Brief Encounters

Have you ever set out on a train journey not knowing where on earth you''ll end up?

Hope is overworked - and so over relationships - when she embarks on a mystery tour arranged by her sister Faith, who has promised her a mini break guaranteed free of romantic four-posters, red roses or dinners for two.

Hope''s trying to travel light - yet as she leaves London Euston, her emotional baggage begins to catch up with her. Will the journey finish her off . . . or will it be the start of something new?

This exclusive short story was written by bestselling novelist Kate Harrison as she travelled as Virgin Trains Writer in Residence from London Euston to Penrith for the Romantic Novelists'' Association Conference in July 2012.

Included are Kate''s top tips for writing on a train (or a boat, or a plane)... who knows, your next bus ride could be the beginning of your first novel.

Also includes an extract from Kate''s brand new novel, THE BOOT CAMP.