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Charles Nevin has written for, among others, the Guardian, the Independent on Sunday, the Daily Telegraph, The Times and Sunday Times, and the New York Times.
Sometimes in Bath is his second book of fiction following Lost in the Wash with Other Things, a collection of short stories. He has also published three books of non-fiction. Charles lives in an old watermill near Bath, which is ideally placed for his forays into the enchanting city.
Could you tell us about your book Sometimes in Bath?
I came to live near Bath from London about 15 years ago. At first I found the city a touch, how shall we say, staid?…smug? But that was probably because I’m originally from a northern industrial town, so when it comes to beautiful places, I can be a touch, how shall we also say, envious. And, in any case, how can anyone with romance and joy in their soul not very soon succumb to That Old Bath Magic, the delightful concentration of 2,000 years of history standing stone by stone together and conjuring such wondrous names as Bladud, Alfred, Beau Nash, Horatio Nelson, Jane Austen and more? So, being a journalist turned short-story writer, what better than stories set throughout that history? And thus Sometimes In Bath.
What are your methods for researching and planning your own stories?
As a journalist, I’m much interested in the lines and borders between fiction and fact (yes, I know). Whenever I watch a film about actual people and events, I really want to know what’s true and what’s not. So in Sometimes In Bath, each story is followed by an Afterword explaining just that and giving fuller details of the period and people, with recommendations of where to go and what further to read. So there was quite a lot of research, which I really enjoy, even if I’m too fond of whimsy and byways to be a serious historian.
I’m not one of those people who’s sniffy about Dr Google and Professor Wiki, either: they’re great starting points, but, as with everything, you need to check, check and check. And that, of course, is where Bath’s splendid library services come in!
![Sometimes In Bath book cover](https://i0.wp.com/baneslibraries.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/VL-Book-cover-Template-29.png?resize=642%2C1024&ssl=1)
What do you find are the most difficult aspects of writing?
Most of it! Short stories – or at least mine – are very dependent on plot, and I find it hard work devising something convincing and entertaining. You readers will be the judges of how well I succeed.
Where do you do your writing?
I’m lucky enough to live in an old water mill on the River Frome (but before you get too resentful, should point out that it nestles between the railway station and Asda). Still, I have a pretty good view as I stare out of my office (spare room) window and sigh despairingly and look blankly, even if there’s currently a building site just up there. (A trip and wander round Bath works wonders, I find.)
What originally motivated you to want to write?
My dad was a grocer, so I’m afraid, rather disgracefully and disloyally, my original motivation was not to be a grocer! I tried the law, discovered that it demanded rather too much dry intellectual rigour and not enough creativity, and so ended up in journalism, which has its own rigours, believe me, but seemed rather more fun, and revealed to me that, among other things, I had a certain facility for making people smile.
Can you tell us about any other projects you have coming up?
Yes, I’m now working on a similar idea to Sometimes In Bath: it will be called Sometimes Last Century and will have stories set throughout the twentieth one, starting with King Edward VII in a certain amount of frantic bother…And you can catch me at the Bath Festival in November, hopefully…
Sometimes in Bath is a captivating story-tour through the city’s history. Beau Nash, Old King Bladud, young Horatio Nelson, Jane Austen’s Mr Bennet, the Emperor Haile Selassie and many more spring to life in episodes shimmering with the curious magic of Britain’s oldest resort and premier purveyor of good health, happiness and romance for the last 2000 years. Each story has an afterword distinguishing the fiction from fact, adding enthralling historical detail – and giving visitors useful links to Bath’s many sights and fascinations Sometimes in Bath is warm, witty, wistful and will be loved by all who come to and from this most enchanting and enchanted of cities.
This interview was conducted in 2020.