My new series with the Natural History Museum, 10 Reasons to Love... begins with a sea turtle. My experience of these endangered species began, unexpectedly, during my work with Greenpeace International as a campaigner.
So there is a joy, so many years later in discovering a new way to put these ancient mariners in the limelight through my writing.
I appreciate Greenpeace sponsoring my event at Hay Festival Winter Weekend, but guess they may not know their role in this particular love story of mine.
And in following my own theme of '10 reasons to love' here's...
10 Reasons to Love... writing
1. The heartbeat of an idea.
2. The research, peeling back of layers of information to reveal the essence of a story.
3. The sharpness of expert opinion and minute detail.
4. The learning and knowledge that begins to weave in and out of a distracted daily life.
5. The turning and twisting of language as words are tapped into lines.
6. The ebb and flow and then the flood of colour around the story on a spread.
7. The sudden awkwardness of single words that demand 'delete'.
8. The scrolling, smoothing and editing of familiar pages, endless versions.
9. The months that pass. The wait. The book. The tip of an iceberg.
10. The hope that its pages ignite conversation. And questions, however small.
Catherine Barr appears at Hay Festival Winter Weekend on Sunday 26 November at 3.30pm.