Welcome to a very special craft of writing episode of Writes4Women featuring Sarah Winman talking about the writing of her new novel, Still Life.

Before turning her hand to writing Sarah was an actress. She worked in theatre in her twenties and early thirties, but by 1992, she'd decided that she wanted to write a novel.

Her highly acclaimed debut novel When God was a Rabbit, is a story about childhood eccentricity, loss, and love. It was an international bestseller and won Sarah multiple awards, including New Writer of the Year in the Galaxy National Book Awards and the Newton First Book Award. Sarah's second novel A Year of Marvellous Ways is about the relationship between 89 year old Marvellous, who lives alone in a remote Cornish Creek and Drake, a young soldier left reeling by the second world war it's about their relationship. It was a Sunday times Top 10 best seller.

Sarah's third book was Tinman, published in March, 2017 explores the triangular relationship of Ellis and Michael who've been inseparable since boyhood, and Annie who walks into their lives and changes nothing and everything.

Sarah's new novel, Still Life was published by 4th Estate in June this year. It's a heartwarming story of friendship, found family truth and beauty, set over a forty year period from 1944 and is largely set in Florence.

In this episode Sarah talks about the inspiration for the novel, her writing process and the importance of trusting your creative impulses and instincts.