Thurso as 'Fierce, dreamy town'

This has been a bumper season for Caithness Writers with our new anthology published and novella and short story collection by Morag McRae and Margaret McKay and Catherine Byrne also with new works. The immediate prompts are George Gunn and his efforts to launch a Creative Writing program through the local college coupled with the effects of the support and learning that Caithness Writers as a formal group gives each other.

At the heart of all this creativity, though, is Caithness. I've been here almost a dozen years now and I am only beginning to scratch the surface of this strange and wonderful and frustrating and challenging place. The first review of my novella included the words above, characterizing Thurso as a 'fierce, dreamy town.' The description was so apt that I carried it around in the pocket of my mind for a while. This photo, another one of the series from which I picked cover photo, suggests the dreamy quality with the sepia tones of a twilight and the soft luster of the water lingering after the retreating tide on the beach.

The creativity of course is not limited to writing, but the sun is shining now and so I must adhere to the first rule of living here on the edge. When the day is good, stop everything and go outside. Tomorrow I'll talk about fierce.