Rosie Hendry: On Not Giving Up

The acknowledgements at the back of East End Angels begin with “A huge and heartfelt thank you to the Romantic Novelists’ Association, without whom this book would never have been written.” And it’s true.

The first steps towards writing it started when I applied for one of the coveted 1:1 appointments with an agent at the 2015 RNA conference at Queen Mary’s in London. I was lucky enough to get an appointment with agent, Felicity Trew, (thank you Elaine Everest), to whom I sent the first few chapters and synopsis of a WW2 saga which I’d had published as a two part People’s Friend pocket novel in 2013. I’d had plans to write something else to show an agent but life had taken a downward turn at the beginning of the year when a close family member became ill and died, pushing novel writing very much on the back burner. I almost didn’t apply for a 1:1 but decided to try anyway and perhaps get some feedback on my writing I’d done so far.

To my astonishment Felicity liked my writing, and this led on to a meeting a couple of weeks later at the Caroline Sheldon agency where she works, for a brainstorming session with the aim of me writing something new to approach publishers with. By the autumn Felicity had signed me up, in early 2016 she sent off three chapters and a synopsis, plus ideas for another two books in the potential series and two publishers put in offers for a three book deal, bidding against each other. It was unbelievable, thrilling and nerve wracking. After meetings with each publisher I had to choose who to go with, which was a really tough decision but in the end chose the wonderful Little, Brown, Sphere.

I’ve been a member of the RNA since 2007 when I joined the New Writers’ Scheme and tried to write a Mills & Boon, which I soon discovered are a very difficult craft to master and not suited to my writing. Eventually I graduated from the NWS in 2011 with a People’s Friend contemporary pocket novel. Since then it’s taken quite a few years to find my voice and discover what genre suited me best, in the meantime writing lots of short stories for women’s magazines, both contemporary and historical, and a WW2 serial for People’s Friend. It was after the 2015 conference that I finally found my writing home.

There have been times over the years when I have thought of giving up writing but the RNA’s brilliant support has kept me going, especially the generosity and kindness of members who have shared advice and their experience - this is one of the amazing strengths of the RNA. Way back when I was unsuccessfully trying to write a Mills & Boon, Kate Walker (a fabulous Mills & Boon author herself) advised me to find out what I should be writing and she was right. I remember Jean Fullerton giving excellent advice at the Chichester conference saying that the writers who get published are the ones that keep trying and trying, and those who give up, don’t. Since I joined the RNA, I’ve seen many members who kept on trying and not giving up, eventually succeeding which is fantastic, well deserved and utterly joyful. Anyone in the NWS who is doubting themselves or feeling like giving up, don’t, keep going, keep trying and you will get there, it might take time but none of that is wasted because you are learning and improving and the RNA and its members are there to support you every step of the way.

Rosie's début novel, East End Angels, is available now on Amazon.

Strong-willed Winnie loves being part of the crew at Station Seventy-Five but her parents are less than happy. She has managed to avoid their pleas to join the WRENS so far but when a tragedy hits too close to home she finds herself wondering if she's cut out for this life after all.

Former housemaid Bella was forced to leave the place she loved when she lost it all and it's taken her a while to find somewhere else to call home. She's finally starting to build a new life but when the air raids begin, it seems she may have to start over once again.

East-Ender Frankie's sense of loyalty keeps her tied to home so it's not easy for her to stay focused at work. With her head and heart pulling in different directions, will she find the strength to come through for her friends when they need her the most?

Brought together at LAAS Station Seventy-Five in London's East End during 1940, these three very different women soon realise that they'll need each other if they're to get through the days ahead. But can the ties of friendship, love and family all remain unbroken?

About Rosie:

Rosie Hendry lives by the sea in Norfolk with her husband, two children, chickens and a snake.

Listening to her father’s tales of life during the Second World War sparked her interest in this period and she’s especially intrigued by how women’s lives changed during the war years. She loves researching further, searching out gems of real life events which inspire her writing.

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Introducing the New RNA Social Media Co-ordinator

Hello! For those of you who don't know me already, I’ve been a member of the RNA for the past four years. I joined the New Writers’ Scheme initially, after lots of other writers recommended it to me. I've loved every minute of being on the Scheme, and have learnt so much as well. During those four years, I've self-published two contemporary romance novels, with some more on the way, and as a result, I'm just about to graduate from the Scheme to become a full, independent member of the RNA.

I thoroughly enjoy being a member of the RNA and have thrown myself into the social life it offers its members with great enthusiasm, attending conferences, parties, afternoon teas and chapter meetings all around the country. I've also been very lucky to make lots of new friends as a result of being a member, something I didn’t expect to be doing at this stage in my life. I love the way the RNA welcomes everyone as equals, so newbies can find themselves talking to big names, and mixing with writers and publishing folk at all different stages of their careers.

In my life outside writing, I work part-time for a local charity as their communications officer, overseeing their marketing, PR, social media and website activities. I also work freelance as a proofreader, website trouble-shooter and occasional supply teacher – a real Jill-of-all-trades! I live with my husband in Bedfordshire. We have two daughters; one is now away at university and the other is studying for her ‘A’ levels.

Since autumn 2016, I have been supporting Adrienne Vaughan, as deputy editor of Romance Matters, the RNA’s wonderful magazine, and now I’m taking on the role of social media co-ordinator, with responsibility for the blog, Twitter and the RNA’s Facebook page. Elaine Everest has done a sterling job for the past five years, and we’re all very grateful to her and her wonderful team for raising the RNA’s profile in that time.

I have a great blog team to support me and we're planning to keep blogging two or three times a week, with a mixture of regular blog posts about your favourite items – competitions, new releases, interviews with book reviewers and authors – as well as news items as and when they crop up, and some new ideas too. If you have any ideas for features you’d like to see, please do let me know and we will do our best to bring the subject to you.

I look forward to taking on the blog completely from Alison May in the New Year, and to taking it from strength to strength as we move forward. Thank you for all the support you have shown the blog in the past – I hope you will continue to do so for many years to come.

*****

My latest book The Vineyard in Alsace is available now.

Is there really such a thing as a second chance at love?

Fran Schell has only just become engaged when she finds her fiancé in bed with another woman. She knows this is the push she needs to break free of him and to leave London. She applies for her dream job on a vineyard in Alsace, in France, not far from her family home, determined to concentrate on her work.

Didier Le Roy can hardly believe it when he sees that the only person to apply for the job on his vineyard is the same woman he once loved but let go because of his stupid pride. Now estranged from his wife, he longs for a second chance with Fran if only she will forgive him for not following her to London.

Working so closely together, Fran soon starts to fall in love with Didier all over again. Didier knows that it is now time for him to move on with his divorce if he and Fran are ever to have a future together. Can Fran and Didier make their second chance at love work despite all the obstacles in their way? 

A romantic read set against the enticing backdrop of the vineyard harvest in France.

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Lisa Hill: The Editing Process

Visit the RNA Facebook group or browse on social media and one of the most talked about topics amongst writers is – editing! We all have our favourite ways to write and edit our work and it can be interesting to find other views and perhaps use a snippet or two to help with our own writing. Today on the RNA blog we welcome author, Lisa Hill. Here Lisa explains her experiences with the editing process. Welcome, Lisa.

For those of you who know me, you’ll know I’ve not long graduated from the NWS. I was a member

of the scheme from 2010 – 2016 and in that time benefited from some thorough reports full of useful advice. What they didn’t contain, however, is a hand to hold with my downfall; the editing process. Having undergone the process with a professional editor in the past year, I thought it would be helpful to give those, like me, who struggle with editing an insight into perfecting your manuscript:

1. Take yourself out of the manuscript

Your first draft is your creation. It’s where you get to have all the conversations you want your characters to have with each other, let them go off on their adventures, really let your imagination flow. Now it’s time to get a grip on reality and that inevitably means getting tough. You might have the funniest scene which you absolutely love but if it has no relevance to moving the story forward, do you really need it?

2. Start a Novel Log

For me, a novel log was a revelation and I actually started using one from the beginning in my latest novel. Using a log you can diarise what’s happening in your novel and it’s so useful to refer back to. I use a page for each of the following:

·      Main Characters, including mini-bios of their age, appearance, main motivation etc.

·      Cast of Characters, including every character which has a name. This is most useful to look back on, for example, if you have a waitress that gets an odd mention and you can’t remember what you’ve called her.

·      A list of house, restaurants, pubs, shops etc, fictional and actual places.

·      A list of geographical places, again both fictional and actually in existence.

·      A list of songs, films, books and trade names.

·      A time-line. Probably the most important of all in the editing process; if you keep a note of dates and what occurs during your novel on these days, not only will it help you in remaining consistent, it will also assist you in deciding if you need to add time (e.g. are your hero and heroine ‘getting it on’ too quickly?) or condense.

3. Don’t try to edit everything at once

Something I was very guilty of. It might seem like a laborious task, however, the more times you read through your novel, the more times you will pick up errors. I had a manuscript where I had revealed twice (very dramatically) to the anti-hero that one of my heroines was dying! I now break my edits down into the following revisions:

·      Rewriting: The first round of editing is to go through your manuscript and identify what you can do without, what needs adding in (to reinforce your characters’ motivations) or where the sequence of events needs moving around.

·      Editing: On the second round, focus on actual scenes; where you need to cut a conversation short and lose words or lengthen one to add words and create tension.

·      Grammar & Spelling:  Often known as line edits, your final round of edits should be to comb through for grammar and spelling mistakes and to properly polish.

One final tip is that I find uploading my manuscript to my kindle for a final read helps me to identify any left-over niggles. Although if you are like me (and it is probably the creative in all of us) I am usually still agonising over certain lines in crucial scenes.

I wish you luck in getting your manuscript to the next level of publication and please don’t hesitate to drop me a line if you have anything you’d like to ask about my blog post.

About Lisa:

Lisa grew up in the village of Bussage, in the Cotswolds until she returned to Cheltenham as a teen.  She is married to her very own hero, Matt, and has three sons, Hamish, Archie and Laurence.  Her first encounter of a romance author was chats over the garden wall between her father, Godfrey, and Mrs Cooper from the neighbouring village of Bisley.  It came as a surprise in later life to find that Mrs Cooper was in fact Jilly Cooper!  Lisa’s writing inspiration now comes from other Cotswolds authors including Jill Mansell and Katie Fforde.

Lisa writes contemporary romance with a light-hearted tone.  What interests her most is people, their interactions, emotions and relationships. Lisa is a graduate of the Romantic Novelists’ Association New Writers’ Scheme and attributes this supportive and informative scheme to her winning the Choc Lit Search for a Star competition 2016 with her debut novel Meet Me at Number Five.

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Thank you Lisa and good luck with your book. 

If you would like to write for the RNA blog contract us on elaineeverest@aol.com

Natalie Kleinman: Escape to the Cotswolds

Today Natalie Kleinman talks to Helena Fairfax on the release of her new novel, Escape to the Cotswolds.

Lovely to have you in the spotlight, Natalie!

Natalie: Thank you for inviting me.

Please could you tell us a bit more about yourself, how you got into writing, and your published books?

Strangely enough, I came to writing quite by accident. At a point in my life when I needed something new, something different, I enrolled in a ten week creative writing course. That was about fifteen years ago. I was like a child with a new toy but I decided very quickly that this was not something to play with or at. This was something I was serious about. I joined writing groups and progressed through hobby writing to others where members were as hooked as I was. I can’t stress enough how important I think it is to interact with other writers. Five years ago I was lucky enough to find a creative writing school, The Write Place, only fifteen minutes’ drive from home. No longer stumbling with no-one to guide me, I set about learning my craft, a sponge trying to absorb ever more water. Following publication of more than thirty short stories I turned to novel writing and joined the wonderful RNA New Writers Scheme. My first book, Safe Harbour, was picked up that same year and seven weeks after publication I saw my pocket novel, Honey Bun, on supermarket shelves. It was a heady feeling, I can tell you. That was in 2014. It’s taken another three years but I’m delighted that HQ Digital are publishing Escape to the Cotswolds and I love the cover they’ve put out. It even makes ME want to read it!

Your latest novel is set in a small village in the Cotswolds – the sort of place everyone knows everyone. Is this setting based on your own experience?

Only as a visitor. I’ve spent my life living in the suburbs of our wonderful capital city but I’m a frequent visitor to the area. Its peace and tranquillity (perhaps not so much in the towns during the tourist season) and its beauty draw me back time and again. And everybody smiles! If I could afford a holiday home, that’s where it would be.

Your heroine, Holly, is an artist. Do you have any experience in the art world, and are you good at painting yourself?

It’s funny you should ask me that. About six years ago I joined another council run course, this time art, to support a friend who was going through a bad patch and needed an outlet. I loved it and made more progress than I could possibly have imagined but…the thing is, painting is very time consuming. Writing is very time consuming. One had to go. I still have some of my paintings to remind me though.

Holly takes a trip to Pennsylvania. Is this a part of the US you've visited?

I’ve only ever been to Florida and California. I have Google, Google Maps and Google Earth to thank for providing me with so much information.

Are any of your characters based on anyone you know? (No need to reveal names!)

I think you always put a little bit of yourself into some of your characters but otherwise no, they are entirely fictitious.

How do you pick your characters' names?

This isn’t a question I can sensibly answer. Sometimes a name will just come to me and seem to fit. And sometimes that name continues to fit, but just as often a character will demand a change of identity and you know what, they’re usually right.

What's your favourite romance novel of all time?

I don’t have one. There are far too many to choose from and I do so like a good romance. I suppose it’s usually the one I’m currently reading. I’ve just finished Georgette Heyer’s Frederica for the umpteenth and she would definitely be a contender.

What is your next project?

Another romance set in the Cotswolds but this time actually two romances. It’s a dual time line and I have two heroines. And I love them both. Neither has yet demanded a change of name.

Nowadays authors have to spend almost as much time promoting their books as writing. Have you found this to be the case? Is there any particular promotion/marketing strategy that you think has worked well for you?

I joined Facebook in 2012 and it’s a medium I enjoy very much, both professionally and as a way of communicating with friends. Like many others, I was dragged kicking and screaming into Twitter. There are many of its nuances I don’t understand but I am booked to take a social media course in a few months and in the meantime – and especially of necessity now with promotion of Escape to the Cotswolds – I’m finding I enjoy it more and more.

If you weren't a writer, what would be your ideal career, and why?

I’d probably opt for painting and drawing. Like writing, it’s creative and a great way to express oneself. Unfortunately it’s not easy to make a living that way. But I can picture myself back in the Cotswolds or possibly the beautiful Lake District with my easel set up in the shade of a tree, committing memories of a wonderful landscape to something I can carry home and keep with me forever.

What do you generally do to celebrate on publication day?

Wine. Red wine. By way of a coincidence publication day coincided with classes at The Write Place. It has become a tradition to take cakes when there is something to celebrate. No alcohol because most of us drive to get there but if you’d looked for me on the evening of 21^st June that’s where you’d have found me. What better place could there be!

Blurb:

Can love blossom in the countryside?

Artist Holly Hunter is turning her life upside-down! She’s leaving the bright lights of London (and a cheating husband) behind her and hoping for a fresh start as she escapes to the peaceful Cotswolds countryside.

Men are off the cards for Holly. Instead, she’s focusing on her little gallery and adopting an adorable Border Collie puppy named Tubs. Or so she thought…

Because no matter how hard she tries to resist him, local vet Adam Whitney is utterly gorgeous. And in a village as small as this one, Holly can only avoid Adam for so long!

Buy link: Amazon

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Thank you so much for interviewing me today. I’ve enjoyed it immensely.

Thanks so much for dropping in on your day off, Natalie :) It's been lovely getting to know a bit more about you. Wishing you all the best with Escape to the Cotswolds.

If you wish to be featured on the RNA blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com

Karen Aldous: Under a Tuscan Sun

We welcome Karen Aldous to the RNA blog as she celebrates publication of her fifth book.

Karen this is your fifth novel. Can you tell us something about your path to publication?

Number five, since 2014. I still can’t believe it! My path to publication however began in 2012. I’d

begun The Vineyard, the novel that had been in my head for years, whilst I was sat with Mum during her chemo in 2011 when she would nod off, and with that time, I began the first chapters. As it grew, I made a conscious decision to attempt the RNA New Writer’s Scheme which luckily I got on to in January 2012; a great impetus! The following day, I saw in Writer’s News, a local creative writing class, The Write Place, and immediately phoned and joined. Both organisations provided so much expertise and encouragement, perfectly syncing with my journey, that it wasn’t long before I found the confidence to start sending my work out. At the same time I sent my partial for critique with the RNA NWS, I also sent it to a novel competition, and although I didn’t win, I was contacted and got the opportunity to meet an editor who asked me to send it once complete. I did so a year later and eight weeks later, received a two-book contract. Mum had passed three months earlier to that offer, but having the chance to chat about the fact that she had followed her passion for dancing, I’m so grateful that she inspired me to follow mine.

You have such beautiful settings for your books. Are these based on your holidays or your dreams?

Both actually! I absolutely adore Europe and travel inspires me enormously. The stunningly beautiful French Riviera, and Provence inspired both the first The Vineyard, and third, which is titled, The Riviera, but in-between, I wrote The Chateau, which was inspired by a dream. I saw a woman repeatedly being dunked in deep water by a guard in a medieval doorway. Although the dream didn’t indicate the actual location, I instinctively knew why Montreux in Switzerland was constantly calling me. The Chateau de Chillon was the perfect setting for Agnes-Francescia, the unsettled spirit.

The main character in One Moment at Sunrise I met when I arrived at a beautiful villa close to the Canal du Midi, again in southern France. Her sadness prompted me to ask her questions and her story tumbled from her mouth and into my notebook. And, similarly with Under a Tuscan Sky, Elena, my main character’s nonna, voiced her troubles to me when I was on a recce for my daughter’s wedding - we stayed at a medieval farm with a beautiful villa and, the character Elena introduced me to her daughter Roz and her abandoned granddaughter, Olivia. Imagination is a wonderful tool that can take you anywhere, I happen to love immersing myself in beautiful locations – as long as I have a notebook in my hand!

How do you plan your books? Do you start with your characters or the plot?

Definitely characters - as you gather from the last answer, but once I have that character’s problem firmly fixed in my head, the other characters emerge to help and I begin to get create the outline. Once I’m happy that I have an interesting story, or plot if you prefer, I begin my character profiles and plan my scenes.

Tell us about your writing day.

Rarely do I have a typical writing day. I run a small business which I mainly only service now, but am blessed to be in a position to also care for my grandchildren, so my writing gets done on my days off mainly. If I’m not planning or researching, I like to shut myself away to get into the zone, starting early and walking the dog in-between which is great thinking time as well as much needed exercise when sitting all day.

Have you thought about writing in a different genre?

I’ve begun two dual-timeline novels which I’ve researched and aim to pursue, I love reading this genre and the way two lives can become so interwoven. It’s a difficult genre to do because you want your reader to fall in love with both characters from two eras, so yes, it’s my new challenge.

Have your readers met the character’s from Under a Tuscan Sky before and can you see yourself returning to this lovely part of the world in your writing?

Some readers may have met a few of the characters in a short-story I wrote recently for My Weekly magazine. It was published at the beginning of June. However, Under a Tuscan Sky is a stand-alone book. Having said that, I would love to write another story set in Tuscany, it’s such a beautiful region.

If we could jump forward five years where would you like to see your writing life?

Bearing in mind just how quickly the last five years have flown, five years are not so far away in the publishing industry. Of course I would love to keep writing, improving as I go and entertaining readers. I would love to hold my own paperback in my hand, but if I wrote a novel that readers loved and recommended to friends and, more ambitiously, it hit the Sunday Times Bestseller List, that’s where I’d love to be in five years.

Links

AmazonUK: Under a Tuscan Sky

Twitter: KarenAldous_

Facebook: KarenAldousAuthor

Website: KarenAldousAuthorWebsite

Book blurb:

When Olivia Montague’s grandmother passes away, she decides it’s finally time to make some changes in her own life. So she breaks up with her ‘going nowhere’ boyfriend and embarks on a journey to her nonna’s home in Tuscany.

Until now, Olivia has always believed that she’s incapable of love, after being abandoned by her parents as a baby. But with each day spent at the gorgeous villa nestled in the rolling Italian hills, she feels her heart begin to flutter …

And when handsome antiques dealer Hugh St. James arrives on the scene, she realizes things might be about to change forever!

About Karen:

Karen Aldous enjoys village life on the edge of the north-downs in Kent with easy access to the buzz of London. Not only does she love the passive pleasures of reading and writing, she also craves the more active pursuits with her family and friends such as walking, cycling and skiing especially when they involve food and wine!

Thank you, Karen and good luck with your book.

If you wish to be featured on the RNA blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com