Category: Writing

Hide from the thief-taker, for if he finds you, he will take you away …

Eighteenth-century Cornwall is crippled by debt and poverty, while the gibbet casts a shadow of fear over the land. Yet, when night falls, free traders swarm onto the beaches and smuggling prospers.

Terrified by a thief-taker’s warning as a child, Jenna has resolved to be good, but when her brother, Silas, asks for her help to pay his creditors, Jenna feels unable to refuse and finds herself entering the dangerous world of the smuggling trade.

Jack Penhale hunts down the smuggling gangs in revenge for his father’s death. Drawn to Jenna at a hiring fayre, they discover their lives are more entangled than they first thought. But as Jenna struggles to decide where her allegiances lie, the worlds of justice and crime collide, leading to danger and heartache for all concerned …

THE THIEF’S DAUGHTER by Victoria Cornwall

Prologue

1765, Cornwall

As quietly as she could, Jenna slowly released the breath she was holding, instinctively her body sucked in another. Her eyes widened in fear at the sound of her soft gasp. Did he hear her? She prayed he did not.

She could hear the man’s boots pacing the floorboards in the adjoining room. His boots are muddy, she thought, hearing the grit on his soles scoring the wood beneath. Frightened, she remained silent and hidden, not breaking her cover even when she heard her mother and father begin their cursing. It did no good, more boots arrived and her parents were forced away.

Jenna hugged her knees to make herself smaller. She stared at her little toes, as she felt the vibration from his footsteps through her feet. The vibration grew as the boots came into the room and she tried to shrink even smaller. She fought to control her silent, shallow breaths, while the rest of her body froze with fear. She was cocooned in her hiding place, scared of being found, yet inside her heart hammered loudly as if daring to be heard. She hoped she would wake up and discover it was all just a bad dream. And she was safe. And her brothers and parents were too. But it was happening and the fear she felt was real. Her head began to throb and tingle as she listened to the grit scratch the floorboards with each step. Mother will be angry when she finds out he is ruining her floor, thought Jenna. Such a silly thought, considering the circumstances.

The man shouted and more boots entered the room. He had found what he was looking for: her brother, Paul. A scuffle broke out between them, more cursing, more shouting and more mud on mother’s floor. It sounded like Paul was putting up a fight. It did not surprise her; he always said he would if the man came to get him. A valiant attempt, but Jenna knew that his resistance would do no good. Only moments before they had taken David and he was the strongest of all her brothers. This morning everything had been normal, now she had lost two of them and everything had changed. And she might be next.

For a moment there was silence, but even so, Jenna dared not move. She would wait until her mother came to get her, just as her parents had told her to do. The sound of a man’s boots returned to the room again. She strained to listen for the noise of the grit. She could not hear it. Had it worked loose or was it her father?

The footsteps stopped before her. The silence that followed felt heavy and her legs began to tremble, causing the pile of clothes that covered her to shake too. The slight tremor was enough to give her away. A large, thick-fingered hand reached underneath and grabbed her bare foot, pulling her roughly out into the daylight and causing her dress to ride up behind her head and expose her knees. She lay stiff and motionless at his feet, like a submissive dog, waiting to be slayed. ‘Hide from the thief-taker,’ her parents had told her, ‘for if he finds you, he will take you away.’

The man looked down on her. His dirty beard covered his lips and hid any expression of a smile he may have had at finding a four-year-old child at his feet. He reached down and grabbed her clothing. His fist twisted in the cloth of her dress as he lifted her off the floor. Her face came level with his. As her bare, grimy feet dangled in the air, she dared to look into his face and saw there was no smile.

‘Do I scare you, child?’ he asked her menacingly. ‘Do I make you want to weep?’ He gave her a little shake, making her body sway in the air. His breath smelt of rotten eggs and she could see her frightened face reflected in his bloodshot eyes. Struck dumb with fear, she was unable to answer him. ‘Remember what it is like to be caught by a man such as me.’ He looked down at her thin body dressed in rags. ‘Your family has bad blood running through them and you will turn out the same if you don’t mind your ways. If you don’t, we will seek you out and hunt you down.’ He held her closer until she could feel his breath on her face. ‘Remember, child, we will watch you as you grow, and one day a thief-taker will come calling and he will take you away.’

PURCHASE LINK: http://amzn.eu/bsgvejD

MY REVIEW

The story opens with four year old Jenna hiding in a cupboard.  Strange men have come to the house and have taken away her parents and two elder brothers.  These men are known as thief takers and they track down and apprehend those who rob and steal.  Discovering Jenna one of them hauls her from her hiding place and leaves her with a stark warning.

We meet Jenna again twelve years later as her brutal husband is being hung for poaching.  Her only remaining brother Silas, with whom she has a close bond, is currently in debtor’s prison.  Now free from the horrors of her marriage, Jenna is desperate to find the money to pay off Silas’s creditors and get him out of prison.  She sets off for the Hiring Fayre with the hope she will find employment.  There she sees Jack Penhale, the man who helped her escape from the crowd at her husband’s hanging. When her first job ends badly she returns to the Fayre where she runs into Jack again.  After saving her from the clutches of a lecherous potential employer he hires her for one day, pays her and tells her to go. But Jenna is determined to work for the money she has received and follows him back to his cottage.  Against his better judgement Jack relents and soon agrees to take her on indefinitely, unaware she is a member of a local family of disreputable thieves – the Cartwrights.

After his father was brutally murdered by smugglers Jack became a thief taker, working to bring lawbreakers to justice.  He is currently living in a rented cottage and working locally with the militia, trying to root out a smuggling ring.  When Silas persuades Jenna she can earn more money to free him by joining the smugglers she knows although it places her in great danger she can’t refuse him.  Dressed as a boy, she is helping retrieve the goods when the smugglers are attacked by the militia.  She escapes capture only because Jack is there to save her. Jack knows having Jenna under his roof is dangerous for both of them.  For not only are they on opposite sides of the law, he is beginning to fall in love with her.

I love historical romance and this novel really entertained.  Jenna and Jack were both strong individuals.  Jenna is a feisty young woman and the only member of her unsavoury family with anything resembling a moral compass. And dark, handsome, enigmatic Jack shows both determination and compassion in his fight against smuggling.  Silas, a selfish, lying, manipulative individual proves a worthy antagonist too.  Right up until his exit from the story, he endeavours to trick both Jack and Jenna’s and manipulate their lives.

A great debut with a wonderful heroine and a worthy Choc Lit hero.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to reading Victoria’s next novel.

About Victoria Cornwall
Victoria Cornwall grew up on a farm in Cornwall. She can trace her Cornish roots as far back as the 18th century and it is this background and heritage which is the inspiration for her Cornish based novels.
Victoria is married, has two grown up children and a black Labrador, called Alfie. She likes to read and write historical fiction with a strong background story, but at its heart is the unmistakable emotion, even pain, of loving someone.
Following a fulfilling twenty-five year career as a nurse, a change in profession finally allowed her the time to write. She is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and the Historical Novel Society.
The Thief’s Daughter is her debut novel and the first in her series of Cornish based novels published by Choc Lit.

Social Media Links:-

Website: http://www.victoriacornwall.com
Twitter: @VickieCornwall
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/victoriacornwall.author
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/victoria_cornwallx
Pinterest: uk.pinterest.com/vickiecornwall

Good morning Lisa and a big welcome as my first guest of 2017. Can I start, as always, by asking you a little about yourself?

Thanks for asking me to do this, Jo. I am trying to convince myself that I’m not a fraud being interviewed by you as I’m not a proper, grown-up author yet! However, we all have to start somewhere, eh?
I should have just given you my Match.com profile for this part. It got me a husband after all. True story! Although, he may be asking me questions if I’m flirting with the readers of this interview through my dating profile. Moving on…
I’m in my 40s and I am very lucky to live in Bournemouth, close to the sea. I’m originally from Oxfordshire which is about as far from the sea as you can get.
I used to be a secondary school English teacher but I decided that I liked having a life and not feeling perpetually stressed, so I escaped.
I loved the job in terms of encouraging the next generation of readers and writers but this isn’t Dead Poets Society. Often the English teacher is met with groans when poetry and Shakespeare rear their heads. No one ever stood up on a desk and called me ‘Captain’ either.

How did your writing journey begin?

I came late to writing. It’s funny how I’ve spent years teaching writing skills, been an avid reader, and studied the classic authors to Masters level, but have never ventured into writing territory myself.
Here’s my time to boast – allow me this moment if you will, there aren’t many – I wrote a blog post about how I came to writing and won an international blogging competition in the process!

If I am allowed a cheeky bit of shameless self-promotion, here’s a link to the winning post: https://www.lisasell.co.uk/2016/05/crushed-by-a-cheeseburger/.

In short(ish), when I was 11 years old, I wrote a novel about a child spy called Pete whose exploits were fuelled by cheeseburgers. I handed it over to my favourite English teacher for her praise and adoration. I was gutted when she barely glanced at it and stuck it away in her drawer. It never saw the light of day again.
It may sound silly now but that rejection remained with me. Every time I attempted to write fiction after that, I felt like I was substandard. This lasted for decades!
In early 2016, I took stock of my life in many ways. I got married and was in the best place in terms of confidence and having a supportive partner.
I decided that I had something to share so I started writing. It wasn’t an epiphany; more of a slow burner. There has always been a writer in me wanting to get out shouting and screaming. I cannot shut her up now!

If you hadn’t become a writer is there any other occupation you would have chosen?

Before I became a writer I had so many different jobs, trying to find where I fitted in, that I think I may have exhausted my options!
Trite as it may sound I have finally found what I was always meant to be doing; writing and blogging. I wish I had come to this sooner. I would then have been spared awful jobs such as cleaning, working in a call centre and being verbally abused daily, and being a retail manager (also verbally abused).
I don’t even want to consider any other occupation now *shivers in horror at the thought*.

 Can you tell us something about your current WIP?

One of the aspects that drove me to begin writing was my passion for enlightening people about the pain and struggle of both living with mental illness and being the loved one of people who have it. I have had major depressive episodes, on and off, for 20 years.
I decided to begin by ‘writing what I know’. That was tough in a few ways: to go back to dark places of personal experience, and to have some scathing authors sneering at the ‘newbie’ making the rookie first novel mistake of writing something partially autobiographical. I’ve always been a bit of a rebel. So I carried on.
I believe this novel had to be written; for me and for anyone who cares to be informed and entertained by it. It’s about depression, but depression isn’t all doom and gloom. Depressives are some of the funniest people in the world. Many comedians have depression.
I completed the first draft of the novel. I was proud to achieve something and I loved my main character and how she documented her highs and lows. I was just beginning the revising stages and then life imitated art; depression returned.
Long story, but I am beginning recovery now. I haven’t worked on the novel for months. It has been too painful to deal with concerning its subject matter and the illness rendering me incapable of doing much at all. I will, however, be picking it up again. This novel nags at me to see the light of day. It will.
I have also been scribbling short stories, which I really enjoy, and I have an outline and some characters planned for my second novel.
The one thing I have been consistent in writing throughout depression is my writing blog. I love it! I am now going to sound like a really sappy writer but writing that blog every week kept me going. It still motivates me.

Name the top two destinations on your bucket list.

I was extremely lucky to cross one of these off my list last year when I honeymooned in Rome. It is such a wonderful place to discover and eat your way through!
I’d love to travel around more of Italy in the future. I fell in love with Italy years ago from seeing it on the screen. It did not fail to live up to my expectations in real life.
I have wanted to go to Australia since the ‘80s days of Neighbours. I was a huge Kylie Minogue fan back in the day!
I’d love to visit Oz in the future. I even thought about moving there in the past, possibly to stalk Kylie. I’m sure Australia and Kylie are thankful that I didn’t.
Kylie is safe now. I’m over my fandom. Australia? Not so much.

And lastly, you’re planning to get away from it all for a year on a desert island. What four things would you take with you and why?

Do the Husband and cat count as ‘things’? If so I guess they’ve just taken up two of my list. I couldn’t live without them.
The Husband is so encouraging of everything I do, even when I make humongous mistakes. He also makes amazing dinners out of all the bits he finds in the food cupboards, so we’d be okay for meals!
Feegle, the cat (named after Terry Pratchett’s Nac Mac Feegles) is a given. I caved in and got a cat because it’s apparently writer law and I was jealous of all the cat pics on social media.
The next item would be a pen and notebook. I’m counting those as one as they go together, and frankly, I’m cheeky like that.
I would need to write, I’ve written journals since I was a child. Although I do wonder how exciting this journal would be: ‘Dear Diary, The sun is hot, the sea is wet and the sand is, well, sandy.’
My bookcase full of my favourite books is a must. I cannot live without my books! I’m not sure if I’m allowed a Kindle due to possible lack of electricity. Even if I could power it up, I’d still plump for the physical books.
I am old school. I delight in the feel of a book, with its delicious bookish smells, textured pages, and words spilling out across my hands. There’s nothing quite like it.

Social Media Links
Blog, ‘Reader I Wrote It’: https://www.lisasell.co.uk/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/lisasellwriter/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LisaLisax31
Pinterest: https://uk.pinterest.com/lisasellwriter/

Author Bio
Lisa Sell is a fiction writer and blogger. When not wrestling with words she can be found showing the love for chocolate, cheese, coffee, the cat, and the Husband. Not particularly in that order.

As we hover on the brink of 2017, I’m back, as promised, with the second of my festive posts.  It’s currently 3.45 pm and Thunderbirds are Go for this evening’s meal.  I think when I posted on FB yesterday about my virus it might have appeared I was worse than I really am.  It’s still there but in a very minor form and today happily it’s continuing to improve.  If I had to describe it, it’s a bit like a sticky toffee paper on the bottom of your shoe – difficult to get rid of. The antibiotics were, in the words of the GP, ‘a safety net in case it should get worse’.  Luckily I woke up this morning to find it’s still heading for the door so I haven’t been to the pharmacist today to collect my medication.  I’m actually feeling quite buzzy and looking forward to meeting up with friends to see in the New Year.

Looking back I’ve been thinking about some of my memorable milestones in 2016.

• First my eye op which meant as far as my left eye was concerned it was no longer like looking through the bottom of a milk bottle!
• Meeting up with my baby sister after many years.  I’ve a complex family history – a father killed in an accident, a mother who remarried and raised two more children…and a stepfather who thought education was wasted on women – yes you love him already don’t you? As I grew older life became more difficult and I eventually left home when I was 18. My sister was only ten years old.  I had run into her on occasions over the years but when I walked into a restaurant back in the summer and there she was having lunch with her husband, I decided it was a ‘meant to be’ moment.  Of course, we’ve a lot of catching up to do but it’s a feel good situation and one which I hope will only get better.
• Publishing Watercolours in the Rain.  I honestly thought I would never get there.  Hand on heart there were several moments when I wanted to throw the whole thing in the bin. And it wasn’t artistic temperament that triggered this feeling. The first draft went like a breeze and then I simply hit a brick wall.  I found things I didn’t like, things that didn’t work, but no matter how long I spent, it simply wouldn’t come right.  In the end I told myself I hadn’t put in a lot of hard work in front of the PC and typed up 105,000 words simply to walk away.  But walk away I did – only for a short time though – and when I came back I could see exactly what I needed to do to fix it.  Working on this improved draft with my editor Elaine Denning, I eventually got the book I wanted.  And the icing on the cake?  Jane Dixon Smith’s wonderful cover. I had definite ideas how I wanted it to look.  I’d sent her sample photos and she sent some of her own ideas back.  Then this one shot arrived and that was it…it was perfect!

Holidaying abroad with my OH on our own.  Yes I know this sounds absolutely crazy but until last September we hadn’t been abroad on our own since 1982!  Although we regularly take some of our UK holidays alone, without exception we have always gone abroad with friends.  This was to be the last of our 2016 holidays – a week in Desenzano on Lake Garda in September. However a month before we were due to fly out our friend had to have surgery and sadly  wasn’t fit to travel.  So the travel agent was advised and the booking changed to two. Taxi pick up and flight were fine (apart from leaving the house at 4am in the morning to get to the airport) but when we arrived in Verona we discovered they had cancelled the private hire to take us to the resort hotel.  The reps were very busy with incoming flights; getting people onto coaches, arranging self drive or like us, a taxi but thankfully it didn’t take long before we were on our way again.  The hotel was amazing. The food, the service, the accommodation – everything was fabulous.  Maybe we didn’t do the same things we would have if four of us had been there (and we did miss our friends) but we met a lot of great people in the week we were there and had a fabulous holiday.

And now here we are with 2017 just around the corner. A new year which will no doubt come with lots of challenges and surprises. For me, my next big event will be starting on the new book next week.  This time I’m over the border in North Cornwall with new characters Jordan and Luke to keep me company.  Exciting times!

I’ll be back with Tuesday Talk on the 3rd of January.  In the meantime…

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

There’s always a bit of a guilty moment whenever I hear John Lennon utter those words ‘So this is Christmas and what have you done…’  It automatically makes me reflect on the year and ask myself the question – yes, what have I done?

This year certainly has sped by.  Now we haven’t exactly lived out of suitcases but we made it  a New Year’s resolution at the end of 2015 to spend more time away in 2016.  This time last year we had three separate weeks’ holiday booked and several mid-week breaks lined up.  We were very optimistic that out of our selection we’d have some good weather.  And on our UK holidays we might actually get to sit outside not only for lunch but during the evening as well. Unfortunately as far as this country is concerned we are totally under the influence of the Jet Stream. If it settles itself in the north it’s a sign we’re in for a run of good weather.  If it’s south of us then we’ve got problems.  And that’s exactly what it did for most of 2016. So it was very much a year of dodging the rain and keeping fingers crossed when we did hit on a sunny day that it would maybe last. Here’s a look back in pictures of the sunshine and the shadow moments of 2016…

SIDMOUTH

LONE SURFER

ROUGH SEAS

FEBRUARY – SIDMOUTH, DEVON

Greenwich with Canary Wharf in the background

The Cutty Sark

Greenwich Park

MARCH – GREENWICH, LONDON

Richmond

Hot House, Kew

Hampton Court

APRIL – RICHMOND

Grey Skies on Bodmin Moor

Fowey – with sun

Fowey – with fog

MAY – FOWEY, CORNWALL

Burgh Island

Dartmouth

Blackpool Sands

JUNE – SALCOMBE, SOUTH DEVON

Liverpool & the Liver Building (right)

Liverpool Docks

Beatles Museum

JULY – LIVERPOOL

DESENZANO

HOTEL VILLA ROSA

ON THE LAST DAY – RAIN!

SEPTEMBER – DESENZANO, LAKE GARDA, ITALY

Of course holidays and the accompanying photography were just part of this year’s activities. Reading, writing and reviewing take up another big part of my life.  Here I exceeded my target on my Reading Challenge with Goodreads – 52 books read and reviewed.  I had a full diary of guests on my Tuesday Talk…and, of course, I published Watercolours in the Rain, the sequel to Summer Moved On.

So what’s in store for 2017?  Well, I’ll be back in the run up to the New Year to let you know.

Have a wonderful Christmas everyone…

Good morning Laurie and welcome. Can I start, as always, by asking you a little about yourself?

Hi Jo. Thanks for having me on your blog today. I love meeting fellow authors and bloggers.

A little about me… well I love writing and reading novels (although I guess that’s a given :-)). I live with my hubby on the borders between Suffolk and Essex in a lovely quiet village where our two children – Tommy (6) and Lottie (5) – go to school.

I’m one of those annoying people who loves running. I drink far too much coffee and wine, and eat lots of chocolate too. The best days for me combine running, coffee, writing, and chocolate.

I have a degree in Psychology and a background in Public Relations (although both feel like a long time ago now).

How did you begin your writing career?

Like so many authors I started writing stories when I was very young. I remember writing a lot about orphans and children who could fly. I was lucky to have a very encouraging teacher when I was 8 who patiently read my stories and gave me feedback (Mrs Noakes, Love Lane Primary).
I wrote my first novel when I was 23. It was terrible. Truly awful, and thankfully never saw the light of day. I wrote The Reluctant Celebrity when I was 24, but it got put in a drawer for quite a few years whilst I was busy being a mum to a baby and a toddler. About three years ago I had a very strange morning when both kids were at preschool and I had nothing to do. I went into the loft, dusted the manuscript off and rewrote it. I haven’t stopped writing since. I’m now 33 and despite it being ten years since I first went to PC world and bought myself a laptop to write with, I feel very much at the start of my journey as an author. I love how I seem to learn something new about the craft every day.

What made you choose Contemporary Romance?

I’m not sure if I chose it, or it chose me. The best way I can describe where my ideas come from is ‘a knock at the door.’ I open the door and there are my characters, bundling into my little writing room to tell me their story. With Jules and Guy(The Reluctant Celebrity) and Katy and Tom (How to Throw Your Life Away), their stories involved romance. The more recent knocks haven’t.

I do love the scope of Contemporary Romance. The best stories for me are ones that make me laugh, cry, and think. Contemporary Romance is a genre which is broad enough for all three to appear in the same novel.

Can you tell us something about your current WIP?

I’ve just this week finished my latest WIP. I’ve titled it The Stranger on the Boat (although this may change somewhere down the line.). It’s much darker than anything I’ve written before. Here’s a peak at part of the blurb:

‘My name is Abigail Rose Wick. My parents are Sarah and Michael Wick. And I’ve been missing for fourteen years.’
A missing girl returns unharmed. A family torn apart by tragedy begin to heal. But strange things begin to happen to the Wick family….

What’s your favourite holiday destination and why?

I love UK holidays, and I’ve had some wonderful holidays in Jersey and Ireland. If it’s a nice cottage, if there’s space for the kids to run around, if it has a pool nearby, and I don’t have to cook, then it’s a winner with me.

And lastly, if How to Throw Your Life Away was being made into a movie, who would you cast?

I love this question!!!
The first thing I do when I picture my characters is find a photo of someone who looks like them. I stick the photos in my WIP binder and look at them every day.
For me, Katy is played by Keira Knightly, and Tom is played by Damian Lewis. They actually starred together in a play once. This is the photo of the two of them that I looked at every day….

Thanks again for having me!!!!

Social media links:

Facebook: Laurie Ellingham Author
https://www.facebook.com/Laurie-Ellingham-Author-281498025371642/
Twitter: @LaurieEllingham
Webiste: http://www.Laurie-ellingham.com

PURCHASE LINK: How to Throw Your Life Away on Amazon: http://amzn.to/2h2gVjj

2016. Where has it gone?  It’s almost like standing at the side of the road watching Roadrunner accelerate past.  But if the time has gone quickly when I actually stop and think about it I realise I haven’t exactly been sitting around doing nothing.   On checking, I’ve read and reviewed 32 books, most of them for Brook Cottage Books.  I’ve also been involved in 27 promotions for authors.  In between that my weekly blog chat spot ‘Tuesday Talk’ has hosted 37 guests with future bookings running through to March ’17. And this is only one aspect of my life.

In between this, I’ve written and published another book and taken a few holidays and mid week breaks.  That  balance, for me, has been just right.  You can overdose on both the reviewing and the writing if you’re not careful.  Therefore not only taking time out but being away from home gives you the opportunity to escape for a while and recharge those very essential batteries.  Of course a writer never really leaves their work behind and new places can very often lead to fresh ideas and changes to your current WIP. Certainly Desenzano on Lake Garda proved a great place for inspiration. So it’s a win-win situation.On 20th December I host my last Tuesday Talk for 2016.  I’ll then be able to concentrate properly on the Festive Season.  To see friends for lunch, make sure all those names have been crossed of my ‘To Buy’ present list, sort out food for the holiday and – if there’s any time left – get everything ready to make a start on my WIP The Boys of Summer.

I did make a beginning of sorts of around 1,000 words some time back but soon realised unlike most of my writing this wasn’t going to be a ‘seat of the pants’ job.  Yes I do tend to stick with the same formula – get the framework of the story sorted, work out my character bios and get on the road.  This time, however, the story which is currently marinating in my head has taken longer to come together.  That’s probably because I’m  not writing something which goes from A to B.  Instead it will be set in two different time frames – 2013 and 2016.  Another challenge but that’s what I love about writing. Every journey is different.

And to get in the festive spirit, from 10th to 16th December I’m offering the e-book version of Watercolours in the Rain for just 99p on Amazon.co.uk and 99c on Amazon.com.

Good morning Susan and welcome. Can I start, as always, by asking you a little about yourself?
Hi Jo, I’m what I would call a part time book blogger and a full time medical administrator with the local health board in Cardiff. I’ve been a passionate reader since I was a child and books have been my cwtches since that point. Other than reading, I love going to the theatre and pottering in my garden.

How long has your blog been running and what made you decide to start one?
My blog has been running since April this year. I started it because I needed a challenge outside of work. Books have always been a way to relax and I wanted to share my love of reading with others, while waking up a few sleepy brain cells at the same time. I didn’t really know that book bloggers existed until I joined an on-line book club and having read some amazing blogs wanted to give it a try.

Who are your favourite authors?
That is a difficult one to narrow down! I would say that Ben Aaaronvitch is a current favourite, his PC Grant book series is a must read for me. Robert Galbraith would have to be another, Cormoran Strike is the perfect detective, brooding, flawed and yet he has a strong moral aspect to his character. Tracy Chevalier writes perfect historical novels where characterisation is more important than drama. Deborah Harkness writes novels than manage to combine fantasy, contemporary drama and historical adventures, what more could a reader want. I know Madeline Miller has only written one novel, A Song for Achilles, but I will love her forever for bringing that book into my life.

If you decided to become a writer, what genre would you choose and why?
If I decided to become a writer, I think I would have to write fantasy. I love the freedom it gives you to explore worlds that only exist in your imagination. If you can imagine it, you can write it and the possibilities are endless.

Where’s your favourite chill out place?
That would have to be my garden if the weather is good or my bedroom, because these are the places I love to read.

And lastly, you’re inviting four celebrity guests to dinner. Who would they be and why?
My first guest would have to be John Partridge, West End Actor and former East Enders star. I’ve been lucky enough to meet him a few times. He never fails to make those around him feel they’re the centre of his world in that moment. He has an amazing sense of humour and gives the best cwtches.
My second guest would be J K Rowling. I love her passion of equality and fairness. Her tweets are fearless and her intelligence shines out.
Marc Elliott is another actor who has graced the West End stage and our TV screens. His sense of humour is naughty and dark and having acted with John Partridge on East Enders, they could regal us all with tales of a theatrical nature.
I’m struggling between the lovely Sue Perkins because she makes me laugh and the superb Tom Hiddleston, who portrayed the perfect Loki on screen as my last guest. If I’m to keep the balance between female and male guests, it would have to be Sue Perkins, but I would probably just squeeze an extra place setting around the table!

Susan’s Social Media Links

Blog: https://booksaremycwtches.wordpress.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Walescrazy?s=0

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‘A writer is not a hermit who writes alone in a cabin in the woods, emerging with an amazing story after a period of time.  No, a writer is a human being who needs others to help bring forth her story and share it with the world.‘ Morgan L Busse

I discovered the above text while  browsing on the internet recently.  At first read it seemed it was all about readers and reviewers.  A writer needs people to read her work; to spread the word.  A sort of domino effect which leads to new readers, reviews, interviews, questions about the next book and maybe if they’re curious enough, a check up on any back listed novels.  And then I realised that readers are only one part of the equation in a writer’s life.  Because in order to ‘bring forth’ that story to the public, a small team of other very important people need to be involved. Incredibly important people in fact – an editor, cover designer and formatter.

• My editor takes the draft I have written, pummeled into shape and beaten with a stick and works with me to make it even better.
• My cover designer helps make the vision I have for fronting this book a reality
• And lastly my formatter, who sets up the e-book and paperback – that final and most essential job leading up to publication day.

So I would just like to send a big thank you to Elaine, Jane, Cat and Rebecca for the all the support they’ve given me in the past. I couldn’t have done any of this without them and  I’m very much looking forward to 2017 when we will all be working together again on my next book.

Good morning Jennifer and welcome. Can I start, as always, by asking you a little about yourself?

Thanks for having me, Jo! I’m a long-time expat, an American who’s been living in the Netherlands since 2004, and the author of two novels, Down and Out in Kathmandu: Adventures in Backpacking and The Lover’s Portrait: An Art Mystery.
In America I worked as a journalist and multimedia developer until massive burnout lead me to quit my job, buy a backpack and head off to Nepal as a volunteer English teacher for three months. As cliché as it might sound, this trip ended up being a life-changing experience.
After several years on the road, I moved to the Netherlands. I ended up here by pure chance. After a 24 hour layover in Rome turned into a two-month tour of Europe, I arrived in Amsterdam on Queen’s Day and immediately feel in love with the city, country, culture and people. Several months of paperwork later, I returned to Amsterdam to study art history and never left!
After completing degrees in art history and museum studies, I worked for several museums before the economy crashed and the cultural sector imploded.
While apply for jobs, I wrote my first novel as a way of keeping my mind occupied. Writing about my adventures in Nepal and Thailand also helped curtail my wanderlust! I finished it between contracts, but never pursued publication.
After my son was born, I had the luxury of staying home to raise him. Writing became a way to connect with ‘grownup’ life, and gave me an excuse to visit several museums and archives I’d always wanted to check out. The Lover’s Portrait was so well-received by everyone who read it, I decided to publish both of my books and see what happened. I’ve been absolutely blown away by the overwhelmingly positive reception so far!

When did you first decide you wanted to write and how did you begin that journey?

I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember, though in my younger years I focused on poetry and short stories. One of my favorite childhood memories is of my father and me thinking up storylines together. During college I majored in journalism and worked as a columnist, investigative journalist and newspaper editor before life took me in other directions.

Have you a favorite place to write?

There are a few small cafes in Amsterdam I love to go to when I get the chance. I’m not sure if it’s the friendly personnel, beautiful views of the canals or great background music, but I always find it easy to write when I’m there.

Can you tell us something about your current WIP?

I have two upcoming releases I’d like to share.
In January I’ll be releasing a travelogue about my real journey to Nepal and Thailand, Notes of a Naive Traveler: Adventures in Nepal and Thailand. Since Down and Out in Kathmandu’s publication, I’ve been surprised by the number of readers who want to know which of the events described in my debut novel really took place. Very few, I’m afraid! Now everyone will have a chance to read about my actual journey and experiences gained while volunteer in, and traveling around Nepal and Thailand. I’ve also included several photos of places I’d visited, many of which were destroyed in the massive earthquake that rocked Nepal in 2015.
Last week I finished the first draft of my third fiction novel, an art-related mystery set in Amsterdam and Papua New Guinea about bispoles (religious objects akin to totem poles), American anthropologists, and Dutch missionaries. I’m planning on releasing it in the summer of 2017.

You’ve done a lot of travelling. Is there any one place which has been really memorable for you?

It’s true; I’m addicted to traveling and love learning about other countries and cultures. I’ve spent a total of seven years living out of a backpack while traveling through more than thirty lands.
Nepal was the first country I visited, aside from day trips to border towns in Canada and Mexico. It couldn’t have been more different than Seattle. The amazing people, cultures, and religions made it so memorable; Nepal will always have a special place in my heart. Simply thinking back on all of the wonderful people I met – their resilience, kindness, love of life and ability to be truly happy when they possess so little – is humbling and constantly reminds me to enjoy what I have.

And lastly, if you were able to invite four guests to dinner, who would they be and why?

Amelia Earhart is someone I’ve always admired because she dared to follow her dreams and live the life she wanted, despite society’s expectations of women at the time. I imagine it would be fascinating to talk with her about her journeys.
A guilty pleasure is watching a clips show called Ridiculousness. I’m a huge fan; it’s my favorite way of turning off my brain and completely relaxing before going to bed. The host, Rob Dydrek, is the kind of guy who’s met and partied with pretty much everybody; I bet he would have some great stories to tell.
Herman Koch, a Dutch comic and author of The Dinner (Het Diner), always comes across as an interesting, funny and well-read man in interviews. I expect it would be a stimulating conversation.
Alex Garland, author of The Beach, would also be high on my list. His debut novel blew my mind, and those of many of my generation. Thanks to books like his, I dared to write Down and Out in Kathmandu. I bet we could have fun swapping travel stories.

CATCH UP WITH JENNIFER ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Website: http://www.jennifersalderson.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JSAauthor

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/JennifeSAlderson

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jsaauthor/

JENNIFER’S BOOK LINKS

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jennifer-S.-Alderson/e/B019H079RA/

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/nl/en/search?query=Jennifer%20S.%20Alderson&fcsearchfield=Author

iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/nl/author/jennifer-s.-alderson/id1071483428?l=en&mt=11

BARNES & NOBLE: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/%22Jennifer%20S.%20Alderson%22?Ntk=P_key_Contributor_List&Ns=P_Sales_Rank&Ntx=mode+matchall