This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
We’re feeling overjoyed now that summer’s finally here. The windows at Novelicious HQ are open wide, we’ve taken to reading under a shady tree at lunch and there’s the quintessential glass of Pimms to be enjoyed once 5 o’clock rolls around. Yep – summer’s pretty swell. Especially when lovely authors stop by. One of our favourites, Jill Mansell, is joining us now to talk pleasures and pitfalls of the warmer months before offering you the opportunity to win something lovely to read under your own shady tree.
by Jill Mansell
Summer’s arrived at last and to think we thought it would never get here! How I love being warm and feeling all summery! It’s not all plain sailing though…
Everyone always assumes one of the best bits about being a writer is that you can sit outside in the garden and work. Wouldn’t that be brilliant? And I’m sure lots of lucky authors can do that – I have a vision of Jackie Collins languishing beside her giant turquoise swimming pool, sipping vintage Krug as she writes – but it’s just impossible for me. I’ve tried and tried, but it turns out I have to be inside, out of the sun and away from all the delicious distractions of being in the garden. I know, my life is hard, I feel sorry for me too.
Another trial is the whole tanning business, or rather lack of. The thing is, I’m so gullible. Every year – and I mean every single year – I somehow imagine that this time it’ll be different and I’ll develop a gorgeous natural golden tan. I do, I genuinely believe it might happen. Then I get burnt and realise that my skin has never possessed any melanin, is highly unlikely ever to grow any melanin, and that I’m destined to stay pale-blue forever.
Never mind though, because these days we’re lucky enough to be able to turn ourselves golden with fake tan! Ah, fake tan, both my saviour and my nemesis. A magical invention which, if you follow the instructions and apply it properly, is a fantastic solution for pale-blue people like me.
Except if you are anything like me, you’ll know that following instructions and doing it properly simply isn’t on the agenda. So much easier to slather it on as fast as possible and hope for the best. Which is why my summers tend to comprise a series of embarrassing moments, blotchy brown splodges on unexpected patches of skin, and that lingering smell of stale biscuits.
(Just remembered: Travelling up to London to meet my agent for the very first time, I had such a traumatic experience with fake tan melting all down my legs in the heat, that I was convinced she would change her mind and decide not to be my agent after all. Luckily she didn’t!)
Oh no, time to redress the balance and sing summer’s praises now! What are my favourite aspects?
Barbeques on beaches! Not having to wear thick tights and woolly socks! Ice cream and drinks chinking with ice cubes! Looking glamorous in sunglasses! The sound of cricket being played in the sports field behind our house! Fingers not turning numb with cold! Lovely weddings! Bumblebees on the roses and whiskers on kittens! Also, music festivals … I’m too lazy to actually go to them but I love to watch them all on TV. (My daughter is off to her first Glastonbury very soon and I’m wildly envious, but simultaneously exhausted just thinking about it. And as for the prospect of it raining and the whole place turning into a mudbath…oh no, I’m far too old for that.)
So here we are, let’s raise an elegant glass to summer, and fun in the sun, and taking the time to relax when we can and lose ourselves in lovely books. In fact, if you can’t decide what to read next, I can think of a nice summery one set in Cornwall that you might quite like. (Clue: It was written by that author with the streaky brown and white legs.)
In fact, Novelicious has five copies of The Unpredictable Consequences of Love to give away to UK readers, set in the idyllic seaside town of St Carys, where love is blossoming and secrets are being kept. To win a copy, simple email kerry@writingtipsoasis.com with your address and your very favourite thing about summer.
Good luck!