An Author's Best Friend(s)!
- Esther Menary
- May 13
- 2 min read
Writing can be a lonely business. But one of the blessings I have is two dogs. Someone, and I forget who it was, once said that I should write a dog into one of my stories. This point of view, I am fairly certain was also in the mind of my dogs! See the video evidence below…when I was writing there was a definite appeal from the eldest of my dogs to be featured in print.
So…I did it! Now those of you who have read my books, and know my dogs, may be thinking how?! But I have.
The most obvious, I think, is in Reconnoitre (The Department Files Series). There are two dogs: Plop (present day) and Ossie (1940s). Whilst their names are different, I have tried to lace each doggy character with a few traits of their real-life counterparts. Plop loves to destroy soft toys like Lando, whilst Ossie is fiercely protective of his mistress, like Loki.
When it came to writing Beyond the Heather, the next book I wrote after Reconnoitre, I was uncertain that I could shoehorn a dog into the narrative. After all, it wasn’t easy to imagine a dog out in the Scottish Highlands. Until my husband suggested writing a wolf into the narrative! Now I know what you’re thinking… step too far right?! I beg to differ!
With a tiny sprinkling of creative licence, a wolf could have been about in 1700s Scotland, and I have referred to people’s disbelief in the text to try and explain away any doubt. And also, who doesn’t want a wolf character?! Wolves were native to Scotland for a while so it is not beyond the realms of possibility. Of course, I could only include one wolf (two might have been going too far!) so when thinking about which of my dogs to model it on, the answer was clear. Loki, my eldest dog, was the obvious choice. He has a regal stance, a bit like a wolf. And after driving past Loch Lochy, I was struck with how close the names Lochy and Loki are…to me it seemed clear!
Now, you might be wondering why I am writing all of this! The point I am getting to is that writing what you know doesn’t just have to be literally what you know! Taking inspiration from what is around me has become a skill that I have learnt to wrestle with and tame to create characters, places and narratives. Whilst I have not had adventures like all my characters, I have been to the places I write and I had woven in some of my experiences and some of the people I know. Just as Taylor Swift writes songs about her love life, those people I know, encounter or meet, sometimes find themselves (anonymously) in writing. It is a writer’s curse or gift to be able to out what they know into their work.
So, watch out for more dog appearances in future novels and I unashamedly admit that I will continue to write about people, places and experiences from my own life.
Happy Reading!
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