Monday Merry Meet: Kate Baker

We are thrilled to have debut author, Kate Baker visit us to chat about her book, Maid of Steel, writing and ghostly goings on at boarding school. Her Instagram stories, Otis her dog photos, and chats always make us smile especially this week with her book launch. If you don’t follow her, you’re missing a treat.

Grab your favourite beverage and put your feet up for five to catch up with her news.

Otis

Willow: Welcome Kate and Otis, I hope you found us okay. Pop through to the back and make yourself comfy. Feel free to let Otis on the sofa, Vincent has gone on his daily prowl of the harbour so there will be plenty of room.

Kate: Otis, stop sniffing that door. I’m sure the witches have told their cats to stay away out of sight while you’re here!

Willow: Yes, with Vincent gone Black Cat is doing whatever feline ghosts do when they’re not haunting properties so we’re safe. What can we get you to drink? We have Yorkshire tea, herbal tea, and other blends, coffee or some celebratory Prosecco. We’re so excited about your debut release and have been following the excitement on your social media.

Kate:  May I be greedy and have a glass of Prosecco and a Camomile tea please? I found the latter to be particularly helpful when I was on the radio once.

Amber: I’m so glad you’re finally here as we have cake and Willow refused to let us have any without you. I’ve made Otis some homemade dog biscuits too.

Kate: I think he’s can smell that too – that nose of his will get him into trouble one day. I’d adore some cake, and thank you, Willow, for keeping it safe until I arrived.

Rosa: I’ve just finished reading Maid of Steel and adored the Irish location, and you’ve captured the atmosphere of the time. Emma is strong willed and ready to fight for suffrage. What made you choose this part of history?

Kate:  I was fascinated by the Cobh Heritage Centre, a museum down in the harbour of Cobh, formerly known as Queenstown. Depictions of mass emigration brought home to me how terrible life must have been for people in Ireland after the Potato Famine hit. They left their homes in desperation, and hoping to find a new life overseas. Not everyone made it. That became the backstory to Emma’s tale. Emma is the granddaughter of Ellen, an immigrant to New York who did, in fact, make it. Emma travels back to Ireland to see where her grandmother came from. She finds lots out about her family, and lots out about herself too! It had to be set in 1911 and 1912 because of how the book ends!

Willow: Your book mentions so many historical details we knew nothing about, such as soldier’s homes where soldiers could experience a few hours of normality to help with their mental health. Were you aware of these things before you wrote the story or did they crop up in research?

Kate: No! My dear friend, Hannah, whom travels with me when hubby is too busy to leave the farm, spotted the carved out letters in concrete above a doorway in the harbour. I’d have missed it completely! We returned to our hotel and googled it, and that’s when I discovered Emile Sandes (sometimes she’s known as Elise) and all that she did for the soldiers of Ireland and then when it caught on, England too. Emma wishes something like that had been around in the states for her brother.

Rosa: In essence, Maid of Steel is a forbidden love story. Have you always been attracted to this genre?

Kate: Yes. I love fiction where we can explore the darker side of life.

Amber: This is your debut. What has your publication journey been like? If you did it again, would you change anything?

Kate: Great question, Amber. Do you know something? I wouldn’t. I needed it to take four years for the story to evolve. Over that time, my craft and understanding of character improved and had I released it earlier, I fear it would not be the quality I hope it is today. Having jumped off the Finding-an-Agent path and landing on the Indie Publishing route, I had to learn a whole new approach, but that’s where The Book Guild have come into their own.

Afternoon tea

Willow: Emma isn’t the only strong woman in your book. If you could choose one of your female characters to have afternoon tea with, who would you choose and why?

Kate: This is hard to answer! I think Alice is an intriguing devil, but it’s Mrs Walsh who really captures my attention. To seemingly have such an equal relationship with her husband in 1911 seems astonishing, yet he evidently loves her to be in work, and for a good cause, and doesn’t even bat an eyelid when she refused to be counted on the night of the Census! I’d love to know her outlook on life.

Willow: You live on a farm and run your own business, how do you balance writing and your other commitments?

Kate: By being incredibly flexible and not worrying if plans have to change. I can have a rough idea of how I want a day to go, but if one of my commitments becomes more pressing, then it has to come to the forefront and no longer do I let that bother me. I get on with it, get the other side of it and pick up the other stuff after. Chill, chill … whenever possible; that’s my motto!

Amber: Many writers visit the Emporium. Do you have any advice for people wanting to write?

Kate: Explore your ideas through free-writing. It’s hugely liberating, especially with a pen and paper. The blank screen of a laptop can be very daunting. A stolen five minutes in a carpark, or at the end of the kitchen table while the peas are simmering, can provide a quick moment of escape and your pen can flow with words as you think them. Not whole sentences; but random thoughts. Get them down, let them out. Often they quickly turn into a scene! And sometimes those scenes can morph into something from your WIP.

Willow: The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Kate: (picks up A Good Night’s Sleep candle) THIS ONE! I’m an insomniac so a good night’s sleep is a rare and beautiful thing!

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Kate: Gosh, this is hard. Perhaps the rocky beaches near Padstow in North Cornwall, where we used to go regularly while the children were growing up. But equally can I be boring and say my south-facing patio and describe a ‘holiday’ from work and farm accounts? That’s my special place – and free to get to!

Amber: That sounds a perfect special place. Ghosts and paranormal activity plague The Enchanted Emporium. Have had had any spooky experiences – has it influenced your writing?

Kate: Oooh, I have! At boarding school, in Stamford, Lincolnshire. I was about twelve and killing a Saturday afternoon alone in the dormitory, idly playing my recorder. (I wasn’t very good at the recorder, by the way). At one point, a wardrobe door swung slowly open. I stopped playing and watched. The door opened fully. I began to play the same piece (don’t ask; I don’t recall) and one of the school navy tunics began to sway. I stopped playing and got up off the bed. It stopped swaying. I played again; it swayed. I stopped; it stopped. I was spooked by this and told my friends. They wanted me to re-enact it for them a couple of hours later and sadly, one of the girls got behind the wardrobe (unbeknown to me) and pushed it gently as I played. But I swear, that first time, no-one was in the room with me. I haven’t written anything spooky of any length, but have dabbled in a bit of horror writing, and science fiction, following a course last spring.

Willow: If we could blend you a bespoke potion to give you a superpower for 24 hours, what would it be?

Kate: For everything else around me to pause, and for me to be able to type with focus for hours!

Willow: Sounds a good plan. Our Enchanted Emporium bookshelf is a small lending library full of books with either fantastical, horror, witchy or paranormal theme. What would you add to it?

Kate: Have you got the Carlos Ruiz Zafon series? Set in ancient Barcelona? If not, your witches are missing out, as are your readers. They will thank me for this when you add the series!

Rosa: We’ll check. The bookshelf likes hiding books. I have a Box of Romance books I share with friends and customers. What would you add to it?

Kate: Pernille Hughes ‘Ten Years’ is a great one … Lucy Keeling’s series is fun, and I think the Time Travellers Wife is a classic.

Willow: And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Kate: The Projectionist is an inter-generational friendship story about a 90-year-old man and an eleven-year boy who wants to run away from home before the end of a six-week summer holiday, before he has to go to High School. Frank becomes Toby’s mentor, an unlikely combination which the town frown upon at first, because people always judge books by their covers!

Willow: It sounds fantastic. Thank you and Otis for joining us.

Title: Maid of Steel

Author: Kate Baker

Publisher: The Book Guild

Genre: Historical fiction, romance

Release date: 28th Feb 2023

Purchase Links

Publisher’s link: https://www.bookguild.co.uk/bookshop/book/486/maid-of-steel-SMwd/

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/191535269X/

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/191535269X/

Waterstones: https://www.waterstones.com/book/maid-of-steel/kate-baker/9781915352699

Blurb:

It’s 1911 and, against her mother’s wishes, quiet New Yorker Emma dreams of winning the right to vote. She is sent away by her parents in the hope distance will curb her desire to be involved with the growing suffrage movement and told to spend time learning about where her grandparents came from.

Across the Atlantic – Queenstown, southern Ireland – hotelier Thomas dreams of being loved, even noticed, by his actress wife, Alice. On their wedding day, Alice’s father had assured him that adoration comes with time. It’s been eight years. But Alice has plans of her own and they certainly don’t include the fight for equality or her dull husband.

Emma’s arrival in Ireland leads her to discover family secrets and become involved in the Irish Women’s Suffrage Society in Cork. However, Emma’s path to suffrage was never meant to lead to a forbidden love affair…

Author Biography

Kate Baker

Kate Baker wrote terrible holiday diaries as a child, which her husband regularly asks her to read out loud for their entertainment. She has since improved and has written with intent since 2018. Maid of Steel is her second novel; the first is lining drawers in the vegetable rack at their farmhouse.

Twitter https://twitter.com/katefbaker

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/KateFrancesWrites/

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Monday Merry Meet: Wendy Sheffield

Welcome to another week! Today we’re excited to host our first ever spirit writer to the Enchanted Emporium, Wendy Sheffield, to discuss her writing, life and of course, spells.

The review for her book Spirit Writer can be found here but why not grab a cuppa and take a break to discover more.

Willow: Welcome to our small shop. We’re excited to have you visit. The Marleys and Old Percy, our resident ghosts are under strict instructions not to badger you with information while you’re here but as the first medium we’ve had visit, I can’t guarantee they’ll behave. Mrs Marley likes to talk.

Amber: Hi, I’m on tea and drink duty today as Rosa’s at a Parent’s association meeting. What can I get you? Tea including Yorkshire tea, coffee or I do an excellent hot chocolate or something stronger or cold.

Wendy: One of your hot choccies would go down nicely!!!! Thanks

Hot chocolate and biscuit time

Willow: We always ask our guests whether they’ve had paranormal experiences and how it affects their writing, but as your book is all about connecting with spirits, we know the answer but can you tell us a bit about how you began?

Amber: And what a spirit writer is? I’ve only ever heard of spirit artists who draw those who have passed.

Wendy: 12 years ago, I did not know that I was a medium and I certainly didn’t know that I had a spirit guide and a host of family ancestors in spirit who would have been only too happy to stop me messing up my life!  Because I did not know I had spirit guidance I made mistakes. I can hear you all saying, we all make mistakes, and in answer to this I would answer…we all do! 

I will not go into my life mistakes because they are not much different to most people’s mistakes!

Basically, I couldn’t understand why I was not happy, and the more I pondered on my past, the more I wanted to change my life. In effect I was asking spirit for help, without even realising the same!

One fateful night, 12 years ago, I went to bed and awoke a different person…a person more confident, a person who believed in the impossible!  A person who wanted to help the world with her gifts, which she was now aware of.

I went to bed not even knowing what spirit was, no mind what spirit writing was! Sorry I am taking a long time to answer the question!

In days of old, people used to spirit write using a pen and paper. I was a lady of the 21^st century, I was not going to use pen and paper!  I woke up that night…I grabbed a pen and paper and spirit encouraged me to scribble, letting go of the pain. Even though I did not know about spirit and spirit writing before this time…..my grandmother told me I was spirit writing! This was the first spiritual gift that she showed me that I possessed. It took me many years thereafter, but I learnt to control my spirit writing. Spirit knew I was a trained legal secretary and could type at least as fast as someone can talk, so they encouraged me to use a keyboard to use the skill that I had. Shortly thereafter, I felt the ned to help others with my newfound skills, and for a time was giving online reading using my spirit writing and my trusted keyboard.

To cut a long story short….spirit writing…..I connect to spirit as a medium and let my fingers fly!

Amber: Your book is based on your life, how difficult did you find writing it?

Wendy: To be honest, it was a great relief, because I knew as soon as I had let go of the past, I knew I would be able to move forwards!

Amber: Spirit Writer is your debut, what has your publication journey been like? If you did it again, would you change anything?

Wendy: I have found my publication journey painful and expensive! As to whether I would change anything, as I have progressed with my books, I have learnt new skills. I have now written Book 2, Pure Spirit and almost finished Book 3, Spirit Healer, and I can now do everything myself and now only have to pay for advertising, which is very expensive in itself!

Rosa: Many of our customers love the idea of writing a book, including memoirs. Do you have any advice for novice memoir writers?

Wendy: Writing the book is the easy bit! Make sure that you are happy with your publisher and be careful with advertising costs!

Willow: The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Wendy: A good night’s sleep, as my mind always whirrs around 100 miles an hour, and the spirits don’t help!

Focus and concentration is also an issue for me!

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Wendy: Back into the past to put right wrongs!

Willow: We often blend different potions beyond the love ones that are flying off the shelves this week. If we could create a spell to give you magical powers for 24 hours what would it be?

Wendy: To go into the future to see where my journey is taking me!

Willow: Our Enchanted Emporium bookshelf is a small lending library full of books with either fantastical, witchy or paranormal theme, fiction or non-fiction is fine. What would you add to it?

Wendy: My 3 books, of course!

Rosa: I have a Box of Romance books to share my love of the romance genre to the world. What would you add to it?

Wendy: Nowadays, I don’t read such books, but in my younger days I used to like Catherine Cookson’s romance books – No one book in particular!

Willow: I don’t think we have any Catherine Cookson books yet. And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Wendy: I am now using my ability as a spiritualist healer to help everyone that comes to me for healing. I want people to understand themselves inside and outside and out and to not be afraid to seek healing from whoever they are drawn to!

Willow: That sounds fantastic. We wish you well and thank you for visiting.

Spirit Writer by Wendy Sheffield

Title: Spirit Writer

Author: Wendy Sheffield

Publisher: Grosvenor House Publishing

Release date: 13th October 2022

Genre: Non-fiction, spirituality

Blurb

AN INSIGHT INTO HOW THE WORLD OF SPIRIT CAN COMMUNICATE WITH US

‘Spirit Writer’ is a book written by Wendy Sheffield, a psychic medium, who channels messages from the spirit world. In her book, Sheffield explores the art of spiritual writing and shares her insights on how to connect with spirit guides, develop intuition, and communicate with loved ones who have passed on. The book also delves into the practice of mindfulness and its role in writing as a spiritual practice.

‘Spirit Writer’ is a memoir that reflects on Sheffield’s own spiritual awakening and experiences with mediumship and afterlife communication.

Overall, ‘Spirit Writer’ provides readers with a unique perspective on the power of writing and its potential for connecting with the spiritual realm.

‘A wonderful insight into how the world of spirit can communicate with us’

More about the author:

12 years ago, or thereabouts, my grandmother stood me before a very large old mirror in my old living room and said THIS IS WHO YOU ARE!! 

At the time I had doubts that I would ever reach the level to which she was telling me I was capable of. 

TODAY is that day that I know that I am capable of so much, all i needed to do was allow my love to shine through and BELIEVE. 

It is through my books I hope that I share my LOVE and BELIEF!

SPIRIT WRITER the start of my journey
PURE SPIRIT my refined connection with spirit
SPIRIT HEALER This is who I am A HEALER!

My final message is that this is not the end, IT IS the beginning…

Social media:

Website: https://spiritwriterspeaks.com

Twitter: @spiritwriteruk

Facebook: Spiritwriterspeaks

Instagram: Spiritwriteruk7965

Monday Merry Meet: Linda Corbett

Welcome to another week to celebrate romantic fiction. We’re excited to have a new romantic author visit today, Linda Corbett whose novel. Love You From A to Z is a new addition to Rosa’s Box of Romance and the review can be found here.

Grab a cuppa and sink down into your seat to catch up with the this week’s chat.

Purple Valentine’s Punch

Willow: Hi Linda, welcome to the Enchanted Emporium. Please have a seat. What can we get you to drink? We have different blends of tea including Yorkshire, coffee, hot chocolate or Valentine’s punch? It’s non-alcoholic but between you and me, the spell Amber has added to it makes you feel a tad tipsy. And are you ok with ferrets? Amber has an exam, so we’re looking after Beetle for her. He’s well behaved but I’d make sure any bags are closed as he likes a rummage.

Linda: Hello Willow! I’m afraid I am not a tea drinker, but Valentine’s punch sounds intriguing. I love all animals, although I’ve never encountered a ferret before, so that will be interesting.

Willow: Love You From A to Z is based on some letters being found in a storage container Jenna’s boyfriend, Matt buys. How did you come up with the idea? We never knew you could do such a thing.

Linda: One rainy autumnal afternoon my husband was watching “Storage Wars” on the telly. It must have stirred my imagination even though I wasn’t watching it, as I began to wonder whether people ever found personal items hidden away in these lockers, and what might happen if they did.

Image by Ilona de Lange from Pixabay

Rosa: Your novel is the first I’ve ever read that has Guinea pigs in a starring roles and your love for them shines through. Did you always plan to include these adorable creatures in your debut? My son Alejo has already told me he wants one when he’s older.

Linda: I decided at the outset that the book would have guinea pigs in it somewhere. After all the stress of the 2020 lockdowns, I just wanted to write something that entertained me and not worry about markets or trends, so I created this fictional guinea pig rescue, which is run by the heroine’s sister and her partner. I then had enormous fun writing those scenes. And guinea pigs are like crisps – you can never have just one or two…

Willow: They’re like ferrets then. I’m amazed Amber just has the one. We loved Jenna and the t-shirt she wears. Your book gives an accurate portrayal of her living with a disability, how important was it for you to have a disabled protagonist in a romantic plot?  

Linda: It was my editor who asked if I would consider writing a disabled heroine, although I’d toyed with the idea previously. Disabled characters have often been poorly represented in fiction and on the screen, portrayed either as figures of fun or more often, deserving of pity. I wanted to show that Jenna sometimes finds life challenging, but she isn’t defined by her disability. At the beginning of the story, it’s her past and upbringing that holds her back, rather than her mobility issues. I grew up reading children’s books like Heidi, where disability was shown as a negative, sad thing, but even in recent years some novels still have an emphasis on pity for disabled characters. This is often an able-bodied person’s perception of disability, not the reality of everyday life with a disability. I believe everybody should have the chance to see themselves as the heroine of a romance novel.

And for anyone who hasn’t read the book, Jenna’s T-Shirt reads: “Legs not working efficiently. (Everything else meets or exceeds manufacturers’ specification)”

Rosa: Such a good T-shirt. My mother wants one. Love You from A to Z is your debut, what has your publication journey been like? If you did it again, would you change anything?

Linda: My journey to publication has had plenty of ups and downs. My first attempt at a novel was ten years ago, definitely a practice effort and now buried somewhere on my laptop! However, my second attempt garnered some agent interest, and the third got me an agent. Sadly, the book wasn’t taken up and after I submitted novel number four, my agent contract was terminated. My fifth attempt was written on a wave of inspiration after receiving the Katie Fforde bursary in 2020, so Love You From A-Z is technically book six! In total, I clocked up over 220 rejections before I got that one “yes”. If I had to do the last ten years again, one thing I would definitely do is join the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme much earlier than I did.

Willow: That is some journey and shows determination and perseverance does pay off. Reading your author biography, you’re busy with your charity work. Do you have a writing routine to help you fit it in?

Linda: I don’t have a fixed daily routine, but I’m definitely a morning person, so I’m usually at my laptop by 8:30 a.m. I do most of my writing in the morning unless I’ve reached a really exciting scene and then I just have to carry on! My Shine Surrey work has fitted around the writing, and my fellow committee members are very understanding when I’m knee deep in edits.

Rosa: Many of our customers love the idea of writing a novel. Do you have any advice for novice disabled writers?

Linda: I would definitely recommend reading as widely as possible in your chosen genre, and also books that explain the craft of writing – I have found there are lots of helpful articles online too. Writing a book is a solitary experience, so it is helpful to join a writer’s group where you can have both peer support and some sort of critique of your work. Your mum or your sister may love your novel but won’t give you the honest, critical feedback you need. I know from firsthand experience that professional criticism can feel harsh, even brutal,  at times, but I’ve found out the hard way that you don’t know what you don’t know. Writing involves hours of effort, and having a disability adds another layer of difficulty, so set yourself sensible targets and don’t try to compare your progress to other people’s – that road leads to disappointment.

Willow: The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Linda: Ooh, I definitely need to try several of these, but I think I’d choose confidence.

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Linda: I’d love to go back to the day in September 2012 when we visited the California redwoods as part of our road trip down the US west coast. I remember the calm silence of the ancient forest and standing alongside giants that were already fully grown trees at the time of the Norman conquest – it was awe inspiring.

Willow: That sounds amazing. Ghosts and paranormal activity plague The Enchanted Emporium. Have you ever had any spooky experiences – has it influenced your writing?

Linda: I have only once experienced something I couldn’t explain, but I was half asleep at the time so I’m unsure whether it was real or not. However, in Love You From A-Z, Jenna does see a ghost, and she also hears about a legend of doomed lovers cursed by a witch in the wood.

Willow: We often blend different potions beyond the love ones that are flying off the shelves this week. If we could create a spell to give you magical powers for 24 hours, what would it be?

Linda: I’m currently scouting around for story ideas, so I’d love one that gives me a boost of creative inspiration. I’d scribble down all the ideas before the potion wears off!

Rosa: My Box of Romance’s is proving popular thanks to Valentine’s Day. What would you add to it?

Linda: There are too many great stories to choose from – I’d have to visit with a suitcase!

Willow: And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Linda: My next book is due to be published in the summer. The heroine, Maddy, is a journalist and Jane Austen fan who learns on Valentine’s day that not only has she lost her job, but she’s also inherited a house from a distant relation and black sheep of the family. What she didn’t realise was that the house came with certain obligations as well as an opinionated, romance-sceptic neighbour who also  happens to be a bestselling crime writer.

Rosa: Now that sounds fun. Thank you for coming and hope the punch hasn’t made you too giddy.

Love You From A to Z by Linda Corbett

Title: Love You From A to Z

Author: Linda Corbett

Publisher: One More Chapter

Genre: Romance

Release Date: 24^th June 2022

Purchase Link –mybook.to/LoveYouFromAToZ

Blurb

Experience has told Jenna Oakhurst that Happy Ever After may happen in all the best stories, but Happy For Now is the best one ought to expect in real life. Yet lately even that isn’t quite enough, so when a strange set of circumstances leads her to discover a mysterious letter in an abandoned storage unit, she takes the chance to embark on a journey into the unknown…just like the heroines from the storybooks.

Reaching out to the letter’s author, Henry Somners, changes Jenna’s world irrevocably and she starts to realise that the magic she believed in as a child might not be such a fanciful notion after all…

Author Biography

Linda Corbett

Linda Corbett lives in Surrey with her husband Andrew and three permanently hungry guinea pigs. As well as being an author, Linda is treasurer for Shine Surrey – a volunteer-led charity that supports individuals and families living with spina bifida and hydrocephalus. For many years she also wrote a regular column for Link, a disability magazine, illustrating the humorous aspects of life with a complex disability, and she is a passionate advocate of disability representation in fiction. When not writing, Linda can be found papercrafting, cross stitching, or cuddling guinea pigs.

Monday Merry Meets: Jessica Redland

Welcome to our next Monday Merry Meet where we celebrate author’s who write romantic fiction. We’re excited to chat to Jessica Redland who has written many bestseller novels based in our beloved North Yorkshire and the Wolds.

Grab a cuppa and relax for five minutes while you discover what she has to say about her books, writing, the romance genre and of course, spells.

Love from Vincent

Willow: Welcome Jessica, have a seat. We’re thrilled to have you this month to celebrate romance books to coincide with Valentine’s Day. While the Enchanted Bookshelf has oodles of fantasy and paranormal books, Rosa’s Box of Romance is full of romantic novels, including yours. Talking of romance, I apologise if Vincent, our Maine coon, is extra affectionate. The catnip we’ve used in some of our love potions has made him high. Amber has cast a no stick spell to prevent you getting covered in his fur.

Jessica: It’s so lovely to be here and I love cats so am more than happy to have a Vincent snuggle … although my dog, Ella, may be a bit grumpy with me for giving my affections elsewhere when I get home later!

Amber: What would you like to drink? We have umpteen blends of tea, including Yorkshire tea, hot chocolate, coffee or something stronger. We have some mead made from local honey too.

Jessica: Could I have some hot chocolate please? Did somebody say cream and mini marshmallows?

Amber: Hot chocolate isn’t the real deal without those. Won’t be a mo.

Hot Chocolate for Valentine’s day

Rosa: I’m so excited to have you here and many of our customers mention how much they love your books because of the local locations. Whitsborough Bay is based on Scarborough and the Hedgehog Hollow series is based in the Wolds. How important are the settings to your books and how do you decide which ones to use?

Jessica: My settings have become such a strong part of my brand but, funnily enough, I didn’t have one when I started writing. I’d relocated back to the north to be closer to my family after living away from home for about 12 years and I knew I wanted to write a book set in the north, but I had no sense of where. A couple of months later, I met my husband who was from Scarborough and, as soon as I visited him, I knew I’d found the inspiration for my setting. I’ve lived in Scarborough for nearly 19 years now and, with the northern tip of the Yorkshire Wolds being just a few miles away, it seemed a logical place to set my hedgehog rescue centre, adding a countryside setting to my coastal one.

Deciding on which setting to use falls naturally with the story I want to tell and whose story that is. I try to keep the two main settings distinctly different so a story involving a shop or café is more likely to be a Whitsborough Bay one with me keeping my Yorkshire Wolds setting for things that are more logically countryside-based like the rescue centre and a farm (Bumblebee Barn).

Willow: You’ve gone from different shopkeepers in Whitsborough Bay to the romantic occurrences in a hedgehog rescue centre and now jumping into reality tv with Healing Hearts at Bumblebee Barn. How easy do you find starting a new series?

Jessica: Scary! There’s always a fear of readers not enjoying a new setting. A lot of readers expressed disappointment when I ended the Hedgehog Hollow, which is incredibly flattering as it means I’ve created a world they love and want to keep visiting, but it’s also a lot of pressure on writing something new. I stand by the decision that it was time for the Hedgehog Hollow series to end, but fans of the series have enjoyed the treat of some glimpses into the rescue centre in Healing Hearts at Bumblebee Barn, so I think I may have appeased them.

When I first shared the blurb for Healing Hearts at Bumblebee Barn, a few readers expressed surprise at reality TV playing a part in the story as that’s very different and typically more of a romcom story line rather than women’s fiction, but I haven’t changed the style of book I write with it. The reality TV setting is simply a different storyline around how this story of love, friendship, family and community unfolds.

Rosa: I’m an avid romance reader and your books always provide the much needed an uplifting, happy ending. Did you always want to write in this genre?

Jessica: Aw, thanks Rosa. Yes, I did. I was in my early to mid-twenties when I discovered romcoms and, as soon as the idea came to write a book, I knew this was what I’d write because I also love that uplifting, happy ending. As I worked on my first series – Welcome to Whitsborough Bay – my voice and style developed and I moved from romcom to women’s fiction, which, for me, still means the same uplifting, happy ending but more of an emotional journey in getting there.

I do want to write in other genres in the future, but alongside this one. My heart will always remain with the romance genre, and I couldn’t imagine not writing heart-warming stories which help people escape from how tough life can be.

Amber: Healing Hearts on Bumblebee Farm is your eighteenth book. What has your publication journey been like? If you did it again, would you change anything?

Jessica: I can’t believe I’m at 18 already. When I wrote my very first book, I wasn’t even thinking about publication – just wanted to see if I could write one book! I went through the RNA’s NWS (Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme) between 2012-14 and started submitting my debut in late 2013. I had a stack of rejections but secured a 3-book publishing deal in 2014, which then extended to include a novella. The novella came out in May 2015 with the first novel released in June that year and I really thought I’d made it. Things didn’t work out as hoped. Eighteen months later, the publisher had ceased trading; I had my rights back, and I re-released those four books as an indie author.

Unfortunately, being indie didn’t work for me. I wrote and released another five books and none of them made much impact. I really needed to learn how to advertise properly, but I had a very demanding full-time job and any ‘spare’ time had to be devoted to writing or I’d have had nothing to promote.

In 2018, I realised I was going to need to either find another publisher and hope they could work miracles or accept that it wasn’t going to work for me and walk away. I’d written a new book, so put it out for submission and had a few rejections which completely floored me and massively knocked my confidence. Calling it a day was a very real consideration, but then I saw an advert for Boldwood Books. ‘One last submission,’ I told myself. Fortunately, they loved it and they’ve turned me from a struggling indie into a bestselling author.

Would I change anything? No, because I feel like I’m exactly where I’m meant to be now and I needed to go through the difficult years to get here and to appreciate what I now have. I’d like to have been better equipped with the resilience to deal with some of the tough stuff, but I wouldn’t change the actual journey.

Willow: Thank goodness for that final submission. After talking to several authors now, everyone seems to have different ways to tackle their writing. What is your writing day like?

Jessica: I used to cram writing into evenings and weekends so was really productive because, if I didn’t crack on with it, I’d never achieve anything. I became a full-time author in June 2020 and I still haven’t quite sussed a routine. I could be more productive than I am, but I allow myself to get distracted scrolling through social media and going down research rabbit holes. I’ve recently started writing book 20 and decided to try a different approach of writing first thing and only allowing myself to look at emails or social media once I’d written 2k words. That was going brilliantly for a week, then I got hit by the lurgy so had to have a week off. I now need to get back into it and hope I can sustain it.

Amber: There’s a lot of lurgy going round. Hope you’re feeling better now. Many would be writers come in looking for spells to help their creativity. Do you have any advice for fledgling romance writers?

Jessica: My first bit of advice isn’t specific to a romance writer, and it’s just to get on with it. We can find so many excuses not to write and time is the big one. I say we can all find time if we really want to. I used to watch several of the soaps after work, but I stopped watching them to free up time to write.

For a romance writer, I’d say to really think about the importance of setting. In a romance story, the setting is very much a character in itself which can add warmth and make readers feel so much more involved. I’m running a workshop through RNA Learning across March all about the importance of settings and it’s available to non-members as well as RNA members if anyone wants to find out more about this.

https://romanticnovelistsassociation.org/product/writing-a-novel-or-series-in-a-coastal-or-country-setting-2/

Writing Course with Jessica Redland

Amber: That sounds great. Not quite the fantasy settings I’m attempting to write but anything can be adapted right?

Willow: The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Jessica: Can I have them all? 😉 Too greedy? I crave a good night’s sleep, so can I go for that one please? It feels like I haven’t had one of those since I was first pregnant. My daughter turns 17 this year so I’m very tired!

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Jessica: Aw, how lovely. Probably my wedding day. It was such an amazing day from start to finish. I spent a lot of the evening on the dance floor, which was great, but I wish I’d circulated a bit more to speak to some of my relatives, especially as many of them are no longer with us. I kept thinking I’d do a wander but then another great song would come on (we had an 80s disco) and I never quite made it.

Image by GraphicMama-team from Pixabay

Amber: Ghosts and paranormal activity plague The Enchanted Emporium. Have ever had any spooky experiences – has it influenced your writing?

Jessica: I was about to say no, but I’ve just remembered something. When I was at primary school, we went on a week to an activity centre and all stayed in this long dorm which was divided into 4 coloured bays. I was in yellow bay at the end and there was a rumour that the yellow bay was haunted by the grey lady. As the story was being relayed, the fire exit burst open and everyone screamed. It couldn’t have been opened from outside, so it was super spooky at the time.

I haven’t included any ghostly experiences in my books. There are, however, a few spiritual occurrences in my Hedgehog Hollow series at the point where a character dies. I’ve really enjoyed including those.

Rosa: And I enjoyed reading them. Some tissues were needed for some of them.

Willow: We often blend different potions beyond the love ones that are flying off the shelves this week. If we could create a spell to give you magical powers for 24 hours, what would it be?

Jessica: I’m wondering what spell could do the most good in 24 hours. Hmm. Would need to be a powerful spell but it would be amazing if I could send a spell round the world that would clean and heal everywhere that’s hurting – plastic and oil out of the oceans, rain forests growing where they’ve been cleared, war zones repaired and rifts healed, and so on. I can’t watch the news as it makes me cry and I’m so grateful that writing means I can escape into my happy world every day.

Willow: We’d have to increase our powers and spell repertoire to do that one. Our Enchanted Emporium bookshelf is a small lending library full of books with that are either fantastical, witchy or have paranormal theme. What would you add to it?

Jessica: I believe you’ve already got them because she’s had a cuppa with you before, but my best friend is the author Sharon Booth who writes the most amazing series called the Witches of Castle Clair. I’d add those as I love them.

Willow: So do we, though we do need to add her newest one, His Lawful Wedded Witch to the bookshelf. She was our first visitor and her interview can be found here.

Rosa: My Box of Romance’s is proving popular in the run up to Valentine’s Day. What would you add to it?

Jessica: All of Sharon’s non-magical books! I’d also anything by Eliza J. Scott or Jo Bartlett who also write lovely heart-warming stories and always with happy endings.

Image by Deborah Hudson from Pixabay

Willow: And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Jessica: I’ve just finished the final proofread on Summer Nights at the Starfish Café, which is out on 28^th April. This is the final part of the trilogy, so, in the space of three books, I’ll have ended two of my popular series (Hedgehog Hollow and The Starfish Café). Eek!

I’ve started writing what currently has a working title of ‘Lakes 1’. It’s a brand new series set in the Lake District around Derwent Water, but I don’t have a name for the setting yet which feels a bit weird. I’ve proposed a few ideas to my publisher, but I’m waiting back to see what they like best. I love the Lakes, so I’m very excited about this series. The plan is for it to be the longest of all my series, with a different protagonist fronting each story rather than a consistent narrator plus guests like I’ve done for Hedgehog Hollow and The Starfish Café series. This makes it easier to keep adding stories in and also for readers to dip in partway through the series if they wish.

Lakes 1 needs to be submitted at the start of March, at which point I move on to book 21 which will be my Christmas release and a return to Castle Street.

Willow: You’ve a busy time ahead. Good luck with it and we look forward to visiting the Lakes in the future.

Rosa: A huge thank you for visiting. Please may you sign, the visitor’s book we’ve just started to celebrate the authors and customers who visit?

Jessica: Thank you so much for having me and for the delicious hot chocolate. Can I take Vincent home with me? He’s gorgeous!

The Witches: Do you love our author chats? Why not, subscribe to our blog and they’ll whizz to your inbox so you’ll keep up with the gossip from the Enchanted Emporium. Next week to celebrate diversity in romantic novels, Linda Corbett, author of Love You form A-Z.

Title: Healing Hearts at Bumblebee Barn

Author: Jessica Redland

Genre: Women’s fiction, romance

Publisher: Boldwood books

Release date: 24th January 2023

Blurb:

Welcome to Bumblebee Barn, home to wonderful animals, stunning views and spectacular sunsets – and resident young farmer, Barney.

While Barney loves his life at Bumblebee Barn – a farm that has been in his family for generations – he’s struggling to find someone to share it with. The early mornings quad biking through muddy fields and the long hours looking after the crops and animals are proving to be a deterrent to finding love.

So when his sister, Fizz – desperate for Barney to find his soulmate – sees an advert for Love on the Farm, a new reality TV show to help farmers find love, he has nothing to lose by applying. After all, he isn’t meeting anyone suitable down the traditional route and surely he won’t be picked anyway…?

Thrown into the chaos of reality TV, Barney could never have expected that his whole life would be turned upside down, with buried secrets to be uncovered and his heart on the line. With his family and friends rooting for him, could the magic of Bumblebee Barn heal his broken heart and help him find love on the farm?

Author Biography

Jessica Redland

Jessica Redland is a bestselling author of emotional but uplifting stories of love, friendship, family, and community. Her Whitsborough Bay books transport readers to the stunning North Yorkshire Coast where she lives with her husband, daughter and sprocker spaniel. Her Hedgehog Hollow series, set in a hedgehog rescue centre, takes readers into the beautiful rolling countryside of the Yorkshire Wolds.

All of Jessica’s books are available in a multitude of formats: eBook, paperback, hardback, large print, and audio. Her eBooks are all available for FREE via Kindle Unlimited and six of her audiobooks can be listened to for FREE as part of the Audible Plus programme for Audible subscribers. Libraries internationally also stock Jessica’s titles in a variety of formats.

Links to author landing pages:

Amazon UK:        https://amzn.to/3tNQgh9

Amazon USA:     https://amzn.to/3ne3zU9

Audible UK:        https://adbl.co/3n8jOlK

Healing Hearts at Bumblebee Barn:

Amazon UK:        https://amzn.to/3WEIjX6

Amazon USA:     https://amzn.to/3DkgzQA

 Audible UK:       https://adbl.co/3Hit3K1

Contact details:

Website:              https://jessicaredlandauthor.com

Facebook:           https://www.facebook.com/JessicaRedlandAuthor/

Twitter: @JessicaRedland

Instagram:          https://www.instagram.com/jessicaredlandauthor/

Pinterest:            https://www.pinterest.co.uk/jessicaredlandauthor

Redland’s Readers (Facebook group exclusive for fans of Whitsborough Bay and Hedgehog Hollow): https://www.facebook.com/groups/409519133635791

Monday Merry Meet: Jeevani Charika

Romance is in the air in Whitby, with many shops getting into the loved up atmosphere by decorating their windows. The Enchanted Emporium is no different and Rosa’s Box of Romance books is overflowing. This month we are celebrating romance fiction, libraries and book shop with book reviews, photos of Instagram and chats with some of our favourite romance authors. Today, we’re thrilled to chat to Jeevani Charika aka Rhoda Baxter today for our Monday Merry Meet. Jeevani is the author of five books under her real name, including Playing For Love which has been shortlisted for the RNA awards and at least nine books as Rhoda Baxter.

Grab a drink and a plateful of biscuits to discover more about her books, writing and spells.

Willow: Welcome Jeevani, it’s lovely that you’ve made down Black Cat Alley to see us. Please have a seat. I must apologise if you end up covered in pink confetti and paper hearts. Amber was supposed to cut some paper hearts out for our Valentine’s window display, but she created a spell to do it instead. The reversal spell hasn’t quite worked, so a cloud randomly appears to rain confetti.

Amber: Ignore her. No one has seen it today and the concurrent lightning no longer occurs, so the fire hazard has gone. Spell casting paper hearts was much more time efficient than scissors.

Willow: But cost us several fire extinguishers. What would you like to drink, Jeevani? We have several tea blends including Yorkshire tea, herbal tisanes, coffee or we have a cauldron of some Valentine inspired punch? It’s non-alcoholic.

Jeevani: Tea please! Are the biscuits … erm … safe? They are? Oh fab. I’ll have one of those too, then please.

Just leave the plate there. Thank you.

Rosa: The biscuits are safe. My mother bakes them herself, help yourself.  I adore romcoms especially your novel The Convenient Marriage with the complex relationships and family expectations. While Chaya and Gimhana fake their marriage, your current book Picture Perfect focuses on faking dating. What comes first in your writing, the plot or the characters?

Jeevani: It’s most often character first. Even if I get a plot idea first, it doesn’t get developed into a story until the characters are in place. With A Convenient Marriage, Gimhana just showed up, glass of whiskey and ice in hand, and started telling me his story. With Picture Perfect, I already knew Niro from the earlier book in the set (Playing For Love). I loved her so much that I wanted to give her her own story. All my books can be read as standalones, but sometimes I’ll write a series of books where one of the secondary characters from one book goes on to be the main character in the next. In my head, they’re a community and anyone who reads all the stories becomes part of that community too.

Rosa: I love series like that you feel connected to the characters the more you read. Your multicultural novels offer a refreshing insight into the Sri Lankan culture, but you have also written under the pen name Rhoda Baxter, is there a difference in the themes or style of the books?

Jeevani: *Clears throat* Do you want the long version? Or the short version?

Short version – not much difference in themes now. The Rhoda Baxter books are indie published (I got my rights back from the older trad books and them re-published them myself).

Long version – I started off writing multicultural women’s fiction, but it was really hard to place that in traditional publishing back then (Over 15 years ago!). The earlier Rhoda books were not multicultural at all. When my first publisher asked if I was going to use a pen name, I cast about a bit and decided to use the name of the bacteria I used to work on Rhodobacter sphearoides. So, I went with Rhoda Baxter. Over time, I really really wanted to write books with Sri Lankan diaspora characters, so I started writing novellas with multicultural casts and self-publishing them. Eventually, I got offers to publish books with Sri Lankan protagonists, so I started using my real name. I had intended to write women’s fiction as Jeevani and romcoms as Rhoda, but it’s all got a bit muddled now. *shrug*

I love that self-publishing novellas as Rhoda allows me to ‘play’ a bit more. I got to write a secret millionaire book where the heroine was a tech millionaire. That was so much fun.

Willow: That sounds it. This Stolen Life is a more serious and emotional read to your other books. Which genre do you prefer writing?

Jeevani: I like both. I find the more emotional books take more out of me. I have to dig deeper for longer, I guess. So, I often need to write something light, just to recover. I’m proud of both types of book though. They are aimed at different audiences (or the same audience in a different mood), so they are quite different. I find it really strange that my voice changes subtly in the more emotional women’s fiction books compared to the lighter romcoms.

Willow: We are nosy and fascinated by author’s publishing journeys. What was yours like and is there anything you’d have changed?

Jeevani: I wrote my first book in the evenings after work. It took me three years. Then I spent a year or so collecting rejections for it (we had to send it out in the post back then! It cost a fortune). Then I spotted the RNA’s NWS scheme and thought, ‘aha! Someone who can read my manuscript and tell me where I’m going wrong’. I got my first NWS critique back, and it told me helpful things like, ‘you need to learn more about plot’ (and also nice things like ‘you’re good at writing dialogue’, which were almost as helpful as the critical things … because confidence is a delicate thing). Right at the end, there was a throwaway comment of ‘you have a comedy writing voice just crying to get out, have you considered writing a romcom just for fun?’. So, I tried it. That was the first book of mine to get published.

Remember that very first book? I tinkered with it and kept sending it out. It eventually got published thirteen years or so later, as A Convenient Marriage. In 2020, it was shortlisted for a RoNA award. It’s my favourite book (shh! Don’t tell the others).

Recently, I was listening to a podcast about mindset and they said ‘the past is exactly how it had to have been in order to get to where you are right now’ … which struck me as a good point. So, I don’t think I’d change anything. It would have unintended consequences. I’m a writer with anxiety, so I’m assuming the worst possible consequences. I think I’ll stick with what I’ve got.

A Convenient Marriage

Willow: That is a good point and I’ll need to remember it. We always love hearing about author’s routines and rituals. Do you have a particular writing schedule you stick to?

Jeevani: Sorry. Sorry. I’ve just spluttered crumbs all over your nice cushions.

Writing schedule, you say… I should pretend to be super organised at this point, but I’d be lying. I write when I can. Mostly, this means sitting in bed at night after the kids have gone to bed. Certainly, when the kids were younger, and I was working almost full time, this was the only time I had in which to write, and I think my brain has just got used to 8pm to 10pm being ‘writing time’. I get slightly annoyed if I have to go out. Thankfully, I have no social life. Phew.

I have weeks (at one scary point, two whole months) where I don’t write anything. Once I start a book, though, I try to write every weekday. On a good week, I’ll write at the weekend as well, if I can. I’m always thinking about it though. Thinking about the book is also part of writing. That’s my theory and I’m sticking with it.

Amber: Several customers dream of being published authors. Do you have any advice for novice writers apart from reading, How to Write a Romantic Comedy which you penned with the lovely Jane Lovering? I read it and it made me eat a tin of biscuits.

Jeevani: You have no idea how many biscuits and cakes we got through writing it! It’s a book fuelled by good intentions and biscuits.

Other advice – the most basic one of all. The only way you can write a book is by actually writing. Sit down and write. If you can only do 100 words that day, do that. In two years, you’ll have a completed book.

Willow: The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Jeevani: I’d love any of them, really. But if you forced me at candlepoint to choose … I’d got for A Good Night’s Sleep. Restful sleep is almost a mythical creature. I know I had a good nights’ sleep once. I think it was in 2009. It was wonderful. Sigh.

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Jeevani: My husband and I met as graduate students and we used to always take a day off in December and go somewhere. One year, he took me to Blenheim palace (on the bus). It was a freezing cold day and everything was edged with frost. He took me to the small walking entrance (rather than the grand one with the carpark). I’d never been to Blenheim before and was a bit puzzled as to where we were going. He said, ‘trust me’ and ushered me through to what I thought was going to be a smallish garden. Suddenly, there was this incredible vista – twinkling in the crisp winter sunshine like a Christmas card. It was astonishing; especially as I wasn’t expecting it. That’s where I’d go. To that precise moment, with him holding my hand. It was a lovely day. We wandered around the gardens, looked at the fancy house, had tea and cake in the tea shop and went back to the student hostel to have an enormous bowl of stew with crusty bread.

Amber: That’s so romantic and a lovely memory to have. Ghosts and paranormal activity plague The Enchanted Emporium. Have had had any spooky experiences –if so, has it ever influenced your writing?

Jeevani: I have not had any spooky experiences as such, but I believe that places have a feeling about them. Some places feel loved, others feel like something terrible happened in them. I wrote a book called Please Release Me, which has a ghost bride in it. When I wrote that I spent a lot of time working out the ‘rules’ of being a ghost. That’s the closest I’ve come to the paranormal.

Willow: We’ll be looking for that to add to our bookshelf. We love blending bespoke potions. if we could give you a superpower or special ability for 24 hours, what would it be and what would you do with it?

Jeevani: Teleportation please. But only if I could take stuff (like my clothes!) with me. I would use it to visit people and places without having to drive or take a train, or worse, a plane. I like trains, but changing trains and lugging bags up and down platforms is exhausting.

Willow: We are always on the lookout for more books. What book would you add to The Enchanted Emporium bookshelf?

Jeevani: One of the best books I’ve read recently is Hex Appeal by Kate Johnson. It’s a hilarious witchy romcom. It would do well in your shop, I think.

Once again, I’m sorry for all the crumbs. You missed a bit – just there.

Rosa: we love Hex Appeal and Kate Johnson popped into see us recently as well.  I have a Box of Romance books I share with friends and customers. What would you add to it?

Jeevani: Obviously, my books. Apart from that, anything by Milly Johnson.

Willow: Great choice. And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Jeevani: I am currently mulling over a new book. The book for October 2023 (provisionally titled ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’) has gone off to the editor and I haven’t started the next book yet. I usually have to take a small break between books because my brain is all out of words. I think the next book will have an enemies to friends to lovers trope, maybe something to do with baking.

Rosa: Baking with enemies sounds fun. Thanks for popping in and eating all the biscuits. Good luck with you writing and your upcoming RNA award nomination. Willow has slipped in a good luck candle in your pocket.

Picture Perfect by Jeevani Charika

Book Title: Picture Perfect

Author: Jeevani Charika

Publisher: HQ Digital

Release date: 11th Feb 2023

Genre: Romance

Blurb

Niro is a photographer who’s lost the joy of taking photos. Burned by a bad break-up, she’s in desperate need of inspiration.

Vimal is determined to win back his ex-girlfriend. When he hears she’s bringing her new boyfriend on a group holiday, he impulsively declares that he’s bringing a plus one too.

Their mutual friends have the perfect solution: Niro can pretend to be Vimal’s new girlfriend and join the holiday. Imagine the incredible photographs she could take in the Swiss alps…

She’s not thinking about love. He’s thinking about someone else. Can they fake a picture-perfect relationship – or will real feelings get in the way?

Don’t miss this funny and uplifting fake-dating romance for fans of The Kiss Quotient and The Love Hypothesis!

Author Biography

Jeevani Charika /Rhoda Baxter

Jeevani (pronounced ‘Jeev-uh-nee’) writes multicultural women’s fiction and romantic comedies. She spent much of her childhood in Sri Lanka, with short forays to Nigeria and Micronesia, before returning to England to settle in Yorkshire. All of this, it turned out, was excellent preparation for becoming a novelist.

She also writes under the name Rhoda Baxter. Her books have been shortlisted for multiple awards.

A microbiologist by training, Jeevani loves all things science geeky. She also loves cake, crochet and playing with Lego. You can find out more about her (and get a free book) on her website

Website: www.rhodabaxter.com 

  www.jeevanicharika.com

Monday Merry Meet: Anya Bergman

Recently, we reviewed the wonderful atmospheric and dark novel, The Witches of Vardo by Anya Bergman which focuses on the Norwegian witch trials. The review can be found here. It is a thrill to share this week’s Monday Merry Meet where we chat with Anya about her book, writing and of course, spells.

Willow: Welcome Anya, we’re so excited to have you here. Have a seat. We thought we’d sit in the shop rather than the usual backroom. We’ve had an influx of deliveries and you can’t move for boxes.

What would you like to drink? We have Yorkshire tea, herbal tea, and other blends, coffee or something stronger. We have different flavour gins and vodkas as we collected many berries last year.

Anya: Would you have some Bengal Spice tea with a drop of oat milk? It’s my favourite tea spicey with cinnamon.

Amber: We do though I’ve not had it before. Rosa will bring some through. I must say I loved your book, and it triggered lots of conversations in the shop. What made you chose the harrowing Vardo witch trials as a subject to write about?

Anya: Thank you so much! I was living in Norway at the time, and a friend told me about the Norwegian witch trials, most of which took place on the remote arctic island of Vardø. When I discovered that the trial records still existed, and were translated into English, I became hooked. I decided I wanted to write a novel raising the lost voices of these women.

Willow: The characters and place are very real in your book, and we think this is because of the small details of their lives you added into it, including the food they ate, clothes and environment. How much research did you have to do?

Anya: I did a lot of research. I went to the university library in Bergen where I was living and spent hours reading history books, as well as travelling up to Vardø twice – once in winter and once in summer. I consulted with historians, went to museums, and also had a Sami sensitivity reader to make sure I didn’t get anything wrong.

Amber: Your women in the book all have an inner strength but are completely different in personality. If you could sit down with one and chat over a cup of tea. Who would you choose and why?

Anya: I think it has to be Maren. She’s quite an enigma, and I would like to dig a little deeper into who she is. Also, she’s a great storyteller so an evening by a roaring fire with a cup of hot cocoa listening to Maren’s tall tales would be awesome.

Amber: It would be Maren for me too based on her storytelling abilities. This is your first book. What has your publication journey been like? If you did it again, would you change anything?

Anya: So, this is my debut historical fiction as Anya Bergman (it’s a pen name) but I have had 13 other books published under another name. I have been trying to make a living as a professional author for 20 years and it’s been a long journey requiring tenacity and endurance. But I LOVE being a writer. I am living my dream so while it can be challenging in terms of trying to make a living, I wouldn’t change anything. I am the writer I am today because of the journey I have taken as an author. I also teach creative writing, which has brought me so much as a writer, and I love mentoring other writers. Community is important as a writer because we spend so much time alone in our heads and writing.

Willow: We always love hearing about author’s day. Do you have a strict your writing routine?

Anya: I try my best to write every day in the morning, but sometimes I am teaching or meeting other work deadlines, so I have to be flexible. It might happen that I don’t write for a few days, but I am usually thinking about the book in my head and then I dive in and write for hours on end for several days in a row.

Amber: I’m attempting to write my own witchy based novel. Do you have any advice for novice writers?

Anya: Yes, lots! I am currently mentoring 14 emerging writers and I believe very strongly in the need to create community and support each other. So I would encourage you to be part of a writing community, whether that’s online, with a couple of writing friends, or within a writing group. Since writing is such a solitary occupation, it’s good to have the support of others who write. The other thing I would say is keep writing despite the critical voices in your head. ALL writers, whether published or unpublished, struggle with imposter syndrome and once we realise that feeling isn’t going to go away, we can accept it and write despite it. With a first draft, don’t expect it to be perfect. Just try to get the whole thing down (a vomit draft) and then in your second draft you can begin crafting your story.

Willow: The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Anya: I think I would have to be sensible and choose financial security. I am currently working with the affirmation I am abundant, which I find myself coming to again and again. But being a writer is a very financially insecure business and sadly it seems to be getting harder and harder to make a living as a writer, so a little financial security would really help bring me more time for creative work.

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Anya: There have been many wonderful holidays and perfect days, but I think the most memorable day was when I was up on the island of Vardø researching my book. It was midwinter, so the skies were dark, and there was a snow blizzard sweeping across the island. I remember walking out to Steilneset where the memorial for those executed for witchcraft is situated. The ocean was crashing against the shore, and I went inside Louise Bourgeois’ incredible installation where an eternal flame shoots from a chair and I could see myself reflected in the giant mirrors above. It was here I felt the presence of all those women executed for witchcraft and I made a pledge to tell the story in my novel no matter how long it took me. When I came out, the snow had stopped falling, and the skies were filled with the swirling Northern Lights, which to me seemed as if the spirits of these lost women dancing in the sky.

Amber: That sounds amazing. Ghosts and paranormal activity plague The Enchanted Emporium. Have had had any spooky experiences – has it influenced your writing?

Anya: Yes, I’ve had a few spooky experiences, but I am not afraid of ghosts or spirits. However, when I was deeply immersed in writing The Witches of Vardø, I did experience powerful nightmares which transported me to The Witches Hole on the island. I would wake up in terror because it seemed so real. I think there was a moment when I felt almost possessed by the stories of these women clamouring for the truth to be told.

Willow: The Witches Hole is nightmare inducing and powerful imagery. Luckily, we live in a time and place where witchcraft is not persecuted as before. If we could blend a potion to give you the ability to shapeshift into any of your animals and birds mentioned in your novel, what would it be and why?

Anya: Oh, it has to be the lynx. I saw these big cats when I lived in Norway and I was completely bewitched. They are incredibly beautiful, poised, intelligent, lithe, and powerful, completely at home in the snow-laden vistas of the north.

Image by No-longer-here from Pixabay

Willow: Our Enchanted Emporium bookshelf is a small lending library full of books with either fantastical, witchy, or paranormal theme. What would you add to it?

Anya: There are some great witchy reads coming out right now which you might like to add – Kirsty Logan’s She is Witch and Emilia Hart’s Weyward are both fabulous. You might like to also add some non-fiction books on witches such as Mona Chollet’s In Defence of Witches.

Rosa: I have a Box of Romance books I share with friends and customers. What would you add to it?

Anya: My absolute favourite love story is Devotion by Hannah Kent. It is so beautiful and had me in tears. I was so moved. And although you might not think so initially, it is HEA because love is stronger than death!

Willow: And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Anya: I can tell you that the title is ‘The Tarot Reader of Versailles’ which might give you a little idea of what the novel is about! It’s inspired by a real historical figure who was a tarot reader during the French Revolution. I have been reading Tarot since I was fifteen, and for a time worked as a professional Tarot reader, so it’s an area I have always wanted to write about in fiction. Tarot Cards are powerful tools of self-knowledge, while they possess a magical quality to them as well. They were incredibly popular during the Reign of Terror as people searched for certainty amid the chaos of the French Revolution. 

Willow: That sounds a fascinating read and we can’t wait to hold a copy when published. Good luck with your writing and thanks for popping by.

The Witches of Vardo by Anya Bergman

Title: The Witches of Vardo

Author: Anya Bergman

Publisher: Bonnier

Genre: Fiction, Witchlit, Historical fiction

Release date: 12th Jan 2023

Blurb

1662. Norway. A dangerous time to be a woman, when even dancing can lead to accusations of witchcraft. When Zigri, a normal fisherman’s wife, desperate and grieving after the loss of her husband and son, embarks on an affair with the married son of a wealthy merchant, it is not long before she is sent to the fortress at Vardø, to be tried and condemned as a witch. Summer is twenty-four hours of light and winter is twenty-four hours of darkness, and night is closing in.
 
Zigri’s daughter Ingeborg leaves her younger sister and sets off into the wilderness to try to bring her mother back home. Accompanying her on this quest is Maren – herself the daughter of a witch ­– whose wild nature and unconquerable spirit gives Ingeborg the courage to venture into the unknown, and to risk all she has to save her family.
 
Also captive in the fortress is Anna Rhodius with instructions to extract the confessions from the supposed witches. Once the King of Denmark’s mistress, she has been brought to Vardø in disgrace. What will she do – and who will she betray – to return to her privileged life at court?
 
These Witches of Vardø are stronger than even the King of Denmark. In an age weighted against them they refuse to be victims. They will have their justice. All they need do is show their power.
 
The Witches of Vardø is based upon the real events of witch hunts in Norway in 1662. A blend of historical fact with magic realism, retellings of old Nordic folktales, Norse mythology and Sámi mythology, and told from the points of view of Anna and Ingeborg, it will take your breath away.

Author Biography

Anya Bergman

Anya Bergman lives in Ireland. She graduated from Edinburgh Napier with a Master’s in Creative Writing with distinction in 2020. She lived for six years in Norway researching this book extensively. The Witches of Vardø, a passion project, is her debut novel. She says: “My aim is to raise the lost of voices of the women of Vardø with tenderness, to reclaim their agency and to empower the reader with a strong sense of F*** the patriarchy!”

Monday Merry Meet: Ben Peyton

It’s Monday, a new week and a new visitor to the Emporium for this week’s Monday Merry Meet. Amber slipped Ben Peyton’s debut novel, Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George into her bag to read as soon as she saw it. She maybe older than the book’s target audience but if it mentions dragons, she needs to read it. Her review is here.

Grab a cuppa and join us for a chat about his book, spells and of course, writing.

Willow: Welcome Ben, we’re so excited to have you here. Come through to the back but excuse the mess, Vincent and Black Cat saw a ghost mouse and caused havoc. What would you like to drink? Yorkshire tea, herbal tea, coffee or something stronger. Since Christmas, we have a selection of homemade wines left or beer.

Ben: It’s lovely to be here. Those ghost mice are terrible liars. You can see right through them. I’m giving Dry January a go, so as tempting as some wine sounds, I’ll stick with a tea. Milk and one and a half sugars, please.

Image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay

Amber: I’ve just finished your new book, Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George. In my view, every book should have a dragon in them. Yours is from the legend of St. George and when Luke visits the National Gallery; he sees Tintoretto’s painting. Was this your inspiration behind the novel?

Ben: Yes, it was. I was at the gallery with my family and noticed Tintoretto’s painting. For some reason, it really stood out to me. As I was looking at it, an idea began to take shape. I read a lot of books (mainly thrillers) and struggled to think of one that had featured St George. I bought a postcard size copy of the painting, took it home and began to jot down some ideas.

Rosa: It is action packed with inventions to escape from the baddies and obviously you had fun writing those scenes. When my son, Alejo, is older, I know he’ll love reading them. Did you always want to be a children’s author?

Ben: No, I was originally going to be a teacher. I was very sporty (I went to a school called Millfield which is renowned for its sporting achievements) and got into university to study PE. At the last minute, I auditioned for drama school on the advice of my drama teacher, won a place at Guildford School of Acting and had a fairly successful career as an actor until I retired at the grand old age of 30 to work full-time. Writing a book was something that came to me much later in life. I was about 42 when I began, Covid hit and things took a back-seat and I picked it up again at the end of 2021.

Amber: This is your debut book. What has your publication journey been like? If you did it again, would you change anything?

Ben: I would certainly change things. In my eagerness to try and get a literary agent, I sent Luke out to potential agents before I was 100% happy with it. I rushed the process, which was daft. For example, I sent the first 10,000 words to one agent and immediately after, I noticed a spelling mistake in it that I hadn’t seen before. Must’ve read that part a thousand times but “author blindness” had its claws into me.

A good friend of mine has been hugely successful as an Indie author. Carl Ashmore (do check out his wonderful series “The Time Hunters”) has guided me along my journey with patience and kindness. He recommended particular software for the best formatting , helped me through the Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing process as well as offering advice on my story. Very grateful to him.

Trying to get an agent has been incredibly frustrating. It’s similar to when I was an actor auditioning for roles. You do your thing and then don’t hear anything back, so you’re often left in limbo. So many agents have different submission policies. Some want 5,000 words, others 15,000, others a synopsis with the opening three chapters, so you’re constantly having to adapt to their requirements. And the standard rejection email is always disappointing to receive. Just once, I would have liked something personal from one of them. I know how busy they are and how many submissions they receive, but a tiny bit of human interaction featuring a comment on plot or character would soften the blow.

I paid for the brilliant team at House of Editors to help proof-read and edit my book too, and they did a magnificent job. They raised a question about the plot, which blew it wide open and made nearly all of it pointless! It was hilarious. All I needed to fix it was one additional line of dialogue, but again, I hadn’t picked up on it. Thank goodness for them.

Image by Edar from Pixabay

Willow: That was lucky. We always love hearing about how authors write. Are you a plotter or a pantser? Do you have a strict writing routine?

Ben: I have a desk in my living room that I like to sit at and write whilst listening to film scores. John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Patrick Doyle or Craig Armstrong are favourites. Alternatively, ambient music such as Kinobe or U137 help me concentrate. If I can write about 1,000 words on a writing day, I’m happy. I usually write down ideas as they come to me on a Word document and develop the story around them. When I started LSATBOSG, I didn’t have an ending. That came during the writing process.

Amber: We have many would be writers coming into the shop. Do you have any advice for novice writers?

Ben: Firstly, don’t send your work to agents without checking it a gazillion times! And then check it again!

Keep writing. Have a pen and paper with you at all times or use notes on your phone to write down an idea when it comes to you. Read and listen to other authors. Reach out to them as well. Another brilliant author (Rick Jones – he writes thrillers for adults) has also been incredibly helpful to me and shared his advice and experience. Don’t take rejection personally and only let trusted friends read your drafts.

Finally, pay for a good cover. Tim at Dissect Designs absolutely nailed mine. I never met him, but we emailed regularly. He was professional, efficient and used his expertise to design what I envisaged. He pointed out why certain things might not work and was never patronising or rude. I will unquestionably be using him for my next book.

Willow: The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Ben: A good night’s sleep, please. I have two kids (12 & 9) so it’s been a while since I had one of those!

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Ben: Either my wedding day, back in St Ives in 2009 or Christmas 2021. It was the last time my whole family were together as my dad died the following May.

Amber: Ghosts and paranormal activity plague The Enchanted Emporium. Have had had any spooky experiences – has it influenced your writing?

Ben: I can’t say that it’s influenced my writing, but one possibly unusual thing springs to mind. Back in 1996 when I was 19, I had Bacterial Meningitis. Thankfully, I don’t remember much about it. I was unconscious for about two days in hospital, but I remember seeing / dreaming my grandfather with cigarette smoke surrounding his face (he was a smoker and had died about 10 years before) and smiling. I felt an absolute, serene peace. That’s it. Some spiritual friends of mine tell me that he was watching over me. Who knows?

Willow: If we could blend a potion to give you a superpower or special ability for 24 hours what would it be and what would you do with it?

Ben: Flight. Can you imagine? That sensation would be magical. And it would save time and cut down on pollution.

Image by 愚木混株 Cdd20 from Pixabay

Willow: It truly would. What book would you add to The Enchanted Emporium bookshelf?

Ben: Unquestionably book one of Carl Ashmore’s The Time Hunters. They are full of charm, adventure, and love.

Rosa: Amber will add them to the list. I have a Box of Romance books I share with friends and customers. What would you add to it?

Ben: I’ve only read one romance novel in my life. Sorry. But I enjoyed it! One Last Letter From Greece by Emma Cowell. Lovely story of grief and love. Incidentally, she was my girlfriend back in 1996 and undoubtedly saved my life by rushing me to the doctor when I had meningitis!

Willow: We’ll have to source that one then. Without her we wouldn’t have Luke Stevens on our bookshelf. And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Ben: I’m beavering away with a sequel to Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George, which is provisionally titled, Luke Stevens and the Quest for Excalibur. Hopefully coming later this year.

Willow: We look forward to seeing it on our shelf. Thank you for visiting. Good luck with your writing and Dry January.

Title: Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George

Author: Ben Peyton

Genre: Children’s fiction

Release date: 1st April 2022

Publisher: Neilson UK

Purchase:

Amazon

And signed and dedicated copies are available here: https://benpeyton.co.uk/buy-2/

Blurb

“With a great central concept, this is a fast-paced imaginative romp for the younger reader.” Carl Ashmore – Best-selling author of The Time Hunters series

“Ben Peyton’s debut novel is chock-full of action and suspense that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George hits all the marks that a blockbuster should.” Rick Jones – Best-selling author of The Vatican Knights series

On his 13th birthday and presented with an unusual gift, Luke Stevens suddenly finds himself thrust into a battle between good and evil, with him right at the heart of it. For within Luke flows the blood of a legend, and there are those that will stop at nothing to get their hands on what Luke now has in his possession.

With a group of Guardians to help him, Luke has no choice but to step up and fulfil an ancient prophecy where mankind’s way of life is threatened by a ruthless enemy seeking global domination. What follows is a race against time where one thing is certain: Luke’s life will never be the same again.

Full to the brim with action, humour, crazy gadgets and history, prepare yourself for an exciting adventure that will keep you turning pages long into the night.

Welcome to Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George…

Author Biography

Ben Peyton

Ben Peyton is a former actor (a regular in ITV1’s The Bill) and now a full-time dad and writer. He has written reviews and articles for Filmhounds Magazine, Time & Leisure Magazine and several online blogs. Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George is his debut novel.

Social Media

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ben_peyton007/

Twitter https://twitter.com/benpeyton007

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/benpeytonauthor

Book Review: Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George

Rumours have been swirling around the Emporium today nudging the witches to tidy up for a potential visitor for a Monday Merry Meet. On closer investigation they seem to have stemmed from a rather excited children’s book Luke Stevens and The Blood of St George by Ben Peyton. It was easy to discover the culprit when it jiggled and jumped into passer-bys hands when they approached the bookshelf. Encouraged by the novel’s tenacity and the word dragon in the title, Amber took it home to read.

Scroll down to read her review and why not, subscribe to this blog so you don’t miss Ben Peyton’s interview tomorrow.

Title: Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George

Author: Ben Peyton

Genre: Children’s fiction

Release date: 1st April 2022

Publisher: Neilson UK

Purchase:

Amazon

And signed and dedicated copies are available here: https://benpeyton.co.uk/buy-2/

Blurb

“With a great central concept, this is a fast-paced imaginative romp for the younger reader.” Carl Ashmore – Best-selling author of The Time Hunters series

“Ben Peyton’s debut novel is chock-full of action and suspense that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George hits all the marks that a blockbuster should.” Rick Jones – Best-selling author of The Vatican Knights series

On his 13th birthday and presented with an unusual gift, Luke Stevens suddenly finds himself thrust into a battle between good and evil, with him right at the heart of it. For within Luke flows the blood of a legend, and there are those that will stop at nothing to get their hands on what Luke now has in his possession.

With a group of Guardians to help him, Luke has no choice but to step up and fulfil an ancient prophecy where mankind’s way of life is threatened by a ruthless enemy seeking global domination. What follows is a race against time where one thing is certain: Luke’s life will never be the same again.

Full to the brim with action, humour, crazy gadgets and history, prepare yourself for an exciting adventure that will keep you turning pages long into the night.

Welcome to Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George…

Thoughts of the Emporium

As far as Amber is concerned, dragons in fiction make for a better book, and this is no exception. Despite being older than the intended target audience, the tale of Luke Stevens drew her in and didn’t release her until the end. It would have been one of her favourite reads growing up. She hasn’t had as much fun reading this genre since Simon Mayo’s Itch. 

This action packed thriller has everything she wanted – drama, tension, memorable plot and distinct characters. And a visit to one of her bucket list places to visit, The National Art Gallery to see the impressive painting of St George slaying the dragon by Tintoretto.

Fast paced, Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George resembled a James Bond movie with fledgling superpowers and family secrets. Humour was blended in effortlessly with fight scenes, adventure and the battle between good and evil. What more could she want? No wonder the excitable book demanded attention. 

 It’s zipped into Rosa’s bag now – Alejo may be on the younger scale of the readership but Rosa can’t wait to use his bedtime reading sessions as an excuse to read it herself. 

Author Biography

Ben Peyton

Ben Peyton is a former actor (a regular in ITV1’s The Bill) and now a full-time dad and writer. He has written reviews and articles for Filmhounds Magazine, Time & Leisure Magazine and several online blogs. Luke Stevens and the Blood of St George is his debut novel.

Social Media

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ben_peyton007/

Twitter https://twitter.com/benpeyton007

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/benpeytonauthor

Monday Merry Meet: Jane Lovering

Now the chaos of Yule and the New Year is over, we are delighted to share our first Monday Merry Meet of 2023. Today Jane Lovering, author of 25 books has popped in for a chat about her books, writing and of course magic. We all fell in love with her The Forgotten House on the Moor, a romance with a ghost hunting twist last year and can’t wait to read her new release, There’s No Place Like Home.

Grab yourself a cuppa and join us to discover more about this author.

Willow: Welcome Jane, we’re so excited to have you here. I hope you’re not allergic to cats. Vincent, our lumbering Maine Coon, has taken to sleeping on the sofa in the staffroom. Amber will move him out of the way so you can sit down.

Jane: I love Whitby! It’s not that far from where I live, so I can call it research, wandering down the little old streets and popping into the wonderful crooked little shops in the Old Town. Oh, and I’m not at all allergic to cats – in fact I’ve had them all my life. I don’t have one now because Current Dog is a Patterdale Terrier and the only response to hearing that someone owns a Patterdale is ‘oh dear, I am sorry.’ She’s a fiend. Vincent can sit on my lap if he likes.

Vincent

Willow: Be prepared to be squashed by him then. He loves attention. What would you like to drink? We have Yorkshire tea, herbal tea, coffee or something stronger. Since Christmas we have some homemade sloe gin left or wine.

Jane: I can’t drink alcohol at all, so I’ll have a big mug of Yorkshire Tea, please. Very strong, no sugar, hardly any milk. I have the tea palate of a jobbing builder. Oh, and if you’ve got any biscuits…

Amber: One mug of builder’s tea coming up and we always have biscuits.  

Image by Benjamin Nelan from Pixabay

Rosa: I’ve just finished your new book, There’s No Place like Home. It is set on the Yorkshire moors and, like your other books, has a wonderful sense of place. Do you spend a lot of time in potential locations to capture their atmosphere? Where is your favourite spot?

Jane: Most of my books are set around where I live, or within a few minutes’ walk/drive. I spend a LOT of time walking and running locally (see under ‘Patterdale terrier owner’) and it all serves to help me absorb atmosphere and scenery. Although when I’m running, I’m mostly sweating and swearing, to be honest. I don’t really have a favourite place, I love all the moors and fields and becks and dales and woods around me. It depends on my mood. Sometimes the exposed bleakness of the moors is best, and sometimes I just want some rustling woodland with leaves, and squirrels to chase. Er, for the dog, not me.

Willow: Your new protagonist, Izzy, joins a reality show to track down big cats wild in the British countryside. What was your inspiration for this idea?

Jane: A friend is fascinated by Bigfoot and watches a lot of those ‘Hunting Bigfoot’ programmes. He suggested that I wrote about a British Bigfoot hunt, but I’m just a wee bit more sceptical than he is. However, I know people who’ve seen what they have sworn are big cats out in the countryside, and I thought that finding one of these might make a good story. Then I needed to work out the how and the why – and came up with a reality TV show. They always seem to feature people doing ridiculous things that nobody would ever want to do in the normal course of events, and people will seemingly do anything for money…

Rosa: Among other things, this novel tackles homelessness. Was it something you planned to cover to raise awareness of the situation people find themselves in, or did it develop while writing about Izzy?

Jane: My characters tend to come to me fully formed, so I already knew that Izzy was homeless. The only thing I had to work out was how it came about, and come up with a way that was plausible – a way which would make many readers think ‘that could have been me’.

Amber: You’ve written 25 books. What has your publication journey been like? If you did it again, would you change anything?

Jane: D’you know, I don’t think I would? I’ve been very very lucky, and I’ve met such wonderful people and made such good friends along the way, that I don’t think I’d have anything any different – other than maybe have it happen twenty years earlier!

Willow: We always love hearing about author’s day. Do you have a strict your writing routine?

Jane: Well, it’s not ‘strict’ because I don’t believe in beating myself up over it, but I tend to wake up, make a big mug of tea and then go back to bed with the dog and my laptop. I try to write 1000 words a day, and then I’m up and out for a run with the dog and then off to work (I don’t start work until 3pm before you think I’m one of these ‘early risers’ whom I swear are a myth).

Image by Rick Stefanie from Pixabay

Amber: I dabble in writing. Do you have any advice for novice writers?

Jane: Read read read. Not just in the genre you want to write, but anything and everything. Biographies, ‘How To’ books, novels, poetry – every word you read informs the writer you become. Oh, and don’t ask for feedback on your writing from family, or anyone who might die at your hand if they criticise you. Find a beta reader or writing partner who is not emotionally invested in you – they are the only people who will be honest. Joining a writers’ group can be helpful, but it depends on the group – avoid any with loud, dominant characters who are only there to read their work and be told how wonderful they are.

Willow: Great advice and an ideal excuse to visit bookshops guilt free. Whitby has a delightful one. The Enchanted Emporium sells several candles in The Wishing Spell range which promise to help your day go smoothly. Which would you choose?

Jane: I live alone in a tiny little cottage (well, I’ve got the dog…) so I’m fine for peace and tranquillity, I sleep very well (because it’s so quiet), and I believe in making my own luck and security. I think it would have to be focus and concentration because I can be – how shall we put it politely? – a wee bit scatty and disorganised.

Willow: One candle invokes memories of your perfect holiday or day when lit. Where would it take you?

Jane: I’m not sure. I think my life is pretty perfect at the moment, actually! Possibly it would remind me of Christmases, spent with all my children around me, eating food, playing games and laughing. If it could blank out the hours of cooking, the arguing, the mess and the washing up, that would be nice too.

Amber: Ghosts and paranormal activity plague The Enchanted Emporium. Have had had any spooky experiences – did it influence your writing The Forgotten House on the Moor and other books?

Jane: A few minor happenings that I couldn’t explain – this is a very old cottage and I’ve had the usual amount of strange window and door openings, knockings and clonks. Over the years, I’ve seen things which might have been supernatural, and I have a belief that we don’t understand everything about the world beyond us. That sense of mystery, of enquiry and the ‘maybe’ runs through a lot of my books.

Willow: Your cottage sounds delightful. Unlike your character, Holly Grey in Hubble Bubble, we don’t dabble with magic, it’s in our blood. Bearing that in mind, if we could blend a potion to give you a superpower or special ability for 24 hours what would it be and what would you do with it?

Jane: I would like to be able to see the world through the eyes of animals. To experience what they do and understand how they see us. I think it might help me to understand why they seem to be such irrational creatures – I’d love to sit up trees with squirrels and stomp along with badgers and skitter about with the ponies!

Willow: I think I’d have to join you with that superpower, experiencing Whitby through the eyes of Vincent or some of the wild birds would be eye opening. What book would you add to The Enchanted Emporium bookshelf?

Jane: You’ve probably got them all! But I’m reading a book at the moment called ‘Mythology of the British Isles’ by Geoffrey Ashe, about the history of folklore in Britain and the origin of myths, which is fascinating.

Willow: That’s one we don’t have but it sounds like it’s a need.

Rosa: I have a Box of Romance books I share with friends and customers. What would you add to it?

Jane: That’s too hard! That’s like asking me to choose my favourite child! I have so many friends who write amazing romances, that I couldn’t possibly select just a few, it wouldn’t be fair.

Willow: It can be a cruel question. And finally, what are you working on currently? Or is it top secret?

Jane: My next book is with my editor and awaiting edits, but I’m actually currently writing a book set on Orkney, about a witch’s cottage, the person who inherits it and what happens when she does. It might be right up your street!

Willow: It truly does and we can’t wait to read it. I hope the writing goes well and you’ll have to pop back and tell us all about it.

There’s No Place Like Home by Jane Lovering

Title: There’s No Place Like Home

Author: Jane Lovering

Publisher: Boldwood books

Genre: Woman’s fiction, romance

Release date: 10th January 2023

Purchase Link – https://amzn.to/3FsnZU2 

Blurb:

Isabel, Izzy to her friends, has got nothing left to lose when she makes the bravest decision of her life.

A month living under canvas on the Yorkshire Moors with five strangers wouldn’t normally be her idea of a good time, even if there is prize money to be won at the end of it, but she’s all out of options.

Joining her in this wild goose chase, being filmed for a TV show, are farmer Seb, whose marriage is creaking but who is desperate not to lose his family. Sheltered Ruth who needs an opportunity to show she can make her own decisions. Glamorous socialite Kanga, who has been living a lie. American Junior who has his own secret that has led him there. And last but not least, mysterious and brooding Mac, who Izzy can’t help but be drawn to.

As the fickleness of nature tests them all to their limits, this disparate group come together to face the challenge. But when Izzy finally tells them the truth that has brought her out on the Moors, will that be the end of their adventure, or the beginning of her future? Because what Izzy really needs is a place to call home, and someone to share it with could be even better…

Author Biography

Jane Lovering

Jane Lovering is the author of 25 novels and novellas, which she calls ‘dark psychological romance, with jokes’. She lives in North Yorkshire, where many of her books are set, in a creaky old cottage with an obsessive Patterdale Terrier and a lot of cobwebs. She has won four Romantic Novel of the Year awards, likes biscuits and running (cause and effect) and Tony Robinson. Jane is actually a very nice person, despite her tendency to snarl ‘what do you want?’ out of open windows whilst holding back a growling dog with one hand. Honestly.

Social Media Links   

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Jane-Lovering-Author-106404969412833

Twitter https://twitter.com/janelovering

Newsletter Sign Up: https://bit.ly/JaneLoveringNews

Bookbub profile: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jane-lovering

Best Books of 2022 and chat of things to come

Happy New Year from all at The Enchanted Emporium and we wish you a magical 2023 with plenty of happiness, good health and laughter. And books, lots of books and tea. If the current influx of books arriving on the enchanted bookshelf and in Rosa’s Box of Romance is anything to go by we’re in for a treat.

Have you seen the recent Guardian newspaper articles regarding the rise of witch lit or witcherature? We’ll link them here and here. We agree 2022 been the year of the witch as our favourite books will show and it looks like the trend will continue. Aren’t we lucky? Willow needs to conjure a pause time to read spell to read them all. Maybe, just maybe we will have exciting news to tell about our own story based in our shop written by writer, Kate Kenzie later this year but you know what some writers are like with deadlines and self doubt, it could be delayed again. You can follow her progress and give her a kick up the bum – sorry encouragement here.

Our blog is in its infancy, toddling about but we’ve had a ball chatting to authors in our Monday Merry Meets. They’ve brightened up our weeks and you can catch up with those you may have missed below. This year we’ll continue to fling our staff room doors and provide tea while we gossip with more writers and customers who stumble down Black Cat Alley. Our first guest is Yorkshire romance author, Jane Lovering. Why not press subscribe so you don’t miss any future chat?

Monday Merry Meets in 2022

Jeanna Louise Skinner

Alys West

Christina Courtenay

Kiley Dunbar

Kate Johnson

Kat Chant

J C Clarke

Elisabeth Hobbes

Lilian Brooks

Stephanie Hansen

Rachel Burge

Sharon Booth

Heidi Swain

Jessica Thorne

Emma Bradley

Enough rambling before our first cup of tea and the sun has risen over Whitby, here are our favourite books of 2022 from the bookshelf and Rosa’s Box of Romance in no particular order (that really is a ask too far). Are you ready?

Here goes

The Best Books of 2022 on the Enchanted Emporium’s Bookshelf

Best reads on the Enchanted Emporium’s Bookshelf

The Change by Kirsten Miller – One of the finest examples of witcherature and feminist writing we’ve seen. It kicks ass, has superb powerful characterisation and is unforgettable for its humour, darkness and immersive plot.

The Gifts by Liz Hyder – This was another immersive, breath stopping novel. Not witches this time but angels in the nineteenth century when misogyny and greed is rife. The cover is beautiful and with this unforgettable storyline, it deserves to sit on everyone’s bookshelf

The Hex Appeal by Kate Johnson – Full of humour, and with plenty of highly imaginative mayhem this witchy romcom made us chuckle out loud.

The Witches of Moonshyne Manor by Bianca Marias – with a cast of six octogenarian witches, this novel captivated us and it highlights how commercial witch lit can be. The Moonshyne witches will be forever in out hearts.

Widdershins by Helen Steadman – Historical fiction based on the Newcastle witch trials in 1649. The detail and knowledge portrayed on the page brought the era and danger to live.

Demon by Matt Wesolowski. – From witches to a demon haunting a village in Yorkshire. The podcast format worked well for this horror novel and sent shivers down our spines.

The Ghost of Ivy Barn by Mark Stay – Another fun and immersive witchy novel in the Witches of Woodville series. It has humour, action and highly memorable, quirky characters. Once read you have to keep reading the series over and over.

The Witch and the Tsar by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore – The last book reviewed last year and with impressive world building, this retelling of the Baba Yaga folk tale is a must for witcherature fans.

What were your favourite reads last year? Drop us a line or comment we’d love to know.

Happy reading!