In defense of being a tourist in your hometown

I live in Edinburgh (Scotland) and yes, it’s as beautiful as people say but I think it's easy to get bogged down in all the negatives of a place. Edinburgh, like a lot of places, is prone to over-tourism. It’s gone from being busy in August, to busy in the summer, to basically all year round. This makes it hard to navigate the city and pushes locals to stay where they are, but I implore people to explore where they live.

It’s a great way to get to know your area and view it in a new light, but it also feeds into your writing and challenges perceptions of what a place can do. Is your locale known for whale watching but you’ve never been out? Maybe plan a trip with friends and make a day of it. Is there a cultural site you’d love to go to but it’s just a bit too expensive? Follow their social media or join their newsletter for discounts. Seasonal markets, family days and special events are also a great way to get to know local makers and can give cheap entry to museums, galleries and attractions like stately homes. Local libraries can hold free passes, as do some councils (in the UK).

Edinburgh has a wealth of cultural opportunities that are free, and a lot that you need to pay for. I’ve found doing a combo of both, or utilising free days like Doors Open Day in September a great way to explore the city.

My personal favourite attractions that I’ve visited in recent years have been Gladstone's Land and the Georgian House. Both are run by the National Trust for Scotland and I visited both for free (one on Doors Open Day, the other with an ASVA pass from my work), but I do think they are worth paying the money for. They give real insight into what life was like during specific time periods - late nineteenth/early twentieth century, Georgian, Regency and Stuart eras. The staff and volunteers are always nice and knowledgeable. Being able to immerse yourself in how people lived, in the small details that might not make it into a story but flesh out the world in your mind makes such a difference. Worldbuilding to me is not just about what’s on the page but what lies beneath. It’s what drives a character to reach for a certain cup or sit on a certain chair, it furnishes your story in layers like an iceberg - the tip of which can be seen by your reader.

It’s not just cultural sites that make a difference, but activities and nature. It can be as simple as going to a park or on a hike. To see your everyday from a different angle, to watch how people move and use a space. To try and see how your physical limitations of using the world differently can make a character more real. 

Also, do not fall for the “it’s too popular” hype. Go and see the thing! I went to Edinburgh Castle years ago with my mum. It was very expensive and can feel exclusionary to locals. We had a fantastic time and still talk about it to this day. It’s something I hold dear and use in my writing even now. Memories are the threads of our stories, and we can use them to tie things together in a thousand different ways. These sites are meant for everyone, even as late stage capitalism tries to push you out. Visit the place, enjoy the scenery, it belongs to you too. 

I write fantasy romance and the default time period for this is medieval. While I do love this era (hello messy Plantagenets), it’s nice to explore different time periods. Galleries and museums are amazing for this. You can see objects and imagery that reflect the time, there are often free guided tours that can expand your knowledge and give you an “in” to the collections. My personal favourite in the UK is the Victoria and Albert museum in London. It’s a huge treasure trove of clothing, paintings, ceramics and basically anything you can think of. The cast hall is immense and has casts from most major pieces of Western art (shout out to Michelangelo’s David). The awe-inspiring collection is free to visit and you could literally spend days getting through it all. My suggestion is just wander, to put aside your innate interests and see what strikes at your creativity well. It’s usually surprising and can have a lasting impact on your work.

Basically, what I’m trying to say is take time to fill your cup. We live in a world of go-go-go productivity, it can be hard to put pen/paper/laptop down and just be. Balancing life, writing, family, caring, working can be incredibly hard and typing to shoehorn in sightseeing in your own back garden, but trust me, it pays dividends. You know an area well enough to be able to draw from it instinctively, but seeing it in a new way can spark so much. Do this off season if you’re worried about crowds and cost, and maybe try to factor in a few trips a year. It doesn’t need to be excessive but a renewed appreciation of where you live is a great font for writing ideas and a way to bolster the worlds you make. 

Explore where you are, your stories will thank you for it.