It happened on the way to St Cath’s Faire, an SCA reenactment event, last Sunday near Clevedon.

A massive change in the direction of my new novel, A Sea of Green Unfolding.

 

It came to me while I drove past the Waihou River (Called the River Thames  by Captain Cook when he first landed his longboat there so very long ago), past Cook’s landing site, through Netherton, Ngatea, on and on through the Hauraki Plains. Just after the new motorway portion of SH2 began, I took the road less travelled, the old SH2, then up Lyon’s Road, past Paparimu, through Hunua, to finally arrive at Clevedon.

As I passed the sign for Hunua Falls, it drew me. I’d never seen them, but I promised myself I’d find them on the way home….. because I knew they needed to be in the story… in a big way.

Wow… They took my breath away.

    

I found the Hunua Falls, buried deep in what would have been the “vast untrodden Hunuas” in 1863, if it were in a book by  Jack Lasenby*. They are nothing less than awesome… and as of that day, will play a big part in the novel.

While I was in Clevedon, I “accidentally” met someone who could answer many of my questions. Out on a walk in the forest there, I met a woman who’s lived there for the past 50 years…  and she was… at a meeting of the local historical society the previous night….

Now, I don’t really think there’s such a thing as coincidence anymore… Just the Universe looking after me… And hopefully you, my reader!

 

Watch this space!

*Jack Lasenby, whose books  I would highly recommend for bush Kiwiana: Harry Wakatipu Comes the Mong…  If you’ve ever dreamed of “going bush”, being a “real bloke”, or a “deer culler”, you owe it to yourself to read this book, and others of his! Even if you’re a dyed-in-the-wool “non-reader” who loves to go bush, you’ll love this.

One description: from Timeout.co.nz……”The third title in an outrageously entertaining collection of tall tales about a 12-year-old Urewera hunter with a moustache and a sneaky, greedy old pack-horse called Harry Wakatipu is another marvellous adventure story that is full of crazy characters and bizarre experiences. Harry is supposed to help but spends most of his time sleeping, telling lies and eating tins of condensed milk. And he farts a lot! Rich in off-beat humour and bushlore, this latest novel from a legendary storyteller is ideal for ages 9 to 13, particularly boys.”

It’s  also for anyone who wants to laugh till their guts hurt!