High Heels and Book Deals

A Night of Crime

2012-03-01T13:36:00.003Z

Believe it or not, apart from Harrogate, I haven't been to hear any authors talk. I've attended a talk in the Tower of London where an author spoke at her book launch but other than that? Nope. That's the downside of living where I do. So when A Night of Crime was advertised at The Portico Library, Manchester, for three Pan Macmillan crime writers, hosted by Urmston Book Shop and one of the authors was my good mate, David Jackson, well, I was on it like a shot. And it was certainly a night I will remember for a long time to come.

Despite getting starstruck when I saw Daniel Mays and his crew in the reception at the Malmaison Hotel where we were staying, meeting Anne Cleeves for coffee beforehand and walking over to the event with her and Pan Macmillan's publicity director, Philippa McEwan, and feeling part of their crew was a great feeling. I was with Cath Bore, a fellow crime writer from Liverpool, and as soon as we got into the Portico Library we were taking photos. The building is astounding - the books just a dream to behold. There was even a selection entitled polite literature - not sure my book could ever be classed as polite!

Couldn't resist posing with the books!

As well as David Jackson (@Author_Dave) and Ann Cleeves (@AnnCleeves, we met M R Hall (@MRHall_books) and then came three very different talks. I love the television show VERA so it was interesting to hear how she had appeared to Ann. MRHall gave a talk about legal backgrounds and many, erm, aeroplane malfunctions. And David Jackson had us in stitches re the English/American spelling of words and use of phrases.

We took a break with wine and nibbles and then an hour of questions and answers. At one point, over a discussion around hardback, paperback and electronic books, Dave pointed me out to the audience as a top ten kindle author, of which I was thrilled but nearly dropped through the floor. This was his night, how kind. It was lovely to mention my ebook but I quickly brought the conversation back to 'I really want what those authors have' - a fantastic publishing company and a great editor and PR team. It will never stop being my dream. Although I have to admit to being made to feel very special when several people came over to me afterwards to find out more from me about Taunting the Dead!

I was extremely fortunate, and thrilled, to be invited out to dinner with the authors and staff from Pan Macmillan, along with the owners of The Urmston Book Shop that helped run the event so smoothly. More book talk and more wine - an absolute belter of an end to a fantastic evening.

I shall certainly be looking out for more events at The Portico Library, as well as I'm now following Urmston Book Shop (they have a coffee shop inside their book shop, stuff that dreams are made of - coffee and books)

A great night - thanks to all who made it so.

The Portico Library can be found here

The Urmston Book Shop can be found here

Pan Macmillan can be found here

And the winner is

2012-02-29T09:07:00.000Z

The winner of the fabulous set of books from Picador to celebrate their 40th anniversary is....

drum roll please...

Joanna Cannon!

Congratulations to Joanna! And commiserations to everyone else because it was a mighty fine prize!

Many thanks to Picador too.

Picador is 40!

2012-02-23T14:55:00.001Z

I love it when exciting things pop into my email box, especially if it concerns giving something away. This email was a delight to receive. Win a box set to cherish.

To celebratePicador’s 40^th anniversary, Picador are re-issuing 12 of their classicfiction titles. Among them you will find prize-winning books, books that havebecome global sales hits, books that caused huge controversy when published orwere published to huge critical acclaim. Together they are a valuable set ofmust-reads.

Neil Lang, SeniorDesigner at Picador said:

“The Picador 40th design initially started conceptually, before the titles wereconfirmed which enabled me to concentrate on creating a series style.

Once the titles were confirmed, I tried many different approaches; usingtypography only to convey the subject, a template into which differentillustrations could fit, very simple shapes and flat colours - all of whichevolved into the more detailed black and white series. Some titles wouldobviously benefit from being less graphic and so I commissioned Rob Hunter towork alongside me on those.

Originally the series started with a more rigid feel, using the same typographyand positioning on all, but by using the black and white to unite them it meantthat a typeface could be chosen to suit each title. Of course, I couldn’tresist a nod to the classic white spine which always looked great on abookshelf.

Every cover is different and I think works individually, but when seen togetherwork as a set, although I’m sure everyone will have a favourite myselfincluded!”

Each book comeswith a section of extra material which historicises the book and provides aspring board for readers to discover more. These pages include contemporaryreview coverage, author interviews and essays, original jacket art work,reading guides, information about adapting the books for film as well asinformation about other books by the authors and recommended reading

lists

The twelve re-design Picadorclassics are:

The Sea by John Banville

The Savage Detectives byRoberto Bolano

White Noise by Don DeLillo

Room by Emma Donoghue

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis

Bridget Jones’s Diary by HelenFielding

The Line of Beauty by Alan Hollinghurst

All The Pretty Horses byCormac McCarthy

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Mother’s Milk by Edward StAubyn

Last Orders by Graham Swift

Dirt Music by Tim Winton

So, yes, I have a full set to giveaway. How lucky are you! Secretly, I would love a set myself. All you need to do is leave a 'pick me' comment below by Tuesday 28 February, or a tweet 'I want to win Picador 40' and I will pick a winner. Good luck!

Pondering Book Two

2012-02-17T13:37:00.003Z

Photo by Duane Barrett

Now that TAUNTING THE DEAD is out there, it's time to put my thoughts to the second book in the series, FOLLOW THE LEADER. I'm a quick first draft kinda writer as I like to get all my thoughts down as quickly as possible. I aim for 100,000 words. TAUNTING THE DEAD came in at 93,000. On the second draft, I added a further 18,000 words. I write my word count for the day and the overall total on a wall calendar to spur me on.

I liken my first draft to pulling teeth but I aim for 3-4000 words per day until it's done. That's not to say that I actually get 3-4000 words a day written because some days it's just not possible. So I aim for six weeks.

And this six weeks can be hell. For the first 20k, I reckon I pussyfoot around doing anything but write. I'll research. I'll dabble on twitter far more than usual. I'll write a few words and then wander off in search of a coffee. I'll write a few more - and I mean a few - and I'll have a quick look at the internet. Repeat many times during the day. Just because I don't want to write. But I have to give myself a deadline or else I would never get past those first few words. So the nearer I get to The End, the more words I write daily.

I do have to have an outline before I start to write, which is what I've been working on. I have a beginning, a middle and an end (and six murders in this one). I have my characters and their backgrounds sorted. With this being the second of a series, I know some of the main characters which is a first for me. I write out about twenty chapters and these evolve into between 40-45 for the final draft.

I write 25,000 words or 100 pages, whichever comes first. Then I take a break and read through. This is the only read through I do, but it cements the book into my head; about what I want to happen; if it's deviated from the outline and why; what characters have spoken to me more than I had originally planned; have I thought of any further twists. Once I'm done with the read through, and have amended the chapter plan accordingly, I go on without looking back until I get to the best two words I ever write - The End.

Draft two takes as long to get through as draft one for me. In draft one mode, I give myself permission to write anything. Draft two is where I make sense of my words and figure out exactly what I was trying to say. It's also the time where I add more twists and turns that have evolved and for me, this is the best part. Out of all the writing process, I enjoy draft two. It's what turns the words into a book. At the finish, my second draft is very much like a lot of author's first drafts. We all write differently. No one gets to see my first draft - I doubt they'd be able to make sense of it anyway. But once the second draft is done, it's sent to my agent. Fresh eyes, advice and experience - and a nail biting wait.

This post isn't to say that everyone should be writing like I do - just showing you how I tackle my writing. I know writers who work all day to polish 1000 words but when they are done for the day, those words are perfect. I think no matter how slow or fast the words go down, what's more important really is that they are written. Your way.

So I'm off to purchase some bum glue - well, it's the only thing that keeps me at my desk for the next few weeks...

For anyone who has read, downloaded, reviewed, emailed me or whatever else about TAUNTING THE DEAD, thank you so much. This has always been a dream of mine, so be it in a different way than I'd imagined, and it's great to see it in the top five kindle best sellers at the moment. I have some really fantastic reviews - and some not so fantastic, which even though stings just a little, it's good that the book gets people talking at least.

There's also a link to some first draft howlers for TAUNTING THE DEAD...

And here you can catch me telling Caroline Smailes about why I chose to self publish...

I'm Lucky Because

2012-02-14T19:47:00.000Z

Follow imluckybecause

You know how much I love Twitter, right? For me, it's a godsend as a writer. Working from home can often be lonely and I like nothing better than dipping in every now and then (ok, sometimes quite often but don't tell my agent) and seeing who is around to have a chat with. I log on and there is always someone there.

For a long time, I've wanted to get involved with a local charity and use my skills to either volunteer or write something that could be useful. Caudwell Children are based in Stoke on Trent but operate nationwide. After a chance meeting with one of the PR executives, I was invited along to meet some of the team and brainstorm some ideas. We came up with the idea of a twitter campaign.

#imluckybecause

Taking place at Old Trafford, home of Manchester United Football Club, and organised by national charity, Caudwell Children, @imluckybecause will capture the children’s thoughts about why they feel they are lucky. Caudwell Children hope the tweets will provoke response across Twitter as people join the campaign. The initiative will also enable the children to understand the benefits of using social media to communicate and help them learn new creative writing skills.

Click here to follow imluckybecause

This is where I need your help. I want the kids to have lots of followers. I don't want you to do any more than that if you don't wish to. But if I tweet out a message using the hashtag #imluckybecause, wouldn't it be great to have someone I know tweet back to them? Or even just to follow them.

Click here to follow imluckybecause

You know when you see a hashtag and you want to join in? #filmsthatcontainfood #ilovemydogbecause #weallgotthatonefriend. Wouldn't it be good if we could get #imluckybecause trending?

I shall be with the kids between 12.15 and 13.00 for the launch, February 15th. So if you see me on Twitter, or you see the hashtag #imluckybecause or the twitter name @imluckybecause, come and say hello. Make someone smile.

This is one of those ideas which could filter out to nothing - or it could be absolutely fantastic! If you'd like to join in, please use the hashtag #imluckybecause. Let us know what you're feeling lucky about.

Come on Twitter, show the kids what you're made of. Who knows - you might even get a tweet out from one of the charity’s celebrity ambassadors including Peter Andre, Elizabeth Hurley and Joan Collins!

Click here to follow imluckybecause - nothing else needed.

Thank you for your time!

Here's the press release issued by Caudwell Children:

CBeebies presenter, Alex Winters, and successful author Mel Sherratt, will join the launch of an innovative digital campaign by disabled children.

“I’m Lucky Because…” will be viewed by thousands of Twitter users on Wednesday, 15^th February, as children with various disabilities, and their siblings, make inspirational tweets about how lucky they are.

The ground-breaking campaign aims to dispel misconceptions about life with a disability and generate a wider understanding of how disabled children perceive their lives.

Taking place at the world famous Old Trafford, home of Manchester United Football Club, and organised by national charity, Caudwell Children, @imluckybecause will capture the children’s thoughts about why they feel they are lucky. Caudwell Children hope the tweets will provoke response across Twitter as people join the campaign.

The initiative will also enable the children to understand the benefits of using social media to communicate and help them learn new creative writing skills.

The campaign is being backed by CBeebies star Alex Winters, author Mel Sherratt and supported by marketing company Fifteen Digital, who will be joining the group on the day.

The charity’s celebrity ambassadors including Peter Andre, Elizabeth Hurley and Joan Collins will also hopefully be following the children’s tweets on the day.

Crime thriller writer, Mel Sherratt, said “I’m very excited to be involved with the campaign and help the children voice about how lucky they feel.I absolutely love Twitter. I use it as a virtual office and stay in touch with people so it’s a really good tool for me like thousands of others.Twitter offers a great sense of community as there is always someone to talk to and help you belong. I hope people will really get behind the campaign, get creative, and share their support.”

Trudi Beswick, Chief Executive of Caudwell Children, said “This campaign reflects our efforts to help break down the barriers disabled children often face in society. The children we meet have achieved exceptional things, often when the odds are stacked against them and we want to give them a platform to tell people.We want to help celebrate their achievements and their incredible outlook on life and hopefully people will be inspired by what they read. It will also teach the children how to use new media forms such as Twitter to get their message across.We hope Twitter users will back the campaign on the day by joining in with @imluckybecause.”

Caudwell Children provide treatment, therapy, equipment and family support services for sick and disabled children throughout the UK. To date Caudwell Children has provided services worth over £17 million to thousands of children with over 350 different medical conditions.

Follow @imluckybecause on Twitter.

About Caudwell Children

To date Caudwell Children has provided services worth over £17 million to thousands of children with over 450 different medical conditions. The Charity is committed to changing the lives of children by providing specialist equipment, treatment and therapy as well as its annual ‘Destination Dreams’ holiday for families coping with a child’s terminal illness and their Family Support services.

Caudwell Children was registered in March 2000 and is widely recognised as one of the country’s fastest growing children’s charities. Since its inception the charity has doubled every pound raised, achieved through supplier partnerships, which means every pound donated works even harder.

The Charity was founded by entrepreneur, John Caudwell, whose vision was to create a sustainable children’s charity that offered benefactors’ transparency and peace of mind that 100% of their donation was being used to directly change children’s lives.

By donating the cost of the Charity’s annual management and administration overheads, John has guaranteed an efficient way for individuals and businesses to change the lives of thousands of sick and disabled children living in the UK.

John Caudwell remains the Charity’s largest benefactor and sits as Chairman of the Board of Trustees.

The Charity’s ambassadors include Hollywood actress and author, Joan Collins, actress Elizabeth Hurley, Rod and Penny Stewart, Peter Andre, Bruce Forsyth and singer, Robbie Williams. The late Boyzone singer, Stephen Gately, was also a Goodwill Ambassador for the Charity.

Can the world stop turning while I catch up

2012-02-10T15:50:00.003Z

I know! Look at all these lovely books I am dying to read and just haven't found the time. I need the world to stop while I catch up. Because there are some corkers in there.

I haven't been book reviewing for a while now, mainly due to a lack of time. So this is what I've been reading lately.

THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT, written by Jennifer E Smith, is one of the sweetest books I have read in a long time. It's young adult, which I enjoy reading, but it's also a crossover novel because the main character, Hadley, grows up and accepts her life for what it is. SPOLAF, as it is more affectionately known, is one of those books that get under your skin and casts you back to teenage years of angst. For me, as my parents divorced too, I could feel her pain. I wanted answers to all those questions - why aren't my parents together now? What will happen to me? What does my future hold? The novel takes place over 24 hours, eight hours of that on a plane. Hadley is upset that her Dad went to live in England and has a new life without her. He's getting married again and even though Hadley feels like her nose is being pushed out of joint, he still wants her at the wedding. But she misses the flight - by four minutes. And on that flight she meets Oliver...THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT is a beautiful book.

Reading THE FALL, written by Claire McGowan, after reading SPOLAF was a totally different ball game. But that's what I like about books. The first line of the blurb is 'what would you do if the man you love was accused of murder?' With such a loaded question, I dived right into this book. And wow, did I love it. Claire's ability to create well-rounded characters of today made me smile.The writing is witty, fresh and instantly appealing. The story revolves around three central characters and how their lives intermingle after a man is murdered. It's a tale of how one action can change so much. It's very much about the impact of a crime rather than the violence committed. And the best thing for me? It's real. This could happen to anyone. I haven't read a story like it before and I can see it being a huge success. THE FALL is a thoroughly, engaging read.

And because I'm in love with the whole idea that is Kindle at the moment, I also like the idea of having something to read for short journeys and breaks - or longer if you prefer. TEARS AND LAUGHTER AND HAPPY EVER AFTER is a vibrant and varied collection of tales from writers who between them have had hundreds of short stories published in women’s magazines. Within the pages of this book, you’ll meet a housewife with a surprising secret, a beekeeper with a problem and an undertaker with something unusual on his mind. You’ll also encounter angels, ghosts, aliens and many other intriguing characters. And, in the end, you may just find the path to happy ever after.

My Visit to Number 10

2012-02-04T13:06:00.002Z

I read a tweet this morning that said ‘no one remembers aday, they always remember a moment.’ Well, for me, that moment came last night.After all the hard work and heartache, releasing my ebook, TAUNTING THE DEAD, hasbeen something of a whirlwind. Within four weeks it went into the kindle bestsellers. I can clearly remember the day when it entered the kindle #100.

Yes, Iscreamed and did a little dance. I also shed a little tear.

Last night, during the break of my favourite program, Lawand Order UK, I had a little peak at my sales ranking, as you do, and I sawthat TAUNTING THE DEAD was #10! And yes,I screamed and did a little dance. This time I didn’t shed a tear as I was backto watching Law and Order UK (which made me shed tears for a different reason –such a fantastic episode).

When I went back to twitter, I had so many tweets about mynews. But when I went back to look at it on Amazon, it had gone down to #11again. My moment of glory lasted all of an hour or so…

TAUNTING THE DEAD is at #13 today. But I will never forgetthe moment it reached #10. I ran to my study and printed it off, just in case. Infact, I still have the page open on my laptop and I don’t want to close it downbecause it will update! And if I do slip down the charts to #4,950,684 or whatever,I will always remember that one moment. My briefest of visits to Number Ten.

Let me tell you something. When I first uploaded the book, thebloke from Stoke came in and asked how many copies I’d sold on my first day(before I put this blog post up – Deal or no Deal) and I said seven – mostly tofriends who knew it was there. He said – well, it’s enough to buy a cup ofcoffee…

I’ve always hoped that my words would be read someday and itwill continue to be my dream to get that traditional book deal and hold my bookand smell its newness and stroke the cover lovingly and see my name printed onit. But life is all about these little moments. And maybe being at #13 will belucky for me…

The Fall - Claire McGowan

2012-02-02T07:42:00.001Z

What would you do if the man you love was accused of murder?

Bad things never happen to Charlotte. She's living the life she's always wanted and about to marry wealthy banker, Dan. But Dan's been hiding a secret, and the pressure is pushing him over the edge. After he's arrested for the vicious killing of a nightclub owner, Charlotte's future is shattered.

Then she opens her door to Keisha, an angry and frustrated stranger with a story to tell. Convinced of Dan's innocence, Charlotte must fight for him - even if it means destroying her perfect life. But what Keisha knows threatens everyone she loves, and puts her own life in danger.

DC Matthew Hegarty is riding high on the success of Dan's arrest. But he's finding it difficult to ignore his growing doubts as well as the beautiful and vulnerable Charlotte. Can he really risk it all for what's right?

Three stories. One truth. They all need to brace themselves for the fall.

Hi Claire andwelcome to High Heels and Book Deals. Tell me about your journey to publication.

I’ve beenquite lucky, in that I wrote and sold TheFall within a year, after being shortlisted in a competition forunpublished novels. So I would always recommend entering any competitions youcan find, as they make a huge difference. However, The Fall is in fact my second book, so I did go through several yearsbefore this of writing and looking for an agent.

Have you always been a writer? (Any interestingjobs before this?

I gave up my full-time job this year to write, but before that I worked in thecharity sector for six years, mainly on disability causes. Part of my jobinvolved taking kids on holiday, but I went off that after one of them was sickon my feet. I’ve also been a language teacher in both France and China, for ayear each. That gave me plenty of good material for writing!

Your characters are down to earth and gritty andI found myself getting under their skin quite quickly. How did you research andfind your main characters?

I didn’t doany research – I know some writers plan out their characters very carefully, evenadding lots of backstory that may never end up in the book, but I don’t thinkthat would work for me. I have to be able to get a sense of them right from thestart. The voices of the three main characters came to me very quickly, so Iknew it would work. I can still sometimes hear Keisha’s voice in my head (usuallyswearing!).

What is your favourite crime novel to date andwhy?

That’s a tough one as there’sso many brilliant choices. I might have to say A Dark-Adapted Eye, by Barbara Vine (Ruth Rendell’s pen name). It’sone of those brilliant books where you never find out exactly what’s happened,because the narrator is just an onlooker on events – much like inThe Great Gatsby. Like many of the booksI love, it starts at the end and moves back in time, creating a terrible senseof inescapable doom. I’d recommend any of her books, but this is my favourite.

Do you write full time?

When I got the publishing deal, I also (on the same day!) was offered apart-time job running the Crime Writers’ Association. This meant I was able togive up my office job and three-hour daily commute (good for writing, not sogood for general life). It’s been a big adjustment to working at home. I’vetried different combinations to make it run smoothly – the best thing seems tobe to write first until I run out of energy with that, then do my CWA work(mostly email-based) in the afternoons. I often have meetings in London aswell, so it’s nice to get out for the day sometimes.

Are you a plotter or a-seat-of-your-pantster?

In the past I haven’t plotted much at all, just letting the story roll out andkeeping track of it as I go along. But I’ve realised this only works if I neverlet up with the writing and finish it within a few months. Now my work’sgetting more complex I’m going to have to plan a bit, or I risk totally losingtrack of what’s going on (and writing stupid things, like my heroine’s car getstowed, but the next day she’s driving it again at the other end of the country).Some kind of combination of the two seems to work best.

How many drafts of a novel do you complete?

It very muchdepends on the book and the story (for example I’m doing more for my secondbook with Headline as it’s more complicated), but I like to think of editing ashaving three layers – the big structural changes, then the smoothing andcopy-editing, and then the final finishing and proof-reading. If I’ve got thefirst draft right, the editing shouldn’t be too painful, but – and this is abig ‘but’ – it all depends on the book.

How much research did you have to do to writeThe Fall?

I did at times wonder what possessed me to writea book featuring both a police investigation and a trial as well, when I muchprefer to write first, ask questions later. I checked the legal and policingfacts as best I could with friends and other contacts, though I think this isharder to do when you’re still unpublished. The best thing is if you can getsomeone to read it and tell you what mistakes jump out at them.

What is your best writing tip?

Get startedand don’t stop. The book should start to develop its own momentum that willcarry your forward. If you keep going and don’t stop to edit, you’ll besurprised how possible it is to get down 1,000 words a day. Then in threemonths, you’ll a first draft to work on.

What is your worst writing habit?

Without doubt it is getting distracted by the internet. I’m a little ashamed ofthis, as when I wrote during my commute I was so focused I could type away evenwith people hemmed on either side, talking on phones, listening to music, anddiscussing their au pairs(I live in a quite well-heeled town). I love Twitterespecially, and it’s let me connect with so many great people. But I need tolearn to turn it off. And I will. Just after I check my Amazon ratings one moretime.

And finally, high heels or flat shoes, what's yourpoison?

I have toconfess I’m not great at wearing heels. When I have to go to party, my parentsoften ring me up to check I’ve worn high heels and not flip-flops or boots. Butas long as the heels are comfortable and not too high, I’ll wear them. My favouriteever shoes were these that I had for my wedding, by a designer called Chie Mihara.Gorgeous and comfortable. Sadly my dog got at them and chewed up one of theheels. Day to day, you’re more likely to find me in boots. Always wearsomething you can run for a train in, I say.

Thanks Claire and best of luck with The Fall. You can find out more about Claire here. Many thanks to Headline for my review copy. My review for The Fall, which I enjoyed immensely, will be up next week so do check back.

New Shoes

2012-01-27T09:29:00.001Z

Since uploading Taunting the Dead, I’ve had lotsof tweets, DM’s and emails regarding my references within the ebook to shoes.Now as much as it won’t surprise people who know me (yes, I do go everywhere inheels), it was also done for a purpose. I write about sex, violence and murderbut I still want to inject a little warmth, maybe humour, into my work. And whatbetter way than to describe, for me, one of life’s pleasures - New Shoes.

The shoe scenes are there for a number of reasons. The maincharacter, DS Allie Shenton, wears heels, even though in the first scene she ishot on the tail of a murder suspect. I wanted to add a touchof femininity to an otherwise dark and, often, nasty story. She also tries onshoes in the book – not to talk about shoes but more to show (honestly!) thatshe’s indecisive, impulsive and often misled by want, not need. Just like thebest of us.

And they do say that you put a bit of yourself into everythingyou write…

Taunting the Dead is currently sitting in the #50 AmazonKindle best sellers. I think it’s timeto treat myself to some new heels. Well,maybe one or two pairs are a must…

Write A Great Synopsis - Nicola Morgan

2012-01-25T07:14:00.002Z

Most writers hate writing synopses. They needdread them no more. In Write a GreatSynopsis – An Expert Guide, Nicola Morgan takes the stress out of thesubject and applies calm, systematic guidance, with her renowned no-nonsenseapproach.

Write aGreat Synopsis covers: the function of a synopsis, differences betweenoutlines and synopses, different requirements for different agents andpublishers, finding the heart of your book, how to tackle non-linear plots,multiples themes, sub-plots and long novels, and it answers all the questionsand confusions that writers have. Nicola also introduces readers to her usefulCrappy Memory Tool, explains the art of crafting a 25-word pitch, anddemonstrates with real examples. Gold-dust for writers at all stages.

As a writer, I hate synopses with a passion. Even now, as a writer with an agent, I still have nightmares when it comes to writing one. Yet synopses are such useful tools - to show to potential publishers as well as a record for my agent to talk about. For me, I write one before I draft out the book as it gives me a sense of where I'm heading.

So what is the best way to write one? Over the years, I've written all kinds of styles - one page, two pages, ten pages. Single spaced, double spaced. I've written outlines that I thought were synopses. I've written synopses and not told the reader the end of the book. In truth, I've done it all wrong and then some.

Write a Great Synopsis is packed with useful hints and tips. There's great advice from lots of well known names in the business. There are also sample synopses and questions and answers from aspiring authors. Nicola breaks downs how to attack a synopsis and make it shine. She writes with energy and passion. Next time you need to write a synopsis, it's well worth a look.

About the Author

Nicola is the author of around ninety books for all ages,fiction and non-fiction. To writers she is known for the no-nonsense expertadvice in her blog, Help! I Need a Publisher! and her highly acclaimed book forwriters, Write to be Published, as well as Tweet Right – The Sensible Person’sGuide to Twitter.

Win a copy of Write a Great Synopsis

Win a synopsis critique and advice from the Crabbit Old Bat herself! Surrounding publication on January 20th of Write a Great Synopsis – An Expert Guide, I will be visiting a number of blogs for a guest post, review or interview. If you’d like the chance of winning help with your synopsis, simply leave a relevant comment on any of the guest posts. (This could be a deep and meaningful comment or a plea to the gods of fortune to pick you!) One comment per post – but comment on each post if you wish. On February 15th, each blog host will send me the names of valid commenter's and I will do a random selection, using a random number generator.

1st Prize: a synopsis critique from Nicola; your choice of one of her books*, subject to availability, signed; a sought-after (only 6 in the world!) Write to be Published mug; a crabbit bag; and a pile of postcards.
2nd Prize: a synopsis critique; a signed book (Nicola's); postcards.
3rd Prize: a synopsis critique; postcards.

Many thanks for the review copy.

Caudwell Children

2012-01-20T12:08:00.000Z

On Tuesday, I visited Caudwell Children's charity. For a long time, I've wanted to get involved with a local charity and use my skills to either volunteer or write something that could be useful. After a chance meeting with one of the PR executives at my local WIRE (Women In Rural Enterprise) monthly get together, I went to meet some of the team and brainstorm some ideas.

Caudwell Children are based in Stoke on Trent but operate nationwide. While I was there, I was told, very proudly, about Tilly. Tilly is 11 and has spinal muscular atrophy. But this little girl has raised a staggering amount of money for the charity. Come on, a round of applause is surely deserved *stands up and claps hands enthusiastically* And Tilly even has her own book, as shown above.

I came away from the meeting feeling totally inspired. I've put some ideas forward and from these came more ideas so fingers crossed, we'll be able to sort something out. I'll let you know more when I do but suffice it to say, I am really excited.

And if you're feeling low or if you need a pick up, go around to Tilly's House and be inspired. I guarantee you will be feeling lucky because...

Catch Your Death Launch Party

2012-01-18T08:59:00.000Z

Fear is contagious…

A terrifying enigma – with the power to destroy…

Twenty years ago, Kate Maddox was a volunteer at a research centre where scientists hunted for a cure for the common cold virus. That summer, Kate fell in love with a handsome young doctor, Stephen, but her stay ended in his tragic death and Kate fled to a new life in the US.

Now Kate is back in England and on the run with her young son, this time from her vile husband. But a chance encounter sets her on a terrifying path of discovery. What really happened at the Cold Research Unit two decades ago?

Pursued by both her estranged husband and a psychotic killer who is obsessed with his prey, Kate must fight to solve the puzzle of the past – uncovering a sickening betrayal and a truth more horrifying than she could ever have imagined…

Last Thursday, I had the great privilege of attending the launch of CATCH YOUR DEATH, Louise Voss and Mark Edwards. As my dream will always be to get a traditional deal, I've been following Mark and Louise's story for quite some time. In fact, this blog post that Mark wrote had me in tears as my own journey is still ongoing.

The launch party was at Piccadilly Institute and was a great venue, if somewhat crowded as all good parties are. I couldn't write this blog post without mentioning the girls behind the bar who were dressed up as very sexy nurses! and the men who, sadly, were dressed as surgeons in full scrubs.

I love attending launches where I get to meet people who I've tweeted with on a regular basis but never met. It's like being part of one big happy family. This time I took my friend from my home town with me. She loved it too and came away with signed books.

What was really special for me was that three people came up to me and said they were reading my ebook, Mark included! However, I still held CATCH YOUR DEATH in my hands, sniffed the new book smell and told Mark as he signed it for me, this will always be my dream.

Mark and Louise are my inspiration at the moment and I was proud to be at this launch. Even though I am cutting down on book reviews this year, I shall be reviewing CATCH YOUR DEATH soon.

You can find out more about Mark and Louse at their website

Thanks for the invite, Mark and the very best of luck to you and Louise!

My Year in Writing - 2011 Review

2012-01-03T14:22:00.000Z

Well, it’s that time of year again. When I go over what I did last year with a fine tooth comb and stress about the things I didn’t achieve, the people I wished I’d had more contact with, the regrets at not getting a book deal, again. Blah, blah, bleurgh.

But, hang on, just a cotton picking minute. I’m a writer. So I thought I’d do the highlights of my year in relation to that. This post is about where my writing has taken me. This is about the invitations and the people I have met on my journey. This is about friendships formed and new beginnings. And this is about how I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.

In April, I stayed in London for three days with Maria Duffy. Maria is one of the best things that happened to me during 2011. Yes, I’m a writer but there will NEVER be words to describe what a true friend she is. We met for the first time and had a riot. We traipsed the streets and tubes in ridiculously high heels that we had blisters to show for, we met lots of lovely tweeters at the tweet up during the London Book Fair. And, even though it isn’t really a place for authors, I loved the book fair and the buzz it gave me. It was also the first time that I met Peter James, who went out of his way to meet us at the end of a very busy day.

In May, I was invited to Headline to meet some of their authors and hear about the new books out for the rest of the year. For me, it was the first time I’d been on the tubes. On. My. Own. Yes, I know, how old am I? But I can clearly remember meeting Keith Walters for the first time in bad need of a hug. Headline was an experience in itself. Imagine now, an unpublished author, just having been to lunch with her agent and then on to Headline. I was in awe, not only of the stomach churning view from the lift, but to be in a publishing house! I met publicity manager, Sam Eades, and a few other staff as well as lots of bloggers and three of my favourite authors, Julie Cohen, Julia Crouch and Jill Mansell (who commented on my shoes!) Traipsing off to the pub with them all after we left Headline was a great experience. Some of the bloggers I’ve gone on to meet again at various events this year and most I keep on touch with online. It was a great day.

Also in May, I met the lovely Adele Parks at Waterstone’sDeansgate, Manchester (after nearly knocking my cocktail all over me as I sat down…) I’ve read Adele’s books for years and the fact that she’s represented by the same agency as me gives me a thrill. If you ever get a chance to hear her speak, please go. She is so entertaining. I had such a laugh.

In June, I was invited by Harper Collins to ‘not so afternoon tea’ with Fanny Blake and David Nobbs at Oxo Brasserie. I took along the lovely Talli Roland and we had a blast. Fanny and David were a dream to spend time with. I loved it and the girls from Harper Collins looked after us superbly. After the Oxo Tower, we headed down the Thames by boat and onto an after hours book launch in The Tower of London for The Girl in the Mirror, Sarah Gristwood. What a great day.

In July came Harrogate Crime Writing Festival – ohmigod, what can I say about it apart from ‘get yourself there.’ Here’s the post I wrote about it. For me, the experience was amazing and not least because I met a group of people I love to call my Harrogate gang. I also met Mark Billingham and Martina Cole!

In September, my Harrogate gang met up in Manchester for lunch. Manchester is quite central for us - not - ranging from forty minutes on train (me), to three hour car journeys! and planes from Dublin!! I loved this lunch. The people around the table were at various stages of their writing careers and it made for great conversation. We’re meeting again in a few weeks and I CAN’T WAIT.

In September, I also went to The Ivy. Yes, The Ivy! I was thrilled to get the invitation to the launch of Ugly Sister, Jane Fallon and a chance to meet some more bloggers and some of the PR people behind the fabulous Penguin team, Katya and Francesca. I had my best bib and tucker on at that do! It was a huge honour to meet Jane too, especially as we chatted about puppies as I’d recently lost Flynn and acquired Dexter.

Finally, to round off my year, in November I travelled to Dublin for Maria’s launch of Any Dream will Do. And apart from it being an amazing night for Maria in every way possible (the room was packed, people kept on piling into the book shop, the shop sold out of books, the cake, afterwards at Harry’s on the Green. And Keith Barry!) I met soooo many tweeters, far too many to mention. I spent the night meeting and greeting, it was wonderful. I also got to have breakfast at the Avoca café, a regular tweet up place for the Irish writers. Magical. Suffice it to say, I now think of myself as an Irish chick as I have been adopted by so many of them.

Regrets this year? I’ve had so many fantastic books sent to me that I just haven’t had time to read them all and I’m deeply regretful of that. Another one is the book launches and events that I missed because there are too many to warrant trips to London!

The final one is yet again another year goes by without me getting a book deal. But on the plus side of that, I have self published Taunting the Dead which is doing rather well, despite a few mistakes I've made along the way. I’ve also self published an ebook under a pen name that is doing even better. So I am at last making a living out of being a writer. And that is the by far the best bit for me.

So, Write On to 2012! Here's to meeting lots more fabulous people and visiting lots more fantastic places. And, please, a book deal?!

Best Shoe Forward - Janice Horton

2011-12-17T07:02:00.017Z

Scottish celebrity chef Finn McDuff is media stalked and disillusioned after winning his third star and losing his third wife. He decides he’s had enough of all the food campaigns, the TV cookery shows, the constant frenzy surrounding his private life and, after giving up all his accolades and closing down his restaurant, he disappears into a self-imposed exile.

With the enfant terrible of the kitchen missing, two rival newspapers, having lost their media meal ticket, compete against each other to whip up further public curiosity in the missing chef.

Love him or hate him, everyone is out looking for Chef McDuff. Who will find him first and whose side will you be on...?

Reaching for the Stars is published in e-format to Amazon for Kindle.

FROM GALOSHES TO GLADIATORS

When you live in the wilds of Scotland, where mist often hangs in the air and mud always clings to your feet - then stylish footwear isn’t usually an everyday option unless of course you have a collection of colourful galoshes at your disposal. So I’m usually seen rubber booted and stomping around the countryside.

You can imagine the joy therefore of attending an event that requires SHOES!

Noooooo - I’m not talking about sensible ones here - I’m talking HEELS!

My very favourite shoes are the snakeskin-effect gladiators I wore to a Romantic Novelist’s Association conference a couple of years ago - and if you were there you might have seen me in them! I first saw them (pause for a misty-eyed look) in a shop on Princes Street in Edinburgh, but I was in the city that particular day to get my hair done and not to buy shoes. Having teetered over the price and wobbled around the shop, I decided not to buy them, but then I couldn’t think of anything else. So, after several hours of being coiffured in the hairdressers, I dashed back telling myself that if they were still there then we were fated to be together. To my great relief - they were - and here they are in all their snakeskin-effect gladiatoresque glory. And yes, that is a real tattoo on my leg!

Buy ‘Reaching for the Stars’ for Kindle now at the special launch price of just 99p

Amazon UK Amazon US

About the author: Janice lives in Scotland and writes romantic novels with humour which are, for the most part, inspired by the beauty of the heather-filled glens around her country cottage. When Janice is not writing novels, she write lifestyle articles and has had work published in national and international magazines and regional newspapers. She is the bestselling author of humorous romance ‘Bagpipes & Bullshot’

Janice Blogs at: www.janicehortonwriter.blogspot.com
Janice is a www.loveahappyending.com author
Follow her on Twitter @JaniceHorton
Facebook Author Page: http://on.fb.me/nbaWed

Deal or No Deal

2011-12-12T06:05:00.001Z

Statistics say nine out of ten murders are committed by someone the victim knows. So when Steph Ryder is found dead with her head caved in, Detective Sergeant Allie Shenton begins investigations close to home, starting with the victim’s family and friends.

As each one lies to cover up their actions on that fateful night, Allie becomes convinced husband Terry Ryder has something to hide – and he’s not the only one. Powerful, ambitious and charming, Allie’s attraction to the successful businessman grows with each interrogation, risking both her job and marriage. Can Allie uncover the truth before her life not only falls apart, but before she ends up a victim, too?

Writing is all about a journey, right? For me, the journey has been long and full of ups and downs, but I’ve also learnt so much along the way. A lot of you have followed me via this blog, Facebook and twitter and you’ll know that I’ve been trying to get a book deal for some time; in fact, my heels are almost completely worn out at this stage!

You may have noticed that over the last few months I’ve been quiet about my writing and my efforts to get published. You’ve seen my book reviews and author interviews but I’ve shared very little about what’s been happening for me in the background. The reason for that is because I so badly wanted to be able to share some good news with you. At the end of June, I sent my latest crime novel, TAUNTING THE DEAD, out on submission but unfortunately, it hasn’t sold to a publisher yet.

Now as much as this has devastated me, I’ve tried to keep positive about it online. But press your index finger and your thumb together – I’ve just come that close to getting a deal from a reputable publisher. The editor who read my manuscript was a lady I’d met before and we’d really hit it off. She seemed to just ‘get me’ and my writing and I was really excited at the thought of working with her. But unfortunately, it just wasn’t to be.

Publishing as we know it is changing rapidly. In some respects this is great for me but in others, as the slots for print books become less and less each year, it makes my dream more and more unreachable. But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are other avenues to explore other than the traditional route and one of those is self publishing. Many authors are pursuing this route and their books are being widely read and reviewed. Some are getting decent sales figures too.

So I’ve decided to take a positive approach and be instrumental in making my own dream come true. I’ve released TAUNTING THE DEAD as an ebook. I’m confident that with a great cover, blurb and sample to download beforehand, people might just like it enough to buy and recommend it to others.

I want to say a huge thank you to my friends and writer buddies who have and still do support me along the way with chats, meets, emails, blog comments, tweets and direct messages. You all know who you are. I would have given up my dream a long time ago if it wasn’t for your support. I also owe a debt of gratitude to my agent, Sheila Crowley, who has never given up on me.

So here it is – I’m unleashing my words into the world and I hope any of you who read it will enjoy!

TAUNTING THE DEAD – MEL SHERRATT

A Chat with Cally Taylor

2011-11-14T08:20:00.015Z

Beth Prince has always loved fairytales and now, aged twenty-four, she feels like she's finally on the verge of her own happily ever after. She lives by the seaside, works in the Picturebox - a charming but rundown independent cinema - and has a boyfriend who's so debonair and charming she can't believe her luck! There's just one problem - none of her boyfriends have ever told her they love her and it doesn't look like Aiden's going to say it any time soon. Desperate to hear 'I love you' for the first time Beth takes matters into her own hands - and instantly wishes she hadn't.

Just when it seems like her luck can't get any worse, bad news arrives in the devilishly handsome shape of Matt Jones. Matt is the regional director of a multiplex cinema and he's determined to get his hands on the Picturebox by Christmas. Can Beth keep her job, her man and her home or is her romantic-comedy life about to turn into a disaster movie?

Hi Cally and a warm welcome to High Heels and Book Deals. Tell me about your journey to publication.

I was inspired to write Heaven Can Wait, my first novel, when a friend died very quickly and unexpectedly. Her death was a wake up call to stop procrastinating and stop putting ‘write a novel’ at the end of my to do list. I started in March 2007, wrote like I was possessed and completed my 100,000 word first draft in three months and three weeks. I was ecstatic that I'd managed it - I'd written a novel! - but I didn't want to stop there. The novel needed editing, a lot, and I was starting to believe that maybe, just maybe I could get it published.

In September 2007 I bought a copy of the Writers and Artists Yearbook and looked through it, ticking the agents that represented women's fiction and chicklit. I shortlisted half a dozen and sent off six brown envelopes. Three days later I received my first rejection. It was personalised but still a no. A couple of days after that I received a phone call from Darley Anderson. He said he'd liked what he'd read and could I send him the rest of my novel? Could I? I hardly slept for the next three nights as I read through my novel again and made a few more tweaks before I sent it off. I didn't hear anything for six more weeks - but did receive a couple of other rejections - then finally, in January 2008, my phone rang. It was Darley. I was on tenterhooks as I answered it, so hopeful that this was the phone call I'd dreamed about - the one where I was offered representation - but by the end of the conversation I was in tears. The novel showed a lot of promise, Darley told me but there was no way he could represent me or show it to any publishers in its current state, I'd have to do a lot more work on it.

I was gutted, and certain there was no way I could turn my novel into the book Darley thought it could be. For a few months I did nothing. I was scared that if I edited my book and sent it back I'd get a definite NO but eventually the fear ebbed away and was replaced with a 'sod it, if I don't try I'll never know' attitude and I set to work.

At the end of June 2008 I sent off my complete manuscript for the second time. I heard nothing for three months and just had shortlisted a second set of agents to approach when my phone rang. It was Madeleine Buston, Head of Foreign Rights at the Darley Anderson Agency. She told me Darley had given her my revised manuscript to read on the train up to Scotland from London and it had made her laugh and cry. She'd loved it so much in fact, that she'd asked Darley if she could represent me! As she excitedly told me about her plans for my book and the publishers she wanted to approach I just kept waiting for the 'but'. There had to be one. As the phone call came to an end I couldn't bear it anymore and said "So..er...are you my agent then?" and she said "Yes!". The second she rang off I burst into tears.

One month later I had a two book deal with Orion and Maddie had sold my book to Brazil. Since then, HEAVEN CAN WAIT has been translated into 13 languages and was awarded the Debut Novel of the Year Award on chicklitreviews.com and chicklitclub.com.

HOME FOR CHRISTMAS is my second novel.

Your first novel, HEAVEN CAN WAIT, although a romance novel was a paranormal romance. HOME FOR CHRISTMAS is a romantic comedy. Why the change in sub genre?

I’ll let you into a secret - Home for Christmas had TWO paranormal romantic-comedy incarnations before it became the novel it is today. There’s a good reason why ‘Second Novel Syndrome’ is such a widespread phenomenon – because second novels can be extraordinarily hard to get right and mine was no exception! I ditched my first attempt at 20,000 words because I didn’t care about my main character and figured that if the author didn’t like her own creation then none of the readers would. The second attempt – Happiness Ever After – I actually finished but, after a conversation with my agent and editor, we all agreed that it would be a stronger novel without the paranormal subplot. Cue a re-write! Altogether it took me two years to whip Home for Christmas into shape and it was a pretty torturous process at times but the finished novel is a lot better for it and I'm proud of the hard work I put into it.

Are you a plotter or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-panter?

A seat-of-your-panter with a tiny bit of plotting thrown in. I always know how my novels start (at least the first 5 or 6 scenes) and what happens at the end. Sometimes, if I’m lucky, I know what happens in the middle and then it’s a case of joining the dots by the seat of my pants!

How many drafts do you complete?
Oh gosh. The first draft, my first edit and a polish. So three. And then it goes to Maddy my agent and I’ll edit again – so that’s four. Then Kate my editor’s edits. Five in total. Possibly six, possibly more!

What are you working on now?
I’m working on something I’m calling ‘Project B’. I haven’t got a publishing deal for Project B but it’s a story that popped into my head earlier this year and refused to go away so I just HAD to write it. I was planning on completing a 70,000 word first draft before my baby was born (1st October) but I managed to slice the tendon in my thumb when I took a food processor blade out of the dishwasher so that put paid to that! I’d still like to finish Project B but think I might tidy up the 20,000 words I did manage to get written first and send it to my agent to see if she thinks it’s worth continuing with. With a little one taking up my time and, hopefully, a third romantic comedy to write in the next year or so, I can’t afford to write novels for the ‘fun of it’ anymore!

You’ve written and had published numerous short stories. How does this compare to writing a novel?

It hurts a lot less to ditch a short story that isn’t working. And takes less of your time! Seriously though – I like short stories because you can get a great sense of satisfaction in a relatively short amount of time. Writing a complete story in a few hours or an afternoon can give you a nice buzz, particularly if you get it published. Writing a novel is much more arduous but the sense of achievement when you finish is HUGE. I’ve always wanted to run a marathon and reckon the two are probably comparable in terms of effort, exhaustion and the feeling you have when you’ve finished!

Some days I’ll do anything not to get down to the writing. What’s your favourite way to procrastinate?

I’m afraid I’ve got a horrible reality TV addiction that really I should keep quiet about in public.

What is your best writing tip?

Write the novel that excites you, not the novel you think/hope will sell. Readers can tell when you put your heart and soul into a story. If it makes you laugh and cry the chances are it’ll affect the reader to. If you do it for the money/to jump on a bandwagon/to get a book deal they won’t be fooled.

And your worst writing habit?

How many do you want? Getting distracted. Listening to my internal editor when I’m writing a first draft (instead of shutting her out). Doubting myself. Worrying that someone else is writing the same novel as me. Skimping on description. Procrastinating. I could go on...

And finally, what’s your poison, high heels or flat shoes?

Having spent the best part of 9 months in flat shoes (during my pregnancy) I’m tempted to burn every pair I own...but they’re so comfy I can’t bear to let them go (I’m much more of a slummy mummy than a yummy one!). Then there’s the fact I can’t really push the pram into town in heels - it’s a 40 minute walk! Right now I’m trying to get fit after the birth of my baby so the ‘heels’ I choose are my stupidly expensive trainers – and a pair of my baby’s shoes, because they’re cute!

Many thanks, Cally. All the best for Home for Christmas and with your new little one. You can find out more about Cally at her website here and her blog here.

Any Dream Will Do - Maria Duffy

2011-11-03T09:00:00.001Z

I could simply start by writing how I really enjoyed Any Dream Will Do but, everyone who knows me knows that Maria and I are really good friends. So I’m bound to say that, aren’t I? Well, actually no, because I don’t review books that I don’t like for starters. And as the book can do itself justice, indeed is already doing so, I thought it would be more interesting to write about Maria. Because Any Dream Will do is about a tweet up and I met Maria through twitter.

I first saw her tweeting to literary agent Sheila Crowley. As Sheila is my agent too, I followed Maria and we got ‘tweeting’ and then sending direct messages and then we started to email. Then came our own ‘meeting in real life’. Maria came over to London and we spent three days together. We shared tales of painful blisters as we walked around London Book Fair –there was even a tweet up there. I have never laughed so much in my life. There was no falseness, no need for airs and graces, nor p’s and q’s. We just clicked.

The two things I love most about Maria are her warmth and her humour, which I feel come across admirably inside the pages of Any Dream Will Do. She rang me from Dublin an hour before I was due to have both of my operations. She texted me continually throughout my illness. Through my ups and downs of trying to get a book deal, she’s been there for me. She’s been my constant griping partner. She’s kept ‘squee- inducing book happenings’ from me for fear of upsetting me. She’s known it’s been hard for me as she’s gone on to get a deal and now her book is out there, but she’s let me share every moment of it. I read the first draft. I saw the first cover. I saw the second cover, the one it has now. I agonised over the choice of title with her. I saw the photos of her book. I had a look at the proofs. She’s shared it all to make me feel included.

Next week, I shall be having my own Jenny Breslin tweet up with Maria in Dublin. It’s my first time in Dublin and I’m so looking forward to it. There is going to be a launch party, where I too get to meet so many people I follow on twitter and ‘talk’ to regularly. This definitely won’t be a tweet up from Hell!

So, the only thing left for me to add is the very best of luck, Maria, with Any Dream will Do. I hope we always keep true to what we are - two friends who support each other, cheer each other on and who never stop fecking talking.

A Chat with Carole Matthews

2011-11-01T07:18:00.000Z

A Christmas fling, or has Janie found the real thing? Thirty-something hairdresser Janie Johnson's single status is a constant source of gossip for her friends and clients. So after too many nights in with her cat, a blind date disaster and news that her ex is getting married, Janie realises it's time to do something dramatic with her life. It's time for an adventure!

Leaving winter behind, Janie takes the plunge and books an exotic trip to Africa. Her friends think she's mad and Janie thinks they may very well be right ...but then she falls head over heels for her tour guide - and fully fledged Maasai Warrior - Dominic. But can Janie now face spending a snowy Christmas back home without him?

Hi Carole and welcome to High Heels and Book Deals. Tell me about your journey to publication.

I had absolutely no idea that I wanted to be a fiction writer until I actually started, if that makes sense. I was working as a beauty therapist and I’d been writing health and beauty articles for various magazines for a number of years. Then, with the first fiction I’d ever written since I left school, I entered a short story competition in Writing Magazine - I have no idea was possessed me to do it! To my complete amazement, I won. A thousand pounds! I then did the most sensible thing I’ve ever done in my life, instead of spending the money on shoes and handbags (obviously my first thought!) I booked on a writing course at Fen Farm Arts - which sadly no longer exists . By the time the course came round, I’d made a start on my first novel, Let’s Meet on Platform 8. The tutor on the course loved it and recommended that I send it to an agent . He took me on straight away and, a week later, he’d sold it to a publisher. It was a very quick and pain-free process. This is not normal! I was very lucky to hit the right desk at the right time. I caught the whole ‘chicklit’ wave at the moment it took off. I owe Bridget Jones a big drink!

Wrapped Up In You is your nineteenth novel (my favourite being The Chocolate Lover's Club). How on earth do you keep on coming up with plot lines?

I am a complete nightmare to go out with as I see plot lines everywhere! I’m never short of ideas. With Wrapped Up In You it started with seeing lots of articles in newspapers over the years about women who’d had disastrous holiday romances and how they’d picked up the pieces afterwards. I had a thought that I’d like to do something along those lines. I cut out any newspaper articles or magazine pieces on that subject and file away them in a drawer until I’m ready to start the book. Then I thought I’d love to set it in a fabulously, exotic country and at the same time I saw a snippet in a magazine that said everyone should go to Africa on safari before they die! How could I resist? So that was my germ of the story and the setting. When I went to Kenya to do my research trip - yes, totally jammy! - I instantly fell in love with the country and the people. When I created my hero, Dominic, a fully-fledged Maasai warrior, I knew that he would never deliberately harm my heroine, Janie Johnson, and so the story flipped completely on its head and, instead, became a full-on love story. It’s probably the most romantic book I’ve written and already I’m getting lots of fanmail for Dominic! But it just goes to show that, quite often, the story that you end up writing isn’t quite the one that you set out to. I hope that if my books surprise me, then the reader will feel that too.

You started off your writing career when you won a writing competition and then went on to do a writing course. In this current climate, would you advise budding writers to give either of these a go too?

Yes, I certainly would advise people to enter competitions. There seem to be a lot more around these days, but it’s a good discipline to get used to writing for. Even now I still love writing short stories and, quite often, have them published in magazines. It was a great confidence boost to me to win a competition. It’s a kind of validation that there is a spark of talent there and you’re not just deluding yourself! Plus, as I said, the prize money enabled me to take my writing further than I would have done. If you’re not a journalist or haven’t got a writing CV then I think winning a competition helps to show agents and publishers that you have got it in you to produce a high standard of work.

Do you have a particular writing day/word count/particular routine - apart from eating chocolate?

It’s true that I do eat a lot of chocolate to get me through the week! That came from researching my two books The Chocolate Lovers’ Club and The Chocolate Lovers’ Diet! Complete and unashamed addict now! I work a normal day - do my ‘social networking’ (it’s not gossiping!) from eight till nine in the morning. Have breakfast, walk for the newspaper. Then I’m in my office and ready to write at ten. I have an hour for lunch when I catch up with the papers and magazines. I usually finish at about six o’clock and always try to have Saturday and Sunday off. Sometimes, if I’m in full flow, I’ll work through the night. If my head if crammed with characters all dying to get their story out, then it’s impossible to sleep anyway, so I might as well just go with it. People always write to me asking for quick ways to produce a manuscript. But there are no short cuts. You just have to keep your bottom on your chair long enough to produce 100,000 words. There’s no way round it!

Do you show your first drafts to others as you write them or once they are written in full?

No, I don’t show anyone as I’m writing. When I’ve finished my first draft the Lovely Kev (my dearly -beloved) reads it and I send it to my agent at this point as she’s great at fine-tuning emotional high spots. Sometimes, if I feel there’s something lacking and can’t pinpoint it, I’ll give the draft to my good friend who is an avid reader. She’s also good at finding little plot points that I might have missed. Then I do a second draft and off it goes. I don’t like to do an awful lot of polishing as I like the story fast and raw. Sometimes, I feel that authors can edit the life out of their work. But I think, generally, you have to have confidence in where you’re going by yourself. Get too much feedback and it can mess with your head!

Any ideas for book twenty yet?

Book twenty is already in and edited! It’s due out in May 2012 and is called Summer Daydreams. I’ve just had the first cover design and it looks fabulous! It’s such a lovely story, very summery and it’s very loosely based around the life of my friend, Helen Rochfort, who designs the most fabulous handbags - www.helenrochfort.com - and she’s had the most amazing journey to success. We had great fun collaborating on it together. I’ve never worked like that before and it was a refreshing change.

How do you feel about social media for writers? Do you think it is a good idea to have a platform?

I love social media! What did we do without it. It’s such a fantastic way to connect with readers and I can really tell how much my fans invest in me as a writer. It’s very heart-warming. Who wouldn’t like to spend their days with people who constantly send them the kindest and loveliest comments? My readers totally rock! As you probably know, I spend a lot of time on Facebook and Twitter. Writing can be a lonely job, so I like to think of it as those ‘water cooler’ moments that you’d have in a real office. It’s also essential for me as a writer to keep up with contemporary culture. It is! Really!

What is your best writing tip?

If you’re starting out, write every day. Again people always email or message me and say that they’re desperate to become novelists, but can never find time to write. How desperate can you be, if you can’t find time to do it? All writers struggle with that problem. If you need to find time, book yourself a babysitter, invest in a cleaner, get up earlier. Beg, steal or borrow that hour a day. It’s amazing what you can achieve.

And your worst writing habit?

See answer re social networking! There is a tendency, if you’re not very careful, to while away hours on the internet. It has to be the biggest eater of writing time. There’s always something so tempting to read on there! Though when the going it tough, it can also kick-start inspiration too! The internet should be approached with caution.

And finally, what’s your poison, high heels or flat shoes?

I love high heels, they’re so glamorous and instantly bling up an outfit. The trouble is that I spend most of my days now in Converse High-Tops, so my killer heels literally do now kill me! I only wear my vertiginous heels when I know that I’m going to be sitting down a lot.

These are possibly my most ridiculous shoes! They’re so glamorous, yet dreadfully uncomfortable. They’re definitely ‘sitting down’ shoes. I can hardly walk in them, but I adore them!

The Lovely Kev calls these my Bet Lynch shoes, after the blousey barmaid who used to be in Coronation Street. But who doesn’t love a bit of animal print? I have the matching handbag too. Yay! I do love a shoe and handbag combo.

There are times when you know you’re going to be on your feet for hours and flats are the only answer. But it doesn’t have to mean that you give up on the glamour. These are the most comfortable glitzy shoes that I own. Even better they can fit in a handbag for a quick change when I’ve had enough of my heels.

Thanks Carole and the very best for you new book. Wrapped Up In You is out now! You can find out more about Carole at her website here

Dexter's Diary - Week 9

2011-10-28T08:21:00.000+01:00

While I've been too busy to blog this week, find out what Dexter has been up to:

Nicknames and new games

A Chat with Steve Stack

2011-10-22T07:28:00.000+01:00

A fond farewell to the many inanimate objects, cultural icons and general stuff around us that find themselves on the verge of extinction.

We’ve all heard of the list of endangered animals, but no one has ever pulled together a list of endangered inanimate objects.

Until now, that is.

Steve Stack has catalogued well over one hundred objects, traditions, cultural icons and, well, other stuff that is at risk of extinction.

Some of them have vanished already.

Cassette tapes, rotary dial phones, half-day closing, milk bottle deliveries, Concorde, handwritten letters, typewriters, countries that no longer exist, white dog poo…

…all these and many more are big a fond farewell in this nostalgic, and sometimes irreverent, trip down memory lane.

Hi Steve and welcome to High Heels and Book Deals. Tell me about your journey to publication.

Well mine was a bit different to most people. I was working for The Friday Project when they were still an independent publisher and had an idea for a book. It Is Just You, Everything’s Not Shit was intended to be a riposte to the Is It Just Me Or Is Everything Shit? books, and also the Grumpy Old Men TV series, both of which were quite popular at the time. I had a couple of publishers who wanted to take it on but I knew we needed the turnover that this book could bring if it was successful. So I chatted with the team and they were very keen to do it in-house, which is why I wrote it under a different name. When HarperCollins bought The Friday Project this second book was already lined up but I fully expected them to ditch it. Instead, they proved to be more than up for it.

Where did you get the idea for 21st Century Dodos?

It came to me when I was writing the first book, which was an A-Z of nice things. I realised that some of the things I had included were actually quite rare these days and my brain went off on a tangent and I started listing loads of stuff that you might consider endangered if you were the sort of person to consider an inanimate object endangered, which clearly I am.

How did you remember/do the research for all the items in the book?
I had been making a list for a few years but when it came to crunch time and I had to start writing the bloody thing I asked my friends on Twitter and at my blog if they had any suggestions. I had hundreds of responses. Many of them were already planned for the book but loads weren’t and they really helped. They are thanked in the book, but they won’t be getting their hands on my royalties.

What’s the most missed item for you?

It changes from day to day, and many of the things in the book are still around just not as common, but today I am missing Woolworths quite a bit as I need to buy some paper cups and no fucker in my home town seems to have them.

You have a very busy day job. How do you find time to write?
People assume I am busy but I am pretty good at time management and I refuse to take my work home with me. I have two kids who are a wonderful distraction but are also old enough, at 12 and 10, to amuse themselves and actually don’t want to spend all their time with dad. The whole family were great when I was writing this, though, and gave me time and space to plod away at it. Once I had a pretty decent longlist of possible entries and had done my research I buggered off to a friend’s cabin in the middle of the Scottish wilderness for ten days and wrote a big chunk of it there. When I got back it was just a case of adding some more content, checking my facts and fine tuning.

Bear in mind that each of the 134 entries are relatively short – the longest is 3 pages – so it was really like writing 134 blog posts. If I broke it down into manageable chunks then it wasn’t too much of a chore.

Has knowing the industry helped you to get published?
I was very lucky. I knew a lot of agents and publishers both professionally and socially so it was relatively easy for me to get them to consider my work, and once the first Steve Stack book sold well it was a lot easier to progress with the second book – but that’s all ‘who do you know’ stuff.

I get asked about trends a lot, mainly from writers and agents. I think trends are bollocks. Apart from a few stand out exceptions – teen vampires, conspiracy novels with the word ‘code’ in the title – there are no trends. There are just books that sell and books that don’t.

You’re great on twitter and you have your own blog. What’s your take on the social media/building a platform debate for authors?

Social media is a great way for authors to interact with other authors and with readers and it can help to spread the word about your work. But it doesn’t actually sell many books. Outside of a small circle of your closest Facebook and Twitter friends it is hard, and probably stupid, to expect that many people to cough up actual cash to read your words. They get to read them every day for free.

Any publisher that has paid a big advance for a book by a ‘Twitter sensation’ soon realises that most people on Twitter don’t buy books.

I haven’t done that by the way. Paid a big advance to a Twitter sensation. Other people have. The fools.

What is your best writing tip?

David Mitchell, the novelist rather than the serial panel show guest, once told me that if I didn’t have time to write a novel then I should write a few sentences of a novel. And then write a few more the next day. Repeat till complete.

And your worst writing habit?

I drink a lot of tea and eat a lot of cake while writing.

And finally, what’s your poison, high heels or flat shoes?

Ladies, if you all wore sensible shoes you would rule the world.

Thanks for that Steve and the best of luck. You can read my review of 21st Century Dodos here.

21st Century Dodos - Steve Stack

2011-10-20T08:48:00.001+01:00

Meet me at the Cupcake Cafe - Jenny Colgan

2011-10-19T08:38:00.002+01:00

Ever dreamed of starting over? Issy Randall can bake. No, more than that - Issy can create stunning, mouth-wateringly divine cakes. After a childhood spent in her beloved Grampa Joe’s bakery she has undoubtedly inherited his talent. So when she’s made redundant from her safe but dull City job, Issy decides to seize the moment and open up her own café. It should be a piece of cake, right?Wrong.

As her friends point out, she has trouble remembering where she left her house keys, let alone trying to run her own business. But Issy is determined. Armed with recipes posted to her from Grampa, and with her local bank manager fighting her corner, Issy attempts to prove everyone wrong. Following your dreams is never easy and this is no exception. Can Issy do it?

When Tesco started a book blog, I eagerly followed them on twitter and got to know the lovely George via email. He sent me details of a few books that I could review. As I like to base my reviews on how the book made me feel, I chose Meet me at the Cupcake Café. The book first drew me in with its delightful title and snazzy pink cover. It’s perfect for the delights within the pages – and that’s just the recipes!

Meet me at the Cupcake Café is the story of Izzy. After finding herself redundant, she decides to follow her heart and open up a café. Armed with recipes from her ailing Grandfather, she sets out on a mission to prove wrong anyone who doesn’t believe she can do it. The book is light and airy, in an excellent way, but the subjects dealt with aren’t. And suffice it to say, all the men in Izzy’s life give her heartache in one way or another. But like many women, she gets on with the job and as a result, I think she even surprises herself.

I particularly liked the warm and funny characters that came into the café as well as the staff. And the recipes scattered through out the book made me smile as well as hungry! But it was the warmth of Izzy that really made me enjoy the book. I could see Cupcake Café clearly – I’ve sat in it many times.

Many thanks to Tesco for my review copy (and the lovely surprises that came with it)

Meet me at the Cupcake Café – Grab a cup of coffee and dive right in.

The Best Little Book Club in Town

2011-10-18T08:36:00.000+01:00

Irresistible short stories from some of the top names in fiction writing today. A chance meeting with a handsome Italian stranger... The Christmas list - with a difference. A yummy mummy picks up the wrong bag, with surprising consequences. The woman who wanted a life change, but got rather more than she bargained for. The ex-wife who could provide her ex-husband with an alibi for murder. A mother's instincts and a daughter' love life. A woman drawn to the mysterious house on the hill...

Stories of love, passion, mystery and hope - and the discovery that some of the more surprising things in life are often the most important...

'Some brilliantly-crafted snaps of fiction and a great way of discovering some new favourite authors.' (HEAT )

THE BEST LITTLE BOOK CLUB IN TOWN is a great collection of short stories from bestselling authors including Kate Mosse, Katie Fforde, Lee Child, Sophie Kinsella and Jodi Picoult. I enjoy books that I can pick up and put down. They’re great for train journeys or whilst waiting for appointments. And anything for a good cause, especially cancer, is well worth a buy.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. For every copy of THE BEST LITTLE BOOK CLUB IN TOWN bought, £1 will be donated to Breast Cancer Care. Think Pink!

Many thanks to Orion for my review copy.

A chat with Laura Wilkinson

2011-10-17T08:22:00.001+01:00

Megan Evens appears to have it all: brains, beauty, a successful career as a foreign correspondent. But deep down she is lonely and rootless. Pregnant, craving love but unable to trust after the destructive affair with her baby's father she returns to the security of her birthplace in Wales.

When Megan's son is later diagnosed with a terminal condition, a degenerative, hereditary disease, everything she believed to be true about her origins is thrown into question. To save her son Megan must unearth the truth; she must excavate family history and memory.

Enlisting the help of former colleague Jack North, a man with a secret of his own, Megan embarks on a journey of self discovery and into the heart of what it means to be a parent.

Hi Laura and welcome to High Heels and Book Deals. Tell me about your journey to publication.

When I completed the first draft of BloodMining I joined a writers’ group. A number of people in the group were ‘proper authors’ as far as I was concerned, they had MAs and some had published novels, and they were encouraging and positive. So, I wrote another draft and entered a competition, and when I was long listed it spurred me on. I wrote another draft. I submitted to half a dozen agents, two of whom came back saying, ‘We’d love to see the full manuscript,’ and though, in the end, they didn’t take me onto their books, getting that far made me feel it was worth pursuing. And so I wrote another draft… there’s a pattern here. When I heard about a couple of competitions run by independent presses I thought, ‘Have a go, what have you got to lose?’ To my surprise, and delight, I was short listed in both but I never expected to win.

And what’s it like having a debut novel out in this current climate?

Unbelievable. It really hasn’t quite sunk in, even now, a year after receiving the call from Debz Hobbs-Wyatt at Bridge House informing me that I’d won their debut novel competition and they’d like to publish the book. After the short listings and near misses with agents I’d consigned BloodMining to the ‘failed first novel’ drawer. So it’s amazing and scary, and, of course, utterly wonderful. Writing a novel involves dedication, commitment and a huge amount of hard work. After two years of writing and rewriting it’s also a relief to see it come to fruition – to know that the graft was not in vain. I feel so lucky and privileged that people will read my story.

Are you a plotter or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-panter?

Pantser. I imagine planners have to do a lot less rewriting than I do…

How long does it take you to write a first draft and how many drafts do you then complete?

It took me almost a year to complete the first draft of BloodMining, and another year to sort out the mess. A total of around seven drafts. The first draft of my second novel was much faster – six months – as it seemed to pour out of me. It’s taken another year of redrafting (three in total) as I’ve been interrupted for all sorts of reasons, some nice (like working on BloodMining again to get it publication-ready) and some not so nice, which I won’t go into here!

Have you had any jobs previously that have helped you to develop your writing skills?
I’ve worked as a journalist, editor and copywriter, so I’ve been working with words for many years, and although there is a massive difference between writing non-fiction and fiction (and fiction is harder!) I learned discipline, a sense of style, good grammar and sentence construction and other important stuff.

Today, I work part-time in a junior school, with a lovely bunch of people, and I also work as an editor for Cornerstones, one of the leading literary consultancies. I read manuscripts, and offer detailed, constructive feedback. It’s a great feeling when authors write back to me saying that they have found my reports useful and inspiring. I’d love to write full-time but until (if…) I’m offered a sizeable advance it’s not going to happen. I have to feed my kids!

How long have you been writing and have you always written novels?
I started writing fiction about six years ago, after I’d had my children. My little one was about eighteen months old. I’ve recently read Caitlin Moran’s How to Be a Woman, which is part memoir, part feminist rant, and one of the many interesting things that she talks about is how having children spurred on her ambition. I relate to that. Time becomes so limited after children, and it’s a cliché but I realised that life is short, I wanted them to be proud of me, and I needed to get on with it. At first I wrote short stories and when I met with moderate success, I felt bold enough to give writing a novel a go.

What’s your next book about?
The relationship between a beautiful, damaged artist and a deformed boy. One is on a quest to look ‘normal’, the other experiments with cosmetic surgery as a means of artistic expression. Set in 1980s Manchester and noughties London it explores obsession, concepts of beauty, and the meaning and value of unconditional love. It’s pretty dark, but there’s humour in there too. I’m at the polishing stage, planning to send it out to agents soon. But I’m still battling with a title – it’s had four so far. Titles are so hard to get right. At least they are for me.

What is your best writing tip?

Read, read, read. Practise.

And your worst writing habit?

Over using certain words. God, my first drafts are littered with them!

And finally, what’s your poison, high heels or flat shoes?
Heels, most definitely. I love ‘em. I do own a trusted pair of Converse All Stars and a couple of Fly London boots, but now that the gingers (my boys) are well past the toddler stage, I’ve reverted to heels.

Heels make me feel slimmer and more sophisticated, which, quite frankly, I need. And although I’m not Kylie small, I am a mere 165cm so a bit of extra height is very welcome. I’m passionate about shoes and boots, and have tons of the things cluttering up the wardrobe, but even those I don’t wear very often (like the leopard print pointy-toed stilettoes) I can’t bear to throw away. Sometimes I get a selection out in the bedroom and just slip them on for the hell of it. I guess at heart I‘m still the little girl who loves dressing up.

Small selection of my faves: gorgeous embellished gold sandals, heavenly light and easy to wear, banana yellows that go with almost everything, versatile black courts, sling backs, animal prints. Love them all.

Thanks very much, Laura and the very best of luck with BLOODMINING. You can find out more about Laura over at her website here. You can also follow her on twitter at @scorpioscribble

Dexter's Diary - week 7

2011-10-14T09:22:00.000+01:00

Falling over, teeth like needles and Fearless Dexter

Catherine Ryan Howard, Flip Flops - a love story

2011-10-12T07:13:00.000+01:00

I know Mel’s blog tends to feature high heeled shoes, but unfortunately I haven’t yet mastered the art of being able to walk in them. At least, not very far. Instead, I’m a fan of the opposite of high-heels: the humble (but amazing) flip-flop...

PART I: Floridian Flip-Flops

My love affair with flip-flops began in September 2006, when I moved to Orlando, Florida. The unofficial state uniform there is a T-shirt, jeans and flip-flops, and for the eighteen months I lived there I wore nothing else. My favourite haunt for flip-flops (as well as the rest of my Floridian uniform) was the store American Eagle.

Flip-flops, I discovered, are amazing. They can be smart, casual or even worn on the beach; they get you through airport security without having to remove your shoes; they come in every shape, size and colour; they can just as easily be worn with jeans as they can with shorts as they can with skirts; they cost less than other shoes and they completely obliterate the need for socks (and so with that, washing socks and then spending hours of your life searching for and reuniting the pairs).

Because I was wearing them all the time, I soon found them as comfortable to walk miles in as I would a good pair of Nikes or even comfy slippers. I walked everywhere in them and between the scope of Walt Disney World and Orlando’s shopping malls, that was a lot of walking. Unexpected bonus: tanned toes.

Part II: The Endurance Award

Immediately after my stint in Florida, I went backpacking in Central America. I brought along a pair of hiking boots for a volcano climb I feared I’d have to do (my travelling partner’s idea, not mine!) but other than that, I stuck with my flip-flops. Even though they take up only a miniscule amount of suitcase (or backpack) space, my bag was pretty full as it was, and so I only brought the one pair: a sort of gold/brown pair from my trusted flip-flop friend, American Eagle.

I had them, ahem, well worn in before I even got to Guatemala, the first country on our three-month trip – yes, there were practically falling apart but they were so comfortable that that was the very reason they got to come. I worried about them occasionally – the straps were becoming frayed and pulling away from the sole, and the sole itself was getting paper thin in places – but to my surprise and delight, they lasted the entire trip. They were in such a state by the end that they became a running joke, and even won an “Endurance Award” on our travel blog.

Sadly, they met their end somewhere in Costa Rica, where I dumped them in a bin to live out their days...

Part III: The Flip-Flops Formerly Known as Yoga Mats

I left Orlando in early 2008, and have been back to visit twice since. The most recent trip was in October 2010, when some of my Florida friends and I went to Universal Studios to experience The Wizarding World of Harry Potter for the first time.

Being back in Ireland, you didn’t get much flip-flop weather and so I’d got completely out of the habit of wearing them. I bought a pair of my old friends – hard sole, leather strap American Eagle flip-flops – but after an hour or so of walking around Universal in thirty-degree heat, I just wanted to ditch them in the nearest body of water. They were killing me.

When we got to my second favourite place in the park – the Jurassic Park area – I nearly squealed with delight when I found that the gift shop there was selling flip-flops that looked far more comfortable than the ones I had on me. Not least of all because these flip-flops, from a company called Sanuk, were made from recycled yoga mats.

Yes, recycled yoga mats.

This meant that the sole of them was not only thick, but soft and kind of bouncy, for want of a better term. At the cashier’s desk, the clerk cut off the tags and gave me a bag for my old flip-flops without being asked. “You’re putting ‘em on, right?” he said, smirking. “Everyone does...” And indeed I was putting them on – I slipped them on right there at the desk, and then glided my way around the rest of Universal.

I’d found my new favourite flip-flop and (finally!) seen Hogwarts. And all before lunch. Not bad for a morning’s work!

You can find Results Not Typical on Amazon.co.uk: here

Results Not Typical on Amazon.com: here

Goodreads Giveaway:

If you readers visit http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/14791-results-not-typical they can enter a giveaway to win one of five paperback copies of Results Not Typical. Open for entries from September 30th-October 31st. Open to all countries.

About Catherine:
Catherine Ryan Howard is a 29-year-old writer, blogger and enthusiastic coffee-drinker. She currently lives in Cork, Ireland, where she divides her time between her desk and the sofa. She blogs at http://www.catherineryanhoward.com/.

About Results Not Typical:

The Devil Wears Prada meets Weightwatchers and chick-lit meets corporate satire in the debut novel from Catherine Ryan Howard, author of the bestselling memoir Mousetrapped: A Year and A Bit in Orlando, Florida. Through their Ultimate Weight Loss Diet Solution Zone System, Slimmit International Global Incorporated claim they’re making the world a more attractive place one fatty at a time. Their slogans “Where You’re Fat and We Know It!” and “Where the Fat IS Your Fault!” are recognised around the globe, the counter in the lobby says five million slimmed and their share price is as high as their energy levels. But today the theft of their latest revolutionary product, Lipid Loser, will threaten to expose the real secret behind Slimmit’s success...The race is on to retrieve Lipid Loser and save Slimmit from total disaster. If their secrets get out, their competitors will put them out of business. If the government finds out, they’ll all go to jail. And if their clients find out… Well, as Slimmit’s Slimming Specialists know all too well, there’s only one thing worse than a hungry, sugar-crazed, carb addict – and that’s an angry one. Will the secret behind Slimmit’s success survive the day, or will their long-suffering slimmers finally discover the truth? Available now in paperback and e-book editions.

Dexter's Diary - Week 6

2011-10-07T06:57:00.001+01:00

I have my own blog now. It's called Looking after Dexter

Week 6 - Characters, strange things on walkabouts and scary noises

The Ugly Sister - Jane Fallon

2011-10-04T16:16:00.011+01:00

As Abi would the first to know. She has spent her life in the shadow of her stunningly beautiful, glamorous older sister Cleo.

Headhunted as model when she was sixteen, Cleo has been all but lost to Abi for the last twenty years, with only a fleeting visit or brief email to connect them. So when Abi is invited to spend the summer in Cleo's large London home with her sister's perfect family, she can't bring herself to say no. Despite serious misgivings. Maybe Cleo is finally as keen as Abi to regain the closeness they shared in their youth?

But Abi is in for a shock. Soon she is left caring for her two young, bored and very spoilt nieces and handsome, unhappy brother-in-law - while Cleo plainly has other things on her mind. As Abi moves into her sister's life, a cuckoo in the nest, she wrestles with uncomfortable feelings.

Could having beauty, wealth and fame lead to more unhappiness than not having them? Who in the family really is the ugly sister?

THE UGLY SISTER'S main character is Abi. She thinks she’s overshadowed by her sister, Cleo. When Cleo invites her to stay during the summer holidays, and Abi finds herself in limbo between selling one property and moving into another, it seems the perfect solution for her, right? Wrong. Abi finds herself at the mercy of Cleo as Cleo tries to establish her waning career. When Abi seems to spend more time with her niece’s than her sister, she soon realises that she’s been conned into becoming a full time unpaid nanny for a few weeks.

But Abi isn’t faultless. She’s a little gullible in taking something so literally and letting it take over her life, blaming everything that went wrong on that one thing. It’s pretty easy to do and in THE UGLY SISTER, for me as a reader, it created tension, frustration and exasperation. I liked Abi but she was a bit weak. I didn’t like Cleo but I known plenty people like her. So all in all, great characterisation. And I loved the kids, Tara and Megan.

I like books where I can get lost in just one family and learn all their ways and quirks. I found myself laughing out loud at certain sentences and tearing my hair out with others. I’ve never had a sister yet I clearly understood the rivalry between the two and the fact that they both thought they were inferior to the other. So did Abi and Cleo kiss and make up or end up going their separate ways again? Well…

I would also say that there are some great question and answers in the back of the book from Jane, about all manner of writing, similar to my A Chat with Jane here

Many thanks to Michael Joseph Penguin my review copy of THE UGLY SISTER.

Dexter's Diary - Week 5

2011-09-30T09:56:00.002+01:00

I'm the kind of the castle, you're the dirty rascal...

Saturday
Because the Boss Lady is swanning off to Manchester to meet Auntie Maria and her writer friends from Harrogate, I have a long weekend with the Boss Man. There is nothing I like better than going to the farm, sneaking up behind him while he's lying down in the grass with his gun and jumping on his head. Apart from hiding in his coat - and sharing his bagel and cake while he has a coffee.

Still being called Flynn, sigh.

And what's with the word no all the time? It seems to be the in thing. Not sure I like that.

I'm just a gorgeous dude, right?

Tuesday
I seem to have wonky ears all of a sudden. The Boss Man mentioned them and that was that. I've been called Wonky for most of the week. Now that everything is growing, my feet seem to be enormous too.

My legs are eight inches now. This time the Boss Man didn't mention anything about length.

And I weigh four kilos - note to the Boss Lady. It is not a good look sitting in the bowl on top of kitchen scales. And very insecure.

The Boss Lady found a tick on my neck. Nasty little bleeder. He was soon annihilated by the Boss Man. The lump has now gone down. Funny, because I didn't feel a thing.

Thursday
I am loving this thing called an Indian summer. It's such fun lossicking about in the sun but man, is it hot in this coat. The only problem I've encountered is the French doors. Sometimes I forget when they have been closed. I do bounce pretty well now.

Too hot to go outside...

And why do I have to drink so much water? I know it's hot and I know I pant but I am tiny and can only take so much fluid before it comes out too quickly all over the kitchen floor. Apparently, my brother, Flynn, never used to drink enough water and it could have been his downfall and contributed to his death. I don't want to fall down so I'll drink a little, I suppose.

What's Twitter? I seem to hear an awful lot about it. I wonder if it's something that I need to learn about. I wonder if I'm missing out. I don't like to miss out on anything, especially if it tastes good.

Highlights of Dexter's week

Playing with the penguin. He's my bestest friend - need I say more, nudge, nudge, wink, wink.

When the Boss Lady sticks up for me, saying that I don't mean to do things when actually I do!

Toys! Now that I'm a bit older, I've been given a few of Flynn's toys. Such fun.

Chewing on the Boss Lady's pen while she's trying to write.

Running off when I'm naughty - fast as lightening, me!

Dexter's Diary is updated every Friday. You can read the rest of Dexter's Diary here

Follow me on Twitter

A Chat with Jane Fallon

2011-09-29T16:37:00.000+01:00

As Abi would the first to know. She has spent her life in the shadow of her stunningly beautiful, glamorous older sister Cleo.

Headhunted as model when she was sixteen, Cleo has been all but lost to Abi for the last twenty years, with only a fleeting visit or brief email to connect them. So when Abi is invited to spend the summer in Cleo's large London home with her sister's perfect family, she can't bring herself to say no. Despite serious misgivings. Maybe Cleo is finally as keen as Abi to regain the closeness they shared in their youth?

But Abi is in for a shock. Soon she is left caring for her two young, bored and very spoilt nieces and handsome, unhappy brother-in-law - while Cleo plainly has other things on her mind. As Abi moves into her sister's life, a cuckoo in the nest, she wrestles with uncomfortable feelings.

Could having beauty, wealth and fame lead to more unhappiness than not having them? Who in the family really is the ugly sister?

I was fortunate to be invited to a bloggers party at The Club, The Ivy to meet Jane, her publicists and the Michael Joseph Penguin team. I had a great time, the place was amazing, the people were great and it was lovely to put names to faces at last. And Jane was so warm and approachable that I could have spoken to her all night. I probably did... (I also loved that the first thing she said to me when I saw her was that she had her heels on!)

So, Jane. Welcome to High Heels and Book Deals. Tell me about your journey to publication.

I had always written and had started, and then discarded, countless novels over the years. Once I had the idea for GETTING RID OF MATTHEW I wrote up a synopsis in quite a lot of detail, all the twists and turns I could think of (lots more didn't appear till I was actually writing the book). I knew that I needed to get a literary agent so, once I'd written the first three chapters I sent those to Jonny Gellar at Curtis Brown who, thankfully, took me on. He advised me to keep going and, once I had reached about 30,000 words - about a third of the book - he would start sending it out to publishers to see if there was any interest. Luckily Penguin picked it up at that point and that really gave me a boost to keep going.

Your new book, The Ugly Sister is out this week. How did you pick this idea?

I was thinking a lot about sisters and the pressure there might be if there were only 2 of you so you were always going to be held up in direct competition to one another. Then I started thinking it might be interesting to take that to an extreme - how it would feel to be the only sister of someone who was considered by every one (including your parents) to be exceptional in some way or another.

How many drafts do you do before you need ‘fresh eyes’ to look over it?

It takes me about 9 months to write the first draft and I don't show anything to anyone during that time. Then I start polishing it up (I don't tend to do a full second draft as I will have been tinkering along the way) and, at that point, I usually give it to my friend Anna to have sneaky read. She's my best mate so she's always very positive but there's often something in her reaction that makes me think about a certain section in a different way or realise that something needs clarifying. Then I send it over to Jonny and Louise Moore, my editor, and feel sick while I wait for their response. Thankfully their notes are usually pretty good (often invaluable) and they are happy for me to ignore any I don't agree with. The whole process takes about a year.

You’re a well known script writer, working on series’ such as Teachers, This Life and 20 things to do before you’re 30. How did this differ from writing a novel? Was it easier to write a novel because of this background?

I was a script editor and then a producer rather than a script writer, although both jobs meant that I often did end up writing scripts or portions of scripts on the shows I worked on. Screen writing is all about the dialogue. You can't get inside peoples heads to see what is going on. Good screen writers manage to convey everything they need to while still keeping the dialogue natural. In a novel there's a joy in being able to write your characters' deepest thoughts.

TV is obviously helped by being visual though. You can show the world. In a book you have to create the whole universe for your readers. You have to give them enough so they can picture what's going on without overwhelming them with detail so they can't lose themselves in the story. I love that the book I write is the book people get to read, good or bad. It hasn't been re-interpreted by directors, designers, costume people.

I think working in TV definitely helped me move into novel writing. Both are all about telling stories. I still like to plot my books out like I would a TV series before I start writing anything.

You were shortlisted for the Melissa Nathan Award with your novel, Foursome. How did that feel?

Amazing. I've been nominated for TV awards before but so many people are involved in a TV show that the nomination is never for you alone. When I found out FOURSOME had been nominated I couldn't believe it. And the Melissa Nathan Awards are great because they recognize commercial fiction in a way that no others awards do. I didn't win but I am very proud of my nominees trophy

What are you working on at the moment?

I'm just starting on my fifth book but it's still in the ideas stage so not much to report there. I'm also developing a sitcom idea for the US but who knows if anything will come of that.

Are you a plotter or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-panter?

Definitely a plotter. I panic if I don't have a plan in place even if I don't then stick to it. I like to know that in a drawer somewhere is a mapped out version of the story I am trying to write.

What is your best writing tip?

Keep writing. Even when you know that you're not at your best I think it's important to write through it. You can go back and rewrite later. Otherwise it's too easy just to think you're stuck and give up.

And your worst writing habit?

Allowing myself to go on the Internet when I'm supposed to be working. I can lose hours that way.

And finally, what’s your poison, high heels or flat shoes?

In my heart I’m always high heels but these days I save them for the evenings.

These are my favourite shoes. They cost a fortune but I’ve worn them so often they are probably the most cost-effective pair in my closet.

I love the colour combination on these trainers. They’re my default walking-around-in-the-day shoes.

Many thanks for that Jane and best of luck with your sales. THE UGLY is published today, September 29 and you can find out more about Jane here. I shall also be reviewing The UGLY SISTER soon.

Dani's Story - Diane and Bernie Lierow, with Kay West

2011-09-28T16:00:00.017+01:00

Neglected beyond belief, rescued by love...Dani was so severely neglected by her birth mother that she grew up knowing only squalor. She never went to school or the doctor, and rarely glimpsed sunlight. Desperately malnourished, she couldn't talk and had never been toilet-trained. The social worker who took her into care had never heard of a case so horrific. The doctors believed Dani would never recover from such a terrible start in life. Then she met the Lierows - a unique, blended family who were seeking to adopt a child.

Despite being warned that she was way beyond hope of a normal life, they were instantly drawn to her and sensed a bright light behind her pale complexion. When they finally adopted her, they showered Dani with so much affection and encouragement that she came to life for the first time. Proving all the experts wrong, Dani would go on to open up and express herself in a way that no-one could have expected. Dani's remarkable and heartwarming story is a testament of the power of kindness to overcome even the most seemingly insurmountable challenges.

DANI’S STORY is one of the most uplifting books I have read in a long time. The courage of Diane and Bernie Lierow made me want to reach out and give them a hug, before shaking their hand profusely. The book tells the heartbreaking story of Dani being removed from a neglected home and her journey into what most people would call a normal shot at life with her adoptive parents.

Diane and Bernie already had a family of their own, who ultimately accepted Dani as their sister. From the time they first saw her photograph, and were told quite frankly that they’d do well to leave alone, Dani won Diane and Bernie’s heart. Even trying to integrate Dani back into society and teach her the basic skills was nothing compared to what they had to do so that they could adopt her.

Dani was neglected so much that at the age of eight she could hardly do anything that a six month old baby could do. So I particularly enjoyed reading how she overcame some things with her own quirks and ways. Tales of potty training, learning how to dress and eat properly shouldn’t really be associated with an eight year old child. But Dani had to learn it all.

In my opinion, people let Dani down at an early age. Thank goodness she found the Lierow’s. No one actually knows how much she will continue to improve and learn but I have hope for her after reading DANI’S STORY. I believe with love from the Lierow’s, Dani should be capable of anything. I hope one day that she learns to say Mom and Dad.

DANI’S STORY – heartbreaking, inspiring and courageous.

You can find out more about Dani on her website here. Many thanks to Michael Joseph Penguin for my review copy.

Dexter's Diary - Week Four

2011-09-23T06:00:00.021+01:00

Dog tired after shooting with the Boss Man

Sunday
The Boss Lady says that my tidger is growing huge and soon I will be able to rival the Boss Man. Yet again something was mentioned about inches but the Boss Man ignored that too.

I'm getting really big now. I suppose it's because I don't have to fight for my food with six greedy bitches all the time. You should have seen the size of my sisters when I left home. Luckily for me, when I got here I had my own bowl, didn't I? And I have something put into it every night after they've finished their meal. I don't even have to jump up or howl. I'm told 'I'll save you a bit' and it happens. Well, I am a growing boy.

Tuesday
Today I was left on my own. Locked up in my cage and LEFT. ON. MY. OWN. There must be a law against this. I howled and howled but no one came to me. I was even howling when the Boss Lady came back. And what did I do? Silly me gave her such a fuss as I was so glad to see her when really I should have snubbed her. See how she liked being ignored, hmm.

But then again, the Boss Lady always sticks up for me with the Boss Man. I could get away with murder - or biting the Boss Man's nose - any time I like because she says I don't mean it. I'm only playing. No, I'm flipping not! I am mean. One day they will both learn this.

A hard day at the office with the Boss Lady

Mind you, that will depend on my teeth because they are wasting away! I hope I get some new ones soon.

Thursday
Not at all bothered by those pesky stairs anymore. Although I do sometimes slide all the way down on my belly unintentionally. And I still have to growl on each step too. My new trick? Launching myself off the middle step! Such fun.

I caught my foot in my cage in my haste to get out of it. Man, did it hurt. I yelped a bit and then I turned round and bit it. Then I glared at it. I think it won't dare trip me up again.

A note from the Boss Lady
It's been four weeks since we picked Dexter up. He's twelve weeks old now and rather than being a handful, which he most definitely is, he's actually a pleasure to have around. He's brought so much laughter into the house again - even when he presses a key on my laptop and changes everything and I don't know what to press to get it back to how it was.

Do you feel lucky, punk? Well, do ya?

We're still calling him Flynn, poor lad. But he is a great little character. I'm really glad that we went for him now and didn't wait for another Plummer terrier to be born. It's great that Dexter looks so different to Flynn. And now that he's settled in, it feels right that he has his big brother's basket to sleep in.

House training wise? Done and dusted. The lad goes to the door now. Obviously we still have to make sure we're there to open it when he needs to go out or else it's too late. But in between walks, he takes himself out now, down the garden to his spot. Which is great for all of us. Before that, as soon as the poor lad stooped slightly or sniffed at the floor, regardless of whether he was about to do anything or not, he was scooped up and taken out.

And he's stopped eating everything in sight - well, in the back garden he has. Which is another plus because I now feel that I can leave him to amuse himself a little rather than keep an eye on him all the time. It's nice to see him having a typical terrier mad half hour as he tears around the living room, into the kitchen and back.

Yes, you could say after a month that Dexter is well and truly settled in.

You can read more of Dexter's Diaries here

A Chat with Tamar Cohen

2011-09-22T06:58:00.002+01:00

Never have an affair with anyone who has less to lose than you. And - never underestimate the wrath of a woman scorned.

For five years, Sally and Clive have been lost in a passionate affair. Now he has dumped her, to devote himself to his wife and family, and Sally is left in freefall.

It starts with a casual stroll past his house, and popping into the brasserie where his son works. Then Sally starts following Clive’s wife and daughter on Facebook. But that’s alright isn’t it? I mean they are perfectly normal things to do. Aren’t they?

Not since Fatal Attraction has the fallout from an illicit affair been exposed in such a sharp, darkly funny and disturbing way:The Mistress’s Revenge is a truly exciting fiction debut. After all, who doesn’t know a normal, perfectly sane woman who has gone a little crazy when her heart was broken?

Hi Tamar and welcome to High Heels and Book Deals. Tell me about your journey to publication.

At first when people used to ask me this question, I told them it was a bit of a fairy story – wrote novel in three months, got taken on by the world famous Curtis Brown, and offered a deal from the first publisher who saw it (Doubleday – luckily for me). Tra la la, cue sprinkling of fairy dust, and tinkling bells soundtrack…Then a friend pointed out that my ‘fairy story’ account conveniently ignored the twenty-five years leading up to this point where I’d been slogging away as a journalist and non fiction author, not to mention prolific writer of half-finished novels and abandoned book proposals. So I guess the truth is that though the arrival might have been a fairytale whirlwind, the journey there was bloody long!

Your novel, THE MISTRESS'S REVENGE, is a dark yet compelling read. How did you come up with this idea?

Like most ideas, this one had been brewing for a while. As a woman in my forties, relationship crises and mid life angst were pretty much all around me and it felt natural to write about them, but I needed a strong central character to give the whole thing a shape. Sally (the protagonist) was born from watching a friend go through a bitter break up. I was struck by the bonkersness of some of the schemes she came up with to get her own back on the man who’d dumped her. This was a normally very sensible, sane woman. Of course she never carried out any of the things she talked about, but it did make me think ‘what if…’? What if a woman is driven so crazy by rejection she actually follows through with those mad impulses? It was around the time of the Tiger Woods scandal, and mistresses were dominating the headlines and I was struck by how powerful a figure the mistress remains in popular mythology. Twenty five years on from Glen Close in Fatal Attraction and we’re still as scared of her as ever. Putting together the bunny-boiling mistress, hellbent on revenge, and the love-crazed woman trying to mend her broken heart, felt like it would be exciting – and dangerous.

What’s it’s like to have a debut novel out in this current climate? Surely, it can't be all doom and gloom out there?

One of the great things about never having had a novel published before, is that I have nothing to compare it to. Everyone keeps muttering darkly about how awful the market is at the moment, but from my point of view it’s been wonderful. I got a healthy advance that enabled me to take time off from the day job to write the next book, I’ve had great support from my agent and publisher and no one has been anything but totally enthusiastic – if this is them depressed, I can’t wait to see what they’re all like when things are on the up!

You’ve written nine non fiction books. Had you always intended on writing a novel eventually?

In my head I’ve always been a novelist, which is why it was always so surprising to me that it took me twenty-five years and all those non-fiction books to become one.

How is writing novels different from journalism?

With newspaper and magazine features, there’s no awful ‘middle slump’ - that bit between 30,000 words and 70,000 where you sink into the depths of despair and can’t imagine how on earth you’re ever going to finish this thing. But the biggest difference is the deadlines. I’m so used to writing to one week or two week deadlines that having nine months to finish a book throws me completely. I seem to be unable to establish a routine of writing consistently every day – some days I sit with a newspaper and fill in all the letter ‘e’s and ‘b’s and ‘d’s with a red felt-pen, and other days I’ll write like a dervish. I wish I could get the balance right.

Are you a plotter or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-panter?

Definitely a seat-of-panter. After abandoning dozens of novels part way through because I couldn’t work out how on earth they were going to end, I now try to at least envisage a conclusion before starting, but the middle is still an unknown quantity, populated by characters I’ve never heard of before and plot twists which seem to happen largely of their own accord. When I read other writers talking about plotting out their novels in graph form or on a complex system of index cards or post-its, I always get excited and think ‘aha, so that’s the secret’, and raid the local stationary store. But once at home, surrounded by coloured pens and graph paper, I’m completely stumped.

What are you working on now?

I’ve just finished the first draft of my second novel and am currently biting my nails and resisting the urge to drink heavily while my editor reads it. It’s about secrets and lies and how we never really know the people closest to us, and follows a woman who discovers after a traumatic life-changing event that the man she’s been married to for thirty years has been leading a double life about which she knew nothing at all. But it’s not just about her, it’s also about the other people whose lives are affected by the deception, and how the ripples of our behaviour spread outwards so much further than we think. It’s a real departure from the first book because it’s in the third person, so you see things from outside rather than inside, and has much more of a thriller element to it.

What is your best writing tip?

Don’t expect it to be perfect. It’s not brain surgery. You’re just putting some words down on paper. No one will die if you get it wrong.

And your worst writing habit?

Reading other writers while I’m mid-novel and being overcome with self doubt, convinced I’ll never be able to do what they do. Or, even worse, getting up the next morning and subconsciously writing in the style of whoever I just read, and having to go back and do the whole thing again.

And finally, what’s your poison, high heels or flat shoes?
In my head, I’m definitely a heels woman. In my mind I click about confidently on sky-high Laboutins or shoes with dainty little ankle straps and bows. In reality, however, I’m far more likely to be found in Converse or wellies. In my defence, I don’t get out much. And when I do, it’s usually with the dog. I do own heels, however, and I like to take them out from time to time and look at them and stroke them and remind myself of that other parallel universe where I am the kind of woman who wears frivolous, skittish, fabulous footwear on a daily basis just because she can.

“Shoes! With Zips! What’s not to like?”

“I loved every minute of the launch party for The Mistress’s Revenge, and these shoes, which I managed to wear all evening without serious injury, remind me of that very happy night.”

Thanks for the insight, Tamar and best of luck for future sales of THE MISTRESS'S REVENGE. You can find out what I thought about THE MISTRESS'S REVENGE here

Katy Perry - Alice Montgomery

2011-09-20T08:43:00.003+01:00

The fascinating account of a girl-next-door turned pop princess.

Ever since the international chart-topping hit, I Kissed a Girl, Katy Perry hasn't stopped making headlines. From reaching number one in charts worldwide to selling out concerts around the globe, her phenomenal success has propelled her to the A-list. But it didn't always seem like she was destined for stardom.

Brought up in a deeply religious community, Katy was allowed to listen only to church music. However, with her astounding musical gift, along with plenty of willpower, Katy was determined to follow her dream. Her rise to the top was cemented in 2010, when after a flurry of media gossip; she married the most controversial figure on British TV - Russell Brand.

Bestselling biographer Alice Montgomery traces Katy's steps to stardom from her choir girl beginnings to her breakthrough in the music business and her secret wedding ceremony in India, to reveal the intimate story behind the most exciting and unpredictable pop star around.

Packed full of photos, juicy celebrity insights and intimate facts, this is the must-have book for all fans, young and old, of Katy Perry.

When asked to review this book, I was thrilled. Having just read Robbie and Gary (which I shall be reviewing next week), it was another insight to a celebrity that I know and hear a lot about but don't actually know if everything I read or hear is true.

Alice Montgomery is a slick writer. Katy Perry, The Unauthorised Biography is intermingled with quotes from various sources and she weaves it all into a great read. For me, striving to get that elusive traditional publishing deal, it seems that Katy has had the same journey of perseverance and 'nearly there luck' - until she came good.

Signed up and dropped by a number of record companies (who will be kicking themselves right now) she continued to strive for her goals. The knockbacks she had made her all the more determined and indeed, she got to where she is today because of that strength.

Through the media, I've heard about Katy's religious and strict upbringing. But in the book, it actually comes across that she's been brought up within a stable family who backed her career choice but didn't want her to go off the straight and narrow. Having this background, I think, made Katy into what she is today.

I particularly liked the photo selection in between the written pages, showing her unique and individual style. She is one hot chick (and no, I haven't kissed a girl) but there is a hardworking, ambitious, yet caring lady behind it all. Her marriage to Russell Brand put the top hat on her Alice in Wonderland fairytale image and I wish them all the best for the future.

Katy Perry - A sparkly cover and a spanking read. And why you should never give up on your dreams.

Katy Perry: The Unauthorized Biography is published by Michael Joseph, Penguin. Many thanks for my review copy.

Dexter's Diary - Week Three

2011-09-16T07:59:00.000+01:00

Monday
I went to have my photo taken today. Well, I went with the Boss Lady as she wants to have some author photos taken - not that she has a book out yet or anything...

It was great fun while I was there. Duane tried to take a good photo of me but I was too quick. He kept on pushing me across the floor but I ran back at him like a mad dog. Personally, I preferred sniffing around in his back yard. There was a gap under the gate that gave the Boss Lady a mad panic every time I ran to it. Oh, it did make me laugh.

I also went to the vets for my last injection. I am now 3 kilos, so heavy. I also have a grade 2 heart murmur, whatever that is. The vet told the Boss Lady and the Boss Man that it was nothing to worry about as it would probably have been a grade 3 a month ago so it is likely to be gone when I see her again in another month. And she had such cold hands when she examined me, made me ticklish too. I didn't like the injection bit either. If looks could kill, she would be dead, I'm telling you. Still, my chip has been scanned into their computer now and they know where I live so I'd better be careful.

Tuesday
I got all the way up the stairs today! I managed half way last week before I collapsed with exhaustion. But the Boss Lady started to sing this song about a frog sitting on the step so I made sure I didn't stop this time. And then, when I got to the top, she sang even more! A different song, obviously but honestly, it was as if I'd conquered a mountain or something.

Then I was made to come all the way down. I mean have you seen the view from the top! Flipping scary at my age, I can tell you. But with a bit of barking and pretend digging, I managed bit by bit to get down. Still can't understand why I have to do it by myself though. Why couldn't she just pick me up!

Thursday

This is my 'Out with the Boss Man' mean look

This is the real Dexter, fooled ya!

I've been to the farm quite a few times with the Boss Man. It's my favourite place in the whole wide world. Actually, it is so huge that I think it may be the whole wide world! There is so much to do and eat while I am exploring. But I have to be so careful not to get under the Boss Man's feet. I must tell him that I am not a football. Good job I am flexible and roly poly because I know he doesn't mean it.

I love being out with my dad while the Boss Lady gets that thing out called the hoover. Man, I do not like that machine. I do my best to attack it but it runs straight at me. One day...

I'm not at all sure I like this thing called a lead either. How undignified to be trussed up in something and have to walk when I don't want to. And then when I want to run, I'm practically strangled. So I sat down until I got a treat. Works every time.

And can anyone explain to me why I keep getting hiccups all the time. It's soooo annoying.

Highlights of this week

Finding a dead bird at the farm and ragging it around the field. There were feathers everywhere!

I no longer need the Dexter Step to get into the house. The Boss Lady says she can now use the French doors without fear of me breaking anything. I'm just glad that I don't skid and stop at the wall every time I come in now. It was quite painful at times.

It was the Boss Lady's birthday on Sunday and while she was sad because of the date, I got to eat a bit of cake! Yummy.

Three hours kip as soon as the Boss Man goes out to work.

I love that the Boss Lady works from home. I can run her ragged until the Boss Man comes home and then I act as if I've been good all day, hee hee.

You can read the rest of Dexter's Diary here

Best Shoe Forward - Talli Roland

2011-09-14T07:46:00.001+01:00

The Freedom Shoes

They don’t look like much, do they? But these beat-up ballet flats – only ten pounds from New Look – are actually my shoes of freedom. They’re the first pair of shoes I bought after ditching my corporate job and making the leap to full-time writing.

No more aching calves and blistered feet, I’d thought, sighing with relief as I slid on the flats. I could wiggle my toes! I could run! Hell, I could even dance if I wanted. Although I didn’t think it at the time, I realize now those shoes were a metaphor for the change in my life. I’d thrown everything I had into my all-consuming corporate job, yet I knew it wasn’t what I wanted. What I really craved was a shot at writing novels, something I’d tried to do on and off my whole life, constantly getting sidetracked by the siren song of a little thing called a salary.

But finally, I’d done it. I’d kicked off the pinching high heels and was ready to dip a toe into the wonderful world of writing. I had no idea if I’d succeed; I didn’t even know if I could write a novel. I knew one thing, though: my feet – and my soul – felt better than they had for years.

Today, Talli is having launch day fun by organising an online 'If I Could Be Anyone, I'd Be...' party! Come 'dressed' as that one person you've always admired, longed to impersonate, or just plain envied. Now is your chance to make your superhero, film-star, or Rock God fantasies comes true (okay, maybe not all your fantasies...).

If you have a blog and you'd like to take part, all you need to do is post a photo of your chosen one (dead or alive) along with an explanation why you've picked that person. If you're on Twitter, Facebook or Google+, just post 'If I could be anyone, I'd be X' as your status, along with the hast-tag #watchingwillow on Twitter (tag Talli on FB and Google+ -- Talli Roland -- so she know's you've taken part).

All partiers will be entered into a draw to win Marilyn Monroe paraphernalia, a copy ofWatching Willow Watts and a £10 Amazon gift certificate!

Talli Roland has three loves in her life: chick lit, coffee and wine. Born and raised in Canada, Talli now lives in London, where she savours the great cultural life (coffee and wine). Despite training as a journalist, Talli soon found she preferred making up her own stories – complete with happy endings. Her first novel, The Hating Game, was an Amazon UK best-seller, remaining in the top 100 for over two months. Watching Willow Watts is available on Kindle now. Talli blogs here and tweets here

Watching Willow Watts - Talli Roland

2011-09-13T10:02:00.001+01:00

For Willow Watts, life has settled into a predictably dull routine: days behind the counter at her father's antique shop and nights watching TV, as the pension-aged residents of Britain's Ugliest Village bed down for yet another early night. But everything changes when a YouTube video of Willow's epically embarrassing Marilyn Monroe impersonation gets millions of hits after a viewer spots Marilyn's ghostly image in a frame.

Instantly, Willow's town is overrun with fans flocking to see the 'new Marilyn'. Egged on by the villagers -- whose shops and businesses are cashing in -- Willow embraces her new identity, dying her hair platinum and ramming herself full of cakes to achieve Marilyn's legendary curves.

But when a former flame returns seeking the old Willow, Willow must decide: can she risk her stardom and her village's newfound fortune on love, or is being Marilyn her ticket to happiness?

It’s no secret that Talli Roland and I are good friends. I met her last year online and several times in person this year and we’ve formed a really great bond. So some people might think that I read and review Talli’s books with a little less than an honest opinion. Surely if I didn’t like her work, I would ‘write’ it up a bit then?

Luckily for me then, I don’t have to. Because I love Talli’s style of writing. It’s full of wit, sparkle and funny one liners. It’s fast paced, entertaining and different. Talli creates great characters and settings. She’s extremely modern in thought and plot and has versatility in abundance. Her latest character, Willow Watts, wants to see her Dad smile again after the death of her mother. She also wants to help him out wherever possible so if it means a few embarrassing moments, then so be it. She wants to be the perfect daughter. But in doing so, she dampens her own spirit.

WATCHING WILLOW WATTS is as far removed from The Hating Game as I think it is possible to go. Whereas Mattie was brusque and, it’s fair to say, a little harsh when we first met her, Willow is a kind and loveable soul, who will do anything to help other people, even if that means being consistently trodden on by people who use her. I think by recreating herself as Marilyn, she finds out what she likes and what she doesn’t, and maybe what’s she’s lost.

I really enjoyed the setting of this book and how the village and its occupants came to life. Some of the minor characters were particularly well drawn – for example, I loved Betts and Paula. Yes the plot stretches the imagination but that’s what made it so enjoyable a read for me. It was different, it made me smile.

WATCHING WILLOW WATTS – Wonderful, warm and wicked.

You can find out more about Talli Roland on her fantastic and enviable blog here And tomorrow, she'll be here on the Best Shoe Forward spot too.

Why I didn't celebrate my birthday on 9/11

2011-09-12T08:09:00.000+01:00

September 11, 2001.

I'm sure it's a date in many people's lives that they will always remember. That they will always know exactly where they were and what they were doing. For me, however, it was my birthday.

I always feel compelled to watch all the 9/11 programs each year. I always feel like I can't have a celebration of my birthday as, well, the guilt that I am alive and having fun while so many people are being remembered never goes away.

This year was particularly hard. As the tenth anniversary loomed, I felt that I couldn't celebrate this year at all. It just didn't feel right. Morbid, I know. I'm not sure if I feel it more because of my birth date or if everyone else feels the same because of the atrocious way so many people died.

This year, I watched the tenth anniversary ceremony for the first two hours. For those two hours, I cried as the names were read out of people who had died. And then I made a conscious decision to switch off the television. I could either dwell on the horror of that day ten years ago, all over again or I could thank my lucky stars that, after three years of ill health, I am finally 90% through it and living my life as well as I can. I survived. We got through it. It's the biggest milestone in my life so far.

A few weeks ago, unexpectedly we lost our dog, Flynn. This was enough to devastate us for a while. Now we have Dexter and we can look forward. It's not as if we've replaced Flynn but he is not a human. We grieved for him but we can get another dog, quite easily. The memories will never go but we can take away the pain. Not like the people caught up in 9/11.

I still have the photo above framed on my wall in my office as a reminder. I see that photo every day. I, for one, can never forget 9/11. I, for one, am unsure if I would ever want to.

Dexter's Diary - Week Two

2011-09-09T07:41:00.001+01:00

Look how much I've changed. I'm going red!

Sunday

Apparently I’ve ‘slept right through’ now – thank goodness they won’t keep dragging me out to the garden at 4am every morning. A growing dog needs his sleep.

The Boss Lady wears smelly stuff that makes me sneeze so cuddling into her neck is very detrimental to me. Think I’d better scratch and bite her instead.

The Boss Man has measured my legs and they have grown by an inch from six inches to seven. There was a snigger from the Boss Lady when the Boss Man said that, at six inches, an extra inch made all of the difference.

Embarrassing mode of transport

Tuesday

I jumped of the settee today. Yes, all by myself. Call me Fearless Dexter! Before that I was using The Boss Man and The Boss Lady's legs to slide down, a great trick but feel proud to be a jumper now.

The Boss Lady has been giving me treats if I sit and give her my paw. Whatever floats her boat, I say. Doesn’t she realise I’ll do anything for a treat? Anything.

Yippee. The Boss Man has let me loose in the garden. It’s called pottering, if you didn’t know. There is much to be eaten and explored. And oh, digging. How fantastic is that!

My wild wolf impression - pretty good, huh?

Thursday

I got stuck under the settee today! The Boss Lady was upstairs and the Boss Man was supposedly looking after me. Well, my tiny ball rolled underneath and I pushed and pushed my paw under but I couldn’t get it. So I went around the side and in from the back. Unfortunately I couldn’t remember how to get out then. After a lot of wimpering, The Boss Man finally realised where I was. The trouble was I was stuck in the middle of the settee. The sides lift up (The Boss Man likes to relax with his side up at night time) but I couldn’t even squeeze my head through. So The Boss Lady tried to coax me to come out from the back but I was scared. In the end, the settee had to be lifted and I was free. Not doing that again – silly ball.

And what does peevish mean? The Boss Lady keeps saying that.

This is how you will find me most of the time

Highlights of the week
Yoghurt pots!

Hanging off the end of the washing while the Boss Lady pegs it out.

Barking my head off before jumping off the settee into shark infested custard – okay, the carpet. And I can’t get up onto the settee yet but hey.

Eating the bread put out for the birds in the Boss Nana’s garden.

Learning I can outrun the Boss Lady, ha!

Note from the Boss Lady

I think someone has put Dexter into a grow bag this week. He's really filled out and his colouring is changing by the day. When we first saw him at five weeks old, he was mostly black with a bit of tan on his legs and chest and two tan 'eyebrows'. His dad is red and his mum is black and tan. Now a lot of red is coming out on him and he's getting lighter every day. And he has such a grumpy expression (reminds me of Grumpy, Debs!).

But there is nothing grumpy about Dexter. He is great fun. Apart from the 'stuck under the settee' saga, which was terrifying but hilarious at the same time, he's hardly any trouble. Obviously I say that tongue in cheek because when he's awake, he's a live wire and has to be watched every minute - he's always eating something he shouldn't!

But for me, the best thing is that I have someone to 'chat' to as I'm home alone all day. I'm still calling him Flynn on a regular basis but it is getting less. So is the guilt.

If you missed Dexter's first week with us, you can read it here

The Mistress's Revenge - Tamar Cohen

2011-09-08T13:40:00.001+01:00

Never have an affair with anyone who has less to lose than you. And - never underestimate the wrath of a woman scorned.

For five years, Sally and Clive have been lost in a passionate affair. Now he has dumped her, to devote himself to his wife and family, and Sally is left in freefall.

It starts with a casual stroll past his house, and popping into the brasserie where his son works. Then Sally starts following Clive’s wife and daughter on Facebook. But that’s alright isn’t it? I mean they are perfectly normal things to do. Aren’t they?

Not since Fatal Attraction has the fallout from an illicit affair been exposed in such a sharp, darkly funny and disturbing way:The Mistress’s Revenge is a truly exciting fiction debut. After all, who doesn’t know a normal, perfectly sane woman who has gone a little crazy when her heart was broken?

As a writer, I like to read something that is set out differently. I like to think about how an author has attacked a story line, made it their own. THE MISTRESS’S REVENGE is written in the style of a journal – something which I thoroughly enjoyed – from the point of view of a woman scorned. Both Sally and Clive have partners but when Clive goes ‘back’ to his wife, Sally can’t accept that the affair is over. And the more obsessed she becomes with his family, the more she neglects her own.

THE MISTRESS’S REVENGE is a thought provoking book in the sense that what happened to Sally could happen to any woman. How can anyone say they would react differently until they have been in that situation? Life throws things at us that we just have to deal with. Sometimes, for whatever reason, people can’t deal with reality. For some readers, the story could be seen as too over the top. As I’ve suffered from depression, I found it totally absorbing. I felt Sally’s hurt and demise. I felt sorry for everyone around her. I felt anger towards Clive. I felt annoyed at her obsession. All different emotions – that’s what makes a good story for me.

THE MISTRESS’S REVENGE has received mixed reviews. I can see why but I can also see more why I enjoyed it so much. I found myself immersed in the story and could actually feel Sally breaking down. The book is very dark, yet very witty in places. I loved that some of the irrational things Sally did, she made them sound as if everyone else was wrong. I I loved that the story became darker and darker as it went on.

I particularly liked the ending. In some ways it was unsatisfying. In others it was clever and reckless. Did Sally set out to do what she was going to do? Did she get her revenge? For me, it was what I read between the lines that made it more intriguing.

THE MISTRESS’S REVENGE – Pure car crash fiction and one of my top ten books of 2011.

You can keep abreast of news about Tamar on her facebook page. She's also on twitter as @MsTamarCohen. Tamar will also be doing A Chat With...on the blog soon.

Many thanks to Transworld for my review copy.

Dexter's Diary - Week One

2011-09-02T06:45:00.000+01:00

Saturday
I wasn’t quite sure what was happening last weekend when two people I didn’t know took me away from my brothers and sisters. I vaguely recognised them but not the house they took me to. It felt all strange and there was no smell. I’ll soon change that though.

I settled in quite quickly, I think. There were lots of new things to explore and I had a basket all to myself. And excuse me, but is it really so wrong to eat my dinner with one foot in the bowl? I mean, what is the problem? I’m so tiny that if I don’t put my foot in the bowl, I’m going to end up head first in it!

When it was time for bed, they took me upstairs and locked me in a cage! Isn’t there a law against that? I cried for a minute but the Boss Man told me to be quiet. So I cuddled up in the middle of all the toys and in no time at all, I was gone. Well, it had been a long day. The next thing I knew, I woke up in the dark, afraid, alone and I cried. Up shot the Boss Lady who took me out into the garden, repeating over and over, ‘Have a wee.’ Of course I’m going to have a wee. It’s 4am – do you think I’m going to stay out here all night when you’ve dragged me out of my warm bed! I only murmured because I was missing my family. Shall think better of it tomorrow night.

Monday

The Boss Man took me out in his Landrover today. Oh, the indignity of being seen out in a green recycling box! But I was in the passenger seat at the front and if I stood up, I could see and if I looked really cute, which let’s face it, isn’t exactly hard with my face, the Boss Man would give me a fuss whenever he stopped.

The farm was amazing! There was so much to look at, to mess in, to eat. But I didn’t like that bleeding bull, had me scarpering with my tail between my legs into the barn. He soon shut up when I growled at him though. I think he knows I am the mighty one.

Blue eyes - baby's got blue eyes!

Wednesday
The Boss Lady put me in this bowl today. It was a bit wibbly wobbly and she gave me a cuddle afterwards which was okay. Apparently, I’m now 2.4 kilos and just over the weight of a bag of sugar, whatever that is.

And I went berserk in the garden. There are sooooo many things to eat and taste and play with. Running away from the Boss Lady was a brilliant game. But it wasn't too much fun when, even with the Dexter Step, I kept on crashing into the door frame and bouncing off. It wasn't a pretty sight.

Highlights of my week:

Fighting and biting with the Boss Man. And going to the farm.

Snuggling up to the Boss Lady when she’s working. And biting and hanging on her hair is hilarious fun!

Not having to share everything. New toys that I can hump. Need I say more?

Man, I’m going to like it here. But do they have to keep calling me Flynn-I-mean-Dexter all the time.

Dex

A message from the Boss Lady:

Having Dexter here at last has been a great pleasure. He's so tiny! We were armed with disinfectant, baby wipes, kitchen roll and ready for a mess but he’s been really good – no mess at all. It’s the old tried and tested method of taking him into the garden every half an hour or after every feed, every nap, every play, every drink. It’s a pain but it works and we’ve only had one accident so far. And yes, it’s annoying to get up in the early hours and traipse down to the garden (and we only do it once during the night – if he cries again, he’s told to be quiet), but after ten days of doing this, Flynn was house trained. It looks like it’s going to be the same with Dexter. For the last two nights he's slept right through. It's me who's had no sleep in the early hours, convincing myself there is something wrong as he's so quiet!

I must admit to not really liking having him around for the first day or two. I’m not sure if this was because he was a new addition to our family and that everyone feels that way until they ‘bond’. Or whether it had something to do with Dexter being the opposite to Flynn in colouring and, well, not actually being Flynn. But after a couple of days, he won my heart. He is a great learner, he’s going to be fun to have around and is curled up asleep on a cushion by my side as I type. We certainly made the right choice.

Nina Bell - Shoe Memories

2011-09-01T07:36:00.000+01:00

Clover Jones and Laura Dangerfield have been best friends since their children were born. Along with Clover’s stylish, powerful friend, Alice, they share holidays, sleepovers, school runs and childcare. They’re like one big family.But all families have their secrets.

When the children leave home, Clover and Laura’s lives and marriages change forever, and the old rules on love and loyalty no longer apply. And when Alice decides she wants what they’ve got, Clover and Laura have to find out who they really are. Without the children, can their marriages - and friendship - survive?

THE EMPTY NESTERS is published today. To celebrate its release, I asked Nina Bell to choose the type of shoes the characters she'd created for this book would wear.

***

CHOOSING SHOES FOR MY CHARACTERS…..

Deciding what my characters will wear is a big part of establishing who they are. At the beginning I feel as if they are like those cardboard cut-outs that I used to play with as a child. But after trying a few different one-dimensional looks, one will often literally seize a cashmere pashmina, a pair of jewelled sandals or some grubby wellingtons, and stalk off across the page, fully dressed.

I’ve always been fascinated by women who are very charming, because I wonder what lies behind the compliments. Genuine admiration? Suppressed anger? A secret life - they keep talking to stop anyone from asking them any questions? So Laura Dangerfield, in The Empty Nesters, is always very nice to people: She rushes about shrieking: ‘What a lovely brooch!’ ‘You’re so clever!’ But I only really saw Laura once she’d donned her trademark bright pink fitted jacket and jacked up her height from 5’2” with high heels, making her a hummingbird amongst sparrows. Laura feels she has to try hard to be noticed and loved.

The other heroine, Clover, on the other hand, needs to be needed, so she’s too busy looking after everyone else to remember to get her hair cut or always to iron her clothes. She pulls on any old sloppy sweater in the morning, which sometimes belongs to her husband, George. Her shoes would be comfortable, workmanlike boots, or, for parties, a pair of animal-print pumps from Boden, because she feels too tall. When the people who needed her – her children and her friend Alice – leave, she looks into the mirror properly for the first time in twenty years, and asks ‘who am I?’

I wrote the Look for A Lifestyle feature for four years when I worked at Good Housekeeping. Every month I travelled with the fashion team to a different town and talked to a woman about her life and her clothes. So the idea of linking clothes to character is hard-wired in me. The fashion editor was dark-haired, as was her little daughter. She told me that they were both often irritated by the way so many heroines in fairy tales and cartoons were blonde (Goldilocks, Cinderella), and villainesses (Cruella de Vil, the Wicked Stepmother) dark-haired. So Alice, who is Miss Trouble in The Empty Nesters, had to be blonde. She wears expensive fabrics – cashmere, silk and suede - that hang beautifully, with little details that women pick up on, such as mother-of-pearl buttons or shoes studded with tiny crystals. Men are too busy noticing Alice herself to spot such subtleties – and that’s reflected in the way Laura and Clover see what Alice is up to before the men do, too.

Perhaps shoes define a character more than anything other item of clothing. That’s reflected in phrases such as: ‘down-trodden’, ‘walks all over you’, ‘down-at-heel’ and so on. So I’ve asked the three women in The Empty Nesters: Laura, Clover and Alice to take off their shoes for a quick photoshoot here.

Top step: Alice found these pearly gilt sandals in St Tropez. She always knows the right shop to go to.

Middle step: Clover loves her Ariat boots: she can walk the dogs, cook, shop, paint, garden and travel anywhere in them.

Bottom step: Laura’s trusty LK Bennett high-heeled courts will take her anywhere: from school prize-giving to an illicit assignation.

***

Thanks Nina and all the best for The Empty Nesters. You can find out more about Nina at her lovely new website here. She has also answered questions for High Heels and Book Deals here.

It's the words that count

2011-08-31T11:34:00.000+01:00

Nowadays there are various ways to read a book. Lately, the media has been bombarded with tales of falling sales of 'traditonal print' and increased sales of ebooks. I've been fortunate enough to review books for the past twelve months, in different formats, so here's my take on the things that I use.

Traditional hardback/paperbacks. Although I fear my postman hates me as I get so many books sent to review, I love the feel, the excitement, the smell of a new book. I love reading the acknowledgments to see if I know anyone mentioned. I like reading extra bits at the back of the book. I like to buy postcards to use as book marks (I cannot bend over a corner as a marker). I like people seeing what I'm reading and striking up a conversation with me (as long as I'm not dying to get to the end of the book, in which case the 'do not disturb' sign across my eyes will be clear to see).

I'm reading Tamar Cohen's THE MISTRESS'S REVENGE at the moment. Look at that for a cover. It's beautifully designed and even more striking when it's in my hands (the inside jacket has red roses all over it, delightful). You can't see that on an ebook.

And then I get things like this sent to me, my review copy of BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP - S J Watson. This is PR at its best!

Ebooks - They've hit the media big time recently. Some authors who have good books to sell are getting rave reviews, shooting up best sellers lists and gaining traditional publishing deals from self publishing. Good for them, I say. It's a passion to write a book, a labour of love and any way to share a engrossing story gets the thumbs up from me.

Ebooks, for me, are good in the sense that you can pick one up in a matter of seconds, download it and away you go. I like that I can download a sample of a book (I'm not sure about you but I wouldn't stand in a book store and read a chapter or two. I might flick through a few pages) and with a click of a button, the book is mine. I like that I don't have to find storage for them all.

A Kindle fits neatly inside my bag and I can take it on a train journey without the weight or bulk of the print version. If I feel like reading more than one book, as I read lots of different genres, I can switch as the mood takes me rather than only have the one choice right then. I can read while I eat as the book rests on the arm of chair or a table top. I can only speak from having a Kindle but there are so many different methods to read ebooks too -ipad, phone, PC to name a few.

What don't I like? The fact that I can't see how many books I have on there. I don't like that I have a to-be-read pile on my Kindle now as well a print one toppling over in my office. I don't like the fact that it is so easy to download a book in a matter of seconds. But none of that is the fault of the Kindle...

And then I was sent a Flipback and oh my. I love these! How tiny are they? How cute are they? I love the feel of the paper, the novelty of flipping the pages up, holding a book a different way, the way that the book is bound. Some say they are pricey but for me they are no different than shelling out for a hardback. It's a different medium. I hope to see more of these books, as they bring out more titles. A great idea but not suitable for every occasion - just as a traditional paperback can become damaged with overuse.

So, what's my favourite? I don't have one.

I love nothing better than picking up a hardback with a beautiful cover inside and out and dipping into the pages. But after reading a couple, I yearn for the lightness of the Kindle.

I love nothing better than reading a book on Kindle but I'm ready to change to a paperback after I've read a couple.

I love the Flipback for its innovation, it's quirkiness and the fact that it's such a great idea. There isn't anything I don't personally like about them but people I show have mixed reactions to 'Wow!' and 'I can't see the attraction, isn't it hard to keep hold of'. 'Isn't it hard to read the print?'.

For me, though, it doesn't matter what medium I choose to read from. It's the words that count, no matter how I turn the pages. It's the story itself that will keep those pages turning. It's the joy of discovering a new author, of reading the next book of an author I love. For me, it's all about the book.

And for Dexter? Well, he doesn't seem to care about the words at all!

Say hello, wave goodbye

2011-08-26T10:53:00.001+01:00

Last night I woke up in tears. I'd been dreaming about Flynn, dreaming of the worst memory I have of him. He was trying to get on to the bottom of my bed, but was all tangled up in wires and bandages and making that awful noise he made before he died.

This morning I am really looking forward to picking up Dexter tomorrow. I've just bought him two tiny teddies to cuddle up with - he's one of nine and going to be really lonely until he gets used to us.

Sad memories yet happy times to come.

Am I nervous? Hell, yes. The responsibility of bringing up another dog is HUGE.

Am I excited? Yes, I can't wait to see how much he's grown.

Am I still feeling guilty? Hell, yes and that's the worst feeling.

But it has to pass because, although there will always be a place in my heart for my lovely boy, Flynn, I also have to make room in it for Dexter.

If I can make it interesting enough, I'm going to do a blog post about Dexter once a week. I'm sure I can add a few cute photos....

And the winner

2011-08-24T09:16:00.000+01:00

of a copy of The Language of Flowers, Vanessa Diffenbaugh is

Helen Mc Causley

Congratulations Helen, I'll get the book on its way to you. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Pariah - David Jackson

2011-08-19T07:07:00.001+01:00

It’s a bad enough day for NYPD detective Callum Doyle when his cop partner is murdered. It’s about to get a hell of a lot worse . . .

When the dead man’s replacement is also brutally killed, suspicion falls on Doyle himself. Then he receives an anonymous message. This is just the beginning, it says. Anyone he gets close to will die – and that includes Doyle’s own family. The only way to keep them alive is to stay away. For good.

Doyle is desperate to find out who is responsible, but when his every move puts others in danger he is forced to back off. With the investigation getting nowhere and his isolation deepening, Doyle has to ask himself an uncomfortable question: just how low is he prepared to sink in order to get his life back?

It’s not very often that you get to know the author behind a book. Okay, with the world of social media, literary festivals and book launches, you can come across a lot more now, of course. But how many times can you say that you bought a book on the basis that you got to spend time with the author and genuinely liked the guy so much? (Yes, I wrote guy for a reason….)

I was really lucky to meet Dave Jackson at Theakston Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival 2011 last month. A group of us had arranged to hook up in Wetherspoons before the launch party. I’m not sure we realised at that point that we’d all be spending the entire weekend together. The reason I’m saying this is because I felt that PARIAH was written just as I found Dave to be as a person. PARIAH is warm, witty and engaging. PARIAH drew me in and I wanted to learn more.

The book weaves a fantastic web of fear, deceit and lowlife. Detective Callum Doyle works for the NYPD. His partner is killed. The guy who he next works with is killed. His family are threatened, finding Cal distancing himself from everyone he knows. He has to work everything out for himself. As the book is written in present tense, this thrust me into the heart of the investigation. The pace alone might kill you…

I’ve been reading lots of ‘who-dunnits’ lately to give me a feeling for UK criminal proceedings. For anyone who fancies writing about life across the pond, you’d do well to read PARIAH. But you could also just read it because it is so damned good!

This is also an author who wrote about what he read rather than what he knew first-hand. And boy, did it work. The book is hugely authentic, even to the point where Dave is reviewed as an American novelist. Yet, for me, PARIAH has the warmth and humour of a British novelist. Lots of one liners, making me laugh aloud at times. Loaded words, flippant sentences, slick writing.

I particularly liked Dave's energy in the novel about Cal’s family. You can tell the love for his family and his children through Cal’s actions and reactions. It also made Cal real and gave him more character. There is nothing stereotypical about him.

PARIAH – Awesome! I do hope there will be more of Callum Doyle in the future.

You can find out more about David Jackson at his website here. He's also on twitter @author_dave

The Language of Flowers - Vanessa Diffenbaugh

2011-08-18T10:02:00.004+01:00

The Victorian language of flowers was used to express emotions: honeysuckle for devotion, azaleas for passion, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it has been more useful in communicating feelings like grief, mistrust and solitude. After a childhood spent in the foster care system, she is unable to get close to anybody, and her only connection to the world is through flowers and their meanings.

Now eighteen, Victoria has nowhere to go, and sleeps in a public park, where she plants a small garden of her own. When her talent is discovered by a local florist, she discovers her gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them. But it takes meeting a mysterious vendor at the flower market for her to realise what's been missing in her own life, and as she starts to fall for him, she's forced to confront a painful secret from her past, and decide whether it’s worth risking everything for a second chance at happiness.

‘Anyone can grow into something beautiful.’ First of all, I’ll start with the beauty of the book itself. The girl holding the photograph, the flowers from the cover weave their way inside and there is a dictionary of flowers and their meanings at the back of the book. Just reading this list is fascinating.

THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS is such an interesting concept. I admit, I love my heels but I’m not a flowery person, in the sense that I love to look at them but wouldn’t know many varieties. But through reading this book, I’ve found myself wanting to choose certain flowers for certain people. For my mum, Daffodil (new beginnings). for my fella, Alstroemeria (devotion) and for my best friends, Bells of Ireland (good luck).

THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS is a story of love, friendship, loss, trust, mistrust, emotion, and taking chances. Victoria is the main character in this book. Her story switches from the here and now and back to when she was ten. I’ll never win any literary prizes with my commercial fiction potty mouth but I love reading about troubled women, no matter what the genre. Victoria grew up in care, moving from foster home to foster home as she became more unruly. At the age of eighteen, she was living rough and still didn’t know where she belonged. And I so ached for her to find her place.

For anyone who reads this blog on a regular basis, if I were to pick three flowers for someone to send to me right now, they would be Euphorbia (persistence), Coriander (hidden worth), and Lily of the valley (return of happiness)

THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS – literary fiction at its best.

And I have one copy to giveaway. If you'd like a chance to win it, please leave a 'pick me' comment below before Tuesday 23 August at 6pm. Open to UK and Ireland readers only.

Many thanks to Macmillan for my review copy.

The Language of Flowers - What's your message?

2011-08-16T07:31:00.000+01:00

The Language of Flowers was the subject of a hotly-contested 9-publisher auction last year and is to be published in 31 countries this year. It’s a book that will strike a chord with so many readers, because it is a book about love; and about finding love, and learning how to love, even in the most difficult circumstances.

The heroine Victoria is isolated and damaged from her upbringing in a series of foster homes, and her only passion in life is for flowers and their meanings. The Victorian language of flowers was used to express emotions: azaleas for passion and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it has been more useful in communicating feelings like mistrust and solitude.

It is Victoria’s love of flowers that eventually leads her to the possibility of love. The reader gradually learns the secret Victoria is hiding and why it is that flowers mean so much to her. This is one of those very rare books that combines real literary quality with a page-turning and deeply moving plot. I have yet to encounter a reader who hasn’t fallen in love with it.

Vanessa Diffenbaugh was inspired by her own obsession with the language of flowers, having discovered Kate Greenaway’s Language of Flowers in a second-hand bookshop when she was 16. She couldn’t believe it had become such a well-kept secret for this generation. How could something so beautiful and romantic be virtually unknown?

When writing the novel and its floral dictionary, Vanessa used several 19th century handbooks – she scanned the meanings and selected the definition that best fit the science of each flowers, deleting flowers that are no longer common and adding more popular flowers of today.

You can also send a glorious virtual bouquet at

http://www.whatsyourmessage.co.uk/

Choose your blooms according to the language of flowers, every bloom has a corresponding emotion, add a special message and dispatch to your loved one of choice!

I read The Language of Flowers over the weekend and will be reviewing it on Thursday, its UK publication day. I also have a copy to give away so do pop back.

Introducing Dexter

2011-08-12T08:49:00.007+01:00

The week after losing our dog, Flynn, I became a little obsessed with tracking down a pup. We wanted another plummer terrier but they are not a common breed and hard to get hold of.

We heard that we could have a puppy if we waited until December. We then heard that Flynn's dad had fathered a litter due in mid September. If there was a dog born, we could have that and it would have been Flynn's half brother. This could either be comforting or heartbreaking for us - all the plummer terriers look alike, obviously.

We decided, after may tears of guilt and frustration on my part, to go for a different breed altogether. And these came up. Fell Terriers.

After a visit, we took the plunge and got another dog. And not just any old dog, but another puppy. I'm not quite sure if we know what we've let ourselves in for. We had Flynn from a ten week old puppy but at that time we had an older dog, Mack, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, to keep him company (although that didn't work out well on the odd occasion I caught him with ALL of Flynn's head in his mouth...) and to bring him on. In other words, he had company. He had a dog to learn from. Suffice it to say, things are going to change in our house for a few months.

Anyway, this is Dexter.

We had quite a job to choose a name. As some of you know, I wanted Stanley (and I remember now, I lost the argument to call Flynn Stanley too). But He didn't fancy shouting that when he was calling the dog back. Quite frankly, aren't most pups known as 'come here, you little s***' for the first few weeks?

Anyway, I digress. We went on the hunt for a name. Being a crime writer, my ultimate aim was to have something crime related. My obvious choice was Luther. He didn't like Luther (and I got my knickers in a twist because I mixed the name up with Lucifer and no dog of mine was being named after the devil, oh, the embarrassment). Along came a stream of names from friends and family. These are just a few:

Sherlock
Brodie (as in Jackson)
Jackson (as in Brodie)
Jackson (as in Dave)
Thorne (as in Tom Thorne)
Dexter (as in Morgan)
Harper (as in Collins and not Seven)
Rebus
Morse
PJ (as in Peter James)
Theakston?!

We finally agreed on Dexter - or Dex when shortened (or Sexy Dexy when on my own with him, as someone said to me and made me smile so much about.)

Dexter will be six weeks old this weekend so we can take him home with us at the end of this month. We paid our deposit and came home.

And that is where things fell apart for a while. The grief that I felt walking into an empty house. The guilt I felt having another dog to replace Flynn. Had we made the wrong choice? Should we have waited to have a plummer to look and remind us of Flynn? Was it too soon? Had we picked the first pup we'd seen?

But things settled down again. I suppose they have to, don't they? And as one of my best friends said, 'you're not replacing Flynn, you're filling the huge gap that he's left behind'. It became easier to accept. And then it became exciting. We're giving another little one a good home, a good life, a place in our family.

We'll never forget Flynn but we will have a laugh getting to know Dexter.

A Chat with Dorothy Koomson

2011-08-08T08:33:00.000+01:00

Libby has a good life with a gorgeous husband and a home by the sea. But over time she is becoming more unsure if Jack has ever loved her - and if he is over the death of Eve, his first wife.

When fate intervenes in their relationship, Libby decides to find out all she can about the man she hastily married and the seemingly perfect Eve. But in doing so she unearths devastating secrets.

Frightened by what she finds and the damage it could cause, Libby starts to worry that she too will end up like the first woman Jack loved ...

Hi Dorothy and welcome to High Heels and Book Deals. 1. Tell me about your journey to publication.

I’ve been writing for what feels like for ever – which in reality is about 25 years ago! I started way back when I was about 13. I loved reading and TV dramas so wanted to be a storyteller, too. I used to write a chapter every night then pass it round my convent school friends the next morning. When I finished university for the first time I tried to get the book I’d written then published by sending it to a few agents but no one was interested. I was upset at the time but now I’m pleased those stories weren’t published because my writing has moved on so much from then.

In 2002, while I was working on the book that would become THE CHOCOLATE RUN, I went to visit a friend in Leeds and had an experience that inspired me to write THE CUPID EFFECT. (The experience actually became a chapter in the book.) I went back to London and started the story. I sent the first three chapters to various agents and they all told me to go away. I finished the book and sent it out again. The same thing happened – they all rejected me. So I sent it to a publisher who accepted it 3 months later.

By the time I got that offer letter I’d been wondering whether to give up trying to get published. I was in bed asking God/The Universe/Whoever to give me a sign as to whether I should carry on or give up. A few minutes later, the postman rang my buzzer with the letter that changed my life.

Funnily enough, I decided to ring up one of the agents who hadn’t been too harsh in rejecting me to ask her a few questions – I really felt I had nothing to lose: she could only tell me to get lost. She’d rejected me for trying too hard to be funny. I spoke to her for a few minutes and she kept laughing and I said, ‘See, I am funny!’ That’s when she asked me if I would like her to be my agent. I said, ‘Yes’, of course!

After my second novel, THE CHOCOLATE RUN, was published I changed agents and publishers – my new agent and publisher are a much better fit for me, but I’ll always be grateful to those who first took me on.

How long does it take you to write a first draft and how many drafts do you then complete?

It takes around a year to get a book done. That doesn’t include all the work on coming up with an idea, researching it, writing myself up a blind alley or two, deciding to write something else, etc. That takes much longer. I don’t write in sequence so I don’t have that much of a first draft completed when I type the final few words. What I have are a lot of scenes and incidences from the book that need to be stitched together and then rewritten to flow. After that rewrite, I will rewrite and rewrite the book as many times as necessary. Sometimes it’ll take ten rewrites to get it right – like GOODNIGHT, BEAUTIFUL, sometimes two rewrites like THE CUPID EFFECT. It depends on the book.

Your twitter biography mentions that you are a journalist also. How does this differ from writing novels? Do you do much of this or is your novel writing a full time job?

I don’t think the two professions differ that much except, of course, one’s about not real people and the other is. But I think the mechanics are the same: the need to tell a story as engagingly as possible. I also know from my journalism training that you need to hook the reader pretty instantly: with a book it’s about three pages, with a journalistic article it’s the first paragraph.

Being a journalist and editor also helps when it comes to editing my book. I can be pretty ruthless in cutting out scenes – even the ones I love. If they’re not actively moving the story along, I know they’ve got to go.

Up until after I had finished writing MARSHMALLOWS FOR BREAKFAST I worked full-time as a journalist/editor. I was living in Australia for two years and when the magazine I was working on folded, I stayed there to finish MARSHMALLOWS FOR BREAKFAST then I decided to come back home and take a leap of faith to write novels full-time. I don’t do much formal journalism nowadays, but I still use the skills to write fiction.

You’ve written six best selling books so far, with your seventh, The Woman He Loved Before out in paperback in August. What is the secret to making a book a best seller?

I think the secret . . . Come closer, I’ll whisper it: The secret is to put it all out of your mind and concentrate on writing the best book you can. By ‘all’ I mean the dream of being on the best-seller lists, the good and not-so-good reviews, the accolades or the resounding silence of no-one knowing your book exists. You have to put aside everything associated with what has gone before in your book-writing career and then pour all of your energy into writing a better book than last time. If you let all those other things creep in while you’re writing, you’ll become frozen. And if you don’t actually write a book, you can’t fulfil those dreams to be the next Marian Keyes/Dan Brown/[Insert your favourite author].

Through your diary on your website, I’ve followed your writing career for some time now. How much did it change after you were chosen as a Richard and Judy Book Club choice?

Wow, had no idea you’d heard of me before Twitter! My writing career changed by giving my books a wider audience, although MY BEST FRIEND'S GIRL was doing really well before the show. (It did amazingly well afterwards, of course.) I often say that my book being on The Richard & Judy Summer Reads of 2006 is like the heavenly icing on the divine cake that is being published.

Do you have much time to read? If so, what is your favourite genre?

I don’t read much for pleasure at the moment, almost everything I read is for research now. But when I did have the luxury of being able to read for pleasure, I read as many varied genres as possible. As a writer you need to have an idea of what is being published. You can learn so much from genres outside of the ones you write for. My favourite genre is commercial women’s fiction. I’ve come up with a new sub genre, one that describes my last two books: emotional thriller. There’s a crime element to them, but the emphasis of the story is on the effect the crime has on the characters, not on the crime itself or its detection.

Are you a plotter or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-panter?

I’m a disciplined fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants type. I will sit down and write without thinking I need to get a certain number of words done on a particular day, but I do keep a running word count on my computer desktop. I know what the story is about, and I usually have an idea how a story will end, and what elements are needed to it, but I don’t plot every chapter, or even every part of it. I usually give the characters a chance to run the story. The plot is also influenced a lot by what I discover during the course of research: with The Woman He Loved Before, I had written a lot of the beginning of the book when I finally spoke to my medical expert and she basically told me a lot of the stuff I had would have killed Libby or would have had her laid up for months on end. This meant starting from scratch because Libby’s injuries were quite integral to the story. Other times, I start writing and let the plot work itself out for me. For example, with The Ice Cream Girls, when I started writing I didn’t know who the killer was. It was only half way through I realised who had to have done it and why.

What is your best writing tip?

I’m terrible at this type of question because I have so many tips: write what you love so that you believe in the story enough to survive all the knockbacks you’ll get; find a writing system that suits you – even if it means writing the end first and working your way to the beginning; always write the best book you can and if it doesn’t turn out how you expect, it’ll be the better for it. But, I suppose the BEST writing tip is this: write.

And your worst writing habit?

I have two pretty bad writing habits, not sure which is the worst. One is living the story so much so I’m usually emotionally, mentally and physically drained by the time I’m finished writing a book; the other is typing [WRITE MORE] at certain points in my work in progress if I can’t seem to finish that scene. I only remember how bad a habit it is when I come to the rewrite stage and I’ve forgotten I’ve done this and so find I haven’t really finished.

And finally, what’s your poison - high heels or flat shoes?

I’d love to say high heels, but I’ve spent most of my life in flats and trainers. If they’re high, they’re wedged. I’m not very good in heels – I remember having a pair when I was in college that had these gorgeous hour-glass-shaped heels. I wore them dancing and, to cut a long story short, I ended up on crutches for two weeks with a badly sprained ankle. I hadn’t even had a drink! My other high heels story is when I was in Australia, I was going to a celebrity charity ball and had the outfit but no shoes. My friend lent me her sister-in-law’s shoes. I didn’t realise they’d be Prada’s (black patent heels) until she handed me the bag. Her sister-in-law is an A-list actress and had given my friend the shoes a couple of years earlier. They were gorgeous and surprisingly comfortable, but I was terrified the whole time of scuffing them and/or breaking my neck.

‘He loves me, he loves me not’ by Camper

They’re cute, not too high, red – I love red – and you have to read across them to get the whole message.

Many thanks for your time, Dorothy and all the best with THE WOMAN HE LOVED BEFORE. You can find out more about Dorothy on her website here.

Luther:The Calling - Neil Cross

2011-08-04T08:50:00.002+01:00

Meet Detective Chief Inspector John Luther. He's a murder detective. A near-genius. He's brilliant; he's intense; he's instinctive. He's obsessional. He's dangerous.

DCI John Luther has an extraordinary clearance rate. He commands outstanding loyalty from friends and colleagues. Nobody who ever stood at his side has a bad word to say about him. And yet there are rumours that DCI Luther is bad - not corrupt, not on the take, but tormented.

Luther seethes with a hidden fury that at times he can barely control. Sometimes it sends him to the brink of madness, making him do things he shouldn't; things way beyond the limits of the law.

Luther: The Calling, the first in a new series of novels featuring DCI John Luther, takes us into Luther's past and into his mind. It is the story of the case that tore his personal and professional relationships apart and propelled him over the precipice. Beyond fury, beyond vengeance. All the way to murder...

It will be no surprise to people who read my blog that coming back from Theakston Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival with a copy of LUTHER: THE CALLING was one of the highlights of my weekend. I remember clutching the book firmly on my walk home from The Swan at 2am on that last evening and am sure had anyone tried to take the book from me, I would have clouted them John Luther style around the head with it.

I am a huge Luther fan. And being able to read about him as well as watch him on television, well, it gave me mixed feelings. Feelings of terror and dread about what I would find inside. Feelings of 'would it be okay to lock myself away for a few days after I'd just spent four days in Harrogate'. Feelings of exhilaration, fear, excitement. I couldn't wait! And Neil Cross didn't disappoint me.

Firstly, let me say that LUTHER: THE CALLING is freestanding from the series. This is an original book and not a tie-in or novelization. It's one of John Luther's cases pre-series. So there are some characters in there that you don't expect to read about, which I found really good. If, like me, you like the television series for it's unbelievably believable writing, characters and plots, then you'll love LUTHER: THE CALLING. If you haven't watched any of series one or two of Luther, you could pick this book up and enjoy it as it stands. And I have to say, for me, reading it with Idris Elba in mind was wonderful!

Onto the writing. LUTHER: THE CALLING is dark, compelling, squeamish, pacy, twisted, well written obviously, ghoulish. In one word - perfect. It felt to me like reading a TV script in book form. Short, sharp sentences. A sense of place would be described in only three words. A character described in four or five words. But the words used were so perfect to provide exactly the right images and feelings. I also found the book a perfect example of how to write 'show not tell' using the minimum of words to create the maximum atmosphere. I like to write short, shocking sentences, few words but with lots of meaning, so the book had an extra edge for that reason. And the plot is so, so good.

The only thing I don't like about a book which is this good is that it is so hard to review - I want to say and this happens and then this happens next and wait until you read this part...there are so many euwww moments in it that make it fabulous.

John Luther is now a crime fiction hero - or maybe an anti-hero - and I can't wait to read the next book.

LUTHER: THE CALLING - go on, it's calling you!

You can find out more about Neil Cross at his brilliant website here where you get to see that he is so much more than the creator of DCI John Luther. Many thanks to Simon & Schuster for my review copy.

The Birthday Party - Veronica Henry

2011-08-01T09:48:00.000+01:00

Secrets, rivalry, glamour - it's time for the party of the year...

Delilah has lived out her tempestuous marriage to hell-raiser Raf in the glare of the media spotlight. Now planning a milestone birthday, she has more on her mind than invitations.

Raf has been offered a part in a movie he can't refuse. But will he succumb to the temptations he's struggled to resist for the last ten years?

Delilah's three daughters are building careers of their own, only too aware that the press are waiting for them to slip up. For the Rafferty girls might look like angels, but they are only human. It's the perfect recipe for a party like no other...

As Veronica has already had a chat with me in High Heels and Book Deals, I asked her to share a shoe memory with me.

THESE BOOTS ARE MADE FOR WALKING

High heels are sexy, empowering and utterly addictive, but I have to admit that my passion has always been for boots. Somehow they make me feel powerful and in control. They make me stride out with confidence. As autumn approaches and the first of the new season’s boots appear in the shop windows, my mouth waters. Shiny conker brown riding boots, tight black dominatrix boots, studded and buckled biker boots – I want them ALL.

My love started in the early 1980s, with the arrival of the pixie boot. Flat and pointed, in black suede with a fold over cuff at the top, they were the must have accessory of every good Sloane to set foot in Kensington High Street. I still remember the thrill of my first pair, bought in Shelley’s, and I wore them to death with little short tweed skirts and black polo neck jumpers. I returned to Timpsons again and again to have them re-soled, until they finally fell apart.

My next phase was more grungy and Gothic, entailing the purchase of a pair of Italian army parachutist’s boots, all buckles and straps and worn undone with fishnet tights and floral frocks.

Eventually I became more sophisticated, moving on to a pair of stretchy black Kenzo knee boots, tight as tight can be, which made my legs look thin, thin, thin! They seemed to elevate every outfit from the mundane to the glamorous, until eventually the stretchy Lycra stretched too far and I snapped a hole in them.

A few years ago I saw the ultimate pair of boots in a magazine. From Russell and Bromley, they were chocolate suede, sky high, with pink satin ribbon laces up the back. My heart stopped. I had to have them, despite the outrageous price. I phoned my nearest branch, reserved the last pair in my size and hot-footed it over to try them on.

Disaster. They were Italian. Minute. Made for the tiny of fetlock. Like an Ugly Sister, I tried to find a way to get them on. Absolutely no way. And even a crash diet wouldn’t solve the problem. If you are stout of calf, there is little you can do. Heartbroken, I handed them back and bought a ponyskin handbag instead.

Nowadays, I live in my Loblan biker boots for daytime, with a pair of black suede LK Bennett knee-length boots for evening. Although this summer, so far, it’s mostly been a bright red pair of Hunter wellies …

***
You can find out more about Veronica and all her books over at her website.

Goodbye Flynn

2011-07-31T12:56:00.000+01:00

This is an interim blog post as I was going to do one when I can be a bit more positive about things. But twitter yet again has astounded me. Thank you so much for all your tweets, DM's and emails that have come flooding in. As I've said to some of you, I feel a bit silly now, as it isn't a big deal to anyone who hasn't lost a pet. But well, he was everything to us.

Last weekend, I had the time of my life at Theakston Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival. I arrived back home buzzing, feeling really good about life. Then, as happens, life decided to bite back. In fact, it did more than that. It ripped the heart out of our family. And for me, the only thing I can do is write about it.

For anyone who's known me since we picked him out from a pup, we lost our dog, Flynn, yesterday. It started off last week with smelly breath and him opening and closing his mouth so we thought he had a bad tooth. We took him to the vets where he wouldn't let anyone examine him. Last Tuesday morning he went under anaesthetic so they could take a closer look. It turned out his tongue was burnt. They asked us if he'd been near anything toxic or any chemicals. The vet said he looked like he'd touched something with his tongue and pulled it away before he did any more damage. We at the time thought he'd been stung by something across the farm where he's walked.

He came home Tuesday evening and the vet said he'd be sluggish after being put under. But by Thursday he could hardly walk, get up the step, eat, lift his head etc. We took him back and they kept him in on a drip. I can't remember what tests were done but the toxin levels in his blood were off the scale. It looks like he's ingested something in the local stream at the farm. We don't tell him to go in the water, we take a bottle with us and he sips from that but how the hell can you keep a dog out of the stream in this heat? He was eating and he was okay but then he went down bank.

We went to see him yesterday morning after they said he would have to stay on the drip all weekend. He was still poorly, could barely stand nor lift his head, but he wagged his tail when he saw his Dad and he walked a few steps. They said they'd done more bloods that morning and the toxic level had gone up instead of down - and after being on a drip for 24 hours they should have gone down. We agreed to continue with treatment over the weekend and were on standby at the end of the phone in case anything changed. Two hours later, we were called back saying he had gone off his legs and was crying out.

It was one of the worst things I've seen and I can't put it into words - a healthy, fit and young dog crying out in pain unable to lift his head up. So we knew it was time.

So, so quick.

Devastated. He was only three.

Flynn wasn't just a pet. He was a working dog. He loved nothing better than running around and chasing things down at the farm. For OH, he was a hobby. They'd go off together for hours - how does he do that on his own now without breaking down?

Part of me wants to go out and get another puppy to replace him immediately. Part of me realises how disrepectful that is. We can never replace him, it's just the grief talking. But we aren't a family without a dog. To non dog lovers, that may sound strange - but he was a great companion. I don't have children and he was my baby. I'm not ashamed to say that.

Part of me never wants to own another dog. I suppose it's kinda easier when they're older and you've have years with them. Or when they've been poorly so you're expecting it.

But to be cut down in his prime? Well, it hurts like hell.

The Reckoning - Jane Casey

2011-07-29T14:55:00.000+01:00

To the public, he’s a hero: a killer who targets convicted paedophiles. Two men are dead already - tortured to death.

Even the police don’t regard the cases as a priority. Most feel that two dead paedophiles is a step in the right direction. But to DC Maeve Kerrigan, no one should be allowed to take the law into their own hands. Young and inexperienced, Kerrigan wants to believe that murder is murder no matter what the sins of the victim.

Only, as the killer’s violence begins to escalate, she is forced to confront exactly how far she’s prepared to go to ensure justice is served…

One of the things I’ve really enjoyed since starting High Heels and Book Deals is when I’m asked to review a book written by someone I haven’t read before. Even better is when you get to meet both the author and the publicist who asked you to review the book over the same weekend. I bumped into Jane at Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival and found the author to be warm, enthusiastic and very easy-going.

THE RECKONING is the third novel in a series, the main character being Detective Constable Maeve Harrigan. You don’t have to read the first two in the series first, but I was so entertained by The Reckoning, as well as meeting Jane, that I’m going to (and I actually fancy seeing the covers on my bookshelf, so no kindle versions for me this time, although The Missing isn't avaialbe in ebook yet.)

Two paedophiles are murdered in horrific ways - then another. Working out who is next and why becomes paramount to the investigation and, as I turned those pages oh so quickly, I found out it was brilliantly written in terms of suspense and detail. Maeve is a likeable character. I enjoyed getting to know her - she's so ballsy, witty yet naïve, and young. I like that she's thorough yet she makes mistakes. I like how the whole team she works with are involved in the book too and as a reader, we get to know them. DI Derwent is a wonderful character - affable but annoying at the same time.

The storyline is really gripping and so well researched. Yet again, I pick up a book that has me quivering in my boots hoping I have everything right in my novel, as I read such attention to detail over police procedure. It’s an amazing documentation of what goes on during the plot she's created and delightfully refreshing to read from a detective constable’s point of view. Harrigan isn’t afraid to tackle anything. Maeve takes a lot of stick for being female but she handles it well and gives as good as she gets – even though it lands her in hot water at times.

THE RECKONING – well, I reckon you’ll enjoy it...

Many thanks to Ebury Press for my review copy. You can find out more about Jane Casey here

A Chat with Tess Gerritsen

2011-07-28T07:49:00.010+01:00

In a Chinatown alley in Boston, a severed human hand is found. On a roof in the vicinity is the decapitated head of a woman. Nearby is a body, and on the corpse are found strands of non-human hair.

Involved in the investigation of the crime are Rizzoli and Isles, who quickly discover some starling facts about events that preceded the murder: nearly two decades before, a grim assault on a restaurant in Boston claimed the lives of five people, with only one survivor of the carnage -- a woman skilled in martial arts who is party to a dark secret. Rizzoli and Isles realise that there is something malign and ancient in Chinatown – and that more lives are at stake.

Hi Tess and many thanks for stopping by at High Heels and Book Deals on your whirlwind tour. There must have been a lot of research involved in your books; do you now find that the forensic and medical aspects of the cases you describe come easily to you now?

Yes, because I know where to look for those answers. I have an extensive library of forensic and medical textbooks. I know whom to ask for specific questions. And I have sources I can call when there’s a detail I can’t find anywhere else. So much scholarly material is now available online, so research has become a great deal easier.

Have you ever ‘fallen out’ with either Rizzoli or Isles?

There are times when Maura’s decisions make me impatient with her. For instance, this hopeless romance with the priest has gone on for several books now. But the drawn-out nature of the romance is realistic in so many ways, and we all know smart women who make foolish choices. In the end, it has proven to me – and my readers – that Maura is as fallible and as vulnerable as everyone else.

Photo by Paul D'Innocenzo

Are you a plotter or a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-panter?

A seat-of-the-pantser. I like to come up with the twists as I’m writing the books.

What is your best writing tip?

Don’t stop to revise. Write the first draft all the way till the end. Otherwise you’ll end up revising the first chapter again and again, and you’ll never get beyond it.

And your worst writing habit?

Daydreaming. Procrastinating. There are so many distractions now with the internet that it’s easy to have a whole day go by without a single good page written.

Finally, what’s your poison – high heels or flat shoes?

Flats, definitely. In that regard, I’m with Jane Rizzoli.

Thanks so much for that, Tess and best of luck with the rest of your tour.

Tess's latest book, The Silent Girl, was released last week. You can find out more about Tess on her website here .

Many thanks to Ben Willis, Transworld.

Theakson Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival 2011

2011-07-26T15:49:00.024+01:00

Last weekend, I attended the Theakston Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival . Set in the beautiful town of Harrogate every July, the festival is spread over four days, giving everyone there the chance to see and meet some of the greatest crime authors around. Panels and discussions take place throughout the day and evening. Oh, and did I mention there would be books?

As a crime writer, I was eager to see if it was really as good as people everywhere were telling me. But I’m not sure even I can put into words what a pleasure it was experiencing my first ever visit. Well, okay then, maybe the one.

THRILLING!

Standing on the platform at Leeds waiting to board the train to Harrogate, it was obvious that lots of people were on the way there too – there was a man sitting on the bench reading an Allan Guthrie novel and two pink suitcases, much to my delight, and I met my first contact while we chatted on the train. Getting off at Harrogate, I immediately saw the ‘chalk’ outline of a dead body and had to stop myself from shrieking about it. After booking in at my guest house, I met up with a friend and we were having afternoon tea at Bettys when in walked Peter James. Well, as he is one of my crime writing legends, it would have been an offence not to say hello…

From the minute I arrived at the Swan Hotel for the opening ceremony with my best shoe forward, the whole area had a buzz about it. The festival was launched and after a chat with each of the six nominees on the shortlist, the novel of the year was finally won by Lee Child for 61 Hours. Baroness PD James was presented with a lifetime achievements award. For me, that was one of the highlights of the festival. What a remarkable lady, so gracious and endearing. Her first novel, Cover Her Face, was published in 1962. My eyes brimmed with tears as I listened to her talking, truly passionate and inspirational. Then we went through into another room where wine and Theakston’s Old Peculiar (and the festival beer, A Crime of Passion) flowed, with whispers of ‘there’s Lee Child. Oh, look there’s Val McDermid.’ Lots of looks and smiles exchanged before, one by one, people I knew from twitter introduced themselves. I also met the lovely Craig Robertson and Nicola Ford.

Martina Cole

The next three days were filled with talk after talk and I was inspired by each and every one. First up was my ultimate crime writing heroine, Martina Cole. Meeting her was beyond what I can describe in words but chatting to her in the garden a couple of times afterwards was even better.

If I had to choose, my favourite panel would be New Blood – SJ Watson, Melanie McGrath, Gordon Ferris and Julia Crouch – four new novelists with completely different types of novels. Each one had a great tale to tell and with Val McDermid as chair, it was hilarious at times. The authors were asked if they had set out to write a crime novel, if they'd had that particular genre in mind. What came back was that they all said they set out to write the best book they could and in doing so it became a crime novel. I like to write about women in jeopardy, the fear factor, as well as police procedurals so this was music to my ears. The diversity of the books on that panel clearly showed that crime novels cover a huge expanse of topics and situations, working just as well alongside having a detective for a main character.

Mark Billingham

So what was it like to attend the festival?

As a reader? Book heaven – there was a small bookshop set up in the hotel with a large selection of crime novels to choose from. (I stared longingly at the shelf where the S’s were, wondering what it would be like to see my book up there with them all.) A chance to have books signed by some of the top authors in the genre. Hearing the talks about the hows, the whys and the whodunits was exciting – especially the vice panel!

As a writer? Having a conversation with Mark Billingham and Linwood Barclay made me want to pinch myself. Many times I felt like Tigger as I was enthused and excited rolled into one. I’ve emailed Mark a few times now and always had swift replies and meeting him was one of my aims for the festival. He was warm and friendly, just as lots of the authors were but he was the first one I met. And from then I went on to meet far too many to mention. It was fantastic.

Some of my partners in crime

It’s common knowledge that the bar is the best place to be in between talks, early morning or late – very late – evening. But this year the weather was glorious so everyone piled out into the gardens, making it extra special. Every one of the authors I saw or spoke to or met were so approachable. Everyone made time for me.

During the past twelve months social media has changed my life. Via email and twitter, I’ve spoken to various best selling authors, of all genres. I’ve interviewed them, reviewed books and attended book launches. I’ve had a visit to a publishing house, become involved in many a PR stunt and well, generally had fun. A lot of the work I’ve carried out has been virtual so going to Harrogate was my time to meet up with everyone I ‘knew’ but maybe hadn’t met yet – and all of them in one place.

Harrogate in Heels!

As well as all that, this weekend I met a group of friends that I know I’m going to have for life. I nicknamed us The Harrogate Five (even though one of us was missing due to work commitments most of the time). We’d never met before yet all five of us gelled immediately we met in the pub! The good thing about it was that when I went to see my agent or if I went out for dinner with publishers, the rest of the gang were never alone and vice versa. We could wander off and know that we could always find the others whenever we were free. I have never clicked so well with four other people in a group and they, as well as everyone else, made that weekend magical for me. I feel like I have my own crime family now and can’t wait for the next opportunity to get together with them.

Far too quickly, it was over. Walking back to the train station, uphill with a suitcase full of books was like wheeling around a dead body – I promise it wasn’t full of shoes! Next year’s tip? Pack an empty holdall to sling over my shoulder for the journey home.

The festival celebrates its tenth anniversary next year and I’m already wondering how they can top this one. It’s also made me more determined to get my book up on those shelves.

The Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival 2012 - it would be a crime not to miss it. I’m Booked – will you be?

A huge thanks to everyone involved with the organising. From my part, it was perfect.

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Harrogate in Heels

2011-07-21T07:17:00.000+01:00

I'm off to Harrogate today for my first ever Crime Festival. Am I excited?

Hell, yeah!

There may be tweets galore. Or there may be none as I'm too absorbed in the goings on. Either way I'll post about it all next week.

For anyone who is going, see you there!

Bad Boy Luther and Law & Order UK

2011-07-19T12:18:00.002+01:00

Picture from @bbcLuther via twitpic

Okay, okay. I’m really only doing this blog post so I can add a photo of Idris Elba.

As a crime writer, I love nothing better than twisting and twisting reality to make up a story. I sometimes can’t write what I want to write because forensics work against me. As I’ve been writing Taunting the Dead, it has at times made me weep in frustration as I’ve realised that something wouldn’t work because of a finger print or something would be impossible to do without being seen etc. I’ve worked hard to make it down to earth.

Luther for me is the epitome of everything so unrealistically realistic. Luther is so damned dark that it’s set in a class of its own. When watching this series, I have hid behind the cushion (episode three). I have dreamt of scary men in masks (episode one). I have sat riveted to the ending of the final episode with heart pounding and cries of ‘what fantastic writing’.

This series has been really far fetched in places (why didn’t DS Ripley hear the killer getting in the back of the car as he sat in it alone…and I know that John Luther is a tower of a man but that nail through his hand must have hurt a teeny bit more than that) but it is still pure genius. Yes, it’s taking far fetched to the extreme but I still kept watching. I still wanted more.

Funnily enough, (or maybe it’s a writer thing) I can write the most violent of scenes. I can write the most violent of sentences. I’m told I write women in jeopardy extremely well. Yet I struggle to watch that level of violence on screen. Something that annoys the bloke from Stoke EVERY time.

What do you think? Too far fetched or absolute total genius writing?

The only downside I can think of with Luther is that it is too short. Next year, can we have eight episodes please? Hell, I’ll be honoured to help you write them if it meant more of the same. Not that I could ever do Luther justice.

Which brings me nicely onto Law & Order UK. Now this for me is a perfect program in the way that it doesn’t scare me half to death. It features, mostly, normal people with normal problems. It features normal people solving normal crimes. I love Bradley Walsh and Jamie Bamber’s characters because they work so well together. There’s no shouting, no arguing, no underlying problems we get to see too much of. It’s just pure story with no stereotypes. A good working relationship. People are decent to each other. They just get the job done. Great writing too. I really enjoyed this week’s episode.

I always enjoyed, and still do, the Law & Order series set in America so really looked forward to seeing the UK version and haven’t been disappointed. But unlike Luther, which I feel is all about chemistry as well as violent crime, Law & Order UK is all about respect as well as solving crimes. Down to earth people who get into a mess. The ways of the ‘normal’ human being, whose day can sometimes end up completely different than intended through a series of wrong turns.

Law & Order UK is known in our house as Dun Dun (not at all sure how to say that)!

Oh, and Idris, Bradley and Jamie? If you need an extra any time, I’m your woman…

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