This post is a bit of a cheat… I am actually in deepest Dartmoor this Thursday evening, at Totleigh Barton, continuing to hone my writing craft. But although this wonderful 16th-century farmhouse is supplied with electric kettles, tea and warm-weight duvets, it does not come with wi-fi. Even to snag a signal for a phone requires a bit of a hike up the lane to the top of the ridge, and I don’t have a phone on me at present anyway.
Lacking complete foresight means I can’t really describe the room I’m in this year, the nature of my fellow writers or the challenges set by the tutors. But as soon as I can, I’ll tell you about the wonderful choral service in Wells Cathedral, this first Sunday in Advent. Suffice to say, the readings and prayers were heartfelt and moving, the antiphons sung by the choir were mostly modern (excepting one Palestrina, one Thomas Tallis), and the choir i angelic, fierce and soaring by turns. So very glad I made the decision to stop and pause on the headlong road to writing…