The Vital Spark’ is an occasional series delving into aspects of creativity. For this podcast Stephen Brown travelled to the far west of Cornwall for a conversation with novelist, screen writer and fellow cellist Patrick Gale. Patrick talks about his unusual childhood, his journey from musician and singer to becoming a successful writer, the life events that help enliven his novels and the research that underpins them. He speaks about his writing process, including the need to leave self behind and inhabit characters. Other aspects of the creative process are also touched upon and good editors get a mention. They discuss the similarity between composing music and writing to commission and, as a case in point, Patrick talks about his recent stage adaptation of his novel ‘Take Nothing With You’ and his hopes for a multipart screen adaptation of ‘A Town Called Winter’.

Participants:

Patrick Gale, novelist, screenwriter, playwright and musician https://galewarning.org/

Stephen Brown, musician, composer and retired neuropsychiatrist. http://cornwallcomposers.com/stephen.htm

Music: Prelude to the opera 'Brainland' composed by Stephen Brown.

Sketch by KB.

Brainland the opera website: www.brainlandtheopera.co.uk

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