Hi Kate, I am so thrilled to welcome to my blog and wanted to extend my congratulations to the success of your latest release INTO A CORNISH WIND! It's sounds a fabulous read and I have added it to my list - let's kick things off with my questions, shall we?
1.)
What was your first job? Did you like or
dislike it? Why?
My first job was in the editorial department of a London paperback publishing company, now long-gone. It was during the early 1980s, at a time when celebrities first began publishing their kiss and tell stories! I met several famous people, including Joan Collins, Matthew Manning, Carol Thatcher (I recall having a bizarre conversation at one of her book-signings with her mother (Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher) about the colour of the carpet in the room where it was held!), Molly Parkin, Fiona Richmond (which caused several of my male colleagues to get hot under the collar!), Les Dawson, Diana Dors, and others…
I enjoyed the environment and the work, and even in those early days I had leanings towards becoming a published novelist, although it took many decades and a life to live before committing to the pursuit of that goal. What I didn’t enjoy was the daily commute from Surrey to London and having to deal with train delays and the overcrowded Underground.
2.)
Do you have a pet peeve? If so what is it?
I just don’t get it! Why do people
have to leave 1 or 2 star reviews that are vitriolic, personal attacks on the
author? If you don’t like a book, or an author’s style, trot on… Life is too
short to be vindictive! If, on the other hand, a reviewer has constructive criticism
from which the author can learn, then that is a different matter entirely.
3.)
Do you spend more time researching or writing?
Although I write romance with an otherworldly/supernatural element, I like my books to be as realistic as possible. Therefore, I do a fair amount of research to ensure that what I put my characters through is not too far-fetched. The book I’m currently writing and scheduled for publication this summer, is a timeslip romance that takes the heroine back to the fifteenth century and the Wars of the Roses. To ensure the facts are correct to the best of my ability, I’ve undertaken extensive research to find those golden nuggets, which has proven a thoroughly absorbing exercise. However, I kept getting distracted and taken down interesting avenues that led to other pathways just waiting to be explored and I’ve had to be strict with myself, or else I’d still be wallowing in the fascinating events of yesteryear!
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4.)
Tell me about your book Into a Cornish Wind
and where you got your inspiration for it?
When first considering my main character, Kat Maddox, I knew I wanted her to be an artist with an otherworldly gift – the ability for her illustrations to hint at an alternative time. I decided she would land a job in the delightful sailing town of Fowey – I mean, who wouldn’t want to have that opportunity? – that required her to visit various historic sites around the West Country to provide illustrations for a historian author’s forthcoming book.
Cornwall and Devon have many interesting manor houses that I could have included, and it was difficult to choose which ones to feature. However, there was no doubt over one that I selected. It’s a property I know well, having stayed there on many occasions when my sister and her family lived there – a fine, Grade II listed manor house that dates to 1815 with a full and interesting history. Built on the site of the Doomsday Manor of Lantien Parva, it is allegedly the location of King Mark of Cornwall’s domestic settlement, whose stronghold was nearby at Castle Dore. It is also reputedly the site of the tryst of the doomed Tristan and Isuelt.
During
the First World War, the property was leased to the Austrian Count Fabrice, reputedly
a descendant of the Hapsburgs, and in the Second World War, Hitler’s deputy, Rudolf
Hess, was interrogated and interned there for six
months.
On a lighter
note, the 1930 Edgar Thurston's survey of the select gardens of England
described several important British and foreign trees at the property,
including a Sequoia sempervirens, which was identified as "one of
the largest Redwoods in the country". In 1979 this tree was included in
Alan Mitchell's Champion Trees.
Disaster struck in 2019 (long after my sister and brother-in-law sold the property and moved away) when the house was destroyed by fire, although I understand the current owners are undertaking a major rebuild. This event made me determined to feature the property in my novel, thereby acknowledging and honouring its existence.
5.)
How much of your book is realistic?
My books tend to fall into the fantasy/magical realism/timeslip genres, although I believe they are more correctly defined as romance/romantic suspense with a twist/shimmer/sprinkling of otherworldly/supernatural. Therefore, I try to make them as realistic as possible. In Into a Cornish Wind, the descriptions and histories of the properties that Kat visits to illustrate are true to life, although my imagination was employed to weave her story against this backdrop. As far as the sailing element in the book is concerned, I wrote this story during several periods of lockdown and believe that I have more than earned a degree in YouTube videos on the art of sailing, trimming the sails, ballast, how to secure a boat, wind direction, and sailors’ knots, etc!
6.)
What are your ambitions for your writing
career?
My agent attended the recent Frankfurt Book Fair and pitched all my books to publishers for translation. Most of my novels are set in Cornwall and I know there’s a definite market for such works in Europe. My first two novels make up a 2-book romantic suspense, which I have been told reads like a film. So… if there are any filmmakers out there searching for their next project, why not check out these two books, set on the wild and ruggedly beautiful Lizard Peninsula?
7.)
Share one fact about yourself that would
surprise people.
In my late twenties, I worked for a well-known tour operator. My job was organising and escorting travel agents’ “educationals” to hotels featured in our brochures and to accompany them on a variety of tours available in the destinations. It was a wonderful opportunity to see the world.
Each week, a memo was circulated amongst the staff that dangled a crop of last-minute discounted trips, the proviso being that you had to be available, or prepared to cancel whatever plans you had booked for the following couple of days. I travelled to several worldwide destinations in that way, but one trip that stands out in my mind is a weekend in Marrakech. I will never forget the experience of flying on Concorde, the speed at which we arrived at our destination (maybe 90 minutes, at most), seeing the iconic shadow on the sands as we came in to land, and the red carpet leading from the plane to the airport terminal, lined with musicians heralding our arrival! It’s so sad knowing what befell that beautiful aircraft.
INTO
A CORNISH WIND
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Kat Maddox has had her fair share of
terrible relationships. And after discovering that her latest boyfriend has
been hiding an entire other life from her, it's time for a fresh start.
Accepting a job on the Cornish coast, Kat begins
a new chapter in Fowey. She is immediately drawn to the beautiful Cornish
landscapes and swiftly an old feeling begins to emerge. Ever since she was
young, Kat's had a 'gift' - when her paintbrush touches canvas, she's able to
see the history of her subject as if by magic.
Consumed with trying to discover what this could
mean, she crosses paths with local sailor, Mac. Though this isn't the first, or
the last time, they're destined to meet. As Mac and Kat grow closer, she begins
to wonder whether she should open her heart to love one more time...
LINKS
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3nCCE4T
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3RBGr08
BIO
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Kate Ryder is an
international bestselling author of romantic suspense and timeslip/magic
realism. She is represented by the Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency and
published by Embla Books and Aria Fiction. She is also a member of the RNA and
the SoA.
INTO A CORNISH WIND - a
contemporary romance with a twist of otherworldliness - published 28 September,
and by the end of the day it had bestseller flags on Amazon UK and Australia.
BENEATH CORNISH SKIES - a
beautiful romance with a shimmer of ghostliness - achieved #1 eBook in the
Amazon Australia Kindle Store, peaked at #83 in the Amazon UK Kindle Store and
was shortlisted for the RNA Romantic Novel Awards 2022.
SECRETS OF THE MIST - a
mysterious timeslip romance set in Dorset - not only reached #49 in Amazon UK
Kindle Store but also achieved bestseller flags in the UK, Canada and
Australia. In its original, self-published version as 'The Forgotten Promise'
it was awarded the very first Chill with a Book "Book of the Month".
SUMMER IN A CORNISH COVE - a
contemporary romantic suspense set on the wild and rugged Lizard Peninsula -
was nominated for the RNA’s 2018 Joan Hessayon award. Readers begged for a
sequel and Kate duly obliged with (standalone) COTTAGE ON A CORNISH CLIFF,
which peaked at #1 in Kindle categories in the UK.
Originally from the South
East of England, today Kate lives on the 'jam-first' Cornish side of the
beautiful Tamar Valley with her husband and a rehomed Bengal-cross cat. When
not writing she gravitates towards the coast, theatre, music and art, although
the latter always makes her yearn to pick up a paintbrush. But - as there are
only so many hours in a day - instead, she paints pictures with words!
Keep in touch with Kate:
Website: www.kateryder.me
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/KateRyder_Books
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/kateryder.author
Instagram:
@kateryder_author
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