It’s my birthday today so I’m taking a day off from writing.

But in a strange way, some of the best work is done away from the desk. Sometimes it happens while walking my two dogs (Puppy and Gloster) or pottering around in the back garden (I’m 40, as you guessed from my middle-aged activities) or just sitting with a cup of Barry’s.

It’s those golden moments when the mind switches to auto-pilot, when you’re not even trying that the creative connections in the brain start to spark. We’ve just spent two great days working on my new script for The Performance Corporation’s next show (top secret at moment, could tell, won’t, would have to kill you, sorry) and there’s plenty to think about. It was wonderful to witness the collective talent of actors Clare Barrett, Alan Howley, Lisa Lambe and Hilary O’Shaughnessy unleashed on the script in all its unfinishedness.

They really went for it from the first read-through and their performances have given me lots of options and ideas for taking the script to the next level of development.  By the end of day one they were up on their feet doing a run-through, and by the end of day two they did an even more full-on show for our unsuspecting design team – scripts in hand only half the time and certainly no safety net! So I’d like to give a big internet hug to those brave soldiers who went out on their acting limbs to make it so worthwhile.

Today I’m just pottering round the garden, picking raspberries and letting it all sink in.

A middle-aged writer relaxes in garden with a fresh raspberry smoothie.