Rachel Dove - Home is where the heart is...

Today I am delighted to welcome Rachel Dove to the blog to tell us all about her passion for Yorkshire.

When I first thought up the setting for The Chic Boutique on Baker Street, I had Haworth in mind. There is something about the place that always transfixed me as a child. I think I was pretty much born in the wrong time, too late. My favourite book growing up (and still) is Wuthering Heights by Charlotte Bronte. When my grandparents took me to see the Parsonage and Haworth as a girl, I was blown away, and still am. I went back last month with my mother to take part in the manuscript project and research the place once more for my third book in the Westfield series, which is out next year from HQ Digital and will be the last in the series. I have loved writing about Westfield, and it is very much a mixture of my home town of Wakefield and Haworth.

When we went to the Parsonage Museum this time, it had exhibits from the recent BBC program, To Walk Invisible. It had costumes, and an actual bedroom layout of what Branson Bronte's room would have looked like, with actual props from set. Mixing the old with the new enhanced the experience so much, and I look forward to going back in October time to see it again.

Haworth is a beautiful place, with uneven hilly roads, quaint shops, and a rich history, and the residents there seem to really embrace how special it is and you get a real sense of pride and community when you visit.
Living in the same place all my life (so far) was never really my plan, but as I raise my family and work and live in the city I was born in, I can't really imagine living anywhere else now, and I think roots are very important to people. They certainly are to many of the characters in my books. They are either proud of them, eager to put some down, or eager to spread their wings, to see what is out there in the world. I guess I always imagined travelling in my early 20s, but I never quite made it, so now my children are getting older, I have plans in place. All good research for books too!

I like setting my books in Yorkshire - they say write what you know, and I am proud to be a Yorkshire girl. People come from all over the world to visit our green fields, small towns and proud landmarks, and to know that I can take my children to such beautiful locations pretty much on our doorstep is a brilliant feeling. My plan is to travel with my family, see the world, but when I am home, feet up with a cuppa in hand, I am truly happy.

Moving on from the series next year will be a wrench, but I am very excited about the books I will write in the future, and the places they will take me. Perhaps a Spanish adventure is in order, or a Parisian love affair. I haven't been to France yet, so maybe that's one for next year! I am planning to change things up, so watch this space!

About Rachel - 

I am a wife, mother of two boys, perpetual student, avid reader and writer of words. I sometimes sleep, always have eye bags and dream of retiring to a big white house in Cornwall, with 2 shaggy dogs, drinking wine on my seafront balcony whilst creating works of romantic fiction. All done with immaculate make up and floaty dresses. 

In the meantime I nearly always remember to brush my hair, seldom have time to look in a mirror and write many, many to-do lists. 

My first solo novel, Crossing Life Lines is out now in Kindle and paperback format. Look out for my horror shorts, published through Bayou Brew Publishing: The House of Sugar Blood, August 2013 and Uni Assassin, out now, and my short story, Mallow Girl, out now. 

In July 2015, I won the Prima magazine and Mills & Boon Flirty Fiction Competition, with my entry, The Chic Boutique on Baker Street, out now in ebook and paperback. The Flower Shop on Foxley Street is out now in ebook from HQ Digital.

Links - 

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