My Cornish Roots: Cornish-born Tennessee-based author Angela Britnell

My Cornish Roots

Author Angela Britnell lives near Nashville, Tennessee, but as she tells Kirstie Newton, her heart remains in St Stephen, near St Austell

Tell us about your earlier life in Cornwall I was born in what was then St Stephen’s post office, where my father was the postmaster for many years. Everyone knew me as “Mr Golley’s daughter from up post office”. It was a small village: the vicar and the policeman were my best friends’ fathers, so there was little chance of getting into any trouble! I went to the village school and then to grammar school in St Austell. My parents were from the area – my dad grew up in St Austell, my mum in Mevagissey, where her father was harbourmaster. I suppose it was a very old-fashioned childhood in many ways, and the sense of community I remember is one that emerges in my writing now.

How did you come to move to the USA? I met my own tall, dark, handsome stranger and fell in love! After leaving school, I joined the WRNS and after about five years was drafted to a small NATO headquarters on the Jutland peninsula in Denmark. A certain US Naval Lieutenant was stationed there too; within four months, we were engaged and married nine months later. This April, Richard and I celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary, so I’d say it worked out. After Denmark, we lived in Sicily for two years and then moved to Monterey, California, which was the first time I lived in the US. Now we’re based in Thompson’s Station, a small town about an hour outside of Nashville.

What do you miss most about Cornwall? My husband’s joking answer is “The weather and pasties!” That simplifies it, but I do miss the more moderate climate - my fair Cornish skin has never got used to the extreme heat and humidity of a Tennessee summer.

Angela in her pram in St Stephen

Angela and Richard at home in Thompson's Station

I occasionally make pasties, but they’re never as good as my mum’s, or the genuine ones you can buy in Cornwall. I miss being by the sea as well - there’s something about it that still draws me. Although Tennessee has some beautiful mountains and lakes, it doesn’t appeal as much as breathing in salt air and looking out over the ocean.

Do you still have family in Cornwall? My 93-year-old mother lives in a residential home at Charlestown, and I have cousins in St Austell and Mevagissey. I’m in close contact with them all, plus many friends in St Stephen. Pre-Covid, I came back frequently, often three times a year as my parents aged; but when we finally made it to Cornwall last September, it was the first time I’d seen my mother for almost two years. If all goes well, we’ll return in March.

How and when did you start your writing career? About 20 years ago – wow, where did that go? - I saw a creative writing class advertised locally, one evening a week for six weeks. I thought it would be a nice escape from my wonderful, noisy three sons. I’ve always been a voracious reader and enjoyed English in school, but I was still amazed at how quickly I fell in love with writing all over again. I started with short stories, and the teacher encouraged me to turn it into something longer, so I gave it a go. My second attempt ended up as Truth And Consequence, my first published novel in 2006. In December, I published my 37th - A Cornish Christmas on Pear Tree Farm. I’ve also had short stories published in various women’s magazines, such as My Weekly and The People’s Friend.

Why did you choose romance fiction? It seemed to choose me! Almost all of my books have a Cornish connection – for example, One Summer In Little Penhaven, A Summer To Remember In Herring Bay. It also seemed natural to try a trans-Atlantic story. That’s become something I really enjoy, as it adds another layer of obstacles to a couple falling in love and working out how to make a life together – just like my own tale. l Angela Britnell’s novels are published by ChocLit. Spring on Rendezvous Lane, released in digital and audio last year, will come out in paperback in early March. www.choc-lit.com

In Unravelling, artist Ilya Fisher explores our response to the climate crisis: our need to look away, and our need to face it. Ilya embroiders words onto photographs, making layers and encouraging the viewer’s eye to wander around. See Unravelling at Truro Cathedral from March 14 to April 8.

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