A West Cumbrian woman has published her lockdown novel.
Sarah McNeill, of Brigham, started writing The Mad Pit Players during the first lockdown.
She said: “Lockdown hit everybody hard and as a freelance copywriter, it was a worrying time.
“As someone with asthma, I felt uneasy leaving the house and so with hours to spare after my ‘real’ work was finished I thought it might be helpful for my mental health to have a ‘project’.
“Years ago, I used to write a lot of short stories but had gotten out of the way of it.
“Indeed, the thought of writing again made me feel a bit queasy! But with COVID to contend with it ended up being a real tonic for my mental health.”
The Mad Pit Players, billed as a warm-hearted tale, is set in the fictional Cumbrian town of Seatown and is the story of a community’s bid to stop the closure of their local library.
Sarah was previously involved in community development work in her home country of Northern Ireland.
“I was a grassroots community development worker, working with marginalised, divided communities. While there were plenty of challenges, I met so many amazing people.”
Working closely with people from all backgrounds offered limitless inspiration for her book, introducing her to characters she had worked with over the years.
“I had so much fun writing this story, even getting involved in my own Save Our Library’campaign. There were no ‘Mad Pit’ shenanigans there, sadly,” she said.
‘The Mad Pit Players’ was completed over 12 months followed by a few weeks of editing and feedback from beta readers.
“That feedback was instrumental to getting my book ready for publishing. My readers were fantastic and I highly recommend any aspiring novelist to get help from independent readers.”
The next hurdle to tackle was the self-publishing process.
She said: “I was confident that The Mad Pit Players was ready to go. My great friend Drew Campbell had designed a beautiful book cover which I felt perfectly encapsulated the essence of Seatown, where the action happens.
“A few long nights getting to grips with Amazon publishing followed and then the book was ready to publish. Pressing that button was very satisfying!”
Sarah’s lockdown project has encouraged her to keep writing, she said and she has already begun work on her next novel.
She has lived in Cumbria for six years.
She said: “I met my partner in 2015 while I was on holiday in Keswick. Six months later, I’d packed my bags and moved to Brigham!
“Cumbria is like Northern Ireland in many ways, it’s green and rural and the people are just as friendly.”
After a stint working for the Lake District Calvert Trust and Cumbria County Council, Sarah sett up a copywriting business in 2019.
The Mad Pit Players is available on Amazon.
