Guest Interview with Jill Barry

My guest this week is no stranger to the blog. She has appeared on a number of occasions before and is my very good writer friend, Sandra Mackness, who writes under the name of Jill Barry. She has had over twenty novels published, as paperbacks, ebooks and Linford Romance large print paperbacks. Her latest novel, Love Thirty was published by Endeavour Media on 16^th February.

Welcome to the blog again, Sandra.

It’s great to be back! Thanks for inviting me here again, Jan.

After seeing so many of your novels in print, how exciting was the publication of Love Thirty for you?

My new novel began life in 2009 and went through the RNA’s New Writer Scheme, receiving a positive and helpful response. While in the process of submitting it and receiving rejections, I was of course working on another novel and Love Thirty was consigned to my ‘virtual drawer.’ I was kept so busy writing pocket novels for D C Thomson, and longer length novels for Ulverscroft Linford Romance and Endeavour Press that Love Thirty languished! Last summer, I wanted to submit a book to Endeavour Press (now Endeavour Media) and, luckily, my editor was taken with Love Thirty. So, yes, it was very exciting, after completing a lot of revisions, to see the novel published and I’m now exploring paperback options for it.

Can you please tell us about the inspiration for the novel?

I fell in love with tennis at around age nine and watched every possible moment of Wimbledon’s TV coverage from my teenage years upwards. Having been fortunate enough to attend on several occasions, I’ve observed the crowds and the celebrities in the Royal Box. I’ve also wandered around Queen’s Club and exchanged greetings with tennis stars and personalities plus watched Andy Murray practising when not bantering with his competitors! It’s a fickle world and I knew it would be challenging to create a tennis player hero as athletes are, justifiably, intensely driven and often lead lonely lives on the ATP Tour. I’ve been heartened by some of my reviewers’ comments about hero Nick Pereira and it’s great to know I succeeded in making him ‘real.’ 

Where does the book fit in with your other novels?  

With the exception of The House Sitter, all Jill Barry novels and novellas contain that old thing called romance, although in varying degrees from raunchy to tender teenage love. However, I enjoy giving my heroines a poignant back-story, e.g. early widowhood, although in Georgia Lyle’s case, marriage to Nick (as a tennis wife) causes her to question her own career ambitions as well as the ticking of her biological clock. So, the title Love Thirty reflects not only the tennis theme, which isn’t overwhelming, but also Georgia’s feelings about motherhood.

Something that makes the novel differ from my others is the strong bond between the heroine and her male colleague. They really are good buddies. Photographer Andy eventually falls for an enigmatic character so the plot also follows this rather rocky relationship. There’s also a lot of humour when Andy’s around and when Georgia’s new career catapults her into the celebrity chef zone.

I admire authors like Jilly Cooper and the late, much loved, Penny Vincenzi, so Love Thirty gave me the opportunity to create a longer cast list than I normally provide and to take my heroine to some rather exciting places. Failure to communicate their deepest needs to one another almost destroys any chance of a happy ending for my leading man and lady but…I’ll say no more! 

As well as being a love story, as you say, Love Thirty deals with a number of other issues. Would you like to tell us what they are?

How people can jump to the wrong conclusion plays an important part in the plot. Georgia is convinced Nick can’t possibly love her any more and there are times when I felt like knocking their heads together. But I needed them to go their own ways before bringing them together again, a meeting that resulted in a life-changing situation. A traumatic childhood has made Andy’s girlfriend the person she is and because he’s such a favourite of mine, I wanted to give him a happy ending too. There are also dark issues underpinning Nick’s parents’ marriage and when the full truth is revealed to Nick and his older brother, it makes the two much closer than they were.

Why was it important to you to raise these issues?

People often envy others their lives, simply because they so often watch celebrities moving in exalted company and athletes enjoying adulation. But behind the glitz lie much hard work and failure before success arrives. Tennis players, in particular, are vulnerable to injury and their top ten playing career is usually quite short, unless you’re Roger Federer of course! I think I’m trying to say that behind all the flash photography and the ritzy restaurants, the love and comradeship two people share is the real driving element in a relationship. That’s why I wanted to make Love Thirty into more than a love story.

I know you are a huge tennis fan - and you've confirmed this earlier - so I wasn’t surprised to find that your hero, Nick, was a top tennis player. How much research into the lives of professional tennis players did you have to do?

Fortunately, I had already read the autobiographies of several of my favourites and followed the careers of our most recent top ten British players. After I planned Nick’s rise through the rankings, I contacted the International Tennis Federation to see if it was plausible. So the person who replied to me gets a mention in the acknowledgments. I came face to face with former Wimbledon champion, Pat Cash, a couple of years ago in London at Queen’s Club and on another occasion my courtside seat gave me a great view of Ivan Lendl and David Beckham sitting in the British Number One’s box. I tried to recreate that kind of atmosphere for the Wimbledon scene where Georgia waves to the wife of a well-known player.

And finding out about the world of high-class restaurants and chefs?

Sandra's lemon drizzle cake. 

Working in hotels alerted me to the personality clashes amongst chefs and their colleagues, not to mention the waiting staff. When I needed a menu for the delicious French chef who admires Georgia in the celebrity cooking show, I recreated something I’d enjoyed while travelling through French-speaking Canada a few years ago. I like cooking fresh produce and baking delicious cakes that aren’t loaded with refined sugar. You should taste my healthy lemon drizzle! So Georgia’s aims were close to my heart.

The characters in your book are real and rounded so I felt I’d got to know them very well by the end of their story. Which came first the characters or the story itself?

Heroine Georgia arrived first and I always knew her colleague Andy had more than a soft spot for her. Bringing in Nick offered the chance for her to escape her misogynist boss and, eventually, for her to branch out in a very different direction from the tennis and journalistic worlds.

Would you consider a sequel to Georgia and Nick’s story?

What are you currently working on?

Well, that’s a tempting thought, given I was sad to leave my characters, but I don’t think there’ll be a sequel. Currently I’m working on a Christmas novella (sorry to mention that word) and I’ve begun mapping out the first book of what I hope will be a trilogy, drawing on the lives and loves of three women from the late 1930s until present day. So, mother, daughter and granddaughter. Whether I’m writing a contemporary novel, or going back to past times, it’s always an exciting journey.

What has been your proudest writing moment to date?

I suspect no author forgets the joy of seeing his or her work in print for the very first time. But, after applying to study for my MA in creative writing, decades after I passed my A Levels, I was thrilled to be accepted purely on the strength of work submitted.

Thank you so much for taking time to chat to me, Sandra. I wish you good luck and lots of sales with your lovely book.

It’s my pleasure, Jan. I’ve enjoyed our conversation very much. Here are some links to me and my books:

Love Thirty is published by Endeavour Media

http://www.endeavourmedia.co.uk/books/love-thirty-jill-barry/

email: sandramackness@btconnect.com

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jill-Barry/e/B00FE0GQJ0 - my author page gives details of my novels and novellas, the themes of which are reflected in my book covers.

Jill Barry also has her own Facebook author page:

https://www.facebook.com/JillBarryBooks/

It would be great if you could come along and ‘Like’ my page.

Twitter: @barry_jill

It would be lovely if you’d follow me and mention Jan’s blog so I can follow you back.

My thoughts on ‘Love Thirty’: 5*

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Love Thirty. It has all the ingredients of a pacy well-crafted romance story between Georgia and Nick to be savoured for its ‘feel-good’ quality. In it, you’ll find fun, humour, passion and emotion. However, in addition, Sandra explores a number of other issues: the pressures that being in celebrity limelight puts on personal relationships, friendship, developing careers and taking advantage of second chances. She has created authentic well rounded characters that come alive on the page. You are made to feel how they feel, see what they see, and, in the restaurant scenes, taste what they taste!  Love Thirty takes us into the world of tennis, media and food as well as transporting the reader to the romantic city of Paris where part of the story is set. Highly recommended.

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed finding out about Sandra and her writing. 

You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on my Jan Baynham Writer Facebook page. 

A New 'Future Learn' Course

Some of you may remember I took a 'Writing Crime Fiction' course at Cardiff University in the autumn. It was an excellent course run by Dr. Katherine Stansfield. I don't intend switching genres but the knowledge I gained from her over ten weeks has and will prove invaluable when dealing with crimes in my family sagas. Already I feel that Detective Leo Gianopoulis in 'Whispering Olive Trees' is all the more authentic because of me having taken the course. A free 'Future Learn' course on 'Forensic Psychology - Witness Investigation' run by The Open University was recommended back in October and I signed up there and then. It lasts for eight weeks and it is recommended that you spend three hours a week on it. 

At the end of the course, you should be able to:

• investigate and understand the psychology of eyewitness testimony
• develop your own investigative skills
• explore human cognition and discover the mistakes your own brain can make
• discuss concepts of criminal investigation
• explore and consider the relationship between limitations of the human brain and miscarriages of justice

The main thrust of the course will how to try to solve a crime using nothing but eyewitness evidence. Despite advances in forensic science, eyewitness testimony is still a vital part of police investigations. However, research has proved that there are dangers in relying on this testimony and police must be careful when interviewing witnesses. Through videos of real witnesses, the course will explore the psychology of eyewitness testimony. As my novel is set before the advent of DNA, I'm sure finding out more about how the human brain reacts to recalling what has been witnessed will prove useful. 

The course starts today so wish me luck. I'll let you know how I get on. Have you undertaken any courses that complement the genre in which you write? Have you followed any 'Future Learn' courses? 

Thank you for reading. 

You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on my Jan Baynham Writer Facebook Page. 

Skeleton in the Cupboard

I have always been fascinated by the dynamics of families and the relationships between family members. Perhaps this is why I love reading sagas and try to write them myself. The way family members act and react towards one another is fascinating - often surprising and sometimes shocking! Is it nature or nurture that makes a person behave in a certain way?  Can you inherit someone's personality and temperament in the same way as you do their physical characteristics? Are those personality traits embedded from birth or can they change in a different environment?
Many novels, not necessarily only sagas, involve a secret - 'a skeleton in the cupboard' -   that is never discussed and is hidden away for generations. The big reveal is often the crux of the story and is what makes the reader keep turning the pages. For some years, I subscribed to 'Your Family Tree', a family history magazine. In each publication, the back page feature was always devoted to a 'Skeleton in the Cupboard!' Readers were invited to send in an article of 700 words telling of a secret in their own families. They ranged from keeping mistresses and adultery, bigamy, murder, imprisonment, debt, sexual and physical abuse. The list was endless. In the past, secrets about illegitimacy, disability and insanity were all considered to bring shame on the family and family members who were disabled or suffering from mental illness would be hidden away. Fictional accounts of similar family situations find their way into many of our stories.
Here are a few novels I've thoroughly enjoyed reading that have secrets at their heart: 

'A Time for Silence' by Thorne Moore.
Publisher: Honno Welsh Women's Press
ISBN -13: 978-1906784454 
The main character, Sarah, stumbles across her grandparents' ruined farm and begins to delve into her family history. She learns that her grandfather had been murdered but no one had told her. She determines to find out what happened but perhaps there are some family secrets that should never be revealed. 



'A Simple Life'  by Rosie Thomas
Publisher: Harper Collins (now an e-book)
ASIN: B00HPN3K4I 
The main character, Dinah Shepherd, has a shameful secret that has haunted her for fifteen years. She has a comfortable family life with her two sons but a choice she and her husband made all those years before is never referred to. She finally decides to confront the truth and risks everything to claim what is rightfully hers. 





'The Kashmir Shawl' by Rosie Thomas
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 978-0007285976
When Mair Ellis clears out her father's house, she finds an antique shawl with a lock of child's hair wrapped up in its folds. Tracing her family history back to a time spent in Kashmir where her grandparents were missionaries, Mair uncovers a story of doomed love and great sacrifice.



'The Hand That First Held Mine' by Maggie O'Farrell
Publisher: Tinder Press
ISBN: 978-0755308460
A dual narrative, the story tells of Lexi Sinclair carving a new life for herself in London, at the heart of the 1950s art scene. In the parallel story, fifty years later, Ted is disturbed to realise that memories of his childhood do not tally with his parents' version of events. His search for answers lead to uncovering a secret that had been hidden from him.


In my own novels, secrets play an important part, too. In 'A Mother's Secret', details about forbidden love, illegitimacy and imprisonment for Black Market dealing are kept well hidden from the younger generations of the family. In novel two, 'Whispering Olive Trees', secrets about a young woman's time spent in Greece involving a love affair, murder and drug dealing only come to light after her death when she bequeaths her diary to her daughter. 

What novel involving a family secret or 'skeleton in the cupboard' have you read and enjoyed? I'd love to hear your recommendations. Thank you.

You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on my Jan Baynham Writer Facebook page.

A Hundred Years On 

Yesterday was the centenary of the Representation of the People Act that was passed on February 6th 1918. It gave women aged over thirty and 'of property' the right to vote for the first time. There is still a long way to go but it was very important to mark the momentous occasion and remember the women who fought so hard to achieve partial suffrage for women. The Act paved the way the Equal Franchise Act a decade later and this gave all women over twenty one the right to vote - property owners or not.

Back in 2013, when I’d just started writing fiction, a new magazine, 'Pretty Nostalgic', invited writers to choose a character from history they admired and with whom they'd have liked to have afternoon tea. I chose Emmeline Pankhurst and I'm pleased to say the piece was published. Before I could write 'Taking Tea with Emmeline Pankhurst', I researched how she'd been taken to her first suffrage meetings at the age of eight by her mother and how that had influenced her to do the same with her own daughters. I read the harrowing details of the ways the suffragettes had been treated  - the imprisonment, the hunger strikes and the force- feeding. Because of their sacrifices women like me could cast their vote in the ballot box.

Here are two books involving the suffragette movement I thoroughly enjoyed reading:

The White Camelia by Juliet Greenwood.

Published by Honno

ISBN: 9781909983502

The novel, set in Cornwall and London, gives a wonderful insight into the time before World War I when women had the courage to seek economic independence and the right to vote. Finding herself in London, Bea stumbles upon the White Camellia tearoom and finds it to be a gathering place for the suffrage movement. For Bea, it is life-changing as she is swept up in the struggle. Through her story, we learn of the treatment handed out to the protesting suffragettes. It is beautifully crafted and stayed with me for a long time after I finished reading it.

A Hundred Tiny Threads by Judith Barrow

Published by Honno

ISBN: 9781909983687

The novel's main character is Winifred Duffy who in 1911 leads a very sheltered life and is dominated by her uncaring mother. When independent Honora O'Reilly enters her life and talks of a better life, Winifred is persuaded to join the suffragette movement. She becomes an active member and is swept along by the fight for women's rights. As readers, we are witnesses to the bravery of the movement  and the violence meted out to those involved. A superb novel with memorable charcters. For my interview with Judith about 'A Hundred Tiny Threads' and my full review of the book please click HERE.

There is much, much more in both novels than the suffragette movement to which I've referred, but I felt it was appropriate to recommend them in the light of the centenary. What novels with characters involved withe suffragette movement have you enjoyed and therefore recommend? I'd love it if you left a comment telling us. Thank you for reading.

You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on my Jan Baynham Writer Facebook page.

RNA South and West Wales Chapter

It was good to start the year with a meeting for the South and West Wales Chapter in Cardiff. Although we have twenty five members listed, our homes are very spread out, some members living on the west coast of Wales and others coming from mid and east Wales.  Although every third meeting is arranged to take place in Swansea, it still entails long journeys for some. Because of this, numbers are often small but we agree that it's worth meeting up whenever possible and members are happy to travel when they can. We now meet in Barker Tea Rooms in one of Cardiff's famous arcades where it's informal and very welcoming. As long as we top up our teas and coffees and maybe buy a light lunch as well, the management seems happy to let us stay and chat for a couple of hours.  Last year, as a group we decided that if people were arranging to take time out from work and writing, it would be better to have a theme or topic so that members would benefit. 

After catching up with everyone and finding out where they were with their novel writing, editing or submitting, the topic discussed this month was 'Author Branding'. Catherine (Burrows) had attended an excellent presentation on the subject at the 2016 Conference in Lancaster and was able to share what she'd learned. Thank you, Catherine. It gave us a great deal of food for thought. We went away to work on our USPs so that we can share them next time.

On her website, The Creative Penn, author Joanna Penn states that your brand may be thought of as your promise to your reader. It's the words, images, and emotional resonance that people have when they hear your name. As writers, it's important to raise our profiles.  

Since the meeting, I've read a number of articles like this one on branding and the general message seems to be we need to think hard about who we are trying to reach, what we want to say to our readers and how we will say it. What will they think of us as a result? The brand is us.

Even though I am unpublished, there appears to be a common theme of identity running through the two novels I have written. As well as dealing with characters falling in love, both stories explore mother and daughter relationships and the dynamics of family life, both fit into the family saga genre, both are dual narratives and the actions of the characters reflect the social conventions of the era in which the story is set. Parts of both novels are set in Mediterranean countries, 'A Mother's Secret' in Sicily and 'Whispering Olive Trees' in Southern Greece. I like to think that if my novels are ever published - I'm trying hard! - my readers would expect to be moved by the roller coaster of emotions the protagonists go on. I have a long way to go to get the branding right but I've made a start. 

Every now and then, you read a book that you didn't want to end and one that you wish you'd written yourself. That happened to me this week when I finished 'Letters to the Lost' by Iona Grey. It was the winner of the Romantic Novel of the Year in 2016 and I can see why. It moves effortlessly from wartime to present and in both narratives, the characters come alive on the page. You are drawn into their emotions and get glimpses of times past and today. As reader, you become wrapped up in a beautiful tender love story. 

Thank you for reading. What novel have you read recently that you wish you'd written yourself? What is your brand? I'd love it if you left a comment. Thanks.

You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on my Jan Baynham Writer Facebook page.

A New Year, A New Start!
A belated Happy New Year to you all!
The blog is now four years old and although I haven't always kept up the posting as often as I'd like, it's something to celebrate. The idea for starting the blog was to track my journey as a writer and I think it's achieved that. Alright, the journey is slow but there have been things to celebrate along the way. I've got to 'meet' so many other writers and value their support. Since I started in 2014, I have written 129 posts and there have been 1,279 comments including my answers to the comments. There have been 43,065 page views and many of these are from far flung corners of the world. I think this proves that lots more people are reading the blog than the relatively small number who comment. A big thank you to those who do, of course. One of the highlights for me has been when other authors have agreed to be guests and be interviewed about their newly published books. I already have more planned in 2018.

Each January, it has been a tradition on the blog for me to reflect back on the previous year and set out what I'd like to achieve in the one to come. In 2017, short story writing came to a halt but two stories written previously were published by Alfie Dog Fiction and Severance Publications. I was very pleased that my short-listed Flash Fiction piece, Deception Dawning, appeared in the 2017 Worcestershire LitFest anthology of flashes, Wired. I belong to a small writing group and we have given ourselves the task of writing a flash fiction piece by the time we meet up each time. I don't always manage it but at least I had a piece to send to Worcester again this year! The reason for the lack of short stories is because, last year, I concentrated solely on my novel writing. All my efforts went into editing novel one and writing as much of novel two as I could. As a result, I received a very favourable critique on my partial manuscript, Whispering Olive Trees, from a lovely RNA NWS reader who gave invaluable guidance and advice when I come to the editing stage. I began submitting A Mother's Secret to publishers and some asked to see the whole manuscript. Although the novel was eventually rejected, one in particular gave very helpful feedback. I attended the 2017 Conference in Telford and gained a lot from that experience, from the presentations, workshops, 1-1s and meeting more lovely writers. In the Autumn, I took an excellent ten week course on 'Writing Crime Fiction' at Cardiff University.

My journey may be slow but I've learned a lot in 2017. Being a member of a very supportive critique group, where we meet up every few weeks, has been invaluable. We are all at different stages with our novels and this year two members of the group secured publishing deals. Sharing their successes with them has been wonderful.

What does this coming year hold for me, I wonder? 

I would like to:

• find a home for novel number one by approaching agents and publishers. One of the hardest things is learning to be patient while waiting to hear back from publishers so I intend to move on to the next submission more quickly than I have been doing.   
• having rejoined RNA NWS, finish the first draft my second novel, edit it and submit for a critique 
• write new short stories and flash fiction and submit them to a few competitions, in between novel drafts
• attend the 2018 RNA Conference in Leeds in July
• support other authors by inviting them onto my blog 
• continue to enjoy my writing and learn more about the craft.

Thank you for reading. What are your intentions this year? I'd love it if you left a comment. :-) Good luck in achieving your goals in 2018. If you have a new book coming out or would like to share some writing news, please message me. 

You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on my Jan Baynham Writer Facebook page.

November Done and Dusted
NaNoWriMo is over for another year. Well, the main event is anyway. Last Thursday, November 30th, I logged 33,086 words. It was not the 50,000 I'd hoped for but I was very pleased that my second novel, 'Whispering Olive Trees', now stands at over 74,000 words.  

Should I be pleased that I'm 16,914 words short of my goal? The month started well but life then got in the way and I could have given up. However, apart from a day at the launch of the Flash Fiction anthology in Worcester I wrote about in the last blog post and a whole weekend when the family visited, I wrote every single day. Sometimes, it may have only been five or eight hundred words but they all added up. When I opened up my NaNo page the day after it had finished, I saw this:

I wasn't a NaNo winner but I was NaNo Writer. I'd got back into the novel, re-acquainted myself with my plot and got to know much more about my characters. Being with them in the warmth and sunshine of southern Greece certainly lifted my mood on some of those grey November days. The positive message from the NaNoWriMo team was this:

Wherever you're at in your novel, or energy-wise, you did something important this month: you took time to be a creator. You planned out new worlds and brought new characters into being. You followed your creative vision, and gave your story a voice.

What made this year special was a group of buddies who were there throughout supporting and encouraging me to keep going. Some, like me, didn't get to be 'winners' this time but all achieved so much over the thirty days; the interaction within the group was both motivating and inspiring. Thank you all. Special congratulations to those who did achieve their 50,000 goal! I'm so thrilled for them - Susanna Bavin, Kirsten Hesketh, Tara Greaves and my local Cowbridge buddy, Catherine Burrows. 

THE BUSINESS OF BOOKS: IGNORING NOVEMBER – Jane Cable considers NaNoWriMo I was very pleased to contribute to Jane's article along with Susanna, Kirsten and another RNA member, Laura James. Click on the link to read what we had to say and how our experiences of NaNo differ. 

Before next November, there are other events during the year. Camp NaNoWriMo takes place every April and July. It's a 'lighter' version of the official NaNo. The rules are the same, except participants may choose any word count and may work on any writing project. It doesn't have to be a novel. A feature exclusive to Camp Nano is the cabins. These are virtual places for four to six participants. Writers have the option of inviting specific Wrimos into their cabin or joining a cabin where there are other writers of the same age, activity, word count goal or genre. They may also opt to join a random cabin or not join a cabin at all.There is a message board on which other Wrimos post messages for the other campers in their cabin. 

It has been said that NaNoWriMo is like marmite. Do you love it or loathe it? Did you take part in it this year? How did you get on?

Thank you for reading. You may also follow me on Twitter @JanBayLit and on my Jan Baynham Writer Facebook page.