Chick Lit Plus by Samantha March

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Beautiful Blogger Award

I was so excited this morning to see that I had received my very first “Beautiful Blogger Award.” One of my favorite bloggers, Lauren from My Life Incomplete, had awarded me, and I couldn’t be happier! Thank you Lauren! I will not lie though, before receiving this award, I had never heard of it. But I learned that bloggers can hand out the award to other bloggers they feel do exceptional work, and if you receive the award and want to accept it, you must write 7 things about yourself, and pass the award along to other bloggers. Some confusion lies though, as I do not know how this award got started and seems that you can maybe choose how many other bloggers you want to pass it along to, or the person giving the award can tell you how many you need to pass it to. Kind of confusing, right? But I want to keep it going on my end, so here are my 7 things about me:
1. I hate all things vegetable. There is not one vegetable I like, though I will try them occasionally and see if my taste buds have changed. Last weekend, I tried celery. Ew.
2. I have wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember. I used to write my own books starting around age nine that modeled after my then favorite series ‘The Baby-Sitters Club.’
3. I love dancing. When I am feeling down, I just plug my iPod in and start dancing around my room. I can be cheered up within minutes.
4. I can’t cook to save my life. Grilled cheese and basic spaghetti are about the extent of culinary genius.
5. I hate winter, especially snow. It’s cold, gross, and causes car accidents. I find nothing amusing about it.
6. I am obsessed with the E! channel. I don’t think there is one show that I don’t enjoy watching. I am especially looking forward to the new series of Kendra.
7. I work out almost every day. I actually do feel great after an hour in the gym or on my yoga mat. And I feel like I eat better after a workout, a double bonus for me.

And now to pass the award along. I am going to do my favorite 7 bloggers.
1. I’m not sure if it is proper to pass the award back to the one who awarded me, but Lauren from My Life Incomplete was one of my first favorites when I joined the land of Twitter, and I find her blog not only inspiring, but she has become a cyber friend, helping me out when I had those hard to answer questions. Lauren is a single mom, blogging on how being divorced doesn’t mean life is over, and dishing out the lessons she has learned along the way.
2. Larissa from Larissa’s Life writes great book reviews and has fabulous book giveaways. She’s another fun one to chat with on Twitter!
3. Jenn from Jenn Book Crazy reads like crazy! She is always posting another great book review, and I love the reading challenges you can find on her site.
4. Tena from Crazy Book Slut first drew me in by the name, and her site is fabulous! She does a lot of book reviews for the romance drama, and those are super fun for me to read. She has a great 2010 challenge to read 50,000 pages!!
5. Sheena from Sheena Says Stuff is a photographer and graphic designer and a ‘sometimes’ writer, who started the Funny Book Club on Twitter. She says she isn’t sure yet if the club is for funny books or just a blog that is funny and about books, but either way you should check it out!
6. Kirsty from Noveliscious has a top notch website that I love visiting on a daily basis. You can get book information, reviews, interviews, and there is even a For Writers section that I favorite.
7. S. Krishna is a blogger, book reviewer, grad student, and Associate Editor and Review Coordinator of @thebookstudio. Whew! Her site is full of great book reviews and fun giveaways to enter.

So that is my Beautiful Blogger award, and to those that I handed the award out to, in order to accept you need to post 7 things about yourself and hand out the award to 7 bloggers you think are fabulous. Thanks again to Lauren and let’s keep this going!

February 28, 2010
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In My Mailbox: Week of February 28
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In My Mailbox: Week of February 28

In My Mailbox: Week of February 28

Title: Poor Little Bitch Girl
Author: Jackie Collins
Received: From Jackie Collins for review
Synopsis: Three twenty-something women, one hot rich guy, two mega movie stars, and a devastating murder: Poor Little Bitch Girl has it all.
Denver Jones is a hotshot twenty-something attorney working in L.A. Carolyn Henderson is personal assistant to a powerful and very married Senator in Washington with whom she is having an affair. And Annabelle Maestro—daughter of two movie stars—has carved out a career for herself in New York as the madame of choice for discerning famous men. The three of them went to high school together in Beverly Hills—and although Denver and Carolyn have kept in touch, Annabelle is out on her own with her cocaine addicted boyfriend, Frankie.
Then there is Bobby Santangelo Stanislopolous, the Kennedyesque son of Lucky Santangelo and deceased Greek shipping billionaire, Dimitri Stanislopolous. Bobby owns Mood, the hottest club in New York. Back in the day he went to high school with Denver, Carolyn and Annabelle. And he connected with all three of them. Frankie is his best friend.
When Annabelle’s beautiful movie star mother is found shot to death in the bedroom of her Beverly Hills mansion, the five of them find themselves thrown together . . . and secrets from the past have a way of coming back to haunt everyone. . . .

Title: The Overnight Socialite
Author: Bridie Clark
Received: Public Library
Synopsis: In this beguiling retelling of the classic Pygmalion, we meet Lucy Ellis, a Manhattan transplant who dreams of making it as a fashion designer but instead toils away on a Garment District assembly line. Road-blocked each time she tries to score a break, Lucy is beginning to think the unthinkable: maybe it’s time to pack it in and move home to Minnesota. Then, during a torrential downpour, at her most bedraggled and disheartened, Lucy meets Wyatt Hayes IV.
Wyatt-man-about-town and bored Ph.D. anthropologist- has just been publicly dissed by New York’s reigning socialite, Cornelia Rockman, whom he’d been dating. He boasts to his best friend Trip that he can transform any woman- even a trailer-born nobody like Lucy- into this year’s “It” girl. “Give me a few months,” he tells Trip, “and I could turn her into a social luminary. She’ll make the rest of the pack look like dim little tea lights.” If Wyatt can fool the East coast aristocracy into thinking Lucy’s the real deal, he can reveal the farce behind Cornelia’s social superiority complex…and score a career-boosting book deal.
Headstrong Lucy challenges her teacher at every turn, but armed with a made-up pedigree and a wardrobe costlier than most studio apartments, she’s soon navigating a world in which the most photographed socialite takes all. Can Lucy survive in a wilderness where no girl wears the same gown twice, the Astors are considered Johnny-come-latelies, and weddings are more lavish than the coronation of Louis XIV? Will she forge the connections needed to make a name for herself in fashion? And can she surmount the schemes and suspicions of her newfound rival, Cornelia?
Three months of rigorous prep and test runs culminate in Lucy’s showdown at the Fashion Forum Gala, where she and Wyatt confront the ne plus ultra of society…and their unexpected feelings for each other. But the gaps between them-as well as Wyatt’s secret agenda-may make this improbable couple an impossibility.
Set against the gold-plated world of Manhattan’s social elite, The Overnight Socialite puts a witty twenty-first-century spin on a timeless story of transformation and unlikely love.

Title: Dirty Girls on Top
Author: Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez
Received: Public Library
Synopsis: The Dirty Girls are back, saucier and sexier than ever….but would it be wrong to ask them to be a little smarter, too?? Especially when it comes to men. And sex.
Lauren Fernandez is at the top of her game as the cleverest columnist the Boston Gazette has on board—but she can’t quite figure out how to pick a guy or how to eat (and not drink) like a healthy person. Usnavys is still sashaying all over town, 260 pounds of her dolled up in designer duds and ready for action—from anyone except her husband Juan, that is. He’s become just a bit boring staying home scrubbing the tub and cooking up chicken fingers for pre-schooler Carolina while somebody else brings home the bacon.
Maybe the other Dirty Girls could help Lauren and ‘navy out, but they’ve got their own messes to deal with: Rebecca Baca hasn’t gained a pound since college (well, who would, if they had an ounce of self-control?) but suspects her picture-perfect marriage may not yield the baby she longs for; Sara may be the star of her own decorating show on cable television, but her dangerous pull toward her ex-husband Roberto isn’t so pretty; Amber keeps renaming herself and doesn’t want to hear that her soulfulness and reinvention aren’t enough to make fans actually buy her music; and Elizabeth is discovering that a relationship with another woman takes more than bravery and a nesting instinct.
Dirty Girls on Top is about trying to figure it all out without quite as much time left as there was five years ago. And it’s about sex and love—getting it, not getting it, yearning for it, having it with the wrong person, fighting it from the right person, trying it a new way, giving up on it. And, in the end, if your fingers are crossed and the planets are in alignment, having it come out just the way it should.

Title: Drop Dead Beautiful
Author: Jackie Collins
Received: Public Library
Synopsis: “Like mother, like daughter. “No truer words for Lucky Santangelo’s sixteen-year-old Max, who goes looking for trouble when she hooks up with some guy she met on the Internet. Soon the beautiful, willful Max finds herself in deeper waters than she can imagine as she becomes a pawn in a greater scheme that leads back to Lucky and Billy Melina, the studly movie-star boyfriend of Lucky’s best friend, superstar Venus. “” If Max’s troubles weren’t enough, Lucky has her multi-billion-dollar Las Vegas hotel complex to contend with…along with Anthony Bonar, the illegitimate grandson of her one-time Godfather and lethal enemy, Enzio Bonnati. So begins a non-stop thrill ride as Lucky builds her dream resort–and gambles with all she holds dear. Max, too, is following her dreams, and as her high-flying triumphs prove, she’s more than just a little Lucky.

February 28, 2010
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Bergdorf Blondes by Plum Sykes
Chick Lit Review

Bergdorf Blondes by Plum Sykes

The Park Avenue Princesses are on a mission- find the perfect Prospective Husband. The unnamed heroine dives right in, finding what seems like the most fabulous men but realizing they are only toads disguised as a prince (literally- a prince). Along with best friend Julie Bergdorf, the group of wealthy socialites go through the life of luxury, their biggest worries being when their next alpha-beta peel is scheduled, and what to wear to the hottest party this weekend.
Following the adventures of the rich and fabulous proved hilarious in Plum Sykes debut novel, Bergdorf Blondes. A light but hilarious read, it was difficult to put down because the characters were able to suck you in and make you feel a part of the clique. Chick lit readers will enjoy the fluffy plot and over the top situations, especially if you were a fan of the Clueless movie! Blondes is entertaining, carefree, and a glamorous trip through the glitzy world of the girls who have it all.

February 28, 2010
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Guest Post from Author Carol Mason
Chick Lit Authors

Guest Post from Author Carol Mason

My new novel, The Love Market, I am told, has just hit the shelves in stores across Canada. I love that expression! I only have to read it to feel that the entire hair-pulling, teeth-grinding ordeal of a year spent writing a novel was all worth it. Of course then I rush to my local bookstore and fail to see the book anywhere. Or it may happen to be in a box, amidst a pile of other unpacked novels in the corner of the store, even though theoretically it’s supposed to be proudly occupying its well-earned space on some up-front and centre shelf where the world can see it and buy it.

Then reality kicks in, and I remember one thing: no dream is ever as perfect as we imagine it. If it was, life would stop the moment we got what we wanted.

I will never forget finding out that I had finally got bought by a top publishing house, that my book would be published in many different countries, I was being paid a slightly more than respectable salary for what I’d accomplished, and what’s more, they were buying a second book off me – one I’d not even written or conceived yet! I must be pretty fantastic, right? Surely after everything I’d been through I could allow myself to think myself fabulous just this once?

It had not been easy. (understatement of the century) I’d given up a well-paid job to write full-time. I’d initially given myself a year to get published and that year had turned into five. I imagined, because I was so gung-ho (and clearly deluded), that I’d make it with my first book. That one book turned into three unpublished attempts that still lurk in the bottom drawer of my desk, because I’m sure one day I will revive them and they will go on to be bestsellers. Actually it was five unpublished attempts. I forgot to count the two novels I wrote ten years previously that I was too lazy to back up on my computer, and my computer got stolen, and the novels went along for the ride. Surely I had earned my stripes?

“Are you sitting down?’ My agent asked me on a phone call from London. I had just woken up. It was 7AM Vancouver time. Then her next question was, ‘Do you have a bottle of champagne in the fridge?’

The thing was, I had become so conditioned to the concept of failure that imagining myself a success no longer ever crossed my mind. I disbelieved her when she told me that Hodder & Stoughton had just made a lovely offer on The Secrets of Married Women. What was she playing at? Is this how my agent got her jollies? I had to consciously sit there and reason with myself: Hang on Carol, she has no reason to make this up. Maybe it’s true.
I didn’t have a bottle of champers in the fridge. But by the end of that day I was eating sushi with Dom Perignon. The high I felt was like none I’d experienced before. I had done something that countless people told me I would never do: Even if they never came out and said it, it was there in their faces. I had gotten published. On a big level. Way to go me!
Mysteriously, I became all fixated on death after that. I didn’t want to die before I saw my first novel hit the shelves. Not that, until that moment, I’d ever imagined myself dying. I was in perfectly good health and a reasonably sane driver and I didn’t think I had any enemies who would be following me with a hatchet down a dark street. But after hearing my so-called “job” of writing had been validated by a big publishing house, and I no longer had to feel I needed to make excuses to people about what I did, I had a heightened sense of my own need to self-preserve. All I wanted was to walk into a big bookstore and see myself right there, next to whichever brand name author had a book out at the same time – then I could die happy. Or on a shelf filed next to whatever greatly successful writer bore a last name beginning with M. In my case, it always seems to be Carole Matthews. Seeing a table-load of my novel in Borders on Oxford Street made me want to rip off all clothes and dance naked on top of them. Not only had I hit shelves, I’d apparently hit tables too! I started lurking around the edges of bookshelves, watching to see if anyone would actually buy my book off that table. I never saw it happen. Then I fantasized about seeing someone reading my book on a bus. That never happened either. But then my moment came. I was skimming a British newspaper and saw a photograph of a WAG (Footballers’ Wives And Girlfriends) sitting on a beach reading a novel – and the book was none other than The Secrets of Married Women. A WAG was reading me! How cool was that?
Of course sometimes “hitting the shelves” literally means there is one copy, spine out, under the letter M. A pretty deflating sight to see. Especially as you tend to know it’s not because there’s only one left, but because there never was more than one in the first place. But still, I will always take my “one” copy to the most prominent position in the store, and place it right there – surreptitiously, like you never really saw me do that. But hey! If Carrie Bradshaw can do it, why can’t I?
So this weekend, Olympics fever over in Vancouver (almost), I will do my routine of driving to as many stores as I can hit and signing copies so that the sales team can stick pretty little stickers on them. As hard as it is to be published and to keep on being published, this thing I get to do when new book hits the shelves makes me remember why it is I started writing in the first place.
Signed by Author? Yep, that’s me.

February 27, 2010
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Marie Osmond’s Son Commits Suicide
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Marie Osmond’s Son Commits Suicide

Marie Osmond’s teenaged son Michael Blosil has killed himself, People.com has reported. Blosil reportedly leaped to his death around 9 pm on Friday, and left a suicide note behind, citing his long battle with severe depression as a cause for the suicide. A rep for both Marie and brother Donny Osmond has confirmed that their Las Vegas show at the Flamingo Hotel has been canceled for Saturday, and will be on an indefinite hiatus.

February 27, 2010
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Jim Carrey a Grandpa!
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Jim Carrey a Grandpa!

Jim Carrey is getting a new name: Grandpa! The comedic actor, 47, has officially become a grandparent, People.com has reported, after his daughter Jane Carrey gave birth to her son on Friday. Jane and husband Alex Santana welcomed Jackson Riley Santana, at 12:28 a.m. Friday in Los Angeles. The baby boy weighed in at 7 lbs., 11 oz, and measured 20 inches long.

February 27, 2010
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Interview with Cathleen Holst
Chick Lit Authors

Interview with Cathleen Holst

Q: You are a new writer. What made you want to start writing, and how long have you been at it? Writing is something I’ve always loved doing. Even as a young girl I remember writing stories, but it was something I always kept very private. I remember writing a short story for my history class during my sophomore year of high school that was based on the Salem Witch Trials. Ms. Ray, my history teacher, returned the stories and had written a note on the top of my paper that I will never forget. In red ink she wrote, “You’re a great writer.” The seed was officially planted, but I never thought seriously about writing until I read a book (that I will leave nameless) in 2009 that I really enjoyed. The story was great and highly addictive (I literally could not stop reading). The writing, however, was mediocre at best, and I thought if writing like that could get published, than certainly mine could. 
Q: What have you found to be the most difficult so far in your journey? I would have to say that the most difficult thing, for me, is finding good blocks of uninterrupted writing time. My mother-in-law has been so helpful in that respect and watches my four year-old a couple days a week for me. That is such a huge help. But on a technical note, that would have to be the outlining process. I find it almost impossible to outline before I start writing. I will get an idea and just start writing like mad, but inevitably stall around the third or fourth chapter. That’s when I start outlining or really what I like to call my “what if’s”. I’ll take my idea and twist and turn it in as many different directions as I possibly can until I get something I like.
Q: Your debut novel is The Story of Everleigh Carlisle. Where did that inspiration come from? I wish I had some type of prolific answer like how the story came to me in a dream, or I was sitting on train and had this sudden burst of inspiration, but sadly I have none of that. I literally had no idea what I was going to write about when I began. All I knew was that I had this burning desire to write something…anything. I had no outline, no plot ideas, not even the name of a character. I just started typing the first thing that popped into my head. And that’s how Everleigh was born.
Q: Are you currently working on another novel, or some ideas for a plot or characters? Yes. I have the basic plot and a few characters outlined for my next novel. I began working on it while waiting to hear if Everleigh was going to be picked up for publication. After working and reworking that story for so long, I had to walk away for a while and begin something new. I’m excited to get back to it.
Q: How were you able to secure a publisher? Can you walk us through the process? My experience in that is probably different than most. I took the same path that hundreds of other aspiring novelists take by sending out queries to agents by the dozen. But where mine differs is how I met my publisher. After joining a new online networking site for writers I read the profiles of several members, but when I came across a profile belonging to a publisher my interest was piqued and I visited their website. After reviewing the type of material they were interested in, I was curious about why they were not interested in one particular genre. I have to be honest, I wasn’t sure if a fledgling novelist like me should bother a publisher with my little question. But nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? I took a chance and emailed my question to her. She was very kind and answered my question right away. I’m not sure what I did (but I’m glad I did it), she then later took an interest in me and asked to see my manuscript. Even though she’s not an agent, I still had to submit a query letter, synopsis and the first two chapters. And I fully expected her response to be the same as every other agent I submitted to; something along the lines of “Your story sounds interesting, but unfortunately we’re going to have to pass and we wish you all the best in your publishing endeavors.” Imagine my surprise when she said she wanted to publish it! After countless rejections, someone actually liked it. I really couldn’t be happier with my publisher, and couldn’t ask for a better first experience.
Q: What do you hope readers take away from your book? Honestly, I hope that if the reader is having a bad day or if they find their life isn’t going exactly the way they expected that they are able to relate to Everleigh—she gets thrown a curveball in her life as well—and realize that even though by all appearances we have everything we want, we still need to listen to our heart. Because if our heart’s not happy then we never will be, no matter how much money we have, what neighborhood we live in, our car, our social status, or even our job title. None of that defines who we are as people, and that is something Everleigh struggles to remember. As we all do at times. But even more than that, I just hope they enjoy reading it as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it.
Q: What is the best part about being a “Georgia Peach?” Now that’s an original question.  There’s nothing like good ol’ fashioned Southern hospitality, sweet tea, barbecue, and fried green tomatoes, all of it. I just love the South. It’s my home. Oh, and the weather, I can’t forget the weather. It’s nice to be able to experience all four seasons, and sometimes we experience all four in the same week.
Q: What is the biggest risk you have ever taken? I don’t really know if I’d call it a risk because I didn’t have anything to lose, but deciding to share with everyone that I was writing a book with the intent of becoming published was rather terrifying for me. As I said earlier, I kept my love of writing private so to announce to my family that I was seriously writing was scary. They’ve all been incredibly supportive.
Q: Being a new writer, what would be your advice to aspiring writers? Never stop writing and don’t let rejections get you down. It’s all part of the business. John Grisham, Stephen King, JK Rowling, Stephenie Meyer, and countless others…they’ve all received rejection letters and after receiving mine I was now a member of that club. That’s some great company to be in. If you want it bad enough, it will happen. Don’t let a few “no’s” stop you from pursuing your dream. Another piece of advice I would give is to take your time when writing your first novel, and get as much HONEST feedback as you can. That means stepping outside your comfort zone and sharing your writing with others who are not close friends or relatives. It may be painful sometimes, but believe me it will help you grow as a writer. I received a comment about my writing once that almost had me in tears, but once I calmed down I realized everything this person had pointed out was spot on. It was the best comment I’d received.
Q: What is or do you think would be your favorite place to travel? Oh my…there are so many places I would love to visit. I would have to say Paris or Tuscany. Under the Tuscan Sun is one of my all-time favorite movies, and after watching that I said, “I want to buy a villa in Tuscany and hire the muscular descendents of Roman gods to help me rebuild it!” Hey…a girl can dream, can’t she?

February 26, 2010
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Simon Cowell is Engaged
Chick Lit Plus

Simon Cowell is Engaged

Here’s a shocker: Simon Cowell is engaged. The American Idol judge, 50, is engaged to makeup artist Mezhgan Hussainy after denying the rumor for weeks. Multiple insiders confirmed the engagement to Usmagazine, and Hussainy confirmed the news herself early on Friday. The couple started dating last October around Cowell’s 50th birthday, where she was his date for his birthday party in London. I am just so happy this is finally confirmed after all the denying, even though she was wearing what appears to be an engagement ring and he was calling her The One in interviews. Hello obvious.

February 26, 2010
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Interview with Allie Spencer
Chick Lit Authors

Interview with Allie Spencer

Q: You attended a law school and practiced law for years. Why did you decide to start writing?

I’ve wanted to be a writer for most of my life and dabbled at it for years. However, it wasn’t until I’d had my first child that I finally had the time (during his naps) to sit down and tackle a full-length novel. At the moment, the writing seems to be taking off, but there is always the chance I’ll be back in court if things don’t work out!

Q: What is your favorite part of the writing process?

Oooh, that’s a hard one. I think every part of the process has good bits and bad bits, but for sheer excitement, I think it has to be the moment you first hold your published novel in your hand – everything you struggled with suddenly seems worth it. Also, it’s hard to beat the moment a fantastic idea or a wonderful character turns up unannounced in your head; in my experience this doesn’t happened very often so you need to make the most of it!

Q: On the other hand, what do you think is the hardest part of the writing process?

I find the first edit the hardest. I write and write and write until I have a first draft and then I go back over it and try and pull it into some sort of shape. I usually end up doing at least six drafts/re-workings, but that first ‘go through’ feels as though it takes forever and by the time I’ve finished it, I’ve usually convinced myself that I’ve just written the worst book in the history of the universe! But you have to gird up your loins and go back in and do it all over again – and by the time I’ve finished the second edit, I generally feel much more positive.

Q: Do you have a certain area that you get all your work done?

I write in my bedroom, sitting on the bed with my laptop on my knee. I’m sure this isn’t good for me and some sort of ergonomic karma is going to get me sooner or later, but I love the peace and calm of the bedroom (unlike the crazy, untidy study that my husband occupies) and I can hide away from the washing up and unfinished housework lurking downstairs.

Q: Where do you find the inspiration for your books?

Sometimes it seems to come out of nowhere: I’ll be watching television, picking the children up from school or going for a run, and I’ll think ‘wouldn’t that be a good idea for a book?’ or, ‘oh, yes – that’s the way the plot needs to go!’. At other times, I’ll find myself in a particular situation, or perhaps reading an article in the paper, and ideas start sparking out of that. I got the inspiration for Tug of Love whilst sitting in a crowded corridor outside a courtroom: I suddenly wondered what it would be like if the door to that courtroom opened and your boyfriend came out – and there you were, in the most public situation imaginable, having just found out that your boyfriend was going through a divorce he hadn’t told you about.

Q: How do you enjoy any free time you get?

I seem to spend most of the time I’m not writing running round like a headless chicken sorting out the house or looking after the children. However this New Year I made a resolution to get back into some of the things I used to enjoy such as going to the theatre, cinema and concerts. I haven’t made it to the flicks yet, but I did go to see Noel Coward’s Private Lives a couple of weeks ago and I’ve got two more theatre trips booked – one is for a show at the Globe Theatre which I am really excited about.

Q: What is one thing about you that most people wouldn’t know?

Er, tough one. The answer would either have to be something a bit bizarre, like the fact that I was once in a play where all my lines were in Anglo Saxon and I had to wave a broad sword around (!) or something more serious, like the fact I am dyslexic. Thankfully my dyslexia is not at the serious end of the spectrum, but it does mean I need to put in extra effort to make sure my writing’s up to scratch.

Q: Who are some of your favorite authors?

I like anyone with an unusual, humorous take on life so my favourites include Marian Keyes, Sophie Kinsella (I have just finished Twenties Girl – it was amazing), Douglas Adams and the fantastic Jasper Fforde.

Q: What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Never give up: keep writing, keep polishing and keep sending your work out to editors and agents. If you give up, you can be absolutely certain you will never be published; keep going and you are always in with a chance. I think it’s also worth going to writers’ conferences or joining groups such as the Romantic Novelists’ Association (who, by the way, run a critiquing scheme for unpublished authors). By meeting and talking to the editors and agents who attend this sort of function, you get yourself known and also get a feel for what publishers are looking for.

Q: What is or do you think would be your favorite place to travel?

If I could go anywhere, I think I’d hop in a time machine and whiz back through some of my favourite historical eras. I studied the Middle Ages at uni, so a quick visit to the Fifteenth Century would be interesting to see if our ideas about life back then are anywhere near the truth! Then a stop-over in Regency England – possibly a visit to the great Jane Austen herself, if that could be arranged – before winding up in the Roaring Twenties for champagne cocktails and a spot of Charleston dancing!

February 26, 2010
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