1.
We are delighted that you could join us
to talk about your new release. Could you tell us a little more about it?
Tara’s African Adventure started life as a My Weekly
pocket novel, so it’s a little difficult to categorise exactly, but I’d say
it’s a romance with elements of suspense and intrigue. It’s not full of gun-toting
FBI agents, for sure, but there’s still lots of peril, baddies to be thwarted,
and hearts to be won (or do I mean lost?).
Tara is an award-winning journalist who’s been
stranded in the African bush. Peter, a apparently hapless safari guide, is her
ticket home, but he resembles the handsome conman who emptied her bank accounts.
Can she trust him to keep her safe from lions and whoever is trying to sabotage
his mobile safari outfit? Can Tara identify and stop the man behind the
attacks? And then tear herself away to go back home…
It’s available in large print with Ulverscroft’s Linford
Romance range and on Kindle unlimited
2.
What was the inspiration behind your
book? What prompted you to tell this story?
In 2018, I went on my one and only safari and was
utterly terrified. Tents pitched in the middle of the bush? An open-sided
vehicle? Was the guide mad? No, but I had the best time once I accepted that
the top predators saw just a vehicle, not lunch. And our guide always knew
where the animals capable of mauling us to death were.
It was a fabulous setting for romance and intrigue – a small group of strangers spending ten days together miles from anywhere, with unrivalled game viewings and dreamy sunrises and sunsets. And then there were all those drinks around the campfire…
3. Without giving too much away, what was the hardest part of the book to write?
My brain doesn’t handle intangibles, so identifying the theme is always difficult. I have to write the full story, then as I’m editing, I eventually start to notice patterns and repeats. As I did this, I realised Peter and Tara had very different but important relationships with their fathers, and so the underlying theme became family relationships, which helped provide that extra layer of depth.
4. What kind of research did you do before beginning the book?
I already had most of the information I needed from being on holiday, as our guide was very chatty and knowledgeable about his country. He told us all about how family structures and tribal norms work in Botswana (and how he had two birthdates: one as an estimate of his age when he was entered for a school sports contest, and another that came from I remember not where, but it made perfect sense at the time). But I had some facts to check, such as visa requirements for Botswana, and who is allowed to practice law there. These were easily found online. But it was a great excuse to get my picture book out again and enjoy those wonderful memories.
5.
What was your journey to publication?
My first acceptances were non-fiction pieces, some for
doctors’ magazines (I am a retired GP) plus a couple of local interest articles
for Lancashire Magazine. Then children happened and writing stopped. I am
deeply in awe of the authors who manage to write as well as work and look after
a family.
It took me an awfully long time getting my first fiction
acceptance. That was a short story for The People’s Friend. Prior to this
acceptance, I read nothing but People’s Friend stories for a month, then honed
and honed a story which had come from a strong emotional trigger. Eventually the
story brought a lump to my throat every time I read it, and I knew it was time
to submit again.
Hey presto, I got a yes.
My heart is in novels, though, and it’s only through
networking with other writers that I started to make inroads into crafting a
saleable book. I put three manuscripts through the NWS scheme with, it seemed,
worse feedback each time. But I learned valuable lessons each time.
Tara was my first novella sale and it did not go through the NWS scheme. I’ve now sold five, including my third NWS manuscript which attracted eight pages of ‘well, it’s okay but…’ The reader was correct. I put it right, it was published in July and will be self-published in the fulness of time. I just need my cover artist to find a suitable slot.
6. Who were your favourite childhood authors? Enid Blyton – the Secret Seven and Famous Five! The circumstances of the stories and the children themselves were beyond my experience, but the mysteries were so gripping that I didn’t care. Did I actually read anything else? Little Women is the only other book I can remember liking. I remember not liking Heidi and the Mallory Towers books. Is it any wonder my romances are wrapped around a core of crime?
7.
What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
Network and make friends with other writers in your genre, learn from them and give back in return. As a deep introvert, I resisted this for ages and wasted years in the process. Now I really enjoy being part of the writing community and helping those coming along behind.
BLURB & BUY LINK:
Getting out of a hyena-infested hellhole is easy when you've got money...
... less so when you’re broke and relying on an incompetent safari guide.
Investigative journalist Tara Ahr is stranded in Botswana. Peter Schafer will buy her ticket back to London if she’ll work as a translator on just one safari. Unfortunately, he resembles the handsome con man who landed her in this mess, and Schafer Safaris is a disaster waiting to happen. But her only other option is to phone her father for help and frankly, she’d rather walk home.
Tara quickly discovers she’s misjudged Peter, and his company isn’t badly run – someone is trying to destroy it. As the sabotage attacks grow increasingly serious and personal, and Tara battles to identify the perpetrator, she and Peter begin a relationship that cannot possibly last beyond the fifty-six days she has left in Botswana. Or can it?
Sue Cook writes long and short stories for the women’s fiction market. Her novellas contain contemporary and historical romance sprinkled with varying amounts of crime, suspense and intrigue.
BUY: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BG8Y17GS/
· Author bio: Sue Cook writes short stories and novellas for the women’s fiction market. Originally a valleys girl, she currently lives up north, in the last century, with a husband, five runner ducks and many, many bees. Her novellas feature romance sprinkled with crime, suspense or peril, and often a touch of humour too.
https://suecookwrites.wordpress.com The pessimist’s guide to writing cheerfully
https://www.instagram.com/suecookwrites/
https://www.facebook.com/suecookwrites
Twitter -
@popsytops
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