Cornish Landscapes and Literary Inspiration: How Places Trigger Stories
As a writer, I have always found that locations are more than just backdrops—they are catalysts for imagination, setting the tone and inspiring entire scenes. Cornwall, with its dramatic coastline, moorland, and historic towns, has provided the perfect spark for many pivotal moments in my books. Here’s how some of its most evocative places shaped my storytelling.
Believe me, it is a hugely emotional experience writing these posts and I do so hope that you can feel the same depth of emotion as you explore your own memories.
Godrevy Lighthouse – Storm and Survival
Driving past Godrevy Lighthouse near St Ives during a storm instantly triggered a scene in my mind. One of my characters, after performing in Hayle, faces a perilous journey home through a similar tempest. The relentless wind and crashing waves set the stage for a night of danger, culminating in her narrow escape from her father’s violent grasp. The lighthouse, standing resolute against nature, became symbolic of resilience and hope in my story, especially with the drama I constructed when Kerensa decides to visit the house in the valley at the dead of night.
You can see just how imagination takes over. It’s such an exciting process.
Bodmin Moor – Reflection and Isolation
The expansive, windswept Bodmin Moor has long stirred reflective thoughts within me. Its wild beauty carries an air of loneliness, reminiscent of the eerie atmosphere in Daphne du Maurier’s Jamaica Inn. I often found myself drawn to Altarnun Church, whose tower is visible from Roughtor on a clear day. It was easy to imagine the vicar from Daphne’s story holding sway in such a remote and commanding location. The southern edge of the moor, at Cardinham, became the setting for a grand 15th-century house, erased from history during the Dissolution of the Monasteries, but vividly ‘re-imagined’ in my fiction.
Trevellas Porth – The Echoes of Tin Mines
Near St Agnes, Trevellas Porth, with its stark, ruined tin mines, whispered an entire storyline into my mind. The ghostly remains of Cornwall’s mining past became a perfect inspiration for a pivotal moment in Book 3, although the action took place west of Truro in a complex of mines near Wheal Jane. The isolation and history in the air at Trevellas shaped the narrative effortlessly, proving that atmosphere alone can create a story before a single word is written, and that atmosphere can be transferred to another location as required.
Truro – Love in the Labyrinth
The winding backstreets of Truro became the heartbeat of my novel’s romance. My hero first encountered his beloved Isolde, known as Iso, singing in a band with her brother Danny amidst these historic streets, while the city’s labyrinth of alleyways and Georgian houses provided the ideal setting for Taffy’s music shop, and Andy’s palatial home. As Jon Penryn’s mentor, Andy became a cornerstone of wisdom and guidance in the tale. Truro’s charm and history made it a natural fit for the unfolding of love and mentorship. I remember Truro at Christmas, the lights and shop windows bringing out elements of my story, the smell of Dingles store assaulting my senses (in imagination) and a few fictional buildings mysteriously appeared which sat side by side with the back streets I remember well.
Rocky Valley and St Nectan’s Glen – A Timeless Home
Rocky Valley near Tintagel, with its rugged beauty, inspired the setting for a 16th-century house central to my books. Although the real valley is stark, almost primeval, described by Daphne as ‘superbly disassociated from mankind’ having few trees, its essence blended with the mystical woodland of St Nectan’s Glen above, to become a valley opening up into a bay down the coast from Kevrinek, the pivotal location of my stories. These landscapes breathed life into a home that existed only in my mind, yet felt entirely real on the page.
Porthluney Beach and Caerhays Castle – Moonlit Romance
On the south coast, Porthluney Beach provided the perfect setting for the first meeting of Jon and Isolde. They walked, hand in hand, on a silver carpet of moonlight, melting into their first kiss as the waves murmured around them. I contrived them singing around a campfire with the others in the band, Isolde’s eyes sparking in the flames, before they walked to the tide-line. Overlooking the beach, Caerhays Castle and its subtropical gardens became Isolde’s place of work, adding an air of enchantment to her character’s world.
Conclusion
These Cornish landscapes have proven time and again that places hold stories within them, in this instance, waiting for me to uncover them. Whether through history, atmosphere, or personal experience, the land itself weaves its way into fiction, turning reality into inspiration.
Visit all these places, and countless more, as you journey through Kevrinek with me. They may not always be named as I have described, but I hope the narrative will take you there nonetheless.
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