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Women Travel Writers: Two Episodes complete, and the Road Ahead to Spring 2027
My neighbour, the travel writer Stephen Powell, and I started this series with a simple question, what did it take for a woman to travel, alone, and write about it, in centuries that gave her almost no permission to do either? Two episodes are now complete and the answer is turning out to be different every time. Two women, living nearly 80 years apart, travelling for entirely different reasons, and writing books that still need to be read. In May 2026, we facilitated a Travel Writing Retreat at our homes in the Algarve. For a few years I have offered writers the opportunity to meet and learn together in a…
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Join us in Portugal on 18-21 May 2026 for our Travel Writing Retreat
For me, travel writing is about connection and community. It is about exploring myself as much as it is discovering new and challenging places. Stephen and I, are inviting you to a journey. This retreat is not just about improving writing skills. It is also about discovering why travel writing matters. We draw inspiration partly from 19th century English art critic John Ruskin, for whom beauty was key. Ruskin taught drawing to working men and he wanted to go beyond technique. His fundamental aim, he said, was to develop in his students a deeper appreciation of beauty. Writing works in much the same way. To describe a place well, a…
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Next Writing Workshop Thursday 4 September 10:00am – Join us
Portuguese Somersault, published in 1934, is a travel story in the vagabond style by two eccentric Brits, Jan and Cora Gordon. I have been thinking about the September workshop and the stories we write, and this book came to mind. The book sits in the Portugal section of a bookshelf in my home. It is old with a fading red cover and bound. I must have picked it up at a car boot sale about 20 years ago. The married couple wrote an intriguing preface that conveys their voice. They were both artists and musicians. I have photographed the preface to illustrate several considerations we may choose to incorporate into our…
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Blue Eyes and the Secret – A Novella
Coming soon on Kindle Blue Eyes and the Secret. A novella – Venture into the heart of the Algarve with Blue Eyes, a Balinese-spirited feral cat, as she uncovers ancient secrets and fights to protect her home on Monte Agudo. In a land where olive groves meet modern orange farms and water is scarce, Blue Eyes speaks with plant devas and heeds the whispers of the earth. When a devastating threat emerges in the form of disappearing trees, poisoned lands, and a foretold prophecy of end times, Blue Eyes must embark on a transformative journey. Guided by the wisdom of Ceres of Old and aided by a motley crew of animal…
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Writing workshops and get together sessions for writers in the Algarve
Hello writers and dabblers, I will facilitate some Discovery Writing Workshops this spring and summer at my home on a hill near Santo Estêvão, East Algarve, Tavira. We have lots of space for inspiration. The first session will be Friday, 18 April 2025, at 2:30pm. Writing with a group can often spur writers to accomplish more than when writing alone. Why I write. From seven to twenty-eight, I drank the cool aid of a cult. My family are still believers. When I left, my life was rudderless without family connections, as shunning was what they were instructed to do. I had to find my own community. As a child, education wasn’t encouraged…
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Open Mic Night – Photos
As part of the Alvaro de Campos Festa, I helped organise an Open Mic Night in English and Portuguese on Friday 22 November. It was a fun evening of kindness, sharing, poetry and song. Big thanks to all the performers, poets and especially to Tela Leao for translation and for introducing everyone. Also gratitude to the Casa Alvaro de Campos for use of the venue. Here are a few photos:Ana Cristina, Tela Leao, Fernanda Guerra, Isabel Pereira, Jay Artale, John Williams, Malcolm Highfield, Marjorie Mallon, Mark Evans, Miguel Andrade, Nana Rebelo, Timothy Halford, Zizi. Timothy Halford would like a regular Poetry Slam in Tavira. Get in touch if you want…
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Rob Hopkins Tour – What If?
Rob Hopkins founder of the Transition Movement is touring Portugal starting in the North and reaching Faro on the 26 October. “Transition is a movement of communities coming together to reimagine and rebuild our world.” The tour will include interactive workshops, discussions and conversations. Central to this tour is the theme of imagination, especially in times of crisis. This tour takes place as Rob Hopkins’ book is published in Portuguese. “What If: Unleashing the Power of Imagination to Create the Future We Want.” Rob says: “Given the state of the world, the message of despair is pretty convincing. Things look grim. But something about that doesn’t sit quite right with…
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Scared of Shakespeare? Puzzled by Poetry?
Birkenhead-born writer, David Roberts has a passion for shipyards and literature. A mix of metal, blood and tears came to mind as we talked about his life and the literature course he has been teaching in the Algarve. I had seen the course advert at São Brás de Alportel Museum, and I had it in the back of my mind to find out more. Fortunately, the week before Christmas, I bumped into Maxine Srivastava (a fellow member of the Algarve Archaeology Association), in the British emporium known as Iceland, and so over the cheddar cheese and pork pies, I listened as she enthused about the literature course she is taking with…
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Make Hay
The Hay Festival programme is out. Details arrived by email on Saturday, which is fortunate as the next letter of the A-Z writing challenge is H. The Hay Literature Festival is more than a book event. It is two weeks of stimulation and reflective entertainment. This year the dates are 26 May to 5 June 2016 We are not going to make the trip to Wales, but that does not stop me looking through the programme and highlighting writers, drooling over books, and soaking up ideas. Here are a few events, just in the history section, that caught my eye. Sinclair McKay and Thomas BriggsBLETCHLEY AND ENIGMAEvent 11 • Friday 27 May 2016, 1pm • Venue:…
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Bernardo Carvalho and Will Self – Flipside
One of the liveliest sessions of Flipside was created by the presence of Will Self. He explained that he enjoyed exploring women characters “as he is not a very manly man.” “It is like shape-shifting to explore the female persona.” Will read from his book “Umbrella”, and the whole text came alive as he invited the audience to hear his London 1930s characters’ voices. On the same platform, Bernardo Carvalho shared his thoughts on identity. He read from his novel “Nine Nights” and said that in contrast to Will’s novel, he felt his writing lacked description. Will contradicted this observation with examples of description from “Nine Nights” and then made profound statements about…
