Category: News Page 20 of 32

Abi’s House: Trailer

On April 11, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

It’s not long now!! On the 15th June my next novel, Abi’s House will be out as an e-book- and on 19th June, it will also be available in paperback.

I’m getting really excited about the launch of my third full length novel for Accent (my fifth book, if you count the novellas as well). I was delighted when I was asked if I’d like a YouTube trailer put together to help promote my latest work.

Check this out- I love it!! – YouTube link https://youtu.be/VAumWAqsp58

You can already pre-order Abi’s House here- http://www.accentpress.co.uk/Book/12915/Abis-House– as well as here…

Kindle

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00UVPPWO8/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711175&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

http://www.amazon.com/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00UVPPWO8/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711253&sr=1-2&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

Paperback

http://www.amazon.com/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane/dp/1783753285/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711253&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane/dp/1783753285/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711343&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

Here’s a reminder of the blurb!!

Newly widowed at barely thirty, Abi Carter is desperate to escape the Stepford Wives-style life that Luke, her late husband, had been so keen for her to live.

Abi decides to fulfil a lifelong dream. As a child on holiday in a Cornwall as a child she fell in love with a cottage – the prophetically named Abbey’s House. Now she is going to see if she can find the place again, relive the happy memories … maybe even buy a place of her own nearby?

On impulse Abi sets off to Cornwall, where a chance meeting in a village pub brings new friends Beth and Max into her life. Beth, like Abi, has a life-changing decision to make. Max, Beth’s best mate, is new to the village. He soon helps Abi track down the house of her dreams … but things aren’t quite that simple. There’s the complicated life Abi left behind, including her late husband’s brother, Simon – a man with more than friendship on his mind … Will Abi’s house remain a dream, or will the bricks and mortar become a reality?

***

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny xx

Guest Post from T S Harvey: A Writing Life

By Jenny Kane

On April 10, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

It’s always good to have a first time visitor to my blog, and today I’m delighted to welcome the lovely T S Harvey, to give us a potted history of her books and her life!

The Author

I was always an avid reader as a child and English always my favourite subject at school. In addition to my writing I’m a breeder and exhibitor of pedigree dogs, having won Best of Breed at Crufts in 2011 with my English Toy Terrier, Ch. Kadaz Authentic (or Hattie as we knew her).

I’ve appeared on several quiz shows over the past ten years and won The Weakest Link in 2005. My mum recently took part in Bargain Hunt and this should be aired later in the year.

The Books

The Tin Man

My first completed novel was a family saga sent in Texas in 1946, coming right through to present day. This was self-published through Createspace and has just undergone a make-over so to speak and the revised version is once again available on Amazon.

Written in the first person and narrated by Michael, it follows his life through its ups and downs, from being orphaned at 4 years old, experiencing abuse at the hands of the matron and staff at the Children’s home, his joy at being fostered and becoming a ‘brother’ and ultimately a carer to his foster sister.

In time I plan to write prequels to The Tin Man from the perspective of several of the characters in this book, including Carl Ryan, the Tin Man of the title.

Four Seasons:

The first book in the four part series is Winter of Discontent

The initial inspiration for the Four Seasons series came from my daughters and my eldest grand-daughter. Having successfully self-published my first novel they asked me to write something in the Young Adult / Supernatural genre which was more on the lines of the sort of books that they read. I gave a lot of thought to the content / characters that I would like to ‘work’ with and came to the conclusion that there was no point going down the Vampire route as that has been done so often, and in many cases so well, that I didn’t want to find myself competing with the likes of Stephenie Meyer for bookcase space. Having decided to go with Warlock / Witches as the framework for the story I also decided not to go with the fantasy options, dragons, goblins and the like. Having finely honed the genre and direction, I did a lot of research online into Witch folklore and some of the results it produced gave me some really useful ideas, many of which I employed in the storyline.

The second book in the series is Spring of Fools which is due out on the 9^th April.

The Content

Covens:

The Moirai: These were a powerful group of witches, along with the Grenae, said to exist in medieval times. This helped give me some background ideas as well as some future plot lines.

Segans / Kintarians: In folklore these are also powerful groups of Warlocks. The Kintarian is said to be a shape shifter which also provided me with further inspiration for the characters that appear in this book and in the forthcoming, Four Seasons: Spring of Fools; Book 2 in the series.

Character Names:

Having already inspired me to write in this genre I decided to name my lead female character, Sarah, after my eldest grand-daughter.

I wanted to choose names for male leads that would sit comfortably in European countries as the history of the characters goes way back. Having chosen Erik (I felt it sounded cooler with a ‘K’ and more European) as the main male lead I then had to find a surname. Enter Google translate. I’d decided that his family history would be rooted in / around Germany so I Googled ‘Magic’ and ta dah… Zauber.

‘Physical’ Content:

I made a conscious decision before I started to write this book that I would include some references of a sexual nature as even though the basis of the story is supernatural the characters could quite easily be the girl or boy you sit next to in History. Given that, it made sense that students at the age Sarah and Erik are, would talk about, and in many cases, participate in sexual activity. None of it is written for shock value; however, Book 2 moves it up a notch which I think is believable given the difficulties and frustrations of the characters in this book.

‘Guest stars’:

I consider myself blessed for having a couple of celebrities willing to lend their name to some of the story lines in this book. I’ve been friends with Jamie Afro’s mom, Jeanne, for some years now and when I needed a Rock Singer for a side story I approached her to ask him if he’d mind if I used him rather than invent one. Jeanne knew I wouldn’t take any cheap shots and Jamie was happy to oblige. There is another section in the story that called for a singer in the US so I approached one of my favourites, Broadway star Telly Leung. Telly was happy for me to use his name providing I sent him a draft of the content for his approval, which I did, and he sent me a lovely message of support back wishing me luck in finding a publisher. He also sent a note of congratulations when I told him that Accent Press had picked it up.

Writer’s block:

I was lucky enough not to have any periods when the story didn’t flow for me. I think a lot of that is down to my style of writing. I often change direction in my story telling but I always know where my story ends. I look at this as my ‘Writers GPS’. It is like punching in the end destination for me; as long as I know where I’m headed I can cope with the detours on route.

I sometimes need to give myself a bit of a kick to get started but once I do I commit to getting it finished above everything else going on in my life. I think I’d be concerned that if I did call a halt for any reason then I might not pick it up again. This happened to me back in 1987 when I first started to write. I had to stop to do some research, which was a lot harder back then without the internet, and when I couldn’t find what I was looking for, and couldn’t find another direction for the story without it, I just stopped. Hopefully, one day, I’ll pick it back up and start again; but not until I’ve completed this series!

Marketing:

I’ve been fortunate to secure several marketing opportunities. Being asked to talk at my old comprehensive school was a real highlight. I’ve done several book signing events, a few appearances on Cannock Radio and a slot on BBC WM Afternoon Show on 9^th April.

I was invited to be interviewed for Cuppa TV (BIG Centre TV) – Regional Lifestyle programme with host Monica Price. This aired on 23^rd March and I’m hoping to get a copy to link to my Facebook and Twitter pages soon.

Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/julie.baldwin.9028

Twitter – @TSHarveyOfficial

Buy links are:

Accent Press – https://www.accentpress.co.uk/results.html?keyword=t+s+harvey

Amazon for Four Seasons: Winter of Discontent – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Winter-Discontent-Four-Seasons-Book-ebook/dp/B00NA6YU8O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1427707754&sr=8-1&keywords=t+s+harvey

Amazon for The Tin Man – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tin-Man-T-S-Harvey/dp/1489529497/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1427707754&sr=8-2&keywords=t+s+harvey

(All books are also available on Amazon.com)

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Many thank for visiting today!

Happy reading,

Jenny x

Guest Post from Lisa Ryan: The Swan Lake

By Jenny Kane

On April 7, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

I’m delighted to be welcoming Lisa Tenzin-Dolma, aka Lisa Ryan, back to my site today, to tell us about her wonderful book, The Swan Lake.

Over to you Lisa…

A long time ago I lived in the depths of County Clare, Ireland, in a beautiful old house that had been extended and remodelled according to Steiner principles by the previous owner. The house was surrounded by farmland, with a lake right in front of our land. Along one side of our garden was a dilapidated 300 year old cottage that had a tragic history; a woman living there over a hundred years previously had filled her pockets with stones and walked into the lake to end her life, and there were stories of her ghost appearing often in the cottage.

Previously the cottage had been used as a shed and storehouse. My then husband used it as a studio for a while until it was taken over by my sons, who made it their laboratory for various very smelly scientific experiments devised with the aid of a junior chemistry kit. Health and safety people would have had a field day, but no injuries occurred! The cottage fascinated me. I used to wonder about the many generations of people who had taken their first and last breaths there. The huge inglenook fireplace still had the original hook where countless cooking pots had hung over the fire. Despite its sorry state I loved the cottage even more than the main house. I missed Ireland when we left to return to England. The beauty of the landscape, the musical Irish accents, and the magic that infuses the land through folklore, fairy tales and superstition has stayed with me.

A few years later, when I was living in Bath, an old friend who was an Intensive Care nurse came to stay. She was very much a city person, and while we sank rather a lot of wine we joked about how she would adjust to living in such an isolated rural environment. The next morning I woke, slightly hung over and with the story of The Swan Lake firmly fixed in my mind.

The only similarities between Astarte, the central character, and my friend are that Astarte has been an Intensive Care nurse and is very feisty. I drew on my love for the landscape, our cottage and the lake while writing the book, but the story and characters are pure fiction. Rural areas, especially, facilitate small, tight-knit communities that are rife with old grudges, unexpected liaisons, issues over land rights, and tragedies. Everyone has a story to tell, and rarely do these stories match those of their neighbours.

Once I started writing the book I just couldn’t stop. It took over my consciousness to the extent that I dreamed about the characters. They became like old friends; they felt as real to me as people I knew in everyday life. Meals were prepared and forgotten about, irregular mealtimes and charred offerings were common, the last thing on my mind when I fell asleep was the next chapter, and my children were incredibly patient about having a mother whose mind was frequently in another realm altogether. My mother was dying of cancer at this time, and The Swan Lake kept both of us going. Every evening I’d phone her and read the latest newly completed chapter. Her favourite characters were the warring old people, Mairie and Seamus, and it was wonderful to hear her laughing at their exploits.

For me, a story begins with the question “What if?” and I asked this constantly while writing The Swan Lake. Fiction is a way in which we can enter into another world that’s populated by characters who encourage us to look at their individual stories from their perspective. It’s an invitation to explore other lives and to wonder whether our responses and reactions would be the same as theirs. As writers and readers we have the opportunity to become other people for a while; to wonder about their lives, and to enter into a state of emotional resonance with them. I fell in love with the characters in The Swan Lake while writing about them, just as I fell in love with the beautiful Irish countryside when I lived there.

Amazon link to The Swan Lake:

Paperback version: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Swan-Lake-Lisa-Ryan/dp/1783757051/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426190618&sr=1-1

Kindle version: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Swan-Lake-Lisa-Ryan-ebook/dp/B00SLD5BMU/ref=sr_1_1_twi_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422638320&sr=1-1&keywords=lisa+ryan

Facebook page for The Swan Lake: https://www.facebook.com/TheSwanLakeBook

Lisa’s website: http://www.tenzindolma.co.uk

Author bio: Lisa Tenzin-Dolma has had 22 books published, fiction and non-fiction, about a variety of subjects. She’s also a qualified canine psychologist and is principal of The International School for Canine Psychology & Behaviour.

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Many thanks for visiting the site again today Lisa.

Happy Reading everyone,

Jenny x

Guest Post from Carol McGrath: My Writing Journey

By Jenny Kane

On April 2, 2015

In Blog, Historical fiction, News

I am delighted to welcome fellow Accent writer, medieval history lover, and Robin Hood fan, Carol McGrath to my site today!

Over to you Carol…

First of all thank you, Jenny, for hosting me on your blog today.

I always find authors’ writing journeys intriguing. Usually a writer’s expedition into the world of publication is a mix of very dedicated work mingled with that precious little bit of good fortune when it comes to finding the right agent and/ or publisher for your work.

My own writing history towards the golden globe of publication was the result of a dedicated effort to hone my writing skills and to an extent it was accidental. I’ve always scribbled. I wrote little books as a small child that were usually inspired by Enid Blyton’s adventure stories and the legends of Robin Hood. I also loved to write poems. My first published piece was more serious and poetic. It was about Vietnam’s terrible war and appeared in our school magazine. For the very first time, this month I am visiting Vietnam and Cambodia. It will be a fascinating trip.

I never thought anyone would seriously want to actually read anything I wrote. Whilst my children were growing up, I taught part-time in a High School. I attended day-school writing courses at Oxford Continuing Education. We were a close knit group that signed up year after year to the same tutor’s course. Some of my fellow writers came from writing families. I remember Eliza Packenham’s suffragettes fondly and Molly Keane’s daughter, Virginia, who was writing a children’s book set in the west of Ireland. Our tutor, Angela Hassell, encouraged me to send chapters of a novel I was working on to agents. This oeuvre was a saga set in Ireland in 1919 at the dawning of the Irish Civil War. I never did attempt to publish this novel because I had little free time to end the tale. However, writing it was a wonderful escape from a busy modern life. Now, so many years later, I often think of finishing it.

I studied for a two year diploma course in creative writing at Oxford University’s Continuing Education. Again, I never considered publishing. The seeds of my first published novel The Handfasted Wife were sown at this time, after a trip to Bayeux in Normandy. I wanted to write a radio play for my portfolio and was fascinated by a story I came across then, that King Harold’s wife identified her husband’s body on the battlefield by marks only known to her. King Harold had been defeated by William of Normandy who famously invaded England in 1066. I wrote the play and for a time forgot all about it. Only today I have been listening to it on audible, thinking of those voices from history that came to me all those years ago when I first wrote the play. The narrator got those tough Anglo-Saxon noble women right. It is a pleasure to listen to them speak via my I pad. Who would ever have thought I would one day hear them?

Some years later, after completing an MA in Creative Writing at Queens University Belfast, I did consider that I was ready to send my work out to agents. Another Irish story set in 1910 was completed inspired by my MA. work. I called it The Damask Maker. A number of agents read the full manuscript. It clearly was not ready because they all suggested I did this or that to it. It is still waiting my attention and a possible name change.

Instead of reworking the spongy mid-section of that novel, I went on an MPhil course ( English and Creative Writing) at Royal Holloway, University of London, and fell utterly in love with the story I began to write there. My first published novel, The Handfasted Wife, inspired by that long ago trip to Bayeux, was written on this course along with a thesis on how Romance tempers Historical Fiction. The novel took me three years to write. Its protagonists haunted me and, equally, England, before and after The Norman Conquest intrigued me. This manuscript was picked up by my RNA New Writer’s Scheme reader, jay Dixon, who had just become a commissioning editor for Accent Press. When I told jay that I was thinking about a trilogy to continue the story I had begun in The Handfasted Wife, she commissioned all three for Accent Press. If I liked writing The Handfasted Wife, I liked writing The Swan-Daughter even more. This is the story of King Harold’s younger daughter Gunnhild and her fate after The Norman Conquest. I have just sent The Betrothed Sister, the final novel of this trilogy to Jay. I have not looked back. I am researching a new trilogy set in the thirteenth century, so Jenny, watch out because I shall be consulting you about ballads of the period, on which you are an expert.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my road to publication. There was no angst and no stress. I think I gradually grew into my route to publication, and looking back it feels as if it was a natural progression for me. I have always loved writing and telling stories. Reading Historical fiction was ever a passion and writing it well, whilst challenging, has been a very satisfying experience. Nowadays, what was a once upon a time hobby is now a full time job and it is certainly one that I enjoy.

I have one obvious tip if you want to be published- enjoy what you write, write it well, hone it and stay with it. Make sure it is ready and be determined to publish it when it it.

I wish Jenny Kane every success with Cup of Champers. I have read her novels and love them.

***

Carol’s Links-

Goodreads- https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6942793.Carol_McGrath

Twitter – @carolmcgrath

Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/daughtersofhastings

Pinterest-http://pinterest.com/carol0275/

Blog- www.carolcmcgrath.co.uk

Scribbling in the Margins- http://scribbling-inthemargins.blogspot.gr/

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Thank you Carol x

Great blog! I would be honoured to help out with your ballad research when the time comes- Ronin Hood fans unite! There is something very special about the stories from our medieval past. They had a magic that encapsulates the period.

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny xx

Guest Post from Kelly Hambly: The Best Advice I Ever Got

By Jenny Kane

On March 30, 2015

In Blog, News

Today I’m pleased to welcome young adult author, Kelly Hambly, back to my site today, to share a little of her writing journey.

Over to you Kelly…

The Best Advice I Ever Got

Unlike many authors, my journey to traditional publication was not quite as long but nevertheless, it doesn’t mean to say it was by any means easier.

When I took up writing fiction just over five years ago, after being inspired by a song I had heard, I had not written anything as such for years. In essence, I had to learn from scratch. By this, I mean, even the basics of storytelling and grammar, not to mention structure.

For a while I wondered if I had thrown myself in at the deep end, but the story I had formulated in my head kept gnawing away at me. So for the next 18 months I worked everyday teaching myself as I went along how to put this story down into words. I didn’t take any classes, I couldn’t. I suffered with anxiety so going out to meet people was a definite no. So I read, and read some more. I wrote, I wrote some more. And this passion continued, and by the end of the first 18 months I had produced my first novel. To say I was chuffed is an understatement.

My English at school wasn’t pretty good but I went on to do an English degree course, but that was 8 years previously, and did pretty much no writing after it. Well, I know a lot of authors can relate to the wonderful feeling of holding your first piece of work in your hands, but when I put it out there for feedback – the result wasn’t what I hoped for. To put it bluntly like this woman did, she told me to give up. I was crushed, but after moping for a day or two I took her advice. I made sure I improved, and set out to prove people like that wrong.

So I wrote another four novels and many short stories. And like I always say to those who ask me for advice, it only takes one story and one person to see its potential and you’re on your way, so you should never, ever give up.

I wrote The Town Halloween Forgot in June 2013. It was intended to be released as a short story for that Halloween, but something about it kept me wanting to write more, and the following year I toyed with the idea of self-publishing. It wasn’t a route wanted to go down again, and by chance I discovered Accent Press, and thought I had nothing to lose by trying. Three weeks later I got an email from them offering to publish it for me.

So, to any aspiring writer out there, right now, reading this, keep writing, and keep the dreams alive. Listen to criticism when it is given, but learn how to respond to it. It may not be what you want to hear, but it could help you reach where you want to go.

Buy link-
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Town-Halloween-Forgot-Willow-ebook/dp/B00OFU7DRE/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_img_1

Bio-
K A Hambly lives in Swansea, South Wales with her husband and two children. She studied English and Media, where she wrote a thesis on Dracula (From Novel to Cinema)

Vampires and Gothic Horror have always been an interest of hers so it is no surprise that she began writing her own vampire series in 2011. She states music and movies play a huge part in her inspiration.

She is currently working on her new YA series, The Town Halloween Forgot.

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Many thanks for coming to visit today Kelly.

Happy reading everyone,
Jenny xx

Novel Progress 5: Novel Interrupted

By Jenny Kane

On March 26, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

Here I am, sat at my desk in the corner of my local café with only a third of Another Glass of Champagne left to write, and yet that is not what is occupying my time this week.

Last year I drafted the Cornish romance novel, Abi’s House – and as regular readers of this blog will know, it is now available for pre-order. However- Abi’s House isn’t actually finished yet!

This week I have closed the Another Glass…file and reopened Abi’s House so that I can tackle the edits; polish it, perfect it, and generally make sure it is as good as myself and my lovely editor, Greg, can make it for you.

This ‘two novels at once’ technique of writing is fairly standard, and ensures that an author always has one book brewing, just as another is about to come out. The final tackling of the publisher’s edits, proofing, and (in my case at least), making sure the dyslexia hasn’t messed things up too much, is always a rewarding process. It’s also an extremely useful reminder for me- for six months has passed since I wrote Abi’ House, and I’ve written a novella and three quarters of a novel since then- I have to confess, some of the plot had already left my mind, and came as a nice surprise to me- I hope it does to you when the novel is released on the 13th June!

Next week however, I’ll be back to the Pickwicks crew…and believe me, the sooner the better, because I’ve left poor Amy at a very inconvenient moment – for her at least…

Happy reading,

Jenny xx

Guest Post from Julie Frayn: Writing is…

By Jenny Kane

On March 24, 2015

In Blog, crime, News

I am thrilled to be welcoming Julie Frayn back to my site today. Today Julie is discussing what writing is. I have to say, she has nailed it for me! How about you?

Over to you Julie…

Writing is… a warm puppy?

I have a day job. It’s a lovely job that I’m very good at, at a wonderful organization (charity, theme park, museum, shopping and great food – and a full-size steam train – all rolled into one. Can’t beat that).

In my spare time, I write. Now, that makes it sound like writing is my hobby. Oh, no. It’s so not.

The writing’s the thing. I’m talking THE THING! Get it? But the rest of life finds ways to throw roadblocks up, to prevent accomplishment of THE THING.

There are dishes to do, children to support, laundry and cooking and vacuuming and other such drudgery. As Alzheimer’s eats at my mother’s independence, she needs more of her family’s time to ensure she stays in her home. There’s that day job, of course, along with a myriad of other priorities that keep me away from what I wish was my true full-time career. (That would be writer, in case it wasn’t clear).

So on days like this, where responsibility is tugging at me to visit Mom, where the taxes have yet to do themselves (stupid taxes), where I have too much to do and not enough hours in the day, I wonder if it’s time to quit writing.

Oh, hell no.

Why not? Because this is what writing is to me.

Writing is red. It is the stuff of life, the crimson that flows through my veins. It is that spark of color in a neutral room. It is scarlet patent leather stilettos punctuating a black suit.

Writing is my third child. A child that embodies all the characters I love. All the broken souls (the ones I broke on purpose for the sake of story) whom I can’t hug in person, whose hair I can’t stroke and tell them it’s going to be all right. Because, for some of them, it never will be.

Writing is release. To quote the Red Hot Chili Peppers song, My Friends, release is peace. Finding the right combination of words, the perfect sentence, prompts me to moan yes, yes, yes at my monitor. It hits the writing g-spot. Some days I have multiple literary orgasms. But I am only temporarily sated. I always hunger for more.

Writing is solitude. It is me time. Better than any spa day. Better than shopping. No, really. It is that time I can be crazy in private, sing at the top of my lungs, pace the floor and swear at my computer, then pet the screen in apology because, really, is it the computer’s fault when I can’t get it right? When I do that stuff in public, people look at me funny.

Writing is connection. When I write, I touch others. Not in a creepy, get your hand off my thigh before I scream, kind of way. Virtual touching. Emotional touching. Get inside their head and make them feel something they didn’t expect, touching.

Writing is hope. It is everything I am not. Everything I am afraid to be. Everything I can be. Everything I will be.

Writing is breath. Without it, I fear I may die.

Links

Amazon US http://www.amazon.com/Mazie-Baby-Julie-Frayn-ebook/dp/B00KGMJ79M

Amazon UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mazie-Baby-Julie-Frayn-ebook/dp/B00KGMJ79M

Bio

Julie Frayn pens award-winning novels and short stories that pack a punch. And a few stabs. She has published three novels and two short, short story collections. Suicide City, a Love Story won two gold medals in the 2013 Authorsdb cover contest, It Isn’t Cheating if He’s Dead won the Books and Pals 2014 Readers’ Choice award for women’s fiction, and Mazie Baby was named to three Best of 2014 lists by Suspense Magazine, IndieReader.com, and Readfree.ly and is currently nominated for a Big Al’s Books and Pals Readers Choice Award in Women’s Fiction. You can vote for her here if you like! http://booksandpals.blogspot.ca/2015/03/2015-readers-choice.html

A bean counter by day, Julie revels in the written word. When she is not working or writing, she spends as much time as possible with her two children (grown adults, really), while they still think she’s cool.

Social links:

Website/blog: http://www.juliefrayn.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JulieFrayn

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/juliebirdfrayn

Google+ : https://plus.google.com/+JulieFrayn

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/juliefrayn/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/juliefrayn

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Many thanks Julie- brilliant post!

So, lovely readers- what s writing to you?

Happy reading,

Jenny x

ABI’S HOUSE: AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER

By Jenny Kane

On March 19, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

I am delighted to be able to announce that my forthcoming novel, Abi’s House, is now available for pre-order!!!

Blurb

Newly widowed at barely thirty, Abi Carter is desperate to escape the Stepford Wives-style life that Luke, her late husband, had been so keen for her to live.

***

I am particularly excited to announce, that not only is Abi’s House out on Kindle on 13th June, but it will also be released as a paperback on 18th June. It will be available in all good bookshops as well as from Amazon and other online retailers.

Available for pre-order from:

Kindle

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00UVPPWO8/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711175&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

http://www.amazon.com/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B00UVPPWO8/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711253&sr=1-2&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

Accent – http://www.accentpress.co.uk/Book/12915/Abis-House

Paperback

http://www.amazon.com/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane/dp/1783753285/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711253&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abis-House-Jenny-Kane/dp/1783753285/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1426711343&sr=1-1&keywords=Abi%27s+House+Jenny+Kane

Accent- http://www.accentpress.co.uk/Book/12915/Abis-House

***

Happy pre-ordering everyone!!

Jenny xxx

Guest Blog from Alison Rose: The Long Path to Publication

By Jenny Kane

On March 17, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

I’m thrilled to be welcoming my fellow Accent author, friend, and RNA Chapter member, Alison Rose to my blog today!

Over to Alison…

Hi Jenny,

Thanks for inviting me to your blog. I’ve followed a very long path to get here!

It all began years ago when my husband bought me an Amstrad Word-Processor – yes, it was THAT long ago!

“You read so many books,” he said. “Why don’t you write your own?”

“I’ll be published by the time I’m thirty,” I declared.

Well, I think God must have had wax in his ears that day, because he misheard me. Either that, or he thought I needed to learn the art of patience. It took thirty years.

I haven’t wasted the time. I’ve learned my craft, through courses, workshops, and writers’ groups. I’ve tried lots of different genres and styles of writing, and eventually found a voice – or rather voices, as I now write contemporary women’s fiction as Alison Rose, and YA adventures as Alison Knight.

My first book, Off the Record, was published by Accent Press in December 2014:

“Journalist Kate Armstrong has always known that music icon Johnson Brand’s platinum-selling first album was written about his break-up with her mother, Alexandra. When Kate’s boss sends her out to interview the star himself, her life is turned upside down when her resemblance to Alexandra prompts Johnson to seek out her mother and renew their relationship.

Kate suddenly has a lot on her plate – coming to terms with Alexandra and Johnson’s rekindling relationship, as well as keeping the two of them out of the public eye, all the while trying to resist the advances of Johnson’s playboy son, Paul. She thinks she has everything under control, until a threatening figure from the band’s past rears its ugly head. Will love tear them all apart … again?”

Available at: http://www.accentpress.co.uk/Book/13662/Off-the-Record and http://www.amazon.co.uk/Off-Record-Alison-Rose/dp/1783752491/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1425213920&sr=1-1&keywords=off+the+record+alison+rose

Another romance, as yet untitled, is due out from Accent Press in June, followed by the first in a series of YA time-slip adventures in early 2016.

I’m currently working on a novel based in 1960s London, and have lots of ideas for further books – thirty years’ worth!

I can’t describe how thrilling it is to be a published author. But that’s only a part of the story. I’ve been so lucky to find many special friends in writing groups, classes and organisations like the Romantic Novelists’ Association. They encourage and inspire me, and never let me give up on my dream.

So, if there’s a message in this post today, it’s: if you want to achieve something, keep going and never give up. Work hard, and learn from every experience, and one day you’ll get there. It might take longer than you expect, but it will be worth it in the end. Oh, and when you do get there, give a hand to others on their way and tell them not to give up!

Alison

www.alisonroseknight.com

https://www.facebook.com/AlisonRoseAuthor?ref=hl

Biography

Alison was born in London, and now lives in rural Wiltshire with her husband and their crazy Jack Russell terrier. She has two grown-up children and one and a half grandchildren (number two is due in May 2015!).

She has been a lawyer, a registered child-minder, and a professional fund-raiser, and currently works for an international development charity as a legacy officer. She lived in the US for a year as a teenager, and has travelled to China, Israel, Egypt, Thailand, and Honduras – where she picked up a very nasty bug which laid her low for a couple of months after she got home.

At the age of forty-five, Alison became a part-time student while continuing to work full-time, and now has a first class degree in Creative Writing from Bath Spa University and a masters in the same subject from Oxford Brookes University. Now she’s trying to learn Spanish in advance of her next holiday, and researching London in the 1880s for her next YA time-slip adventure.

She’s a member of the Society of Authors, The Romantic Novelists’ Association, and the Oxford Narrative Group.

***

Brilliant post Alison. Many thanks for blogging with me today.

Happy reading,

Jenny x

Guest Post from Alice Raine: The Encouragement of Mum

By Jenny Kane

On March 15, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

Please welcome the lovely Alice Raine to my site today, with a special Mother’s Day post.

Over to you Alice…

To celebrate both Mother’s Day this year, and the fact that the complete Untwisted series is now available on Kindle, I was asked if I’d like to write an article that described a significant memory of when my mother’s input changed my identity as a writer, or some words of encouragement she gave me which may have inspired me, or a story she read me that inspired my own interest in writing. It’s ended up as a bit of a rambling tale, but here goes …

There were always books around our house when I was a child, and Mum and Dad would read to me daily; everything from princesses, to explorers to fire breathing sea monsters, which certainly helped spawn my overactive imagination from a very young age. I wasn’t what you would describe as an engaged writer at school, my interests lay in sport, art, geography riding my bike, and falling off my skateboard (frequently), but at some point I must have developed the urge, because to this day my mum still recalls the day she found a book that I had written in my bedside draw.

By this point I was probably early teens, and yes, I’ll admit it … I had a crush on Kevin Costner. Quite an embarrassingly big crush actually, to the point where I had his pictures blue-tacked to my cupboard door and copies of his films lining my shelves. The film “The Bodyguard” had been released a year or so before, and if you’ve seen it, you’ll know the ending is quite open to misinterpretation – are the two main characters still together? Or have they split up and gone their separate ways? This was the question which must have burned in my curious teenage mind, and already being a bit of a sucker for a good romance story I decided that quite simply, the uncertainty just wasn’t good enough. So I sat down and started to write a sequel.

I got sixty pages in – double sided and hand written in neat lines on that old fashioned computer paper with the holes down the side – before preparation for my GCSE’s got in the way. I’d completely forgotten about it until last year when I was on a phone call with my mum excitedly explaining about signing with Accent Press for my Untwisted series, and mum mentioned that she’d always thought I might end up as a writer after she’d found the book in my bedside draw all those years ago. I have no idea if it was any good, or if my mum read any/all of it, but I suppose that can go down as my first official attempt at a manuscript.

Since then I have written far more prolifically, most of it just for my own amusement and stored away on my computer. I must be slightly obsessive/compulsive when it comes to writing, because once I get an idea I simply have to write it down. I now have stacks of projects on my laptop which have never seen the light of day, some of which run to hundreds of thousands of words, but I can be very self-critical, so I tend to keep them hidden away, happy with the knowledge that the idea is out of my brain and at least in print somewhere, even if it is just on my memory stick!

People often ask me if my mum has read my Untwisted books, and the answer, in short, is no (at least I hope she hasn’t!). Once the series got taken on by Accent I politely requested that she didn’t read it because of its, er … steamy contents … Mum was happy enough to oblige, but asked if I could send her something else that I had written so she could read that instead. As a writer I have an overriding predilection for romance, but not always the darker form of romance that is included in my Untwisted series, and many of the bits and pieces on my laptop are actually Chick-Lit. So I looked through my memory stick and selected one of my favourite gentle romances for her. It’s a light-hearted, comical take on real life, containing no steamy stuff what so ever, apart from a bit of innuendo thrown in here and there. After reading it, my mum said, and I quote: ‘I enjoyed it, but it’s a bit rude in places isn’t it?’ Hmm. I hadn’t thought it was rude at all, so I dug deeper and discovered that she was referring to one of the scenes involving a bit of flirting and innuendo. If mum thinks that’s rude, then I’m certainly glad she has taken my advice and stayed away from the Untwisted books!

As for words of encouragement, my mum is great at them. Even though she hasn’t read the published series, still frequently tells me how proud she is of me for pursuing my dream, which means so much to me, and she even bought me a little number ‘1’ pendant when my first book got published which has pride of place on my bracelet.

All in all my mum is pretty amazing, as is my Dad. Love you both, and happy Mother’s Day to all the mums out there.

Alice xxx

The complete Untwisted series is available on Kindle now, and coming to bookstores near you in paperback too. http://tinyurl.com/o87oczp

You can also expect the first instalment in Alice’s new series by Summer 2015!

If you’d like to get in touch with Alice, please feel free using the links below:

Twitter: @aliceraine1

Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Alice-Raine/1433662383579684

***

Many thanks for visiting today Alice!

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny xxx

Category: News Page 20 of 32

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