How long have you been writing for?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Approximately 15 years – on and off – between career and family comittments.
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What’s the average word count for the books you write and how long does it take you to write your average book?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Between 50,000 to 70,000 words. Approximately 2 years writing and researching.
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What is your writing routine?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I write whenever the spirit moves me but when it does I will spend at least 6 hours a day writing and researching. The word count doesn’t matter.
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How much do you research for a book before you start writing?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I research extensively before I begin writing and also during the writing process itself.
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What do you find most difficult about writing a book?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I am a procrastinator – will do all sorts of things to delay actually getting down to it, but once I start to write I go on for hours and find it had to break away.
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Which of your books are you most proud of and why?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Renaissance – The Fall and Rise of a King’ my debut novel, which started out as a short story that took on a life of its own and kept growing. Once published it won three reader awards.
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Which of your books was the most difficult to write and why?<\/strong><\/p>\n

My present project – ‘Renegade’ the sequal to ‘Renaissance.’ This is a much larger undertaking involving a great deal of research.
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Which self-publishing platform do you like the most and why?<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is difficult to answer – I am published on Amazon and IngramSpark but I had professional help with publishing.
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Would you publish with a traditional publisher if they contacted you? Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes – then I could leave the publishing and marketing headaches to the professionals.
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How many unfinished or unpublished works do you have?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Two – both historical novels – one has been shelved until I have completed the other which I am currently working on ‘Renegade’ – which I hope to do next year.
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Do you prefer creating stand-alone books or series?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Stand-alone books.
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What’s one character you wish you would have created? What do you find compelling or interesting about this character?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Emma – the way Jane Austin developes her character and shows her growing in maturity and learning the lessons of life make fascinating reading.
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What book do you wish you would have written? Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Emma by Jane Austin – for the way the author puts early 19th century society’s standards and flaws under the microscope.
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Do you find it challenging to write characters of a different gender, race, or culture than you? Do you do any special research for these characters?<\/strong><\/p>\n

No my last novel was written from the perspective of a medieval king – neither the culture of the time nor the gender caused me any difficulty. I did have to take care to create the syntax of medieval dialogue regularly throughout the story though – to give an accurate feel of the period but as I studied both English and History at university for my BA and Masters, I had no problems with this.
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What does success as a writer look like for you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

To write a story that readers will enjoy and remember.
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Writing can be a lonely job. Do you take any special steps to ensure you remain part of the world?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I regularly meet with writer friends; explore ancient buildings\/ruins; am a keen gardener and love to visit nurseries; take long walks in the Dales with my dog and duriing the present Covid19 pandemic make sure I am in constant touch with my children and grandchildren and friends.
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Constantly sitting and writing can be physically debilitating. How do you take care of yourself, physically?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Daily walks of at least one hour in the surrounding countryside and gardening.
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Do you read your reviews? How do you deal with bad ones?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes, I check out reviews every so often – happily I have only come across one really negative review. When I read it I reminded myself that as a writer I cannot please every reader out there.
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What books have you read that were particularly inspiring?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Richard The Third’ by Paul Murray Kendal – a biography – a little dated now but still a fascinating study of the man written in beautiful lyrical prose; Georgette Heyer’s regency novels – especially ‘An Infamous Army’ and ‘The Spanish Bride’ – Heyer’s recreation of the battle scenes are so vivid and accurate.
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Do you have a favourite author? A favourite book?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Katherine’ by Anya Seton.
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Do you plot your stories in great detail before starting to write, or fly by the seat of your pants?<\/strong><\/p>\n

As most of my writing is based on historical events very often the plotting is already done but my characters response to them comes to me as I write – so a little bit of both.
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Of all the characters in your stories, which is your favourite?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Father Gilbert – he started out as a minor character in ‘Renaissance’ but refused to bow out of the story.
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Have you based any characters on real people? If they found out, how did they respond?<\/strong><\/p>\n

My characters are mostly real people who lived centuries ago – so they can’t respond.
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What\u2019s the best thing about being an independent author? The worst?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The best – No publisher’s deadlines to meet – I can write at my own pace. The worst – marketing\/promoting my work – I hate doing it.
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Do you make a living selling your books?<\/strong><\/p>\n

No – I never set out to do so.
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What advice would you give to a new author?<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you have a story you went to tell – get it down on paper – then find a good editor to polish it with you.
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