December is flying by. It’s the second week (only 18 sleeps until the big day) and also the second of this month’s author interviews. Today it’s the turn of historical ghost story writer, Patricia Ayling.
Hi Patricia. Lovely to see you today. Why don’t you introduce yourself to the readers before we get started?
I am a latecomer to writing, more accurately, being a published author. I have always found writing enjoyable, whether that be letters or essays from school times to short stories and factual stuff in a few textbooks I was commissioned to write when teaching. I get lost when writing and it’s a good feeling.
It was only when I requested a professional edit of my near complete novel that I felt the metaphorical slap. My manuscript was unrecognisable. Red pen underlined words and sentences, or simply slashed straight through them. ‘Don’t be disheartened’ the feedback commenced. I was. I slept and decided to battle on: and learned so much more about writing as a craft.
Those edits always are a knife to the heart, aren’t they? Tell us about your latest book. What’s it called and what was the inspiration behind it?
The Curse of Becton Manor is my first novel. I love the Tudor period but I
also love an element of the supernatural. When I was small, we visited my
grandparents on their farm in Wiltshire. The house had no electricity, not
uncommon in the 1950s. There was a tale of my grandmother seeing pokers
stabbing the embers of a fire with no person holding them. Hauntings are
fascinating but the evidence for the existence of ghosts remains elusive. My
story combined both of my interests by writing about a house that began its
life in 1593 and was derelict in 1957 but due to be renovated. Then by
presenting the traumas of two very different families I was able to weave in a
paranormal edge.
My recent project is a sequel following the evil protagonist in 1598. I then hope to write a third book concentrating on the twentieth century protagonist. So still historical and with the supernatural in mind but I hope to write using a deeper emotional style and I love a psychological twist. So we shall see. My characters take me on a journey not the other way round.
Speaking of inspiration, what inspires your writing?
What inspires me? Sometimes just reading the newspaper or magazines reveals the true feelings of people and their experiences. At other times, just listening to conversations. Reading and researching periods can also illuminate lives and stir your emotions and your imagination.
Here’s the festive question: If you could have Christmas Dinner with any fictional character, who would it be?
Oh – who would I have Christmas dinner with? I thought long and hard about this one. I think I wouldn’t down many forkfuls of food if I sat across from Sherlock Holmes. His powers of observation would intrigue me. I admire successful crime writers and wish I too could pen a psychological thriller.
Finally, what bookish plans do you have for 2022?
My plans for 2022 are writing my two remaining books, start a saga and read a variety of genre.
Thanks for talking to me, Patricia. I’ll keep an eye out for your new books.
If you’d like to find out more about Patricia and her writing, here are all the useful links you might need:
I read The Curse of Becton Manor earlier in the year, enjoyed it immensely, and left this 5* review:
The Curse of Becton Manor
“The Curse of Becton Manor packs a double historical whammy with its two period settings of the 1950s and the 1590s.
The dream of life in an Elizabethan country manor house soon turns into a mixed blessing as Tom and his friend George happen on the ghostly mystery of Becton Manor.
I loved the interplay between the two time periods and the level of historical research that made both timelines so believable.
Ghosts. Intrigue. Adventure. What a brilliant mixture.”
Today is the first day of December and my first festive author interview. There’ll be plenty more in the run-up to Christmas but let’s kick things off with Richard Ayre.
Hi Richard. Lovely to see you today. Why don’t you introduce yourself to the readers before we get started?
Hi, Fi, thank you. A real pleasure to talk to you today.
I teach History in a secondary school as a day job, but I’ve been writing fiction in my spare time for donkey’s years now. Back in the late 1980’s I started writing what would eventually become ‘Point of Contact,’ a sci-fi/horror/procedural thriller (not really sure what it is!). I sent it to a few agents but it got nowhere, which is not surprising really as it was terrible. I’ve revised it massively since going back to it and I love it now, but re-reading it after twenty odd years was possibly the most embarrassing thing I’ve ever done. First drafts etc.
After that, I thought I would have a go at writing horror. I
was, and still am, a huge fan of James Herbert; I love the gritty Britishness
of his works, and I was also really into New Wave Heavy Metal. I thought I’d
combine these two loves into a novel and so ‘Minstrel’s Bargain’ was created. I
set this in Newcastle and tried to add a little humour into the tale, as well
as a lot of very gratuitous violence. Again, this got nowhere, and by this time
my eldest daughter had been born. Writing did not really have a place in my
heart anymore so the scripts for both Minstrel’s Bargain and Point of Contact
went and lived in the loft for nearly twenty-five years as I got on with life.
Fast forward to 2015 and I dragged them out and had a look
at them again. By this time there was a slew of indie publishers around, so I
sent MB off to one of them and to my surprise they took it on! Unfortunately,
that didn’t work and the publisher and myself eventually parted ways, but that
small success prompted me to begin writing again. I heavily revised Point of
Contact and this was taken on by another indie publisher (but once again I
found that there was limited interest from them re; advertising etc, so I
parted with them too and decided to self-publish.) After that I decided that I
missed Minstrel, the demon from Minstrel’s Bargain, so I wrote a sequel
entitled Minstrel’s Renaissance, and then a third novel in what has become a
trilogy; Minstrel’s Requiem. All of these were self-published.
In and amongst this, I was scribbling down short stories, as
this helped me through a bit of writer’s block on Minstrel’s Renaissance, and
they have become two anthologies called ‘A Hatful of Shadows’ and ‘Nightmares
and Daydreams’ respectively.
I then started on a story I called ‘Passing it Along’ which was very different to what I had written before. It was the story of a man mortally wounded in World War One who, for a convoluted reason, becomes immortal. The story follows the protagonist’s life journey; from 1918 all the way to the 21st Century. When this was finished, I once again touted it to agents for over a year, but, inevitably, none of them wanted it. I eventually came across Burning Chair who took the novel on, edited the hell out of it and turned it into ‘A Life Eternal.’ They then took on Point of Contact too, so it has eventually found a home.
Tell us about your latest book. What’s it called and what was the inspiration behind it?
My latest book, again published by Burning Chair, is a historical thriller called ‘Shadow of the Knife.’ It came about after a conversation about Point of Contact between myself and Pete and Si at Burning Chair. They said I should write a police procedural. I said no because I actually don’t really like those kinds of books; they all seem a bit ‘samey’ to me, but I had been thinking of writing a story set in the 19th Century; a time-travel novel set in that period. I mulled on it for a while, took out the time travel aspect and turned it into a historical thriller. Shadow of the Knife was born, and Pete and Si took it on.
The story is, in essence, a crime thriller, set in the East End in 1890; two years after the Ripper killings. When more women begin to be murdered in the same fashion as the Ripper killings, Detective Jonas Handy of Leman Street Station is put on the case. He calls on the help of surgeon Dr Carter ‘Jigsaw’ Jarman, a celebrated criminologist, and the two men are drawn into the murky world of prostitution and murder. Their investigations take them from the filthy streets of Whitechapel to the plush sitting rooms of the Victorian gentry. It’s my first novel that does not contain any supernatural elements, so we’ll have to see how it all goes!
Speaking of inspiration, what inspires your writing?
I have to be honest; my inspiration comes in peaks and troughs. If I have an idea, I can rattle out a 300-page novel in pretty quick time, (both A Life Eternal and Shadow of the Knife took about three months each for the first drafts) but I tend to go for long periods without writing a thing. We are always told to write every day, but I don’t do that. When I’m working on a novel, I put every spare minute of the day into it, but when I’m finished, I tend to just leave writing alone for a while. Weird, but true.
Here’s the festive question: If you could have Christmas Dinner with any fictional character, who would it be?
Which fictional character would I have Christmas dinner with?
What an incredible question. There are far too many!
If I had to plump for one, (and not one I’ve created, which would be the hero of the Minstrel books, Phil Sturgess) I think I would have dinner with Fluke, the protagonist of James Herbert’s novel of the same name. If you have not read this, the story is about a dog who slowly discovers that he is the reincarnation of a man who believes he was murdered and sets out to discover about his past life as a human. I think Fluke would get on with Harvey, my own dog, and it means I could sit on the settee after dinner and have two dogs to stroke instead of just one. I wouldn’t have to engage in much conversation with them either. That would be a great Christmas!
Finally, what bookish plans do you have for 2022?
Plans for the future. I really don’t know. I’m at a point where I’m in a bit of a trough at the minute as far as writing is concerned. I will definitely write a sequel to Shadow of the Knife at some point, but when that will be I don’t know. I’m always having ideas for new stories, and I’ve started at least 3 that I can think of, but the hunger is not really there at the moment. Real life always gets in the way of just being able to sit and write and my job always has to take priority as this is the thing that actually pays the bills, which writing certainly does not. So, we’ll see how Shadow of the Knife does. I suppose this novel is a bit of a watershed; do I continue or not? I’m sure I will and I’m sure I will start again soon, but, as I say, we’ll just have to see when that will be.
Thanks for the chat, Richard. Shadow of the Knife is on my to-be-read shelf (note I said shelf and not pile – this book buying habit really is turning into a problem).
*
If you’d like to find out more about Richard and his books, here are all the useful links you might need:
And if that isn’t enough, I’ve reviewed a couple of his books too.
A Life Eternal
“I enjoyed this novel immensely. It was one of those books that made me forget I was reading – it was so well crafted and involving.
The development of Rob Deakin from broken ex soldier to adventurer, doomed man, loving husband and finally, wise soul is cleverly and convincingly written.
Looking forward to Richard’s next book.”
Point of Contact
“Point of Contact by Richard Ayre has a brilliant cast of characters and although the point of view changes rapidly and frequently, there is never any doubt whose eyes you are seeing the story through.
I enjoyed the way we got to know the villain – slowly, deeply, and menacingly – without any idea who they were until the big reveal near the end of the novel.
The switch back and forth between time periods was done well, serving the story and happening at just the right places.
The end was excruciatingly exciting and brutal. This author obviously enjoys making their characters suffer. I did begin to wonder just how much more injury and misery Fenwick, Goddard, and Ellie could take.
All in all, a brilliant page-turner of a novel. Awesome.”
Today, I’d like to introduce you to M J Mallon, YA author, poet, photographer and book blogger.
1. When did you first call yourself a writer?
I’d say I first called myself a writer when I started my blog six years ago. A lot has happened since then: I published my YA fantasy The Curse of Time – Book One – Bloodstone in August 2017.
Cover photo courtesy of Dr John C Taylor
And my first poetry prose and photography book: Mr. Sagittarius this year in February.
For me, the distinction between a writer and an author is the moment when you start offering your books for sale. So, I became a published author in 2017.
2. Tell me about your novel and poetry
Both of my published works include poetry. With The Curse of Time there are numerous short Tanka poems throughout the book. The majority of the poems act as an introduction to the mysterious aspect of each chapter, or puzzle piece as I like to call them. The Curse of Time will be a three part series. To date, I have published the first in the series but I hope to release book two later this year.
Mr. Sagittarius is a short compilation of poetry, short stories and original photography conveying thoughts and feelings about nature, the circle of life, sibling relationships, love and magic. It is an uplifting, sweet book.
3. What inspires you to write?
Everything and anything. Art, observing and listening to people, reading books, watching films, and walking in the natural world: trees, flowers, birds, crystals .
Becoming a writer has opened up my imagination to the world in the most extraordinary way. I doubt I will ever be the same again! I am so fortunate to have discovered this creative me.
4. How important was research to you when writing your novel?
Quite important, especially with The Curse of Time. I researched The Corpus Christi Chronophage time pieces – all three Chronophages – the grasshopper, the mythological fly and the dragon invented by Dr. John C. Taylor, OBE.
M J Mallon and Dr John C Taylor with the Grasshopper Chronophage in the backgroundThe Midsummer Chronophage – http://johnctaylor.com – photo courtesy of Dr John C TaylorThe Dragon Chronophage – http://johnctaylor.com – photo courtesy of Dr John C Taylor
The Grasshopper Chronophage in action.
Also, it was
fascinating researching the properties of crystals. The main protagonist in The
Curse of Time, Amelina Scott wields crystal magic. My antagonist, Ryder is
a Shadow Demon, so naturally I had to research shadows too. It was intriguing
and fun to investigate local Cambridge ghost and folklore stories.
With Mr. Sagittarius, I was drawn to tales of myths and magic associated with dragonflies, trees and the natural world.
5. When and where do you write?
I write at home in my study.
The only exception to this is a weekend break spent in Brighton. I wrote in cafes and the library. It was a wonderful, carefree experience and I would love to do it again. I met loads of interesting and creative people to engage with. I’d highly recommend it!
Also, from time to time, I write in pubic places with the SCBWI – The Society of Children’s Writers and Book Illustrators. They host Scrawl Crawls in Cambridge for local authors/artists in art galleries and museums. I’m not an artist but I find art inspiring. I don’t mind having a doodle if the mood takes me!
6. Plotter or pantser?
Pantser, I’ve never plotted anything. I write from a burst of imaginative ideas. I always promise to plot next time but it never happens!
7. Putting aside the writing for a minute, what is your favourite genre to read?
YA fantasy is my favourite genre to read. l read in a wide range of genres, including crime and thriller, horror, poetry, romance, and memoir.
8. Any advice for writers just starting out?
Be resilient, persist, write often, don’t throw away any writing that you aren’t happy with. Instead, keep those pieces as they may spark ideas for future writing projects.
Read, write and believe in yourself.
Join a writing group that offers critique partners. If you can’t attend a group in person participate in an online group.
Start a blog, join in writing prompts and try different styles of writing. I’d recommend writing flash fiction, as short pieces help to hone your writing skill. Charli Mills at Carrot Ranch Literary Community offers 99 word writing prompts and masses of encouragement.
Author Bio
I write YA Fantasy/Paranormal novels, Horror/Ghost short stories and multi-genre flash fiction as well as micro poetry – haiku and Tanka. I share book reviews, poetry, flash fiction, photography, guest posts and inspirational details of my writing journey at my lovely blog home – Kyrosmagica.
Today, I have the pleasure of introducing to you not only a fellow author but long time writerly friend Heather Blanchard. Heather writes about magic, mystery, folklore and the supernatural.
1. When did you first call yourself a ‘writer’?
I don’t think I really embraced the word ‘writer’ until I was
actually writing my first book. I always considered myself a writer but I had a
bit of imposter syndrome around actually calling myself a writer to other
people. Usually people respond with lots of questions and I wanted to avoid
that.
2. Tell me about your books.
My first book, Dark is the Sea, is about a girl who moves back to her hometown in Scotland and discovers that she is a hereditary witch. And because of this, she is in danger from someone who hunts her kind. She has to learn how to protect herself and harness her powers before it’s too late. This book was very much inspired by sleep paralysis that I had experienced in the past, as well as my own fascination with both witchcraft and Scottish folklore.
My next book, The Song of the Mists, is also set in Scotland and again has elements of witchcraft and folklore, but it is about a woman who is investigating cases of mysterious deaths at a local sacred site that has links with fairies and ancient magic. It is inspired by missing person cases I’ve read about that were rumoured to be fairy abductions.
3. What inspires you to write?
Stories about the supernatural inspire me the most. I’ve always
been excited by the more mysterious side of things. Witchcraft and the occult,
history and folklore. The strange history of places feeds me lots of
ideas.
4. How important is research to you when writing a book?
As soon as I get that spark of an idea then I dive into the research. I love academia, especially the research aspect of it, so research is both important and exciting to me. I collect books on folklore and magic. The trouble for me, is recognising when research is turning into procrastination.
I usually do thorough research for a couple of weeks to see where the thread leads me, so to speak, but after that I get to work on the outline and the actual writing. If there’s anything that needs further research, I make a note to come back to it after the first draft.
5. When and where do you write?
I predominately write at home. I like quiet and my own space with few distractions. And also access to my vast collection of herbal teas. If I’m not working in silence then I like listening to storms or film scores.
I have a lovely desk that I’ve set up but more often than not, I end up writing on the sofa under a cuddly blanket with one of my dogs lying on my feet until they give me pins and needles.
I do travel a bit, and when I do, I like to work in cafes or communal work spaces with headphones on and lots of coffee!
6. Plotter or pantser?
I’ve tried both but I’m definitely a plotter. I enjoy writing
character bios and drawing maps of the settings and house plans. I write a
short synopsis for each scene, that way, when I sit down to write each day I
have a framework to work with. I’m a fan of fast drafting paired with a
detailed outline.
7. Putting aside the writing for a minute, what is your favourite genre to read?
I read widely in all genres, but my favourites are Gothic, magical
realism and horror/supernatural. I love Gothic so much that I did a Masters in
Gothic literature and film a few years ago. I’ve noticed a lot more Gothic
novels in the market recently, so I take it I’m not the only one who’s a fan.
8. Any advice for writers just starting out?
Making daily writing a practice is key. Writing every day breaks through procrastination as well as helping to hone your craft. I recently read the book Deep Work by Cal Newport and it encourages the idea of working undistracted for a set time each day and to be more aware of what your distractions are.
Looking up things on my phone is a deadly wormhole of time suck for me, so now I try and schedule in time to check my emails and social media, and when it’s time to work, I use the Forest app. It stops me from picking up my phone, because if I do, my virtual tree will die. Instead, I keep a notepad next to me to scribble ideas to look up later.
I’m a bit obsessed with reading books on productivity and creativity. I think it’s important to try out different methods and see what works for you. It’s a bit like Goldilocks – something will click in the end.
9. What books are you working on now or planning for the future?
I have a few ideas swimming around. I’ve written a couple of first
drafts of books but they didn’t work out for me at the time, though I may
return to them in the future. Right now I’m working on The Song of the Mists
which will be released later this year. I’d love to write a vampire novel one
day, but my vampire wouldn’t be a romantic figure!
Today, I have the pleasure of introducing to you not only a wonderful writer but a good friend too, author Suzanna Williams. Suzanna is a YA writer of stories that cover sci fi, action and adventure, with a touch of parkour and romance thrown in too.
And Suzanna has a little freebie treat for readers of this blog post. Read on to find out more.
When did you first call yourself a ‘writer’?
I told my primary school teacher I was a writer after I’d filled a whole exercise book with a story for homework. It was called ‘Mr Uncle the Ostrich’, (which I still think is a good title). My teacher must have taken a long time to mark it, because future homework had a limit on the pages we could write. My mum complained about the teacher’s attitude which didn’t make me popular, but it didn’t deter me. I was a writer. I had to write.
Tell me about your books.
I have two YA books out at the moment.
‘ShockWaves’ is a fast-paced YA action-adventure. It’s about a girl who gets kidnapped by an ex-IRA terrorist and the boy who tries to save her, and it involves lots of parkour, some gymnastics and a touch of telepathy.
‘Ninety-five percent Human’ is a YA sci-fi romance in which a sixteen-year-old Welsh hill-farmer, a human-alien hybrid and a robot life-form with a bad sense of humour take on an alien leader set to invade Earth.
There are two short story prequels to go with this series. ‘Jake’, the evolving robotic fighter-pilot-turned-space-pirate, the unexpected hit character from Ninety-five percent Human. And ‘Sarah’, the human/alien hybrid sent to test the viability of life on Earth.
Ideas often come from a story I’ve read or a film I’ve watched. Some characters or situations will spark an imagination explosion of ‘but-what-if’s…’ I keep these in my notebook until one of them morphs into a plotline that keeps me awake at night. I am a very sound sleeper, so, I write down any story that disturbs my eight-hours.
How important is research to you when writing a book?
I like to get facts correct.
How long would it actually take a one-armed
pilot with an eyepatch to fly from London to Outer Mongolia in a Cessna during
a thunderstorm?
Would it be physically possible for someone to
drag themselves ten miles through the burning Amazon rainforest with a broken
leg whilst carrying an unconscious wombat suffering from smoke inhalation?
In which country would you find a noxious pink plant
that would make you hallucinate asteroids falling from the sky?
For these awkward questions, Google is my friend.
On a more realistic note, I once sailed to Ireland and back on
the Ferry at night to experience the atmosphere to write in a book, and a lot
of the settings in my stories are places I’ve visited.
(Note: I don’t know the answer to the above questions. Any guesses?)
What is your writing schedule like? Do you aim to complete a set number of pages or words each day?
I wish I could say yes to this question, but amongst the chaos that is my life, I don’t have the luxury of a writing schedule. Setting targets and watching them fly past unmet makes me sad. I prefer the satisfaction of snatching a few unexpected hours whenever I get the chance. This method is not productive, and I would not recommend it. However, it keeps me partly sane until life improves.
Plotter or pantser?
I started off a pantser. Over the years I have set into many
a story with nothing more than the whiff of an idea and an overdose of
enthusiasm. This has mostly ended badly. My aimless characters would meander
around for several hundred pages before being written into a corner from which
I could find them no escape. The manuscript then came to rest among the ranks
of the undead
unfinished.
On the rare occasion I typed ‘the end’, it would take more
edits than I care to admit for me to untangle the plot holes and character
inconsistencies I inevitably found when I read it back. This had to stop.
Starting off with a solid plot helps me find the problems with my story before I begin. The more detail I can add, the better the expectation that I will finish. Plotting rules!
Putting aside the writing for a minute, what is your favourite genre to read?
Not sure I have a favourite genre. It might be more useful
to say what I don’t like.
So, in no particular order:
Erotica. Romance is good but leave the bedroom
door shut please.
Historical novels. Especially those featuring sub-servient
women with menfolk who abuse them. These are just too irritating. I’d leave
them on the shelf.
Thrillers where children get abducted/tortured/murdered.
Books are my escape and I don’t need a reminder that people can be horribly
cruel. I’m a big believer in the happy-ever-after ending.
Most other books are fair game.
Any advice for writers just starting out?
Read as much as you can, even books you think you won’t
like. (This is especially good at combatting ‘writer’s block.’)
Write as much as you can, even things you think are useless.
(Yes, some of your words will be absolute trash, but some will be genius; go
with those.)
Repeat.
Repeat again.
What books are you working on now or planning for the future?
I’ve had a long period where real life has brought my
writing to a standstill, but I’m happy to be finalizing the last edit of
AfterShock, which is the sequel to ShockWaves. It’s been a long time coming but
I have a tentative release date in December. I’ve had new covers designed for
the series which makes me smile every time I look at them.
I’ve also written a new middle grade series and I’m working
with an illustrator on them. I’m not putting a release date on this project
(see question 5 above) but fingers crossed it will be in the near future.
A big thank you to Fi Phillips for allowing me onto her blog. I’m looking forward to seeing Haven Wakes on the best sellers list very soon.
