A picture is worth a thousand words, isn’t it?

In visiting the city recently that was the inspiration for my Belleville series, I took the time to record the real places my fictional characters visit — or in the case of the red MG-B — drive.

Richard Belleville looks out at the river from his accountant’s office in Heirs and Successors. You can see what he sees in the photo above — here is the view that inspired this moment in fiction.

Numerous marriages take place at St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral. It’s where Julia marries James Fitzroy; Alice marries William Belleville; and later, Marianne Belleville marries. It’s where Paul Belleville marries too — it’s the church of choice from generation to generation.

And the lobby of the Criterion Hotel — the scene for wedding receptions and John Fitzroy’s twenty-first birthday party in Heirs and Successors.

And the car? How could I resist taking a photograph of the beautiful MG-B sports car, which would be very similar to the cars gifted to Pippa and John in Heirs and Successors.

So not everything in fiction is entirely fictional. I like to ground my characters in real-life settings as their fictional lives unfold.

FUN FACT: The Criterion Hotel was taken over by the American Army during the Second World War as a billet for their officers. It’s where I imagined Philippe Duval, Army doctor, who first appeared in Julia’s Story (beginning in 1942) and whose story comes to a conclusion in Price to Pay (beginning in 1969) — released November 2024 — having diverged from the Belleville story with First Born Son (2023).

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My writing career is a late career move. I encourage everyone who thinks they have a story they want to tell to go ahead and give it a try. Don’t put it off. Begin now to set down that story that’s been buzzing around in your head for far too long.

I promise you it’s great fun!

— J Mary Masters