An author has released her latest novel which is set in the South Lakeland village that inspired her.
Pauline Potterill, who moved to Arnside on her 18th birthday, set her most recent novel, Dream Ending, in the south Lakes village.
Described as a gentle ghost story of love and loss, Pauline wrote the first 12,000 words of the book in 2009 while renovating her parents’ Arnside home, returning this year to finish it.
Pauline said: “Arnside has been a part of my life for over 50 years. It is a spectacularly beautiful place. My family visited often before we moved there in my late teens. I loved Arnside but it was a lonely time.
“Others my age left to find work, and I made no friends there. I spent hours walking along the shore and over Arnside Knott with our dog. I had lots of time to craft worlds in my head.”
Born in Burnley and growing up in Colne, Pauline went on to become a nurse, later retiring to focus on writing, with five novels published so far.
Dream Ending tells the tale of 31-year-old Hannah, grieving the death of her husband and arriving in his home village of Arnside to fulfil his dreams.
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Full of twists and turns, the novel is a tale of love and belonging and loss with scenes inspired by Pauline’s own experiences, including a dramatic night in 1979.
“I was asleep in the nurses’ rooms at Preston Royal Infirmary when the hospital caught fire and we had to evacuate at least six of the wards. The air seemed alive with hot fumes. Even the walls felt scary," she said.
“Someone used a walking frame to break open a door and we pushed the beds off an 8-inch drop into the fresh air, in the yard outside A&E. This turned out to be a useful experience when writing a scene in Dream Ending.”
Dream Ending and all of Pauline’s other works are available in paperback and e-book via Amazon.
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