Roving Romaniacs – An Earthless Melting Pot anthology launch

I was very happy to spend a lovely, sunny, writerly couple of days in London at the end of May, traveling up on the Friday for author drinks arranged by super-agent Juliet Mushens. In a busy bar in Soho, around twenty of Juliet’s authors gathered to drink and chat. It was lovely to spend time with an eclectic group of writers at all different stages of the journey to publication: Those, like myself, at the nail-biting editing/submitting stage, those who have the longed for book deal who are now awaiting publication, and the published ones – the writers on the Richard & Judy list, the bestsellers, the debut writers and the ones sweating over their second. All lovely, all inspiring – I’m already looking forward to the next Team Mushens outing!

Day 2 saw me back in Soho, this time in The Gallery at Foyles bookshop, for a private party to celebrate the launch of the Words with JAM short story anthology. My partner in crime for this do was fellow Romaniac Sue Fortin. The anthology is a collection of the prize-winning stories from the annual Words with JAM short story competition and I was thrilled to have one of my flash fiction pieces, Winter’s Kiss, included – my first story to appear in book form!

June Kearns, Sue Fortin and Lizzie Lamb

We weren’t expecting to see any familiar faces, so Sue and I were very happy to spot fellow RNAers Cathie Hartigan, Margaret James, Lizzie Lamb, June Kearns and Rosemary Gemmell amongst the guests. Cathie was another prize winner with her gorgeous story Scent of Lemons.

Me and Cathie Hartigan

The anthology itself, An Earthless Melting Pot, was beautifully designed and produced and I still haven’t got over the thrill of seeing my name in a book…

As well as the anthology launch, the event was to toast Triskele Books first birthday and the launch of four books by Catriona Troth, JD Smith, Gillian Hamer and JJ Marsh. Each of the authors spent a few minutes talking about their books and we were also treated to readings of the prize-winning stories by Ruby Cowling and Ken Elkes.

Add to this an amazing buffet and lots and lots of sparkly drinks and the evening was just about perfect…

Vanessa x

Tuesday Chit Chat with Serena Clarke

We’re delighted to have the lovely Serena Clarke on the blog with us today, celebrating the publication of her debut novel All Over The Place.

Serena grew up in a family of itchy-footed readers and dreamers – not concentrating, reading the atlas and Narnia books, and planning to escape somewhere magical as soon as she could. When she was 16, she went from New Zealand to live in Sweden for a year. It was the beginning of many travels and adventures – and quite a few disasters! She didn’t know it at the time, but eventually she’d be grateful for all the downs as well as the ups. As writers say in the face of adversity: “I can use that.” She’s now living back in New Zealand, where she writes stories reflecting her determined belief in magic, possibility and second chances – and happy endings!

Hi Serena, welcome to the Romaniac blog – take a seat, put your feet up and help yourself to cake

Ooh thank you! I’m always making banana cake, so it’s lovely to have someone give me cake instead! Thanks for having me today. *gets comfy*

Shall we start with you telling us about your journey to publication?

I’ve been a bookish, dreamy kind of person all my life. I always thought it would be amazing to write a book – but that seemed the kind of thing other people did, not ordinary old me. Then I started looking at all those books in the library, thinking, well, someone has written all of those. Maybe I could have a go. I was coming to an age when ‘one day’ starts to feel a bit more pressing! And after writing, and rewriting, and rewriting again, All Over the Place – actually a very English book – was accepted by a digital-first publisher in the USA.

Can you give us some detail about All Over The Place?

It’s a story of finding the place you’re meant to be, and the person you’re meant to be there with. It has a chick lit feel – and a happy ending, of course! Here’s the blurb:

Livi Callaway has fled back to London after a reality TV disaster in New Zealand. Safely anonymous in the big city, she’s determined to stay under the radar from now on. But her attempts to build a new life are complicated by unexpected visitors from her old one, and new dangers and temptations lie in wait.

Late one night, she meets a mysteriously sexy American on the Underground – and the events that follow take her from Pooh Bear to the golden lights of Paris, via a trail of rock stars dead and alive. A family in disarray, a determined Swede, a crazed Australian and a childhood friend (who might yet be more than that) have her all over the place as she tries to discover the American’s secret – while keeping her own.

With help – and occasional hindrance – from her friends, what she eventually finds is something unexpected…sometimes, running away can lead you to exactly what you didn’t know you needed.

Sharing other people’s praise of your book feels a bit like boasting about your children on Facebook – not really the done thing. But one lovely person said it was “a thoroughly engaging, globe-hopping confection of a novel…an enchanting journey of both distance and heart.” Which I thought was very nice indeed. But I didn’t tell you that.

How did you celebrate publication day?

Well, because of the time difference, I was tucked up asleep for half of publication day! I stayed up to watch the book go on sale on Amazon, then I had to go to bed! But the next day I had a lot of fun catching up with everything that had happened overnight. And that night we took the kids out for giant New York style pizzas. We’re a family of bookworms, so they thought it was pretty cool.

How important do you think the RNA NWS was in helping you achieve your publication dream?

Oh, it was crucial. When I first started writing in earnest I didn’t show anyone, or even tell more than a couple of people. So I really wasn’t sure if I was going about it the right way at all! My NWS report was really encouraging, and it had incredibly helpful suggestions for how to improve the book. If I ever find out who my reader was, I want to give her a big hug! (In a very non-stalkerish way, of course!)

What means home to you? Is it a place, a person or a case of ‘Wherever I lay my hat’?

That’s a central question in All Over the Place, so I’ve thought a lot about it. We live out in the world so much more now, with the internet, and live TV from everywhere, and people live-tweeting everything. In the book, Livi strikes out into the world after a disaster, and everything’s up for grabs – she could actually go anywhere, just like I could once upon a time. But of course, it’s people who make a place special. Now I’m the grown-up person responsible for making a home for other people. (Although I still don’t feel like a grown-up!) Anyone who has children would probably say home is where they are – I feel that way now.

You’ve lived in a lot of cities and a lot of countries ­ which is your favourite? What are some of the snapshot moments, the memories that will stay with you forever?

Hm, snapshots… Hiking in summer snow in Swedish Lapland – despite the million-gazillion mosquitos! Riding a camel up the sand dunes as the sun rose in the Moroccan Sahara. Peering through the fence outside the White House, trying to imagine what momentous decisions were being made inside. Meeting my rock star crush before a gig at an underground club in London. Pretty much everything about Paris! And favourites…apart from beautiful New Zealand, I’d say Sweden, because it really is my second home, with my second mum and dad. I can’t wait to see them when I come over again.

You’re back in London for the RNA summer party for the first time in a long time ­ what are the first places you’ll be visiting?

Trafalgar Square! That’s my happy place, and in All Over the Place it’s the centre of Livi’s London. I’m looking forward to spending a day wandering around the National Gallery. There’s a painting there of Saint Cecilia that features in the book, so I’m excited to see it for real. Also, I have a great friend who lives in London, and we have a special ‘tourist’ walk, winding our way from Oxford Circus down to Trafalgar Square and ending at Big Ben. I’m kind of a soppy traveller – I can’t help getting teary at significant places – but luckily he puts up with me! (Blame the artistic temperament!)

What does it mean to you to be nominated for the Joan Hessayon award? Has it been a dream of yours?

The whole thing has been a dream, yes! There are so many amazing books in the running, I don’t expect to win. But can you imagine – getting on the plane to return to London, with my book published and the prospect of being in a room with so many wonderful authors and publishing people? What’s more, I touch down on my birthday. Best. present. ever.

What about your next book? Is it another international book? Or set closer to home?

Yes, it’s another international kind of book, with the same sort of chick lit vibe. It’s set between England and California, and follows the ups and downs of twin sisters after they discover the secret their mother kept. Think matchmaking, flash mobs, people power in a hyper-connected world, true love, and the trials and joys of sisterhood. (That’s something I feel qualified to write about, coming from a family of 4 girls and one boy!)

The one after that will probably be in set in New Zealand – but I can never resist an international cast of characters! And they’ll probably need a trip to Australia, now that I think about it… *eyes passport*

Where do you write? Do you prefer a room with a view?

I write at the dining room table, on the sofa, or on my bed, depending on what’s happening in the house! I’m addicted to the ‘My Writing Room’ feature on Novelicious.com, where writers share pictures of their office. I dream of having a little space of my own. Yes please to the view. There is quite a nice view from my bed!

Quick Fire Questions:

Home or away?

Away for adventure, home to snuggle.

Snow bunny or sun worshipper?

At the moment we’re in the middle of a drought, so I’m a bit over the sun. But I’m not a snow bunny either, unless you count tobogganing!

Right place or right time?

Don’t wait for either – just go ahead and do it!

Thanks so much for having me to visit with you today, and plying me with cake! What a treat.

Thank you, Serena – it’s been lovely chatting with you!

Find Serena here – she’d love to hear from you!

http://www.serenaclarke.com

https://www.facebook.com/SerenaClarkeAuthor

https://twitter.com/Serena_Clarke

All Over the Place is available from all major e-book retailers, including:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Over-Place-Crimson-Romance-ebook/dp/B00B2B0X9E/

http://www.amazon.com/Over-Place-Crimson-Romance-ebook/dp/B00B2B0X9E/

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/all-over-the-place/id594641901?mt=11

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/all-over-the-place-serena-clarke/1114286511

Notebook Confessional

This is a confession of infidelity.

I have two shelves full of notebooks – and none of them are full. Some of them are completely empty. Yet I can’t walk past a stationery shop without looking for more … always seeking the elusive perfect notebook; The One that will end up containing the perfect stories, as if the notebook itself can produce words.

Each time I buy one, I think this is The One, the one I’ll love forever, the one I’ll keep writing in until the bitter end… but something always goes wrong. We fall out of love and before I know it, I’m back in Paperchase, flirting with a shiny new one.

It’s always been a problem – in school, I’d start every term in love with my beautiful exercise books, all covered in wrapping paper, or carefully decorated with cuttings from magazines … then someone would sit next to me with their books covered in something prettier, sparklier and mine would look dull in comparison, and I’d spend the rest of the term coveting the books next to me.

This year, I’m trying to stay faithful to one notebook at a time – well, maybe two; one small one for small bags and a bigger one for big bags. And maybe one for my desk at work and one for my desk at home. I wouldn’t want to get caught short when THE idea strikes, would I?

Now it’s time for my other Romaniacs to ‘fess up – are you one notebook women, faithful to the end? Or are you spending half your income each week on lovely notebooks and pens and paper and folders and more notebooks and… mmmm….

Vanessa x

Laura: I have a secret stash. I’ll show you mine, if you show me yours. Need a quick fix? Whatever colour, whatever size you want, I’ve got it. Clean, fresh, virginal pages, lying between exotic covers, waiting to be inked on. I have several on the go at once, but all for different reasons. I fill them to my satisfaction, home them, and then delight in the thrill of starting something new.

Celia: I was going to say that I’m not much of a one for notebooks but then I looked in my desk drawers! The one I use most is the fabulous big gold and dark green one that lives on a shelf right next to the desk. It was a present from my daughters, and last May I started writing down competition entries or anything writing-related that I was doing or had achieved. It’s such a pleasure writing in this book  with my Christmas pen – thick cream pages, decorated edges and clasps to keep it shut. The smaller green and gold one is my diet diary and it doesn’t have much in it. Sadly, this is not because I don’t eat much but because I’m  usually too busy eating and drinking to write in it. 

Catherine: I’ve never really had to buy notebooks because since I was young my family and friends have brought them for me. My problem lies with not being able to get rid of any of them. When you’ve spent your life jotting in notepads, when you look through them you think there’s gold in that there notepad. And that one. And that one. Shame I’ve never found time to go through them all. 

[Stands up and takes deep breath] Hello, my name is Sue and I’m a notebook junky – [smiles at the nods, hellos and encouraging clapping from others in the group] I’ve been addicted to notebooks for many, many years. I can’t get enough of them. Any shape, size, colour, I love them all. Sometimes, I go into stationery shops to admire them, to stroke them, to hold them in my hands, to flick through the untouched virgin paper, to breathe in the smell of newness. The urge to claim it as mine and hand over the last pennies in my purse can be overwhelming. Oh God, just talking about it and words like Paperchase, WH Smith, Waterstones race through my mind. [rushes out of meeting to stroke current favourite]

 Jan: I confess I’d be sitting right beside Sue at that ‘notebook junky’ group. Mr B often tuts and rolls his eyes when I veer off to purr at the stationery when out shopping. I dread to think how many notebooks share our flat with us; big ones, tiny ones, bright ones, patterned ones, you name it… If we Romaniacs lined them all up side by side, I reckon we could fill the floor here at HQ.  Our very own notebook carpet. There’s a thought…

Debbie: I give up with notepads. Like the others, I have piles of them but interestingly the only ones I use are of the ‘value’ or ‘homebrand’ variety. Following an Arvon writing course I did invest in a couple of moleskin ones which come out if I’m attending a writing course or any RNA events but otherwise, the trouble I seem to have with notebooks is that most of them are gifted ones and far too beautiful to write in!

About five years ago, a friend gave me a beautiful silk notebook. The cover is a rich, reddish-brown, almost the colour of polished copper, with a ‘framed’ panel of sinuous, vertical meandering flowers and acanthus leaves embossed in the middle of the front outer cover. And for the five years since acquiring it, it has lived on top of my piano alongside my metronome. It stays there, gathering dust, each parchment page as virginal and empty as when it was hand bound.  It wasn’t until a conversation with a friend, that I realised why…

Apparently, her sister has a gift for writing poetry and in an attempt to encourage and inspire ‘F’ bought her a luxurious notebook for her ideas and notes. After a few weeks, she discovered her sister hadn’t used it and when asked, her sister told her it was because it was “too lovely to write in…” Following lengthy discussions with her sibling and others, F concluded that her sister didn’t feel she was ‘worthy’ of the notebook. It was as if somehow, it was ‘too good’ and too beautiful for her to write in; that her writing did not measure up to the paper.

I smiled at my friends conclusion. It struck a chord. Perhaps it’s a trait of the ‘wannabe’ writer who hasn’t quite made it that I feel ‘unworthy?’ but I could see some truth in her words. And I still struggle to ruin a perfect blank page or beautiful silk cover with my scribbled musings. So for now my collection of notebooks sit forlornly in my study and look beautiful, gathering dust, until one day…

Lucie: I think it comes with the job! I don’t think any writer would be without at least one trusty notebook – or several hundred in Sue’s case – to jot down their musings. I have a few notebooks. Mainly I have a purple one that goes in my bag for when I am out and about, one on my desk which isn’t as pretty and a few stored in my desk that are all half written in. I don’t think I’ve ever filled a notebook. I’ve always been teased away by another before getting quite to the end. I do find it hard to go into places like WHSmith, Paperchase and Staples and not be drawn straight to the stationery section. 

Come to think of it, I think I’m due a new one…..

Dear diary…

Dear diary….

I recently found one of my old diaries tucked away, dusty and forgotten, on a high shelf  – I thought I’d destroyed them all, but one (the most embarrassing) survived…

I stopped writing a diary at sixteen; the last I wrote (yes, the one that refused to be destroyed,) a spectacularly detailed account of my crush on someone who barely acknowledged my existence – a year-long exposé of his every word and look in my direction. What can I say?  It was the end of the eighties and I lived in the middle of nowhere, the very edge of the world where nothing ever happened. I smile and cringe to remember it, and I also want to shake that sixteen-year-old girl and say for God’s sake, girl, just talk to him!

I thought I stopped with the diaries because I grew out of documenting the tedium and angst of teenage-hood – a childhood thing I no longer needed as I grew up. But there’s a point in this diary, this one survivor, where the diary pretty much stopped and I started writing little stories instead – stories that were all fiction, but used all the very real emotion I was feeling at the time…

Because with fiction, I could give myself the happy endings I longed for – why document another day of staring at my crush across the library when I could write a story where the girl gets the boy? Why whine about a boring weekend where nothing happened but a trip to the supermarket with my mum when I could write a story where the supermarket gets overrun with zombies and the hero has to escape or be eaten?

Sitting in my writing room today, surrounded by decades worth of beautiful notebooks full of notes for novels, short stories, flash fiction, even poetry, I realise I never gave up writing a diary at all. I started the stories because I wanted the happy endings, the thrilling adventures and as life grew bigger and more complicated, I turned completely to fiction because some things are too hard to lay bare on the pages of a diary…

But fiction – none of the stories I write are based on real-life, but the emotions are real, the feelings are real. If you read my notebooks, you could probably get a good idea of my life if you know how to crack the code … when I’m sad, I write happy stories – I re-write life to always have a happy ending. Darker fiction can only be written when things are good in my life.

As I flick through some of my old notebooks, I notice something else – interspersed between the stories and the notes, there are still diary entries. Every New Year, I still write my resolutions in diary form, every time something exciting happens, I write about it – but these days, it’s less Dear Diary, I met a boy, and more Dear Diary, I got short-listed in a competition. I’ve got the boy, the children, the romantic happy ending,  I just need the getting-published dream to come true now…

Writing – you are now my teenage crush, and I will continue to spend hours daydreaming about our happy ending and obsessing about every look or word sent my way by agent or editor…

Love

Vanessa x

P.s. Anyone else still keep a diary?

Sound the Trumpets!

We’re many things here at Romaniac HQ: Zany, Dotty, Forthright, to name a few. We’ll let you add your own description below, but we have another to add to the list. And this one deserves capitalisation. ‘Cause here at Romaniac HQ, it turns out we’re TALENTED! Last Friday we found out that not one, not two, but SIX of us have been shortlisted for the Festival of Romance New Talent Award. We’ve been slightly blindsided by the whole thing. We’ve started talking faster than usual, carrying out spontaneous bursts of dance and repeating using Victor Meldrew’s line: ‘I don’t believe it!’ Here are our shortlisted first chapters. We’re adding them here in the hope it’ll sink in:

Little Boxes by Celia Anderson

Once Upon A… Secret by Sue Fortin

Follow Me by Laura James

Baby Number Two by Catherine Miller

The Perfect Life List by Vanessa Savage

Smiling Through The Pain by Debbie White

Celia, Laura, Sue, Debbie, Catherine & Vanessa

We’re all delighted to have been shortlisted and looking forward to cheering on the authors from the other grown-up categories as well as cheering on the New Talent winners.

If you’re interested in setting up an online group like this one, The Romaniacs will be giving a talk about it on the Sunday at The Festival of Romance. Our group sprung up from the FOR last year and I think we can safely say the support and encouragement we give each other seems to be working.

We’d also like to make a disclaimer. If perchance one of us does get selected for a mention at the gala dinner, we cannot be held responsible for our actions. We’d also appreciate it if you could withhold from video recording the fainting/crying/whooping/fainting again and placing it on You Tube.

Fingers crossed until then,

Catherine x

PS: We’re scraping modest from our list of qualities. Well, it’s not often this kind of thing happens!

The Perfect Life List

I sat down this morning to write a list of ideas for my upcoming blog and was a few lines in when inspiration struck – I didn’t NEED this list, because I could write a blog ABOUT lists and how fabulous and essential they are. Brilliant! And I can even relate it to writing because so many of my lists are about writing!

I LOVE lists. I do, I really do. I always start the day with at least one list, and nothing beats the satisfaction of ticking things off that list. I don’t wait until New Year to write lists of resolutions – I tend to do this on a monthly basis, a never-ending list of things I’m convinced will result in a perfect life if only I could put a tick next to them all…

I don’t think it’s just me – everyone loves a good list, don’t they? A love ingrained from a very early age, I realized, as my five year old made me sit down with her the other day to help with the spelling on her Christmas list – she’d seen something on an advert on TV and just had to write it down immediately (it was a Barbie Puppy Play Park in case Santa is reading this, and she’s been a very good girl this year so definitely must be on the good list).

This week, and it’s only Wednesday as I write this, I have written the following lists:(apologies in advance for the mention of the C word. I can’t help myself – ONLY 15 WEEKS TO GO!)

List of short story competitions

List of short story ideas

List of chapter ideas for new book

Daily lists of scenes I want to write

List of potential titles for new book

List of blog ideas

Daily work lists for the day-job

Weekly task list for the day-job

List of things to buy in lunch-hour at day-job

Food shopping lists

Menu plan for the week

List of children’s school activities I need to pay for/complete forms for

Christmas present lists (sorry)

Everything I want to buy for Autumn/Winter lists

List of new books I want to buy

List of ingredients for recipes

List of chores to be done in house (long)

List of chores to be done in garden (longer)

List of exercise I WILL do this week (short)

Lists of very expensive things I would buy if rich

List of very expensive places I would go if rich

I think maybe I have a problem. But I definitely work better if I have lists. Take food shopping for example – send me shopping without a list, I’ll spend twice as much money and come back with nothing edible. It’s the same for writing. I’m not a huge planner – I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen in a book when I start writing. I know my characters, how the book starts and how it ends. In between I write a lot of lists, lists that change regularly as I go along. Some are abandoned, some are expanded, some are ruthlessly cut. I start with a vague, unnumbered list of what might happen, then a less vague list of chapter numbers and what might happen. The first lists might only have a dozen chapter ideas – the rest of it tends to spring from the characters’ actions. But I always go back and update my lists because if I didn’t, my poor characters would just wander around, getting lost and being generally useless.

Do you know, reading this back through, I sound like I should be quite organised, don’t I? Almost… efficient. Hmmm… not sure where the lists are going wrong for me. Maybe it’s the lack of things actually ticked off those lists that’s the problem?

Still, never mind – can’t stop. Lists to write, stories to finish.

Vanessa x

Goodbye is the hardest word…

Haven’t I been here before? At the finishing line? In fact – I recall blogging some months ago and beginning with the words I’VE FINISHED! But of course, that was just the first draft, the first lap around the track. But this time, I really, really, really have finished.

Well, sort of. For now, at least…

Just need to press send…

In a minute. Maybe I’ll just read it through one more time…

From about the third draft onwards, as I read through the final chapter, I’m always convinced that this is it – my book is finished, as perfect as it can be, ready to send out to the world. And then I leave it a while, and come back to it, and realize it’s not finished at all, there are still things I can do to improve and polish, words to be tweaked, sentences made shinier.

But at least three times now, I’ve celebrated reaching The End on twitter, and each time I can’t imagine making any more changes, so I send it out there – first to my fabulous agent and to the lovely readers at the RNA, and it comes back with detailed notes about areas that need developing, expanding, cutting, and so I go back and polish and tweak and make it shinier.

But this time, I’m 99% sure I really have finished.

But I really wish I hadn’t. Not because I love editing that much (although I DO love editing) – but because I hate saying goodbye. We’ve all read books we don’t want to end – because we love the characters, because we’ve spent so much time in that fictional world it’s become almost real. We’ve raced through, transfixed by every word and then slow down towards the end, stretching it out, unable to face the last page. And this is even more true in the books we write – we have lived with these characters for a year or more, spending as much time with them as our real-life families and friends; we have guided them through highs and lows and we have loved them. It’s very hard to close the door on them and send them on their way – however hard editing can get, no one really wants the end to be the end.

We want reaching the end to be the beginning.

But anyway – enough prevaricating.

It really is time to press send.

It really is time to say goodbye…

Tuesday Chit Chat with Charlotte Betts

I’m happy to welcome award-winning historical novelist Charlotte Betts onto the blog today. Charlotte’s first book, The Apothecary’s Daughter, was published by Piatkus in August 2011 and won the YouWriteOn Adult Book of the Year Award 2010, the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Joan Hessayon Award 2011 and was shortlisted for Choc Lit’s Best Historical Read. The sequel, The Painter’s Apprentice will be published in August 2012 in large format paperback and in paperback in February 2013.

Q: Charlotte, would you like to tell us about your books and your journey to publication?
I started to write about 12 years ago when I couldn’t find anything I wanted to read. I enjoyed the mental challenge of fitting together all the pieces of a mystery story and finished it in three months. Writing was addictive and each novel took longer than the one before while I read everything I could find on how to plot and develop characters. I didn’t allow rejections to put me off and joined a writers’ circle.  My first novels were all contemporary but number six was set in WWII. Of course, some people would say that is historical fiction but it doesn’t feel like that to me as it was written about the time when my parents were young. Researching that novel was absorbing and so I decided to try a ‘proper’ historical and chose Restoration London for the setting. I read Pepys diaries and then Nicholas Culpeper’s Herbal and The Apothecary’s Daughter was born. When I finished writing it I was sad to leave the characters behind so began The Painter’s Apprentice, which is about the next generation of the same family.

The Apothecary’s Daughter
Susannah Leyton has grown up in her father’s apothecary shop on bustling, malodorous Fleet Street and she impresses even dour Dr William Ambrose with her medical knowledge. Embroiled in a battle of wills with her new stepmother, Susannah receives a proposal of marriage from William’s handsome and charming cousin. As the plague sweeps through London, tragedy strikes, and, for Susannah, nothing can ever be the same again.

 

The Painter’s Apprentice
Beth, a gifted botanical artist, declares she will never marry since she intends to dedicate herself to her art. But then Noah arrives from Virginia and sparks off a chain of events that change her life forever. She makes friends in high places and, against a background of rising political unrest, she plays a small but crucial part in the Glorious Revolution and so alters the course of history. 

Q: The Apothecary’s Daughter is your first published novel but you wrote 6 previous unpublished contemporary ones before that. Would you consider putting any of these forward for publication now or do you think you’ve found your genre?
I have a soft spot for the WWII novel and perhaps I’ll pull it out of the drawer at some time in the future but for now I’m enjoying the C17th. I do still make the occasional foray into contemporary fiction with short stories.

I’m very happy writing historical fiction. I particularly love the research, visiting historical sites and listening out for echoes of past lives and their stories. My plots always have a strong love interest. Since I’m a new author I believe that I need to consolidate by writing more historical fiction for a while. Perhaps I’ll write something more contemporary in the future under a pen name.

Q: Has being published lived up to all you expected it to?
Yes and no. I still have a shiver of pleasure down my back every time I see a copy of The Apothecary’s Daughter on the bookshelves or receive a compliment from a reader. I’m beginning to believe that I am a real writer and that They won’t find me out after all! What did catch me out was believing that when you sign a two book deal you may think you have a whole year to write the second book. Not true. You spend a lot of time editing Book 1 and, in my case, setting up a website, blogging, signing books and networking whilst working full time and trying not to neglect the family. Oh, and writing Book 2.

Q: When did being published first seem possible and not just a dream?
When I found an agent. I knew that nothing was certain but you are taken more seriously if you have an agent.

Q: Who was your favourite author as a child, as a teenager and now?
As a child I loved CS Lewis’s Narnia books, as a teenager I read all of Mary Stewart’s romantic suspense novels and now I enjoy Philippa Gregory’s historical novels.

Q: Is there any genre, completely out of your comfort zone, you’d really like to try?
Science Fiction. I used to read a lot of SF as a teenager and have written a short story or two in that genre. In some ways it’s not that different from historical fiction as you are still creating a believable world that is unfamiliar to your readers. And I’d love to write crime novels.

Q: If you weren’t a writer, would you have any other ideal job in view of your interests?
If I had money to invest I’d like to renovate and develop old properties.

Q: Which three attributes would your ideal hero possess?
He must have a sense of humour and be kind. It would be good if he was tall, too.

Q: You won the YouWriteOn Adult Book of the Year Award in 2010. ­ How influential was YouWriteOn in helping you find an agent and get The Deal?
The members of YouWriteOn helped me to be objective and to learn to accept criticism. It wasn’t all kind but neither are all readers. YWO was instrumental in finding an agent and without my agent I probably wouldn’t have been signed up by Piatkus. The YWO Adult Book of the Year award came after I’d signed the publishing deal.

Q: Do you thinks forums like YouWriteOn and Authonomy are the future for writers to get noticed by agents and editors? Are they the new slush pile?
Forums like these are only one of the ways to be noticed by agents and editors. But it worked for me and for my friend Katherine Webb, who was in my writers’ group, too. Inevitably these forums show the work of both experienced and new writers, who may still have a great deal to learn. An agent or publisher will quickly sift out the jewels in the mud.

Q: What do you think about Authonomy publishing its own books now? Would that have been a route you’d have considered taking if it was offered by YouWriteOn?
You can publish your novel through YWO but I had set myself the goal of being traditionally published. At that time self-publishing had a way to go and I didn’t have the funds or the confidence to go it alone to market my books. The experience I have gained by having a brilliant editor at Piatkus (Lucy Icke) has been extremely valuable. Authors who self-publish sometimes launch into publishing their work before it’s ready.

Me Before You. A Romaniac Review.

Me Before You – Jojo Moyes.

I had read such good reviews of Me Before You, I was intrigued as to how this book achieved a universal ‘must read’ status. I followed a link on Facebook to a video interview with Jojo Moyes, hosted by Richard and Judy, which I watched with intent. I found the author an engaging and thoughtful guest, which served to pique my interest further.

The love story revolves around Will Traynor, a quadriplegic, and his reluctant carer, Louisa Clark, a woman of twenty-six, who has been launched on her unexpected caring path, having lost her job at a local tearoom. It is the success of the rival tearoom at the tourist hotspot, the town’s castle, which has brought her to this point. Ironically, the castle is owned by the wealthy Traynors.

Will, a once active and virile man, is frustrated with the life he now leads, the majority of his body paralysed following an accident. When Louisa realises what he has planned for the future, she enters into an unlikely and difficult arrangement with Will’s mother, in the hope Will can be persuaded to change his mind, but Louisa has a little less than six months in which to do so. The situation is further complicated by her growing affection for her boss.

Will Louisa succeed? Will the path of true love take them to freedom or lead them down a dead end?

The first thing that struck me was the choice of name for the hero – Will – an apt name. He is wilful.

The second thing was how quickly I became absorbed in the story. It is well structured and flows with the grace of the Danube.

Finally, I noted the hero is not typical of a contemporary romance; for the most part, he is in a wheelchair and has no desire to engage with people.

But this is the story of life and the wonders and challenges it holds and Jojo Moyes handles the complex subjects with great sensitivity, humour and understanding.

I thank her for having the courage to write it and I applaud her skill in delivering it.

This is the first of Jojo Moyes I have read, but it will not be the last.

Me Before You will remain a very special book.

Laura x

Gorgeous book – I loved it and found it heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time. I thought the characters were beautifully portrayed. I fell in love with Will Traynor on Louisa’s birthday – for the present he gives her and his line to Patrick, Louisa’s boyfriend, as he leaves. That was the moment I stopped seeing the wheelchair and began seeing a romantic hero.  It was probably around the same time I realised this book isn’t really about Louisa saving Will, it’s about Will saving Louisa.

Vanessa x

Naturally, we do not wish to give away the ending, but we would love to know your thoughts on Me Before You?

Critique – A Survival Guide

So… my NWS report arrived. It came in the post on a lovely sunny day. The birds were tweeting as I sat down in a comfy chair with a coffee at my side and read it, absorbed it, re-edited and now I have the best book in the world as a result.

Did you believe me then? Did I sound laid-back and relaxed enough? Don’t tell me – it was the lovely, sunny day bit that gave me away. It’s not true of course. Nothing relaxed about me when it comes to getting feedback and reacting to a critique.

Here’s my real reaction: AAAAAH! MY NWS REPORT HAS ARRIVED. Oh blimey, it’s NINE PAGES LONG. That’s NINE A4 PAGES OF STUFF WRONG WITH MY BOOK! NINE PAGES OF MISTAKES! I’VE WRITTEN THE WORST BOOK IN THE WORLD!

Having discussed this with my fellow Romaniacs and realised it’s not just me who turns into a whimpering, gibbering wreck at the thump of an envelope on the mat, I thought it was time for some tips on how to survive and get the most out of a critique.

1. When the envelope comes and you’ve had a look and realised the reader didn’t love every single one of your precious words, and you’re ready to give up and think you’re the worst writer ever and what’s the point in any of it, take the envelope and put it in the freezer. This is a technique I learned from Joey from Friends on how to deal with scary books, so I figure it applies.
2. After a few days, take another look at the report, make a note of all the positives. Have some cake as a reward for your fabulousness. Be brave and look at the criticism as well – read it and if it’s too painful, pop it back in the freezer for a few more days.
3. While it’s in the freezer, think about your book. Imagine making all the suggested changes, even if they’re huge changes. Go on, try it – it won’t hurt because at this stage you’re only imagining it. Imagine those changes made and then ask yourself – will it be a better book as a result?
4. If the answer is yes, or even a reluctant maybe, take a notebook (go on – treat yourself to a new one. And a new pen) and start making notes, writing snippets of new scenes, new passages of dialogue. Doing this in a notebook is a lot less scary than wrestling with the 90,000 word manuscript.
5. If the answer is no, that’s okay too. It’s your book and you need to believe any change you make will make your book better. If you don’t agree with something your Reader or Editor has said, think instead about why they might have suggested you change something.  Buy cake and have a good think whilst eating it. You might not agree with their suggestions, but you might agree something needs to be changed…
6. When your notebook is filling up and you start getting restless and desperate to get back to your book, when you can’t wait to start making some or all of the changes suggested, it’s time to get the book out of the freezer and put the fishfingers back.
7. Buy more cake. Then get editing.

Vanessa x

(currently on chapter 9 of editing and ready to buy my Reader a drink rather than weep all over her, wailing WHY? WHY? – that was last month.)

PS  – From Celia

I also have the cake and am on chapter 5 of the editing process.  And suddenly I GET IT! Dear Reader, whoever you are, you are a star. You make perfect sense. But I really want to keep one or two of my lovely semi-colons.

PS  – From Jan

Cutting off a suitably large slice of that cake for my reader too. Such wise and invaluable words of advice. Thank you from this much uplifted aspiring author.