Questions

I am always fascinated by the questions the audience ask after a talk. Sometimes you are really put on the hop but I do love a challenge.

One lady asked me if there was any book that I had written that I no longer like. I thought quickly and realised there wasn't Was there a book I thought could be improved? Well yes absolutely, but if it comes to pass that years on I decide I don't like a book I have written what does that say about me? In all crafts you learn as you go along and I am sure it's like that with writing - well it is with me - and somethings now I would do differently. It was challenging to have to answer that question and it did require a lot of thought.

A popular question is about titles, how do you think up a title for your novel? Do I have to have the title before I write. No. What I do have to do is have the names of my leading characters. That is so important, without those I can't write a word. However, titles are often as problematical as blurbs and synopsis. I can spend ages on those. Quite often I dip into Shakespeare and steal from him, other poets too. "Fortune's Folly" came from Romeo and Juliet, The Longest Pleasure, a poem by Lord Byron. Other are more about the novel. Tilly's Trials, my heroine is called Tilly and boy does she have some trials (and some of them of her own making). Spanish Lies was SO easy, that is one title that came to me before the book was half way written. There were lies and they generated in the country of Spain. Easy! I wish I knew how Eden's Child came about, it just tipped into my mind and readers will know the reasons are obvious but it was a long time before it actually came to me.

When do you write, is also a popular question. How do you choose your setting is another one. Well the last one is fairly straight forward. My next novel "Under a Grecian Moon" was born because I was looking out on a cold, grey day and wished to take myself somewhere warm and sunny. I thought, "I'll go to Greece - perhas a Greek island, that would be fun and it would be warm, so off I went. Ah the pleasure of being a writer and to have the imagination to wish yourself somewhere nice.

I wonder how you would answer these questions - if you are a writer do share!

Ex-Girlfriends

Do all ex-girlfriends have to be nasty? I was wondering about that while writing my latest novel.
I don't think it's necessary. In Tilly's Trials my hero has a new girlfriend. She is, I think, justified in being very wary of Marsh's ex-wife. She isn't popular with his family but that is to do more with them realizing that she isn't right for him. I don't think she is particularly nasty just human,.we have all been there I'm sure!

My next book out has a real humdinger of a love rival. She is a genuine nasty piece of work.I loved thinking up the tricks she got up to. However, was that also her nature? Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca was an unpleasant woman, her malign presence, even though she is dead, haunts this novel, she is kept alive by the equally horrid Mrs Danvers. These women can really take over a novel. Care is needed to sometimes reign them in.

Is my rival for Lander's affections justified in being an arch manipulator? Of course not. Certainly she could be hurt and upset but she takes it much further. She is selfish and unkind and not only to my heroine but to her daughter as well. There is no excuse for her behaviour.

However, it can be tedious if all our love rivals are downright wicked. In Beloved Deceiver the hero's ex-girlfriend has a generous nature.At first I was nervous about how it would work but fortunately the novel was well received and I think everyone liked Fabia. Of course even Fabia hadn't to outshine the heroine, or why else would Mars Collingwood choose Flora?  That was not difficult to do. I won't tell  you how I did it, find out yourself!!

On the whole though my love rivals have not been particularly nice. Sometimes it is not that they are still in love with the hero. Sometimes they just can't help themselves, like Maddy's twin sister Milly, in Eden's Child. Upbringing, lifestyle choice and an inbred instability make it impossible for Milly to be anything other than malign.

Let's face it really bad girls are fun to write about - rather more enjoyable than bad men - but that's only my opinion  What do you think?

The Saddest Month

T S Eliot wrote that "April is the saddest month" I don't understand why he did that. For me April is new beginnings, it is early Spring, all around new life is coming forth. There are daffodils along the hedgerows and by the Lakes in the magical Lake District. A primrose peeps up in a wood. Buds are on the trees. It can be cold and blowy, it is possible for snow to descend but there is never anything sad about April for me. Of course there is Easter and Good Friday if you are a Christian, and that is a very sad day but there is Easter Day with the promise of life and all good things.

For me the saddest month is November. It has nothing to do with dark nights (although they can really make you feel miserable) or the fact that the leaves have all but left the trees and lie in soggy piles on pavements. No, it is none of these. I think of the 11th November. The day the Armistice was signed. A recent television programme related the little known fact that because the signing was at 11.00 a.m. young men were still being killed on that day. Stupid generals were insisting their men still fought on. I think the last soldier to die was a young American at around 11.00 a.m.

November makes me feel so sad, it always has. I think of my grandfather and other lads like him fighting in a war that brought them nothing. Remembrance of the First World War should never be forgotten, even though it is for me the reason that November is the "saddest month."

I remember going to Ypres and to the daily ceremony at the Menin Gate. There were lots of school children there, chatting in the way they do and I thought oh what a shame they don't realise the significance. Me of little faith - the moment the Fire Brigade band came they fell silent and respectful. They were wonderful.

Let's think of all service personnel this month. We send them to war zones I never hear them complain. In the words of a cheerful song "Bless 'em All."

John Lindermuth

Hi John Lindermuth is visiting us today - I am sure you will enjoy his

replies.

What is the working title of your book?

A Burning Desire

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I think it may have originated with hearing a song on the radio.

What genre does your book fall under?

Mystery/suspense

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Whoa! Let’s get the book published first.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

An enemy from the past stalks a detective and his lover.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Hopefully, by the publisher of previous books in the series.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Six to eight months.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I’d prefer not to be seen as derivative. If you like mysteries set in a small-town environment, centered on character and plot twists, you might like my stories.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Sticks Hetrick, my main character, who is always jiggling more ideas.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

In addition to the mystery element, readers of romance might be interested in the growing relationships of Sticks and Anita and Sticks’ protégés Flora and Harry.

I was tagged by:

Margaret Blake.

I tag: [3 other published writers ]

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Practice To Deceive (August 2012), Whiskey Creek Press

The Limping Dog (March 2012), Whiskey Creek Press

Fallen From Grace (March 2011), Wild Oak

http://jrlindermuth.com

Questions

My writer friend Beth Elliot sent me these very interesting questions, so rather than plot a blog this month, I thought I would answer them here. It's much more fun.

 What is the working title of your book?

I have just completed a book and have had it accepted called Under a Grecian Moon.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I was sitting looking out of my window on a cold, wet, miserable Tuesday morning. I wished I was somewhere warm and sunny and there you go - I thought I will take myself to a Greek island, and what do you know it all kicked off.

What genre does your book fall under?

Romance with a little mystery but not a romantic suspense.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

The man would be difficult, he is in my head and does not remind me of anyone I have ever seen or known. Yes, he is that gorgeous. I'd like to play the heroine - yes, I know I am too old, but Judy Dench when she was young would be perfect. However, I do like Rachel Stirling.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Their lives were full of secrets and lies.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

My book will be published by Whiskey Creek Press.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I never write drafts. My mind doesn't work that way, I never know how things are going to work out. I just go with it and plot as I go along. I could not have a draft and then write around it, it would be too technical for me, but I do know it works for lots of people, just not me.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I like to think it's unique.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

As I said in the beginning, I wanted to be somewhere warm and sunny so I took myself off to this wonderful island. While I was there I met this gorgeous Greek but there had to be so many complications!

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

The heroine, she is strong and gutsy. She has had to learn to hide her feelings.

I was tagged by: BETH ELLIOT.

I tagged John Lindermuth.

King Richard the Third

Much excitement is being generated at the moment. There is an archaeological dig in the town of Leicester - they are looking for the body of King Richard, who was killed at nearby Bosworth Field. The last English King to die in battle.

We admirers of the King are very excited about this. Could our beloved Richard at last be given a burial he so rightly deserves. Of course Tudor propaganda keeps sneaking in. Talk of a "hunchback" etc. which just was not true. Even if those who believe it speak of Richard being the creature created by Shakespeare, they must concede that if he were like that, how come he was known to be so fearsome in battle? It does not make sense.

Although the heinous crime of his being responsible for the murder of his nephews is wildly thought to be true, there is much evidence to show that he was not indeed responsible for this crime. Lots of counter evidence can be found with careful research. I loved Josephine Tey's novel "The Daughter of Time, which was where I first discovered a different Richard from Shakespeare's. That was what inspired me to look into this very enigmatic man, and I don't mind admitting, to fall a little in love with him.

Richard inspired my first novel and a later one, I have much to thank Richard for - and of course Josephine Tey too for introducing me to the truth.

Dangerous Enchantment available on kindle and in print from

www.amazon.com and www.whiskey creek press.

A Sprig of Broom available on kindle at www.amazon.com and in libraries in hardback print.

Back Again

I am back in circulation now, coming out of a nasty bout of shingles which left me unable to do very much. It's great to feel that my brain is ticking over again. There is nothing worse than having to sit around reading the newspapers, listening to the radio and watching television when you know that you want to be doing something else. You might think it would be good to have little distraction and therefore be able to plot the next novel but even this seemed to be impossible. I felt like a blob and looked pretty disgusting too. Ah well, the end is nigh as they say and today the sun is shining, I feel quite cheered. I also received a super review for Tilly's Trial - available at www.romancejunkies.com. Just a little excerpt to wet your appetite : An emotion-packed tale, TILLY’S TRIALS, the latest novel by talented author Margaret Blake, is a poignant contemporary romance dealing with secrets, misunderstandings and second chances. Once I started reading this story, I became so absorbed in it that I found myself reading late into the night to see how it would turn out. Although Marsh and Tilly fight their feelings for each other due to problems and misunderstandings from their past, they soon find the fight futile. The characters are well-drawn and their problems are believable. I could not help rooting for them to reunite. With humor, clever banter, danger, PTSD, counseling, romance and true love, this story is captivating. I highly recommend this wonderful story and look forward to reading more of Ms. Blake’s works! Romance Junkies Review Cheers folk - and remember, have a lovely day!