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What a small town teaches a writer

Hebden Bridge, the library and the woman at the bakery who reads every issue.

Place

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·

10

min read

A steep cobbled street of stone terraced houses with a lit shop window on a wet morning

I moved to Hebden Bridge in 2016 with a book contract and no friends. Ten years later I have more friends than books. A small town teaches you that people are listening. The woman at the bakery reads every issue and tells me when I've got a bird wrong. It also teaches you to be specific. You can't write 'a café' when everyone knows which café.

You can't write 'a café' when everyone knows which café.

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As read in

  • The Guardian Country Diary

  • BBC Radio 4

  • Slightly Foxed

  • The Northern Review

  • Granta

  • Caught by the River

  • Countryfile

  • The Bookseller

  • The Guardian Country Diary

  • BBC Radio 4

  • Slightly Foxed

  • The Northern Review

  • Granta

  • Caught by the River

  • Countryfile

  • The Bookseller

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