Interview with Kate Walker

Kate Walker has been writing for Harlequin Mills & Boon since 1984. During that time she has had 58 novels published, with three new titles coming up. Her novels have been published in over thirty-five countries and around twenty different languages worldwide. Her January 2010 release THE KONSTANTOS MARRIAGE DEMAND was recently awarded the Reviewers’ Choice Best Presents Extra 2010 by the American Romantic Times magazine.Tell us, Kate, how you sold your first book, and if you had any rejections before getting that exciting call.

My first book THE CHALK LINE was published way back in 1984 so I got a letter, rather than an exciting call. But that was exciting enough. I came home one day from shopping at the local market to find a big white envelope with a pink rose on it waiting on the doormat. I had sent in two submissions to Mills and Boon. One was totally rejected – and quite right too! It was pretty bad. I had made the classic mistake of not reading any of the current books that Mills and Boon were publishing – so it was nothing like the sort of thing they were looking for. The second one earned me a letter from a Senior Editor but it had the classic mistake of ‘lacking emotional punch’ so they didn’t accept it, but asked me to try again. I took that as a commission rather than a rejection and wrote THE CHALK LINE. They asked me to go to lunch and talk about it – they wanted just a few revisions – nothing very much to be honest – I think that was one of my easiest books to get accepted - and that was my first acceptance. I found it harder to get my second book through!

Where is your favourite place to work?
We moved to this house because it has the former garage turned into what was originally the grandma’s sitting room, and which we planned would be my office. I can see the street from the window and decide whether to answer the door or not if anyone comes by. It’s also big enough to have lots of bookshelves that just about manage to contain my books – the ones to read and the international translations of my novels. Grandma was a heavy smoker, and when we first lived here I would sometimes go into the room early in the morning and it smelled as if someone had been smoking in here – but she’d been dead for years! That has faded away now so perhaps she’s decided I can have the room as mine!

Do you have to juggle writing with the day job? What is your work schedule?
My writing is my full time job, so I try to work office hours. The reason I say try to is that I tend to be an all or nothing writer. When things are going well with a book I can work from about 6am to 10pm. One of the things I miss about having time away from my desk – when I was a stay at home Mum – is the free time you have to think and let a story develop so that when you sit down again there is so much waiting to be written. Thinking time is vital to a story. These days I do more ‘juggling’ with the demands of publicity, promotion and the internet. I love keeping in touch with everyone and learning more about what is happening with author friends, publishers, etc., but there is much more to this side of the job than there ever was when I first started out. Then I wrote the books, submitted, revised – and moved on to the next. The most publicity I did was a few talks to women’s groups etc. Now I need to schedule time for blogs.

To plot or not to plot? Are you a planner or do you just dive in?
I’m a mixture of both – I plan a fair bit in my head – the characters, the conflict, where the story is heading – but then I tend to jump in and see where my characters take me. I need to know them well and then introduce the situation between them after which I tend to give them their heads to see how they will react. I have a notepad beside my keyboard where I jot down notes and plan ahead if I need to or an idea comes to me. Sometimes I need a pencil and notes to work out the way things are going to go and put events in the right order. Other times I just plough on with what I’m writing. There was one book once: SATURDAY’S BRIDE, where the ending had a twist that turned everything on its head so I had to work back from that to make sure that everything fitted with the misleading explanation and also the correct one – that took some careful planning and plotting.

Mostly, I have a very good insight into my characters and an idea of the situation – I might also have a few staging posts along the way that will lead me through the mist ahead in my telling of their story. But after that it’s largely a case of ‘what if . . .’ and answering the important questions ‘and then what?’ and ‘why.’

Which authors have most influenced your work? And which do you choose to read for pleasure?
It was reading The Moonspinners by Mary Stewart that made me want to write romantic stories with ambiguous heroes. I had seen the (bad) film version with Hayley Mills and hunted down the book. Then I read every Mary Stewart I could lay my hands on. I was also heavily influenced by the Bronte sisters- I grew up not very far away from Haworth and we often visited the Parsonage Museum. I literally moved on to Wuthering Heights from Enid Blyton – Emily Bronte was the next author along the shelves in the children’s library – and I wrote my MA thesis on Charlotte and Emily’s juvenilia and their adult books (which came in very handy with my latest novel – see the last question.) One of the most influential books of my childhood was a very old novel (it was old even when I first read it) called Simona’s Jewel by Marjorie Phillips – I read it first when I was about 11 and again there was a dark, ambiguous hero. I read it several times and always loved it. Recently I found it again through Bookfinder and managed to get my hands on a copy – it was amazing to see how vividly I remembered it, even the illustrations were clear in my mind from years ago. I also loved all the Georgette Heyer books and read through every one I could get my hands on – didn’t every romantic novelist?

For pleasure I read anything and everything – I love Dorothy Dunnett’s books, specially the Game of Kings series, my sister got me started on Jodi Picoult and I think her books are amazing, I have to be very careful when I start reading one of them as they grab me so tightly and keep me absorbed so that I don’t want to put the book down and as they are usually very emotional books, I get so involved that I don’t want those emotions to colour what I’m writing. And of course I read romances – to see what themes everyone else is writing and because I really enjoy what the late great Charlotte Lamb called these ‘complicated little books’. I love romances by Michelle Reid, Anne McAllister, Liz Fielding, Marion Lennox . . . so many good writers to choose from.

What do you think an editor is looking for in a good novel?
Believable, sympathetic characters that the reader can empathise with. A readable, easy pace to the story and a distinctive voice from the author. That’s always easy to say but so hard to define. In writing for Mills & Boon, I always say that they are not looking for a new Michelle Reid or Liz Fielding – or even a new Kate Walker – they have one of those . They’re looking for what Jane Smith or Mary Brown can give to the stories so that they appear fresh and revitalised. It’s not really possible to be original when writing romances, but it is possible to be authentic, to write your own personal, individual version of the tried and tested stories. And of course to quote one Senior Editor when asked what they were looking for and what was selling well - the answer was ‘There are three things that always sell well – emotion, emotion, emotion.’

How do you relax? What interests do you have other than writing?
I love to read and never get enough time for that so that would be my number one form of relaxation. But I also love films and plays, dramas that feed my imagination and give me ideas for new stories so I get to the theatre at every possible opportunity. I love learning about antiques and I have a special collections of old embroideries. Most of them are ‘Samplers’ the embroideries that young girls were set to do to learn their stitches, with the letters of the alphabet, some designs of flowers or animals, and a text from the bible. The oldest of these dates from 1789, I have a tiny bookmark that my mother made for her mother – the original Kate Walker whose name I use as my writing name - and the most recent ones are ones I’ve done myself. I used to have a lot more time for knitting and embroidery and I have a tablecloth that I embroidered with roses, daffodils, tulips that we use for special occasions. I still love to wander round antiques fairs and stalls thought samplers are becoming very rare now, and very expensive.

I’m actually surprised to find that I now spend quite a lot of my time teaching. When I left school I was determined to become a librarian because I just didn’t want to become a teacher like my mother – or my husband, my friends, even my son, now. But after I wrote the 12 POINT GUIDE TO WRITING ROMANCE, I found that I was asked to do a lot of workshops, writing courses, residential weekends, teaching writing romance. Mills & Boon often ask me to run workshops for their New Voices contests or other events. Each year I teach at Writers’ Holidays at Caerleon, I run the Advance Romance Writing course at Fishguard residential writing weekend every February, and next year I will be teaching a week long course on writing Romantic Fiction in the glorious setting of theWatermill at Posara in Tuscany. I now find that I enjoy teaching writing and that I get a real buzz from discussing craft with would-be authors – and an even bigger one from knowing that I’ve helped some of them reach the status of published writers.

What advice would you give a new writer?
Read. Read. Read. Read the sort of books that the publisher you’re aiming for is currently publishing You’d be amazed how many people think they can just ‘dash off’ a ‘little romance’- because how hard can it be – without ever reading any of the books the publishers are buying right now. They have no idea what a contemporary romance is like because they have never read one - or they read one once 20 years ago and think they are still the same. Respect the genre. Don’t think of it as something that you can’ churn out’ very quickly. You have to ‘get’ what a romance is all about – the focus on the emotional journey and write that from the heart. And as I said above, be authentic to you – don’t try to copy any other already successful author.

Do you ever suffer from writer’s block? If so, how do you cope with it?
It’s a rare book that I don’t get part of the way into it and think ‘this stinks . . .I’ve never written anything so bad.’ Sometimes it stalls and drags so much that I think I’ll never finish it. And sometimes it’s so bad that I think I’ll never ever write another book again. I don’t think these are real writer’s block – but I do think they come close to it and they’re a form of it. Real writer’s block is when you can’t actually write another word. I get close sometimes, and my husband will tell you that in almost every book I’ll say I don’t think I can do this again. He always tells me that I know I can do it – and he’s always right!

But even after 60 titles, it doesn’t get any easier. I totally understand unpublished authors when they struggle to get a book right and the nerves that set in when you send a book in. Because each new submission has the potential to be the one where the imposter syndrome I’ve been living with is finally exposed and I’m revealed as a fraud! I suppose it’s the knowledge that I’ve done this before, been through this before that keeps me going. I stick at my desk, write words, even if they are then words I delete – as Julie Cohen so sensibly advises ‘give yourself permission to write crap.’ At least crap can be edited and improved, an empty page can’t be. The time when a book stalls, when I’m on the verge of a block are usually there because I don’t know my characters well enough. Nothing is more likely to make my writing grind to a halt than to discover that I don’t know why a character is behaving in a certain way or how they got there. This is probably because I’ve been pushing my characters to act as I’d planned in my novel plan or synopsis, when now their characters show they’re really far more likely to be heading down a different path. So one of the best ways I’ve found of dealing with a block is to go back a scene or maybe two, to see where I’ve taken the wrong turning, ‘question’ my characters and find out why they are behaving as they do.

Very often a change of pace in my day – moving on to something practical for example – will relax my mind and let me think things through without the pressure of staring at the keyboard and the empty screen. Ironing or gardening are great for this because you can do them with your hands while your mind is occupied. And I’d do anything to get out of the ironing so I’m pretty fast to find a way to get back to writing instead. One other system that works for me is to get my husband to do what he calls asking idiot questions – I give him a brief resumé of the story and he’ll say something like ‘So what if he/she was to drive into the nearest town . ‘I usually respond ‘no!’ pretty fast and then, because I have to say exactly why he/she wouldn’t do this or that, I come up with an idea of what they would do.

In what way has the RNA helped you or your career?
I didn‘t join the RNA until I’d been published for a few years. I’ll admit that I didn’t know about the New Writers’ Scheme or that unpublished authors could be a member of the Association. So I missed out on what I think could have been one of the most valuable parts of joining the RNA – learning from published authors, from the conference and from the articles in the magazine. Though when I was first a member there wasn’t even a conference either. I remember I went to a couple of one day seminars – at Castle Howard and in Bath before the conferences were set up. Those occasions were great for mixing with other authors, meeting agents, publishers, writers of all the different types of romantic fiction – and making friends. I loved learning more about the industry I work in, getting to know more people who have this same rather strange, lonely career that I had taken on. It was fascinating and valuable to learn how other people work, how they manage their careers.

The first couple of awards lunches I went to made me feel that I wasn’t just an isolated author sitting in my workroom in a small northern town, in touch with very few people. Authors I’d read and admired for years became real people and then real friends, and the ‘New Writers’ asked questions, wanted to learn so much. I’ve always found that talking to new writers, those who are not yet published but working hard to get there is so inspiring and invigorating. I’ve come home from every conference revitalised and with a renewed enthusiasm for my own writing. This was particularly so when I started the ‘virgins’ – the First scheme for the RNA conferences. Each year I saw that there were more newcomers signing up for the conference, half scared, half excited, and that reminded me of how I’d first felt when I started out.

The RNA has enabled me to give something back to a profession and an industry that has been very good to me over the years I’ve been writing. By running workshops at the conference, or acting as a reader for the NWS, I can put something into the development of new authors, help them learn about their craft. I don’t think anyone can teach someone who doesn’t have the talent already, but teaching and critiquing can help people refine their skills and hopefully get them on the right path. I’ve been thrilled when new writers I’ve worked with and hopefully helped have had their first acceptance, their first published book. Years ago, a friend of my mother, Marguerite Lees, was a writer for Mills and Boon in the 60s and a member of the RNA I think – she was one of the few people to encourage me in my early writing and I’ve been able to pass on her kindness to others. And above all else, I have made some wonderful lifelong friendships of writers of all ages, writing all types of romantic fiction, at all stages of their careers through the RNA.

Are you into social networking, and in what way do you feel it helps your career?
I have a web site and a blog and I try to keep both of those as up to date as possible. I also have regular blogging spots every month on The Pink Heart Society web site (A Date With Kate) We Write Romance (Kate’s Corner) and Tote Bags ‘N’ Blogs. I find that these help me get in touch with readers and are ways that they can keep up to date with me. Because writing for Harlequin Mills & Boon has such an international market, I want to find a way to keep in touch with readers in America, Japan, Australia, India, France, Spain. . . My blog has had visitors from 161 countries and these are readers I couldn’t speak to or do a signing for so this is my only way to reach them. I think that my blog statistics show that it’s worthwhile and I have a lot of regular visitors who come back again and again to see what I’m doing, and find out about my books. I can also talk about writing and run Q&As which are popular with people who have read my 12 POINT GUIDE TO WRITING ROMANCE.

I do have a Facebook page which I update with my regular blog posts but I don’t use Twitter. I have too many demands on my time as it is and I just know I’d get distracted by chatting and keeping in touch. I am far too tempted by procrastination as it is and I don’t need any more distractions. I’m not sure that it would help my career when the thing that helps it most is writing the books and getting them published. That’s what’s kept me in this business for 26 years.

Tell us about your latest book, and how you got the idea for it.
The answer to this question connects up with the answer to question 5. My latest book has the title THE RETURN OF THE STRANGER and it’s part of a special four book mini series in Mills & Boon Modern Romance. Last year, editorial came up with an idea for a mini series of romances reworking some of the classics of romantic fiction – not copying them but using them as inspiration for new, Modern Romances that fitted with what the line promises but kept the spirit of the classics. I was asked to write the ‘Wuthering Heights’ for this series. It was both a joy and a struggle. I loved the chance to revisit my favourite Bronte novel, the book that had haunted me in my childhood ever since the day my junior school teacher had started telling us the story of this great book one day when a thunderstorm had fused all the lights. He only told us the first part, where Mr Earnshaw brought the gipsy boy home, as far as the day that Heathcliff runs away, but I was hooked and wanted to know more. I always knew that Heathcliff and Cathy, for all their ardour and passion, were not people who would stay together in any happy ever after sort of ending.

In many ways this was the hardest part of writing a book inspired by Wuthering Heights – I had to create a love story that would give them a happy ending and yet keep it true to the spirit of the original book. I had to take wild, strong-willed Cathy and dark, brooding, dangerous Heathcliff and let them learn about love in a way that the originals never managed to do. It was a challenge and thrill and I hope I’ve come up with a story that stands on its own but has the spirit of the original.

Can you tell us something of your work in progress?
I've just completed my 60th title for Mills & Boon Modern THE DEVIL AND MISS JONES so now I’m working on a brand new story. I haven’t ever written a ‘royal romance’ before but this spring, because of the royal wedding ( and then the second one in July) I was asked to run a workshop on writing a royal romance. Preparing for that, and thinking about what made a romance with a king, a queen, a prince or princess as a hero or heroine different from other types of stories. I found myself getting intrigued – and then inspired. Characters started to grow in my thoughts – a hero and a heroine. I won’t tell you which one is royal as that would spoil things – and I always find that if I tell people too much about a story I’m writing then it loses that exciting ‘what if . . .’ feeling that I talked about in question 4. I feel as if I’ve told the story already. But from someone who never thought I’d write a royal romance, I find I’m intrigued and fascinated by the characters I’ve created and I want to write their story.

Kate Walker’s book the 12 POINT GUIDE TO WRITING ROMANCE (Aber publishing) won the CataRomance Reviewers’ Choice Best Book for Writers’ 2004 Award. Two editions have sold out and a third edition is now also available on KINDLE.

Her website is at: www.kate-walker.com 

or her Blog: www.kate-walker.blogspot.com/

September New Releases

Prices given are list. Cheaper prices can generally be found.

Charlie Cochrane
HOME FIRES BURNING
Cheyenne Publishing
(e-book and print)

Two stories, two couples, two eras, timeless emotions. This Ground Which Was Secured At Great Expense: The Great War is underway. When the call to arms comes, Nicholas Southwell won’t be found hanging back. The Case of the Overprotective Ass: Stars of the silver screen Alasdair and Toby try playing Holmes and Watson offscreen, too.


Chrissie Loveday
TIES THAT BIND
ISBN N/A
DC Thomson ...
My Weekly Pocket Novel
22/9/11 £1.99

When Adam asks Sophie to accompany him to a family wedding (no strings) it is the start of a new life for her. Her dreams of starting her own fashion business are launched. It’s a scary, rocky business but she is determined to make it succeed despite attempts at sabotage.

Dilly Court
CINDERELLA SISTER
ISBN 978-0099538851
Arrow Books
29 September 2011
£5.99 Paperback

Keeping house for her older siblings and aged grandfather, Lily's dream of becoming an artist seem unattainable until a fire on board ship brings a mysterious young Frenchman into their lives...

Elizabeth Chadwick
LADY OF THE ENGLISH
ISBN 978 1 4022 5092 7
Sourcebooks
September 1st
$14.99 or less. Paperback and e-book formats.

One queen, one Empress and the crown that would define them both. The story of Matilda, iron-willed daughter of Henry I, and her young stepmother, Adeliza of Louvain.

Freda Lightfoot
THE PROMISE
ISBN 9780749008291
Allison & Busby
26 September
£19.99 Hardback

Chrissie Kemp visits her grandmother and discovers a shocking family secret. Georgia Briscoe is in love with British sailor Ellis Cowper but unwillingly betrothed to Drew Kemp, a businessman mired in the San Francisco underworld. Georgia plans escape to be with the man she loves, but then comes the earthquake…

http://www.amazon.co.uk

Freda Lightfoot
THE QUEEN AND THE COURTESAN
ISBN 978-0727880925
Severn House
29 September
£9.99 Hardback

Henry IV marries Marie de Medici to provide riches for France. But Henriette d’Entragues has a written promise of marriage and intends to declare the royal marriage illegal. All she has to do is give Henry a son, and by means of intrigue and conspiracy, set him on the throne.

http://www.amazon.co.uk

 

Kate Hardy
ITALIAN DOCTOR, NO STRINGS ATTACHED
ISBN: 9780263886061
Mills & Boon
2 September
£3.30, paperback (also available as an ebook)

A whirlwind affair, an unexpected pregnancy and a whole load of complications...

Kate Harrison
SOUL BEACH
ISBN 1780620063
Orion Indigo
September 1
£9.99 Jacketed Paperback/Hardback

When Alice Forster receives an email from her dead sister she assumes it must be a sick practical joke. Then an invitation arrives to the virtual world of Soul Beach, an idyllic online paradise of sun, sea and sand where Alice can finally talk to her sister again - and discover a new world of friendships, secrets and maybe even love . . .

http://kate-harrison.com/novels/soul-beach

 

Kate Walker (Cathy Wade)
THE RETURN OF THE STRANGER
ISBN 9780263886894
Harlequin Mills & Boon
2nd September
£3.30 paperback

The wild boy Kat knew from her childhood is back, but as a very different man – a stranger. And with one passionate, furious kiss ten years of scandals and secrets are unleashed.

Liz Bailey
THE GILDED SHROUD
ISBN 978-0-425-24289-6
Berkley Prime Crime, Penguin US
6 September
Trade Paperback $15, ebook $9.99

First in a new Georgian mystery series. Lord Francis Fanshawe discovers his sister-in-law strangled and his brother the marquis gone. But his mother’s new companion, Ottilia Draycott - intelligent and exceptionally observant - commands his admiration and affection as she doggedly sets about finding the real culprit.

Liz Fielding
AN ORDINARY GIRL AND A SHEIKH (The Sheikh's Unsuitable Bride)
ISBN 978 0 263 884463
Harlequin Mills and Boon
September
£5.99 paperback.

By Request Zahir's new chauffeur was talkative, detour taking, enchanting girl. But at home a dynastic marriage was being planned...

Louise Allen
VICAR’S DAUGHTER TO VISCOUNT’S MISTRESS
ISBN 0373296568
Harlequin
September 2011
Paperback $6.25, UK Kindle £2.65 The second title in the Transformation of the Shelley Sisters trilogy.

Dutiful daughter Bella is doomed to life with her tyrannical father until she falls in love, is seduced and abandoned. She will do anything to protect her unborn child – but can that possibly include marrying her dead seducer’s brother?

Read an extract at http://www.louiseallenregency.com/books/vicarsdaughter.php 

Louise Allen
SEDUCED BY THE SCOUNDREL
ISBN 0263887987
Mills & Boon
September 2011
Paperback £2.99 Kindle £3.99 Danger & Desire no.2.

Returning from India to an arranged marriage, Averil Heydon is shipwrecked on the Scillies. Found by a gang of ruffians her only hope is their enigmatic leader. Dare she follow her heart and abandon her duty when the man she desires may be a French spy?

Read an extract at http://www.louiseallenregency.com/books/seducedbythescoundrel.php

 

Lynne Connolly
TEMPORARY SPY
ISBN 978-0-85715-712-6
Total E-Bound
Sept 26th £2.49 E-book (will be part of a print anthology later) Novella length

http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=&P_ID=1371


 

Margaret Mounsdon
SONG OF MY HEART
ISBN 978 1 4448 0799 8
Thorpe
August/early September
£8.99 Large print paperback

Andi Cox lands a dream job looking after the daughters of pop music icon Jas Summers. The girls become the target of kidnap attempts. To add to her troubles Andi acquires Hermione, an eccentric stepmother and then she loses her heart to Jas.

Portia Da Costa
ANOTHER CHANCE
ISBN 9781426878923
Harlequin Spice Briefs
1st September 2011
$2.69 ebook

It's been a long time since Maud Piper has had a lover who can give her what she wants: the masterful hand of a strong, powerful man and the stinging pain that turns into pleasure. Can William Graves, a handsome estate manager give Maud the experience she craves?

http://www.portiadacosta.com/anotherchance.html 

Scarlet Wilson
RETURN OF THE MAVERICK/IT STARTED WITH A PREGNANCY
ISBN-13: 978-0263886054
Mills and Boon
2 September
£5.30 paperback

Dr Cooper Roberts has a new job and the chance to begin a new life. What's most definitely not in his plans? Waking up with his new colleague, Melissa Bell. And having to hold his head up above the dropped jaws of his fellow docs as he escorts Missy to buy a pregnancy test!

Talli Roland
WATCHING WILLOW WATTS
ISBN: 1907504141
Prospera Publishing
14th September
ebook, £1.71

One country girl is about to discover that fame can cost a fortune. Link to extract: http://talliroland.blogspot.com/p/watching-willow-watts-sneak-peek.html

Wendy Soliman
A SCANDALOUS PROPOSITION
ISBN 978142689221-9
Carina Press
September 1
ebook $5.99

When Major Lord Adam Fitzroy rescues a beautiful woman from a difficult situation at an inn he doesn't realise that she's employed as companion to his mother, the Dowager Duchess of Southsea, anymore than he suspects her links to the local house of ill-repute.

Wendy Soliman
A CLASS APART
ISBN na.
SirenBookStrand
September 20
ebook price unknown

Opposites attract in this contemporary romp when an impoverished titled lady attempts to keep her ancestral family home out of the hands of a boy made good from the East End.

Author Interview with Sheila Newberry

A warm welcome to Sheila Newberry who has been a story teller from an early age. Her books, published by Robert Hale, are heart warming stories set in the past, some of which were inspired by real events in her own or her families lives.

Sheila, please tell us how you got started?

I have been writing since I was three years old, but I told myself stories when I was even younger. My parents listened to these outside the bedroom door, after they tucked me up in my cot. I was always a day-dreamer. I wrote my first book at ten years old, well, all of sixty pages, in purple ink. I continued to tell stories, too, especially as a small girl during the war when we lived at various times in a Suffolk village with my mother's family. On Friday afternoons I entertained the whole school with a long-running saga about black-eyed Bill, a pirate. These years were the basis of my first memoir Come You On Inside. Later, at Lady Edridge School for Girls, I was encouraged by two wonderful teachers in my love of writing and history. When a careers adviser asked the girls what career they had in mind, the majority answered, nurses or teachers. I said shyly, "I want to be a writer." "But Sheila, don't you know there is a shortage of paper?" I have been conscious of that fact ever since!

How did I get published?

I could only manage to write short pieces in our Knee Deep in Plums days
(Magna/dales p. back and audio) John and I have nine children whom we brought up on a smallholding in Kent, with a fruitful orchard and many pets. When the children were young, I blew the dust off the mantelpiece and joined in the fun - and I wrote every single day: stories for the American bible classes; hopefully humorous articles on family life for My Weekly. There are always children in my books, and often, one of my favourite Jack Russell terriers. My stories and songs were taped for play groups, there were bedtime stories for the Hull telephone service, and local radio. I wrote pantomimes for W.I and the school. Later, I was a runner up in a Woman's Own writing competition. I wrote regularly for the now sadly defunct Woman's Realm, and had much lovely feedback. Plums was serialised in People's Friend, and I was touched by the response from readers. Sally Bowdem of WR urged me to write full-length books. Tilly's Family was published by Piatkus in 1996. I haven't stopped since and have now written eighteen books and memoirs.

To plot or not to plot? How much of a planner are you?

No, I don't plot, but I do research thoroughly. The name of my heroine comes first, and before I know it, the story is unfolding. To me it is a magical process. I do enjoy description, but remind myself to involve my main characters in any action - "show not tell".

What do you think an editor is looking for in a good novel?

I think editors are looking for believable characters, good narrative pace, emotions the reader can identify with, and a happy ending. Not perhaps the one the author initially envisaged, because I often surprise myself...

Where is your favourite place to work?

In a quiet place, but now the kitchen table has been replaced by a desk and computer. My first typewriter was a long-carriaged machine which John lugged home from work and told me "now you can get into print!" So I did...I'd just given birth to my eighth baby at the time!

Do you write every day? What is your work schedule?

Yes, I do write every day, although as we have just moved home, it has sometimes been only a few sentences. I often lay awake at night, with the story "moving on" in my mind, which is my my problem solving period. Early mornings are my most productive time. I write on until lunch time, although when I am reading proofs I will stay at my desk all day. John, being retired, is a great support, he enjoys cooking and I relish the results. He is also involved with my research, and so we jog along together very comfortably after fifty-plus years together.

Which authors have most influenced your work?

HE Bates - I read the Jacaranda Tree when I was eleven. Betty MacDonald - I love the humour and her take on family life, Nina Bawden, Nevil Shute, L.M. Montgomery, Rumer Godden, Mary Stuart, and Norah Lofts. Of the classics, Jane Eyre is my favourite. Dickens translates so well to T.V and film.

How do you develop your characters?

I can only say they seem to do this independently of me! I "hear" their voices, and I even become fond of the less attractive ones - hence Granny Garter in my latest novel for Hale, The Poplar Penny Whistlers.

Do you find time to have interests other than writing?

I am an avid reader. I like amateur dramatics, art. Family are of course a great pleasure.

What advice would you give a new writer?

Go with the flow! Believe in yourself! Inspiration, imagination and faith, you need these to succeed.

Are you a specialist of one genre or do you have another identity?

I am drawn to writing about late Victorian times, the Twenties, thirties and war time sagas. (Mostly WW2, but Tilly's Family covered the Great War.) My father was much older than my mother, so I was privileged to learn about life in the 1890's. My mother's father was Irish, but my grandmother was a Newberry (hence my writing name.) On Dad's side there was a Spanish connection - lots of dark eyes in the family.

How do you promote your books?

I promote my books in the media, including Romance Matters, give interviews on local radio as well as talking to various organisations.

Do you ever suffer from writer’s block?

No. I find it difficult to stop, once I start a new chapter.

In what way has the RNA helped you or your career?

I am very fond of the RNA. Di Pearson encouraged me to join and I have made good friends. I wish I could attend the big events, especially the conferences - however, I enjoy all the accounts of these that others write and I learn a lot too. I have had the same agent, Judith Murdoch since my first book was published - I have never forgotten something she said then, "You will be the English Maeve Binchy!" Well, it hasn't happened yet, but I am still hopeful, Judith - thank you for all the years of encouragement.

Can you tell us something of your work in progress?

I am writing at present a novel entitled Young May Moon. I would rather surprise you with the content than reveal too much at this point...





Tell us about your latest book.

My first ebook is due in August, The Watercress Girls - Hale published the original, too. (Also coming out shortly in large print, Magna, and already in audio version, read by Tara Ward.)






Thank you for talking to us, Sheila. We wish you every success with The Watercress girls.


To contact Sheila or find out more about her books go to the Robert Hale website

http://haleauthors.blogspot.com/2010/06/sheila-newberry_15.html

Interview with Shirley Wells

Having had several hundred short stories, ten serials and ten novels published, Shirley Wells is finally getting the hang of this writing lark. She’s lived in Orkney, Cyprus and the Cotswolds, and now lives in Lancashire, UK, where the Pennines, with their abundance of great places to hide bodies, provide the inspiration for her popular mystery novels. She shares her home with her husband, two dogs, two cats and any other stray animals that fancy being pampered. So tell us how you sold your first book, Shirley, and if you had any rejections before getting that exciting call?

‘The call’ sounds wonderfully exciting - and I’ve never had one. I’ve had letters and, more recently, emails that I’ve needed to read a dozen times before giving a loud whoop and rushing out to buy champagne, but never a physical call. I’ve never - touching several wooden items here - had a book rejected either. I’ll qualify that last statement by saying it has nothing to do with an amazing talent, but everything to do with the way I started. I began writing short stories for the women’s magazine market and, in those days, I had a lot more rejects than acceptances. It was when I’d had a couple of hundred short stories published that the editor of The People’s Friend asked if I’d like to write a serial. The idea of exchanging 2-3,000 words for 50,000 words and upwards was daunting to say the least, but I struggled through that and ended up writing ten more. They were later published in large print format and I had my first book in my hand. I’d been writing as Shirley Worrall but when I married and became Shirley Wells, I decided the time was right to pen the sort of novels I wanted to write. I’d done contemporary and historical romances, a mystery romance and an erotic novel so I decided to try my hand at a crime novel. When the first one, Into the Shadows, was taken off the slush pile and accepted by Constable & Robinson (by letter!), I’d found my true calling.

Where is your favourite place to work?
My small, untidy and very cluttered study. I share it with two dogs and it’s crammed with stuff that makes me feel good - a display case for the books I’ve had published, plants, photos of family and dogs, research books, a stuffed dog called Dog. It also has a fabulous view of the hills and I can spend hours gazing at sheep and horses while claiming to be working. Do you have to juggle writing with the day job? What is your work schedule? I was lucky enough to give up the day job 20 years ago and, these days, I try to keep office hours. It’s impossible, of course, because I don’t think writers ever switch off, but I do try to escape the desk at evenings and weekends.

To plot or not to plot? Are you a planner or do you just dive in?
My natural style is to dive straight in. I like the freshness and spontaneity than comes from an unknown destination. We don’t live in an ideal world though and, more often than not, I now sign a contract on a very detailed synopsis. Plotting it all out in advance does save me a lot of time, but I’m always open to those flashes of inspiration that come along. I just have to hope my editor is equally open to them.

What is the hardest part of the writing process for you?
Writing a synopsis. I loathe the things. I’ve never mastered the art of delivering something that a) makes sense and b) would entice anyone to read the book.

What do you think an editor is looking for in a good novel?
One of my publishers, Carina Press, has as its tagline: “Where no great story goes untold”. I love that and I still believe that, despite constant claims that certain genres are no longer selling, a good story with strong, interesting characters will sell.

How do you relax? What interests do you have other than writing?
If I’m not writing, I’m reading - anything from fantasy romance to hard-boiled crime. I love to go for long walks in the countryside with my dogs. I’m also a season ticket holder with Burnley Football Club and can be seen on the terraces, rain or shine, taking out my frustrations on short-sighted referees and soaking up the language nuances of the day.

What advice would you give a new writer?
Write. Write every day. I’m always banging on about this but I firmly believe that writing is like a muscle. The more it’s exercised, the stronger it becomes. Reading is important too. Soak up the words. I would also remind new writers to persevere. Write from the heart, write the book you’d love to read, and never lose faith.

Do you ever suffer from writer’s block? If so, how do you cope with it?
Deadlines don’t allow the luxury of writer’s block. There are days when the words don’t flow as freely as I’d like, but I just keep writing in the knowledge that I can edit bad words. I can’t edit a blank page.

In what way has the RNA helped you or your career?
Enormously. I don’t think anyone understands a writer’s lot as well as another writer. I don’t get to as many conferences or parties as I used to or as I’d like to, but I rarely miss the Northern Chapter’s meetings. There is nothing quite so inspiring as talking shop with a bunch of writers. The RNA offers everything we need - support, advice, inspiration and, sometimes, sympathy. The friendships I’ve made thanks to the RNA are priceless.

Are you into social networking, and in what way do you feel it helps your career?
At first, I went into social networking because I thought it was what writers “ought” to do. And I hated it. Now, though, you’ll find me blogging or chatting on Facebook or Twitter because I love it. I’ve made many virtual friends and look upon it as my daily ‘office gossip’ fix. Without doubt, I can attribute a few sales to my online presence but whether it’s helping my career in any big way is difficult to say. I think if people see you constantly peddling your books, they’ll ignore you. If they see you adding something worthwhile or fun to a conversation, they’ll become friends. As friends, they’re more likely to want to read your work.

Tell us about your latest book, and how you got the idea for it.
I’d sold the first Dylan Scott mystery, PRESUMED DEAD, and the publisher wanted the second in the series ASAP. The ideas tub was empty so I went out for the day for some retail therapy (if in doubt, buy a new handbag). I was in a coffee shop when I saw a young girl sitting outside with a small, scruffy dog at her feet, and she was eating the biggest cream cake I have ever seen. I was green with envy. I mean, how could she eat that and stay so thin and attractive? She had long, red hair and there was something of the tomboy about her. I looked away briefly, looked back, and she and her dog had vanished. I had a good view of streets in all directions but it was as if she’d vanished off the face of the earth. She became Samantha Hunt, the inspiration for DEAD SILENT.

Ten months ago, Samantha Hunt set off for work… and was never seen again. Despite the statistics of cold cases, Dylan Scott wants to believe the young woman’s alive – and not just because her father, his client, is desperate to find his missing daughter before he dies of cancer. By all accounts Sam was a lovely girl, devoted to her younger stepsisters, well-liked at her work, in love with her boyfriend.

But as usual not everything is as it seems in sleepy Dawson’s Clough. Sam’s boyfriend has a violent past. She may have been having an affair with her boss. And Dylan can’t shake the feeling that her stepfather is hiding something. Meanwhile, someone is trying to scare Dylan off the case. Who wanted to silence Sam, and why? The truth turns out to be worse than anyone expected… 

For more information, visit Shirley’s website:

follow her on Twitter or find her on Facebook. Her latest Dylan Scott mystery, DEAD SILENT, is available from Carina Press, Amazon US, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble and all good e-book retailers.

Interview with Mary Nichols

Born in Singapore of a Dutch-South African father and an English mother, Mary came to England when she was three. She says that her father, like many who learn English as a second language, was far more precise in its use than many English people and he would have no sloppiness, either spoken or written. She puts her love of the language down to him. He was also a great reader and there were always books in the house, so that she learned to read at a very early age. By the time she was nine or ten her one ambition was to be a famous writer. So tell us, Mary, how did you get published, and did you have any rejections before getting that exciting call?

I had loads and loads of rejections, mostly accompanied by a letter telling me where I had gone wrong. RNA members won’t be surprised at the number of ways you can go wrong, but I seem to have tried them all. But I learned from them as I have a reputation in the family for being obstinate. I prefer to call it perseverance. One of my friends once said to me: ‘Mary, you don’t know when you’re beat.’ My perseverance paid off in 1981 when I sold my first book to Robert Hale. Over fifty published books later, I’m still learning.


Do you have to juggle writing with the day job? What is your work schedule?
Being a pensioner, I no longer have a day job but I do have to care for an invalid husband, so my time at the computer is precious. I try and squeeze in a little time in the mornings, but that is usually what I call admin, answering emails, keeping accounts up to date, ditto my website, proof-reading, promo etc. My new writing is done from two until six in the afternoon, when I try to produce at least a thousand words.

To plot or not to plot? Are you a planner or do you just dive in?
I’m a planner. I start with an idea which usually includes the background or a particular historical event, then work on the characters until they are so firmly fixed in my head they become real people to me. Then I work on a synopsis and follow this with a detailed plot before I start writing. By chapter three or four, the characters have taken over and are going off on their own and introducing new ideas. It usually happens in the middle of a dialogue and I find myself saying, ‘Now, why on earth did he (or she) say that?’ I hadn’t planned it and then I have to decide whether to let them go or haul them back into line. I usually go with the flow. In my head, they are real people and they are acting and speaking in character, so forcing them back doesn’t work. I keep the original premise and ending in mind though.

What do you think an editor is looking for in a good novel?
Readability, in other words the ability to keep the reader turning the pages and caring about the outcome for the characters.

How do you relax? What interests do you have other than writing?
I play golf, not so well as I did which is frustrating, but I enjoy it. Until recently I went to the gym two or three times a week, but that went by the board last year when I had pneumonia and I haven’t taken it up again. I walk as much as I can though.

What advice would you give a new writer?
Read, read and read some more, especially the genre you are interested in. And don’t give up.

What draws you to your particular genre? Are you a specialist or do you have another identity?

I write for two publishers; Mills & Boon historical and family sagas for Allison and Busby. They are very different and I enjoy writing both. I’ve also written a biography of my grandmother, which was a labour of love but which has done very well for me.

Do you enjoy writing sequels or series? If so, what is the special appeal for you?
Yes, I do when writing for Mills & Boon, because sometimes a minor character in one book is strong enough to need a story of their own. And sometimes a background lends itself to more than one book. I found this with my Piccadilly Gentleman’s Club series, about a group of gentleman who go about solving crime in Georgian society. Each book is about one member of the Club dealing with a specific crime and finding love along the way. The research was great fun. The sagas, so far, have been one-offs but who knows?

Do you ever suffer from writer’s block? If so, how do you cope with it?
Oh, do I! It usually comes in the middle of the book. I’ve gone rattling along and suddenly come to a full stop and have a crisis of confidence that it’s just not going to work. I find it does no good sitting over it, I have to walk away and do something else. Having a long soak in the bath usually helps.

In what way has the RNA helped you or your career?
The RNA has certainly helped me personally. Writing is a lonely business, you are writing in a kind of vacuum and it’s lovely to meet others in the same boat, who can understand the ups and downs. I’ve made many staunch friends through my membership and would not want to be without them. And of course being long listed for The Summer House and short-listed for the Love Story of the Year with The Captain’s Mysterious Lady this year was exciting and cannot have done my career any harm at all.

Tell us about your latest book, and how you got the idea for it.
The Kirilov Star, published by Allison and Busby, came out in hardback in April this year. It had been in the back of my mind for some time, ever since the Russians admitted they had found the bodies of the Tsar and his family murdered in 1918. I had read of the Grand Duchess Anastasia surviving (which has since been disproved) and also read and loved Dr Zhivago and many other books about the Russian Revolution. Lydia is four years old and the only survivor of her aristocratic family when they try to flee the civil war. Too traumatised to speak she is adopted by an English diplomat and grows up in England. But the pull of her roots is strong and that forms the basis for the story. It is, of course, a romance.

I also have a new Regency for Mills & Boon, called Winning the War Hero’s Heart, coming out in October. The heroine for this is a feisty, independent woman who inherits a provincial newspaper and runs foul of the local aristocracy because of her outspokenness.


Mary Nichols, who joined the RNA in the sixties, began her writing career with articles and short stories before turning to novels. After writing ten for Robert Hale between 1981 and 1985, she went on to write historical romance for Mills & Boon. Mary also writes family sagas for Allison and Busby. The Summer House published in 2009 was long-listed for the RNA’s Romantic Novel of the Year Award. The Fountain came out in 2010 and The Kirilov Star this April.

Mary is also the author of The Mother of Necton, a biography of her grandmother who was a village nurse and midwife from the early years of the 20th century until the formation of the National Health Service in 1948.

You can learn more by visiting her website at: www.marynichols.co.uk

Interviews on the RNA Blog are conducted by Freda Lightfoot and Kate Jackson. If you would like an interview, please contact me at: freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk

Interview with LIndsay Townsend

Lindsay Townsend lives in Yorkshire. She has a first class honours degree in history from Bangor University where she specialised in the Middle Ages. She currently writes both medieval romance for Kensington, and romance set in the ancient world published by Bookstrand. She has also reissued her earlier romantic suspense title, Night of the Storm as an ebook. LIndsay, what do you think an editor is looking for in a good novel?

I think an editor is looking for intriguing characters, a distinctive author voice, and slightly different 'takes' within a genre so that a story follows the conventions but is also fresh and engaging.



Where is your favourite place to work?
I work upstairs in a small study bedroom with my computer in the corner away from the window.

How do you develop your characters? In historicals, how do you keep them in period yet sympathetic to readers?
I develop my people by considering their cardinal virtues, their main vices (often it can be one and the same, such as single-mindedness leading to stubbornness.) their secrets and their main aims in life. In historicals I try to keep characters in period by showing their reactions, settings and situations very different from the customs of modern people. When it comes to falling in love, though, I feel that people have not changed much through history and readers can identify with that.

What is the hardest part of the writing process for you?
Writing the end of a book is always hard for me. I find it hard to let go of the characters I have grown to understand and like. The end always feels like a cut off point, too, and rather arbitrary. I tend to have several intense final scenes, where situations are revealed and resolved as far as possible, and then a wind-down scene.

Do you find time to have interests other than writing? How do you relax?
I relax by spending time with my husband, reading - often thrillers - watching TV, listening to music, walking and (wonderful therapy, this!) weeding the garden.

What advice would you give a new writer?
Read widely in fiction and non-fiction. Write a genre that you love. Let work rest before you have a final read through and polish. Read on a paper copy, not on the computer - it does alter the experience. Join groups such as the RNA for support, information and feedback. Don’t send out work too early - if you feel something is not quite as you want it, work on it until it is. Don't give up. When sending work out, consider the new electronic publishers, not just the traditional print houses.

What draws you to your particular genre? Are you a specialist or do you have another identity?
I love historical romance and romantic suspense for the chance both give to write about exotic settings (to me the past is also an intriguing, a foreign setting) exciting, slightly larger than life characters, high-stakes situations and adventure.

Do you ever suffer from writer’s block? If so, what do you do about it?
I sometimes suffer from what I call cloudy head, which is a sign that I'm a bit stale. I take the hint, drag myself away from the computer and go for a walk in woodland, go to visit friends - do something different. I also write away from the computer on a simple writing pad with a pen.

In what way has the RNA helped you or your career?
The RNA has helped me by putting me in contact with other romance writers.

Is there a particular period of history that you enjoy writing about? Why is that?
I'm strongly drawn to the medieval and ancient worlds because they are so different from the modern age, while still helping to shape the way we live.

Who is your ideal reader?
Someone who will try my books, enjoy them and tell all her friends about them so they will buy them, too.

Tell us about your latest book, and how you got the idea for it.
My latest is a medieval historical romance, To Touch The Knight, published by Kensington Zebra in July and appearing in the UK in August. I got the idea for it from two historical events - the Black Death, which struck England in 1348 and killed off almost a third of the population, and the later real-life story of the Princess Cariboo - a woman in the 18th century who faked being an eastern princess. I put those two things together to create my heroine and her story.


To find out more about Lindsay, visit her blog:
http://www.lindsaytownsend.net
Twitter: @lindsayromantic

Interviews on the RNA Blog are conducted by Freda Lightfoot and Kate Jackson. If you would like an interview, please contact me at: freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk

Interview with RNA conference organisers, Jan Jones and Roger Sanderson

The RNA’s conferences are well known for being great fun, informative, a place to meet old friends and make new ones. This year’s conference at Caerleon was no exception. Today’s interviewees, Jan Jones and Roger Sanderson, are the two amazing organisers who make it all possible. They are already working towards next year’s conference.



When and how did you become an RNA conference organiser?

Roger: I started helping when Marina Oliver organised the first residential conference in Stonyhurst in 1998. I have co-organised each one since (with Marina, then Jenny Haddon, then Jan), learning a bit every time.

Jan: I ran away to my first conference in 2000 and enjoyed it so much that I’ve booked for every one since. Between 2004 and 2005 I naively asked Jenny Haddon if she would like any help with pre-conference paperwork - and nearly had my hand bitten off. The rest is history...

This year’s conference has just taken place, when will you start organising next years?

Jan: We’ve already started! Running the annual conference is pretty much a year-round job. For a start we have a rolling programme of site visits because we need to size up places two or three years in advance in order to get the dates we want at the right price.

Roger: Yes, for any conference, the first thing is to decide on a venue this means combining accessibility, suitability and PRICE. We like to move around the country so no region feels left out and all RNA members have a sporting chance of getting to at least one conference relatively easily. Before making a decision we might visit four or five promising sites to look at what is on offer and to work out exactly what it would cost. Costing can be quite complicated.

Jan: Costing is extremely complicated! Some places charge per person per 24hours and include the seminar rooms. Some places we have to pay separately for the conference centre and for the accommodation. Some places we have to add up every single item individually. It’s important to get the finances right because writers in general don’t have much spare money, so we have to keep the cost to our members as low as possible whilst still breaking even. We've already booked Penrith for 2012 and Sheffield for 2013. We are currently looking at options for 2014 and 2015. Once decided, we'll visit each site at least twice more before the Conference to make detailed plans and to make sure that the team on the campus know what to expect from 150 or so romantic novelists.

Roger: that’s one part of the conference groundwork, the other is the programme. We don’t work quite as far ahead there, but already have two or three talks booked for next year’s conference.

Tell us what goes on behind the scenes how do you go about organising a conference so it runs as smoothly as Caerleon's?

Jan: For me, it’s attention to detail. We’ve been running the conferences together for several years now, so we can remind each other of previous snags. No site is perfect, but we work with the venues and compensate for any peculiarities they might have that could prove awkward.

Roger: Solving potential difficulties before they occur, in other words. But even then, there’s always some last minute problem that needs prompt action. Speakers fall ill, the rooms we have been faithfully promised can't be used, members find at the last moment that yes, they can make it to the Conference and are there any places left? We do what we can. As the conference date draws nearer we'll be exchanging 10/20 emails a day.

Jan: So yes, in the main it is preparation, but the main reason why things flow nicely during the conference itself is that we have a fabulous mix of delegates who enjoy the company just as much as they enjoy the business side of things. Problems aren’t nearly so insurmountable if people are having a good time.






Right - A well organised Goody bag filling line at Caerleon.







How do you choose the speakers and workshops?

Jan: We like to keep the programme fluid until the last minute. We pick up or are offered speakers throughout the year, so we know the majority of the items, but often we don’t decide the actual timetable until just before sending the packs out at the end of May. This means we can pick up on trends and new topics and slot speakers in quite easily, for example Freda Lightfoot on ‘kindling’ this year.

Roger: We like to have different subjects from year to year, we also ask interesting speakers when we come across them - that can be quite late on. This year we met - and propositioned - Simon Petherick of Beautiful Books at the shortlist breakfast in February. In 2010, we asked Joanna Trollope to be out headline speaker just after she’d been awarded her Lifetime Star at the Awards ceremony in March.

Jan: As a general rule, we aim to have talks across all genres and for all levels of the membership. When we lay all the sessions out we can spot what is missing from the mix and hopefully rectify it (eg we turned out not to have so much on research this year, so prevailed on Louise Allen to talk about what historic prints can tell the writer).

Where's your favourite conference venue?

Roger: My favourite venue is Penrith. The staff have always been great, the site is compact, the food good. Of course the setting and the programme and the weather at Greenwich were all superb (not the accommodation). But we can only afford that once every fifty years.

Jan: Penrith, without a doubt. It’s compact, reasonably priced, the staff are incredibly friendly and helpful. The accommodation has seen better days, but you can park right next to it and the kitchens are a brilliant size for socialising.

What do you most enjoy about the job?

Roger: I'm tempted to say that what I enjoy most is the first glass of wine at the end of the day. If you have a successful start, a good second and third day, a good last day then that is a relief and is very satisfying. Other than that I like meeting people (usually when shooting from one job to the next|) and I always learn something.

Jan: I really enjoy the planning, and I get a huge buzz of satisfaction when things go well. I’ve got such a lot from the RNA and it pleases me greatly to be able to give something back that I know I can do well. And then, of course, I really enjoy being able to get back to writing when it’s all over for another year!

Thank you Jan and Roger for all the hard work you put in to make the RNA’s conferences so wonderful. It is greatly appreciated by everyone who attends. We're looking forward to next year's conference in Penrith.

Look out for Jan’s serial ‘An ordinary gift’ currently running in Woman’s Weekly magazine. For more details see Jan's blog http://jan-jones.blogspot.com/

Interview with June Francis

I have known June for many years as our careers have rather run in parallel, so it is with great pleasure that I feature her on the blog today. She was born in Blackpool after the local maternity hospital in Liverpool was blitzed. In 1946 her father returned from the war and it was he who introduced her to the joys of storytelling and taught her the alphabet from a sign-writer's book. The house had no running hot water, her mother cooked meals on an open fire and in the side oven, and the lavatory was down the yard. Until she was seven June would creep up in the dark to bed, as the family had no electricity. She shrugs all this off by saying it is all grist to the mill for a saga writer. You’ve come a long way from there, June, so tell us how you sold your first book, and if you had any rejections before getting that exciting call?

I actually had my first two books accepted at the same time and was offered a contract by letter from Judith Murdoch, now an agent, who was an editor at Mills & Boon in the late eighties. In my ignorance I had sent the first draft of one book and then the other three months later. Both were rejected but I rewrote them and sent them back at intervals. This went on for two years and would never happen today. Judith never said to me I don’t want to see these books again! They were set in medieval times and I remember several comments she made. First rejection - ‘we do not use archaic language’, second - ‘your characters are one dimensional’ - and the comment when I nearly gave up ‘We are increasing our word length from 60,000 to 80,000!’ But I persisted, not knowing that my published writer friend who wrote Medicals as Jenny Ash, and had introduced me to Judith at a Southport Writers’ seminar, told her not to give up on me because I would make it.

I was thrilled to bits when I received the letter because Judith also told me to telephone her secretary and make an appointment to have lunch in London. I had longed for over two years to be able to tell someone that I’m going down to London to have lunch with my editor.

Where is your favourite place to work?
We have an alcove in our bedroom where I have the desk my husband bought in a cruise liner sale when I first began writing. It is situated against a wall beneath a small hexagon window. Ideal for a writer because all I can see through it is a chimney pot, a bit of roof and patch of sky. I work on a flat screened Dell computer and have a calendar, a photo of my parents smiling at me pinned to the wall. On my desk I have a scented candle and a model of a fairy in a pea green boat with a pot of honey and a bee. I feel this is very much my place, although, since my husband retired as soon as I finish for the day, he asks can he use my computer despite he has his own little laptop.

To plot or not to plot? Are you a planner or do you just dive in?
I don’t plan the whole book but neither do I just dive in. I generally start thinking of the next book before I finish the one I’m working on. I generally know the where and when and an idea what the book is about. But I find I need to write myself in to get to know my characters and enter their world. Research is essential for that and helps with plot ideas.

What is the hardest part of the writing process for you?
The first draft and in particular the middle part when I have decided on the ending, but have to delay my characters getting there. Sometimes I don’t know how they’re going to get there. I find that introducing a new character isn’t a bad idea to get me over the hump. I enjoy doing the third draft because by then I know most of what’s going on.

How do you develop your characters? In historicals, how do you keep them in period yet sympathetic to readers?
I never forget what Judith Murdoch said about my characters being one dimensional, so I try to make sure they are rounded characters and that they are seen in different situations that bring out different aspects of their personality. I also call upon my own experience of people and my own life. I write two kinds of novels: Twentieth century sagas and historical romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon. My readers require different realities from the different genres. Sagas are supposed to present more realism in the depiction of the heroine and hero’s situation. My roots being Liverpool working class I don’t find that so difficult, although my heroines are generally fiesty and not victims. My heroes are kind, not overly handsome, bossy or rich, and sometimes truly heroic and sensitive.

My Mills & Boon stories need to fulfil a reader’s fantasies. When I write about a well-born, rich, kind, attractive hero, and a feisty heroine who can read and write and give as good as she gets in a era when women were very much under men’s thumb, I always think there were exceptions to the rule. E.g. Sir Thomas More’s daughter was very well educated. There were also women who ran businesses when their fathers died and there were no male heirs to take over. Women wrote books and composed music. I also believe that men and women did fall in love and would talk to each other and make love as we would today, despite the church rules of the day.

What do you think an editor is looking for in a good novel?
Page turning qualities that will hit the market at the right time and hopefully that the writer is capable of producing more of the same.

How do you relax? What interests do you have other than writing?
I swim, walk, and enjoy watching documentaries about ancient history. I also love old musicals and doing my ancestry.

What advice would you give a new writer?
Know what you want to write, listen to advice, don’t lose faith in yourself, persist but be realistic in your expectations.

Do you enjoy writing sequels or series? If so, what is the special appeal for you?
Yes, I do enjoy writing sequels because at the end of certain books I have felt there were still things I wanted to know about the characters, and I didn’t want to say goodbye to them. I’d created a world that I wasn’t ready to leave.

Are you into social networking, and in what way do you feel it helps your career?
I’m not really into internet social networking, and yet I do feel it might help my career. But I’d have to put a heck of a lot of time in. I have a website and I’m reluctantly on Face book. The difficulty is that at the end of a working day spent at the computer there is a limit to how much my eyes can cope with on screen. During twenty eight years of writing, and thirty books, I’ve done the signings in shops, the talks to libraries and various groups, been in the local press at least a couple of dozen times, on radio, even on telly once, and I’m still just a journeyman mid-list writer. I accept that there’s only room for so many people at the top and I’m not ambitious enough to go all out to get there.

What is your latest book?
My very latest book is a HMB set in 1520. My heroine Beth inherits her father’s printing business in London after he is murdered at what we now called The Field of the Cloth of Gold. My hero is Sir Gawain Raventon, who is married but whose wife is missing with his children, and he becomes Beth’s guardian. He has the task of finding not only a husband for her but a murderer, as well. The Unconventional Maiden is out in hardback in October and paperback, January.

Can you tell us something of your work in progress?

I have just finished a sequel to The Unconventional Maiden and it is now with my agent but I am also writing a saga that is a sequel to my last one: It Had to be You that was set in the Fifties. This one involves a family in Liverpool, where the father is a policeman and whose son and eldest daughter are also in the force. There is a tyrannical grandmother and a teenage daughter. The story opens with Jeanette who witnesses a violent crime and meets the hero who vanishes. She eventually leaves home and meets up with some of the characters from the last book. One of them is a married policeman who ends up having an affair with her sister. I have some other plot ideas but I’m waiting to see how it goes.

To find out more about June visit her website:
http://www.danielrf88.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/

Interviews on the RNA Blog are conducted by Freda Lightfoot and Kate Jackson. If you would like an interview, please contact me at: freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk

Interview with Nicola Cornick

Bestselling author Nicola Cornick studied history at London University and Ruskin College, Oxford. She writes historical romance for Harlequin HQN Books in the US and MIRA Books UK. She is also a historian working for the National Trust at the seventeenth century hunting lodge, Ashdown House. Her book Whisper of Scandal won the 2011 Romance Writers of America National Readers’ Choice Award. So tell us Nicola, how did you get started?

I’ve been writing since I was a child but I started writing Regency romance when I was about 18. The library had run out of historical fiction for me to read so I thought I would write my own book. I wrote on and off for years, combining it with a job as a university administrator, but I was only published in my thirties. Mills & Boon turned down my first attempt, telling me there was too much adventure and too little romance in the story. I kept re-writing the same book over and over again. With the benefit of hindsight I’d probably tell my younger self to try something new and different, but I got there in the end.


To plot or not to plot? How much of a planner are you?
I’m pretty much a seat of the pants writer. I usually start with an idea, whether it be a place, a character or an incident, and then I write into the mist. I do have to provide outlines for HQN Books but my editor understands that the finished book may bear little resemblance to the synopsis. I have tried to plan more because I’m a very organised person in the rest of my life and so it goes against the grain that I can’t be as efficient in my plotting, but I have been forced to accept that it just doesn’t work that way for my writing. As long as the book gets written, that’s fine! One thing I have learned is that there is no right or wrong way to do these things.

Do you write every day? What is your work schedule?
I try to work every day because I get very grumpy and frustrated if I don’t. I also find it a useful discipline. I start work early in the morning and write until lunchtime or until I have completed that day’s word count. Then I will do promotion or other work-related jobs in the afternoon.

Which authors have most influenced your work?
Like many Regency authors I think I was quite heavily influenced by Georgette Heyer when I started out but as my career has progressed I have moved away from Heyer’s style to the point that some reviewers now comment on how unlike Georgette Heyer my writing is! I think that some of the most influential authors on me have been Mary Stewart, Daphne Du Maurier and Alan Garner because one thing I love is creating atmosphere and a sense of place and that comes over so strongly in their books. Every author I’ve read has taught me something in one way or another.

Do you find time to have interests other than writing?
I do! I worked in an office before I became a full time writer and I enjoy having other people around me and get lonely if I work on my own 100% of the time. So I volunteer for the National Trust as a guide and historian at Ashdown House, I work at my local heritage centre and I also do species protection work for the RSPB and a number of other wildlife projects. It gets me out meeting people and of course that provides me with lots of ideas for characters!

What advice would you give a new writer?
First of all I would tell them never to give up. It took me about 12 years to get published and you have to be determined and believe in yourself. I’d also encourage new writers to keep reading and keep polishing their writing skills. I’m still learning and developing as a writer and I hope I always will be.

Do you enjoy writing sequels or series? If so, what is the special appeal for you?
I enjoy writing series very much which is fortunate since my publisher is very keen for me to write them. A lot of readers seem to enjoy them too. For me the appeal is the continuation and development of the characters. For example I love taking a secondary character from Book 1 who has behaved very badly and seeing if I can redeem him or her in book 2. It’s a challenge and it’s fun to show a different side to the character. It also means that I don’t have to say goodbye to them straight away!

In what way has the RNA helped you or your career?
I find being a member of the RNA useful in so many ways. I only wish I had known about it when I was an aspiring author because I think the NWS would have made a huge contribution to helping me develop my skill as a writer. I joined just after I was first published and have been a member for about 12 years now. It’s a wonderfully supportive and encouraging organisation and a great way to meet with like-minded authors and people who understand the challenges and excitement of being a romantic novelist. It’s brilliant for networking and a very useful source of expertise.

Tell us about your latest book, and how you got the idea for it.

My latest UK book is called Mistress by Midnight and it is book 3 in my Scandalous Women of the Ton series. This was a book that sprung out of an idea; I read about the London Beer Flood of 1813 when the vats on top of the brewery in Tottenham Court Road exploded and flooded the streets with beer. It was such an extraordinary and quirky event that I wanted to write it into a book.

Can you tell us something of your work in progress?
I’m currently working on the sixth and final book in the Scandalous Women of the Ton series. It’s called Forbidden and it’s a classic rags to riches story of a housemaid who finds herself to be the heiress to a title and grand estate. It will be out in the US next year and in the UK in 2013. In the meantime there are two further Scandalous Women stories to come out here. I’ve loved writing this series. With each book I have tried to explore a different angle of what was “scandalous” in Regency society, whether it was a lady travelling abroad alone, or working for a living, as my heroine Merryn does in Mistress by Midnight, or being involved in politics. Not all scandals were romantic ones, though there is plenty of that as well!

You can find out more about Nicola by visiting her website:
www.nicolacornick.co.uk
www.nicolacornick.co.uk/blog
Twitter: @NicolaCornick


Interviews on the RNA Blog are conducted by Freda Lightfoot and Kate Jackson. If you would like an interview, please contact me at :freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk