Interview with Janey Fraser

Today I am delighted to welcome Janey Fraser to the blog. A journalist and novelist her debut novel THE PLAYGROUP, is published by Arrow. But as Sophie King she has written five novels including THE WEDDING PARTY, short listed for Love Story of The Year. She has also written nine non-fiction books and numerous magazine stories. For three years, she was writer in residence of HMP Grendon, a high security male prison. Janey/Sophie is also a past winner of the Elizabeth Goudge Trophy and a runner up in the Harry Bowling Prize. 

Janey, you are clearly a very talented lady, do tell us about your latest book and what inspired you to write it. 

It’s called THE PLAYGROUP and is published by Arrow £6.99. Aimed at mums and grans of all ages, it’s a pacy contemporary women’s fiction novel about the complex lives and loves of staff and parents with lots of twists and humour – although it has its dark side too. Fay Weldon described it as ‘unputdownable’ and Katie Fforde said it was a ‘must for anyone who knows small children’. I was inspired to write it because I love subjects with an umbrella appeal, that rope in all kinds of characters in different situations. I also look for topics that can bring in humour and sadness at the same time because that’s what life is all about.

Are you involved in social networking and blogs?Any tips for other writers? 

I’m involved now – but I wasn’t! I’ve just spent three weeks, forcing myself to get acquainted with Twitter, Facebook, blogging and updating my website. At times I felt I was going mad, especially as it interfered with my writing time. But I think I’m there now! The best tip I’d pass on, is to find one person to help you with all these different aspects. Also keep a big red notebook and write down all your different passwords etc . I found this particularly complicated as my previous novels were under the name Sophie King so I need two lots of social media. Still, each might be able to help the other!

You seem to be a busy and versatile writer, what do you enjoy most about this particular genre? And tell us more about your other personas. 

I write multi-viewpoint contemporary women’s fiction. I learned, after some false starts, that I have to write a story from different points of view. That’s because it moves the plot along and allows you to get into different people’s heads. My subjects need to be funny and sad as well as reflecting modern lives.

However, for many years, I’ve had an historical in my head so last year I wrote it. It’s called THE PEARLS and my agent took it to Frankfurt where there was a fierce bidding war. It sold for a six figure sum and is coming out in Germany this year. It also sold to Italy last year where it was number eight in the translation chart. So it shows you can write different genres.

Sometimes I wonder who I am! I started as a journalist at the age of 22 which was when I got married the first time round. My name then was Jane Bidder. However, when my first novel THE SCHOOL RUN was accepted in 2005, my then agent suggested I changed my name so readers wouldn’t think my books were non-fiction like my articles. Then last year, Random House took me on and were keen to have a change of name so I was part of their ‘stable’. In fact, my close friends and family call me ‘Janey’ so at least I will turn my head when I am called! I wrote THE PEARLS under Jane Corry because my agent said I had to have another name for a different genre. This is actually my new married name.

The RNA is famous for its New Writer Scheme. Were you ever a part of it, and what advice would you give to an aspiring writer?

I bless the RNA! Hilary Johnson first introduced me when we lived near each other in Buckinghamshire. I knew her through a friend of a friend so we could so easily not have met. What an awful thought! I was lucky enough to be short listed for the New Writers Award about seven years ago. It was a great honour and a big confidence booster.

The advice I would give to an aspiring writer is to write about what you feel passionate about. Write every day to keep the plot rolling. Act out the characters in your head and across the room (what is the result of someone saying something; how do they walk?). Make sure something significant happens in each chapter. Don’t bombard the reader with too many characters at once. Intersperse dialogue with action. Be clear about viewpoint. Present it properly on the page (correct grammar; double line spacing etc). Don’t talk about the story to many other people (if any) until you’ve finished as it takes away the need to put it on paper.

I’m sure lots of aspiring authors will lap up your advice for their latest wip. Can you tell us something of what you are working on now?

I’ve just delivered THE AU PAIR which is the second of the two book deal I got with Random House. Luckily Teresa Chris, my agent loves it although I’m still waiting for my editor to read it as I delivered early. It’s about a mother who starts an au pair agency around her kitchen table; a French au pair who comes to England to find her lost father; and a widower whose daughter keeps driving au pairs away until she finds the perfect match. Wickedly funny and partly based on a terrible two years with five different au pairs. Don’t ask. Now for some lighter questions:.

And now for some lighter questions:
What was your most embarrassing moment at an RNA event?
In 2003 when a reporter thrust a feather duster mike under my nose. I explained I wasn’t published and probably not worth interviewing. Then he said ‘Jane, don’t you recognise me?’ It turned out that he was one of the very few boyfriends I’d had before getting married. He broke my heart and I married my first husband very soon afterwards. And no, I didn’t recognize him. That says it all.

What is the craziest ambition you ever fulfilled?

Not sure if it’s crazy but I’ve always wanted to go to Ronnie Scott’s. My newish husband and I went last year with my sister and her man but we got told off for talking.

Do your family and friends get any sense out of you when you’re writing a book? 

Not at all. This is one reason why my second marriage works. My new husband understands this.

Are you good at ignoring the ironing? 

What’s that?

Who is your favourite hero?
My new husband. He’s funny; eccentric; kind. And he gives me space.

How to Write Your First Novel is published by How To Books at £9.99

The Wedding Party is published by Hodder at £6.99

The Playgroup is published by Arrow at £6.99

 

That was fascinating, Janey, and we wish you continuing success with your new books. Do come back and talk to us again when the historical is coming out.
Best wishes,
Freda

To find about more about Janey Fraser and her books, you can find her here:

http://www.janeyfraser.co.uk 

http://twitter.com/janey_fraser 

http://www.facebook.com/janeyfraserauthor 

http://janeyfraserwriter.blogspot.com/2011/12/am-i-only-one.html

Interviews on the RNA Blog are for RNA members, although we do occasionally take guests. If you are interested in an interview, please contact me: freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk

Interview with Gilli Allan

Today we have Gilli Allan, known to many of you as a regular at RNA events. Welcome Gilli, and thank you for sparing the time to talk to us today. Gilli started to write in childhood, a hobby pursued throughout her teenage years, although abandoned while at Art College when the make-believe world was over-taken by ‘real life’. She has done a variety of jobs, but worked longest as a commercial artist. Like many of us she began to write again while at home with her young son. Her first two books - JUST BEFORE DAWN and DESIRES & DREAMS - were, she says, unconventional romantic fiction which quickly found a publisher. Since that publisher’s demise, she has been unable to find a new mainstream publisher. TORN was e-published in 2011. Gilli, I know you’ve had some bad luck recently, but tell us about your latest book and how you were inspired to write it. 

I would like to have been able to talk about my new ebook, LIFE CLASS, which was due to be released any time now with Lysandra Press. Sadly, at the beginning of the year I was informed that Lysandra had folded. I hope to be able to self-publish LIFE CLASS to Amazon-Kindle in the next couple of months, but in the meantime I’ll tell you about TORN.

The seed for this story was a momentary impression which imprinted itself like a snapshot in my mind's eye. On a car journey to Somerset I was the passenger. I had just a split second to register a turning on the left and a lane sloping steeply down to the huddled centre of a village. It was apparent that the road we were on had been developed into the main road to by-pass this tiny village. At that instant, the random thought which went through my head was: ‘I bet those villagers were pleased to have the main road re-routed.’ But it was swiftly followed by: ‘Though I doubt the people who lived up here were so delighted!’ I went on to reflect that life is rarely black and white. There are always two or more sides to every question. The whole story grew from there.

TORN ̶ published as an ebook in the Spring of 2011 ̶ is not a muddy tale about road protest, however. The question of if and where a by-pass might be built is a thread in the story, but it’s the background motif ̶ almost a metaphor ̶ to illustrate the differences in attitude between the main characters.

 
Although ex-city trader, Jessica, is not proud of her past, she’s not ashamed either. How could she be ashamed of behaviour that resulted in her son, Rory? But just when she believed she’d moved on and found stability, life slapped her in the face. To escape the turbulence of her current relationship she moves to the country, where she is convinced she’ll find peace and security. And with no distractions and no temptations, being a good mother will be easy. 

But things are never that simple. She soon finds that country living is not like it’s portrayed in the glossy magazines. It may be different, but there are still challenges and competing demands. If she could only get one aspect of her life right, it would help, but her primary aim ̶ to avoid any kind of relationship with a man ̶ is soon subverted. The friends she makes, the issues she faces, and the two very different men who have come into her life, pull her in opposing directions. 

You found this idea while driving through Somerset, is a sense of place important in your writing? And how do you set about the research?

Sense of place is very important to me. I would go so far as to say the setting becomes a character. But though I use landscapes which are familiar to me, I don’t need to research because I reinvent the specific places in which my books are set. My last two books, TORN and LIFE CLASS, are both set in countryside similar to the area in which I live, but I fictionalise the locations and their environs and play fast and loose with the real-life topography. That way I can place towns and villages, roads and rivers exactly where I want them, and can never be challenged on the detail.

Which do you find the hardest part of the novel to write, and how do you cope when the going gets tough? 

How I wish I was one of those writers who are bubbling geysers of ideas and plots. I am the polar opposite. I have a few vague notions which ... well ... I was going to say ‘swirl’ around in my head, but they don’t even do that; they ‘rumble lumpily’. All I have, when I start, is an out-of-focus scenario and a few character sketches. So for me, the hardest part of writing a novel is simply beginning. Being an ‘in to the mist’ writer is tough. I have to grit my teeth and start, not really sure of where I am going. For the first few weeks of a new book, it can feel like carving granite with a teaspoon, and is just as appealing! The easiest way to cope with this problem is simply to avoid beginning a new book.

But once I have started, and the book has ‘caught fire’, the process is a joy. Ideas about how the plot will unravel start coming, thick and fast. ‘Of course that’s what she does.’ ‘Why didn’t I realise he thinks that?’ I just wish the kindling at the start of a book wasn’t so stubbornly green (apologies for mixed metaphors)!

Do you edit and revise as you write, or after you have completed the first draft? What method works best for you? 

Once I have typed ‘The End’, the first complete edit is my absolute favourite part of the writing process. But I have italicised ‘first’ because it isn’t really the first edit. I edit as I go along. I cannot start work in the morning without refreshing my memory about where I have got to in the story, and in what direction I appear to be going. It is probably an unavoidable part of my ‘walking into the mist’ method. As I don’t have a prescribed plan, I have to constantly make sure that what I am writing is coherent and hangs together. And because I constantly reread, I notice mistakes, repeated words, typos and infelicities. I may even change my mind entirely about a scene or a direction the story has begun to take. So the initial few hours every day are spent editing what I wrote the day before.

Which craft tip has helped you the most?

Over the years I’ve attended countless workshops and inspirational talks about the writing process. I’ve learnt about plotting, becoming an ideas factory, mind mapping and overcoming writer’s block. I’ve gratefully received tips on how to deal with my saggy middle. I’ve been advised about pacing, how to involve all the senses in scene building and how to create my characters using enneagrams or astrology. After scribbling copious notes and scooping up the hand-outs, I emerge from each session believing that this time I have the Holy Grail. Metaphorically I’m punching the air. YES! But when, eventually, I do reach the finale of the next novel, what have I done with those pearls of wisdom that I’ve collected up greedily over the years? Doh! (clutches hand to head) I forgot!

The one piece of advice which I do constantly bear in mind is ‘Point of View’. I try to be rigorous in this regard. It is not just about staying in one head for a section, but you have also to consider the character’s voice, given that the world is being viewed through his or her eyes. I don’t know how successful I am, but I can hold my hand up and say I try. And now for some lighter questions.

Gilli, all writers are run off their feet with work these days, have you managed to off-load the housework? 

Yes, to a degree. Almost without my noticing it, my dear husband has taken over the bulk of the vacuuming, the dusting, the tidying (as well as the vast majority of the gardening). He also cleans the oven. There is still a demarcation of responsibility. I do the shopping and the cooking, and it’s still down to me to clean the bathrooms (why is that an area where so many men draw the line?), and, without ever making a timetable about who is going to do it and when, we share the ironing.

An accolade or two for hubby then. Now if you could reincarnate yourself as some other author, who would it be?

If asked this question ten years ago, the answer would have been Ruth Rendell. These days I am more conflicted. The peerless Ruth is still up there, but now there are competitors for my reincarnated self. Kate Atkinson, Sophie Hannah and Mark Billingham are contenders. And for historical crime ̶ I have to plump for C J Sansom.  

And now for some less serious questions: 
How do you keep fit? Do you have an exercise routine to help you avoid writers' back? Perhaps out in the country?

I have never been much of an ‘exerciser’, especially not the cardio-vascular variety, but I have had joint and back problems for many years, so, for the last couple of years I have done a half-hour regime of exercises, perhaps 5 or so times a week, to strengthen and stretch my hip joints and my lower back, and to strengthen my shoulder. When I do these exercises regularly I am generally better, more flexible and have less pain. If I take a holiday from them, I end up like an old crock!

Are you a lark or an owl? 

I am an owl. And the older I get the worse I sleep. But it seems that my sleep-cycle kicks in, in the morning. One of these days I’ll turn the pattern totally inside out and be awake all night and asleep all day.

If you could know the future, what would you wish for? 

When I was a child, my favourite reading was fairy stories. I always wondered why, when characters were offered a wish, they didn’t ask for a magic wand. As I grew older, fairy stories gave way to horror stories. I knew the story of ‘The Monkey’s Paw’ and was careful what I wished for. My life is blessed, so I won’t wish for an eye-watering advance, a stunning publishing and film deal, and number one slot on the best-seller list. No, (shakes head vehemently) of course I don’t want those things! Sorry to be so prosaic; all I wish for is that my happy life continues.

  

Thank you so much Gilli for talking to us, and I wish you every success with your new ebooks. To find out more about Gilli’s books, check her out here:

http://gilliallan.blogspot.com/

http://famousfiveplus.blogspot.com/ 

Torn

Interviews on the RNA Blog are for RNA members, although we do occasionally take guests. If you are interested in an interview, please contact me: freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk 

Interview with Victoria Lamb

As a lover of historical novels I am delighted today to welcome Victoria Lamb to the RNA Blog. Daughter of the prolific novelist Charlotte Lamb, Victoria lives in Warwickshire – also known as Shakespeare Country – only twenty minutes from Kenilworth Castle where The Queen's Secret is set. She is presently working on her new novel featuring Lucy Morgan. I should think writing is in your blood, Victoria, tell us how you came by the idea to write this book.

I studied English at Oxford University as a mature undergraduate - though sadly decided to leave after my mother died - and absolutely fell in love with Elizabethan and Jacobean playwrights. Shakespeare had always been a favourite of mine, and indeed my mother - the prolific novelist Charlotte Lamb - had written her own account of Shakespeare and his 'Dark Lady', casting her as Mary Fytton. So when I began to think about writing an historical novel, it was an obvious choice to start with this mysterious 'Dark Lady' and imagine who she might have been and what her life was like before she met Shakespeare.

I chose a lady-in-waiting at Elizabeth's court called Lucy Morgan, about whom we know very little except that she has been linked by a few historians to another Lucy in late Tudor London, known as 'Black Luce'. Being so close geographically to Kenilworth Castle, I've always been fascinated by descriptions of Queen Elizabeth's visit there in 1575 and the lavish festivities laid on for her by the Earl of Leicester.

Many believe that the young Will Shakespeare, then a schoolboy of eleven years old, visited the castle and witnessed some of these spectacular events. This gave me the idea for The Queen's Secret, where I would introduce Lucy Morgan to the young Shakespeare against a backdrop of spectacle and political intrigue, forever fixing her in his imagination as someone exotic and dangerous.

Tudor history is popular right now. What is it about this particular period that makes you want to write about it? 

Tudor history is peculiarly rich in important events and turning-points in world history against which to set a novel. To add to this political gravitas, I love describing all those lavish textiles, set-piece banquets and spectacular visuals of the Tudor age against a flowering of new understanding within science and the humanities. This combination makes it a very exciting period of history to explore as a writer. The Tudor court, in particular, is a fraught and narrow society living under intense scrutiny and in constant fear of punishment and death - but with huge rewards if they pick the right side. In such an atmosphere, paranoia and spy networks flourish and plots are rife, providing perfect material for the kind of novel I wished to write.

Can you work anywhere, or do you have a favourite place to hideaway and write? 

Up until last year, I always worked at a desk in a corner of the quietest room I could find, occasionally going out to write in a cafe. Last year I decided to invest in an office in town, which has been very successful and increased my productivity, perhaps because it's a place I associate with 'work' and nothing else. I like to listen to music as I write, which shuts out external noise and helps to focus my mind. Avoiding the lure of social networking is probably the main factor these days in how much I manage to write when sitting down in the mornings!

Many historicals these days are written in the first person, but this has limitations. What point of view do you most enjoy writing: first or third? Can you say why that is? 

I've got two novels out this year: The Queen's Secret - written in third person - and Witchstruck for young adults - written in first person. It's hard to say which I enjoyed writing most, as they were both right for that individual book. Third person allowed me to have multiple narrative viewpoints in The Queen's Secret without that tricky - and often bewildering - ploy of heading each chapter with the appropriate name and hoping the reader can keep up with multiple first person narratives. Third person can also help to create an 'epic' feel to a narrative if required, even a broader sense of historical drama. In WITCHSTRUCK I needed the reader to identify closely with the young heroine from page one, so the intimacy of first person narrative was an obvious choice. Indeed, I couldn't imagine either book being written any other way.

We all know that writing a long novel is a marathon, which do you find the hardest part to write, and how do you cope when the going gets tough?

I tend to get bogged down just after the middle of a book, before the end is in sight. That's always a weary period for me, especially in a book over 100,000 words long, when I can't imagine finishing the thing and wish I'd never started. At that point, I don't dare stop - stopping can be fatal! - but push on and try to cut my writing into smaller chunks. Instead of telling myself 'Finish this chapter!', I'll set an easier goal, such as 'Just another 1000 words,' or even just a page or a lowly paragraph if things are really tough. I don't look ahead through the long, lonely wastes to the 30,000 I still have to write. That's too dispiriting. Instead, I set small goals and reward myself when I achieve them. Novels are written one page at a time, and though it can be hard to remember that when you feel blocked, if you can just write one page, you're still moving forward.

What I love most about historicals is when they involve real historical figures, what particular difficulties did you found in writing about these? 

When I first started writing about Lucy Morgan, I felt quite anxious about also having real historical figures as point of view characters, especially well-known ones like Elizabeth I and William Shakespeare. In the end I decided to write their characters as I saw them myself, not as anyone else had done before me. This freed me up considerably and I began to enjoy imagining how they would react in difficult or intimate situations, rather than being afraid in case I got it 'wrong'. It did mean having to stop and occasionally mark scenes as needing 'more research', but I tried to be as realistic as possible with my characters within those parameters, and not tie them down to stereotypes.

Can you remember which craft tip, perhaps from your mother, helped you the most when you were starting out? 

I grew up in a family of writers, so craft tips were part of the fabric of everyday life. I can't recall any one piece of advice that struck me more than any other, though it was obvious that constant hard work was expected of a successful writer. My mother never read my work (which was a relief, frankly) though when I was about twelve, she did send one of my manuscripts to her then agent, Caradoc King, who sent it back, very gently saying there were 'too many characters'. (About thirty in the first chapter, I seem to recall.)

'Just finish the damn thing!' was perhaps the best tip I ever received on a personal level, given to me by a television writer on an Arvon course when I candidly explained that I had an agent interested in my debut novel but didn't seem able to finish writing it. He was quite rightly outraged by this lazy attitude and I was chastened into finishing it. It was later published by Sceptre under my maiden name of Jane Holland.

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

Becoming a member of the RNA has helped my new career as an historical novelist more than any other single factor. Not only did it remind me of what I could do as a writer, but somehow had forgotten in the chaos of daily life, but it also gave me some vital tools on the road back into novel-writing. The friendship, advice and general support from other members have been invaluable, both before The Queen's Secret was written and now as I prepare to launch it.

Much of a writers time has to be spent on social networking. Which are your favourite places to promote your books?

Twitter and Facebook are top places for me to promote, with Twitter increasingly having the edge. Yes, they consume too much writing time, but without a growing readership, writing is pointless. Besides, Twitter is a great place to play and get inspired as well as promote. That's what I tell myself, anyway.

You have chosen to write this book under a pseudonym? Why was that, and what are the pros and cons? 

Since I am fairly well-known on the British poetry scene as Jane Holland, it seemed logical to split away from that persona by using a pseudonym. In my particular case, being the daughter of a well-known novelist who also wrote under a pseudonym, it made sense to take her pen-name 'Lamb' and combine it with one of my own middle names to produce 'Victoria Lamb'. This has also served as a tribute to a woman whose hard work and prolificity has enormously influenced my own approach to writing. The drawback to using a new name, of course, is not feeling able to point in my biog to my previous history as a writer. But it does provide an excellent opportunity to start afresh in a new career as 'Victoria Lamb'.

Tell us about the thrill of that call and what you hope to write next?

By a happy coincidence, I first heard that THE QUEEN'S SECRET had been sold to Transworld on the evening of the RNA Winter Party in 2010, which also happened to fall on my birthday that year. As you can imagine, everyone at the party was very excited. It was my most memorable birthday present ever!

In July this year, my Young Adult historical novel WITCHSTRUCK will also be published, by Random House Children's Books. That's a paranormal romance, the first in a series about a young Tudor witch. I start work on the sequel to Witchstruck this month. So, a busy year ahead!

That was fascinating Victoria, thank you so much for sparing the time to share your experiences with us. I’m sure many will be inspired by your story. To find out more about Victoria Lamb and her books, you'll find her here:

Author's Place page for Victoria Lamb:

http://authorsplace.co.uk/victoria-lamb/ 

Victoria Lamb's writing blog:

http://victorialambbooks.blogspot.com/ 

THE QUEEN'S SECRET

Victoria Lamb

Bantam Books

(February 16th 2012)

July 1575 Elizabeth I, Queen of England, arrives at Kenilworth Castle amid pomp, fanfare and a wealth of lavish festivities, laid on by the Earl of Leicester. The hopeful Earl knows this is his very last chance to persuade the Queen to marry him. But despite his attachment to the Queen and his driving ambition to be her King, Leicester is unable to resist the seductive wiles of Lettice, wife of the Earl of Essex. And soon, whispers of their relationship start spreading through the court. 

Enraged by the adulterous lovers growing intimacy, Elizabeth employs Lucy Morgan, a young black singer and court entertainer, to spy on the couple. But Lucy, who was raised by a spy in London, uncovers far more than she bargains for. For someone at Kenilworth that summer is plotting to kill the queen. No longer able to tell friend from foe, it is soon not only the queen who is in mortal danger - but Lucy herself. 

The Queen's Secret in hardback on Amazon UK:

Interviews on the RNA Blog are for RNA members, although we do occasionally take guests. If you are interested in an interview, please contact me: freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk

February Releases

The February releases of RNA members.....

Jean Fullerton HOLD ON TO HOPE

Orion Fiction

Trade Paperback

16th February

£12.99

Kate Ellis learnt the hard way that falling in love with the wrong man could be your undoing. It was nine years ago that she fell for the charms of Freddie Ellis, only to discover his criminal ways. With her husband in prison, Kate has fought hard to give her two children everything they could need. But now Freddie is back and threatens to destroy everything she has worked for. Captain Jonathan Quinn has resigned from the army after the needless death of too many of his men. But when his father disowns him and his fiancée breaks their engagement, Jonathan finds himself in desperate need of work. Accepting a friend's proposal of acting as headmaster at a local school, Jonathan is determined to leave the army behind and turn his life around. When Kate and Jonathan's paths cross, the attraction is instant. But with Kate still a married woman, they know it can never be. As Kate grows more distant, Jonathan finds solace in the arms of another woman, and Kate is left to wonder if she will ever find true love again... 

http://www.jeanfullerton.com

Victoria Lamb THE QUEEN'S SECRET
Bantam Press
£12.99
16th February 2012

July 1575

Elizabeth I, Queen of England, arrives at Kenilworth Castle amid pomp, fanfare and a wealth of lavish festivities, laid on by the Earl of Leicester. The hopeful Earl knows this is his very last chance to persuade the Queen to marry him. 

But despite his attachment to the Queen and his driving ambition to be her King, Leicester is unable to resist the seductive wiles of Lettice, wife of the Earl of Essex. And soon whispers of their relationship start spreading through the court.

Enraged by the adulterous lovers growing intimacy, Elizabeth employs Lucy Morgan, a young black singer and court entertainer, to spy on the couple. But Lucy, who was raised by a spy in London, uncovers far more than she bargains for. 

For someone at Kenilworth that summer is plotting to kill the queen. No longer able to tell friend from foe, it is soon not only the queen who is in mortal danger - but Lucy herself.

http://victorialambbooks.blogspot.com

Carol Townend BOUND TO THE BARBARIAN

Harlequin

$6.25

1^st February 2012

Falling for the forbidden warrior…Once a slave, maidservant Katerina has promised to convince Commander Ashfirth Saxon that she is an Imperial princess, but the longer she  keeps up the deception, the less she wants to deceive him…

www.caroltownend.co.uk

Lynda Dunwell TOMORROW BELONGS TO US: A NOVEL OF THE TITANIC

Musa Publishing

24 February 2012

Drawn into international espionage by navy officer Edwin Hardie, Lucy Mainwaring is advised by her diplomat uncle, who is Hardie’s superior, to accept Edwin’s marriage proposal. Believing the offer, although honourable, is made without true affection, she refuses him but agrees to get to know him better during an Atlantic voyage to a peace conference in America. They embark on RMS Titanic, but who will reach New York?

http://www.lyndadunwell.com/

Sheryl Browne RECIPES FOR DISASTER

Safkhet Publishing

Ebook

1st February
£6.99, $9.99 

Mix romantic comedy and step-by-step cooking instructions. Bake at 200 degrees for an entertaining read and handy guide.

She's a single. He's a widower. She wants him. He wants her. She wants to impress. So does he. There's just one catch – she can't cook. To get him, she needs to get past the big fish – his mother. Lucky her, she's got an Ace up her sleeve and all she's got to do is impress this one time. Bad luck, though, her new guy can't cook either, her dog Rambo is on the loose and now they've got to pull off the big lunch at the club. Will it be a match made in heaven? Will they be able to pull off a culinary miracle? Will their combined efforts result in love at first bite? Or is it simply a Recipe for Disaster?

www.sherylbrowne.com

JL Merrow MIGHTNIGHT IN BERLIN

ebook

 Samhain Publishing

21st February 2012

$5.50

Drifter Leon quickly regrets accepting a ride from a handsome

stranger—who turns out to be a werewolf. But he's not the only one

who's made a mistake, and soon both of them are running for their

lives from the rest of the pack.

Paula Williams FINDING ANNABEL

Linford Romance Linbrary

£8.99

Annabel had disappeared after going to meet the woman who, she'd just discovered, was her natural mother... However, when her sister Jo travels to Somerset to try and find her, she must follow a trail of lies and deceit. The events of the past and the present have become dangerously entangled. And she discovers, to her cost, that for some people in the tiny village of Neston Parva, old loyalties remain fierce and strangers are not welcome...'

website

www.paulawilliamswriter.co.uk

Freda Lightfoot ANGELS AT WAR

Magna Large Print

1 February

£20.99

Two years have passed since Livia and her sisters suffered at the hands of their brutal father. Livia is set to marry Jack Flint but still dreams of running the neglected drapery business. Standing in her way is wealthy, determined Matthew Grayson. As her problems with Jack worsen, Livia finds it increasingly difficult to resist his charms.

www.fredalightfoot.blogspot.com www.fredalightfoot.co.uk 

Mary Nichols THE KIRILOV STAR

Allison and Busby

Paperback

February 2012

1920 and there is civil war in Russia. Young Lydia Kirillova is separated from her family and the only clue to her identity is the opulent jewel concealed in her petticoat; the Kirilov Star. Adopted by Sir Edward Stoneleigh, a British diplomat, she grows up in England, but the pull of her roots is strong and she finds herself back in Russia at the outbreak of World War Two and in dangerous circumstances, her only hope is the enigmatic Alexei Simenov…

www.marynichols.co.uk

Mary Nichols THE GIRL ON THE BEACH

Allison and Busby

Hardback

February 2012

Married in 1938 Julie and Harry are blissfully happy with their baby son, George, when war is declared. Harry joins the Royal Air Force and is sent to Canada, leaving Julie to cope alone in the London blitz. Caught out one day when the siren goes she is in a shelter that takes a direct hit. She is pulled out alive but wounded and has lost her memory. Her husband, her child, even her own name are forgotten. In the hospital she is given a new identity as Eve Seaton, but is plagued by disturbing flashes of memory. She cannot understand why no one is looking for her; surely she has a family somewhere? She must make a new life for herself as Eve Seaton, but can she?

www.marynichols.co.uk

Christina Jones NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE 

Paperback

Piatkus

2 February 2012

The 8th - and last - in my Hubble Bubble practical magic series, Never Can Say Goodbye is a rom-com ghost story set in a vintage frock shop.

Frankie is the proud proprietor of Francesca's Fabulous Frocks in the Berkshire village of Kingston Dapple. Kingston Dapple is home to all manner of odd-balls, including Brian from the kebab van, Lilly the man-eater, Cherish the worst colour palette adviser in the universe, and, of course, Dexter Valentine, the lady-killing Beckhamesque florist. It's also home to a ghost. Just the one ghost - until Maisie the Useless Medium is called in, and then Francesca's Fabulous Frocks has more dead customers than live ones and life suddenly gets very complicated indeed...  

www.christinajones.co.uk

Liz Fielding LIZ FIELDING'S LITTLE BOOK OF WRITING ROMANCE
ebook
Classic Romance Publishing eBook release
£2.45
A hand in the dark for new writers needing help to get the story in their head onto paper.
http://www.lizfielding.com

Toni Sands  ORCHID PINK

ebook

Xcite Books 

£4.91

12th January 2012

Demure Adelaide hides a passionate nature beneath her elegant gowns. After hiring a delicious new maid, Daisy, she can’t wait to initiate her into the delights of the orchid house. Though resenting paternal pressure to marry businessman Thomas, Adelaide finds excitement in his touch and his erotic whisperings. Yet, when he reveals his sinister side, she seeks solace elsewhere. Christmas brings snowflakes, also a vivid reminder of a heart-wrenching past. Intrigue and obsession rock this Victorian household as Adelaide’s poignant search for love leads her into storms. Will she ever bask in the sunshine?

Anne Brear A NOBLE PLACE

MuseIt Up

Ebook and paperback

February 2012

Australia 1850.  Phillippa Noble, strong minded, spirited and adventurous, her parents and twin emigrate to the distant land of Australia to begin again. In a new country they can put their tainted past behind them, and Pippa can forget the unrequited love she felt for a distant cousin.
Pippa blossoms in Australia and is determined that their horse stud will be the finest in the land.
However, circumstances ensure that not all is golden. For every success, Pippa must overcome challenges of bushfire, death, the return of an old love and danger in the goldfields. Her strength is tested as she tries to find the right path to happiness, but it is the near loss of her dearest friend that makes her realise true contentment rests within her grasp and she must not let it go.

http://annebrear.blogspot.com

Maggi Andersen MURDER IN DEVON

Black Opal Books

Paperback and e-book

25th February 2012

An ex-patriot American reporter living in England, Casey Rowan wakes to find one best friend murdered and another seriously injured. Casey is determined to find the killer, despite running afoul of the detective in charge of the case—a blue-eyed Scot named Rod Carlisle, who considers her a prime suspect. As Casey gets closer to the truth, losing her heart to the sexy cop isn’t the only thing she risks. Now her life is danger, too. 

Rod has no patience with civilians who interfere in police matters, even hot little numbers like Casey. Though he tries to keep things professional between, Casey’s beauty and spunk are hard to resist. Rod warns her that what she’s doing is dangerous, but she refuses to listen. Can he find the killer before Casey becomes the next victim?

http://www.maggiandersenauthor.com

Vanessa Devereaux TAKEN FOR A RIDE

Cobblestone Press

e-book (Blue Line)

$0.99

22 February 2012

Nightclub parking lot attendant, Nic’s had his eye on the red Mercedes for a month when Julia catches him with a pair of binoculars in his hand. He suggests they take the car and visit another club. However, when the car ends up stolen, they need to find another story to cover up their trail of deceit.

Interview with Katherine Garbera

Katherine Garbera is the USA Today national best-selling author of more than 50 books. She started making up stories for her own benefit when she was on a competitive swim team in high school. She says that although she won lots of medals her heart wasn’t in swimming but rather in the stories she created as she swam laps. She later worked for Walt Disney World and did everything from touring around VIPs to being a production page on the New Mickey Mouse Club. She claims that it might be possible that Britney, Justine and Christina owe her a nod of thanks for keeping all those kids who had to go to the bathroom from interrupting their performances. Sounds like that was fun, Katherine, now tell us more. What made you want to write and how did you get your first break?

I have always enjoyed reading and after my daughter was born decided to try writing. I wanted her to know to always go after her dreams and I felt if I didn’t set the example by going after my own, then she might not go after hers. So I started writing about six months after she was born. I finished my first manuscript and then attend a writing workshop in South Florida where I lived at the time. I joined RWA and a critic group and three years later I made my first sale after winning the prestigious Maggie Award of Excellence for unpublished authors.

I can certainly empathise with that feeling. I started writing when bored by the nappy routine. Do you ever find yourself writing in odd places, like the bath? 

Nope. I pretty much write at my desk every day. One of my writing mentors said this, that writers write, they don’t talk about writing, they just put their butt in the chair and write every day. I have written in bed late at night when I’m on a deadline and one time I wrote sitting next to an Alpine lake in Yosemite National Park in California.

Have you ever taken part in the NaNoWriMo and written like mad throughout November? If so, did you find it effective?

I’ ve not done NaNoWriMo but I have written like mad at different times during the year and I have found it very effective. There is something freeing about just getting the story down and not worrying about editing it.

You sound fairly driven, but what do you do when the going gets tough? 

I go back to basics and remind myself why I love writing. I have a list of affirmations that hang next to my computer at my desk. And I re-read them when I’m a little lost and don’t feel like writing. It is the same list I’ve had hanging by my desk since I started publishing in 1997.

Writing is fun & easy for me.
I deserve to be paid well for my writing.
Everyone wants me to succeed.
My writing time is always well spent.
I know enough to write well.
Editors love to buy what I write.
My whole life nourishes my work, my work enriches my whole life.
My writing talent is a gift from God.
The writing I do is my gift to the universe.

A great deal is demanded of writers these days in the form of social networking, do you engage in any other kind of promotion? 

I like to design bookmarks and post cards and send them out. And I do enjoy being on Facebook and Twitter as well as a group blog site that I’m a participant at:
http://www.jauntyquills.com.

Thanks for that, it’s always interesting to learn of new sites. You clearly do signings too. Now tell us about your latest book, and what inspired you to write it. 

In the UK my latest book is REUNITED...WITH CHILD. Its the last book in my Miami Nights series about three brothers who own the hottest Cuban club in Miami. The story idea was inspired by Dancing with the Stars the USA version of Strictly Come Dancing. The heroine in the first book is a dancer in the club. REUNITED...WITH CHILD is a reunion love story set against the steamy nights of Miami and the glitter of Manhattan.

 
Strictly is very popular here in the UK, let’s hope your book does well as a result. And now for some more frivolous questions. What would you most like to find in your Christmas stocking? 

A trip to Paris and some yummy See’s Candies.

What is the craziest ambition you ever fulfilled? 

Earning a third degree red belt in Tae Kwon Do with my daughter.

What was your favourite book as a child?
My favorite book as a child was A WRINKLE IN TIME by Madeleine L’ Engle.

Are you ever driven to write by hand? 

No, I can’ t read my own hand-writing when I write fast and the words for my novels come to me in a stream that’s hard to keep up with when writing by hand.

Thank you so much for sparing the time to talk us Katherine, and for stepping in to fill a slot at the last moment. it’s been fascinating. 

I wish you every success with the books. 

Freda 

To find out more about Katherine visit her website: http://www.katherinegarbera.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Katherine-Garbera/15831806521

Twitter: @katheringarbera

Interviews on the RNA Blog are conducted by myself and Kate Jackson. They are generally for RNA members only, although we do occasionally take guests. If you are interested in an interview, please contact me at: mailto:freda@fredalightfoot.co.uk

Interview with Vonnie Hughes

We’re delighted to have with us today, Vonnie Hughes, who is a New Zealander living in Australia. She tells me that from the age of seven she wrote poetry and short stories for various publications. She now writes Regencies and romantic suspense novels and short stories.

Vonnie, some writers need silence, others prefer the bustle of a coffee shop, TV, or music playing. What is your favourite mode of working?

Silence. I just love silence, even though I have a musical background, music annoys me when I write because it intrudes. Also, sometimes I read some of my phrases out loud if they are giving me trouble, so music doesn’t work for me.

How do you begin when you start a new novel?

Usually a new novel has rolled around in my head for some weeks—just before going to sleep at night, when I am driving etc. So when I come to begin, I use some of those thoughts. I type out a quick story line (which will change a hundred times) and I also do character sketches for all my characters. The character outlines are quite detailed, since I’m a writer whose plot often springs from the characters’ motivations and background e.g. in LETHAL REFUGE my female protagonist is quite stroppy, hard in fact, and also secretive, because she’s had to be to survive. However the male protagonist is a deep thinker since he’s gone the privileged school-university-professional work route.
　
Which authors would you say have most influenced your work? And which do you choose to read for pleasure?
　
As a Regency writer, the obvious answer is Georgette Heyer. I was introduced to GH at the age of eleven by my brother. With my romantic suspense books, the influence is much more eclectic. Writers such as Karen Rose, Nora Roberts (JD Robb), Jayne Ann Krentz, Lee Child and Kay Hooper spring to mind. I’m much more open to new authors in this field for some reason.

For pleasure, basically I’ll read anything written by Jayne Castle/Jayne Ann Krentz/Amanda Quick because I utterly love her quirky, troubled heroes and her (usually) assertive, troubled heroines. She has the gift of writing into her books weird alternative worlds and introducing character traits that with another writer you might think: good grief, what rubbish! But with JAK you don’t even blink, because she writes so well.
　
Have you ever redeemed and published a piece of work you thought might never see the light of day?

Yes, THE SECOND SON which is to be released on December 16 by Musa Publishing as an e-book. This was the prequel to a hardback published by Robert Hale Ltd last year named COMING HOME and it covers the same group of people. I began writing it first and my Regency critique group thought the hero was too harsh.

How do you relax? What interests do you have other than writing? Do you think it is important for a writer to take time off?

Heavens, it’s essential to take time off from writing. Staleness creeps in otherwise and for me a certain resentment about it eating up my life and how stressed I’m becoming with deadlines etc. Remember that deadlines are not necessarily book publishing ones. Often writers get them for blogposts, library talks, attending or helping with conferences, online classes etc. Being overwhelmed is not conducive to happy writing.

I exercise since I’m a long distance runner from way back. Now I’m way too old to be pounding the pavements for marathons and ultras, but I’m a member of a 24 hour gym (very handy as you can come and go as you please) and our labrador needs a jog/walk every morning for at least an hour. Otherwise I read and read. Getting pickier though. Once I had a sort of Puritan idea that whatever I bought, downloaded or borrowed I had to read. After all, I’d paid for them. Now if I think the book falls short for any reason or if I just don’t like it, I no longer persist. As they say, life is too short to read bad books.
　
What do you enjoy about your particular genre? Are you a specialist or do you have another identity?

I write in two genres - Regency and Romantic Suspense and using the same name for both at the moment because that is my brand - Vonnie Hughes. I wanted to retain the name I’m known for.

With Regencies I enjoy the challenge of writing with restrictions. There is always a huge controversy going on about what Regency heroines could and couldn’t do. However I write less about the ton and more about the emerging middle class which gives me more scope. My Regencies contain a lot of suspense as I’m not that fond of comedies of manners. I like to have my heroines and heroes getting their hands dirty solving crimes.

For the contemporary Romantic Suspense I can set myself free with no behavioural restrictions, no plot restrictions, and really enjoy myself.
　
Are you involved in social networking and blogs? Any tips for other writers?

Way too many for my liking. Musa Publishing like their authors to be on Facebook, and The Wild Rose Press encourages their authors to do so as well, so kicking and screaming I ended up there. Then there are the blog. Each publisher has one main one plus others for their subgenres. I have one. You can spend hours dithering around on blogs but you can learn a lot from them. Skip the recipes and the Man Candy ones and spend time on those that advise about the craft of writing, or where to research something. Read interviews with respected authors. I am also on many writers’ loops and they are a great fount of knowledge. They are also great time-wasters, so I’d suggest go on Bulletin for most loops except the ones you consider to be most important, and then use your delete button.
　
Do you edit and revise as you write, or after you have completed the first draft?

Both. I write for about an hour, take a break, then I come back and write some more. After that I either write the book in my alternate genre or do some networking. The next day I open the document and go back to check. Sometimes I have an idea overnight and have to go back to the beginning to fill in relevant details here and there to tie it in before carrying on with fresh writing.
But when the book is ‘finished,’ that’s when the work really starts. The first draft is just a pale, empty thing, screaming to be filled with characterisation and layers. I do around four-five drafts before sending it to a publisher.
　
Tell us about your latest book and what inspired you to write it.
　
This is difficult, because I have three ‘latest books’ all coming out within six weeks of each other.

On 16 December, Musa Publishing will epublish a Regency. THE SECOND SON is how Lord John Trewbridge inherits a marquessate for all the wrong reasons. I found it a difficult book to write, since the sequel had already been published.

On 13 January 2012 Wild Rose Press will release as a paperback my New Zealand-set Romantic Suspense LETHAL REFUGE. I’d been thinking of writing a suspense novel set in my home country for a couple of years and this is the result. NZ is a small country rich in diversity. Its police force is based on British lines.

Finally, on 27 January 2012, Musa Publishing will release another Regency MR. MONFORT’S MARRIAGE. Matthew Monfort has two excellent reasons for loathing members of the ton, but thanks to his father’s machinations he finds himself inveigled into offering for Lady Verity Tristan. Anyway it’s time he married and she’s...well, different; in fact quite delightful...and intelligent...and sweet...but she needn't think she’s going to win him over. I had fun writing this book because Matthew had a lot to learn!
　
Thank you Vonnie for taking time to talk to us today.
To find out more visit Vonnie at
http://www.vonniehughes.com
http://vonniehughes.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/VonnieJHughes