Tag: novel Page 8 of 16

OUT NEXT WEEK: Christmas Comes to the Pickwicks café

On November 10, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction, Jenny Kane, News, Romance

This winter you’ll be able to buy all 3 of my seasonal Pickwicks café specials in one collection – a paperback collection!!

I know that some of you have been waiting to read, Another Cup of Christmas, Christmas in the Cotswolds and Christmas at the Castle in paperback before you read the last in the series, Another Glass of Champagne – and soon you’ll have your chance!

Jenny Kane’s Christmas Collection comes out on 17th November.

jennykanes christmas collection

Another Cup of Christmas was the first sequel to the bestselling novel, Another Cup of Coffee.

Another Cup of Coffee - New cover 2015 ACOChristmas- New 2015

Another Cup of Christmas continues the tale of life at Pickwicks Coffee House in Richmond, London, and its regular customers, ex waitress Amy, writer in residence, Kit, and local bookshop owner, Jack.

Café owners Peggy and Scott and their new waitress Megan, are organising a Christmas fundraising auction for the local hospital. Rather than serving copious amounts of coffee to Kit, as she sits writing the corner of the cafe, Megan is spending most of her days emailing the hospital liaison clerk about the charity event. As the auction draws nearer, Megan becomes more and more curious about meeting Nick in person…

Christmas in the Cotswolds follows on from Another Cup of Christmas. A year has passed, and Megan is now an established face at Pickwicks. However, when an emergency call comes from her friend Izzie, Megan finds herself travelling to the beautiful Cotswold countryside. Can Megan help Izzie pull off the perfect Christmas at her Art and Craft Centre, and save the business from the clutches of disaster?

CITC- New cover 2015 Christmas at the Castle

Christmas at the Castle turns its attention to Pickwicks writer in residence, Kit Lambert. Invited to guest at her very first literary festival, Kit is suddenly thrust into the role of co-organiser. As if that wasn’t daunting enough, Kit is going to have to face the challenge without the support of her loyal family and her Pickwick friends- for the festival is to be held in the magnificent grounds of Crathes Castle, in distant Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

All three of these festive novellas can be read in isolation, or in order.

A full length novel, Another Glass of Champagne, brings big changes for all of the Pickwicks team- especially Jack and Amy…

Another Glass Of Champagne

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So if you’ve been waiting for the paperback version, or a three volume Kindle addition, of my Christmas coffee shop tales- your chance is almost here.

Pre-order here-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jenny-Kanes-Christmas-Collection-Short-ebook/dp/B01M0ICD7A/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1474386377&sr=8-2&keywords=jenny+kane%27s+christmas+collection

https://www.amazon.com/Jenny-Kanes-Christmas-Collection-Short-ebook/dp/B01M0ICD7A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1474387008&sr=8-1&keywords=jenny+kane%27s+christmas+collection

Happy reading,

Jenny

Guest Post by Jackie Kabler: Writing What You Know…Or Not?

By Jenny Kane

On October 20, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, crime, Fiction, Jenny Kane

It’s guest blog time! I’m delighted to welcome fellow Accent Press author, Jackie Kabler, to my place today. Jackie’s second novel is out now…but how much of her media career influenced it…

Over to you Jackie…

WRITING WHAT YOU KNOW…OR NOT?

As a relatively new author – my first novel, The Dead Dog Day, was published by Accent Press last year – I had the thrill recently of appearing for the first time at a literary festival, where I was delighted to be asked to chair a panel discussion. The topic was ‘Writing what you know…or not?’, and the panel was made up of a great mix of authors with widely differing views, which made for a lively hour!

I thought it was a really interesting topic. Some of the writers there considered writing about what you already know to be the ultimate in laziness, arguing that being a fiction writer is about being creative, not just about regurgitating facts and experiences from your own life. Others, including a former social worker who now writes novels based around her experiences, argued that having such a wealth of knowledge about a specialist area lends realism and authenticity to our writing. I say our, because my current series of novels, the Cora Baxter Mysteries, is set in a television newsroom, a world in which I worked as a news reporter for twenty years.

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My decade on breakfast show GMTV provided such a wealth of material – some of it surreal, some of it shocking, much of it hilarious – that when I decided to attempt writing a novel it just made sense to me to use that material. And I’m glad I did – some of the nicest comments I’ve had from readers of my first book were about how fascinating it was to get an insider’s view of the not-as-glamourous-as-you-think world of breakfast TV. But am I just being lazy? Should I, as a creative person, be using my imagination more in my writing? It’s something I’ve been thinking about. I’m still working on the Cora Baxter series, but now I also have an idea for a psychological thriller which will definitely push me out of my comfort zone. So – should we write what we know, or not? What do you think?

***

The Deadline, the second in the Cora Baxter Mysteries series, is now available in paperback, e-book or audiobook format.

ttps://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01J448FDQ/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

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Bio-

Jackie Kabler is a journalist, TV presenter and author. Currently a presenter on shopping channel QVC, she signed a three-book deal with Accent Press in 2014 for a series of murder mysteries set in a television newsroom. She spent twenty years as a news reporter, including a decade on GMTV, followed by stints with ITV news, BBC news and Setanta Sports news. She lives in Gloucestershire with her husband, who is a local GP.

You can keep in touch with Jackie via her website www.jackiekabler.com, on Twitter at @jackiekabler or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jackiekablerauthor

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Many thanks for such a great blog Jackie,

Happy reading everyone,
Jenny xx

Mum, Nan and Nan: Thank you

By Jenny Kane

On October 14, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, News

Officially, I have been a writer for the past twelve years. Deep down however, I suspect I have always been a writer; I have certainly always been a creative person. How could I not be, when I was influenced from childhood by both of my grandmothers who were both physically incapable of doing nothing, and had imaginations that would have made Roald Dahl proud?

From a very early age I remember watching my maternal Nan performing plays, poems, and comedy sketches on stage for the WI, all of which she’d written herself.

I vividly recall sitting in the audience of one charity production where my Nan’s poem, ‘Hats’ was performed to shrieks of laughter and delight. I was only ten years old, and as I sat and laughed alongside the rest thinking how wonderful it would be to be able to make people happy like that- if only I wasn’t so shy…

My paternal Nan on the other hand, was a knitter extraordinaire. There was literally nothing she couldn’t produce out of wool with just the aid of a pair of needles and a decent drama to watch on the TV at the same time. I never saw her glance at what she was knitting, and I certainly never saw a pattern. The jumpers, gloves, toys, or whatever she was making, seemed to magically appear at a speed that would be the envy of any conjurer.

Both my grandmothers loved to read, but neither of them had any time for books that contained waffle. If a story didn’t grab them instantly it was jammed back onto the library shelf before the second page got so much as dabbed with a damp finger.

Standing in Princes Risborough, getting restless while book after book was dismissed with the words “If you ever write a book, make sure you get to the point faster than this lot!” ringing in my ears became a regular feature of my grandparental visits. This advice stayed with me, and I have always made an effort to grab my reader’s attention before the end of the first chapter. I have to confess, that as a reader, I’m now just as picky as my Nan’s were. I am notoriously hard to please!

A love of words, crosswords, and word puzzles in general- usually completed at a coffee shop table with my Nan- was something that was very much part of my childhood. This love of words and puzzles was inherited by my Mum, and has been passed on to me as well. It is perhaps not surprising then, that as I spent a great deal of my childhood (and indeed my adulthood) playing with words in cafes, I ended up writing a series of stories set in the fictional Pickwicks Coffee Shop. (Another Cup of Coffee, Another Cup of Christmas, Christmas in the Cotswolds, Christmas at the Castle, and Another Glass of Champagne)

My bestselling novel, Abi’s House (pub. Accent Press, June 2015), was written in dedication to my grandparents. Set in the Sennen Cove area of Cornwall, Abi (recently arrived from London), creates a new life for herself not far from Penzance, where my paternal grandparents lived.

On Abi’s arrival in Cornwall, she meets Beth, a young woman who has recently inherited her grandfather’s cobblers shop. My maternal grandmother’s family owns Wainwright’s Shoe Shops in Buckinghamshire, where I spent many hours with both my Nan and my Grandad, who was the company’s chief cobbler!

Both of my grandmothers influenced my writing, and the way I approach the production of my stories, more than they ever knew. Their creativity and encouragement (my maternal Nan was forever telling me I’m make my mark on the world with words, long before I even contemplated trying my hand as a writer), has carried on into the next generation, with my Mum, an excellent artist and needlewoman, cheering me on.

And now, proving that the creative gene is strong on the female side of my family, my daughters have picked up the baton, and both have had poetry of their own published already!

Look out world- the next generation is on its way!

Happy reading,

Jenny xx

Guest Post from Julie Archer: Cocktails, Rock Tales & Betrayals

By Jenny Kane

On October 12, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Fiction

I’m delighted to welcome Julie Archer to my blog today. Julie, who I had the good fortune to meet earlier this year (see below), has just released her first novel, and is hot on the heels of the second…

Hi Jenny! Thanks for having me over at your place.

I’m writing this blog post having just arrived at Stickwick Manor for a six-day retreat to recover from all the excitement of self-publishing my first novel. And to make a start on Book 2!

It was just over two years ago (ironically on the day I published the eBook) that I received an email from Urban Writers’ Retreat to say that I had been accepted on the Six Month Novel Programme. I remember doing a happy dance around my kitchen as I realised that someone thought I had a good story to tell.

The Six Month Novel Programme is something to help writers get to the end of that first draft, with the support of fellow writers. There is structure, accountability and cheerleading. And a place for you to vent about how things are going – good and bad. The Writer’s Playground was a massively important part of my writing journey and without it, I don’t think I would ever have finished Cocktails, Rock Tales & Betrayals. I have made some fantastic virtual and real friends here, all of whom have helped me along the way.

paperback

I wrote “The End” on the first draft in early March 2015. Then life got in the way. And I half-heartedly edited the manuscript a few times, shoved it in a cupboard, forgot about it, dusted it off, got a few people to beta read it, sent off a few agent submissions and generally didn’t love it.

Then I went to a World Book Night Event in Stoke Fleming, near Dartmouth where I live, in April this year.

The guest speaker was Lesley Pearce, who regaled us with tales of her writing journey – and penchant for Sean Bean. Other speakers included Tony Porter, Jane Gill, Mel Menzies and Steve Stevenson-Olds. Oh, and a lovely lady called Jenny Kane (on that day anyway!).

Hearing these authors talk about how they had got their works published, either traditionally or through the self-publishing route, really made me think. And it made me want to be standing up on that side of the table at World Book Night 2017 telling my own story!

Having already submitted to a few agents and received stock replies of ‘thanks, but no thanks’ and ‘keep writing’, I considered the self-publishing route. Not knowing what this might entail, I explored the possibilities out there and looked at “assisted self-publishing” versus “pure self-publishing”.

I went to Tiverton Literary Festival in June (Jenny may have mentioned it at World Book Night!) and attended a self-publishing workshop by Marissa Farrar. Although I hadn’t come across her work before, she has self-published a huge number of novels in different genres. And made the process work!

I also met Carrie Elks at a Stickwick retreat. As another self-published author she was also able to give me more invaluable advice on how to do things properly, what to focus on and where to start with things like a marketing plan and social media.

After listening to both of these inspiring ladies (and taking copious notes!), I was more determined than ever to get the book out there myself. I was in a fortunate position of being able to have the time and funds available to dedicate to the editing, cover design and marketing processes.

So I did it! I wrestled with Createspace, Kindle Direct Publishing and Draft2Digital and won!

What’s next? Book 2 of course! And along with my fellow chums in the Writer’s Playground, we are publishing an anthology of stories called ‘Off Track’. It will be available in mid-November in both eBook and print formats. All proceeds are going to charity, so it would be great if you could pick up a copy.

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Here’s a short extract from Cocktails, Rock Tales & Betrayals…

“She couldn’t stop thinking about Nate, how they had talked and talked. And connected. Had things been different, she would certainly have left him her number.

With a sigh, she put on her headphones and pulled a copy of Roccia from her bag and idly began flicking through the pages to pass the time. A short article in the news section about North Ridge caught her eye. She took a large sip of wine a read on, always interested to read about new local talent.

Recently signed to Numb Records, Alik Thorne and the rest of the Blood Stone Riot boys play their last gig at The Vegas in North Ridge next week before decamping to record their as yet untitled four-track EP at the renowned Newcomen Farm studios.

Set for release in the next few months, the band are also to film their first video to accompany the title track, “Bleed Like Cyanide,” in addition to playing a number of low-key showcase gigs in preparation for their debut appearance at the Wilde Park Festival.

Caro almost spat out her wine in shock as she re-read the article and studied the picture that accompanied it more closely. There was a black and white photograph of a singer, caught by the camera snarling into the microphone. He was wildly attractive, with chiselled cheekbones, eyes flashing with passion, and bare-chested, showing an array of tattoos and a nipple ring.

She knew she had seen him before.

Knew that she had recognised his voice from somewhere.

In the magazine shot, he was clean-shaven and his hair was shorter, and he wasn’t wearing glasses; looking totally different to the man she had left in bed that morning. But she certainly recognised the tattoos, having spent time up close and personal with them.

With him.

He had lied.

His name wasn’t Nate.

Suddenly Caro was acutely aware of the fact that she had just slept with one of the hottest new properties in rock music…

***

You can buy Cocktails, Rock Tales & Betrayals through the following platforms. Or you can pop into the Dartmouth Bookseller on Foss Street in Dartmouth and get one in person!

EBook available from Amazon, iBooks, Barnes & Noble Nook, Kobo, Scribd.

Paperback available from Amazon or a special signed copy and merch pack from my website.

Bio

I grew up in Hampshire and lived in Reading before moving to the beautiful riverside town of Dartmouth in Devon. I still feel like I’m on holiday.  I trained as a journalist, then went into teaching (kept meeting the sixth form students in the pub, awkward!). After that I ‘fell’ into recruitment, spending more years there than I care to mention, where the most creative thing I did was to create a sexy top line for job adverts! Since moving to Devon, I set up my own business offering virtual administration and recruitment services, worked for an accommodation company and am currently moonlighting in the local bookshop…  Also, COYS, Cats, Metal. Underneath this preppy exterior beats the heart of a rock chick.

Website: www.juliearcherwrites.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/juliearcherwrites

Twitter: @julieoceanuk

***

Thanks for a great blog Julie. Good luck with your first book!

Happy reading,

Jenny x

Guest Blog from Kristen Bailey: Souper Mum

By Jenny Kane

On September 20, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

I’m delighted to welcome fellow Accent Press author, Kristen Bailey, to my blog today to talkie foodie-ness…

Over to you Kristen…

Given my novel, Souper Mum, runs with a foodie theme, I was recently asked by a magazine about whether I have a ‘food ethos.’ I wasn’t really sure how to answer as I’m not sure I fit into any specific foodie category. I was vegetarian for a week back in my teens until I realised I quite liked bacon. And steak. I went through a university phase of only eating pasta with stir-in sauces, and pregnant phases of only eating anything salt and vinegar flavoured. But since then, I’d say I’m your classic omnivore. A bit of everything in moderation, right? (She says, eating her fifty-fifth Malted Milk of the day).

As a household with four little people, we eat organic (if it’s on offer) and I’ll admit we eat all those bad things that people tell us to avoid: the gluten, the sugar, the chicken nuggets and the E-numbers. But we like berries and nuts and healthier shit too. My youngest once ate five clementines in a row at Christmas. I won’t talk about the resulting nappies. We preach variety. The little ones don’t mind a bit of sushi but also like an oven chip. I am pretty sure my kids could correctly identify broccoli in a vegetable line-up. Hell, sometimes they may even eat it too. I have my limits in what I’ll bring into my house: I draw the line at complete cooked breakfasts in a tin, ham shaped like a bear’s face and rocket. I’m sorry, we are iceberg people. One food issue divides this household and that is mushrooms. I think they’re great. They make my husband break into a cold sweat and if he sees me eating them, he questions the very foundations of our relationship. Of course, everything is also counterbalanced against my cooking skills and the wildly varying tastes of the littlies – one of whom recently decided he doesn’t like cheese (Seriously? Are we related?) So, is that an ethos? I’d like to see Channel 4 do a cookbook that links that altogether if possible.

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It’s not an ethos shared by all. You usually find this out on play dates when a parent gives you a strange look for suggesting we ‘just grab some Happy Meals,’ or at children’s parties where you’re stared down for offering around Haribo. I know it’s an ethos not shared by half the chefs on my televisions these days either. Remember when cooking shows used to be Delia cooking in her conservatory? She’d turn out a lovely looking Victoria sponge, resplendent in a thick layer of cream, scarlet jam and a dusting of icing sugar. She was kindly and polite. Well now TV chefs use newfangled ingredients like coconut oil, agave and pomegranates. They leap around their kitchens and tell me I can’t put sugar or flour or dairy in my cakes: three foods that possibly keep me alive and sane. These chefs seem to have crossed a line into my living room too. I’ll be sitting there eating my family bag of Maltesers and they’ll point their fingers and judge me. They tell me what I’m eating isn’t good enough. Bring back Delia, I say.

So I wrote Souper Mum in the hope that there were other people out there like me who had a similar approach to food. Jools Campbell is my Souper Mum: a mum-of-four who likes a fish finger sandwich (all similarities to me are not coincidental at all…) and she gets in about 3.5 a day. Jools’ story is one of food but also motherhood and celebrity. In a world of pedant chefs and food fads, Jools tells you it’s OK to step back from the kale (it tastes bitter and gets stuck in your teeth anyway…) and opt for the food ethos that makes you ruddy happy, or at least still involves whole packets of economy biscuits…..

***

Souper Mum is the story of Jools Campbell, a stay-at-home mother of four, who becomes an unlikely foodie hero when she stands up to a pompous celebrity chef, Tommy McCoy on a reality show. Armed with fish fingers and a severely limited cooking repertoire, we watch as she becomes a reluctant celebrity and learns some important life lessons about love, family and the joyless merits of quinoa.

To buy Souper Mum, click on this link:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Souper-Mum-Kristen-Bailey/dp/1786150689/

BIO

Mother-of-four, gin-drinker, binge-watcher, receipt hoarder, hapless dog owner, enthusiastic but terrible cook. Kristen lives in Fleet, Hampshire and has had short fiction published in several publications. The sequel Second Helpings will be published in November.

She also writes a blog about being a modern mother. That and more can be found at her website: www.kristenbaileywrites.com

You can also find her on:

Twitter @baileyforce6 and Facebook www.facebook.com/kristenbaileywrites

***

Many thanks Kristen for such a fab blog,

Happy reading,

Jenny x

Christmas Comes Early to Pickwicks Café

By Jenny Kane

On September 8, 2016

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

Don’t yell at me! I know you don’t want me to mention ‘Christmas’ in September, but I have great news about my ‘Another Cup of…‘ series seasonal specials, Another Cup of Christmas, Christmas at the Cotswolds, and Christmas at the Castle.

This winter you’ll be able to buy these 3 seasonal Pickwicks café specials in one collection – a paperback collection!! I know that some of you have been waiting to read these Christmas tales in paperback before you read the last in the series, Another Glass of Champagne – and soon you’ll have your chance!

jennykanes christmas collection

There is something very special about the Christmas season- the extra levels of hope, love and kindness the season engenders makes it the perfect time in which to set a romantic story. Writing the three seasonal novellas, that form part of the Another Cup of…series, was tremendous fun.

Another Cup of Christmas was the first sequel to the bestselling novel, Another Cup of Coffee.

Another Cup of Coffee - New cover 2015 ACOChristmas- New 2015

CITC- New cover 2015 Christmas at the Castle

All three of these festive novellas can be read in isolation, or in order. And if you love reading them as much as I loved writing them, then why not finish off the series, by searching out the final tale in the series, Another Glass of Champagne.

A full length novel, Another Glass of Champagne, brings big changes for all of the Pickwicks team- especially Jack and Amy…

Another Glass Of Champagne

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So if you’ve been waiting for the paperback version of my Christmas coffee shop tales- your chance to buy them is almost here. I’ll shut as soon as the pre-order is available!

Happy reading,

Jenny

Guest Post from Stella Hervey Birrell: Finding True Love: Ten Years On

By Jenny Kane

On September 7, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

I’m delighted to welcome Stella Hervey Birrell to my blog today. This is a wonderful post- so I suggest getting comfortable for a few minutes- preferably with cake to hand.

Over to you Stella…

Finding True Love: Ten Years on.

This September will be ten years since the day I ‘pulled myself together for my lines,’ as someone drily commented on my wedding day. Tears had fallen while Mr HB pledged himself to me for life, but no way was I missing out on my turn to speak!

It will be ten years since my husband set his face to ‘sure’ as I completely blanked him on my way down the aisle (I wrote about this on the My Reading Corner Blog here). Ten years since my husband’s daughter floated around looking like a fairy, and my husband’s son looked a bit grumpy, but it was partly because his shoes were too tight.

Ten years since I put on a golden band.

My golden band – it still fits!

Am I still in love?

Deeply so.

Well, actually … a couple of things have happened recently.

I realise it’s only now, nearly ten years later, that I am even close to moving away from that ‘smitten-early-days’ fog. Like when I noticed that my husband is really stubborn – about nine months ago. I always wondered where the kids got it from.

I don’t think that it is a coincidence that he works away sometimes. If anyone was daft enough to ask me for advice on maintaining a healthy relationship, it would be this: make sure one or both of you has a job where you have to travel. Not a lot, but a little. Each meeting becomes a rekindling, a jolt of recognition … and someone else to brush the kid’s teeth, if he hasn’t timed his arrival to just after bedtime.

It’s your turn.

We’re older. Crikey, that’s an obvious thing to say. I suppose, what is perhaps slightly more interesting, is that I am now about the age he was, when we met. For the mathematically challenged amongst you, that means he’s older than me, by quite a bit, as I’m fond of reminding him.

I’ve become healthier, and he hasn’t. But he really, really won’t want me to talk about that. We have a mutual support thing that mostly works – until I decide I want a ‘day,’ and he’s already having a ‘day,’ and I go straight into full-on huffy ‘I never get to have a day when I’m the ill one’ mode.

See, maturity has nothing to do with age.

He has four children now, and I have two biological – washing powder kids I call them – and two that went to our wedding. I’ve got a new job – two, I suppose, I’m the main mean mommy when he’s four on.

But when he’s on four off, my job is tippity tapping away, making stuff up and then writing it down.

A selection: my printed work.

Our commitment has endured, in a way I never imagined I would experience. Ten years is a long time, and becoming a ‘writer’ is a big deal. It takes a lot out of family time, and I do not take it lightly that he is only too happy to make up the shortfall.

After a lifetime of Mr Wrongs, Mr Right, who became Mr HB (his preference, and based on my pen-name) is still my chosen person. He’s still my best bet when I need to pull myself together, and pull out some lines.

My debut novel, How Many Wrongs make a Mr Right?

How Many Wrongs make a Mr Right? is available from UK Amazon US Amazon Kobo Nook iBooks

Author Links-

Stella Hervey Birrell blogs at #atinylife140 tweets at @atinylife140 and can be found on Facebook here.

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Many thanks for such a great blog Stella (and Mr HB!)

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

Champagne and Writer’s Block

By Jenny Kane

On September 3, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

One of the main characters in my Another Cup of… series is a writer called Kit Lambert. When we first met Kit in Another Cup of Coffee, she was making a name for herself by writing erotica. As her career progressed Kit moved into contemporary fiction, and now she has a novel publishing contract, with all the pressures of having to produce work to tight deadlines upon her.

Another Glass Of Champagne

In the final novel of the series, Another Glass of Champagne, Kit, mum of twins, and wife to bookshop owner Phil, suddenly finds herself unable to write at all, but he can’t understand why. Surely writer’s block is something that can be easily shaken off- or is just a myth invented by those who can’t be bothered to write today…or is it?

Not even sitting at her usual table in the corner of Pickwicks Coffee House, (run by her friend Peggy) is helping the words become unstuck…

writers block

Extract

When she got back, Kit found Peggy looking thoughtful, ‘Why have you closed your work down, honey? I usually steal a read of your latest work in progress when I think you’re not looking.’ ‘I haven’t got much done today.’

Kit mumbled. ‘It’s been a mulling things over sort of a day.’ Changing the subject, she said, ‘Scott says there are some sandwiches ready for your lunch when Megan comes back through.’

‘Good, I’m starving.’

‘Are you and Megan managing alright with only two of you on the serving team? It’s already busy, but by July it’s going to be packed between eleven and two.’

‘Actually, Scott and I were talking about that over the weekend. Would your Helena fancy giving us a hand and earning some money before she heads off to university? Where is she going again?’ Flinching slightly, and hoping Peggy hadn’t noticed, Kit said, ‘She’s aiming for Bath to do Chemistry, and Thomas’s hoping to be off to Exeter. Assuming they get their grades, that is.’

‘Of course they will. What’s Thomas going to study?’

‘History.’

‘Sounds good. So, do you think Helena will want the job? It would save me a lot of bother with adverts and stuff.’

Kit nodded. She knew exactly how much time it took to go through interviews and training staff in this place, so someone who was already familiar with Pickwicks layout would be a real advantage to Peggy. ‘I’ll ask her. Helena’s bank balance could certainly do with a top-up. Goodness knows it’s time she stood on her own two feet financially.’

Megan came back into the café and Peggy got up to go and have her lunch before another influx of customers forced her to forego her only real break of the day. As an afterthought, she turned back to Kit. ‘If you’d rather your daughter wasn’t here during the day, just say. I mean, this is your office after all!’

‘I don’t mind at all. I’ll ask her this evening, assuming she comes home She seems to live at her mates’ houses these days.’

‘Making the most of seeing her friends before she heads west, I suppose.’

Peggy waved as she disappeared into the kitchen, to what Kit hoped wasn’t a tuna sandwich, before she could see the tell-tale glint of tears fighting to form at the corner of her eyes. Cross with herself for being so emotional, Kit looked at her screen. Peggy had opened a new document and typed the words You can talk to me, you know. Love Peggy xx across the top of the page.

Kit should have known that she couldn’t hide anything from Peggy. The manageress knew her habits better than anyone, having been host to them for the past decade or so. Kit didn’t even want to guess how many cups of coffee, scones, and slices of toast she’d consumed at that table in that time. Just the thought of the amount of butter she’d spread over her early morning snacks was enough to make her feel as though her hips were expanding right there on the seat.

Making her mind up to talk to Peggy soon, she picked up her mobile and sent Helena a text, telling her about the possible employment opportunity at Pickwicks. Kit wasn’t sure if she did actually want Helena around all day while she was writing. But then, she thought, I’m not exactly writing now, am I…

***

You may be thinking that Kit sounds like a real writer you’ve come across- and you’d be right. Kit and I are pretty much the same person- but with huge exaggerations into fiction of course!! For a start, I do not have twins!

However, a little while ago I did suffer a bout of writer’s block. I had been a little flippant about the condition until then- but now I know it is truly horrid. Feeling all the words backing up in your head and not being able to get them out is just awful- especially when you live for your words! I lost weeks to the confusion of not being able to compose even the simplest sentences.

If you want to discover if Kit manages to get to the root of her own word block, and see what else the Pickwick’s crew are up to, then you can buy Another Glass of Champagne from all good bookshops and eBook retailers, including-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Another+Glass+of+Champagne+Jenny+Kane

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss/188-7813436-7626710?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Another+Glass+of+Champagne+Jenny+Kane

***

Happy reading,

Jenny x

Interview with Carol Cooper: Hampstead Fever

By Jenny Kane

On August 30, 2016

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

It’s interview time again, and today I’m pleased to have the lovely Carol Cooper dropping by for coffee and cake. Why not take five minutes to join us?

What inspired you to write your book?

I wanted to write the kind of novel that I enjoy reading myself, with a diverse cast of characters, each one complex and flawed, with problems and dreams that people can identify with. Chef Dan, for instance, is on the up, with a new job in a trendy Hampstead bistro. But his partner Laure is wrapped up in their young son and has no time for him. You can tell that’ll lead to trouble.

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

In Hampstead Fever, as in my first novel, I’ve used my imagination to create the characters. But I’ve been inspired by real people, including the patients I look after in my other life as a doctor. I’d be lying if I said anything else. Writers can’t help being influenced by what’s around them, just like everyone one. It was a lightbulb moment when I learned that everything you ever see, hear, or experience creates new connections between brain cells. Basically, daily life subtly changes the anatomy of your brain. The only characters who are modelled on real people are Laure’s aunts, who are like my own great-aunts, two wonderful individuals who seemed to be crying out to be put in a book. They’re no longer with us, so they can’t read my book.

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

I used the internet to look up details like bus routes to make sure characters are going home in the right direction, and I’ve checked which songs hit the charts when. That’s important for Sanjay, who loves music. I also hung around Hampstead village a lot, which is no hardship because I live nearby and it’s a lovely area. There’s a lot I didn’t need to look up, like the medical details that appear in part of the story. That’s stuff I knew already.

Which point of view do you prefer to write in, and why?

The third person, but it‘s a deep and intimate third person. Hampstead Fever evolves from each of the six main characters’ viewpoint, and each scene takes you right into the mind and heart of that one person. I think I write multi-viewpoint fiction because for most of my working life I’ve tried getting inside other people’s heads. As a GP, every ten minutes I see someone with a new story and a different perspective.

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

A bit of both. I like to have the gist before I begin, but then the characters grow and take over, telling lies, jumping into bed with the wrong people, and generally getting into trouble that I hadn’t anticipated.

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

Rick Stein to supply me with fish and seafood dishes, Barack Obama for brilliant conversation, and hairdresser Nicky Clarke to make my hair look great.

Amazon link for Hampstead Fever http://mybook.to/HF

***

Carol has a Goodreads running for Hampstead Fever until 3rd Sept- check it out here-

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30284643-hampstead-fever

***

Blog http://pillsandpillowtalk.com

Twitter @DrCarolCooper

Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/onenightatthejacaranda/

There’s more about all my books on my Amazon author page https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dr-Carol-Cooper/e/B005C2ZZ10

Carol Cooper

Bio: Carol is a journalist, author and doctor. She graduated in medicine from Cambridge University. To support her studies, she worked at supermarket checkouts, walked dogs, typed manuscripts in Russian, and made men’s trousers to measure.

After a string of non-fiction books, including an award-winning textbook, she turned to fiction with her debut novel One Night at the Jacaranda. She is president of the Guild of Health Writers and has three amazing grown-up sons. Like her fictional characters, she lives in Hampstead and Cambridge. Unlike them, she remarried in 2013. She likes a happy ending.

***

Thank you ever so much Carol. A fantastic interview!

Happy reading everyone,

Jenny x

Raising ‘Another Glass of Champagne’

By Jenny Kane

On August 20, 2016

In Blog, Contemporary fiction, Contemporary Romantic Fiction, Fiction

I’ve come on quite a journey with the main characters in the ‘Another Cup of….’ series of books, from the full length novel Another Cup of Coffee, through there Christmas novella’s, (Another Cup of Christmas, Christmas in the Cotswolds and Christmas at the Castle), and now to the full length novel, Another Glass of Champagne!

Amy, Kit and Jack were all in the their thirties when I began to tell their intertwined stories of love, friendship and coffee sipping. Now, they are all in their forties, and are facing the fact that age doesn’t give you the answers to yourproblems. In fact, all it does is add to them…

Blurb

A warm-hearted, contemporary tale about a group of friends living in a small corner of busy London, by bestselling author Jenny Kane.

Fortysomething Amy is shocked and delighted to discover she s expecting a baby not to mention terrified! Amy wants best friend Jack to be godfather, but he hasn’t been heard from in months. When Jack finally reappears, he s full of good intentions but his new business plan could spell disaster for the beloved Pickwicks Coffee Shop, and ruin a number of old friendships…

Meanwhile his love life is as complicated as ever and yet when he swears off men for good, Jack meets someone who makes him rethink his priorities…but is it too late for a fresh start?

Author Kit has problems of her own: just when her career has started to take off, she finds herself unable to write and there s a deadline looming, plus two headstrong kids to see through their difficult teenage years…will she be able to cope?

A follow-up to the runaway success Another Cup of Coffee.

***

If you’d like to see how the story ends, then you can buy Another Glass of Champagne from all good bookshop and e-retailers. (You don’t need to have read the previous novels to enjoy this one)

Buy Links

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Another+Glass+of+Champagne+Jenny+Kane

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss/188-7813436-7626710?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Another+Glass+of+Champagne+Jenny+Kane

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Happy reading,

Jenny x

Tag: novel Page 8 of 16

Jenny Kane’s Christmas Collection comes out on 17th November.

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