Blog Tour: Eleanor Brown – Author Interview and Review
Photo credit: Joe Henson
I’d like to welcome Eleanor Brown and her blog tour for her new book, The Light of Paris which was released yesterday (14th July) by The Borough Press. Hi Eleanor. Thank you so much for joining me. How do you approach the writing process? Do you do much planning and do you edit as you go etc?
I’m a non-planner by nature but I’ve trained myself to do at least some. With The Weird Sisters I just clanged around discovering the story as I went, but with The Light of Paris I worked quite hard to plan things out ahead of time. Consequently, it took me years to write The Weird Sisters, but once I had The Light of Paris figured out, I wrote the first draft in under two months.
I always say to my writing students that you’re going to do the organizational work sometime – whether it’s at the beginning, in the middle when you get stuck, or at the end is up to you, but you can’t avoid it altogether. I recommend a bare minimum of planning at the beginning, even if you consider yourself a free spirit – it saves a lot of pain and dead ends.
There is zero editing as I write! I just hurl it all on the page and tell myself I can make it pretty later. I hate drafting so much I just want it over with. Besides, what’s the point of making something pretty if I am just going to have to cut it later?
Can you tell me a little about your typical writing day and do you have any writing rituals (coffee before you begin, writing in silence etc.)
For a long time I thought if I could just figure out the perfect habit, I’d have this writing thing conquered. Now I understand that there is no perfect schedule – only what you can get done.
You have to write when you can, and that may change from year to year or week to week or day to day. I used to write in the mornings and took care of business in the afternoon. But lately it’s made more sense to do business in the morning and write in the afternoon. If I kept desperately trying to fit the way things are into my old schedule, I’d be frantic. Occasionally I just have to step back and say, “This isn’t working right now. What can I do differently?”
I believe writing rituals are dangerous. What if there’s a day you can only write while you wait for your kid to get out of soccer practice? If you’ve trained yourself to need your favourite pen and the perfect blend of tea, you’re out of luck. I just write when I can, where I can, as much as I can.
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Author Interview: Seré Prince Halverson
Seré Prince Halverson is the author of All The Winters After which was released by Landmark Source on 16th February . I am pleased to be welcoming her to Novel Kicks today. Hello Seré, thank you so much for joining us. Which moment in history would you like to return to and witness?
It would be pretty cool to bounce around with Neil Armstrong on the moon.
What’s your typical writing day like? Do you have any writing rituals?
I’m usually up early. I make strong coffee with frothy almond milk. I write in my journal to clear my mind and warm up, then eventually I’m writing the novel and move to the computer. When I get stuck, I go back to the notebook and scratch around or take a walk or read. Or I have a snack. Snacks help.
What is your favourite word and why?
Ostranenie. And before you think I have a grand vocabulary, I’ll admit that recently a list of fantastic words popped into my inbox, and this was one of my favorites. I liked them all, but you asked for one so I won’t be too obnoxious and throw them all around. It means: encouraging people to see common things as strange, wild, or unfamiliar; defamiliarizing what is known in order to know it differently or more deeply. Isn’t that a great word? Check out the whole list: http://www.stumbleupon.com.
Out of all the books you’ve read, which three have impacted you most?
I could answer this question differently on any given day. Too many. So I’ll tell you the first books that had a big impact on me.
When I was nine years old, I read three very different books that changed the way I viewed the world: The Diary of Anne Frank, Anne of Green Gables, and Island of the Blue Dolphins. It’s strange, even today, I can see their influence on The House of Frozen Dreams—hiding, isolation, love of place and family, and longing for home.
Oh, and I should mention Charlotte’s Web. I still carry spiders out of the house instead of squashing them.
by Author Interview: Lynne North Talks About Be Careful What You Wish For
I’m happy to be welcoming author Lynne North back to Novel Kicks today to talk about her latest book, Be Careful What You Wish For.
About Be Careful What You Wish For:
Finn is a bored young leprechaun. He lives with his mum and dad in a small village named Duntappin, and goes to the local school there. He spends most of his free time with his best friend Dallan, but craves some excitement in his life. Unfortunately, Finn missed out on being blessed by the Good Luck Fairy and soon gets far more than he bargained for. He finds himself a long way from home in the hands of a travelling circus where he is little more than a ‘freak’ to amuse the customers.
Hi Lynne, thank you so much for joining me today. Can you tell me a little about your latest book, Be Careful What You Wish For and now the idea originated?
‘Be Careful What You Wish For’ is a children’s humorous fantasy tale about Finn, a young leprechaun. It was published by Crimson Cloak Publishing on St Patrick’s Day, 2016.
So, it’s a happy story about a lucky chap with a liking for green clothes? Well no, not exactly. Finn is far from lucky. His parents missed his blessing with the Good Luck Fairy, the reasons why will be revealed in the book. Anyway, if there is bad luck to be had, Finn finds it. Despite knowing he isn’t the luckiest leprechaun in the village, he still craves adventure and excitement. Something he believes to be in short supply in the peaceful village where he lives with his parents. Somehow though, when Finn’s big chance of adventure does come along, he soon discovers that all adventures are not necessarily as much fun as he expected…
Anyone who has read my books before, like ‘Caution: Witch in Progress’, will know that I like to turn the expected on its head. I’m not entirely sure where my first thoughts of Finn began, but there he was winding his way through my head. All leprechauns are lucky, I thought, but what if this one isn’t? The ideas began to flow quickly. I also delved into Irish myth and folklore for some great characters. You might not have heard of a lot of them, but even if you do know about them, you won’t recognise my versions. I can guarantee that no character in this book will be quite what you expect!
How do you approach the process? Do you look at characters or plot first? Do you edit as you go?
I like to find my characters first. Or they find me, and insist on being written about. As I said, Finn wheedled his way into my thoughts until I just had to write about him. I tend to write in longhand in the first instance. In that way I can fling my ideas down in any scribbled format I choose. Once a chapter is completed in this way, it then meets my computer and becomes more legible and professionally written. So yes, I edit as I go along, though of course once the book is complete it undergoes one, or more, final serious and structured edits and proofreads. It’s a long process, but what matters is my satisfaction (and my publisher’s of course!) with the final product.
by Author Interview: Alena Graedon
I am very happy to be joined today by Alena Graedon, the author of The Word Exchange. Thank you for joining me today, Alena. Can you tell us a little about what your typical writing day is like?
This semester has been so busy that I haven’t had many typical writing days. But when things are a bit calmer, my writing day starts with trying to wake up quite early (around 6am), drink an alarming amount of coffee, going into my office, and reading for a bit–maybe 30 minutes–before sitting down to work. I often read things that evoke the same sort of mood that I’m going for. (For example, I’m writing something fairly dark at the moment, and one of the things that I often read a few pages of in the morning is Roberto Bolano’s 2666.) Then I generally start off by reworking the page or so that I wrote the day before, and then I start (slowly, slowly) writing that day’s work–maybe a couple of pages. I try not to check my email or the internet until I break for lunch. Then I usually have freelance projects and other work to get to in the afternoon, and then I usually go for a run or do some other exercise in the late afternoon. (That’s what helps me keep sane and focused after being in my head all day.)
Can you tell us a bit about your book, The Word Exchange?
In a nutshell, The Word Exchange is set a few years in the future (but really, like, two). It imagines the possibility that we’ve become so integrated (including biologically) with the electronic devices that help to support and augment our realities that a virus is able to spread from a machine to human beings. The potentially fatal illness that it transmits affects people’s language and speech, garbling their words and making it impossible for them to communicate with one another. (It’s colloquially known as “word flu.”)
It’s an interesting and scary premise. How did the idea originate?
I think that it probably came from my own love affair with/dependence on/wariness about technology. I grew up at a time when we were really making this big cultural shift from print to digital technology. My friends and I used to send lots of letters to one another, and I kept a physical diary. And now it’s surprising if we can even find time to email each other. I think I became very aware of the ways in which my life really had become totally augmented and interrupted by devices and digital tools, and I wanted to think a bit more deeply about what that might be doing to my ability to connect with other people and with my own thoughts.
by Blog Tour: Secrets of the Royal Wedding Chapel by Kathleen Irene Paterka
I am pleased to be welcoming Kathleen Irene Paterka and the blog tour for her new book, Secrets of The Royal Wedding Chapel which has recently been published by Booktrope. Hi Kathleen, thank you very much for joining me today.
Thanks for inviting me to be a part of your blog today, Laura! As much as we authors tend to be private people, living isolated lives as we indulge in the creation of our imaginary worlds, we actually do enjoy connecting with real people!
Can you talk us through your writing process? For example, any rituals before you begin? Are you much of a planner? Edit as you go?
I’m a very slow, methodical writer. And since I’m an early riser, I prefer to work in the early morning. Normally I’m at my computer no later than 6 am. I have a little timer on my desk, and I set it for two hours. For me, writing is like falling into a lovely dream, and I tend to forget about time, space, real life, or anything other than what’s happening in the magical make-believe world appearing on my computer screen. It’s as if I’m watching a movie clip in my mind, and typing as fast as I can to get it all down before it disappears. The next morning, when I sit down at the computer, I normally begin by editing a few paragraphs from the previous day’s work. That helps me fall right back into the tempo of the novel.
Your latest book is called Secrets of the Royal Wedding Chapel. Can you tell us a bit about it?
Who doesn’t love weddings and all things royal? My day job is as resident staff writer at a beautiful castle located in Northern Michigan. The Castle hosts numerous weddings throughout the year, and I have plenty of opportunities for ‘behind the scene’ peeks at brides on their special day. When I decided to write a book about weddings, I couldn’t think of a better setting than Las Vegas. My husband and I renewed our 20th wedding vows at a wedding chapel in Vegas, plus our daughter and her family live in Las Vegas. Secrets of the Royal Wedding Chapel combines my passion for royalty and romance with my love of weddings and Las Vegas. The result: The Royal Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas, where dreams come true… and are just as easily destroyed.
Here’s the blurb:
by Author Interview: The Chocolate Lovers’ Christmas by Carole Matthews
I am so pleased to be welcoming Carole Matthews back to Novel Kicks. Her new novel, The Chocolate Lovers’ Christmas is published today by Sphere. Hi Carole, Can you tell us a little about your latest book, The Chocolate Lovers’ Christmas? What is it about and what themes are explored?
This is a follow-up to two of my most popular books, The Chocolate Lovers’ Club and The Chocolate Lovers’ Diet. It features the same ladies, Lucy, Chantal, Nadia and Autumn – all brought together through their love of chocolate, they share the trials and tribulations of their relationships. But, if you’re new to my books, then it’s not necessary to have read the first two. The theme is generally about the enduring power of friendship. It’s a lot of fun and I love to write about these ladies. To combine the joys of chocolate and Christmas was a dream!
What elements make up a good novel do you think?
You have to have great characters that your readers fall in love with. If you’re not rooting for them then it really doesn’t matter how clever your plot might be or how fancy your setting.
Which fictional world would you like to visit? What would you do?
I’d love to be in A Game of Thrones by George R R Martin. I’d like to be one of the good guys and I’d try very hard to keep my head on my shoulders, which could potentially be quite difficult!
by Author Interview: Bridget McNulty
Hi Bridget. Thank you so much for joining me on Novel Kicks today. First, can you tell us about your website, Now Novel and what inspired you to start it?
After my novel Strange Nervous Laughter was published in South Africa and the US, people were constantly asking me how to write a book and – perhaps even more than the actual writing how to find the motivation to finish. I wanted to create a platform for this.
What are you hoping people will get out of Now Novel?
A supportive, motivating space that helps them improve their writing and follow through on their novel writing dream. The end goal? A finished first draft.
There are various packages available for people wanting to use Now Novel. Can you tell us a little about what each package offers? Is there a minimum term you’d need to sign up for?
Basic access to the website (including our critiques system for giving and receiving writing feedback and our writing groups) is free. We have three paid options. The first, ‘The DIY Writer’, is our plan for writers who don’t want personalized help. It includes the Now Novel Story Builder, our online tool and step by step process for working out a blueprint for your story. If you need extra motivation, our middle tier plan, The Aspiring Novelist, includes having a mentor whom you can correspond with via email for extra help and motivation. Our top tier plan, The Experienced Writer, is ideal for writers who are serious about getting their novels written. It includes biweekly Skype calls with your mentor and editing of 3000 words of your writing per month by professional editors.
You can pay for any of the three plans month on month, if you prefer, or you can pay for a six or twelve month package that provides a substantial discount on the usual monthly rate. There’s also a 30 day money back guarantee on all our plans.
by Author Interview: Megan Tayte
Hello Megan, welcome to Novel Kicks. Firstly, how much planning do you undertake when beginning a novel and do you edit as you go?
I let ideas come freely for a long while, and then I start planning. Once I have a detailed plan down, I start writing, but from that point on I still follow the creative process as I write. Sometimes that leads to a deviation that doesn’t work, and I cut the whole lot and go back to the plan. Sometimes the deviation turns out to be great, and I go with it and amend the plan accordingly.
My day job as an editor can be quite a hindrance to writing – I automatically slip into editing mode, and that pulls me out of being in the pure creative flow. My solution is to try very hard to resist the urge to edit as I write. So I write the first draft quickly, letting the words flow out. And then, some weeks later, I begin to edit. And edit. And edit.
Is there a fictional character you’d like to meet?
Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights. It seems to me he could do with a friend – and some relationship advice.
Who’d you like to invite to a fantasy dinner party?
Oliver Queen (the Arrow), James Corden (presenter), Dawn French (comedian), Ed Sheeran (singer), Bear Grylls (adventurer), Kathy Reichs (author), Stephen Fry (actor), Beaker (Muppet). Oh, and we’d better have someone to cook, or we’ll be eating cheese on toast – Gordon Ramsey will add a bit more colour (and volume) to proceedings.
Five pieces of advice for new writers?
1. Explore. Go places, meet people, challenge your assumptions. Thoreau says it best: ‘How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live.’
2. Read. The single best way to improve your writing is to learn by osmosis, to read and read and read. Not just in your favourite genre; all kinds of books by all kinds of writers. Literary, mass market – even the bad ones have plenty to teach you.
3. Believe. If you don’t have faith in yourself, why should anyone else? You’ve nothing to lose by believing you can write, and everything to gain.
4. Enjoy. Always remember why you want to write – for the sheer love of it. Don’t get bogged down in the business of writing. Love every minute.
5. Keep writing. In his bestselling book Outliers Malcolm Gladwell lays down the 10,000-Hour Rule: to succeed at anything, you need to practise your craft for 10,000 hours. That’s a lot of writing!
by Author Interview: Nadine Matheson
Nadine Matheson is the author of The Sisters and I’m pleased to be welcoming her to Novel Kicks today. Nadine, can you tell us a little about The Sisters and how the idea originated?
The Sisters are Lucinda, Jessica, Beatrice and Emma LeSoeur. In the 1990’s Lucinda, Jessica and Beatrice were Euterpe; Britain’s biggest girl band until Lucinda meets a successful music producer, Paul Morgan, and decides to leave to seek solo success in America. Lucinda’s announcement is a shock not only to her fans but also to her sisters; especially Jessica who takes Lucinda’s departure the hardest. Twenty years later, the sisters are living very different lives. Jessica owns a successful PR agency; Beatrice is a lawyer and Emma, the youngest works for Jessica. After living in New York Lucinda is divorced with two children and is forced to return back to London as she’s facing financial ruin. When she returns home, she doesn’t get the happy reunion that she was hoping for.
The idea for ‘The Sisters’ originated after watching one too many episodes of ‘The Real Housewives…’ There was one particular episode when I realised that one of the characters was actually broke. Even though on the outside she had the designer bags, shoes and drove an expensive car she was actually a bit skint and I based the character of Lucinda on her.
Do you have any writing rituals?
I need some sort of background noise. I’ve tried but I can’t work in complete silence. The sound of my fingers tapping away on my laptop for hours on end would drive me mad, so I’ve always got the radio on listening to BBC London 94.9 or have iTunes on shuffle mode.
Which fictional character would you like to swap places with and why?
I wouldn’t want to actually live her life, because to be honest it’s a bit depressing but I would swap places with Miss. Havisham from Great Expectations. Miss.Havisham is one of my favourite fictional characters and I would swap places just so I could get her out of that old, mouldy wedding dress, throw the rotting cake in the bin and enjoy her wealth and her life. The woman needs to get some sunshine on her face.
by Author Interview: Sarah Winman
Sarah Winman is the author of the brilliant When God Was A Rabbit. Her latest novel, A Year of Marvellous Ways was released by Tinder Press at the beginning of the summer and I am very pleased to be welcoming her to Novel Kicks today. Hi Sarah, thank you so much for joining us. Can you tell us a little about your latest novel, A Year of Marvellous Ways.
A Year of Marvellous Ways is set in 1947, in Cornwall. At the start of the book, old Marvellous is in her 90th year and coming to the end of her life. She has one last thing to do before she dies, but she doesn’t know what it is yet, because the message came to her in a dream, and the dream said, Wait, for it’s coming. So she waits, sitting on the bank of her creek.
When a young soldier, Drake, broken by war, washes up in her creek, Marvellous realises that she has been waiting for him. And the last thing she has to do is to re-ignite the flame of hope in this young man’s heart. And she does this by telling him the story of her life. The book is about the redemptive power of storytelling.
Do you cast your characters and if so, did you have someone specific in mind for Marvellous and Drake?
Marvellous would have to be the wonderful Judi Dench – playing older, of course. She would be terrific and heartbreaking in the role. In fact, I can totally see her doing it right now! I would cast an unknown alongside her, though.
Do you have any writing rituals (writing in silence, writing longhand, a cup of tea etc.)
I do write in silence – never any music playing as that can influence me emotionally. I write on a laptop at home, breaking for copious amounts of tea! When I go out I always carry a notebook and therefore write in longhand. I wrote a lot of Marvellous in bed, strangely enough, as cocooned as possible, with a candle burning.
Who is your favourite fictional character and what’s the one thing you would ask him/her if you were to ever meet?
I would ask Owen Meany to tell me a secret.
Are you much of a planner and are you the type of writer that edits as you go?
No, I edit as I go. But, most importantly, I always start knowing the ending, knowing where I need to get to. I will not start without an ending.
Do you have a favourite word?
For this book, it would probably be ‘nonsense’.
by Author Interview: Ben Fergusson
Ben Fergusson
Hi Ben. Thank you for joining us. Can you tell us a little about your book, The Spring of Kasper Meier and how the idea originated?
The Spring of Kasper Meier is a novel about a black-market trader, Kasper Meier, who is just about surviving in the ruins of post-war Berlin. He is blackmailed by a young rubble woman, Eva Hirsch, and the novel follows the twists and turns of that blackmail, but also the uncomfortable friendship that develops from it.
The idea came from two places mainly. I’d already had the idea of a Kasper-like character for a Chandler-esque novel some years earlier that didn’t quite work out. Then I moved to Berlin about 6 years ago, and while living there became very inspired by the city and its history. The two things came together and I had the idea of this first scene with Kasper and Eva. It all grew from there.
If you could travel anywhere in history, where would you go and why?
I suppose Ancient Rome in its heyday. I never quite got over going to the Forum when I was a kid; the everyday life of the city seemed so tangible.
Are you a planner and do you edit as you go?
I do plan, but I do have to write to make sense of where the novel is going. This means that I write a lot that gets not used. I will often write myself into a cul-de-sac plot-wise, discover what’s wrong and then have to go back 50 pages and start again. I would love to be able to plan it all in an Excel sheet and then write it all out in one go, but that just doesn’t seem to work for me.
Do you have any writing rituals?
I have a day job, so I don’t really have the luxury to have rituals. I just squeeze in the writing around it in any way I can.
by Author Interview: Joan Ellis
Hi Joan. Thank you for joining us. Can you tell us a little about your books, I am Ella. Buy Me, and The Killing of Mummy’s Boy as well as your latest novel, Guilt?
I am Ella. Buy me – ‘I am a ginger tom. I am a boy racer. I am a housewife. I am a pain in the arse.’ Ella David is Bridget Jones meets Peggy from Mad Men. Based on my experiences in Soho’s mad, bad Adland, the book is a ‘laugh-out-loud’ tale about Ella David, a girl in a man’s world. Set against a backdrop of Thatcher’s Britain when money trumped morals and lust was a must, Ella spends her time dodging her sleazy boss and getting hooked on bad boys. Can two unlikely friendships help her go from the firing line to a girl calling the shots?
The Killing of Mummy’s Boy – a chance meeting with a killer was the inspiration for my first psychological thriller. Trapped with a murderer on a train for almost two hours, listening to his tales, I was horrified, terrified and disgusted but never bored. What better start to a novel.
‘‘I slit someone’s throat,’ the man told the woman on the 4.20 from Waterloo to Portsmouth.’ Two strangers. One shared interest. Murder. Ben slit a man’s throat. Sandra’s son, Carl witnessed a murder. When Sandra discovers she is being stalked, she turns to the least likely person for help with horrific consequences.
GUILT is about a little girl is left alone with her younger brother and he dies. The guilt informs the rest of her life. When it threatens to ruin not only her life but her relationship with her new baby she must revisit the path to discover the truth. What she uncovers is as hopeful as it is disturbing. Elements of the book are based on a real life tragedy. I wanted to explore the notion of guilt and blame and how these two imposters can exert power over the most innocent lives.
‘You died a month before your fifth birthday. You were probably dead long before Mum downed her third gin with Porky Rawlings.’ Seven-year-old Susan is alone with her younger brother when he dies of an overdose. The guilt informs the rest of her life. When it threatens to destroy not only her but also her relationship with her new baby, she sets out to discover the truth. What she discovers is as disturbing as it is magical.
What’s your writing process like? Do you plan much and do you wait for a full draft to edit?
I start with the basic premise and rough outline. My characters are my best friends. Without them, I’d be lost. I enjoy getting to know them and allow them to flesh out the plot and write the book for me. I write, read, reread and edit every chapter as I go along and repeat the process as many times as necessary with the final draft.
by Book Club
