Good morning Mandy and welcome. Can I start, as always, by asking you a little about yourself?
Morning, Jo! It is great to be here with you today Okay, I am 32, I live in Cornwall, I am a writer, I used to be a teacher, and Behind the Lie is my latest book. It is a suspense drama… One of those statements is false. I bet you can guess which one?
How did your writing journey begin?
I have always written. Well not always, a new born baby can’t write…but I have been writing since I was very young. Sometimes it would be poems, songs and often short stories. I never thought that one day I’d be published though. But about fifteen years ago I started writing seriously – novels mostly. They got nowhere because I didn’t really know how to write! I had great ideas and plots, but the telling left much to the imagination. I read about writing, read lots of novels and practiced, and I eventually got a short story published in 2010. The rest is history as they say.
Time slip, mystery, suspense and now psychological thriller, your books have been quite varied. Is there any other genre that appeals to you?
Not at the moment. I don’t think I fancy horror; I would frighten myself too much. And yes I have written in many genres, because I just go with the story in my head. The time travel and suspense always have a relationship in there if not a love story. So I guess that’s what unites them all – that and a sense of adventure. I like writing books that have adventure, excitement and intrigue in them.
Your latest book Behind the Lie is a psychological thriller. What was the inspiration behind it?
I’m not sure it is a thriller in the accepted sense though my publisher has billed it as such. I think it’s more of a suspense drama, because there isn’t the huge twist…or is there? Sorry, I must stop teasing. It’s more about following the journey of Holly the main character as she searches for the unthinkable truth…but will she find it? And will the truth be more than she can handle?
The inspiration? Well, one day I was walking on the beach as I often do and looked up at a beach house. It was the kind of house that I tend to drool over from time to time, as although I can see the ocean from where I live, it is five-miles distant! My imagination began to make up the person that lived in the house, and Holly West, my main character waved at me from the window. Well, she didn’t really, but you know what I mean…. Also the lonely rugged coast helped me to visualise Holly and all her problems and I knew I needed to help her solve them. I am also in love with the sea. My dream from being very small was to move to Cornwall particularly the north coast and I am overjoyed to have realised it. Just the sight and smell of the sea lifts my spirits and inspires me.
What destination is at the top of your bucket list and why?
I am currently thinking of India. There have been so many great documentaries and dramas on TV lately about it and it looks wonderful. Yet I’m not sure that I could cope swanning about being a tourist while there is abject poverty and death just beyond the air-conditioned hotel rooms. But then again, tourism will feed into the economy won’t it? I don’t know… we’ll see.
What’s next for you? Are you currently working on a new WIP? If so are you able to tell us anything about it?
Yes, it is another suspense set in Cornwall. It’s about a young woman looking for her birth mother. When she finds her, she wishes that she hadn’t.
And lastly, if you were planning a dinner party which to include four celebrities who would you choose and why?
Oh that’s tricky! Okay – Adele as we are going to see her in June, Paul Simon as I think he is a legend and the best living poet we have, JK Rowling because I think she is a great role model for youngsters who are interested in writing, and Sally Wainwright so I can pick her brains about writing! She has written Happy Valley, Last Tango and Scott and Bailey to name but a few smash hit dramas.
More about Amanda James
Amanda James has written since she was a child, but never imagined that her words would be published. Then in 2010, after many twists and turns, the dream of becoming a writer came true.
Amanda has written many short stories and has five novels currently published. Her time travelling debut – A Stitch in Time was published in April of 2013 and has met with great success.
Amanda lives in Cornwall and is inspired every day by the beautiful coastline near her home. Three of her novels are set there, Somewhere Beyond the Sea, Summer in Tintagel and Behind the Lie – April 2017 pub – HQUK ( HarperCollins)
Amanda can usually be found playing on the beach with her family, or walking the cliff paths planning her next book.
Amanda’s Social Media Links:
Author links – Amanda’s blog – http://mandykjameswrites.blogspot.com/
Twitter – @akjames61
Facebook mandy.james.33
BEHIND THE LIE
Holly West has turned her life around. She’s found a successful and loving husband in Simon and is expecting twins. She is definitely a woman who has taken back control of her future.
Until she gives birth, only for one twin to survive. Holly can’t let it go.
Holly’s world is in a tailspin and suddenly she can’t trust herself or anyone else. No one believes her, not her husband or her best friend. Because she thinks she knows the truth…her son is still alive and she won’t stop until she finds him.
Buy Links – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Behind-Lie-Amanda-James-ebook/dp/B06XKCP4L6/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
JO LAMBERT 