Friday Chat & Drinks With... L B Griffin

 

Welcome back to Friday Chat & Drinks!

This month I have been chatting with the quite lovely LB Griffin and it is so nice to host her on my blog as we haven't seen one another in person for far too long - hope you have a cup or glass of your favourite drink... let's get started!

R: Let me start by asking what genre you typically read and why?

 

LB: To say I have a particular genre I typically read would be a little bit misleading as I love to read absolutely everything. If I were be tied to a stake and tickled with feathers – I would answer – thrillers – I suppose I love them more. I love a book with plenty of plot twists and being kept hanging – and all that tension, and wondering, and thinking, and trying to work it out. In fact, I guess I like to try and beat the author at their own game – and resolve it before the end – with a YES I had it nailed right from the first page….

 

R: Can you share a favourite childhood memory with my readers?

 

LB: I was brought up on a council estate – the junior school was literally across the road from me and the prefab we lived in had been built on some parts of a grand estate called Carrswood, in Bath. It was considered a rough area to live. There were a few tough people about – but I think no-one knows what goes on behind closed doors – rich or poor.

 

Anyway, at the end of the lane where I lived, were huge black wrought iron gates – the lady of the manor would be chauffer driven past our prefab (us being the last in the lane) and I would stand outside our tiny home and do a courtesy – because my mother thought she was like royalty. Seriously. Can you believe it? But I digress. Behind those wrought iron gates were woods – Carrswood – if anyone has a mind to check it out - the Bath to Bristol train line slips neatly under there through a tunnel.

 

Those woods became my playground where dens were built – dreams were dreamt, streams were dipped into and lazing on banks staring at the sky at clouds pretending I could float around on them, they were my special memories. We were wild. Out all day. My mother never having a clue where we were or what we were doing. Or in fact ever bothering to ask. It felt safe. Harmless. A world away from today.

 

Though there were those dangerous, silly, stupid things we would do as well. My friends and I would slide right through the gates and climb down banks right down to the train-line. Dangerous, right. Yes, we used to be so crazy young – five maybe, not realising the enormity of it - putting pennies on the line so the train would run right over it and squish them to a larger size and flatten the head of the monarch. I would be furious these days if I saw anyone near a train line. Anyway, we survived.

R: Wow!! You can't imagine it these days, can you? But I was left to run wild in much the same way from around five years old, lol! It's a different world indeed today...

 

Do you have any shameless addictions? 

 

LB: I confess I used to like shoes – the more sparkly the better. The higher the heel the better. Nowadays I have to go for boring – sensible shoes because my feet just don’t like what I’ve put them through in the past. I always wish shoe designers would take into account that while we get older it doesn’t mean we get more boring.

 

R: What do you consider the biggest challenge of writing a new book?

LB: For me its time. I am not a career author, so I don’t put myself into a 9 – 5 kind of routine. But I do have this guilt trip every time I stick my head into the laptop with a new idea.

I don’t have time.

Okay, so I’m retired. I’ve been on holiday with my laptop and sun shining and water to begging to be swam in – while I could hide away from everyone, I have life outside of writing, and I have people I love to see. Time is the biggest threat – and it’s running out.

 

Writing a set amount of words in a day doesn’t reach my vocabulary. If I write 100 or a 1000 I still would like to write more – but as you know now – time is an issue.

 

R: What are your thoughts on writing series?

LB: I can see the importance of writing a book series – especially once you have determined how the end will come and how many books you might write to achieve that. Ellie Griffiths is a perfect example of wonderful series – I’m hooked – and I’ve actually got my husband hooked on them. For me I have the series to follow on from Secrets, Shame and Shoebox – The Twenty-One-Year Contract left the door wide open to write more – I have the stories plotted in my head – so the sweet and short answer is – I am writing – just give me more time…

 

Thanks so much for allowing me to be on your blog, Rachel. I so love your books – they are timeless – a perfect read for any day. Thank you to all those readers who take the time to buy, read and review – you have no idea how much I appreciate it. 

Love Lynn

Ah, thank you so much for those kinds words about my books, Lynn! That's so nice of you :)

For visitors who want to know more about Lynn's work, here is the blurb & link to her novel, Secrets, Shame and Shoebox...

BLURB:

When Harriet Laws loses her grandmother and her job, her happy life in London seems over. Alone, grief-stricken and penniless, she thinks wildly of ending it all. Fate steps in as Tom Fletcher saves her, gives her hope, and guides her to new employment. He takes her to dinner, and she finds him attractive. He's older, but she doesn't mind. Does he? Tom, a quiet, hardworking man, is unsure of Harriet's feelings, but he's also very busy building his business interests. So it's no wonder a suave, sophisticated fellow walks off with Harriet right under Tom's nose. What follows, no one could have predicted, as Harriet not only loses contact with all her friends but must again fight for her very life...will she ever see Tom again?

BUY: https://geni.us/so3WBS