An artist who is part of a dedicated group of 25 to have created depictions of the River Waveney for a new book has said she was 'inspired' by the beauty of the river.

The official book launch of Waveney Reflections: Brockdish to Bungay, A Portrait of the River took place at the weekend with the publication including works from 25 artists from the Harleston & Waveney Art Trail Collective, who work near the river.

The idea was first initiated after one of the group members, Caryl Challis, went on holiday and found a book about a small beauty spot. She then inspired the group to write about the River Waveney in a similar style, as a large majority of the artists either live on, or close to, the banks of the river.

The publication, which has taken about a year to complete, includes more than 50 full-colour images and portrays the 12 or so miles of the river which forms the boundary between Norfolk and Suffolk and gives the Waveney Valley its stunning character.

When creating their work, each of the artists was asked to write a small original piece of writing as to what the river meant to them, along with their relationship with the water and the surrounding area of the valley.

Christina Greathead grew up near the River Mersey, in Liverpool, but moved to the area 10 years ago. She is also the secretary of the group.

'The book launch was very exciting and we have all been inspired to create our work on this natural landscape feature,' she said.

'One of our favourite walks is to Mendham across the river – and we all have a long standing relationship with the river in one way or another.'

The launch was held at the River Waveney Trust Study Centre in Earsham. Writer and poet Tessa West, who has written the foreword to the book, opened the event.

The book, which is priced at £12 is also available from Diss Publishing in Diss, Robinson's Traditional Stationers in Harleston, Jarrold in Norwich and The Old King's Head in Brockdish.

For more information about the collective, visit www.hwat.org.uk

Are you writing a new book about East Anglia? Email: newsdesk@archant.co.uk