Greetings and a ? from Brighton England

["tom fox" <tomfox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi my name is Tom.

I have done a small amount of sculpting and carving.
Mostly with lumps of cliff chalk by way of an
apprenticeship. My major preoccupation is writing
fiction. One novel is sitting on publisher and producers
desks. The next one is ongoing and is set around the
life of a sculptor as he carves a piece of memorial
stone - 'The Family Tree'.

I would like to spend more time immersing myself in
sculpting and carving as a means of getting to  grips
with some of the fundamentals of the story. And because
it is a beautiful way to relax from writing. To this end
I am interested in any workshops or residencies that may
be available over the coming year. Or even locations
which are best suited to giving up a few months of time
to work on local rock. [Europe in paticular, but will
happily consider any location.]

I do not know much about the various qualities of stone
but I guess something a little forgiving like a
limestone may be sensible step up from chalk. I prefer
hand tools to machinery. Any ideas / suggestions
welcome.

thanks tom fox