Magical realism
Having messed up my A levels, I was living with my parents in Kent at the age of 18. I had no idea what I was going to do with my life, no plan B and no wealthy benefactors to lend a hand. So I did what any sane person would do – I called the tourist board of a remote Scottish island and asked whether they knew of a farmer who would take me in as a worker in exchange for board and lodging. It happened in books, so why not to me?
By the seat of my pants
Most called it idiocy, others warned me I’d be murdered within a fortnight. I like to think of it as the perfect example of my optimistic
