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About seven years ago, I was doing some research in the archives of the Imperial War Museum in London, and stumbled across an evocative scene recalling the events of Sunday 3rd September 1939. As I peered at the writing on the microfiche copy of the document, I knew this was something special and a gem of inspiration for a story.

It described how expectant mothers gathered at a local school to be evacuated, then walked to the station as war was declared and the air raid sirens wailed across the London roof tops.

The fact that expectant mothers were evacuated, just as children were, has largely been overlooked. This scene, and wanting to tell the story of the forgotten evacuees, simmered away in the back of my mind for years, and after finishing writing the East End Angels series, this was what I knew I wanted to write about. So, expectant mother Marianne, and the other characters grew in my imagination and their story came out in The Mother’s Day Club. 

Coming up soon, exclusively for my newsletter subscribers is a special competition to win a signed copy of The Mother’s Day Club and I will also make the winner a pair of handknitted socks, in true 1940s style. There is still time to sign up for my newsletter here and also get a free copy of my ebook of short stories too, if you’d like to enter.

One of the joys of writing historical fiction is doing the research behind the scenes. Immersing myself in books and articles, or listening to oral histories of those who lived during the time and what they experienced, is endless fascinating. It feels like detective work searching out relevant details that are important to writing a credible story.

I love researching the social history and particularly seeking out the small details that are overlooked, but which were a part of peoples’ lives. There’s always the question of what I might stumble across, a hidden gem which will inspire an idea in a book.

Author Michelle Rawlin’s research for her fantastic non-fiction book, Women of Steel, about the feisty women who helped the war effort working in Sheffield’s steel industry during the Second World War, went on to inspire her to write her debut historical fiction book – The Steel Girls which is out in on 1^st April.

True stories of love and loss during WWII, from the tough Northern women who kept the foundry fires burning.

When war broke out, the young women of Sheffield had their carefree lives turned upside down. With their sweethearts being sent away to fight, they had no choice but to step into the men’s shoes and become the backbone of the city’s steel industry. Through hard toil and companionship, they vowed to keep the foundry fires burning and ensured that soldiers had the weapons, planes and ships needed to secure victory over Hitler.

When the men returned from the front in 1945, many of these women tragically found themselves discarded ‘like yesterday’s fish and chip wrappers’. But decades later, a grassroots campaign spearheaded by the elderly Women of Steel finally brought their remarkable story to light.

Michelle is kindly giving away a signed paperback copy of Women of Steel. If you’d like to be in with a chance of winning, send me an email to rosiehendrywriterbythesea@gmail.com by midnight Weds 3^rd February and the winner will be drawn at random on Thursday 4th February. UK entrants only.

Good luck!

If you’ve read the East End Angels books and wondered exactly where Station 75 is read on…

It is a fictional amubulance station, although a real London Auxiliary Station, No 73, did exist just a short distance away along The Minories, from where I set Station 75.

When I was searching for the perfect site for Station 75 I wanted somewhere in a closed off area to provide a more homely feel for the crew and which gave them a place where they could be outside as well as in the garages. It also had to be in an area close to the City of London and the East End so the crews would be able to attend incidents in these badly damaged areas.