Category: Blog

 

Fellow YA writer Lisa Glass asks me all the questions over on Vulpe Libris today. And I try to come up with sensible answers.

Check out Lisa’s summer surf romance Blue for an extra dose of sunshine.

A recent study proved something that every dog lover knows: dogs feel jealousy. The US researchers videoed 36 dogs and found that most barely reacted when their owners ignored them and read aloud from a pop-up picture book. But when their owners lavished attention on a realistic-looking stuffed dog, their pets showed classic signs of jealousy – touching the toy or trying to get between it, some even growling and snapping at their ‘rival’.

I’m not in the least bit surprised. Our oldest terrier, Mrs Perkins, hated it when my partner and I cuddled, and would try and force her way between us. When we brought in another doggy rival in the form of Stanley, her jealousy was plain to see. If we even so much as look at poor Stan, Mrs Perkins noses her way into the action. ‘I’m top dog,’ you can see her thinking. ‘Me first.’

Interestingly, someone who recently read Now You See Me mentioned that Rudman, the dog in the book, seems like a character in himself. I realised she was right – I did see Rudman as another character, one that is not easily fooled and has strong opinions on what’s happening in the story. Indeed, he plays a significant part in the action.

And yes, I do see my own dogs as just another member of the family. When you live side-by-side with a pet, it’s very clear that animals feel a range of emotions in just the same way humans do. They sulk, they quarrel, they play, they even tease – you only have to watch Stan lie in wait and ambush Mrs Perkins to know that he very much has a sense of humour.

 

Most of all, I’m convinced that dogs love us just as much as we love them. I came across two videos last week that back me up. Just watch the one above where a Schnauzer is overcome with emotion when his own returns after a two-year absence. Or this one where a dog literally cries for joy on the lap of a soldier returning after a six-month tour of duty.

 

 

Here, have a tissue.

*sniffs*

HeWhoIsNeverWrong got it a bit… err wrong. There we were, just making a bite to eat before going down into Lyme Regis to watch the Red Arrows perform for Lifeboat Week at seven o’clock, according to HWINW. At just after six there is a thunderous roar over our heads as said Arrows race over our house and down towards the beach.

Bugger.

Still, we hot-footed it up to the loft and watched a  fantastic display over the town. One plane zoomed back towards us and got so close HWISW claimed he could see the pilot inside.

Still, he was a little red-faced about the timing. Though, of course, he insists we were better off watching it from home anyway.

 

Long time no updates, but I’m making up for it with two bits of good news about Now You See Me. It’s just been picked as one of iTunes Book’s Teen Summer Reads.  So I’m pretty chuffed about that.

And I can finally announce that Now You See Me has also sold to Germany, in a deal with CBJ Verlag, the German arm of Random House. So if anyone wants to brush up on their German, it’s coming out in Spring 2015. ‘Hurra!’ as they say over in Deutschland. Danke schoen!

A chocolate-themed blog tour? Gotta love that idea. So thanks to Kendra Leighton for tagging me. You can read her post here. Kendra’s debut novel, Glimpse, is coming out very soon. Inspired by Alfred Noyes’ classic poem ‘The Highwayman’, Glimpse is a ghost story, a love story, and a story of a girl fighting for her future by confronting her terrible past. Can’t wait to get my hands on it!

 

Okay, so dark chocolate. I love it. I always liked Bournville as a kid but now have graduated up to 85% – my favourite is produced by an organic cooperative in Madagascar. It’s a wonderfully acidic, shart, fruity chocolate, but sadly I am pretty sure that chocolate is a key trigger for my troublesome migraines, so I rarely eat it now. But occasionally I can’t resist the odd nibble.

My dark chocolate book would have to be American Psycho by Brett Easton Ellis. It is very, very dark, but also very funny and quite brilliant. I’ve always loved a good satire, and American Psycho sends up all that nineties loadsa-money yuppiness so cleverly I was laughing all the way through. Even during the gory bits. You will never see ties in quite the same way again. And like good dark chocolate, a little goes a long way

 

 

 

My milk chocolate book is We Were Liars by E Lockhart. This recently released YA book has taken the US and the UK by storm, and rightly so. Great when something really loves up to all the hype. I’m not comparing it to milk chocolate because it is bland – far from it, it’s full of beautiful, fiery prose and the story itself has a fiendishly clever twist that will break your heart. Take it from me. Few books make me cry, but this one did. No, I’m comparing it to milk chocolate because it’s so moreish – once you start, you won’t be able to stop, not until you get right through to the end.

 

 

 

 

And for white chocolate, I’m choosing an old favourite: I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith. One of the precursors to YA, I Capture the Castle is my white chocolate book because I somehow think of white chocolate as being lighter and less serious than it’s more cocoa-packed siblings. And Dodie Smith’s novel, while embracing some serious themes, is ultimately and sunny, happy sort of book. The kind of thing you fancy when you want some sweetness in your life.

I am nominating my bestie writing pal and thoroughly good egg, Wendy Storer. Mainly cos I love her, and partly to get her back for nominating me in the Seven Things challenge *sticks out tongue *. Wendy is the author of two fabulous YA novels, Where Bluebirds Fly and Bring Me Sunshine, as well as joint runner-up in the Mslexia Children’s Novel Competition in 2013. Check out her blog for reams of great writerly advice. Much better for you than too much chocolate.

Right, off to scoff something dark and delicious. Sod the headaches.

 

It’s all gone a bit mental chez Now You See Me. Pleased as punch to be picked by the wonderful online independent bookstore Hive as one of its Rising Writers for June – bit ironic given that I’m usually still in my jammies at midday. Seriously though, it’s a great honour, and they also gave me a chance to talk about being a debut writer here.

Meanwhile, a couple of great reviews – one at the Lancashire Evening Post, and another over on writer Jonathan Eyre’s blog. Thank you all concerned!

Okay, that’s my bit of excitement for the week. Nose back to the grindstone of editing Book Two.

 

 

Today I’m guest posting on the subject of reinvention, over at the blog of the wonderful Emma Pass, who wrote YA dystopian novels Acid and The Fearless. There’s nothing like a good makeover when you’re feeling a bit jaded, I’ve found. Which reminds me, it’s high time I decluttered my office.

I’m guesting – or maybe I should say ghosting – over on fellow YA writer  Tamsyn Murray’s blog today. While you’re there, check out her other posts, featuring authors like Caroline Green and Hannah Beckerman talking about who they would like to haunt.

Tamsyn has recently relaunched her brilliant YA story My So-Called Afterlife, which has received some great reviews.  

Imagine setting off for home one dark New Year’s Eve and never reaching your front door. Imagine losing everything you’ve ever known in one horrific moment. Imagine knowing you’ll never hug your mum or dad again. And imagine having to spend eternity in the most horrific, awful place you can think of… 

For fifteen year old Lucy Shaw, that’s reality. Stuck in the men’s toilets on Carnaby Street, she’s trying to come to terms with her own death, the bone-crushing loneliness and a floor that’s swimming with pee. Until the unlikeliest of saviours walks into her afterlife, that is – a twenty-seven year old lighting engineer called Jeremy, the only person who’s ever known she was there. Together, they find a way to get Lucy out of the loo and discover there’s a whole afterlife of mates, parties and boys just waiting to be discovered. But the shadow of Lucy’s murderer is looming again and it’s only a matter of time before someone else gets hurt. Is Lucy about to lose everything she loves again?

 

I’ve been nabbed by my best writing buddy Wendy Storer to take part in the Very Inspiring Blogger award, otherwise known as Seven Things – at least, that’s what I’ve been calling it in my head. I’ve known Wendy since we were both fledgeling writers, and she’s the best beta reader in the business. She was also a join runner-up in the Mslexia Children’s Novel Competition in 2013 and has since published two crazy-good YA novels: Where Bluebirds Fly and Bring Me Sunshine. Check out her blog for reams of great writerly advice.

So here goes:

Seven Things You Don’t Know About Me

1. I have gnew gnashers. My dentist suggested I try the six month smile invisible braces and I capitulated. It was a little over six months and they weren’t entirely invisible, but for the first time in my life I have perfectly straight teeth. I feel a bit freaked out every time I catch sight of them in the mirror.
2. I recently decided it would be fun to collect auriculas, which are like expensive, fussy, smelly primroses. This means I’m actually about 89 years old and I will probably kill them within weeks.
3. I have a pond full of fish that are breeding at an exponential rate. I estimate that within five years we will have enough goldfish to populate most of Northern Europe.
4. I used to dye my hair red, but in my head I was still blonde. So when people called out ‘hey, ginge’ I had no idea they were referring to me.
5. My favourite language is Russian. I learnt it for several years, but have now sadly forgotten most of it.
6. In another life I’d have liked to have been a midwife.
7. I can speak guinea pig. Seriously, I can get them to talk back. And you never forget how to oink like a piggle.

Anyway, I’m now passing on the love, and this magnificent blogger award, to:

Kate Kelly, author of cli-fi cliffhanger Red Rock.

Rachel Hamilton, whose debut The Case of The Exploding Loo came out last week.

Helen Douglas, author of the time travel romance series, After Eden.

Kerry Drewery, who wrote A Dream of Lights and A Brighter Fear.

Over to you, guys. Looking forward to seeing all your answers!

 

I’ve had a lot of fun creating a Pinterest board for Now You See Me. Lots of pictures of places I mention in the book, and a few other things besides.

I based my fictional town loosely on the coastal resort of Clevedon in North Somerset. My grandparents lived in a house on Dial Hill with incredible views over the town and the Bristol Channel. I used to spend hours with a pair of binoculars looking out of the big picture window in the living room, watching the ships passing to and from Bristol docks. You could watch people walking along the sea front, heading up to the Salthouse fields and Marine Lake, both of which feature heavily in the book. On a fine day, you could see right across the water to the islands of Steep Holm and Flat Holm, even to the distant hills and factories in Wales.

A popular resort in the Victorian era, Clevedon has lots of rather grand stone houses, its own pier and an ornamental bandstand, though its beaches are more mud and seaweed than sand and blue sea. I spent many holidays there as a child, and it holds many happy memories. Although I did nip back for a weekend when I was editing Now You See Me, it wasn’t hard to recall the landmarks. The places you love best as a child linger on the memory, and it’s fascinating to go back and find that everywhere is much as you remember it.

That said, my grandparents are no longer alive and their house, sold on ten years ago to a developer, has now changed almost beyond recognition. Perhaps there are some places you should never return to.  But the plaque commemorating their lives is still on the pier, along with a dedication at the front of my book. I‘d like to think, had they still been alive, that they would have enjoyed it.