Where do you get your ideas from?

I get asked the question a lot – where do you get your ideas from? Right now, I’m inspired by where we live, right on the beach. I love being by the sea. It’s constantly changing every day, and the beach and the changing tides tell a story.

Where we live in Spain, it’s gorgeous for most of the year; clear skies, blue water, and sun-kissed sand, but I also love it when bad weather hits. The last few days have been very stormy and exciting. At night I hear the wind whistling around our house and the waves crashing on the shore. And during the day, I can just sit and stare at the water and the sky, and I have to pull myself away to work.

So how does it directly inspire me? Every day I see all kinds of people on the beach, walking their dogs and having fun… There is a couple who I often see with their drone. They look conventional, but could they be spies working for some undercover agency? Just last week, we went to a Chiringito on the beach for some food, and halfway through the meal, a man emerged from the water in full diving gear carrying two giant dead Octopuses. The man looked like one of those frogmen who hunt for dead bodies, and I immediately started to wonder, how far out he’d been, how deep he’d dived, and what had he seen out there?

And then, on New Year’s day, a huge family came to the beach in front of where we live and started letting off deafening fireworks. A man walking by got very angry, and a huge row erupted. Luckily it didn’t get physical, but it was fascinating to watch this big group of people screaming at each other with rage. It made me think about what could have happened if they hadn’t calmed down… I didn’t get a photo of this, so you’ll just have to imagine.

And then I love how all kinds of things get washed up on the shore after a storm; strange dead fish and sea creatures, a set of false teeth, beautiful stones. Last week, a giant marker buoy tore loose from its moorings out to sea and washed up on the beach right in front of where we live. I took this video, and something about it made me think it was alien, metal covered in barnacles like a skin. I have long wanted to write a science fiction novel, and this marker buoy has sparked an interesting idea… You’ll just have to wait and see 🙂

So, that’s me right now. Living on the beach, having lots of ideas. And I’m writing away, working on a new book for you all. I hope all is great with you wherever you are.

Rob x