NK Chats To… Siân Turner

Hi Siân. Thank you so much for joining me today. Can you tell us about your book, Patches through Time and what inspired it?

I’m a fan of the TV programme Bargain Hunt. While watching one episode, the presenter mentioned a commemorative coronation mug that could have been bought for £1 when new, which was worth more than £500 in the present day. It made me wonder what it would be like if you could travel back in time to collect cheap items from the past, then make a huge profit selling them back in your own time. It seemed appropriate that the time travel device needed would be found in an antique shop. Jake Patch was ‘born’ as the finder of ‘The Infinity Glass’, quickly followed by the sprite, Drusilla, and by Jake’s daughter Cass, who absolutely insisted on being the main protagonist.

What were the challenges when writing a book like this, especially as it’s part of a planned series?

It wasn’t planned to be a series. I wrote ‘Patches through Time’ as a standalone but, as I have done with some previous books, left a bit of an open ending for people to decide what they thought could happen next. Once the book started getting reviews, I noticed a lot of them said ‘There must be a sequel’ or ‘I need a prequel,’ so I decided to provide both in one book. So ‘Patches of the Past’ was inspired by keen reviewers, like yourself!

What’s your typical writing day like? Do you have any rituals like needing coffee or silence to write?

I absolutely detest coffee, so it’s a glass of water for me. Having started my working life in an office-based desk job, I’m very much a 9-5er – well, maybe more like a 9-4er these days, with a lunch break around Bargain Hunt time J. Working at home means some interruptions – mostly cats either shouting for snacks or deciding it’s time to sprawl across my desk. My office space is a corner of the living room, and I like working when it’s quiet. I’m lucky enough to have a view straight out to the apple trees at the bottom of my garden from my desk.

Can you talk us through how you approach the writing process from idea to research, to drafting, editing, final draft? How do you know when you’ve done enough research and editing?

With ‘Patches through Time’, the idea came weeks before I wrote anything down. I ruminated over it for ages, initially thinking it would only be a short story. Then I had the idea of Jake getting stuck and needing to be saved, and then Cass ‘appeared’ and I knew it was going to be more than a short story.

Other writers tend to label themselves ‘Planners’ or ‘Pantsers’ (those who write detailed plans, and those who fly by the seat of their pants). I do something in the middle. I start a project and only plan (a few chapters) ahead when I get stuck.

As for research, that’s an ‘as and when’ thing – if I need to know something, I’m down that rabbit hole faster than the white rabbit.

With regard to editing, I don’t know when I’ve done enough at all. This is something I definitely need to work on. I could edit forever and never publish (which is why there was such a long time between publishing ‘Patches through Time’ and being ready to publish a sequel).

What’s your favourite word and why?

Ebullient. A joyful word for joyfulness – who wouldn’t love that word?

Which authors do you admire and why?

At the moment, I’m reading a lot of T J Klune. He writes such thought-provoking stories, and I find I’m invested in them right from the start. He makes you ask questions about the world, about yourself, and about society. His work is just a joy to read.

I admire all my fellow Indie authors who invest so much of themselves in writing a book, and I sympathise with newbie Indies who have yet to realise how much more than just writing is involved when you’re self-published. I find that Indies are the best supporters, too!

Not including your work, is there a book you’d like to forget just so you’ll have the pleasure of discovering it again?

I have an awful memory, so that’s not an issue – I can read most books more than once without foreknowledge ruining the story!

Do you have any advice on how to approach writer’s block?

The answer to this is in my answer to question 4 – the bit about planning vs pantsing.

Which fictional character do you wish you could include in your books and why?

Ncuti Gatwa’s Dr Who. It would be great for a time traveller to bump into a Time Lord, wouldn’t it?

What time of scene do you find the hardest to write?

[What kind of scene?] Violence. I don’t like violence, and I don’t like including it in my stories. Consequently, I try to make it as non-graphic as possible, which hopefully helps out those who find descriptions of violence triggering.

Quick-fire questions –

Have the ability to see into the future or be able to visit the past?

The past. It’s more predictable. It’s like going down that research rabbit hole I mentioned before, but really being able to immerse yourself in it and find every imaginable detail.

Move things with your mind or read minds?

I don’t want to know what other people are thinking, and believe it would be awfully bad-mannered to go fishing in other people’s thoughts.

I do want to lift heavy things and reach things I’m too short to reach (I’m 5’2”), so moving things would be my choice.

Would you rather have magical powers here on earth or live in a magical place without powers?

I’d rather live with Flora, Fauna and Merryweather from Sleeping Beauty – they could do the magic for me, plus I’d be in a forest (always a bonus). So I guess that’s ‘live in a magical place without powers’.

Would you rather have the ability to communicate telepathically or know every single language on the planet?

You’re asking someone who’s currently learning Welsh! If you asked me if I’d like to suddenly become fluent in Welsh, the answer would be ‘No’ because the process of learning is so amazing. Telepathy would be cheating too. I’d like a better memory so I can learn vocabulary faster and remember those knotty grammar rules, but that’s about it.

Be able to have a one-minute conversation with your past self or future self?

The answer to that one is too dark.

Live in a world without music or movies?

Movies rely on great music, so I’m voiding that question 😀 😀

Take part in a dating show or a survival show?

Not dating, for sure. But not a full-on survival show either. I’d consider ‘Race Around the World’, if that counts.

About Siân Turner – 

Sian Turner was born in Wales, but lives in East Sussex.

She works as a part-time volunteer in her local RSPCA cat re-homing centre, from where she keeps adopting new family members (only one or two at a time).

Sian enjoys reading and reviewing some of the many truly amazing novels by Independent Authors, and she is secretary of her local writers’ group, Shorelink Writers.

Say hello to Sian via Facebook, X, and Instagram. 

About Patches Through Time – 

Casual antique dealer Jake Patch picks up an unusual object and can’t put it down. Literally. His find is a time travel device, and he hatches a bold plan to acquire objects from the past and sell them at modern day prices. But when the mysterious Infinity Glass leaves Patch stranded in a dangerous past, it falls to his teen daughter Cass to save him.

With hints of The Time Traveller’s Wife and Back to the Future and a smattering of Lovejoy, Patches through Time will send you spinning headlong into the past, then spit you back into the twenty-first century.

Click to buy Patches Through Time at Amazon UK, Amazon US, and Waterstones. 

by

Laura

I'm Laura. I started Novel Kicks back in 2009 as I wanted a place to discuss books and writing - two loves of my life. As someone who has anxiety, these two things give me, and I am sure countless others, a much needed escape.
There is a monthly book club, writing exercises, prompts, reviews, author interviews, competitions and guest posts. I cover many genres and I hope there is something for everyone.
I grew up by the sea in Dorset and currently live in Poole with my husband, Chris and three cats. I love writing and have a BA (Hons) in Creative Writing from Falmouth University. I am writing my first book. If only I could stop pressing delete. Chris has threatened to stop it from working. Haha.
I have always loved creative writing since I was in first school and would very much like to meet my teacher, Miss Sayers, to say thank you for all the encouragement she gave me then.
When not writing, I love reading, cats, Disney, singing (I can't sing but this doesn't stop me,) and falling into a good TV show or film. If I could step into any fictional world, it would be amongst the characters in ABC's Once Upon a Time.
I love reading many genres and discovering new authors.