GUEST AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Please welcome my friend and author, Jenny Kane!




How are you, lovely lady? It's so nice to welcome you back to my blog and have a catch up - looking forward to hearing all about your latest release A Cornish Escape!

1.)              What is your favourite thing about yourself?

Now that is a very tricky question. I’m not that keen on myself in general - but if pressed, I’d say it was my passion and drive for writing that I liked best.
If a story idea comes into my head, then it will be written. I never have a problem sitting down to crack on with getting the words down. (So far at least!!)

2.)              What do you wish you’d known before you started writing?

How much time you have to spend on marketing/ promoting your work. It can be good fun - but it can simply eat the days.

3.)              Share a romantic moment in your life.

The last romantic moment (excluding my wedding) was back in 1995, when my future husband surprised me with a weekend trip to the Cotswolds. We stayed in a lovely guest house called The Apple Pie, near Bourton-on-the-Water. It was a major treat, as we were still post-graduate students and beyond broke.

4.)              Is there one subject you’d never write about as an author? What is it?

Child or animal cruelty. Both issues turn my stomach, and I know if I let my imagination go there, it would have trouble letting go of the images I created at the end of writing the book.

5.)              Do you have any suggestions to help someone become a better writer? If so, what are they?

Keep a list of the words you tend to overuse when you write. We all have words that slip into our text far more than we intend. (Mine - among many others - are long, slight and small). Then, when you reach the editing stage, go through the document checking for each of those words in turn. It’s a great way to tighten your manuscript up and widen your vocabulary.

Also- don’t be afraid to power through and write your first draft without editing it as you go. Polishing and perfecting can happen once you’ve got the story down. To paraphrase Sir Terry Pratchett, ‘Writing the first draft is just so you can get to know your story.’ Nothing has to be perfect first go.

6.)              If you could be the original author for any book, which book would it be? Why?

Kitty Peck and the Musical Hall Murders by Kate Griffin. This Victorian crime thriller -based in Limehouse, London - is just fabulous. Not a word is wasted in the whole novel. I’d love to have written that.

7.)              What are you working on at the moment?

I’m enjoying the launch of A Cornish Escape (previously known as Abi’s House). This Cornish romance, which was inspired by my childhood adventures in the region, is very close to my heart.

Here’s the blurb...

'A summer read as scrumptious as its Cornish backdrop. Brilliant!' Nicola May
Perfect for fans of Jenny Colgan, Phillipa Ashley and Cathy Bramley, this summer romance is sure to warm your heart.

Abi's life is turned upside down when she is widowed before her thirtieth birthday. Determined to find something positive in the upheaval, Abi decides to make a fresh start somewhere new. With fond childhood memories of holidays in a Cornish cottage, could Cornwall be the place to start over?
With all her belongings in the boot of her car but no real plan, a chance meeting in a village pub brings new friends Beth and Max into her life. Max soon helps Abi track down the house of her dreams but things aren't as simple as Abi hoped.
Can Abi leave her past behind and finally get her happy ending?
I am also preparing for the launch of the sequel to A Cornish Escape, A Cornish Wedding, which will be released on 2nd July.

Meanwhile, I’m writing the third in a brand new romcom series set on Exmoor. I am unable to share the book titles at this time, but I’m very excited about releasing the first in the series at the end of June!


8.)              Do you work on one book at a time? More?

I usually write at least two books, or a book and a script, at once. I have several pen names, and I like to keep at least two of them active at any one time.
As well as the new romcom series I mentioned above- which I’m writing as Jenny Kane, I am currently editing a medieval adventure (as Jennifer Ash); the final novel in The Folville Chronicles (Outlaw Justice).


Buy links for A Cornish Escape
Thank you ever so much for inviting me along today, Rachel.
Happy reading,
Jenny.

Bio
From the comfort of her cafe corner in Mid Devon, award winning author, Jenny Kane, wrote the contemporary women’s fiction and romance novels, A Cornish Escape (2nd edition, HeadlineAccent, 2020),  A Cornish Wedding (2nd edition, HeadlineAccent, 2020), Romancing Robin Hood (2nd edition, Littwitz Press, 2018),  Another Glass of Champagne (Accent Press, 2016), and Another Cup of Coffee (Accent Press, 2013).
She has also written 3 novella length sequels to her Another Cup of.....books:  Another Cup of Christmas (Accent Press, 2013), Christmas in the Cotswolds (Accent, 2014), and Christmas at the Castle (Accent, 2016). These three seasonal specials are now available in one boxed set entitled Jenny Kane’s Christmas Collection (Accent, 2016)
Jenny is also the author of quirky children’s picture books There’s a Cow in the Flat (Hushpuppy, 2014) and Ben’s Biscuit Tin (Hushpuppy, 2015)

Under the pen name, Jennifer Ash, Jenny has also written The Folville Chronicles (The Outlaw’s Ransom, The Winter Outlaw, Edward’s Outlaw - published by Littwitz Press), The Power of Three (Spiteful Puppet, 2020) and The Meeting Place (Spiteful Puppet, 2019). She also created four audio scripts for ITV’s popular 1980’s television show, Robin of Sherwood.
The Waterford Boy, Mathilda’s Legacy, The Baron’s Daughter and The Meeting Place were released by Spiteful Puppet in 2017/2018/2019.

Jenny Kane is the writer in residence for Tiverton Costa in Devon. She also co-runs the creative writing business, Imagine. Jenny teaches a wide range of creative writing workshops including her popular ‘Novel in a Year’ course. (www.imaginecreativewriting.co.uk)
All of Jennifer Ash’s and Jenny Kane’s news can be found at www.jennykane.co.uk
@JenAshHistory
@JennyKaneAuthor
@Imagine_Writing



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