Tag: jenny kane Page 54 of 72

A Potted History of Halloween and Trick-or-Treat

On October 31, 2015

I’m popping my historian hat on today- here is a whirlwind mini guide to the history of Halloween and Trick or Treat…

Every 31^st October we celebrate the night of Halloween. Pumpkins are carved into jack-o-lanterns, white sheets are ripped in half and turned into ghost costumes, and children go trick-or-treating. These activities are a very modern, rather commercialised, take on a festival steeped in history.

Halloween has its earliest originals in Celtic times, beginning life as a ceremony known as Samhain (pronounced sah-win). A pagan festival that was both a celebration and a thank you to the spirit world that marked the end of the harvest.

Traditionally in Gaelic culture, Samhain was a time when records were made of the harvest stocks, and the local population prepared their land and homes for the trials of the winter to come.

The pagan Gaels believed that during Samhain, on 31^st October, the boundaries between our world and the world of the dead thinned and then overlapped. They thought that the dead would return, bringing sickness to infect the living, and disease to damage the crops.

In order to keep these evils at bay, the Gaels dressed up in costumes with masks, mimicking the evil spirits. It was this tradition that is reflected in the dressing up outfits worn during Halloween in the modern century.

Whilst wearing their evil spirits outfits, the pagans would light bonfires to keep the bad forces at bay. It has also been speculated that the fires attracted insects, and therefore bats, who would come to feast upon them- giving us another symbol of Halloween today. Historians believe that the pagans prayed into the bonfires for the souls of the dead stuck for eternity in purgatory, in the hope that they’d attain release.

Another name for Halloween is All Hallows Eve. This dates from 835AD, when the Roman Catholic Church made 1^st November All Souls Day; a happy celebration to honour all of their saints. The word for saint in old English is ‘hallow’, and so, the night before All Souls Day, became All Hallows Eve- and then, in time, Halloween.

Although the celebration of Halloween can be traced back to the time of the pagan Gaels Samhain festival, the tradition of trick or treating has its origins much later.

In the medieval period it became popular to dress up and go from door to door on All Hallows Eve (or Hallowmas as it was beginning to be known). The poor would knock on doors and receive gifts of food in return for prayers to the souls of the dead to be made on All Souls Day.

In modern times, it is the USA that is most associated with the celebration of Halloween, where trick or treating has become a multi-million dollar industry. However, it wasn’t until the 1900’s that there is any recorded evidence of this annual practise. It was in Britain, Ireland, and across parts of Europe where reports of alms being given in return for prayers for the peace of the souls of the dead were first recorded. Even Shakespeare mentions the custom in his Italian based tale, The Two Gentleman of Verona (written in 1593) – “puling [whimpering, whining], like a beggar at Hallowmas.”

Although Halloween is known to have been celebrated in America from c.1910, and many thousands of Halloween postcards were produced from around the 1920’s showing children celebrating, none of them show the act of trick-or-treating.

The term “trick or treat” doesn’t appear in America until 1934, and it wasn’t until after the end of post-war sugar rationing, that trick-or-treating began to become popular.

By 1952, however, the tradition was firmly established, and in that year Walt Disney even included it in one of his cartoons, the appropriately entitled “Trick or Treat.”

So there you are guys- a very simple guide to Halloween.

Happy pumpkin carving folks!!

Jenny xx

Guest Interview with K.A. Hambly: Danny Hallows

By Jenny Kane

On October 30, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Fiction

Who better to interview so close to Halloween, than K.A.Hambly, who has just released the second book in her The Town Halloween Forgot?

So why not grab a weird looking pumpkin drink, put your feet up, and join Kelly and myself for a chat.

What inspired you to write your book?

Danny Hallows and the Stones of the Aurora is the second book in the The Town Halloween Forgot series. I had only intended to write the one but after I had re-written the ending to the first book I realized there was an opportunity here for a series of books. So now I have four planned; the second out on the 29^th October. For this particular book I took inspiration from the Northern Lights, otherwise known as the Aurora Borealis. I’ve always been fascinated with it, although never seen it, so as I was pondering on ideas for the second part, I got to thinking that my character’s magic had to come from somewhere and so I took the Aurora and based this particular story around that.

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

Well Danny, the main character is named after my six year old son. I wouldn’t say my character’s traits are similar to him as Danny in the book has just turned sixteen but if my son ever turned out like him, I think I would be very proud. Yet, if he starts showing signs of being a wolf, I think I’d be very concerned, of course. There are no wolves in my family that I know of and no magic stones or books.

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

In the beginning when I normally just have a title and very little else, I’ll start writing, not thinking too much about plot or anything and just go with the flow and see where it takes me. More often than not this has played to my advantage. So when I have a substantial piece of work, I’ll then start planning. It’s probably the hardest way to work, but it works very well for me. But I don’t always stick to the plan. I think the best ideas come spontaneously.

What is your writing regime?

I do try and write every day, whether on paper or on the PC, I’ll try and get something down, even if it’s just jotting down an idea. Usually I write better at night.

What excites you the most about your book?

The fact that it’s being published ha-ha. The one thing that excites me the most is my son has been looking forward to seeing his name on the book cover. When I’m stuck for names or ideas, I usually get my children involved so they have been a big part of this process also.

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

Elvis Presley because I adore him and he can sit and play us some tunes. The second would be Dracula. I love that book and being a vampire fan, he would be a great person to talk to – so if we starve to death he can make us all immortal ha-ha. And the third would be Shakespeare. Being a writer I think there would be a great opportunity here to learn something.

***

You can buy Kelly’s latest book from all good retailers, including- http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0171L4CRM/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_afmmwb16S3Q8E

***

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.

Twitter – @celtic_nimueh

***

Many thanks Kelly.

Happy Halloween reading everyone!

Jenny x

Guest Post from Gilli Allan: Drawing a Naked Male Model can be Challenging

By Jenny Kane

On October 27, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

It’s my great pleasure to welcome Gilli Allan back to my blog today. As well as being an engaging, entertaining, astute and erudite writer, Gilli is an excellent artist, and (as I had the good fortune to discover at a recent conference), one of nicest people you could ever wish to meet.

Over to you Gilli,

All my books have grown out of the “What if…?” question. LIFE CLASS is no exception. Initially I had the title but no story, so I began to reflect on the accumulated experience of attending life drawing lessons over many years, and there was one incident that cried out to be revisited.

Before I arrived at art school, aged sixteen, I knew no boys, apart from my cousins. For me – a shy, gauche and inexperienced kid – becoming an art student was a very big deal. I’m sure it was a big deal for all of us in First Year Foundation. Within days, however, we’d relaxed with one another enough to become noisy and brash, and to show off. Then we had our first life class.

We all knew this weekly lesson was a part of the curriculum, so at least we weren’t taken by surprise. But knowing that something is going to happen does not necessarily make it easier to deal with. Imagine us, not yet entirely comfortable with one another, suddenly confronted by a very ample naked woman who we were expected to draw. The lesson passed in a stunned silence from the mixed class of very young students. The teacher made up for our unusual hush by raising his voice, as if suspecting we’d all turned deaf as well as mute.

“Observe the landmarks of her body and how they relate to one another,” he boomed. “Her crotch … her belly … her navel … her nipples!”

In retrospect, it was funny. At the time it was more agonising than amusing. I found it a challenge to even look at her without blushing, let alone to closely study those parts of her body I was too bashful to say out loud!

Despite the initial embarrassment I swiftly became used to studying a naked stranger. In fact, the life class rapidly became my favourite part of the week. I was captivated by the challenge of trying to interpret the human body in a drawing. When I left college I was unable to find a job in the art world, and for the next few years I was a depressed sales assistant in various London department stores. The aspect of art I missed the most was the life drawing, and I signed up for an evening class at the London School of Printing. I continued with this for a year, but slogging over to the Elephant and Castle on public transport after a day’s work, became a bind and I gave it up.

Although, at the time it felt like my life was trickling away, it wasn’t so long before I managed to secure my dream job as an illustrator in an advertising design studio. For a while I was very happy earning my living doing what I’d always wanted to do, but, as I became more accomplished, the work became more demanding and stressful. The workload was always erratic, and when a new commission did come in, it was typically wanted first thing the next morning. So when I had my son, I was content to take a break from commercial art. Now at home full-time, I revisited my teenage hobby of writing, and I also signed up for another life drawing class. Baby-sitting responsibility was my husband’s for one night a week, enabling me to do something just for me.

On that first evening I set out, feeling excited and tense. I had the directions and, as I drove over to the school in Wandsworth, I rehearsed in my mind what faced me. I knew that my life drawing skills would be rusty, I’d not employed them for years, but there was something else on my mind. ‘Life’ models are predominantly female. The male model is a far rarer species, although not unknown. At college, over a decade earlier, we’d occasionally had a male model but, maybe to spare the blushes of the very young class, they’d always worn boxers or posing pouches. (One old fellow always wore his black beret, as well!) Surely these days, in an adult class, a male model would be stark naked, I reasoned. My tension about the evening ahead ratcheted up a few more notches when I couldn’t find the school. I must have been ten or fifteen minutes late when I eventually burst into the studio.

Everyone turned to look at me. The teacher was male. All the students were male. And – lying stretched out sideways on a mattress, his head on his hand – the entirely naked model was male. Wanting to disrupt proceedings as little as possible, I grabbed the first empty spot I saw. I didn’t think about the position I’d chosen until I’d sat down on the donkey (a wooden bench with an adjustable front flap), unwrapped my drawing pad, and raised my head. Everyone else had arranged themselves in a semi-circle behind or to the sides of the model. I was the only one with a totally full-frontal view. I looked at him, and he looked at me……….

You will find a fairly accurate account of what happened next at the start of Chapter Three of LIFE CLASS. I have given the experience to my heroine, Dory, who is a novice artist attending her first life drawing class. She is no shrinking violet but she finds it an unsettling experience. It unsettled me at the time, but I didn’t allow the incident to put me off.

I attended this particular class for a couple of years and we never had the same model again. Then I changed to another, a daytime class with a crèche. And throughout the years since, I’ve continued to attend life classes wherever I’ve lived. I don’t do life drawing because it’s easy. Sometimes it is, but often it’s hard. It can feel almost impossible – particularly if there’s a weirdo model! But, thankfully, they’re the exception not the rule. Despite the failures and the frustrations of the discipline, I am drawn back , again and again, trying to capture the mass, the angles, the points of balance, the fall of light and shade on that most intriguing of all subjects – the human body.

Here’s the blurb to Life Class-

Four people hide secrets from the world and from themselves. Dory is disillusioned by men and relationships, having seen the damage sex can do. Her sister, Fran, deals with her mid-life crisis by pursuing an on-line flirtation which turns threatening. Dominic is a lost boy, trapped in a life heading for self-destruction. Stefan feels a failure. He searches for validation through his art alone.

They meet regularly at a life-drawing class, led by sculptor Stefan. All want a life that is different from the one they have, but all have made mistakes they know they cannot escape. They must uncover the past – and the truths that come with it – before they can make sense of the present and navigate a new path into the future.

***

LINKS

LIFE CLASS

http://myBook.to/LifeClass

https://www.accentpress.co.uk/Book/13659/Life-Class

Connect to Gilli

http://twitter.com/gilliallan (@gilliallan)

https://www.facebook.com/GilliAllan.AUTHOR

http://gilliallan.blogspot.co.uk/

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1027644.Gilli_Allan

(If you want them, I’m including the links to TORN & FLY OR FALL)

TORN: http://mybook.togilliallansTORN

FLY OR FALL: http://mybook.to/GilliAllan

***

Biography

Gilli Allan started to write in childhood, a hobby only abandoned when real life supplanted the fiction. Gilli didn’t go to Oxford or Cambridge but, after just enough exam passes to squeak in, she attended Croydon Art College.

She didn’t work on any of the broadsheets, in publishing or television. Instead she was a shop assistant, a beauty consultant and a barmaid before landing her dream job as an illustrator in advertising. It was only when she was at home with her young son that Gilli began writing seriously. Her first two novels were quickly published, but when her publisher ceased to trade, Gilli went independent.

Over the years, Gilli has been a school governor, a contributor to local newspapers, and a driving force behind the community shop in her Gloucestershire village. Still a keen artist, she designs Christmas cards and has begun book illustration. Gilli is particularly delighted to have recently gained a new mainstream publisher – Accent Press. LIFE CLASS is the third book to be published in the three book deal.

***

Many thanks Gilli- another brilliant blog!

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny xx

Taunton Literary Festival: Romancing the Panel

By Jenny Kane

On October 15, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

On the 14th November I will be sitting on the Romantic Fiction Panel as part of the 2015 Taunton Literary Festival!

With fellow contemporary fiction and romance writers, Veronica Henry and Kate Lord Brown, I will be chatting about my work, writing, the bizarreness of life, and our never ending sources of inspiration. How can I be so confident that this is what we’ll be talking about? Well- I am not only a panellist, but will be juggling the role as host as well.

Let me introduce you to my fellow panellists-

Kate Lord Brown is an internationally successful author. She was a finalist in ITV’s The People’s Author contest, and her novel ‘The Perfume Garden’ was shortlisted for the Romantic Novel of the Year 2014. She was regional winner of the BBC International Radio Playwriting competition, and she holds an MA in Creative Writing.

Veronica Henry began her career as a secretary on ‘The Archers’ before turning her hand to scriptwriting. She has written for some of our best loved television dramas, including Heartbeat and Holby City. She writes escapist fiction with an edge – her most recent book is The Beach Hut Next Door – a sequel to The Beach Hut. A Night on the Orient Express won Romantic Novel of the Year in 2014. She had also written a Quick Read, called A Sea Change. Her thirteenth High Tide is available from September 2015.

If you’d like to come along to the beautiful Castle Hotel in Taunton at 2pm on 14th November, we’d love to see you.

You can get your tickets online here https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/brendonbooks or by telephone-

The Castle Hotel, Somerset on Saturday 14 November 2015 Doors Open at 1:30PM Starts at 2:00PM Ticket Price: £10.00*
*booking fee applies
Box Office: 01823 337742

Organised by Brendon Books, the Taunton Literary Festival runs from 7th-28th November, and features an incredible line up of guests, including Martin Bell, Gervase Phinn, Michel Jecks, Douglas Hurd, Karen Maitland.

For the full line up, check out the web site- http://www.tauntonliteraryfestival.net/about.html

Hope to see you there!

Jenny x

Release Blitz: Shopping for a CEO by Julia Kent

By Jenny Kane

On October 14, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

Release Blitz!

Shopping for a CEO

(Shopping for a Billionaire series Book 7)

by Julia Kent is out now!

Blurb

I’m thrilled to be the maid of honor in my friend’s wedding, but the best man, Andrew McCormick, is a chauvinistic pig with a God complex.

And I can’t stop kissing him in closets.

(Don’t ask.)

He’s the brother of the groom and the CEO of my biggest mystery shopping account, but suddenly he’s refusing to be in the wedding. He won’t talk about it. Won’t see reason.

He’s such a man.

And he still won’t stop kissing me in random closets.

(Thank goodness.)

I’m a fixer. That’s what I do. I can fix anything if given the chance. But when the game is fixed there’s only so much I can do.

The ball’s in his court now.

Game on.

* * *

Shopping for a CEO is the 7th book in the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Shopping series. When CEO Andrew McCormick and mystery shopper Amanda Warrick find themselves in the unlikely position as maid of honor and best man in the Boston society wedding of the year, an undeniable attraction and dual stubborn streaks add fuel to the fire in this romantic comedy from Julia Kent.

Extract-

Why did you kiss me the first time? That day when I barged into your office?”

He nods, eyes looking at everything and nothing, finally settling on my face. “Because you were so passionate about protecting Shannon. Because you were adorable and irate and you had this energy I wanted to taste.”

I’m holding my breath. I thought we would spend this first date doing the awkward getting-to-know you dance. Andrew’s gone right to the point. Laser focus.

Just like a CEO.

“Taste?”

“Yes. I know what I want. I don’t equivocate. I decide and act. I compartmentalize. I issue orders and execute strategy. You came in that day and started ordering me around and it was cute and exciting and inspiring. Oddly sensual. And when you kissed me — ”

“_You_ kissed _me_!”

“And when _we_ kissed,” he says, eyebrows raised, as if settling this point once and for all, “I got something far more forbidden than I realized I was getting when I went for that simple taste of you.”

Forbidden?

“What’s that?”

He studies me, as if sizing me up, trying to determine whether he should tell me what’s next. Or not. Finally, his face changes through a series of three or four emotions, most of them involving some variation of deliberation.

And then:

“You didn’t fit in a box.”

“I fit in a closet.”

He doesn’t laugh.

“You intrigued me.”

“Not enough to call me after that kiss, though.”

He shakes his head. My heart plummets.

“No, Amanda. The opposite. You intrigued me too much.”

I get the sense that the word ‘intrigued’ means something else.

“You mean I scared you.”

His eyes flash with emotion I can’t read.

“Yes.”

Men like Andrew McCormick don’t do this. They don’t lay their emotions out on the table like this. Why is he doing this?

“Then why did you kiss me again? And again. And again again — ”

“I don’t know.”

“C’mon.” The driver takes us onto the Mass Pike, lights flying by like spaceships. Like little orbs shooting past us, filled with people oblivious to the quantum shift taking place inside this tiny space. “You always know. You’re a CEO. You compartmentalize. You execute. You decide. You act. You can’t tell me that the great wunderkind Andrew Mc –”

He’s on me before I can take an inbreath to continue speaking, his body so big and bold, so impulsive and unrelenting. The limo becomes its own dimension, his hands seeking to hold all of me as we tumble into some new plane of awareness that doesn’t factor into any life we’ve known until this moment. His mouth finds mine, hands under my suit jacket, palm cupping the lines of my breasts, my waist, my hips, and he’s tasting me again, this time with an urgent need that comes from an honesty I don’t think he’s felt permission to express in a very long time.

If ever.

***

Buy links

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1MyMNVv Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1HDYXsO iBooks: http://apple.co/1BTcs5l Amazon Canada: http://amzn.to/1IaHf5I Print: http://amzn.to/1M1Zc3W BN: http://bit.ly/1fR0CV9 Kobo: http://bit.ly/1OkyPaX Google Play: http://bit.ly/1J5zEV6

Author bio and web/social media links

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Julia Kent writes romantic comedy with an edge, and new adult books that push contemporary boundaries. From billionaires to BBWs to rock stars, Julia finds a sensual, goofy joy in every book she writes, but unlike Trevor from Random Acts of Crazy, she has never kissed a chicken.

She loves to hear from her readers by email at jkentauthor@gmail.com, on Twitter @jkentauthor, and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/jkentauthor . Visit her website at JKentAuthor.com.

Website

http://www.jkentauthor.com/

Facebook

http://www.facebook.com/jkentauthor

Twitter

http://www.twitter.com/jkentauthor

Newsletter

https://app.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/p5h7j7

https://www.pinterest.com/jkentauthor/shannons-sane-wedding-planning-board/

https://www.pinterest.com/jkentauthor/maries-scottish-themed-wedding-board-for-shannon-a/

Meet Jack- Another Cup of Coffee

By Jenny Kane

On October 10, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

With the release of Christmas at the Castle, the fourth story in the Another Cup of… range only weeks away, and then the final novel in the series, Another Glass of Champagne, coming out next year, I thought it would be nice to go back to the beginning, and share a little extract from the very first book, Another Cup of Coffee.

First of all however, here’s the blurb for you-

Thirteen years ago Amy Crane ran away from everyone and everything she knew, ending up in an unfamiliar city with no obvious past and no idea of her future. Now, though, that past has just arrived on her doorstep, in the shape of an old music cassette that Amy hasn’t seen since she was at university. Digging out her long-neglected Walkman, Amy listens to the lyrics that soundtracked her student days.

As long-buried memories are wrenched from the places in her mind where she’s kept them safely locked away for over a decade, Amy is suddenly tired of hiding. It’s time to confront everything about her life. Time to find all the friends she left behind in England, when her heart got broken and the life she was building for herself was shattered. Time to make sense of all the feelings she’s been bottling up for all this time. And most of all, it’s time to discover why Jack has sent her tape back to her now, after all these years…

With her mantra, New life, New job, New home, playing on a continuous loop in her head, Amy gears herself up with yet another bucket-sized cup of coffee, as she goes forth to lay the ghost of first love to rest…

***

Let me introduce you to Jack. It has to be said, that Jack does not start off as the nicest man in the world- a real bad boy. And yet- perhaps for that very reason- he has become the most popular character in the series. This extract comes from very early on, and we find him in the shower, very much wishing he hadn’t sent an old fashioned mix tape to his ex-girlfriend, Amy…

****

The power shower thundered, sending a searing-hot cascade of water down onto Jack’s head. Squeezing far too much shampoo into his hands, he began to viciously scrub his short hair. What the hell had he been thinking? Well, actually, he hadn’t been thinking, had he? He never looked beyond himself. The moment. The day. He was so stupid. So angry with himself.

Why had he posted that tape? And more immediately, where was he? And how soon was he going to able to get away from whoever it was he’d spent the night with? Jack could feel the familiar sensation of suffocation closing in on him as he abandoned his hair and began to furiously soap his torso.

He was a shit.

But then you have to be good at something.

And now Amy was coming here. It hadn’t crossed his mind that she’d even visit, let alone move her entire life back south. And not just south, but bloody London. Being back in touch, and hopefully forgiven, was one thing when she was safely tucked away in Scotland. But here. Face to face. Jack hadn’t banked on that at all.

He really didn’t want to see Rob today. It was his fault this had happened. Rob had come into work one day, back in the summer, going on about how worried he and Paul were for Amy. How she seemed to have placed herself completely off the emotional scale. The combination of bright sunshine, happy reminiscences, and the weight of a conversation he and Amy had never had, had brought his buried guilt racing to the surface.

Then, a few days later, Paul had visited Jack and Rob’s bookshop, passing through on one of his rare visits between his archaeological digs. He’d been sorting out some of his university mementos, and had come across a load of photographs.

They were all there, at university, more years ago than was acceptable if Jack was still going to pass himself off as thirty at the clubs he frequented. Amy, Rob and Paul huddled together in a muddy ditch, laughing. Rob, Paul and him, pints of Tiger lager in hand, outside their favourite pub. Paul, Amy and him, all cuddled together on Rob’s battered and suspiciously stained brown sofa. Amy and him. Amy and him together. Smiling. Together.

That had been the killer. That was the photo that had made him think. Her eyes had shone at the camera. If Jack was honest, so had his. So, in a state of happy but unrealistic nostalgia, he’d gone home, dragged a box of assorted junk out from under his bed, and pulled out the tape.

He had weighed the clear plastic box in his hand. It was time to explain. If Amy was half the girl he used to know then she’d forgive him. And suddenly, from nowhere, Jack had found that he really, really needed to be forgiven.

That was why he’d put Unfinished Sympathy on Amy’s tape. He wanted her to understand that he knew he’d hurt her. That he, himself, had been hurt by having to leave her. But for reasons he hadn’t totally understood at the time, he’d felt he had no choice. A fact which had led him to the record the unbearably twee, but wholly accurate, I Will Always Love You. It seemed to say how sorry he was. It said everything he’d wanted to say then, but couldn’t. He was sorry, really he was. But for Amy to turn up here! Bloody hell.

Stepping out of the shower, Jack began to dry himself with a suitably punishing rough brown towel. Now he was going to have to tell Rob he’d returned the tape, and have another go at talking to Kit.

He hadn’t deliberately failed to tell Kit about Amy. Specific conversations about individual exes had never come up. Jack was pretty sure that Rob hadn’t mentioned Amy to Kit either. Amy had been part of their old life, and Kit was part of their current one. Simple.

Jack knew he had to see Kit soon, before someone else filled her in. He wasn’t sure why he’d walked out on her now he came to think about it. At least she’d understand. Kit always understood. After all, they’d remained friends. Great friends. They had moved on smoothly.

‘Talk about my past catching me up,’ he muttered to his sleep-deprived reflection as he dragged a borrowed razor over his chin. ‘It’s pretty much tripped me up, into a pile of shit, and it’s entirely my fault. Bloody sentimental tape!’

Approaching his bookshop, Jack peered up at the sign which swung, pub-like, from its low eaves, and silently thanked his grandfather for the money he’d left him.

Even though he’d attained a first degree in Ecology, Jack had never had any intention of taking up a career in that arena. The idea of running a bookshop had started as a faint possibility; an option amongst many. It had developed into a dream, and then, when he’d accidentally come across the empty premises in Kew, it had blossomed into an exciting and challenging project.

Now Reading Nature was a source of real pride, and despite his self-inflicted gloom, Jack got a kick of achievement from seeing its single bay-windowed frontage ahead of him. Through the glass Jack could see Rob’s cropped ginger-haired head bent over the counter. He was busy sorting the mornings post into to do, to send out, bills to pay, and junk to recycle, piles.

‘Morning,’ Rob smiled up at his friend as he came in, but adjusted his expression as he saw the cloud hanging across Jack’s face. ‘What’s up? Club no good last night?’

‘It was fine, busy, you know.’

‘Not really, mate, but then I’m a boring old married fart.’

Jack attempt at a smile failed, ‘I’ve done something stupid. I think.’

Rob pulled a face that clearly said, “No change there then,” but simply said, ‘Go on.’

‘I’ve got in touch with Amy…’

****

If you’d like to read the first novel in the series, it is available as an eBook, and as a paperback from all good online stores and bookshops, including…

Amazon UK- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Another-Cup-Of-Coffee-ebook/dp/B00EVYZC7M/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1377952210&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=another+cup+of+coffee+jenny+kane

Amazon US- http://www.amazon.com/Another-Cup-Of-Coffee-ebook/dp/B00EVYZC7M/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1377952266&sr=1-1&keywords=another+cup+of+coffee+jenny+kane

Happy Reading,

Jenny xx

Literary Inspiration- Festival Style

By Jenny Kane

On October 7, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

Last June I took part in one of the most stressful experiences ever devised to part writer-kind from his or her wits. I helped to run a literary festival.

I have long suspected I’m a bit crackers- but taking on an organisational role was proof of my insanity.

Further more- despite the worry, the sleepless nights, the panic, the very real fear that no one would turn up to hear our wonderful authors speak- I loved it. I loved every single terrifyingly panic making minute of it. I guess it’s the timid writer person’s equivalent to riding a rollercoaster.

I gained a great deal from my experience as a literary festival organiser, rather than as a literary festival guest- the main thing being that my theory that everything we do in life has a story attached. Every day in Tiverton during the three month run up to the Literary Festival last June, threw up a new ‘incident’ that had a storyline running right through it!

What a waste it would have been not to use some of these ‘incidents’ in my next book? It would have been a crime really! And so, for this Christmas’s ‘Another Cup of…‘ series novella, I have taken the character of Kit Lambert out of the comfort of Pickwicks Coffee Shop in Richmond, London, and sent her off to a literary festival in the beautiful Crathes Castle in Scotland.

To find out which ‘incidents’ I’ve documented during Kit’s Highland fling, then you’ll have to wait until 14th November, when Christmas at the Castle, is released. In the meantime, you can pre-order the story from…

http://www.amazon.com/Christmas-at-Castle-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B015J87DTI/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1442603723&sr=1-1&keywords=christmas+at+the+castle

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Christmas-at-Castle-Jenny-Kane-ebook/dp/B015J87DTI/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1442588560&sr=1-2&keywords=christmas+at+the+castle

Christmas at the Castle is the fourth in the ‘Another Cup of …’ series (following Another Cup of Coffee, Another Cup of Christmas, Christmas in the Cotswolds), but it can be read as a stand alone story.

Happy reading,

Jenny xx

Guest Post from Jane Jackson: Being Mysterious as Rachel Ennis

By Jenny Kane

On October 5, 2015

In Blog, Fiction, Historical fiction, Romance

Today I am welcoming the lovely Jane Jackson back to my site. On this visit Jane is chatting about her latest book, The Loner, which was written by the ‘other her’- Rachel Ennis!

Over to you Jane (or should that be Rachel?)…

For the past fifteen years I have been writing historical romantic fiction. I’m fascinated by life in the past, especially my chosen period of 1795 – 1905. Momentous changes were taking place in every aspect of life: the Napoleonic wars with France, railways that spread like tentacles across the length and breadth of the country, physician Edward Jenner’s development of a smallpox vaccine saving thousands of lives, the Falmouth-based packet service transporting mail all over the world, dispatches to theatres of war, and bringing back gold bullion from the sugar plantations of Jamaica.

Society was changing too. The industrial revolution brought a massive exodus from countryside to cities and jobs in the new factories whose prosperous owners were the basis of a new middle class.

The fun and frivolity of the Regency was crushed beneath the repression and hypocrisy of Victoria’s reign. I’d need another lifetime to write all the books I have ideas for.

Then in November 2014 I was offered the chance to contribute to an anthology of Christmas stories published by Accent Press entitled ‘Wishing on a Star.’

This was a great opportunity to write a contemporary story. But as I was stepping outside my comfort zone I decided to set it in a location familiar to me – a Cornish coastal village. I named it Polvellan (translation from Cornish is top – or head – of the mill, because there is an old mill at the back of the quay) and the story featured the birth of a baby during a carol concert, but with a very contemporary twist.

I loved writing it. My editor enjoyed it and suggested a series. That was how ‘Polvellan Cornish Mysteries’ and my new name of Rachel Ennis came into being.

Several authors published, like me, by Accent Press write murder mysteries and they are excellent. But this wasn’t a direction I wanted to take. Then I had my lightbulb moment. I would make Jess Trevanion – my main character – an amateur genealogist. Asked to find people’s ancestors she makes unexpected, shocking, remarkable, and occasionally tragic discoveries. And I get to explore more recent history!

Born and brought up in Polvellan, Jess returned to live there after her husband’s unexpected death left her in desperate financial straits. Because she is known and trusted, people confide in her.

Each of Jess’s friends: Annie, Gill, Morwenna and Viv, has their own story gradually revealed throughout the series, as are Jess’s past and current problems. She and childhood sweetheart, Tom Peters, are rebuilding their romance but both carry baggage from the past.

I never take people from real life as characters. Yet the villagers in Polvellan are as real to me as my family. In some ways I know them better, because in each story they reveal more about their secrets, fears and hopes.

As Jess’s reputation spreads she is asked to undertake more investigations. But some people aren’t happy, afraid of what might come out.

‘The Loner’ is the third in the series. Calling at the cottage of recluse John Preece to give him some tomato plants, Jess finds him dead on the floor.

Police and Coroner deem it an accident: he tripped on the rug and hit his head on the granite hearth.

When talk turns to the funeral arrangements Jess’s sadness becomes resolve when she realises that, like herself, very few people knew the real John Preece. Though he lived in the village for many years, his background is a mystery. Using her investigative skills to research John’s family, she is surprised and horrified by what she finds out.

Meanwhile, she is also investigating the history of Marigold’s, a famous local venue recently inherited by the new heir to the Chenhall estate. Who was Marigold and what was her claim to fame?

***

You can buy ‘The Loner’ 3^rd of the Polvellan Cornish Mysteries as an Ebook Pub. for 99p from- http://www.amazon.co.uk/Loner-Polvellan-Book-3-ebook/dp/B01613GQNO/ and all good eBook retailers.

***

You can find more about the work of Jane Jackson (aka Rachel Ennis) at-

Facebook: www.facebook.com/PolvellanCornishMysteries

Blog: http://writethepast.co.uk

Website: www.janejackson.net

***

Many thanks for a great blog Jane.

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

Did you know that books are invisible?

By Jenny Kane

On September 26, 2015

In Blog, Fiction, News

“Did you know that books were invisible?”

That was the opening line I gave a slightly bemused group of friends when they kindly offered to let me give a ‘pretend’ talk about what to do after you’ve written a book.

OK- I’d better back track a little bit.

For a little while now I’ve been considering holding a few writing classes, and possibly taking on mentoring. There is one issue however-there are hundreds and hundreds of creative writing classes out there. I want to provide something a little bit different.

After chatting to fellow authors at the Tiverton Literary Festival in June, it transpired that what wasn’t so available was advice on what to do after you’d created your story. I have spent some time thinking about this.

There are so many authors in the world putting their life’s blood into their words. They pour themselves into their work, then perhaps they are lucky enough to find a publisher, or they decide to self publish their book, and then…nothing.

This brings me to my original point. Unless you are with one of the top six publishers who have contracts to get books into the mainstream bookshops and supermarkets, books are invisible. They only exist if people know about them- and when I say people, I don’t mean your family, friends, work colleagues, and the people they happen to know.

Marketing- that’s what writers have to do. Writing is fairly important as well of course- but if you write something in the hope of earning an income, and then don’t market it, then what’s the point?

I can’t say I enjoy the marketing side of my job- and I’m lucky enough to have a publisher that does some marketing for me- but if you don’t have a Facebook page for your books, and a Twitter account from which to shout about your literary wares, then there is a real danger of disappearing into the ether of the eBook world. You need a blog, you need constant presence, and you need to – every now and then- share just a little of the real you to engage your audience.

Sadly, there is no magic wand when it comes to selling books. People won’t know you’ve written a book unless you make them sit up and take notice of the fact.

OK- lecture over!

I’ll pop off now, because I need to think up exactly what my ‘after-writing’ course will contain…any ideas (polite ones only!) will be very welcome!

Thank you!!

Happy reading, writing and marketing,

Jenny x

Twitter- https://twitter.com/JennyKaneAuthor

Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/JennyKaneRomance?ref=hl

Guest Interview with Janie Millman: Life’s A Drag

By Jenny Kane

On September 25, 2015

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Fiction

I’m delighted to have Janie Millman with me today for a cuppa, some cake, and a chat about her new novel, Life’s A Drag. Why not join us for a drink and a slice of something delicious, put your feet up for five minutes, and see what Janie has been up to.

“Life’s A Drag” by Janie Millman

A struggling San Francisco Drag club.

An idyllic English village.

What do they have in common?

More than meets the eye.

What inspired you to write your book?

The inspiration for the book came after my husband and I moved from London to a small Suffolk Village and were amazed to discover a drag competition in the annual village horticultural fete – a tradition that apparently dated back years….

As an actor my husband – a straight talking Glaswegian – was coerced into entering and joined a sorry line up of five – a local farmer – an ex copper – the guy who owned the village shop – the butcher and paper boy!

Whoever won the show organised the following year -my husband won and it started me thinking -What would happen if some real life drag queens happened upon this small village competition? What would be the consequence if San Francisco met Suffolk?

At that time many country villages were in danger of losing their identity – local PO’s were closing – pubs were shutting down – and of course the local shops were losing out to the supermarkets….

I grew up in a small town and loved the community spirit and like many others in the village was keen to preserve it.

Obviously I did not have to do much research into village life having lived there – but I did have to research drag queens! Not a world I was particularly familiar with……

Accompanied by my husband ( who frankly enjoyed himself far too much!) we spent two weeks in San Francisco – hanging out with the drag queens – watching the shows – listening to their incredible stories and most surprisingly seeing how much they do for their community…

It was a fascinating – if somewhat exhausting couple of weeks – we were welcomed with open arms and I keep in touch with many of them… I cannot wait to go back…. so I guess I really need to start the sequel!

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

I did plot the book – but only very loosely.

I like to know roughly where I am going but I also like to have the freedom to allow the characters to grow and develop and surprise me… which they did on several occasions.

I have a wall full of large A4 sheets of paper on which I write various ideas..in various different colours – for example in the case of ‘Life’s A Drag’ – green was for Suffolk and the characters who lived there and pink was the obvious choice for San Francisco !

On the advice of novelist Veronica Henry I also use a ‘mood board’ – simply a cork board on which I pin photos- clippings – pictures – articles – anything that helps me relate to the story – it may sound a bit strange… but I find it really does help me focus …

What is your writing regime?

Re my writing regime…. I try to get up early and do a couple of hours before the day kicks off at 9.00am!

Sometimes that happens sometimes it doesn’t!

I live in SW France and we own Chez-Castillon – a large eighteenth century town house where we organise courses & retreats in painting /photography and creative writing – our days are hugely busy.. and it can be difficult to find time … so getting up early is a necessity if I want to get words down – and even though sometimes it is a effort to get up – I do enjoy my early morning sessions – when there are no interruptions – I drink gallons of strong coffee – munch on the occasional biscuit -talk my ideas through with the dog and watch the sun rise…

And I am very fortunate because we have some wonderful authors coming out here who always inspire and help me.

What excites you the most about your book?

What excites me most about my book is that is does not really fit any genre – it is fairly unique – it is optimistic but does have some deeper undercurrents.

I like the fact that it deals with two very different communities who come together to help each other – and although at first they seem worlds apart it soon becomes clear that appearances are not everything and human connections can surprise us.

***

Here’s the blurb for Life’s A Drag–

Roz and Jamie have moved to leafy Suffolk from London in search of a quiet life so it is a surprise to find that the village is embarking on its riotous annual drag competition. Fuelled by large quantities of alcohol and ubiquitous community spirit, they soon find themselves caught up in a battle for the identity of the village itself.

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, Drew is fighting his own battle to save his club and the livelihoods of his closest friends. Though they seem worlds apart, it soon becomes clear that appearances are not everything and that sometimes human connections can surprise us.

Drag is the new cool – think Conchita Wurst, Ru Paul, Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Kinky Boots in London. This fun-filled and life-affirming romp will appeal to anyone who enjoys humorous fiction.

***

If you ‘d like to buy Life’s A Drag you can find it at all good book and e-retailers, including-

Amazon UK – http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lifes-Drag-Janie-Millman-ebook/dp/B00XA4Y75M/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1443095214&sr=1-1&keywords=lifes+a+drag

Amazon US- http://www.amazon.com/Lifes-Drag-Janie-Millman-ebook/dp/B00XA4Y75M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1443095350&sr=8-2

***

Bio

Author Janie Millman was an actress for twenty-five years, appearing in the West End, on UK and World-wide Tours, on television and film. Her least-recognised role was as Leonardo the Ninja Turtle. Since 2009, she and her husband have lived in south-west France where they run Chez Castillon in an eighteenth-century house which provides an idyllic setting for painting, photography and creative-writing courses. She contracted breast cancer a couple of years ago and was inspired to write a popular blog: ‘Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow’ which sparked an interest in wild and unusual wigs, which probably helped when writing the Drag Queen characters.

***

Many thanks to Janine for joining me for a cuppa today. Life’s a Drag sounds wonderful. I have a feeling your husband and mine would get on like a house on fire!

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

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