Category Archives: Travel

Writing isn’t just about having an idea – you have to know what to do with it

I’m sitting at the bar of a coffeeshop in Amsterdam, scribbling away. A man, standing next to me, gestures at my notebook and says: what do you write? I’m actually writing about my notebook, I tell him. Some people who … Continue reading

Posted in Essay, Fiction, Memoir, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

What’s the problem with being up a mountain with no phone signal or orienteering skills?

It has begun to rain. The wind comes in cycles – building, building – so that at its peak my body wobbles and I contemplate the steepness below me: images of tumbling headfirst down lumps and bumps, through sharp grass. … Continue reading

Posted in Essay, Memoir, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 31 Comments

Shouldn’t I be able to use all my published books as furniture by now?

  I have recently been on a hunt for Alice Munro. When I reached the Canadian border the other week, a lady in the passport control booth asked me where I was heading. Goderich, I told her, grinning ludicrously about … Continue reading

Posted in Essay, Memoir, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 43 Comments

Don’t let fear keep you tied up

My trip is over. It’s hard to return from travelling, shifting from spontaneous movement back into a more fixed routine. But it’s a treat to know how much I’ve been missed. Thank you followers for all your wonderful messages!   … Continue reading

Posted in Memoir, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 49 Comments