Category: Fiction Page 53 of 69

Guest Blog from Lucy V Hay – 3 HABITS OF EFFECTIVE BOOK REVIEWERS

On August 19, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, crime, Fiction, review, writing tips

Today I’m joined by my friend and Devon Writers business partner, Lucy V Hay – this is advice you can’t afford to ignore.

Over to you Lucy…

3 HABITS OF EFFECTIVE BOOK REVIEWERS

by @LucyVHayAuthor

1)They know what they like. I’m a big ‘grip lit’ fan – in other words, I’m most interested in female protagonists who are probably NOT police (or other related authoritative figures). I like mysteries, thrillers, unreliable narrators and characters who are not your ‘usual’, meaning I like diverse casts and I don’t feel have to necessarily ‘like’ characters to relate to their journeys. Plot-wise, I like strong concepts and prefer a fast pace with unexpected twists and turns. I favour psychological torment over actual graphic violence generally speaking. In terms of writing style, I like prose that’s lean, visual and sharp, almost literary.

That’s not to say I never read male protagonists, police procedurals or novels with torture and splatter in. I even read romance from time to time! But I favour ‘grip lit’ because ultimately I want to be entertained. Obvious, really!

effective book bloggers

BOOK REVIEWER TOP TIP: Know who you are, what you like and let people know – then you’re more likely to be approached by publishers, small presses and individual authors who have ARCs you would love to read.

2) They know their opinion is one of many. I don’t see the point in ‘hate reading’, so I always stop reading if I am not enjoying a book. My time is limited as a busy working Mum of three, why would I waste it on something I am not enjoying? What’s more, I never review books I haven’t finished. But most importantly, I recognise that just because I don’t like a book, doesn’t mean someone else won’t LOVE it! As book reviewers, we have to realise our opinion is just one of many.

BOOK REVIEWER TOP TIP: If you’re not enjoying a book, why not pass the baton on to another reader? You could always say to the ARC giver, ‘this wasn’t for me, but I think X would love it’.

3) They have a strategy. I keep a record of the books I’m reading and have read via my Goodreads page, plus I share my top crimefiction picks based around a theme on my ‘Best of 3’ feature on my blog. I also try and post to my blog at least twice a week, plus five or six times in Facebook groups and Twitter chats about reading and writing. In other words, in any given week, my fellow readers should hear approximately ten times from me.

But it’s NOT all about me and what *I* like: I also invite fellow crime fiction fans to submit THEIR ‘Best of 3’ picks to my blog, plus I also invite authors and screenwriters to take part in an interview feature called Criminally Good. Once a month, I’ll do an author chat on my FB page, CRIME, INK too

BOOK REVIEWER TOP TIP: Decide in advance how you will build up your platform. And try and stick to the 80/20 rule – if you’re talking about yourself and your site 20% of the time, make sure you’re taking about others (and their books or picks!) 80% of the time!

Good luck out there!

***

Lucy Hay

BIO: @LucyVHayAuthor is currently writing her first psychological thriller novel. She is also a script editor for movies and has written the nonfiction book, Writing & Selling Thriller Screenplays (Kamera Books). Join The Criminally Good Book Club to sign up for news, offers and giveaways.

***

Many thanks Lucy.

Jenny x

Guest Post from Karl Drinkwater: Thinking Manchester in the year 2000…

By Jenny Kane

On August 18, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Fiction, Interview

I’m delighted to welcome Karl Drinkwater to my blog today to chat about his writing, and the influence the city of Manchester has had on his words. Why not put your feet up for five minutes and join us for a chat?

Karl Drinkwater

Hi Karl, where are you from?

I’m originally from Manchester. Therefore I grew up miserable. This gradually softened to a perpetual grumpiness and a desire to create a better world through fiction. I now live in Wales. It’s like Manchester with hills and greenery.

Manchester (1)

Which books did you want to talk about today?

Cold Fusion 2000, and 2000 Tunes. They were my most recent novels, both set in Manchester in the year 2000, shortly after I left for Wales. When you leave a place you see it in a different light, the good and the bad. And you see yourself in a different light too. A teeny bit of that will bleed between the covers.

Karl Drinkwater Cold What inspired you to write the books?

I think I was getting things out of my system with these books. They’re love letters to Manchester, its music, its city, whilst also being critical of some aspects. And they’re also more traditional love stories after a fashion, about nerds and difficult people being able to find love and happiness and contentment. Both books are set in the same summer with crossover places, themes, situations and characters that sometimes mirror each other.

Karl Drinkwater 2000 Tunes What type of research did you have to do for your book?

Since both novels were set in a very real place I wanted to reflect that, and show how the geography of an area affects our perception of it. The difficulty was that the city centre had changed a lot in the last sixteen years. Many of the places in the novel have already been lost, renamed, altered or closed. 2000 Tunes opens outside The Haçienda, one of the world’s most famous nightclubs: just before it was demolished for luxury flats. I had to combine my memories of the city at the time with archival photos and discussions; my diaries were useful too. I built the city back up as it used to be and then let the characters breathe into that space.

There were also the elements related to the protagonist nerds. In Cold Fusion 2000 we have Alex, who is obsessed with with poetry … and hardcore physics. Luckily I’ve studied literature and astronomy at university, but I still had to learn more to fully get into his head. In 2000 Tunes Mark is obsessed with the music of Manchester. Again, it’s a love of mine, but the amount of detail I had to research so that I could draw parallels between songs based on dates, musicians, locations and so on as Mark does … that was a whole other level. Some of the research led to a series of blog posts all about the songs Mark thinks are the best examples of Manchester music (and which also form the chapter names in the novel). You’ll find the posts here.

Manchester (4) Why the year 2000?

It was a time when people thought the world might suddenly change for the better. What fools we were. But it’s an interesting liminal time, totally appropriate for coming-of-age stories about obsessive nerds, the amazing women they fall in love with, and the life-changing decisions they confront.

Do you prefer to plot your story or just go with the flow?

It has to be a bit of both. I plot so that macro-scale events work well, with escalation, reversals and so on. So if I sit down to write a scene I know that the two characters will begin arguing, and eventually come to blows, and say things they’ll regret, or reveal things they shouldn’t – but the details of what, and when, and how aren’t decided in advance. They come naturally from the characters interacting. Reviews often praise my realistic dialogue, and I think if you let the words and actions be authentic to the characters then the scene will flow; and often surprise the author.

Links

Website: http://karldrinkwater.uk

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karlzdrinkwater/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/karldrinkwater

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bIkYp5

Purchase: Amazon UK / Amazon US

****

Manchester (6)

Extract from 2000 Tunes

Samantha Rees thrust money into the taxi drivers hand and hurried away. Stopped, smoothed down her black skirt. Was it too short?

Too late if it was.

The white-washed Presbyterian chapel was built on a hill and the graveyard sloped down to dry stone walls. A bank of dying daffodils bent their heads towards her in the breeze. When she was a little girl her uncle had tricked her, making her believe they were really called Taffodils. She shook her head and climbed the steep stone steps, worn from two centuries of comings and goings.

People in black milled around outside under incongruous sunshine. She spied smokers having a quick ciggie behind the holly trees. She’d have joined them if she wasn’t so late. Just a one-off to settle her emotions.

The mourners admitted her, welcomed her. Hugs and questions but she pushed her way through as quickly as she could without seeming rude. It smelt like a flower shop. Overpowering sweetness of the white lilies. Snippets of conversation heard in passing.

“Such a nice day for it …”

“Aye, booked the weather in advance, knowing her.”

“Joined her husband, that’ll be a reunion.”

“Always said they didn’t want to outlive each other.”

“Shouldn’t be in here really, I’m a pub man …”

Inside was dark polished wood set off against pale walls. Pews and a small gallery were filling with those too tired to stand around. She spotted her mam and they hugged. Seconds without words, but which said everything, before Sam moved to arm’s length. “Sorry I’m late. I dropped my bags off at your house first, and the trains were –” but Mam silenced her with a waved hand.

“I knew you’d be here, bach. We waited. She’d have wanted that.”

Despite all the murmurs the atmosphere was hushed, heavy, like a gap in sound before an approaching storm. Noises seemed further away than normal, vitality cut off from conversation, words disconnected from their source, just as Sam’s mother was now disconnected from her source. Organisation rippled through the crowd as people moved to seats. Some mourners had to spill over into the small gallery.

Mamgu was in the coffin at the front. It hurt to look at the box, to picture Mamgu’s face without a living smile on it; so when the minister stepped into the pulpit and began speaking Sam was glad to focus on him instead. The service was in Welsh. Soon there was sniffing and nose blowing as the eulogy continued.

They stood to sing. Calon Lân began, beautiful music and strong voices. Sam tried to sing along but her throat tightened so she mumbled, “Calon lân yn llawn daioni, Tecach yw na’r lili dlos.” A pure heart full of goodness, Is fairer than the pretty lily.

She had to look up as her eyes brimmed, lights hung in threes, the images spilt over and she realised she hadn’t brought a hankie but would definitely need one…

***

Bio

Karl Drinkwater is originally from Manchester but has lived in Wales for nearly twenty years, ever since he went there to do a degree: it was easier to stay than to catch a train back. His longest career was in librarianship (twenty-five years); his shortest was industrial welding (one week).

Sometimes he writes about life and love; sometimes death and decay. He usually flips a coin in the morning, or checks the weather, and decides based on that. His aim is to tell a good story, regardless of genre. When he is not writing or editing he loves exercise, guitars, computer games, board games, the natural environment, animals, social justice and zombies.

http://www.karldrinkwater.uk/p/about.html

***

Many thanks for a great blog Karl.

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

Interview with Julia Roberts: Liberty Sands

By Jenny Kane

On August 15, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction, Interview, Romance

It’s interview time today, and I’m delighted to welcome Julia Roberts to my blog. This is an excellent interview- I advise you to pop your feet up for five minutes to join us for a chat and a cuppa. What an amazing life!

Over to you Julia…

coffee and cake

What inspired you to write your book?

I have to be honest and say that it was a holiday to the beautiful island of Mauritius. I had been receiving treatment for almost a year for a type of leukaemia and the medication, whilst working effectively to bring the condition under control, made me very tired. What was needed was a relaxing ten days in paradise but on the first morning of the holiday I sat on the beach under the shade of a straw parasol, the sound of the waves crashing on the distant reef and the seed of an idea for a novel started to grow. Over the course of the holiday I lived and breathed the story and the characters, as did my poor long-suffering other half, and by the time we were waiting at the airport for the journey home I had the plot for not just one book, but the entire Liberty Sands trilogy. Book one, Life’s a Beach and Then… begins in Mauritius and the final book, It’s Never Too late To Say… concludes there, so it comes full circle.

Do you model any of your characters after people you know? If so, do these people see themselves in your characters?

A lot of people have said that two of the characters in Life’s a Beach and Then… reminded them of me. Rosemary is a sixty year old ex-dancer who has CML, but there the similarity ends, and Holly is like me in looks but twenty years ago. I think Holly’s son Harry was definitely modelled on my own son and our relationship, whilst the character of Amy has a lot of my daughter in her. I guess the answer to that question has to be a resounding yes – it’s a good job I know a lot of people.

51Y9K+POZOL._SY346_

What type of research did you have to do for your book?

All of my books to date have included far flung destinations as my main female character, Holly, is an undercover travel blogger. Fortunately I have travelled to all the places I have written about, either on holiday or for work, apart from Cuba which I had to rely on my daughter’s experience of. One of my characters in the first book had Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia, which I have firsthand experience of but in the final part of the trilogy I had to rely on the internet for my research into alcohol induced dementia.

Which Point of View do you prefer to write in and why?

At the moment all my writing has been in third person close. I like getting inside the heads of the various different characters. I hope as my writing skills improve I will feel confident enough to experiment and write in first person but obviously it will depend on the plot.

Do you prefer to plot your story or just go with the flow?

I like to have a general outline of the story rather than just sitting down to write but I have found with all three of my novels that some of the best passages of the book have just come to me during a writing session, almost as though they are being given to me. Sorry if that sounds weird.

What is your writing regime?

I have a full time job working as a presenter on QVC which means I don’t have as much time to write as I would like. My shift pattern is that I work eight days out of nine, which is tough, but I then get a five day break – these are my writing days, my creative days, although I don’t mind doing a bit of editing before or after my QVC commitments.

What excites you the most about your book?

Sharing it with my readers and getting their feedback. There is nothing better than when someone is so engaged in the story that they will come up to you and start talking about your characters as though they are real people. I remember one of our QVC guests, Gill, coming up to me and saying, ‘Don’t you let anything happen to my Rosemary.’ I had to avoid her for about a week after that.

untitled

If you were stranded on a desert island with three other people, fictional or real, who would they be and why?

Tom Hanks – he’d have some great anecdotes from all the movie stars he’s worked with and he might be quite useful at surviving based on his role in Castaway.

Bear Grylls – because he really does know how to survive in extreme conditions.

And the other Julia Roberts – just because I would like to meet her.

***

Links-

My twitter is @JuliaRobertsQVC

My Facebook page is www.JuliaRobertsTV

My current webpage is www.juliarobertsbooks.co.uk BUT we are currently working on a new website which should be up and running before this goes on your blog www.juliarobertsauthor.com

My current WIP is a short story which will be available to download free on my new website.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lifes-Beach-Liberty-Sands-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00X8U1M9C

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B017V6PMZI/ref=series_rw_dp_sw

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Never-Late-Liberty-Sands-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B01FOFAUOQ/ref=pd_sim_351_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=515QlVN3-BL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_UX300_PJku-sticker-v7%2CTopRight%2C0%2C-50_OU02__BG0%2C0%2C0%2C0_FMpng_AC_UL160_SR105%2C160_&psc=1&refRID=MQ347317FRQBNYX9RGGG

***

Julia Roberts QVC

Julia Roberts is probably best known as the trusted face of the UK’s most successful shopping channel, QVC, but she had enjoyed a rewarding and varied career in the entertainment industry for many years prior to launching the channel in 1993.

She was born in Nottingham in 1956. At fourteen months old she contracted the deadly disease Polio which left her fighting for her life and subsequently hospitalised for five months. Swimming and dancing lessons, which helped her to walk without the aid of a calliper, have both played an important role in her later life.

Julia started her professional career at the age of 16 as a dancer in a summer show in Guernsey. This was followed by pantomimes in Leeds, Croydon and Watford as well as further summer seasons in the Channel Islands. Deciding to leave the UK and see a bit more of the world, she danced on cruise ships, in a theatre show in Barcelona, and performed as a singer/dancer in a cabaret show in Hong Kong. In 1980 Julia appeared in The Song for Europe as part of a band called The Main Event performing alongside Cheryl Baker, who went on to join Buck’s Fizz the following year while Julia signed a record deal with her band Jools and the Fools before moving into television.

Having featured in various TV commercials, notably the Woolwich Building Society and Head & Shoulders shampoo, and small television acting roles in Citizen Smith and Doctor Who, Julia became a hostess on the first and second UK series of the hit American game show, The Price is Right. This was followed by becoming a member of the ‘Hit Squad’ on comedy series Beadles About before she took a short career break to have her two children.

Presenter

It was during this break in her career that Julia decided to try her hand at presenting. Her first presenting job was for Vauxhall motors at the 1989 Motor Show at Olympia during which she was approached and offered a job presenting several weekly ‘magazine’ style shows for her local television channel in Croydon. One of these was called Palace Chatback and led to her passion for Crystal Palace Football Club, a team she still supports today. In addition to this show, Julia has produced and presented several features for Sky Sports.

In 1993 Julia successfully auditioned to become a Presenter for a new shopping channel, QVC, and appeared in the opening sequences which launched the channel with co-presenter, Jon Briggs. Little did she know that this was the start of a long, successful career with the channel which now boasts over 25 million viewers in the UK alone, with over 1 million active customers. Throughout this time, she has shared the screen with many famous names, including the likes of the late Joan Rivers, Marie Osmond, Sir David Attenborough, Joan Collins and Lulu, to mention a few.

Writer

Julia has now written and released 4 books. Her first book, a memoir entitled One Hundred Lengths of the Pool, was published in 2013 by Preface Publishing for Random House and sold out of 5000 hardback signed copies exclusively on QVC. The title of this book was inspired by her battle against polio in her early years, and the huge part that swimming played in allowing Julia the chance to walk unaided. A percentage of proceeds from her book sales were donated to the End Polio Now campaign as well as the British Polio Fellowship.

Close to completing the finishing touches to her first book, Julia was faced with a new health challenge. She was diagnosed with a rare type of blood cancer, Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia. After such a tough year continuing to work full-time at QVC, signing her book deal, and battling her new illness, Julia needed some R&R so booked a much needed holiday for herself and her partner, Chris, to a place she had always longed to visit, Mauritius.

On the first morning of the holiday Julia had an idea. Using her recent experience of Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia as a basis for one of her main characters she began to write her debut novel Life’s a Beach and Then… she donates a percentage of profits from this book to the charity Bloodwise (formerly Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research).

Julia published Life’s a Beach and Then…, part one of the Liberty Sands trilogy, in May 2015, followed by If He Really Loved Me… in November 2015 and the final part of the trilogy, It’s Never Too Late To Say… in May 2016. All three books have featured in the top 100 Amazon Kindle Romance charts and enjoy an average 4.8 star rating from more than two hundred and fifty customer reviews.

Now living in Berkshire with Chris, her partner of 38 years, Julia divides her time between QVC, writing, Pilates, attending Crystal Palace matches and supporting the two charities that she holds close to her heart; British Polio Fellowship, for whom she is an ambassador, and Bloodwise.

***

Wow!! What a CV!!! Many thanks for joining us today Julia.

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny xx

A Summer Wedding: Romancing Robin Hood

By Jenny Kane

On August 5, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, crime, Fiction, Historical fiction, Romance

I’m away on my holidays this week, and so I thought I’d leave you with a little something to read. What better for the summer, than a wedding?

RRH- new 2015

Romancing Robin Hood is a contemporary romance is based on the life of Dr Grace Harper, a medieval history lecturer with a major Robin Hood obsession. So much so, that instead of writing a textbook on medieval life, Grace is secretly writing a novella about a fourteenth century girl called Mathilda, who gets mixed up with a real outlaw family of the day, the Folvilles. (Which you can also read within my novel!)

The problem is that Grace is so embroiled in her work and passion for outlaws, that real life is passing her by.

With her wedding approaching fast, Grace’s best friend Daisy can’t help wishing a similar happiness to her own for her Robin Hood loving friend…

summer wedding

Extract

…Daisy hadn’t grown up picturing herself floating down the aisle in an over-sequinned ivory frock, nor as a doting parent, looking after triplets and walking a black Labrador. So when, on an out-of-hours trip to the local vet’s surgery she’d met Marcus and discovered that love at first sight wasn’t a myth, it had knocked her for six.

She’d been on a late-night emergency dash to the surgery with an owl a neighbour had found injured in the road. Its wing had required a splint, and it was too big a job for only one pair of hands. Daisy had been more than a bit surprised when the locum vet had stirred some long-suppressed feeling of interest in her, and even more amazed when that feeling had been reciprocated.

It was all luck, sheer luck. Daisy had always believed that anyone meeting anybody was down to two people meeting at exactly the right place, at exactly the right time, while both feeling precisely the right amount of chemistry. The fact that any couples existed at all seemed to Daisy to be one of the greatest miracles of humanity.

She pictured Grace, tucked away in her mad little office only living in the twenty-first century on a part-time basis. Daisy had long since got used to the fact that her closest friend’s mind was more often than not placed firmly in the 1300s. Daisy wished Grace would finish her book. It had become such a part of her. Such an exclusive aim that nothing else seemed to matter very much. Even the job she used to love seemed to be a burden to her now, and Daisy sensed that Grace was beginning to resent the hours it took her away from her life’s work. Maybe if she could get her book over with – get it out of her system – then Grace would stop living in the wrong timeframe.

Daisy knew Grace appreciated that she never advised her to find a bloke, settle down, and live ‘happily ever after,’ and she was equally grateful Grace had never once suggested anything similar to her. Now she had Marcus, however, Daisy had begun to want the same contentment for her friend, and had to bite her tongue whenever they spoke on the phone; something that happened less and less these days.

Grace’s emails were getting shorter too. The long paragraphs detailing the woes of teaching students with an ever-decreasing intelligence had blunted down to, ‘You ok? I’m good. Writing sparse. See you soon. Bye G x’

The book. That in itself was a problem. Grace’s publishers and colleagues, Daisy knew, were expecting an academic tome. A textbook for future medievalists to ponder over in the university libraries of the world. And, in time, that was exactly what they were going to get, but not yet, for Grace had confided to Daisy that this wasn’t the only thing she was working on, and her textbook was coming a poor third place to work and the other book she couldn’t seem to stop herself from writing.

‘Why,’ Grace had forcefully expounded on their last meeting, ‘should I slog my guts out writing a book only a handful of bored students and obsessive freaks like myself will ever pick up, let alone read?’

As a result, Grace was writing a novel, ‘A semi-factual novel,’ she’d said, ‘a story which will tell any student what they need to know about the Folville family and their criminal activities – which bear a tremendous resemblance to the stories of a certain famous literary outlaw! – and hopefully promote interest in the subject for those who aren’t that into history without boring them to death.’

It sounded like a good idea to Daisy, but she also knew, as Grace did, that it was precisely the sort of book academics frowned upon, and she was worried about Grace’s determination to finish it. Daisy thought it would be more sensible to concentrate on one manuscript at a time, and get the dry epic that everyone was expecting out of the way first. Perhaps it would have been completed by now if Grace could focus on one project at a time, rather than it currently being a year in the preparation without a final result in sight. Daisy suspected Grace’s boss had no idea what she was really up to. After all, she was using the same lifetime of research for both manuscripts. She also had an underlying suspicion that subconsciously Grace didn’t want to finish either the textbook or the novel; that her friend was afraid to finish them. After all, what would she fill her hours with once they were done?

Daisy’s mobile began to play a tinny version of Nellie the Elephant. She hastily plopped a small black guinea pig, which she’d temporarily called Charcoal, into a run with his numerous friends, and fished her phone from her dungarees pocket.

‘Hi, Marcus.’

‘Hi honey, you OK?’

‘Just delivering the tribe to their outside quarters, then I’m off to face the horror that is dress shopping.’

Her future husband laughed, ‘You’ll be fine. You’re just a bit rusty, that’s all.’

‘Rusty! I haven’t owned a dress since I went to parties as a small child. Thirty-odd years ago!’

‘I don’t understand why you don’t go with Grace at the weekend. It would be easier together wouldn’t it?’

Daisy sighed, ‘I’d love to go with her, but I’ll never get her away from her work more than once this month, and I’ve yet to arrange a date for her to buy a bridesmaid outfit.’

‘Well, good luck, babe. I’m off to rob some bulls of their manhood.’

Daisy giggled, ‘Have fun. Oh, why did you call by the way?’

‘Just wanted to hear your voice, nothing else.’

‘Oh cute – ta.’

‘Idiot! Enjoy shopping.’

As she clicked her battered blue mobile shut and slid it back into her working clothes, Daisy thought of Grace again. Perhaps she should accidentally invite loads of single men to the wedding to tempt her friend with. The trouble was, unless they wore Lincoln Green, and carried a bow and quiver of arrows, Daisy very much doubted whether Grace would even notice they were there…

RH- RoS 2

Blurb

Dr Grace Harper has loved the stories of Robin Hood ever since she first saw them on TV as a girl. Now, with her fortieth birthday just around the corner, she’s a successful academic in Medieval History, with a tenured position at a top university.

But Grace is in a bit of a rut. She’s supposed to be writing a textbook on a real-life medieval gang of high-class criminals – the Folvilles – but she keeps being drawn into the world of the novel she’s secretly writing – a novel which entwines the Folvilles with her long-time love of Robin Hood – and a feisty young girl named Mathilda, who is the key to a medieval mystery…

Meanwhile, Grace’s best friend Daisy – who’s as keen on animals as Grace is on the Merry Men – is unexpectedly getting married, and a reluctant Grace is press-ganged into being her bridesmaid. As Grace sees Daisy’s new-found happiness, she starts to re-evaluate her own life. Is her devotion to a man who may or may not have lived hundreds of years ago really a substitute for a real-life hero of her own? It doesn’t get any easier when she meets Dr Robert Franks – a rival academic who Grace is determined to dislike but finds herself being increasingly drawn to…

Buy Links – All e-formats available (Paperback to follow asap)

Amazon UK- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Romancing-Robin-Hood-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00M4838S2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407428558&sr=8-1&keywords=romancing+robin+hood

Amazon.com- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Romancing-Robin-Hood-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00M4838S2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407428558&sr=8-1&keywords=romancing+robin+hood

***

Happy reading,

Jenny x

Interview with Marie Evelyn: The Turtle Run

By Jenny Kane

On August 4, 2016

In Blog, Fiction, Historical fiction, Interview

It’s interview time at my blog today, and I’m delighted to welcome Marie Evelyn to the chair. Let’s pop the kettle on- but how many cups are we going to need/

Over to you Marie…

coffee and cake

What inspired you to write your book?

The Turtle Run was inspired by something my mother once witnessed in Barbados (described in the book). She came across barefooted, blue-eyed, fair-haired children struggling to carry buckets of water from a standpipe to their chattel house and learned that they were the descendants of the Monmouth rebels, who were exiled from England to Barbados in 1685.

This experience encouraged my mother to study more about the Monmouth rebellion, led by Charles II’s illegitimate son, the Duke of Monmouth. Although the book is contemporary, and has a strong romantic element, the theme is about how people’s lives are influenced by the fate of their ancestors. Certainly the miserable situation of many ‘Redlegs’ (to give them their politically incorrect name) was the legacy of their exiled forebears.

Do you model any of your characters after people you know? If so, do these people see themselves in your characters?

The self-interested Francesca was based on a neighbour and school classmate of mine in Barbados. (Name changed – of course). To be fair, she may have matured into a wonderful woman fighting for human rights since I was on the island, but when I knew her, all the indications were that she would take ‘shallowness’ to new depths.

The Turtle Run cover

What type of research did you have to do for your book?

My mother had a long association with Barbados and we lived on the island throughout my childhood. There was also a family connection to the Redlegs. My mother did a little research out there to try and discover more about the original exiled Monmouth Rebels but it was only many years later – after we had moved to the UK and my parents had retired to Dorset – that she was really able to research the beginning of the story, which has so many local connections with south-west England.

The Somerset Heritage Centre (http://www1.somerset.gov.uk/archives/) was a useful source of information and this short event in British history has inspired some really interesting books. But for a ‘Monmouth fix’, I would leave the non-fiction books and turn to Lorna Doone.

What excites you the most about your book?

The book has a strong theme of trying to understand the present through understanding the past. Although I am more interested in the challenge of writing a story where there is a connection between a contemporary character’s situation and the situation of his/her ancestors from hundreds of years before, just having characters uncover a secret about their own immediate family can be really engaging.

If you were stranded on a desert island with three other people, fictional or real, who would they be and why?

Enid Blyton would be one as I have a rather complicated relationship with her. Of course, several of her books were on the theme of children living on islands, though as practical guides to island-survival they would be pretty hopeless as the children never seemed to have much problem finding food, and never had go to the loo. I should be very grateful to her for firing my young imagination, but the problem was that I assumed her stories had some basis in reality. As my image of what England would be like was entirely informed by her books, I experienced no small disappointment when we did finally move here, and as for my subsequent experience of boarding school – let’s just say that I felt very misled. I would probably end up chasing her around the island pelting coconuts at her.

I would also choose Louisa Dixie Durrell – who must have been a real character but was reduced to ‘Mother’ in Gerald Durrell’s books and who seemed to have a very placatory role during her children’s squabbles. I imagine she would act as peacekeeper on the island, and would try to persuade Blyton that I wasn’t throwing coconuts deliberately. Finally, I would have Baroness Elsa Schraeder (Captain Von Trapp’s fiancée in the Sound Of Music) to add a touch of style and class. She could enjoy the child-free island and use the time to reflect on her extreme good luck at losing Von Trapp and his warbling children to an ex-nun with a guitar.

I guess our survival would depend upon Enid Blyton’s expert naturalist knowledge, and I would have to hope that she’d forgotten the whole coconut-pelting episode.

Links

https://www.facebook.com/Marie-Evelyn-920546144697589/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Turtle-Run-Marie-Evelyn/dp/1783753277

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28330185-the-turtle-run

Bio

Marie Evelyn are a mother and daughter team originally from the Caribbean but now based in the UK.

Mother Margot (Margot Gameson née Evelyn) has been published previously as Mary Evelyn and daughter Marie Gameson was longlisted for The Bridport First Novel Prize in 2015. The Turtle Run is their first novel together and is based on their firsthand experiences of growing up in Barbados, showing a side of the island probably unknown to most visitors.

A former journalist, Margot in particular has seen the island go through a lot of changes, especially in the lead up to independence – Barbados celebrates its 50^th anniversary as an independent nation this year. However The Turtle Run shows there are still resonances of its lesser known history on the island today.

The family moved to the UK in the 1970s and eventually settled in an area where many of the Monmouth rebels originally came from. Margot is now retired and Marie works in IT.

***

Wonderful interview, many thanks Marie,

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny xx

Guest Post from Nicola May: Fast Love

By Jenny Kane

On August 2, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction, Romance

I’m delighted to welcome Nicola May back to my blog today, to chat about her brand new novel, Love Me Tinder.

Over to you Nicola…

When I started dating not everybody had a mobile phone, so you would arrange to meet somebody at a certain place, at a certain time and it just happened.

Now to be honest I’m exhausted by all the technology that comes along with it. I mean what happened to good old fashioned courting? Rather than having to work out which is the best mode of communication for progressing the relationship; is he a Facebook messenger type of guy or does Skype float his boat? Can I not instead just pick up the remarkable object that was designed originally for vocal, yes vocal communication and talk to him?

I feel that so much gets misconstrued through messaging and I’m the sort of person who wants to know someone’s real honest feelings from the get go. Modern dating doesn’t encourage this level of intimacy. When someone likes me, I want them to call and show me that, instead of playing the texting game, which seems to have become the norm right now.

The current information overloaded digital world, where people’s minds need to be fed with whatever it is every ten minutes has transferred to the dating game and I think that this fast way of looking for love should slow right down.

To be honest, I don’t think the majority of people give relationships a chance anymore; a slight imperfection in character or looks and you can cruelly replace someone with the touch of a button if you so wish.

love me tindeeeer change position

Maybe you are just looking for Fast Love as in George Michael’s hit song, but if you are looking to settle down I think you should take note of writer, Margaret Atwood who said. ‘If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.’ There is no such thing as a perfect relationship or person for that matter. And, sadly as you get older you realise that there are rarely the happy ever afters you read about in novel’s like mine.

And, if today’s reality is thinking that you never have to compromise on something to make it work, there are going to be a lot of shocked single people left out there.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not all doom and gloom. I kept my internet love search as real as I could and actually went on some very fun dates and met some interesting men. I didn’t find my Mr Right, however what I did find was that there was so much to write about!

In fact, almost immediately I realised that the minefield of good, bad and indifferent dates I encountered was a gift for creating interesting and amusing plot fodder, and so the idea for Love Me Tinder was born.

In brief Love me Tinder revolves around heroine, Cali Summers who decides to hit the world of fast love after her marriage breaks down.

Using room 102 in the hotel where she works as her dating ‘lair’, she opens herself up to a world of sex, lies, deception, as well as personal discovery and passionate romance.

This book is for anyone who has immersed themselves into the crazy world of app or internet dating or in fact anyone who wants an insight into what it’s all about.

It is a romantic comedy, but I also wanted to address the issue of fast love in today’s modern world and I hope I have managed to do this in a sympathetic, realistic and head nodding creating manner.

Link to book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Love-Me-Tinder-Nicola-May-ebook/dp/B01HD2QN4O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1469186443&sr=8-1&keywords=love+me+tinder Twitter: nicolamay1

Website: www.nicolamay.com Love Me Tinder is out NOW as an eBook.
nicola orba

Biography

Nicola lives in Ascot in Berkshire with Stanley her rescue cat. She has a penchant for Prosecco, ripe peaches and flapjacks. Love Me Tinder is her eighth novel.

***

Many thanks Nicola,

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

Interview with Colette Kebell: Retail Therapy

By Jenny Kane

On August 1, 2016

In Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction, Interview

It’s interview time! Today I’m delighted to welcome Colette Kebell for a cuppa and a chat.

coffee and cake

What inspired you to write your book?

Honestly being made redundant coupled with a hunger to get back to something that I enjoyed both at school and since, though prior to being made redundant, life just seemed to get in the way what with work, home life, dogs, hubby and just plain thinking I had lost any talent I thought I had due to the drudgery of a 9-5 job.

Do you model any of your characters after people you know? If so, do these people see themselves in your characters?

I have loosely modelled a number of my characters not only on myself and my husband but other friends and family. Other than my husband, of course, none have mentioned to me that they saw themselves in my characters. I guess I’m pretty good at hiding where my inspiration for each came from. Having said that I’m not sure whether that is a good or bad thing though. It might sometimes be seen as complimentary to the person or persons involved, though not in every case. There are a number of characters that I’m sure if those real life people had read my books, despite not recognizing themselves, would still enjoy as I have made even the villains humorous, I just couldn’t resist that one. Afterall, Chicklit/RomCom are by their very nature meant to be funny, at the very least some of the time.

What type of research did you have to do for your book?

As far as research goes, I basically read a lot, wrote in a round about way about my own life experiences and used the internet as much as I could to fill in any gaps. I hasten to add that they are far from biographical, but during my 50 years I have led a life during which I was fortunate enough to experience quite a variety of jobs, relationships, locations, foreign travel. I guess, due to my parents having moved a lot and growing up being moved from place to place, I became rather resilient. I am quite shy though so although friendships take a while to develop, usually I keep those friends for many years.

Which Point of View do you prefer to write in and why?

The point of view I’ve used in all the novels is the first person. Although this limits the descriptions to what the protagonist sees by way of experiences, I feel it is the one that also engages most with the readers, makes them live a life from the protagonist’s point of view.

Do you prefer to plot your story or just go with the flow?

I rarely plot a storyline. I tend to go with the flow and see where the story takes me as it unfolds. I did have some input from my husband during the writing process, discussing possible routes to take etc but at the end of the day, if the story doesn’t flow then, to me at least, it seems forced. I don’t even have an idea of a title when I start off with a new book. Having said that, one of my current WIPs, the whole story has materialized from my having the title to be begin with, so there is no hard and fast rule.

What is your writing regime?

Due to having a very supportive husband and the kind of life we have had to lead the past few years, due to attempting to sell our home (which took 2 ½ years) my writing regime is almost non-existent. I don’t mean to say that I don’t write as obviously if that were the case I wouldn’t have already self-published two books. Having said that I write when I am in the mood, do marketing when I can, and am still learning the whole self-publishing process so there is plenty to keep me occupied. My husband has had some involvement too as without him Blue and Green Should Never Be Seen! (Or so Mother Says) would never have been translated into Italian. That far from simple task fell to my husband and by all accounts he thoroughly enjoyed doing so. It took quite a while though as he does have a full-time job as well which keeps him pretty busy.

What excites you the most about your book?

I find it incredibly hard to put my finger on any one thing as there are so many elements to the writing process. The laughter in our household during the writing process came first, as my husband read and discussed each of my books, just to give me another perspective. Then there is the thrill of receiving each of them back from the copy editor, first sight of the covers, each and every review I read… there are just so many to choose from…

Colette Kebell covers

If you were stranded on a desert island with three other people, fictional or real, who would they be and why?

This one I found to quite a simple question. The first person that jumped into my head, obviously for their talent, but also basically as a piece of eye candy, would be Hugh Jackman. I just don’t consider that I could ever get bored of being around him. Secondly, I would have to think of my survival so although Bear Grylls might come to mind I think I would prefer Robinson Crusoe. Lastly, but by no means least I would have to say Joanna Lumley as we would certainly have a laugh when things got tough and she is such a trooper. I could have said Michael McIntyre, but, do I honestly want to be surrounded by men? With no female company I might just return to my tomboy status of my youth having fought somewhat to find my feminine side.

Anything else you’d like to share with us?

I guess, other than mentioning my books, which I’m sure you will do, I would like to mention that though the going is a little slow on them currently, I have three WIPs. One is the follow on from Blue and Green Should Never Be Seen!, one is a further Chicklit which this time is set in New York and so I hope I can do it justice never having been there and the third is somewhat of a secret at this point as, just the title on it’s own, might give other authors ideas…

The books links are:

Blue and Green

US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RG43YM4

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00RG43YM4

The Retail Therapist

US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0106J3D9E

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0106J3D9E

Senza Tacchi non mi Concentro!

It: https://www.amazon.it/dp/B01E2GN02M

As far as e-readers are concerned, I’ve covered all the bases as my books are available from all the usual haunts. All but the Italian book are also available in paperback, on request from bookshops and libraries worldwide.

Colette Kebell

Bio

After being a Legal Secretary for about 10 years, Colette was on the hunt to find something else that she would find just as interesting. She found that in writing and she hopes you like what you read. She loves fashion with a passion (pardon the pun) and therefore it is not surprising that her debut novel was going to follow that theme.

Her debut novel was “Blue and Green Should Never Be Seen!” which was followed by “The Retail Therapist”, both of these being romantic comedies/Chick Lit, a genre she adores.

When she’s not in writing mode she enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, a task that usually produces good results; as her husband would say, as opposed to “his” experiments which often end in a culinary disaster. She lives in Coastal Kent, UK with two adorable dogs. Oh yes, and hubby too.

You could also look at her website and see what news is on there at

http://www.ColetteKebell.com or follow her on either twitter https://www.twitter.com/ColetteKebell or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ColetteKebellAuthor

***

Many thanks for a great interview Colette,

Happy reading,

Jenny x

Guest Post from Nell Peters: Birthday Sharing

By Jenny Kane

On July 31, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, crime, Fiction

Somehow we’ve reached the end of another month, so I’m handing over my site to the lovely Anne Polhill Walton- aka crime writer- Nell Peters. Once again Nell has provided a brilliant blog- although a certain Mr Connery may not think so…you’ll see what I mean!

I urge you my friends, to read right to the bottom of the blog today. Life is full of twists of fate, some kind, some not so kind…

Birthday cake

Thank you, Jenny – and hello again, everyone J

As I mentioned in my last post here, Jenny and I celebrate our birthdays in July – both on the 13^th in fact. Unlucky for some – most especially me, as I was born on a Friday, according to my mother … which explains a lot. So, too late now for you to shower us with impressive gifts this year, but most definitely a red-letter date in your 2017 diary. We share our big day with Sir Patrick Stewart, who boldly went – although not being a fan of Star Trek, Captain Kirk was at the helm last time I saw the programme. Then there’s Ian Hislop of Private Eye, who has also on occasion boldly gone, but in his case into print, closely followed by a court appearance, defending a libel case. Harrison Ford joins the line-up too, he of Han Solo and Indiana Jones fame. I’ve never seen Star Wars – do I sense a theme here, as in I seem to avoid anything with ‘star’ in the title? I do quite like Starbucks however, but only for tea as I don’t drink coffee (just don’t tell coffee addict Jenny!)

With four sons, I was unable to avoid all the Indiana Jones films – did I really read recently they are making another? Seriously? Harrison Ford is well into his seventies and his on-screen father, Sean Connery, is more than ten years older than that! They’ll surely be cavorting around, wronging rights from their bath chairs? Probably pushed around by scantily-clad beauties, though, as Hollywood OAPs are somewhat more attractive than the common or garden variety – they perhaps don’t need their Winter Fuel Allowance either, in sunny California.

There is a Connery connection to Jenny – not Sean, but his nipper Jason (he of the long, flowing locks), who played the eponymous role in the last of the Robin of Sherwood TV series many years ago. Where does the Jenny link come in, I hear you ask – go on, please ask, or I’ll have to think of something else to prattle on about (imagine a sad, pleading face here – oh, and violins playing). Well, Jen has had a bit of a thing about Robin Hood since she was a wee gel – one of her books is even entitled Romancing Robin Hood (and a sequel is brewing) – you don’t get much more dedicated than that. After a gap of thirty years, surviving members of the original TV cast have reprised their roles in The Knights of the Apocalypse – an audio drama crowdfunded by fans. We could speculate that they went for an audio production because there simply wouldn’t be enough Polyfilla available for the cast to appear recognisably on screen, but that would be cruel. I have seen a pic of Jason C, however – gravity has taken effect with a vengeance and his only hair now is sprouting from his chin. Whatever … while our ardent groupie Madam Kane managed to blag a ticket and hobnob with the stars at the premier performance (I’ve seen those pics too!), for me the best thing is that the production company is called Spiteful Puppet – genius name!

I digress: our communal birthday was on a Wednesday this year, but both Jen and I had the main event the weekend before – in my case, a family invasion for a BBQ on the Sunday. #4 son arrived early with his family, acting quite strangely (not wholly unusual), and holding a large cardboard box. When I asked what was in said box, he said he’d brought a load of crisps along because it’s not something we ever buy (true) and guests might just fancy a scrunch or two. He then sat me down and told me to immediately open the gift he shoved under my nose – a large bag of Pavlova the chicken’s favourite bird seed was revealed. Card next; on the left hand side were the questions ‘Do you know who Svetlana Alexievich is?’ and ‘What is she famous for?’

I coaxed the long-dormant brain cell into life and gave him my answers, before being dragged outside (in my slippers! Tsk!) to inspect the crisp box … even I (Miss Hopelessly Naive 1802) was beginning to smell a rat by then. When the box was opened and tipped up gently on the grass, not a rat but a chicken emerged! A sister/playmate for Pavlova! Double trouble! And she had already been named Svetlana after the Nobel Lit Prize winner by #4 (maybe the school fees weren’t 100% wasted, after all?)

Bluebell

Svet is a magnificent Bluebell hen – her plumage has a definite blue hue in a certain light, and she was sixteen weeks old when she moved in. She is bigger than Pav with feet large enough to support a strapping 25 lb turkey, perhaps even a Pterodactyl. #4 lives more rurally than us and he chose Svet from a farm local to him, where numerous birds were housed in a large pen with a sandy floor. She was picked up on BBQ day and transported to her slightly more glamorous life – a third of an acre with grass underfoot – on the back seat, just as carefully strapped in as the GDs.

chicken Pavlova was doing one of her nesting stints when Svetlana arrived and so they didn’t meet until the next morning, when Pav came to feed – she was a little put out, but feathers didn’t actually fly and since then, while not yet bosom (or chicken breast) buddies, peace has been declared and there is no battle of the beaks to rule the roost. They really couldn’t be more different in personality (yes, they do have personalities!) – while Pav is quite skittish and aloof, rather like a cat who tolerates our presence as long as we know our place and keep her well fed, Svet is really laid back and friendly and follows us around like an adoring puppy. She doesn’t even mind the Grands chasing her and also talks incessantly (which the old chick on the block has never done, apart from very loud crowing when she thinks it’s chow time) making sort of mewling noises, rather like a Moomin with feathers.

Finally, I have reached the conclusion that the OH has been around my warped sense of humour for way too long and has lost his immunity. When no one was looking, he retrieved one of those Nando’s chicken on a stick things (liberated from the restaurant years ago by one of the boys) and stuck it in the grass by the communal food receptacle. Really!

Nandos Toodles! NP

***

PS-

OK, that was my original post for Jenny, written a couple of weeks in advance.

I’m so very sad to report that both Pavlova and Svetlana have since been killed – most likely suspect a cat new to the neighbourhood, that I’ve spotted in the garden at all hours of the day and night.

I know this is a first world problem – that there is dreadful carnage and unimaginable human suffering globally, to which the loss of two spoiled chickens cannot possibly compare, but I do so miss them. For instance, there is no one to greet me when I take an early morning stroll in the garden – they’d spot me a mile off and speed toward me with their silly run-trot, Pavlova making the most unholy din. Of course, I realise they were after food and not my scintillating conversation, but they always made me smile. And Svetlana, being a cheeky young upstart, had taken to sitting on the back door mat if the door was open, a few yards away from me when I was using my lap top at the table – just hanging out.

Goodbye, and thank you, little feathered friends. XX

***

Many many thanks fro such a great blog Nell. I shall certainly miss hearing about your chicken friend’s adventures. Pavlova in particular had become a very definite character in her own right. Thank you for sharing so much of her mischief with us on this blog. Hugs. Jenny xxx

(I can’t begin to imagine what the very lovely Mr C junior is thinking if he is reading this right now!!)

***

Bio

Nell Peters writes psychological crime novels and is published by Accent Press. Her next protagonist is going to be a chicken.

By Any toher name bus

mybook.to/BAON

Hostile witness bus

mybook.to/hostilewitness

My First Time: Kirsten McKenzie

By Jenny Kane

On July 27, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Fiction, Interview

It’s time for another in my series of interviews about breaking into publishing – My First Time. Today I’m delighted to welcome Kirsten McKenzie for a cuppa and a chat.

First Time

Q: Can you remember writing the first story you actually wanted to write, rather than those you were forced to write at school? What was it about?

A: The first story I can remember writing at school, which I was inordinately proud of, was about the shapes of the clouds I could see. I wish I knew where it was now, as I recall being praised by one of the rsten Mcmeanest teachers at school. High praise indeed.

As for writing the first story I wanted to write, which I finished, that was Fifteen Postcards, my first novel. I have another book, which I started years ago, languishing in a drawer. My mother constantly pushes for me to finish it, but somehow it’s still in that drawer, waiting for the right time. I’m afraid that if I look at it now, it won’t nearly be as magical as I remember.

Fifteen Postcards

Q: What was your first official publication?

A: My first official publication was my historical fiction novel Fifteen Postcards, published in 2015. I have had several articles printed in local newspapers, and trade specific publications, but they had no real impact on my life. The publication of my novel has.

I’ve quit my part time job in our family antique store, leaving my brother to run it. Whilst the royalties from Fifteen Postcards have been pleasant, I don’t wan to give people the idea I’m living off them, far from it, but I have the luxury of being able to call this writing lark my full time job, and I’m working towards making it a standalone career.

Q: What affect did that have on your life?

A: I’ve changed my job title from Antique Dealer to Author. That was pretty exciting when I wrote that down on my immigration form last time I travelled. And now I work from home. I miss the customer interaction I had at the shop, but this was a lifestyle choice, and I think I’m loving it.

I will never forget making the postman wait while I opened the package containing the very first copy of Fifteen Postcards. The poor man. I grabbed his arm and pointed like a mad woman, saying, “Look, a book, with words in it”.

Q: Does your first published story reflect your current writing style?

A: Yes, yes it does. I aim to provide deep descriptive passages, with more than a hint of historical authenticity and strong characters.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: I’m working on my third novel – The Ruination of Art. Set in modern day Florence, Italy, with a small cast of characters. It’s entirely different to my first two books and is a refreshing change. I’m enjoying getting to know my new characters with all their foibles and insecurities.

My second novel, The Last letter, is the sequel to Fifteen Postcards, and is now with my editor. It is due for publication on the 1st of November this year.

KirstenMcKenzieWorkspace

Author Bio

Kirsten McKenzie worked in her family’s antique store since she was a toddler, where she went from being allowed to sell 50c postcards in the corner of Antique Alley, to selling $5,000 Worcester vases. Now a full time writer, she is the author of the highly praised novel Fifteen Postcards, and her second book, The Last Letter, is due in November. She lives in Auckland, New Zealand with her husband and two children.

Amazon Link: myBook.to/FifteenPostcards

Website: www.kirstenmckenzie.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/Kiwimrsmac

Facebook: www.facebook.com/KirstenMcKenzieAuthor

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/KirstenMcKenzieAuthor

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/kiwimrsmac

***

Great interview! Thanks Kirsten.

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

Interview with Claire Morley: Tindog Tacloban

By Jenny Kane

On July 26, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Fiction, Interview

It’s interview time again, and I’m delighted to welcome Claire Morley to my blog for a cuppa and a chat. Why not put those feet up and join us?

coffee and cake What inspired you to write your book?

In November 2013, Super Typhoon Yolanda slammed into the Philippines. I had wanted to do some volunteer work for a long time but circumstances had never allowed until March 2014, when I set off for Tacloban, the city worst hit by this natural disaster.

I wanted to make people aware of the aftermath of the typhoon and initially thought I would write articles for various publications and with that in mind took thousands of photographs and interviewed over 40 survivors, volunteers and relief workers. On my return to Cyprus (where I live) my partner suggested I take the information I had gathered and turn it into a fictional novel instead. It took me a year to research and write, but Tindog Tacloban was the result.

Tindog Tacloban jpeg 72dpi

Do you model any of your characters after people you know? If so, do these people see themselves in your characters?

Actually one of the main characters, Helen, is slightly modelled on myself, she too is volunteering for the first time, although she achieves a lot more than I did!!

What type of research did you have to do for your book?

Obviously from some aspects, the research was done in the field, as I was actually there and witnessing the aftermath of the typhoon. However, it was the interviews which gave me the first-hand knowledge of what living through a typhoon was really like, and I did weeks of research on how typhoons work. I also contacted an organization which is fighting to raise awareness of Webcam Sex Tourism and they very kindly send me their reports on the work they are doing, so I could talk about it realistically.

Do you prefer to plot your story or just go with the flow?

I think I employed a bit of both for Tindog Tacloban. I initially had an idea of where the story was going and had a timeline, but as I wrote it built up its own flow. I swim every day and that was a great time for me to work out how build on the plot and the characters and when I got stuck, I would sit with my partner and a glass of wine in the evenings and we would discuss how I might get from one aspect of the book to the next.

What is your writing regime?

I wrote every day, I had a number of words in mind, sometimes it was hard work to reach it and quite frankly, sometimes it was utter rubbish, but other days the words flowed and I could get much more written. The idea was to keep a momentum, knowing how easy it would be to let things slide if I didn’t write one day and before you know it a week can pass. So I did try to be very disciplined.

What excites you the most about your book?

The fact that I actually wrote a whole book. I’m not always good at finishing things I start!! And that it has made people aware of a form of human trafficking, which I hadn’t heard of until I attended a workshop in Tacloban. I detest human exploitation, so if I can do anything to raise awareness of something like this, it’s a good thing.

Anything else you’d like to share with us?

All money raised from sales of Tindog Tacloban go to the charities I worked with while I was there, so I am continuing to help the people whose lives were affected by Super Typhoon Yolanda.

***

ABOUT THE BOOK

In the aftermath of the fiercest typhoon on record to hit land, banners bearing the words Tindog Tacloban started to appear all over the city. Meaning Rise Up Tacloban, they were a testament to the determination and resilience of the Filipino people as they tried to rebuild their shattered lives.

For many, things would never be the same:

Izel Sombilon watched in horror as two of his children were ripped from his arms and swept away by the huge storm waves

Eleven year old Lika Faye was plunged into the sordid underworld of Webcam Child Sex Tourism.

For Helen Gable volunteering in the typhoon ravaged area was a chance for her to come to terms with her own personal tragedy.

***

Links

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B014JGI0H0

Twitter: clairemorley @clairemorley15

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clairemorleyauthor

Author small

Bio

Claire Morley lives in North Cyprus with her dog, cat and partner, Steve.

In her previous life she has been a marketer, a journalist and a wedding planner.

Tindog Tacloban is her first novel and was inspired by a trip to the Philippines as a volunteer to help after the devastating typhoon known locally as Yolanda hit Tacloban on 8 November, 2013 and of from this book will go to benefit charities working to stop human trafficking and helping in disaster areas.

***

Many thanks for a great interview Claire,

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

Category: Fiction Page 53 of 69

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: