For most people, a night in the pub and writing a book would hardly go hand in hand, but it worked well for Milton Keynes based author Holly Cave.
All wasn't quite as it seemed though - Holly didn't sit nursing a G&T in the local boozer.
It was actually the peace and quiet that followed closing time that allowed her the mind space necessary to finish her science fiction novel, The Generation.
She helps her husband Tim run the Cowpers Oak pub in Weston Underwood.
The couple left a busy London life behind and made a move here at the tail end of 2011 – it was a far cry from her role at the Science Museum.
“Before moving to Buckinghamshire and starting work as a freelance writer, I developed exhibitions at the Science Museum,” Holly said.
“I spent the last two years of my time there working on the Who Am I? gallery about identity, genetics and neuroscience,” she explained.
“I researched some amazing stories and met some remarkable people. It was my work on this project - and its central question of 'what makes you, you?' - that formed the seed for The Generation.
“The freedom to become the person we are - the person we want to be - is an incredibly precious thing for anyone lucky enough to have it.
"I imagined a future in which no one would have that freedom, and in doing so, the chilling world of The Generation was born."
The Generation transports the reader to London, in 2052, following the aftermath of a terrorist attack. In this world, the genetic code of every baby is read at birth.
Your genes forecast your future, telling the State nearly everything about you...
Holly originally started work on the page-turner back in 2009, but combining a hectic job with a busy social life meant things didn't progress too far.
“I rarely found - or made - the time to write,” Holly recalls, “but the central idea and the notes I'd made stayed with me.
“I finally wrote the first draft during a round-the-world trip a few years ago, from hammocks, packed train carriages and dingy hostel rooms.
“One of my fondest memories of that time is of watching my boyfriend (now husband!) reading the first complete version of the manuscript at a roadside picnic table in New Zealand.”
Back on home soil, Holly launched a freelance career and after a rewrite decided to self-publish her debut novel.
Who will The Generation appeal to?
“Fans of Margaret Atwood's books and Kazuo Ishiguro's unsettling Never Let Me Go, or those who loved The Time Traveller's Wife will hopefully enjoy my book too,” Holly thinks, “It's sci-fi but it's set in London, not that far in the future. So it's accessible and, hopefully, believable.
“Anyone who has ever struggled with their identity in any way - or has had to seek acceptance from others to be the person they want to be - will find elements of the novel that resonate with them.
“I've also had a lot of feedback from parents who are watching their children grow up, wondering what kind of people they'll become.
“It makes them ask questions about the science behind the story: What if I knew how long they'd live? What if I knew whether they'd take drugs, or have a tendency towards taking risks?”
The Generation could spark a new trend too – visitors to the pub can tickle their tastebuds with a tipple, and tempt their imaginations by leafing through the book which will be bar side for visitors to enjoy.
“Although you won't find any recognisable locals in my stories, working in the pub gives me the opportunity to watch all kinds of people interact with each other.
“For a writer, it's a fascinating place to be, and it offers escapism from the solitary world of my study,” she said.
For some people, getting one book published can prove a big enough achievement.
For Holly, her debut novel is just the start of a whole new wordy adventure, and she promises the next release will make it to print a whole load quicker!
“From this point on, I'm intending to produce a book each year and aim to release The Architecture of Heaven in early 2016!
Copies of The Generation can be purchased through Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Generation-Holly-Cave-ebook/dp/B00RPOA61W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1420390674&sr=8-1&keywords=holly+cave+the+generation or direct from the the Cowpers Oak in Weston Underwood.
Visit www.hollycave.co.uk for more.
