What have you had published?
‘Perfect Partners’ is my first full-length novel, and I have
one novella, ‘Desperate Bid’, published with The Wild Rose Press. Before that I mostly wrote short stories and
poetry. I’ve won story competitions in
two magazines –Woman’s Own and Yorkshire Ridings Magazine – and both winning
stories were published. I’ve also
written some business reports and articles, but they’re not quite so interesting!
What genre(s) of book do you write?
I’ve dabbled in all kinds of things, and I’m still quite
experimental with my short stories, which include science fiction, fantasy and
horror, but the focus of my longer fiction is always contemporary romance.
What inspired you to write your first book?
I wrote ‘Desperate Bid’ because I was curious to imagine
what it would be like to hand over control of your life to another person. At the start of the story Alex is fed up and
somewhat tipsy and he and his flatmate decide to put his life up for sale on an
online auction site. Then, when Sarah
places the winning bid on him, he has to live with the consequences. And, of course, Alex and Sarah turn out to be
very attracted to each other, but things are a little awkward because of the
power dynamics between them. That’s the
area I particularly wanted to explore in the story, although I also loved
writing the song lyrics (Alex is a musician and Sarah a music lover – just one
of the ways they’re great for each other).
How long did it take you to write “Perfect Partners”?
Forever! I started it
back when Strictly Come Dancing was quite a new thing and nobody was sure
whether the public’s fascination with ballroom dancing would be a flash in the
pan. The first draft was very rough and
mostly focussed on Redmond and Lisa and their relationship. I put the manuscript away for quite a few
years, then took it out and submitted it to the RNA New Writers’ Scheme. The feedback I got helped me not just to
polish the story, but to rewrite it completely, with much more drama
surrounding Lisa and Red’s experiences in the competition. That was the version accepted by Crimson
Romance.
What is the working title of your next book(s)?
I tend to have a lot of projects on the go. The working title of the sequel to ‘Perfect
Partners’ is ‘A Step in the Right Direction’ and I’ve written about 30,000
words of that. I’m also editing a short Christmas romance with the working
title of ‘The Santa Next Door’, and in last year’s NaNoWriMo (National Novel
Writing Month) I completed the first draft of a sequel to ‘Desperate Bid’
called ‘Desperate Measures’, but I haven’t started editing it yet.
When and why did you begin writing?
I can’t ever remember a time when I didn’t write. I’ve always loved fiction and when I was very
young I used to invent Enid Blyton-esque adventures involving me and my
friends, so it was a natural progression from that storytelling to putting my
stories on paper.
Do you self publish your books or go through an agency?
I don’t have an agent but I do go through publishers rather
than self-publishing. I know you lose
some control that way, but I like having the support of professional editors,
cover designers, etc, and I’ve been lucky that my two publishers – The Wild
Rose Press and Crimson Romance – are both very supportive and easy to work
with.
What part of writing books do you find the hardest?
Finding time for it!
It’s so easy to put off until another day, but if I put it off for too
long I get very grumpy, so I’m trying to be more disciplined about fitting
writing in regularly around my day job.
What do you do in your spare time?
I read a lot and I enjoy watching films and going to the
theatre, especially to see musicals.
I’ve been in amateur productions of Anything Goes and Sweet Charity, and
I’d love to do more performing. I enjoy
swimming and ice skating and have recently taken up Zumba (as recommended by
Darcey Bussell).
Who is your favourite author?
I never know how to answer that question because there are
so many books I love in different genres.
Possibly Louise Bagshawe because I always come back to her books when I
need a pick-me-up. I especially love
‘The Movie’ because it’s so glamorous and exciting.
What’s your favourite genre to read?
I probably read more romance than anything else at the
moment, but I also enjoy fantasy, science fiction and crime. I’d get bored if I had to stick to one
genre!
Do you have any advice for other writers?
The main thing I always advise writers to do is read – but
not just to race through books to find out what happens at the end. It can be hard when you’re enjoying a story
to stop and ask yourself how the author is drawing you in, why their characters
are so convincing and what you like about the settings and writing style, but you
can learn so much from that sort of thoughtful reading. It’s well worth taking
the time, even if you have to go back through the book a second time to do the
analysis.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Just to say thanks for inviting me to be interviewed. I’ve enjoyed it - the questions really made
me think!
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