MuBu Blog: Foxton Locks

Miles Travelled = 37.5
Museums Visited = 1
Mood = Awe

I’d been to Foxton before. I went to watch narrowboats making unhurried progress up and down the famous staircase of 10 locks and to marvel at the remains of the lift that once winched wider beamed barges between the upper and lower levels of the canal. I also went to walk the towpath and enjoy the peace and abundant wildlife.
But I never went into the museum.

Why? I now blush to admit that, having paid £2 to park the car, I didn’t want to hand over a further £2.50 to look round the collection. Miserly, I know.




But as it turns out, Foxton Canal Museum is the first stop on my journey around the heritage sites of the East Midlands...

For the full article please go to Digital Writer in Residence blog on the MuBu website.

MuBu Digital Writer in Residence

I've just started working as Digital Writer in Residence for an East Midlands Museums project called 'MuBu'. I've been hinting at this for some time, but haven't been able to be more open about it because we were going through the usual administrative hurdles and getting the project web pages established.

But we are now up and running, so...



Here is a link to the MuBu Digital Writer in Residence project page.

I won't be duplicating all my MuBu blog articles here, so if you'd like to follow the journey, you could subscribe or bookmark that site.

And please give feedback here or there if you feel able. It's all very pleasant seeing web traffic statistics and knowing, in an abstract sense, that a couple of hundred people have visited the site today. But feedback is the lifeblood of the blogger.

Generating Story Ideas

Where to find seed ideas for stories? Here are five ideas and observations:

Many stories come from asking questions. What would happen if... Thought is free so be as wild as you like. What would happen if a whale materialised high above the planet? No, wait, someone already wrote that one.

Stories can come from extrapolation. Read the driest news article from the most serious paper, then ask yourself about the people the story implies. The people in the background.

Don't be afraid of using up all your story ideas. The more stories you tell, the faster you'll find new ideas coming to you. The world is full of stories. All we have to do is train ourselves to notice them.

Other people's lives are a great source of story ideas. Happily, people love to talk about themselves. It is their favourite subject. Be a good listener and you'll have more stories than you can write.

I have a faulty digital radio that cuts out at random, usually leaving sentences unfinished. It's exasperating at times, but perfect for a storyteller. When the radio dies, my mind jumps forward, trying to complete the story.

And I am willing to sell this faulty digital radio/story generating machine. All reasonable offers considered. Now, that gives me an idea for a story...