I went to church yesterday

I wrote a lot about Blaxhall church in my book Where are the Fellows who Cut the Hay so took little persuading to accept the invitation of the church warden to go along to the monthly Tuesday morning communion service. She had already pledged her support for my book, and contacted me via my publisher's website.

The writer whose work my book builds on, George Ewart Evans, lived at Blaxhall from 1948 - 56 and it was here that he researched and wrote the book for which he is best remembered, Ask the Fellows who Cut the Hay. The church, along with the pub, was once at the centre of village life, but yesterday there were just a handful in the congregation.

The east window, high above the altar, was designed by Margaret Rope, a member of a local farming family, internationally known for her work. The window celebrates the life of her grandfather George Rope who had employed Evans's neighbour Robert Savage as a shepherd. I interviewed Robert Savage's grandson for my book and Evans devoted a whole chapter of his book to Robert and Priscilla Savage.

Over coffee later, I noticed a memorial on the floor to Martin Greenfield, a Blaxhall farmer who died in 2006. I worked on Martin's farm for a year in the mid 1970s, and seeing his name on the floor strengthened my feeling of connection.

It is these connections between my life and the places and people George Ewart Evans wrote about that makes my book such a powerful read. As a writer, the more your research and writing becomes an emotional experience, the greater the bond you will form with each and every reader. You can find out more about the book here.

PS: Although I was confirmed an Anglican, I am now a Quaker and so although I went to Blaxhall church expecting to take communion, when the moment came, I stayed in my pew. There is such a difference between Quaker and Anglican worship, that I simply could not take part as fully as I had expected I would. That too, was a powerful moment!