Special Guest Interview With Author Dr Julia Ibbotson

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US

When Dr Viv DuLac, a medievalist and academic, slips into 499 AD and into the body of Lady Vivianne, little does she realise that their lives across the centuries will become intertwined as they fight for their dreams…and their lives.

I'm pleased to welcome Dr Julia Ibbotson to The Writing Desk"

Tell us about your latest book

I do a lot of research before I write each book and they all arise from a passion I have at the time. I love to turn current thought on its head! My last novel, A Shape on the Air, published by Endeavour, is a historical (early medieval) time slip, set in England in the present day and the post-Roman/pre-Anglo-Saxon era (499 AD). As you can see, I’m not calling this period  the ‘dark ages’ which has been our default term. For too long we have accepted the notion that the Romans left Britain suddenly in 410 AD and the country collapsed into ruin and barbarism (‘dark days’), before the good old Anglo-Saxons invaded and rebuilt civilisation. Now we prefer to call it the ‘late antique’/’early medieval’ period. 

The only darkness, in my view and from my own research (upheld increasingly by current research and thinking), is the paucity of enlightening hard evidence in records, documents and archaeological artefacts. But evidence is being rooted out and ideas are changing. And I wanted my novel, A Shape on the Air, to reflect the notion that this time (5th into 6th centuries) was a time of continuing civilisation and culture, and more gradual, peaceful change and evolution (cf Prof Oosthuizen  2019).  So the setting is of a relatively settled village, albeit with internal tensions, in the midlands of England, the main external threat being from the incursions of the Picts from the north. 

How did you use your research in your book?

I depict the world of the late 5th century as rich with cultural and religious artefacts, and intermarriage between Romans, Britons, Celts and Saxons, although at times fraught with dispute. The main conflict is between Sir Pelleas (a Saxon pagan), who is adopted by Sir Tristram (a Romano-Briton), succeeding him as chief of the settlement, and Tristram’s daughter Lady Vivianne, a Christian.  

In my story, the inter-marriage of Lady Vivianne’s parents (her mother is also a pagan but Celtic-Briton) intermingled Christian values and rites with more magical ancient deism. Bringing in to my tale the magical ‘king’ Arthur (Arturius), as a mystical Welsh Celtic leader of this time with Roman connections, as well as a legendary figure of literature, also signifies the mingling of cultures and beliefs. And adds a bit of magic (and why not? Even historic novelists are entitled to creative imagination)!

A Shape on the Air is also a love story across time as medievalist Dr Viv DuLac’s life becomes intertwined with that of Lady Vivianne, and the strapline is ‘unlocking a love that lasts for lifetimes … and beyond.’  “In the best Barbrara Erskine tradition … I would highly recommend this novel” (Historical Novel Society)

Are you writing a sequel to this novel?

Yes, my WIP is a sequel using the same main protagonists: medievalist Dr Viv and local priest Rev Rory, who suffer a tragedy and are sent on secondment to Holy Trinity church in Funchal, Madeira, partly to recover. Dr Viv must lay the ghosts of two women from the 14th and 16th centuries in a quest to unite two special artefacts before she and the island can find peace. One of the artefacts is from the beginning of time. But time itself is running out …It’s a bitter sweet love story across time, and the working title (currently!) is The Dragon Tree. Or it might be Azulejo! We’ll see! It’s due next year. It’s a bit of a ‘tour de force’, so I’m working hard.

What would you say are your author USPs?

My ‘author brand’, I guess, revolves around the historical, especially early medieval/Anglo-Saxon periods, and I like to turn the so-called ‘dark ages’ idea on its head, as I outline above. I also enjoy exploring the role of women in history, their positions of power in daily life and in community life, which is often overlooked. And because I am fascinated by concepts of time, the time slip. I like to play around with ideas of quantum mechanics (space-time portals) – those interconnections between times. All these come into play in both A Shape on the Air and The Dragon Tree.

What is your writing routine and where do you write?

I’d love to say I write a sacred 9-12 and 2-5, but it doesn’t always work out like that! I’m required by my publisher to be fairly active on social media and I also do a lot of research for my books, so I tend to get distracted. I also have a busy life outside of writing. Let’s just say that I try to work systematically and regularly. 

Having had a very hectic professional life in a demanding area of education, as an academic, when I moved into fulltime writing I found that I wanted to be more flexible. I tend to do my research in the summer months when I can read outside and I get down to writing the book in the winter-time. 

I have a dedicated study but I also have a second desk in our conservatory so that I can feel in touch with the outdoors. 

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

I’m a member of the Society of Authors, the Historical Novel Society and the Romantic Novelists Association. They all have active inspiring social media presence and real-life presence too, and are very supportive in promoting each other’s work. My publisher has won BookBub deals for me and that has been successful in terms of sales and raising my profile. I do book blog tours and contribute to people’s blogs (like this one, thank you, Tony!). Talks at organisations like the WI and at local libraries and suchlike are also helpful. 

I’ve now published 6 books so I have to see that I promote them all in turn, and in the appropriate locations.

What advice do you have for new writers?

I guess everyone would have to say: believe in yourself and don’t give up. We all have our rejections and nasty reviews; it goes with the territory, horrid as it may be. But I’d also say: establish a support network. Join author organisations, online and face to face, in whichever genre you write. Although the RNA is a little tenuous for my genre (or cross genre!), they are a great all-embracing, supportive, encouraging and inspiring organisation, and meet in real life as well as online. 

Attend conferences, have 1:1s with agents and publishers to explore the field and its requirements. Write every day, even if it’s only 500 words. Read publications like Writers Magazine. Learn as much as you can from other writers. It’s a craft, not only a natural flair – although this undoubtedly helps!

Dr Julia Ibbotson 

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About the Author

Acclaimed, award-winning author Dr Julia Ibbotson is fascinated by the medieval world and concepts of time travel. She read English at Keele University, England (after a turbulent but exciting gap year in Ghana, West Africa) specialising in medieval language, literature and history, and has a PhD in socio-linguistics. She wrote her first novel at 10 years of age, but became a school teacher, then an academic as a senior university lecturer and researcher. As well as medieval time-slip, she has published a number of books, including memoir (The Old Rectory), children’s medieval fantasy (S.C.A.R.S), a trilogy opening in 1960s Ghana (Drumbeats), and many academic works. Apart from insatiable reading, she loves travelling the world, singing in choirs, swimming, yoga and walking in the countryside in England and Madeira where she and her husband divide their time. Find out more at www.juliaibbotsonauthor.com and find Julia on Facebook and Twitter @JuliaIbbotson

Special Guest Interview with Clare Rhoden, Author of The Stars in the Night

Available of Amazon UK and Amazon US

Harry Fletcher is a confident young man, sure that he will marry Nora, no matter what their families say. He will always protect Eddie, the boy his father saved from the gutters of Port Adelaide. Only the War to End All Wars might get in the way of Harry’s plans…

I'm pleased to welcome Australian author Clare Rhoden to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book

My Great War novel was published earlier this year. It’s unashamedly Australian and based partly on my own family’s arrival in Port Adelaide in January 1914, but mostly on my research into Australian WWI literature.

What is your preferred writing routine?

Anytime the dog is asleep, LOL! Luckily I’m a person who doesn’t need a strong routine – I always think that any spare ten minutes is enough time for at least one sentence. “I can’t do everything, but I can always do something” is my motto. I’m best in the morning, and I prefer to keep writing and editing separate. I write first – anything that comes along – and I edit another time.

What advice do you have for new writers?

I believe the basis of good writing is lots of reading. Written language is a particular dialect that you need to become fluent in, using your own voice. So the first step is to read.  Then, if you want to write, go and write. Write whenever you can, no matter the (perceived) quality or whether you write yourself into a corner and then have to find a way out. It will come.  Remember, nobody else can write YOUR novel…whereas anybody else can watch the TV ads or do the dishes/cleaning/whatever…

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

Oh. So we need to talk about the Holy Grail: how to make readers aware of your books. Marketing is a mystery to me. I don’t really understand its ways. With that in mind, here are my suggestions.

My #1 Tip: I decided to enter as many competitions as I can: literary competitions for The Stars in the Night, and speculative fiction competitions for my sci-fi series The Chronicles of the Pale. It costs money to enter, and you need to send a handful of copies to each contest (more $$$s), but then again, the judges HAVE to read something of your book. At the very least, they will see the title. Spending money on online ads doesn’t give me any confidence that someone will look at them.

My #2 Tip: I also visit local libraries and talk to them about my books. I’ve had mostly good responses and good reader feedback from library patrons.

My #3 Tip: I try to be very active in the #WritingCommunity. I love interviewing other authors on my blog; I review books for my own website and for Aurealis Magazine; I do my best to support fellow writers. I’m with a small indie publisher and we have a nice little family of authors. I’ve also joined my state and national writers’ associations to keep connected.

My #4 Tip: (stop me if I’m going on too long!): Keep churning out short stories and flash fiction, and keep submitting. I think it keeps your writing fluid and puts your work in front of relevant people.

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

I was surprised to discover that metal helmets (the Brodie helmets) weren’t introduced until the start of 1916. Imagine! The Australians at Gallipoli in 1915, and the British on the Western Front during 1914 and 1915, only had their slouch hats, bonnets or caps to protect their heads. So many novels, movies and illustrations mistakenly put helmets on WWI soldiers in the first two years.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

As The Stars in the Night is a novel that takes us from 1915 until 1970, and covers two wars, we can expect quite a bit of sadness. I struggled most (and I think I’ve done it) to show Harry at the side of his best friend in a death scene. I wanted to show the strength of the love between the two men without any mawkishness, melodrama, or overstatement. I had to channel the stoicism and laconic speech of the Aussie bloke, all the while tugging at the reader’s heartstrings. 

I still cry when I read over that scene.

What are you planning to write next?

The final book of my sci-fi trilogy is being launched next month (November 2019), and completes a dystopian tale of humachines, tribesfolk, and the canini (genetically modified talking dogs). I also have a Young Adult fantasy in the pipeline for 2021. That involves kidnapping, witness protection, and magic cats.  However at the moment I am writing a cosy mystery for older readers. The sleuth is a woman in her sixties with a pet poodle-X-wolfhound called Violet. There are murders and there is mystery, and I actually know who the villain is, which is a great relief.

Clare Rhoden

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About the Author

Clare Rhoden is based on Melbourne Australia and completed her PhD in Australian Great War literature in 2011 (her academic book, The Purpose of Futility, is available from UWAP Scholarly Press). She writes novels with heart and soul, based on love and hope in dark times. If you like to read historical fiction, sci-fi, fantasy and/or mystery, you will find something to enjoy in Clare’s books. Find out more at Clare's website https://clarerhoden.com/ and find her on Facebook and Twitter @ClareER 

Special Guest Interview with Danielle Calloway, Author of The Lost Child

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US

Nicolás is a deaf boy on the run and trying to survive in a dangerous hearing world. Lily moves to Ecuador from the US to teach the deaf, full of uncertainties and trying to adjust, she meets Nicolás. 
Now Lily must gain his trust to save him.

I'm pleased to welcome author Danielle Calloway to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book

“The Lost Child” is based on a true story. Eight years old, deaf, and abused, Nicolas runs away and lives on the streets of Ecuador, South America. Four years running and hiding from dangers, he braved the streets while looking for a loving family to let him be their little boy. A Child Services police officer, Antonio Morales, using his vacation time and own money, scoured the country trying to find information about Nicolas, and, most importantly, finding Nicolas to keep him safe and to place him in a loving home.

In the meantime, Lily, a volunteer from the United States, and Nicolas crossed paths. Safe in Lily’s home, Lily must find a way to get Nicolas to trust her enough to open up. Lily and Officer Morales now have a timeline: find a way for Nicolas to trust them enough to tell them what they need to know so they can find a home for him, otherwise the state would lock him up in an institution.

What is your preferred writing routine?

In order to fully open my creative side, I need to limit my distractions. My writing desk is bare, with only a picture of my Dad and his wife, who are my greatest supporters, and a cup of coffee or tea.

In the late afternoon or evening, after my to-do list is done and my schedule cleared, I can concentrate on writing. I work best with an uncluttered mind. Relaxed, I delve into my creative world and my fingers fly over the keyboard. My dog, Harley Davidson, usually lays on my lap, creating a nice, fuzzy and warm arm rest as I type.

What advice do you have for new writers?

My Dad gave me the best advice, “Write, just write. Don’t go back and edit what you’ve written until you’re done with the first draft. Make notes, if you must, about parts you need to fix, but don’t edit. Because, if you are constantly going back, you won’t go forward, and you will disrupt your creative flow.”  Following his advice made all the difference.

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

I’m still trying to figure that one out, this is all very new to me. Any advice is warmly accepted.

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

Ten years had passed since Officer Morales and Child Services here in Manta had contact with Nicolas. Over the years many children had passed in and out of the system, they’ve saved many children from kidnappers, abusers, and abusive homes. 

Yet, when I went to their offices to gather more information about Nicolas, they immediately remembered him with fondness and smiles, asking how he was doing. Everyone I contacted remembered him, even after all those years. That’s how special little Nicolas was, that’s how much he touched people’s hearts with his innocence and wanting to love and be loved.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

The Lost Child is not only based on a true story, it is a story I was very much a part of. A lot of the scenes I wrote while crying. The hardest scene to write, however, was the day Nicolas spilt milk and begged me to beat him. 

Curling up on the floor in a fetal position, he waited for me to hit and kick him. When I wouldn’t, he begged even harder, “Just beat me and get it over with so I can drink my milk.” It still breaks my heart to remember his pleading eyes, full of pain at the thought of me, his new friend, hurting him.  My heart twisted in pain, realizing he not only blamed himself for the abuse he’d received, he also truly believed he was unlovable.

Reasoning with him I saw his expressive eyes and face slowly grasping the truth: although deaf and a little boy, he deserved love and deserved to be treated with kindness, dignity, and respect.  He then signed, “Thank you for not beating me,” and hugged me tightly, crying. At that moment he started to trust again, moving him to later open up, allowing me to see his true inner beauty.

Every time I edited that scene, I needed a box of tissues at my side. Even now, thinking about it, brings tears and sniffles from me.

What are you planning to write next?

I’m currently working on the second draft of To Hold a Rainbow, about three sisters driven apart in their childhood by their mother’s psychological torment. Now, in their adult life they start sifting through the lies to find the truth about themselves. Will this truth drive them further apart or closer together? Will they ever be sisters?

Danielle Calloway

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About the Author

Danielle Calloway, a San Francisco Bay Area native, made a permanent move to Ecuador, South America, in 1997 as a volunteer worker, to teach the deaf. Until becoming disabled with rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia, she experienced many adventures: visits to the rainforest, the Galapagos Islands, wading with white-tipped sharks, surfing, and horses, to mention a few. She continues to teach the deaf and their families as she enjoys the little things life offers. Danielle is currently working on a new novel, “To Hold a Rainbow” and two Sci-Fi chapter books for young readers. You can find Danielle on Twitter @AuthorCalloway

Special Guest Interview with Author Janet Roger

New on Amazon UK and Amazon US

Two candles flaring at a Christmas crib. A nurse who steps inside a church to light them. A gunshot emptied in a man’s head in the creaking stillness before dawn, that the nurse says she didn’t hear.

It’s 1947 in the snowbound, war-scarred City of London, where Pandora’s Box just got opened in the ruins, City Police has a vice killing on its hands, and a spooked councilor hires a shamus to help spare his blushes. Like the Buddha says, everything is connected. So it all can be explained. But that’s a little cryptic when you happen to be the shamus, and you’re standing over a corpse.

I'm pleased to welcome historical fiction author Janet Roger to The Writing Desk. Tell us about your new book, Shamus Dust.

Well, I thought, what about letting someone else do that, and look at how the book’s first reviewers recapped the storyline? It’s been really interesting to see the initial reactions. Here’s one that I think nails it, and in a record few words: Imagine Polanski's masterpiece, Chinatown played out against the bomb sites and grimy alleys of a freezing 1947 London.

I really hadn’t thought about the parallels before, but on reflection they’re spot on. Like Chinatown, Shamus Dust unfolds as a dark tale driven by greed and the sense of impunity of the powerful. Both are stories of deviant wealth and civic corruption at the highest level. Both involve criminal sexuality. Both descend into routine murder for the cover-up, and both are told as an intimate noir mystery that unravels through the eyes of the gumshoe who’s on the case. You can read the full review and lots of others on my website.

What is your preferred writing routine?

An admission. I have a mortal terror of routine in all things. It drives me completely nuts. I’m an itinerant of long standing, so writing - like everything else - gets done on the hoof wherever I happen to be. Also in the expectation that I’ll want to be somewhere else very soon. There, got that off my chest! But please don’t imagine that I don’t take writing seriously. I do. I tend to be very serious about the things I give my time to. The other side of that coin is learning to let the less important things go hang.

What advice do you have for new writers?

I really wouldn’t presume, except to say don’t take your writing (or yourself!) lightly. On the other hand, coming from me that’s more of a general prescription for life. So I’ll keep my own counsel, borrow from a title of Joan Didion’s and say, play it as it lays for you. After all, in the end what else is going to work? As well as tending to be serious about what interests me, I tend to be seriously pragmatic.

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

Can I adapt an old advertising saw about this? You’ll see clearly that - somehow - one half of the promotional effort expended on your book is working. You’ll just never know which half. At different times, Shamus Dust has kept three literary publicists slogging; on the whole it gets more five-star reviews than not; and for better or worse, anything you see on my website or Facebook or Twitter really does comes from me, myself, in person. What part of all that is best at raising awareness? I’d love you to tell me. For anyone who can, a fortune awaits.

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research.

It’s interesting, isn’t it, how the unexpected things are often the ones you remember? Shamus Dust plays out in London’s square mile of high finance called The City - Wall Street across the pond - in the early years of the Cold War. Hundreds of its acres, some of the most valuable on the planet, are still rubble after wartime bombing. City fortunes are staked on their reconstruction. Cue a story of racketeering, high-risk fraud, police collusion and a chain of murders. Much of that background is real enough. You’ll find it in accounts of the time. London was a dark, violent city in the postwar, a place where veterans who didn’t easily fit back in had been trained to handle a gun. That much I knew. But a feel for the times needs more.

Then quite by chance I found myself in Sydney, at a harborside film festival that called itself Brit Noir. On the program, twenty and more British-made movies, some even set in and around the City, that featured the disillusion, the dark side and the crime of exactly those years that interested me. The manners, the looks, the dress were up there onscreen; the accents, the idiom and the prejudices as their original audiences heard them. I still buy a ticket wherever they’re shown. A discovery? No kidding. Falling over those fabulous movies in Sydney? I couldn’t believe my luck.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

Good question. Many were quite tough, not so much in the doing but in the deciding to do. That’s to say that I find the hardest part - not always but often - can be deciding the scene. I mean the when and the how of it, who’s involved and where it’s headed. I have no time at all for scenes (my own or anyone else’s) that simply park the narrative, characters and setting to no purpose. Mostly, once a scene’s function is decided, the first draft seems to write fairly straightforwardly.

Of course there are exceptions, and my feeling is that when that happens, the chances are I’ve made a wrong call and better rethink from scratch. But I’d better answer your question. I’m tempted to say that the short intro on page one was on my mind for the longest time. Certainly it was a special joy when a recent review gave a sizable quote from it. See what you think. You can read the intro on my website or hear John Reilly narrate it. American listeners will likely recognize the voice.

What are you planning to write next?

I’m well on with a sequel to Shamus Dust called The Gumshoe’s Freestyle, set six months later in the City of London (of course), in the summer of ’48. Those immediate postwar years made interesting times. Freestyle ties up some loose ends, returns to some characters from the first story and develops with them.

Actually, there’s a connection planted toward the close of Shamus Dust, though you do have to know your Raymond Chandler pretty well to spot it. I liked the idea of some oblique, passing link between events that Newman (my shamus) and Marlowe will never know they shared an interest in. That said, Freestyle stands on its own and takes our private eye to an entirely new case. It’s been interesting to decide which characters to go back to, how fleeting or important they need to be, and of course, how to introduce them to a reader who doesn’t already know them from the earlier story.

Janet Roger

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About the Author

Janet is an historical fiction author, writing literary crime. She’s published by Troubador Publishing in the UK and represented by JKS Communications Literary Publicity in the USA. She trained in archaeology, history and Eng. Lit. and has a special interest in the early Cold War. Her debut novel, Shamus Dust: Hard Winter, Cold War, Cool Murder is due 28 October and is currently attracting widespread media interest. Find her reviews at https://www.janetroger.com/media and find Janet on Facebook and Twitter @janetroger

Guest Interview with Historical Fiction Author Margaret Skea

New on Amazon UK and Amazon US

I'm pleased to welcome author Margaret Skea to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book

Katharina: Fortitude is the story of one of the most controversial marriages of the early 16th century – that of the escaped nun, Katharina von Bora, to the reformer, Martin Luther. It was a sign of apostasy to Luther’s enemies and a source of consternation to his friends and sent shock waves across Europe, even Henry VIII of England publicly condemning them - but from an inauspicious beginning, it became a strong and successful relationship and a paradigm of clerical marriage, then and since.

What is your preferred writing routine?

I am a morning person, but not terribly disciplined, so I need to start my day’s writing first thing, or I probably won’t start at all. When I’m in the writing phase I aim to write c 1000 words per day. If I’m struggling, I don’t allow myself to give up until I’ve hit that target, but if I’m on a roll I keep going.

My passion is for authentic historical fiction which reflects the life and times my characters inhabited and so extensive research is vital. I ‘front-load’ my research, with the aim of writing as naturally about the 16th century as if I was writing about last week. When I’m unsure of something, I don’t stop to check during the writing phase, but type in red and my first editing process is to fact check the ‘red’ passages.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Whether you are naturally a ‘plotter’ - planning everything out in detail, or a ‘panster’ – allowing the story to evolve as you write, the key is to keep going, ideally writing something every day. Find a writing routine that suits you and stick to it. A first draft is just that – not a finished novel. Don’t expect it to be brilliant and don’t rush to get it out there. Editing is vital, but until you’ve written a draft, you’ve nothing to edit.

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

I’m not a natural marketer, so this aspect of self-publishing is difficult for me, but I’m trying to learn! I do however love meeting potential readers and so take every opportunity I can get to speak at events and festivals and recently have begun taking books to craft fairs.

I’ve found general craft fairs to be better than dedicated book fairs – although not everyone at the fair will be a reader, those that are aren’t faced with an array of books and authors to chose from, but only me! It’s good to target fairs where the visitors are likely to have an interest in your genre – so, for example, I go to a pop-up fair at a stately home, on the basis that visitors there are likely to have an interest in history. Works a treat!

Although my books are available to order in any UK bookshop via Gardners, I also look for outlets that are a little out of the ordinary – for example one of my best outlets is a coffee shop in the middle of nowhere, but on a tourist route, and they are great at selling sets of my Scottish trilogy to folk who think they’d better just buy them all at once in case they don’t find them easy to get elsewhere!

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

On the ground research is really important, even if just to experience landscape and terrain where nothing else of the period remains and so I went on a solo trip to Saxony to research Katharina. I drove 1000 miles, and visited every location that had a connection to her. It proved a challenge because I didn’t speak German and discovered that as part of former GDR most folk there didn’t speak English, their second language being Russian, but was a vital part of the research process.

While there I found answers to questions that I wouldn’t have known to ask, if I had just been armchair researching, and discovered details that I would definitely have got wrong. For example – in England in the 16th c the pattern of leaded glass in windows was either diamond-shaped or rectangular. In Saxony, by contrast, it is circular – no idea why as it must have been much more difficult to make, but it was a significant detail for me when describing patterns of light coming into rooms.

I already knew that songbirds were considered a delicacy, but one of the most surprising details of everyday life I discovered was that lures, in the form of whistles that replicated individual bird song, were given to children whose role was to attract the birds and enable them to be trapped.

Perhaps the two most surprising discoveries were 1) Martin Luther changed nappies- who’d have thought it? And 2) while sand clocks were still the most common form of timekeeping within a home, one of the reformers had a pocket watch, which looked very like those in vogue in the early 20th century!! And if you don’t believe me - you can see it in the Lutherhaus today.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

In all the books I have written the deaths of individual characters have been the hardest to write. Perhaps because they embed themselves so closely into my life that although they actually died some 450 years ago, their deaths feel like a personal loss. This book was no exception and (spoiler alert – she dies in the end) in the case of Katharina it was doubly hard because it comes at the end of the book and the final chapters are always hard, with the aim of finishing on a ‘high’ in terms of the writing, even if it’s a ‘low’ in terms of the plot.

What are you planning to write next?

Now that is a problem. I have various ideas all vying for attention – all of them historical – some would be, as before, tied closely to historical events, some would be much more fictional, although set in an historical context, and I honestly don’t know which will win out. I need to choose quickly though, because I don’t want my writing ‘muscle’ to get out of condition.

Margaret Skea

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About the Author

Margaret Skea grew up in Ulster at the height of the 'Troubles', but now lives with her husband in the Scottish Borders. You can find more details, including why chocolate is vital to her creative process, on her website www.margaretskea.com  and follow Magaret on Twitter @margaretskea1

Guest Interview with John Drake, Author of Traitor of Treasure Island

New on Amazon UK and Amazon US

I'm pleased to welcome author John Drake to The Writing Desk"

Tell us about your latest book.

My latest is Traitor of Treasure Island a book for adults, which pretends that Stevenson’s ‘Treasure Island’ was a pack of lies, mischievously written by Jim Hawkins: a thoroughly naughty boy who spent Sundays, not in church but among the whores of Bristol, and later grew into Sir James ‘Slippery Jim’ Hawkins, perpetual member of parliament for Trelawney West.

Thus my book reveals ‘the truth hidden for 170 years!’   as given in the journal of Dr Livesey, surgeon to the Treasure Island expedition. There’s romance, buried treasure, storm and adventure, deadly perils, John Silver’s beautiful wife Selena (once a plantation slave) and Long John himself revealed as a far better man than anyone ever knew.

What is your preferred writing routine?

I get up at 05.00 hours (yes, that’s 5 am) and I am at the computer, typing by 05.30.  Then I work non-stop apart from cups of tea, until 12.30. Then I devote the rest of the day to life.   I do that as routine.  What I do not do is wait for inspiration to fall upon me out of the clouds.  It’s a job.  It’s hard work,  but fortunately I love it.

What advice do you have for new writers?

First of all, good luck to you, God bless you and may you prosper.   Go for it heart, soul, mind and strength.   Write about what you know, which means either something from your own personal experience, or something that you have researched long and hard.

If you’re not writing from experience, then research is vital as the source of ideas, and the means by which you will never have to wonder what to write next.  Then add the values that you love, the things that move you to tears, the things that make you angry, and the things that make you laugh. Then, when you’ve finished the piece, set it aside for a week, and go back and polish it. Then do the same again until you know that it’s the best you can possibly deliver.  Do all that and never, never, never give up.

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

Honesty is not only morally righteous, but is invincible. So I have to admit that I have no ‘cunning plan, my Lord’ to raise awareness of my work.   But I do know that if a writer wants to be known to the reading public then he or she must be already famous, as some celebs are who chose to write.  If not, then someone must pay for an expensive publicity campaign with adverts on  TV, radio, busses, bill-boards, London Underground etc. There is no ‘yellow brick road’, or if there is I have never found it.

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

The fact that buried treasure is a nonsense.  It never happened.  Pirates were violent, young, feckless men who lived short, dangerous lives.  The famous Blackbeard, had a career of just eighteen months before the Royal Navy caught him and killed him.  So pirates did not plan for retirement and when they got money they blew it on women, drink, food, gambling and fun.

When the money ran out they went back to sea and got some more, until they got caught.  They did not plan for retirement.  They did not bury their treasure.  They did not leave maps.  So buried treasure is purely a fictional device, but a damn good one, and well done Robert Louis Stevenson for making it famous.

I can’t really answer that question, because I never worry over scenes in the way that the question supposes.   I think that this is because of the writing method that I use.  Thus I write historical adventure fiction, and do extensive research before I start writing.  This means that the only problem I get when writing is worrying how I can fit into each chapter, all the things that I want to say.  After that, the process of writing each scene is a craft work,  like that of a cooper making a barrel.   It’s a technical matter,  so I do not wring my hands in torment,  nor do I agonise over words, nor suffer for my art,  and then finally bugger off and make a cup of tea.  I just make the barrel.

What are you planning to write next?

How long have you got?  The ideas are queuing up in my mind with the characters shouting to be let out.  It could be any of the following: a young-adult book with elves, hobgoblins and a charismatic witch;  or a detective story in 1st Century Roman Britannia; or a Hornblower-style Georgian navy adventure;  or even science fiction.   If only I had the time because ars longa vita brevis: the art is long but life is short.

John Drake

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About the Author

John Drake trained as a biochemist to post-doctorate research level before realizing he was no good at science. His working career was in the television department of ICI until 1999 when he became a full-time writer. John's hobby is muzzle-loading shooting, and his interests are British history and British politics (as a spectator), plus newspapers, TV news, and current affairs. He is married with a son and two grandchildren. Find out more at https://www.fantasticfiction.com/d/john-drake/

Special Guest Interview with Author Pam Lecky

New on Amazon UK and Amazon US

London October 1886: Trapped in a troubled marriage, Lucy Lawrence is ripe for an adventure. But when she meets the enigmatic Phineas Stone, over the body of her husband in the mortuary, 

her world begins to fall apart.

I'm pleased to welcome Irish historical fiction author Pam Lecky to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book

No Stone Unturned is the first book in my new series, The Lucy Lawrence Mysteries, set in Victorian London, and the wilds of Yorkshire in the north of England. The story centres round a suspicious death which has been made to look like an unfortunate accident, some stolen sapphires belonging to a Kashmiri maharajah, and a rather large unclaimed reward.

This story has been bubbling away at the back of my mind for some time. My first book was romantic suspense and although I really enjoyed writing it, I wanted to write something a little darker. The initial idea was the prodigal daughter returning home only to be embroiled in a crime, but I also wished to create a series in which I could develop the characters over time. 

Initially, Phineas Stone was to be the central character as the private investigator who specialises in insurance fraud, but the more I wrote about Lucy Lawrence, the louder her voice became. Eventually, the entire book was rewritten from her point of view and The Lucy Lawrence Mysteries were born!

Life for women in the Victorian age was very restricted and depending on your class, strict rules applied. I wanted to explore how a relatively young woman, with a strong personality and high intellect, would cope within the confines of a troubled marriage. Would she accept her lot or chafe at the bit? But in Lucy’s case, with no money and estranged from her family, she could not walk away. To do so, would mean social ruin. 

However, when circumstances finally release her (her husband’s sudden death), she struggles. Pretty much every man in her life so far has betrayed her on some level for their own ends. As a result, Lucy finds it difficult to trust her fate to any man.

Another theme, which emerged as I explored Lucy’s story, was the strong reliance on female friendship. I suspect this is what sustained many Victorian women, finding themselves in similar circumstances to Lucy. As the story progresses, Lucy comes to rely more and more on her maid Mary, who also begins to shine with talents hitherto unknown, namely a penchant for spying and intrigue. And when trouble does strike, it is her friends, Judith and Sarah, who Lucy turns to.

Lucy’s husband’s secrets continue to spill from the grave and then Lucy’s life is threatened. Somehow, she must rise to the challenges she faces. But who can she really trust? Phineas Stone appears to be working to his own agenda. Then comes a pivotal point in the story when Lucy realises she must take her destiny into her own hands and she sets out on a dangerous adventure in pursuit of the truth about her late husband and his less than legal activities. 

What is your preferred writing routine?

As I work part-time, my writing time is limited and precious. On the days I’m at home I also have to juggle the normal everyday stuff but I try to set aside a few hours to put pen to paper. If I’m not too tired on working days, I usually get a bit of editing done. Most days, I try to do a little marketing and promotion as well.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Whether you are traditionally published or an indie, you need to treat your writing as a business. You’re not just a scribbler of words, you are also an accountant, marketing expert, social media demon, graphic designer (for those wonderful ads and promos for social media), and a publicity expert. Once you launch a book into the world, all these other skills are called on. For me, it is always a relief and a pleasure to return to plain old writing!

 

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

When I started out, I knew absolutely nothing. I just published with little or no planning, no budget and no idea how to get the word out. What I have learned (the hard way), is to start months before a book is released. Having a blog is great―you can publish posts related to the book (for me, these were posts based on my historical research). 

If you do this properly, it can create a bit of a buzz about the book. An author page on Facebook, using Twitter and Instagram, are other great ways to generate interest. I have also found interacting with readers and writers on social media helps. The writing community is very supportive. For my latest release, my author friends really helped create awareness. Another simple but effective marketing tool is to set up your book for pre-order at a discount and advertise it heavily.

Lastly, for me, entering competitions and seeking reviews from reputable groups such as the Historical Novel Society, helped get my debut novel off the ground (it was long-listed for their indie award). In Ireland, we are also very lucky to have the Carousel Aware Prize for Indie Authors: my novel was short-listed for novel of the year.

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

No Stone Unturned often threw up some interesting questions. For instance, did Victorian households use rubbish bins? What kinds of trains were used in the London Underground in 1886? My collection of research books failed me.

I discovered that contacts online can be a useful source of information. Lee Jackson, a fellow historical fiction author, has written extensively on Victorian life. I contacted him on Twitter and he was able to tell me almost immediately what I needed to know about Victorian rubbish. The train question was a little trickier, as I also wished to know how long a particular journey took. Thankfully, I found the London Transport Museum online, and within 24 hours I had not only answers to my questions but copies of relevant timetables. 

Oh! And just in case you are interested, the Victorians did use domestic rubbish bins which were collected by dustmen in horse-drawn carts twice a day! 

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

In my debut novel, The Bowes Inheritance, one of the main characters succumbs to her illness and dies. That was a tough scene to write. Maybe I became too close to her, being in her head, as it were. I still can’t read that section without blubbing.

What are you planning to write next?

I’m in the developmental stages of a new project for my agent. I can’t give too much away at the moment other than the setting is most likely England and France just after WW1. The Roaring Twenties intrigues me. It must have been an interesting time to be alive. The world was hurting but changing rapidly. For me, this time presents a wealth of writing opportunities.

Then I also have to work on the sequel to No Stone Unturned which is in its second draft and I hope to publish it before year end. The next instalment is entitled Footprints in the Sand, and is set in Egypt. My heroine finds herself embroiled in the machinations and professional jealousies of rival English and French Egyptologists. When a prominent member of the profession is found murdered, she must keep her wits about her to solve the case and avoid meeting a similar fate. As I have ideas for at least another two books in this series, I believe I will be busy for some time to come.

Pam Lecky

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About the Author

Pam Lecky is an Irish historical fiction author, writing crime, mystery, romance and the supernatural. Pam is represented by the Hardman & Swainson Literary Agency in London. She is a member of the Historical Novel Society and the Society of Authors and has a particular love of the late Victorian era/early 20th Century. Her debut novel, The Bowes Inheritance, was awarded the B.R.A.G Medallion; shortlisted for the Carousel Aware Prize 2016; and long-listed for the Historical Novel Society 2016 Indie Award. Her short stories are available in an anthology, entitled Past Imperfect, which was published in April 2018. Find out more at https://pamlecky.com/ and find Pam on Facebook and Twitter @pamlecky

Special Guest Interview with Author Michael J. Sahno

 New on Amazon UK and Amazon US

I'm pleased to welcome author Michael J. Sahno to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book:

Whizzers is about a recovering alcoholic named Mike who discovers that his six-year-old cousin, David, travels through time to bring comfort to those in need. Mike soon finds himself along for the ride, and while he gets the opportunity to bring solace to some of his greatest heroes, he must also confront his own greatest demons. It's not pure autobiography, but the main character is a fictionalized version of the author--so it's not only the best thing I've ever done, but also the most personal.

What is your preferred writing routine? 

I'm much better at editing in the morning, so since I started working for myself, I save my writing time for afternoons and evenings. I've been writing full-time since 2001, and I've had to do a lot of different types of projects. When it comes to creating a draft of any sort, I think of myself as a sprinter: I get a lot done in a short amount of time--and it's much higher quality than what most people think of as a "first draft"--but then I'm out of gas. I tend to block out 90-minute sessions for writing. Everything else happens around those.

What advice do you have for new writers? 

Better learn to dig ditches, too.

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

Oddly enough, I've found blog tours like the one that kicks off today with this post are great for raising awareness. Typically, blog tours build more awareness than actual sales--and, of course, it's impossible for an author to determine how many people navigate away from someone else's site to buy a book--but I've seen some large spikes in sales that coincided with a book launch. I've also found Twitter is an excellent way to network with other writers, many of whom will share your stuff. A percentage of my Twitter followers do some great promotion for me, which I appreciate.

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research. 

Because this book was so personal and autobiographical, it required very little research. Most of my research was related to what genre to classify the novel, which I've not done much in the past--my other novels have essentially all been literary fiction, with differing subcategories. The only thing that comes to mind is that I mention a photo of Rabindranath Tagore in Whizzers, and I thought I recalled it being taken by a photographer named E.O. Hoppé. I don't know anything about E.O. Hoppé, but I Googled the name, and sure enough, I was right. That's who took the photo. I have no idea why I remembered such a specific piece of trivia, but I did.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

Without giving too much away, there's a scene where an adolescent version of myself is brutally bullied by a group of peers. It's based on an actual incident, which I visualized in detail and practically relived while writing the scene. I'm 54, and I'd never had the experience of breaking down and crying either during or after writing something, at least not that I can recall. But I did both. I can't even explain what an incredibly powerful, overwhelming, and ultimately healing experience that was.

What are you planning to write next?

I have a couple irons in the fire: one is my first work of historical fiction, and the other is a contemporary novel. No idea which will be completed first, but I'll probably toggle back and forth between them for a bit to figure out which one I can finish first.

Michael J. Sahno

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About the Author

Born in Bristol, CT, Michael J. Sahno began writing stories at an early age. He obtained a Master of Arts in English from Binghamton University, Binghamton, NY at the age of twenty-four, going on to become a full-time professional writer in 2001. Whizzers is his fifth full-length work of fiction. Find out more at https://msahno.com/ and find him on Twitter @MikeSahno

Guest Interview with Gemma Hollman, Author of Royal Witches: From Joan of Navarre to Elizabeth Woodville

Available on Amazon UK and Amazon US

I'm pleased to welcome author and historian Gemma Hollman to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book

Until the mass hysteria of the seventeenth century, accusations of witchcraft in England were rare. However, in the fifteenth century four royal women, related in family and in court ties - Joan of Navarre, Eleanor Cobham, Jacquetta of Luxembourg and Elizabeth Woodville - were accused of practising witchcraft in order to kill or influence the king.

Some of these women may have turned to the dark arts, but the purpose of the accusations was purely political. Despite their status, these women were vulnerable because of their gender as the men around them moved them like pawns for political gains. Royal Witches explores the lives of these women, and the consequences of the accusations against them.

What is your preferred writing routine?

It took a while for me to truly get into a writing routine, but I found the best thing was to listen to my mood. Some people get up at 5am and write, others find they work best in the evening. I found that I do my best work during late morning and the afternoon, so I would spend the morning gearing myself up for the day and reading over what I had written the previous day to refresh my mind. Then I get to work, and make sure to allow myself regular breaks to keep my mind going! When my deadline got tight, I would use the evenings to do mundane tasks that didn’t take too much energy, like referencing.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Just do it! So many people have ideas for books, but are often scared to put pen to paper. If you think it’s a good idea, it probably is. Get words on the page, and you’ll find that the more you write the more you find your flow and your voice. You can edit and tighten up later, but there’s nothing worse than having an empty page!

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

Something all authors want to know! I think at the moment, social media and blogging is really the way to go. You are always going to have a ready market of readers who browse the history shelves in bookshops, so you want to try and market to those who may not normally consider buying your type of book. So many people are on social media today, it really is the biggest way to connect to people across the world. Make an account, talk about your book, but make sure to engage with other authors too – people are often happy to help out fellow authors!

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

That Edward IV was himself accused of using witchcraft by his brother, the Duke of Clarence! I had read plenty of books on Edward and whilst they mentioned his brother’s demise, no one thought this accusation was worth mentioning. It was only when I was reading the Parliament proceedings against Clarence that I found this nugget. Up to that point, near the end of my research, it had only seemingly been Royal women who were tangled up in the accusations, so it was certainly a surprise to see the King himself targeted, even if it was in a slightly different way.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

The hardest parts of my book to write were those where there are few sources – or few accessible sources. Although Eleanor Cobham was Duchess of Gloucester, there is very little material tracing her life in the 1430s. I had to talk about that period without losing sight of her, and having the readers wonder where she had gone to. The same happened with her predecessor in the book, Joan of Navarre. Her life in Brittany is also poorly documented, and there is very little written in English. I was able to work with some French sources but my language skills are limited! Trying to get a feel for what her life was like before she came to England was quite tricky, therefore, so I tried to just focus on some key events and bring those to life instead.

What are you planning to write next?

My passion certainly lies with strong women in the medieval period. I do have a soft spot for the royalty, so I am hoping to look at some earlier examples of women who managed to gain a lot of power in a time where it would not necessarily be expected they could do so. I have a few ideas in the works but don’t want to spoil any of them just yet!

Gemma Hollman

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About the Author

Gemma Hollman holds a Masters in Medieval History from the University of York. She runs Just History Posts blog and social media pages, and at present is working in an archive. She currently lives in Hertfordshire with her partner. Find out more at her website www.justhistoryposts.com or via Facebook and on Twitter @JustHistoryPost.

Author Interview with Deryn Lake, Author of The Prince's Women

New on Amazon UK and Amazon US

The story of a man of Scottish legend. Charles Edward Stuart was the Bonnie Prince from overseas, risking all to fulfil his people's destiny

I'm pleased to welcome historical fiction author Deryn Lake to The Writing Desk:

Tell us about your latest book

The Prince's Women is an account of the life and adventures of Bonnie Prince Charlie, who came out of exile in Italy and landed in Scotland full of the brave intention of getting rid of the Hanoverian King and returning the land to the Stuart kings the Scots people loved so well.

When Charlie’s grandfather – King James II – was removed from the throne of England because of his Catholic views, the family were forced to live abroad. But Charles Stuart decided the time had come to win the throne back and landed in Scotland, his mind full of fabulous but foolhardy ideas to do just that. My book deals not only with that tremendously exciting period and the bloody and terrible battles, but also with the passionate Prince’s love affairs. 

It also reveals some amazing truths based on some tear-stained correspondence lodged in the Royal Archives at Windsor.

What is your preferred writing routine?

My preferred writing routine is to work every afternoon from two till six p.m.    When I was younger I used to write all day – most unhealthy! – but these days I find that the mornings are taken up with household affairs. Do I have any social life, I hear you ask. The answer is that I sneak off to London to meet friends and go out to lunch. I also go to Glyndebourne Opera House which is fairly close to where I live and to the ballet at Covent Garden. Not trendy, I hear you say, and the answer is yes, I am a trifle classically minded.

What advice do you have for aspiring writers?

For anyone starting out as a writer I have a theory that it’s born in you and that you will see things just a bit differently from other people. Although creative writing courses can help they can’t make spun gold out of a piece of wool. Teach yourself the difference between what is good and what is not in your writing – and just keep going at it until you know it is right. And try to write every day, even if it is only for an hour or two. Make this your special creative time and don’t let anything interfere with it.

What have you found to be the best way to raise awareness of your books?

There are lots of ways to raise awareness of one’s books but I must confess that I don’t do much of them. People give talks at libraries, go on chat shows, go to writer’s conferences. But does any of this help? I think in these fast-moving times the only true way is to get something on television. Then the great reading public will make the connection and you will finally have arrived. It hasn’t happened to me yet – but here’s hoping!

Tell us something unexpected you discovered during your research

Research reveals masses of things that literally take your breath away. When writing Fortune’s Soldier – the third book in the Sutton Place trilogy – I discovered that two of the principal characters, both actual people, a married couple called Anne and Algernon Hicks, had died on the same day.    She of cancer but he, fairly obviously, must have committed suicide. Strange but true.  Dear old Algernon obviously could not live without his Anne. Unfortunately I did not discover this until after I had finished the book. Woops!  

Another exciting thing I found was that Joan of Arc left a banner on the altar as a votive offering after the coronation of Charles VII of France. It was the device of the Knights Templar, disbanded at a much earlier date. Why? In my latest book about the Young Pretender I found that he had an illegitimate son by his cousin Louise. It died in infancy. Well, well.

What was the hardest scene you remember writing?

I have never written a truly difficult scene.    What I do is read everything very, very carefully once I have finished it, looking for every little mistake, every word repetition, every crass error that is going to stick out like a sore thumb when it is set up in type.  Then, when I finally finish it, I leave it alone. My late great agent – the one and only Shirley Russell – told me that there comes a moment to stop improving what you’ve done – and so I do.

What are you planning to write next?

My next book is venturing into the world of legend and magic and mystery and love.     I won’t say too much at this stage other than to tell you that it will have the title All The Rhine's Fair Children.    And it is not a travel book about the mighty river.    Meanwhile enjoy The Prince's Women – and keep on reading.

Deryn Lake

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About the Author

Deryn Lake started to write stories at the age of five, then graduated to novels but destroyed all her early work because, she says, it was hopeless. A chance meeting with one of the Getty family took her to Sutton Place and her first serious novel was born. Deryn was married to a journalist and writer, the late L. F. Lampitt, has two grown-up children, four beautiful and talented grandchildren, and one rather large cat. Find out more at Deryn's website www.derynlake.com