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided.
I find interviewing characters a useful tool to find out more about them before I decide to put them in a story. I have to believe in the characters themselves to be able to write their stories up at all. If I don’t believe in their possibility, why should anyone else?
There are many ways into creating characters and I mix up how I go about this myself. It keeps things interesting but I do find the question and answer approach so useful. It is probably the tool I use the most often.
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 21 — March and April 1951
MY MOTHER’S DIARIES
March and April 1951: Rain, New Life and Spring at Hiltonbury
Two spring months at Hiltonbury Farm, recorded by Margaret “Bebe” Vining and retold by her son, Andy.
By Andy Vining
March and April 1951 brought a stubborn battle with rain, illness and delayed farm work, but also the unmistakable arrival of spring. There were pigs, Jersey calves, chicks and lambs; a family operation and an emergency appendicitis; Andrew home from school; a new baby at Beechcroft; Jennifer competing at Ampfield Gymkhana; and, eventually, warm days when the oats could finally be drilled.
Fairytales and Their Impact
Image Credits: Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided.
I’ve loved fairytales for more years than I care to remember. My sister and I were blessed with a mother who loved books and we were read to regularly as children. It is one of the best things anyone can do to encourage a child’s imagination and develop their vocabulary. Not that my sister and I were aware of this, of course. We just loved the entertaining stories and relished the “baddies” getting their comeuppance.
The Chameleon Theatre Company – Review – Curtain Up
Image Credits:-
Many thanks to The Chameleons for kind permission to use their photos. Other images created in Book Brush using images from The Chameleons.
As ever, it was a joy to go back to Ritchie Hall to see The Chameleon Theatre Company stage their latest production, Curtain Up by Peter Quilter. Janet and I went on the opening night, Thursday 24th September 2026. A brief outline of the plot follows.
What I will say is if I had the chance to see this show again, I would have gone again. It’s a good story. It isn’t a laugh out loud play, to my mind, but is touching at times, amusing and you can relate to the characters. You so want things to somehow work out for them.
[Read more…] about The Chameleon Theatre Company – Review – Curtain Up
Comedy In Writing
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes. AI images avoided.
I thought I’d write about this given I’ve just seen Curtain Up performed by The Chameleon Theatre Company. I hope to write a review of that for Chandler’s Ford Today next week. But it did remind me comedy in writing comes in various forms, including radio, stage and screen, as well as via our beloved books.
I also believe, aside from poetry, comedy is the hardest thing to “get right” in writing. People’s tastes in comedy are subjective. Those tastes can change over time too. The jokes Edwardians would have laughed at would probably not strike us as funny now (and even going back just thirty, forty years, there were jokes around then which, understandably, would not be told now).
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 20 — January and February 1951
January and February 1951: Snowdrifts, Snowdrops and a Pig at the Ball
Two winter months at Hiltonbury Farm, recorded by Margaret “Bebe” Vining and retold by her son, Andy.
By Andy Vining
The new year opened under deep snow. Before February was over, the same fields were producing hundreds of bunches of snowdrops. Between them came family illness, schooldays, dancing, farm work, birthdays, visitors, a tragic accident, young chicks in a greenhouse — and one of Mother’s most memorable diary lines: “Jolly good. Won a pig!”
Reading Feeding Into Writing
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes. AI images avoided.
Every writer has been inspired by what they love reading. Most writers continue to be inspired by those fabulous stories we enjoy. Reading does feed into writing and it is a wonderful thing.
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 19 — November and December 1950
MY MOTHER’S DIARIES
November and December 1950: The Turning of the Year
Half-term, Bonfire Night and a busy Hiltonbury Christmas, recorded by Margaret “Bebe” Vining and retold by her son, Andy.
By Andy Vining
Blog Tours and Book Events
Image Credits:-
Some images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. Book cover images are from Chapeltown Books. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes, as were some Salisbury photos. AI images avoided.
It has been a busy few weeks since Seeing The Other Side was published by Chapeltown Books on 16th July. There was the launch at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick, a book event at Salisbury URC, a blog tour and I hope there will be more things to come.
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 18 — September and October 1950
MY MOTHER’S DIARIES
September and October 1950: Autumn Turning
Harvest’s end, a child leaving for school and autumn settling over Hiltonbury Farm, recorded by Margaret “Bebe” Vining and retold by her son, Andy.
By Andy Vining
Using Autumn In Your Writing
Image Credits: Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided.
I’m never sorry to welcome September back. It’s a lovely month and I’ve always loved the changing colours of the leaves. Okay the darker evenings are a downside but then again does that give more time for reading and/or writing? I would hope so. Of course, following the heatwave this year, the cooler autumn temperatures are also welcome.
But I thought I’d look at using autumn in our writing for this post and hope you find it useful. It’s always a delight, incidentally, to create pictures via Book Brush for my Chandler’s Ford Today posts but I had a wealth of wonderful images to choose from for this so hope you enjoy these too.
Out and About in Salisbury
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Screenshots were taken by me, Allison Symes, as were photos of Salisbury. Book cover shots are from Chapeltown Books.
I’m delighted to say I’ll be taking a lovely trip on our local train service to the fair city of Salisbury on Saturday 5th September 2026. It’s a great run from Chandler’s Ford, and a direct one, and you see some wonderful scenery but why am I going?
If you’re thinking along the lines of she’s not just doing this for the fun of it, you’re spot on.
The Joy of Responding to and Setting Writing Exercises
Image Credits: Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided.
Writing exercises are a major part of my writing life. There are several reasons for this.
What I produce as a result of the writing exercise is more work I can polish up and eventually submit somewhere. I’ve had work published thanks to doing this.
Exercises got me used to the idea of being a “proper writer” as I was responding to a prompt set by someone else. They’re excellent workouts for the brain. They’re also good practice for writing to competitions with a set theme.
Most exercises I’ve been set are at events, day trips, online ones, or The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. These are a natural part of the writing life and the whole idea is to get you writing more than you would have done alone and to tackle themes you might not have thought of trying.
[Read more…] about The Joy of Responding to and Setting Writing Exercises
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 17 — July and August 1950
Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his podcast. You can listen to these stories on Spotify.
MY MOTHER’S DIARIES
July and August 1950: Harvest, Cowpens and a Summer of Rain
Two eventful summer months at Hiltonbury Farm, recorded by Margaret “Bebe” Vining and retold by her son, Andy.
By Andy Vining
New cowpens promised modern farming, but relentless rain threatened the harvest. Around both ran the busy life of the Vining family: school journeys, birthdays, shows, visitors, preserving fruit and making the most of every dry hour.
Swanwick 2026 and Book Launch for Seeing The Other Side
Image Credits:-
One image created in Book Brush using images taken by me, Allison Symes and from Chapeltown Books and The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. AI images avoided. Many thanks to The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick and to Gemma Owen-Kendall for the pictures of my book launch for Seeing The Other Side. Other images of Swanwick were taken by me, Allison Symes. Many thanks to Babs Trevitt for taking the image of me reading at the Open Prose Mic Night. Also many thanks to Liz Pacey for the photo of the members of the Association of Christian Writers who were at Swanwick.
It will come as no surprise to regular readers of Chandler’s Ford Today I (a) went to The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick and (b) had a fabulous time there. Having said that, this year’s school was especially meaningful for me. Why?
[Read more…] about Swanwick 2026 and Book Launch for Seeing The Other Side
Andy Vining’s Podcast: My Mother’s Diaries 1948 – 1976: Episode 16 — May and June 1950
Andy Vining shares his mother’s diaries in his podcast. You can listen to these stories on Spotify.
MY MOTHER’S DIARIES
May and June 1950: Curtains, Cowslips and Haymaking
Two months at Hiltonbury Farm, recorded by Margaret “Bebe” Vining and retold by her son, Andy.
By Andy Vining
Writing Events and How to Make the Most of Them
Image Credits:-
Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. AI images avoided. Images from The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick were taken by me, Allison Symes. Many thanks to the school for kind permission to use the poster photo for my launch there.
I’ve just come back from a wonderful few days at The Writers’ Summer School, Swanwick. I hope to report more on that next week, including details on how my book launch there for Seeing The Other Side went. But it was the thought of the launch which led to the idea for this post.
Writing events didn’t come into my creative life at all to begin with. The thought of going to any terrified me but as it became clearer to me, writing wasn’t going to just be a hobby, I knew I needed to network, to learn more about the industry and so on. So that meant writing events would need to be something I got used to.
[Read more…] about Writing Events and How to Make the Most of Them