Blog Archives
Valentine’s Day guest blog post and review – courtesy of Babs Wilkie of Book Escapes
I was lucky enough to meet Babs Wilkie at the RNA Industry Awards in November 2023 when I was named Indie Champion 2023. I have since discovered that Babs is married to a Scot (I hope he’s a kilt-wearing one) and that she is a great supporter of authors and their books. If you aren’t following Babs’s fabulous blog then you’re missing a treat. Do take time to read the whole interview, if you can.
To celebrate Valentine’s Day and Dark Highland Skies’s first birthday I have put the novel on #KindleCountdown for 99p/99c – but only until Tuesday 20th February. So get it while it’s hot. In the meantime, I’m writing a sequel to Halley and Tor’s love story and really enjoying moving the characters forwards. ?Towards another happy ending? You’ll have to wait until the end of the year to find out.
Have a wonderful Valentine’s Day whethere its with the one you love or reliving treasures memories of those you have loved. I’ll end this post by quoting Virgil – cras amet qui nunquam amavit; quique amavit, cras amet – which means: loveless hearts will love tomorrow, those who have loved will love again.
Lizzie and Dave’s Newsletter 2023- take #1 – January- June 2022
Happy New Year and Welcome to 2023 – I wonder what the year has in store !
First of all, let me apologise for not blogging for quite some time. Life and writing novel #7 got in the way but I’m now on top of thing (famous last words). So, I would like to bring you up to date on everything (well, almost) that we did last year. So, grab a cup of coffee, kick back and enjoy. Although this is primarily MY BLOG, I wouldn’t have accomplished half of what I have without the love and support of my husband Dave. Here he is wearing the T-shirt I bought him for Christmas and (above) I’m in my favourite velvet dress from Seasalt – where else?
January 2022
Having survived Christmas and our third dose of the Covid and flu vaccines, we decided to forget all about the pandemic and get on with life. I sat down to finish and then edit the manuscript of DARK, HIGHLAND SKIES with a view to publishing later 2022. One morning I awoke to find BT digging holes in the pavement in front of our house and discovered this image by our front gate. The hero in my new novel is Hector (TOR) Strachan and I took this as I sign i should get on with finishing the book. Spooky – right?
February 2022
I hosted a writers’ workshop with Adrienne and Jocelyn which covered planning, character arcs and proofreading amongst other things. On a cold, dark February evening Adrienne and I gave our first author talk of the year to members of Hallaton WI. As usual, Dave played roadie and accountant and used my ‘sum-it-up’ machine to collect money from the ladies who attended. Adrienne and I regaled the audience with tales of the amusing and sometime bizarre things which had happened to us on our journey to publication . . . such as bumping into Dustin Hoffman on Kensington High Street.
March 2022
I was able to celebrate my birthday with friends for the first time in two years and life felt as if everything was slowly returning to normal. My niece Vicky who teaches English at Uppingham Independent School invited Adrienne and I to talk to sixth formers about the ins-and-outs of writing a novel. The jays returned to the garden and cheekily eyeballed us through the window to tell us that spring was on the way. We had our first caravan outing of the year at Chew Valley, Bath where I met up with fellow author Jo Lambert.
Dave took me to my first – and possibly last, auto jumble. I purchased a Fortnum and Mason basket and we spent more money on the entry fee, coffee, burgers and ice cream than we made selling stuff. While he was wheeling and dealing (ahem) I managed some writing in the back of the van on MacBook. So glamorous – not!
April 2022
The highlight of spring was heading south to a campsite near Milton Keynes. There we met up with Carole and Kevin, rejoined the National Trust and explored Buckinghamshire. One of the highlights was a visit to Waddesdon Manor and Ascot House – well worth a visit. The location where we camped only allowed five caravans and banned dogs, so in the morning we were treated to the site of hares grazing just outside the door to the van. Precious.
I love this selfie of the four of us at Stowe, which is Pride and Prejudice personified. Our niece Vicky has also taught at the school there !!
May / June 2022
This slideshow is a record of our time in the Isle of Wight where I arrived with a humongous cold (NOT COVID – I tested) and which hung around for most of the month. We spent most of our time with sister Phyllis and husband Andy before heading for Exeter and our niece Hannah’s wedding. I bought the white trainers for my hols, almost killed myself crossing the road in Shanklin whilst wearing them and donated them to charity shop when I returned home. Whilst we were there, our street held a Jubilee Party for HM The Queen.
The art work I bought in Bembridge which personifies the IOW for us.
So, that’s me until the next blog post which will take us through to the end of the year and contain news about my forthcoming romance – Dark Highland Skies.
In the meantime, here’s a link to my other six novels which are available for download on all Amazon sites, Kindle Unlimited subscribers and as paperbacks.
Bye for now, Lang May yer Lum Reek .
My 2020 guide for becoming a (successful) indie author –
I’m often asked about my route to publication. I thought I’d update some of that information and share with you as I head into 2020 and finish my 6th novels. I hope you find the blog post helpful and informative.
My latest novel – Take Me, I’m Yours
India Buchanan plans to set up an English-Style bed and breakfast establishment in her great-aunt’s home, MacFarlane’s Landing, Wisconsin. But she’s reckoned without opposition from Logan MacFarlane whose family once owned her aunt’s house and now want it back. MacFarlane is in no mood to be denied. His grandfather’s living on borrowed time and Logan has vowed to ensure the old man sees out his days in their former home. India’s great-aunt has other ideas and has threatened to burn the house to the ground before a MacFarlane sets foot in it. There’s a story here. One the family elders aren’t prepared to share. When India finds herself in Logan’s debt, her feelings towards him change. However, the past casts a long shadow and events conspire to deny them the love and happiness they. Can India and Logan’s love overcome all odds? Or is history about to repeat itself? You can read an extract.
2.This is the first book I’ve set outside of the UK. Here’s why . . .
Back in the day I trained a teaching student from Oshkosh University for two terms. We became great friends and I had a standing invitation to go over to stay with her in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. I did just that for five weeks one summer and when I flew back from Chicago I promised I would write a romance set in Wisconsin. Last year I learned she has Parkinson’s Disease and that galvanised me into action – this book is for her.
3. I like writing about sexy, highland lairds. I hope you like reading about them.
I am a dyed-in-the-wool romantic. For some women, it’s Regency Rakes, Cowboys or Navy Seals, but for me it’s a man-in-a-kilt. If he’s a highland laird or the heir to a highland estate so much the better. Not because of wealth or belonging to an aristocratic family but because I love a hero who isn’t afraid to shoulder responsibility, care for his tenants and who has a strong connection with the land. Those attributes, allied with a sharp mind, a sense of humour and a willingness to care for the heroine wins me over – every time.
4 and 5 My writing journey prior to New Romantics Press being founded
I bagged an agent (the late Dot Lumley) and HM&B were showing interest in my writing. In 1990 I reached a crossroads, continue with my writing or accept a deputy headship of a large primary school. Because of the demanding nature of teaching, I knew I couldn’t do both and chose the latter. In 2006 I took early retirement from teaching joined the Romantic Novelists’ Association New Writers’ Scheme, wrote Tall, Dark and Kilted and submitted it for a critique. I was told it was ‘almost ready’ to start sending out to agents but needed more polishing. In the meantime, I co-founded NRP with other members of the RNA/NWS. Then, over lunch in my garden, author Amanda Grange advised us to consider self-publishing on amazon. The algorithms were changing and . . . well, you can read more about it here – That was in 2012 and we’ve never looked back. I only wish I’d had the chutzpah to self-publish a year earlier because terms were more favourable on Amazon at that point.
New Romantics Press is keen to find new readers and share our work with them. Over the last six years we have published fifteen books between us and are currently working on new titles. Our motto is: Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves and you can read more about us on in this blog
6 The benefits of collaborating with other authors?
I love working collaboratively with others. That means I’m never more than a phone call away from a good mate who will listen to my writing woes, meet for coffee and offer sound advice. As being a member of New Romantics Press and the RNA I can tap into a wealth of knowledge about publishing, social media, PR – and what one of us doesn’t know, the others will find out! I couldn’t imagine being without my support system.
We try to make our events sound fun . . . Most readers and bloggers mention how much fun we have promoting our books. Writing can be a lonely occupation. As authors, we spend most of the time hidden away in our studies/offices tapping at the keyboard. When we do get out, we like to let our hair down. Warning: our events involve laughter and prosecco, so only like-minded writers and readers need apply.
In 2019 I offered a series of workshops for novice and intermediate writers, sharing my knowledge and giving writers the confidence to finish their WIP. In November of 2019 I attended the Narberth Book Fair where I outlined my 10 point guide, met readers and sold books.
Here endeth the first part of my talk. Do join me next time when I will be covering the following aspects of writing:
- the difference between self-publishing and indie publishing
- advice for writers considering self-publishing/indie publishing
- my thoughts about taking a hybrid approach
- plotters vs pantsers
- top tips for finishing a novel
- choosing and researching the location of my novels
- why I write happily ever after novels
Bliadhna Mhath Ùr – Happy New Year
Guest Blog Post – Rosie Travers – Theatre of Dreams
It’s a pleasure to welcome Rosie Travers to my blog today.
If you don’t know Rosie or her novels, here’s your chance to find out –
Welcome Rosie, tell us a little about your background –
I grew up in Southampton on the south coast of England and loved escaping into a good book from a very early age. As a teenager I landed my dream job working in a book shop, and spent much of my spare time scribbling numerous short stories and novels, none of which I was ever brave enough to show anyone. Sadly, the real world took over and my writing habit was put on hold for marriage, mortgages and motherhood. In 2009 I moved across the Atlantic to Southern California when my husband took up a three year overseas work assignment. Life as an ex-pat wife wasn’t quite as glamorous as I’d first envisaged, so to fend off the loneliness and homesickness, I began a blog about our life in Los Angeles, which re-ignited my creative juices.
When I returned to the UK I undertook a creative writing course and boosted by a couple of short story competition successes I joined the Romantic Novelists Association New Writers’ Scheme. My debut novel, The Theatre of Dreams, was published on 1 August 2018.
Tell us about Theatre of Dreams. Great cover and it sounds an intriguing read.
Rosie said: The wonderful thing about being an author is being able to rewrite history – my inspiration for The Theatre of Dreams is the historic Lee Tower which was once situated on the seafront at Lee-on-the-Solent in my native Hampshire. The Art Deco complex was constructed in 1935 and originally comprised a cinema, ballroom, restaurant and 120ft observation tower. The buildings were demolished by the local council in 1971 and the site is now a car-park – a travesty in a town with so few amenities. I spotted a commemorative notice about the tower and my imagination was captured.
The Theatre of Dreams is a story of new beginnings, laced with romance, tragedy and intrigue. Set in a fictional south coast resort, a devious octogenarian, a disgraced actress and a bankrupt architect form an unlikely alliance to save an iconic local landmark, but each has a very different motive.
I was so intrigued that I searched for Lee Tower on Google and here’s what I found – Sadly, the images are copyrighted, but you can look for yourself.
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Official Blurb
Musical theatre actress Tara is down on her luck and in desperate need of a job. When terminally-ill octogenarian Kitty invites her to take over the running of her former dance academy in the old-fashioned resort of Hookes Bay, Tara thinks she’s found her guardian angel. But it soon becomes very clear Kitty is being far from benevolent. Too late, Tara realises helping Kitty will signal the end of an already tarnished career, unless she can pull off the performance of a life-time.
The Theatre of Dreams is published by Crooked Cat Books
Here’s what some reviewers have said about The Theatre of Dreams
“a true pleasure to read from first page to last….I challenge anyone to read this book and not become completely enthralled with these characters. The character development in this book was just simply stellar!”
“This is a highly enjoyable book with just the right balance of all the elements needed to make it a satisfyingly great read. it really does deserve 5 big shiny, glittery stars!”
The Theatre of Dreams is available on Amazon in ebook and paperback.
Official Blurb
Musical theatre actress Tara is down on her luck and in desperate need of a job. When terminally-ill octogenarian Kitty invites her to take over the running of her former dance academy in the old-fashioned resort of Hookes Bay, Tara thinks she’s found her guardian angel. But it soon becomes very clear Kitty is being far from benevolent. Too late, Tara realises helping Kitty will signal the end of an already tarnished career, unless she can pull off the performance of a life-time.
The Theatre of Dreams is published by Crooked Cat Books
If you’d like to read an extract – click on this link:
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If you’d like to learn out more about Rosie, here’s where you need to look –
Website: www.rosietravers.com
Twitter @RosieTravers
Facebook: www.facebook.com/rosietraversauthor
Instagram: rosietraversauthor
STOP PRESS * Rosie’s second book, Your Secret’s Safe With Me, will be released next year.
Guest post – Eleanor Harkstead, new novel and Men in Kilts –
It is my pleasure today to give a big shout out to Eleanor Harkstead fellow member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, lover of history, men in kilts and all round fabulous author. Some of you may remember that I interviewed Eleanor (aka Helen Barrell) back in June 2017. At the end of that post I asked her what she was working on and she said:
“With two non-fiction titles under my belt, I’m focussing on fiction for a while. I’ve recently started to write collaboratively with Catherine Curzon – we have historical romance and romantic thrillers up our collective sleeves.”
Their contemporary short story about feuding theatricals, ‘An Actor’s Guide to Romance’, is available on Amazon. The first installment in their Captivating Captains series, the historical novel The Captain and the Cavalry Trooper, will be published on 3 April 2018, and is available to pre-order. Both titles are published by Pride. If fancy reading ‘something different,’ give Eleanor and Catherine’s novel a try.
I met Eleanor through the Birmingham Chapter of the RNA and we discovered a common bond: writing, romance, a love of history and Scotland. To give you a taste of Eleanor’s work, I thought it would be fun to ask her to write a piece about Men in Kilts. Here it is:
The Ballad of the Scotsman in a Kilt
The first time I visited Glasgow with my Scottish partner, he assured me that I wouldn’t be seeing anyone in a kilt. “No one wears kilts in Scotland. Only bagpipers wear them, and old men in the islands.” Reader, I was disappointed. Until we got off the train at Glasgow Central and found ourselves in a swirling morass of Scottish footie fans who were off to see their team play an international match. Almost everyone was in a kilt.
“I thought you said no one wears kilts in Scotland?” “Erm….” was his reply
On another trip to Glasgow, my partner decided to buy a kilt. The ground floor of the shop was full of shortbread and whisky, and knickknacks featuring lake monsters and West Highland terriers. We headed down into the basement to the kilt department, where the heavy tartans and tweeds muffled the sounds from the street above. First, to decide the tartan. Being a Wallace, my partner does have a tartan for his surname, but he found its red colour a bit brash. So he opted instead for the Wallace hunting tartan, which is mainly a dark green. Obviously, you’d startle your quarry if it you had a quantity of bright red fabric swinging about your thighs as you crossed the springy heather, so each tartan has a hunting variant. Also – each tartan has an “ancient” variant, where the colours are more muted. After choosing his fabric, my partner was measured up. A kilt should be worn high on the waist, not low-slung on the hips, and it should come above the knee.
When out and about in his kilt, my partner has had people comment that his kilt’s too short, but it is the correct length.
I’m sure you won’t mind me referring you back to the image of the heavy fabric swinging about the thighs as our Scottish chap strides up the side of a mountain – if the kilt is below the knee, that stride is going to be rather difficult. There’s an option to have a “sports kilt” – this involves less cloth (the pleats mean kilts are made from a vast amount of fabric), and they’re made from synthetics rather than wool. This makes them easier to move about in, whether you’re tossing cabers or heading off to a football stadium.
Lizzie’s husband favours the Bonnie Prince Charlie jacket and Dockers t-shirt for a more casual look. The sporran is very handy for storing one’s iphone.
A sporran, next – my partner chose a plain leather one. You can get all sorts of designs on them, such as thistles or the St Andrew’s cross, as well as ones made from seal fur. If you must, you can have a ceremonial dagger – or sgian dubh – to tuck in one’s sock, then you have to choose your jacket. Does sir want a black “Bonnie Prince Charlie” jacket, or perhaps for that laird-striking-out-across-his-acres look, a tweed with buttons made from bone? And as for the shirt, will sir be wearing a plain white one or a Highlander-style billowing blouse? Whilst I evinced an interest in a shirt of the more billowing variety, my partner decided it would make him look like a jessie, so he wears one that he bought from Next. With a Wallace hunting tartan tie, of course.What footwear for a kilt? There’s traditional lace-up brogues, or you could go with a buckled shoe, or heck, why not go a bit punk and wear DMs or motorcycle boots?
A flutter of excitement went through my English family and friends once it became known that my partner had his very own kilt. He wore it when we visited my mum on her birthday in that most unScottish of English counties: Essex (well, apart from the Dagenham Girl Pipers).
My mum was exceedingly pleased with the kilt, and demanded she have her photo taken stood beside my partner in his Scottish finery. I am dismayed to relate that she told him it really suited his rear. Yes, it certainly does; that wouldn’t have passed me by, but mother – really. We went out for dinner on my mum’s birthday, so my partner decided to wear his kilt. On the way to the restaurant, my mum insisted we stop off in Sainsbury’s. The locals of Brentwood had never before seen a man in a kilt sashay through the aisles of their supermarket and my partner left a sea of astonished faces in his wake. 
All except one local who came up to him to declare that he was wearing the Blackwatch tartan. My partner tried very politely to explain that he was wearing the Wallace hunting tartan, but she wouldn’t have it. Because of course, who could be more expert on kilts than someone living in Essex? “I know it’s the Blackwatch tartan – I’ve got it on a biscuit tin.”
Those better be shortbreads, or I’m having words.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that no wedding is complete without a man in a kilt. We looked at the photos of a friend’s wedding to discover that a nice picture of my partner stood beside the bride was complete with women of a certain age in the background who were very obviously staring at his legs. At another wedding, he noticed that several female guests were deliberately getting their photos taken so that my partner and his kilt – and of course his legs – were in the background.
He’s even received an invitation to a wedding purely based on the fact that he owns a kilt. Unfortunately, on the day my partner was at a loss to find the right shoes, so turned up in trousers. As disappointing as this may have been for the women who were so looking forward to staring at a strange man’s knees, he wore his tweed jacket and tartan tie with his trousers, so he still brought a suitably Scottish vibe to proceedings.
And what does a Scotsman wear under his kilt? Boxer shorts – in plaid, of course.
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Many thanks to Helen/Eleanor for writing that piece for the blog. If you want to know more about Eleanor and her work, here are the links.
www.pride-publishing.com/book/an-actors-guide-to-romance
www.facebook.com/eleanorharkstead
My week in retrospect – blogging, writing, Goodreads Giveaway, fabulous presents – and surviving the dreaded lurgy.
Many thanks to blogger Linda Hill for inviting me on her blog to talk about Girl in the Castle. Linda is the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Media/blog star award of 2017.
You can read the blog post here https://wp.me/p5IN3z-cRi
I’ve also been learning how to make animations on ripl.com What do you think?
If you’d like to share my tweet here’s the link
I spent quite a chunk of the week monitoring my ‘paid for’ Goodreads promotion. Here are the results. The promo was limited to the US and the winner chosen at random. I was able to mail the book direct to her via my Createspace account. Simples.
Would I do it again? If I see a spike in downloads, yes; if not, no. I’ll be blogging about it in more detail in the near future. Tune in for more details in a couple of weeks.
I spent some of the week composing guest blog posts and sending them off to bloggers/writing blogs to go out in March.
The highlight of the last ten days or so was being long listed for the Exeter Novel Prize. Fingers crossed I make the short list.
I have also been cracking on with my work in progress which I hope to publish late spring. I have two fabulous editors working on this with me and when it’s ready I’ll be zooming it over to my proofreaders. I have also recruited a new member to my team to check accuracy of location etc. I think I’ve got all the bases covered. Cover reveal sometime after Easter – hopefully.
While all this activity was going on, my husband (code name Bongo Man), and I have been smitten by the dreaded lurgy – equivalent of the American term, cooties – and had to cancel our proposed caravan trip to the Cotswolds. We hope to try again in March.
In the meantime . . . a fabulous present arrived from the Diva from Dumbarton
We can’t wait to find a space for the gifts next to the hand-crocheted blanket and cushion our mate Carole Matthews made especially for the new van. I have Carole’s new novel – A Million Love Songs on pre-order, something else to look forward to.
![IMG_7235[2]](https://lizzielamb3.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/img_72352.jpg?w=197&resize=197%2C263#038;h=263 "IMG_7235[2]")
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Well, I guess that about wraps it up. Must dash. Bongo Man, still laid up with the dreaded lurgy, has requested a slice of Battenberg cake to accompany his mid morning cuppa. Better head for our local co-op and hope they have some on their shelves. Laters.
Have a great week. Keep on reading, writing, blogging and reviewing.
A Heads Up and Some Good News
Hi everyone – I’m delighted to share my news with you.
GIRL IN THE CASTLE has been long listed for the Exeter Novel Prize.
Click on the arrow to watch this promo.
I’ve got my fingers and everything else crossed that I make the short list.
💕Perhaps you’d like to read Girl in the Castle or buy a paperback copy for someone for Valentine’s Day? 💕 Here’s the blurb to whet your appetite –
Her academic career in tatters, Dr Henriette Bruar needs somewhere to lay low, plan her comeback and restore her tarnished reputation. Fate takes her to a remote Scottish castle to auction the contents of an ancient library to pay the laird’s mounting debts. The family are in deep mourning over a tragedy which happened years before, resulting in a toxic relationship between the laird and his son, Keir MacKenzie. Cue a phantom piper, a lost Jacobite treasure, and a cast of characters who – with Henri’s help, encourage the MacKenzies to confront the past and move on. However – will the Girl in the Castle be able to return to university once her task is completed, and leave gorgeous, sexy Keir MacKenzie behind?If you want to read an extract from Girl in the Castle, you can do so here.
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I’m also offering a #GIVEAWAY of a paperback copy of Girl in the Castle on Goodreads (US only, sorry). You have until February 15th to enter.
Two years ago I was shortlisted for the Exeter Novel Prize with Scotch on the Rocks. If you would like to read about that occasion, here’s the link –
Finally . . . yesterday, New Romantics Press travelled to London for the launch of Adrienne Vaughan’s new novel – That Summer at the Seahorse Hotel. We had a fabulous time. If you’d like to see the photos and read the blog post, here it is . . . Have a great weekend and keep on writing, reading and reviewing.
Guest Post – Welcome Sharon Booth –
It is my pleasure to welcome Sharon Booth to my blog. Sharon and I ‘found’ each other via Facebook and the Romantic Novelists’ Association. Sharon is a hardworking and inspired novelist and a generous supporter of other writers.
We met ‘in the flesh’ for the first time last year at the RNA Afternoon Tea in York. Sharon is every bit as warm and friendly as I’d imagined. Take it away, Sharon . . .
I write contemporary romance, with a generous sprinkling of humour thrown in for good measure. For many years, I tried to write big, dramatic, historical sagas, as I’d grown up reading Catherine Cookson novels, and thought that was the sort of thing I should be writing. It took me quite some time to realise that, as wonderful as those books are, they’re not the sort of books I need to write. I started to create contemporary stories, filled with heroines I would happily hang out with, and heroes I fell in love with. Now, I have nine books published! Two of those books started life as People’s Friend pocket novels, which was a dream come true, as it meant my work was actually on the shelves in supermarkets and WH Smith.
I have also sold the large-print rights for the pocket novels, to Ulverscroft, and the first one was published last April, as part of its Linford Romance Library, with the second one coming out in March. This means I also have books in libraries.
I live in East Yorkshire with my husband and German Shepherd dog. I have five grown-up children and seven grandchildren. I’m one tenth of the blogging group, The Write Romantics. I’m shamefully prone to developing huge crushes on fictional heroes, and I never lose hope that, one day, I will hear the sound of those Tardis engines …
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A Q and A session with Sharon. I’m sure you’ll find her answers and inspirational.
advice for fledgling authors
- If you really want to write, do it. Don’t wait until you “have the time” or until inspiration strikes. Pick up a pen, or sit at that computer, and start. I’ve been told, many times, by various people, that they would love to write a book “if they had the time”. The fact is, you have to make the time. I have a family and a day job. If you want to write, you will push everything else aside and do it.
- Seek out other writers. It’s a very lonely business if you don’t make contact, and the writing community is so supportive. Join a writing group, or make online connections. Maybe join the Romantic Novelists’ Association if your genre is romance.
- Read the genre you write in. Read how-to-write books. If you can afford it, take writing courses.
- Be prepared for rejection and develop a skin like a rhinoceros hide – or, at least, pretend to.
- Don’t expect to get rich. Keep writing. Don’t give up. If you want this, you must make it happen.
- Be kind to other writers. It’s a tough world out there, so share their news, encourage, support and congratulate. Learn to promote your own stuff, but don’t be afraid to promote other people’s. There’s room for everyone.
- Most of all, don’t forget to enjoy it. Writing is a job, and it’s undoubtedly hard work. You started writing because you love it, never lose sight of that.
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Who or what has inspired you the most to become a writer?
- Enid Blyton, whose stories sparked my love for books and reading, which, in turn, made me want to write my own stories.
- My English teacher, from the age of thirteen until I left school. My English teacher was so encouraging and supportive, really making me believe that this was something I could do. For the first time in my life, I began to think that writing was a gift, and that I should nurture it and be proud of it.
- A BBC programme, Reader, I Married Him, back in 2008, or thereabouts, ignited that flame of hope again, after years spent raising children, and writing nothing more exciting than shopping lists.
- Jane Wenham-Jones’s book, Wannabe a Writer? convinced me that, yes, I really, really did, and led me to study creative writing, read numerous how-to books, and eventually join the Romantic Novelists’ Association New Writers’ Scheme.
- Milly Johnson and Sue Townsend. Reading books by these two wonderful writers, about people I knew and understood, I finally realised that I could write about people like me, and that books could be funny, too.
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If not a writer – then what?
I do have a day job, working for the NHS. If I’m honest, though, that’s not a path I chose, exactly. I’d already given up on the idea of university, as I’d been assured that it wasn’t for “people like us”. I wanted to be a primary school teacher at one point, in my early thirties, and took a further education course aimed at women keen to return to work after having children. A careers guide visited us, and suggested I should aim lower, and try to be a teaching assistant instead. My already fragile confidence was shattered. I spent a few more years floundering, before finally gathering my courage and signing up for a degree in literature with the Open University, graduating with honours in my mid-forties. I want people to know that it’s never too late to realise your dreams, don’t listen to the doubters.
Tell us a little bit about where you set your novels
I set my novels in Yorkshire – which is such a huge and diverse county. My Kearton Bay novels are set on the North Yorkshire coast, in a little village that bears a remarkable resemblance to Robin Hood’s Bay. Bit by bit, I’ve built up a whole world around that village, spreading out into the Yorkshire Moors and creating a network of villages and towns that also feature in my Moorland Heroes and Bramblewick series. The Skimmerdale series, on the other hand, is set over in the stunningly beautiful Yorkshire Dales. I have another series in my mind, which will take place in the Yorkshire Wolds, which is an area on my doorstep – the Wolds Way actually starts in my home town of Hessle, right by the Humber Bridge. It’s an underrated area, often overlooked as people rave about the Moors and Dales. I absolutely love Yorkshire, and like nothing more than heading out for the day to take in the stunning views or ancient buildings. We’ve got plenty of castles and abbeys to choose from, that’s for sure.
My current book is Saving Mr Scrooge, the second in my Moorland Heroes series – the first being Resisting Mr Rochester.
It’s the time of peace on earth and goodwill to all men, but at Carroll’s Confectionary, the meaning of Christmas seems to have been forgotten. New boss, Kit Carroll, is hardly winning friends with his high-handed attitude, his foolhardy approach to production, and his tight-fisted treatment of the factory’s employees.
Marley Jacobs, his self-styled PA, is determined to make him see the error of his ways, and return the festive spirit to Carroll’s Confectionary.
Unfortunately, the little matter of their previous relationship, along with Kit’s callous treatment of her when they were teenage sweethearts, keeps getting in the way of her good intentions. With encouragement from co-worker Don, romantic sister Olivia, and — astonishingly — the usually sceptical Great Uncle Charles, Marley decides to save this modern-day Mr Scrooge from himself, despite having no well-meaning ghosts to help her.
But revisiting the past doesn’t just stir things up for Kit. As Marley struggles to deal with bittersweet memories, present-day events take a surprising turn. Can the future be changed, after all? And is it only Kit who needs saving?
“Sharon Booth’s writing just gets better and better…” Review of Saving Mr Scrooge: Being Anne Book Blog.
“Everything you want in a Christmassy book”. Review of Christmas at the Country Practice: Writer up the Hill.
“A terrific book from a terrific author”. Review of Resisting Mr Rochester: Antrim Cycle
“There Must Be an Angel is one of those delightful stories that grabs you by the hand on page one”. Review of There Must Be an Angel: Jaffa Reads Too.
“A hugely entertaining jaunt of a novel through the Yorkshire dales”. Review of This Other Eden: Random Badger.
I’m currently working on the second in my Skimmerdale series, the sequel to This Other Eden. I’m very much enjoying revisiting my gorgeous Yorkshire Dales sheep farmer, Eliot! I’m also working on the third Bramblewick novel, which continues the story of the village surgery, and the medical and reception staff who work there.
You can find out more about Sharon and her book here – www.sharonboothwriter.com
**featured image – Whitby, Yorks – https://unsplash.com/@grafiklee
Black Friday Book Bonanza
It’s five years since New Romantics Press published their first novels. Earlier this week we mentioned how we’d worked hard to publish twelve novels in five years. Four of those novels are mine and I’m proud to look back over what I’ve achieved. I’m currently working on #5 and am eager to get to the editing/proofreading/cover reveal stage and publish by Easter 2018.
I have achieved #1 bestseller (historical Scottish) and #3 bestseller (Scotland’s/Highlands and Islands) and have rubbed shoulders on the same Amazon page as Diane Gabaldon and Jenny Colgan. I look at my four novels and ask myself: did I really write those? I’m now working hard on a romance set in Wisconsin USA, then its back to Scotland and the Black Isle for #6. My heart really is in the highlands.
My books are currently available to download onto your reading device via Amazon and will cost you just 99p/99c this week. Then the price returns to £2.50 – so don’t delay, download today. As you can see from the photo, my novels are also available as paperbacks and make an ideal present. If you want to know a little bit more about me and my books check out my author page. ![IMG_5527[1]](https://lizzielamb3.files.wordpress.com/2017/11/img_55271.jpg)
If you’re wondering why I’m standing under this sign on the north coast of Scotland, I’ll tell you. My maiden name was Betty Hill. Cool to have a village named after you, no? I’ll be revealing more about that in the second stage of my Coast Road 500 trip in a blog in the New Year.
Can Fliss tame the Monarch of the Glen?
Fliss Bagshawe longs for a passport out of Pimlico where she works as a holistic therapist. After attending a party in Notting Hill she loses her job and with it her dream of becoming her own boss. When she’s offered the chance to take over a failing therapy centre, she grabs it with both hands. But there’s a catch – the centre lies five hundred miles away – in Wester Ross, Scotland. Fliss’s romantic view of the highlands populated by hunky Men in Kilts is shattered when she has an up close and very personal encounter with the Laird of Kinloch Mara, Ruairi Urquhart. He’s determined to pull the plug on the business, bring his eccentric family to heel and eject undesirables from his estate – starting with Fliss. Faced with the dole queue once more, Fliss resolves to make sexy, infuriating Ruairi revise his unflattering opinion of her, turn the therapy centre around and sort out the dysfunctional Urquharts.
and find the happiness she deserves?
Next, I wrote Boot Camp Bride
Take an up-for-anything reporter. Add a world-weary photo-journalist. Put them together . . . light the blue touchpaper and stand well back! Posing as a bride-to-be, Charlee Montague goes undercover at a boot camp for brides in order to photograph supermodel Anastasia Markova. At Charlee’s side and posing as her fiancé, is Rafael Ffinch award winning photographer and survivor of a kidnap attempt in Columbia. He’s in no mood to cut inexperienced Charlee any slack and has made it plain that once the investigation is over, their partnership – and fake engagement – will be terminated, too. Soon Charlee has more questions than answers. What’s the real reason behind Ffinch’s interest in the boot camp? How is it connected to his kidnap in Columbia? In setting out to uncover the truth, Charlee puts herself in danger … As the investigation draws to a close, she wonders if she’ll be able to hand back the engagement ring and walk away from Rafa without a backward glance.
I decided to return to Scotland for Scotch on the Rocks and it became a#1 best seller within two weeks of publication.
ISHABEL STUART is at the crossroads of her life.
Her wealthy industrialist father has died unexpectedly, leaving her a half-share in a ruined whisky distillery and the task of scattering his ashes on a Munro. After discovering her fiancé playing away from home, she cancels their lavish Christmas wedding at St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh and heads for the only place she feels safe – Eilean na Sgairbh, a windswept island on Scotland’s west coast – where the cormorants outnumber the inhabitants, ten to one. When she arrives at her family home – now a bed and breakfast managed by her left-wing, firebrand Aunt Esme, she finds a guest in situ – BRODIE. Issy longs for peace and the chance to lick her wounds, but gorgeous, sexy American, Brodie, turns her world upside down. In spite of her vow to steer clear of men, she grows to rely on Brodie. However, she suspects him of having an ulterior motive for staying on remote Cormorant Island. Having been let down by the men in her life, will it be third time lucky for Issy? Is she wise to trust a man she knows nothing about – a man who presents her with more questions than answers? As for Aunt Esme, she has secrets of her own . . .
This summer I published my latest – Girl in the Castle – but, this time, I’ll let the video trailer do the talking.
Thank you for reading my latest blog. Do get in touch if you’d like to talk about any of my books, I love feedback from readers. 
Have a great weekend and happy reading – Lizzie
Welcome to Helen Barrell – author
On my blog today I’m very pleased to welcome Helen Barrell. They say that the truth is stranger than fiction and Helen’s book Poison Panic, described as ‘A clever mix of family history and true crime’ – Angela Buckley, is a great read if you’re looking for something ‘different‘. But I’ll let Helen do the talking . . .
Tell us something about yourself, Helen
Librarian by day, and author by night; I’m surrounded by books all the time. I’ve always written, but it’s my non-fiction Victorian true crime which has been published, while my fiction lingers on in a drawer. I live in Birmingham, with my partner and two cats, and drink far too much tea. I dress up in historical costume when the mood takes me. And I didn’t intend that to rhyme. Sorry.
Who or what has inspired you the most/ to become a writer?
My grandad, who used to sit me and my brother on his knee, and make up stories as they came to him. My favourite ones were about his time in France and Belgium during WW2 – he used to turn his adventures into ghost stories. Haunted, abandoned chateaux were his speciality, as well as his retelling of the haunting of Borley Rectory. Some people have commented that I write how I speak, and perhaps it’s that storytelling courtesy of my grandad which is behind that. There were always books in our house when I was growing up, and I loved going to our local library. At some point, I made the connection between the stories that people tell with their voices, and the stories people tell by writing them down.
Being a modern author, Helen has used the power of the internet to bring her stories alive for her readers. Click on this link to watch her fabulous book trailer for Poison Panic.
If you’d like to hear Helen reading from Poison Panic, click here.
When you’re not dreaming about poison (!) describe your typical writing day I fit my writing around my job, so I tend to write in the evening, heading up to my desk as soon as I get home from work. I manage to fit in two hours of writing that way. I spend chunks of my weekends writing as well. I’m a bit of a hermit, really! I will sometimes write during my lunch hour or if I get an idea that wakes me up early, I’ll give up trying to get back to sleep and spend some time writing early in the morning. I commute to and from the day job on foot, and I find walking a wonderful way to get lost in my thoughts. So “writing” happens then, too. When deadlines loom, I take holiday from work to write. Recently I took a day’s annual leave in order to work on my book’s index – yes, an index. Such are the woes of the non-fiction author.
I love Ripper Street so this is all beginning to sound right up my strasse. Helen, you seem very media-savvy, having produced your own videos etc, so, here’s my next question:
Social Networking – a help or a hindrance? I’m never entirely sure how well social media helps to sell books, but I will say that it’s an excellent way to get in touch with other writers. Getting to know other writers is an excellent way to share your pain! Twitter is even worth using purely as a writing tool: that focus required to fit what you need into the character limit is good discipline for saying much with little.
Tell us a little about your new book- Fatal Evidence – A surgeon and chemist at Guy’s Hospital in London, Professor Alfred Swaine Taylor used new techniques to search the human body for evidence that once had been unseen. A toxicologist, he could also identify blood on clothing and weapons, and used hair and fibre analysis to catch killers. He gave Charles Dickens a tour of his laboratory, and Wilkie Collins owned copies of his books. For Dorothy L. Sayers, Taylor’s books on forensic science were ‘the back doors to death’.
Fatal Evidence is available for pre-order here
Tailcoat and waistcoat by Walker Slater of Edinburgh
. . . and finally, Helen – and tips for fledgeling authors? There’s no point sitting about not-writing, telling everyone “I’d really like to be a writer,” or “I can picture myself musing at a typewriter by a picture window.” Just get on with it! Whatever it takes – fire up your laptop, open “notes” on your phone, grab a pen and paper, the back of an envelope, or a clattering old typewriter if you really must, and write. Even if it’s a few lines of conversation, a description, a plot outline. Something.Get some words down. They might not be amazing words, but get them down. And then you’re not not-writing, you’re writing, and you’ve set your foot on the path to being an author.
I hear you, sister ! Thank you for coming onto my blog, it’s been fascinating and, who knows, I might be knocking on your door for advice if I give up writing romance and go over to the ‘dark side’. (Helen kindly took these photos of Tall, Dark and Kilted when she visited Edinburgh recently.)
Some reviews of Helen’s work
Reviews for Poison Panic “A clever mix of family history and true crime.” – Angela Buckley, chair of the Society of Genealogists.” “These scandalous true stories are as compelling as any crime fiction.” –All About History magazine. “Poison Panic is an intriguing read that brings a forgotten history to light and reveals past attitudes to women – and a national fear that gripped Victorian Britain.” – Family Tree magazine
Finally – what are you working on ATM?
With two non-fiction titles under my belt, I’m focussing on fiction for a while. I’ve started work on a 19th-century police procedural series, set in the riverside village I grew up in. I’ve recently started to write collaboratively with Catherine Curzon – we have historical romance and romantic thrillers up our collective sleeves.
Lizzie Lamb - author 