I visited the garden of Bomarzo in Italy during a tour of gardens organised by the Friends of the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh. It contains many huge statues, like the tortoise above, and a few buildings. The carvings are often referred to as ‘monsters’ and they are both immense and, in some cases, grotesque. One of the buildings is a house that slopes.
The garden was created in response to grief over the death of his wife, Giulia Farnese, by Pier Francesco Orsini in the sixteenth century. Over the centuries, it became clogged by under/overgrowth, but has been cleared. It is still in private ownership and has become a major tourist attraction.
Okay, so how do either the tortoise or the fish on a bicycle contribute to inspiration? While my writing is very much in the doldrums at present, I think these images serve to remind me that even out of a period of comparative drought something, and something weird and wonderful, may come.
What I actually need is a house. I don’t see people walking through walls, but I am hugely influenced by atmosphere. Anyone with a recommendation? Where are the properties you’ve used? Was it a family connection that took you to the area? Were you interested in the politics?
City of Discoveries, my anniversary serial for The People’s Friend is up on their website and can be accessed here.
Anne
Novels Now 