Historical crime novel set in County WEXFORD
Talking Location with author Bella Osborne – Devon and the West Country
13th August 2018
#TalkingLocationWith… author Bella Osborne takes readers on a tour of the WestCountry and Devon, where her book “Coming Home to Ottercombe Bay“ is set.
I am a big fan of the West Country – the counties of Somerset, Devon, Cornwall and Dorset all hold many happy childhood memories. There are also the memories of carsickness, frequent toilet stops, heatstroke and a dramatic tyre blowout but thankfully it’s the memories of tranquil beaches, making sandcastles and enjoying the fresh sea air that are the strongest. So it’s no surprise that it’s somewhere I have been keen to introduce my own daughter to. Whilst holidaying on the Devon/Dorset border a story I was plotting suddenly found its location and a huge part of its story.
We decided to meet friends in West Bay, Dorset, somewhere I’d not visited before. By chance we parked in a car park near the beach and an extraordinary sight met us. In the car park was an old railway building, a few metres of abandoned track and a railway carriage. The building had been turned into a restaurant and I was keen to investigate further. Inside it was small and little changed from its days as a ticket office with the exception of the added counter, tables and chairs. I loved the idea of the old building being saved and given a new lease of life. I wondered what someone would do if they were to inherit somewhere like this? I’d already had the idea of my main character Daisy who always wore her mother’s locket and now I had the perfect reason for her to return to the town where her mother had died when Daisy was a child.
There is a coastal path, which runs for miles along the south Devon and Dorset coastline and is a joy to explore if you enjoy walking and a sweaty challenge that is still very much worth the effort if you don’t. It takes you from high treacherous cliffs to secluded and forgotten beaches and bustling seaside communities. It was these communities that I wanted to capture in my story and try to show how they support each other. Whilst a good summer can see businesses thrive they still have to make it through the lean winter months when the holidaymakers and second homeowners have departed and the seaside is but a distant memory.
The main setting for the story is a fictional seaside town called Ottercombe Bay. In my mind it would be located where the River Otter meets the sea next to Budleigh Salterton. Geographically it would be different to how the land lies there and would take key characteristics from the beautiful beach at Beer, Devon and the high cliffs both there and at West Bay. Both of these locations have stunning crescent beaches making them perfect for enjoying lazy days by the sea and I wanted Ottercombe Bay to reflect this. Something it borrows from Beer is the interesting segregation of traditional fishing boats on one side of the beach and tourist deckchairs on the other!
The town of Lyme Regis in Dorset holds a carnival each year, which is a lot of fun and it’s well worth trying to coincide your stay with carnival week as there is so much to entertain children and adults alike. One of the things we enjoyed was the lantern parade. Lyme’s version involves lit torches, which look spectacular at night as the long line of people snakes it’s way down the gardens to the beach. I loved this idea but I made the one in Ottercombe Bay a little less hazardous with paper lanterns and battery lights so the children could carry them. My seaside town also has a steep main street similar to the one in Lyme Regis as well as an annual carnival.
We visited the area two years in a row while I was researching and writing this book enabling me to get a real feel for the area and the people who lived there as well as eat my own weight in fish and chips and ice cream – all in the name of research. We enjoyed many excellent family days out including Cheddar Gorge, Seaton and Weymouth. Whilst we were there we also visited the Donkey Sanctuary at Sidmouth, which was a lovely day out and also provided a few more scenes for the book. Well, who doesn’t love a donkey?
Thank you to Bella for a beguiling look at different areas of the West Country. Tempted to visit after reading this beautiful descriptions of such wonderful area? We certainly are!
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We visited this beautiful area last year after spending a few days walking the Wessex Way, and it was lovely to be reminded of it by Bella’s post. I loved Lyme and West Bay and completely agree about donkeys!