Yesterday I was walking down a track by a field. About fifty rooks had gathered in some trees beside the track and were making a hell of a racket in the low afternoon sunshine. It was like they were all talking at once about some massive breaking news in rook-world. Rooks are social creatures, and so are we. The daily walks with Jerry, my Golden Retriever, are an essential part of my writing process. When I set off from the house I don't think about anything in a conscious way. Then, usually about half way through the walk, or when fifty rooks strike up a conversation, some ideas ping into my head like notifications on a mobile phone. It may be a scene in a chapter which needs changing, an idea for a blog post, or a few lines of a poem. For me, sitting down at a computer or a pad of paper does not usually produce inspiration. I need the free thinking time first. After the country track, my walk takes me by some houses and across a busy road. Occasionally I meet a human being, b...
