I’m pleased to be taking part in the blog tour for Guilty today. My post is written with thanks to Zoe O’Farrell for inviting me on the tour and of course to Sadie Ryan for answering my questions!

Have you always wanted to write?

Yes, I have wanted to write since I started reading the Enid Blyton books. It’s always been my dream. I love reading. I was always the one hiding in her bedroom with a book

What were your previous jobs? Have they helped you with your writing process?

No, none of my previous jobs have had any relation to writing. I’ve been a receptionist, owned a café, a pub, I’ve worked at Marks and Spencer and done some modelling. Nothing at all to do with writing.

What was your inspiration for the characters in Guilty ?

The inspiration came from, how would I feel if this had happened to me? To have happen to me what happened to Lindy would destroy me as it did Lindy. Maybe I would go as far as Lindy wanted to go, who knows. I know that everyone is capable of anything if the right buttons are pushed. Nobody can say with certainty that they would never do something until they are in that position. And anyway this is a story of fiction so anything can happen in fiction, right? With Mia I have known women who have been controlled, perhaps not to such a degree, but they have been controlled enough to be damaging.

How do you construct your characters? Do they have traits of people you know?

I guess some of them do, yes, I think all authors pull out bits from people they know or they’ve met. Some is from myself. I try to write strong women, because I think I am a strong woman and can associate with that. Sometimes the characters just write themselves and others change massively as they grow and then I go back to the beginning and change to fit. 

What does your writing process look like? Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I think I am the worst pantser in the world. I think of an idea and structure it in my head. It has a start, middle and end. But the middle is up for grabs. It can get really messy at times. I am trying to be more of a plotter to make life easier for myself. Sticking to what the original idea was in the first place. That’s easier said than done because often my characters just go off on one crazy ride all by themselves and I’m unable to stop them. I have to let them take me along. Which then means I have to go right back to the beginning and change a few things to make it all fit. It’s always a little messy after the first draft. The magic happens in the edit. This is my favourite part. Here I can make the story come alive and my characters really do do as they’re told at this point. LOL

How did you research Guilty? Did you enjoy it?

I use google for everything and on occasion I ask people I know. I do kind of enjoy it, but it takes me away from my writing which annoys me a lot. One thing leads to another and on it goes.

Who are your favourite writers? Are you by them?

Mmm, well that is a difficult one because I have so many. They are always changing too. I love Jo Spain, the rhythm of her prose for me is magical. Liane Moriarty is fun to read and of course Marian Keyes, she is a legend. I’ve just read my first Lee Child novel a few months ago, not thinking they would appeal to me, and I was really surprised how much I enjoyed it. So he’s a new favourite for me.                             

If you could invite three people, living or dead, to dinner, who would they be and why?

Oh, my God, it would have to be Bette Davies, I just simply adore that woman, for her acting and her progressiveness in a tough industry. You know she did so much to help women have a voice back then at the cost of her losing movie deals. The Queen would be another; the woman is an icon. She has never put a foot wrong. And she has had to deal with some pretty terrible stuff happening in her family that the whole world has been privy too. The third would have to be Mick Jagger. Now there is a man who has more energy in his little finger than most of us have in our whole bodies! I saw him live once and his presence was something I will never forget. I think he’s fun and would have so many naughty bits of gossip to spill over dinner. 

Who would you least like to be stuck in a lift with and why?

Gosh that’s toughie but the first name to come to mind is Harvey Weinstein. 

Who would play the main character/s in a film version of Guilty?

Well let me see, I think Lindy needs to be someone with sass and a big attitude about herself to match her misery, and so I’m thinking, Kate Winslet would be perfect especially after seeing her in Mare of Easttown. For Mia, I think maybe Sienna Miller, she kind of fits my vision of her. Of course this would all be a huge dream come true.  

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I’m pretty boring to be honest, I like to spend time in my house, garden, walking my dog and going out on day trips with my partner. I also love watching old black and white movies especially in the winter when it’s dark and grey outside and pelting it down with rain.

What is next for you?.

Who knows, right? Anything can happen.  I have a series of detective novels I’m writing, which have been great fun to do. With the lead DI being a debonair Irishman. I’m hoping to get them out into the world soon.

Favourites:

Book? From when I was a teenager Sweet Savage Love by Rosemary Rogers, it’s a bit of a bodice ripper, a book of its time. 

Film? Without doubt that has to be     To Kill a Mockingbird and It’s a Wonderful Life

Band/Singer? Barbra Streisand. 

TV show? I loved Episodes on Netflix and Unforgotten.

Colour? Orange

Place? New York

Biscuit? Custard cream

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Guilty is available from Amazon.

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