This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
I met author Carole Matthews a few months ago at a book reading and she was so lovely. Bringing out two books a year, Carole Matthews is possibly the world’s most disciplined novelist. She very kindly agreed to answer some questions for Novelicious’ readers, so enjoy.
Oooh and love the celebrity in the shoe box idea!!
1 – What is your average writing day like?
I start the day by answering my emails and logging onto networking sites like Facebook and Myspace to catch up with my readers. Then I write from 10 o’clock until about 6. I take an hour for lunch during which I read the newspaper. That’s pretty much it – day in, day out. Then two or three evenings a week when I have a book out I do talks at libraries or book shops.
2 – Can you tell us a bit about your writing process –i.e., are you a planner or do you just dive into the story?
I plan quite meticulously, spending about two weeks creating my characters.My plot tends only to run to a couple of pages, but I know where I’m going and what I want to do. Invariably it changes towards the end as characters take on their own lives and tell you what they want to do!
3 – You have a book out in September, ‘That Loving Feeling’. Can you tell us about it?
This is set in my local area in a lovely market town of Stony Stratford and is about a marriage in crisis. Having reached the milestone of twenty five years Juliet Joyce wonders is their relationship has lost its spark. She’s pretty much resigned to the fact that the only romance she’s going to get is from the pages of her library books, so nothing quite prepares her for the unexpected return of Steven Aubrey – last seen when he jilted Juliet on their wedding day. The question is will Steven sweep her off her feet again or can her husband remind her of the loving feelings that they’ve lost.