Milly Johnson.

Milly Johnson is the Sunday Times bestselling author of An Autumn Crush, White Wedding and The Yorkshire Pudding Club. Her latest novel, A Winter Flame was published by Simon & Schuster in October 2012.

Can you tell us about your latest novel, A Winter Flame?

Milly Johnson

It’s about a woman – Eve – who hates Christmas, especially after her soldier fiancé was killed on Christmas Day, and is left a Christmas theme park by an eccentric old aunt – to be jointly run by herself and Jacques a man she has no knowledge of. Eve can’t move on from the loss of her fiancé and has become a semi-recluse but her mad business partner and the people of the park force Eve out of the past and into the here and now. I had great fun in writing it – Jacques is one of my favourite heroes and I wanted Eve to have her happy ending after so much sadness in her life. It’s fantastical of course – but if you can’t have a bit of magic in a Christmas story, when can you? Oh and it picks up the story of Violet in White Wedding so best to have read that one first if you want to avoid any spoilers.

Describe your typical writing day?

As soon as the children are off to school and the dog is walked – I write, stopping only for coffee and loo breaks. I stop when the lads get home from school but sometimes, when a deadline approaches, you’ll find me working through the night.

For someone new to your books, can you describe your writing style in less than fifteen words?

A reflection on true life with all its dramas, fun, laughs, darkness and sometimes extraordinariness

Do you outline when beginning a new book or do you simply start and see where the idea takes you?

I have a brief outline in my head, but I set off blindly and see where I go. I wish I were a planner, but I’m too much of a rebel.

Are you working on anything new at the moment? Can you tell us about it?

I’m working on book 9 – a book called ‘It’s Raining Men’. It’s about three career girls who take a break at the seaside and what – and who – they encounter there makes them re evaluate their lives.

Which one of your characters is your favourite?

Adam MacLean from The Birds and the Bees. I fell hook line and sinker for him when I was writing him.

Is there a character from fiction you’d like to meet?

It’s a toss up between Mr Rochester from Jane Eyre and Captain Wentworth from Persuasion.

Which books have influenced you most as a writer?

Jane Eyre was the biggest influence ever. My heroes all have a touch of Rochester in them and my heroines a soupcon of Jane. Bridget Jones diary also showed me that it was okay to be conversational in my writing. And I loved how Stephen King would drop a character or a place from one book into another – I adopted that device to an nth degree

Which three things would you have with you if stranded on a desert island?

A Mo Hayder book, a goose down pillow and a bottle of freezing cold Pellers sparkling Ice Wine

Who would your ideal dinner guests be?

Anyone who enjoys good food, good conversation and a good gossip

What’s your ideal writing atmosphere?

Utterly silent.

Which part of the writing process is the easiest/hardest?

The first draft is the hardest. The first edit is my favourite when I can really move the pieces around. The next edit after that I would say is the easiest because all things should be in place by then.

Best/worst thing about being a writer?

Best: Own boss, generate my own money, no fear of redundancy, no horrible bosses, get invited to some great events. Worst: having to turn so many things down. I get asked to do so much that I just don’t have time for and I hate saying no.

What are your music/TV guilty pleasures?

Prison Break, Hustle & Soprano box sets. Heavy Rock music acts as my lullaby at night down the iPod headphones.

Top five tips for new writers?

Read lots – you’ll absorb style and vocabulary
Write as often as you can – practice makes perfect
Get yourself a dedicated workspace and lots of stationery. If you want to be a writer – you need the official tools
Remember that writing isn’t easy – you will always hit sticky parts and think ‘this is rubbish’ – it’s quite normal
Don’t be held back by fear of rejection – if you have talent and resilience you will eventually find a door that opens for you and then you will be soooo glad that you fought for and won the best job in the world.

How do you approach editing? How many words do you aim for in your first and final drafts?

I aim for about 80k in my first draft – about 110k in my last. I edit a LOT. I constantly refine, look for better words, strip away unnecessary ones until my publisher rips it from my hands and tells me to back off slowly.