Hard to believe my interview series featuring #Bookouture authors is winding down – as my initial batch of conversations are drawing to a close! I am hopeful I can continue to converse with the lovely authors of this Indie Publisher in the UK, as each conversation I have been sharing (and will be!) has been such an enjoyable feast of words and a wealth of sharing our writerly lives with one another – whilst giving little hints about what each story now releasing will involve. It’s become a welcome glow on my blog, as prior to assembling these interviews, I had never heard of Bookouture and I have Ms Driscoll to thank for this lovely rendezvous and joyfulness!
Each time I set to mind which stories I wanted to highlight during this interview series, I wanted to seek out stories which would touch my heart but also, might challenge me a bit emotionally. Women’s Fiction is full of heart-centred dramatic story-lines – where you get to step directly into the shoes of a woman whose own life is not just different from your own, but it’s set to a higher pitch of a dramatic background. I love reading about lives full of adversity and strife, whilst seeing how each character in turn picks up the pieces of their lives and carries forward renewed and strengthened despite the obstacles which befell them. These are the type of stories whose truism to our own contemporary lives give us a portrait of how we might live through similar circumstances – hopefully for the better for having learnt of the character’s journey but if not, perhaps a renewed strength from having read their story.
I love finding fictional stories whose evocation of a lived life is so honestly realistic, the person on the page could quite literally walk out of the ink and folds of paper to alight in reality. When I first read the premise behind ‘After the Lie’ I was curious from the sociological and psychological juxtapositions how this family might surmount the secrets which are starting to percolate to the surface. It’s definitely an interesting proposition for a story to funnel out as the novel unfolds, and thus, I was quite inspired by what to ask the author on it’s behalf!
I hope you enjoy our conversation and perhaps, I might have inspired you to pick up a copy of ‘After the Lie’ or any of the other lovely Bookouture titles I’ve been featuring! If I have, kindly let me know in the comment threads below this post or on each individual interview, too. I am blessed by your visit and happy to find my readers are enjoying this interview series, too! In other words, these guest features have been some of the most popular recently read posts on Jorie Loves A Story! Rock on, dear hearts!
To gain a bit of a back-story on how I came to host Bookouture authors,
please visit my first conversation I featured with this publisher with Teresa Driscoll!
One little lie can make one big difference …
Lydia has the ‘right’ kind of friends, her children are at the ‘right’ kind of school and she’s married to the ‘right’ sort of man – kind, steady, reliable Mark. Her wedding business is flourishing and even though she is at loggerheads with her mother, she couldn’t ask for anything more from life.
But the truth is that Lydia has been lucky. She has been living a lie for years and Mark has no idea who he is really married to. But nothing lasts forever and the past has a funny way of catching up with the present. When the person who knows all of Lydia’s dark little secrets turns up at the school gates, his presence threatens to blow Lydia’s life apart.
What is Lydia’s terrible truth? Once the secret is out, you can’t put it back …
Your opening greeting to readers on your website is that you write stories about ordinary life, everyday humour and family life. It might sound quite ordinary but to turn everyday life into a compelling read takes charisma. How do you approach your writings to make them realistic but also refreshingly unique where each woman who reads the story can find it resonating with them?
Fisher responds: When I am thinking of ideas for the next novel, I go onto forums such as Mumsnet to see what ‘ordinary’ women are discussing and asking advice about. I listen to my friends and their stories, (or people bellowing their problems into their mobile phones on trains and in cafés) and then I try to think of the most extreme – but credible – version and add in as many complications and conflicts as possible.
What a clever way to find a conduit of modern life and re-invent what is observed, read or overheard back inside of a novel? I can well imagine your mind is percolating with ideas, fusing together all the loose strands of inspiration and perhaps, finding a few connections amongst the fragments as well as you put it all back together again! I thought this was an lovely methodology to have for a writer – but also, such a brilliant way to bring our real-lives to the page – to honour those who are struggling with so many diverse obstacles and trying to choose the best course for their lives to take next. Singularly impressed you’ve captured this kind of drama as well as you have.
Whilst you were mapping out the scope of your character’s life, has there been a character you’ve created thus far of whom has surprised you by their motivations and/or life choices!?
Fisher responds: In my new novel, ‘After The Lie’ I was surprised by my main character, Lydia. She had spent all her adult life atoning for a mistake she made as a teenager, being the perfect wife, daughter, mother and then one day she just couldn’t do it any more and started to rebel, making some terrible mistakes along the way. I forgave her though – I love it when my characters turn feisty.
This had to be a clever turning point for you, though – to watch as someone you’ve enjoyed creating has sort of self-destructive a bit off course and then, you have to nurture her back to a path where she’s not self-loathing or self-critcising herself out of having any kind of happiness at all. I think the patterns of guilt and the weight of certain things which lay prey on a person’s heart and mind are the worst memories to overcome. It sounds like Lydia had a lot to work through not just personally but emotionally as well.
You’ve mentioned how you’ve found a lovely new tribe of friends via Twitter; what has been your favourite part of being active on Twitter? The randomness of the conversations or being able to share your bookish life whilst finding others who appreciate the same?
Fisher responds: My love affair with Twitter is multi-faceted! I love talking about all things writerly with people who don’t roll their eyes and secretly wonder when I’m going to crack on cooking dinner whenever I start discussing the plot for my new novel. But I’ve also enjoyed interacting with readers who’ve bought my books and have been kind enough to seek me out to chat about them. And lastly, I’ve made some great friends through discussing books, dogs, teenagers…some of whom are now friends in real life (even though I’ve gone against everything I tell my kids about not meeting people whom they only know online!)
I had to laugh into a chuckle when I read your first sentence here! Hmm, yes I think the writerly and readerly interactions on Twitter tend to blur the lines and grant us a safety line where we can interact with like-minded spirits who give us the most joy through time shared and conversations explored. Twitter is very much the chatterbox of the social media platforms – where who knew you could achieve so much inside a fractional amount of space given? I find one of the best blessing is how open we all are to draw a thread of connection to each other – it’s quite a blessing to see previous barriers yielding to the joy of spontaneous and serendipitous interactions!
Your new novel “After the Lie” has an inkling of noting we’re about to enter into the life of your character ‘after startling news’ is being relaid to her – was this difficult to subject your character to the duress of facing her best kept secret?
Fisher responds: Actually watching my characters evolve under pressure is one of my greatest pleasures because you really get to see what they are made of. I am very keen on strong women who might make terrible mistakes, might appear passive or ineffective, but in the end, at rock bottom, they will rally and surprise themselves and hopefully, the reader too.
Ooh my! This is what I was hoping might be true – about the ending of the story and how you take us on a full ride of your character’s journey! I love fully immersion Women’s Fiction – where you feel so well and full on the narrative, it’s nearly as if you just lived that exact life yourself! Champion!
Honesty is at the heart of healthy relationships until it’s tested against something that is previously unknown. Did you struggle to balance the drama and the emotional angst against the moments of the story where life defused for a spell or two?
Fisher responds: I always try to balance the high drama with moments of humour. In ‘After The Lie’ I used Mabel, the naughty dog, to relax the tension for a moment or two. In real life, I rely on my own dog, Poppy, a Lab/Giant Schnauzer cross to bring some light relief (and picnic stealing) into the writing process!
It’s the same with cheeky cats in the background whilst your writing – without levity we all surely would have lost ourselves somewhere along the path as we write our hearts out of our pens! I also agree – using humour to break the tension bits in a story are great to see, especially when used in such a way you almost regret laughing because of the dramatic bits!
What is your great joy in writing realistic relationship-based fiction?
Fisher responds: I often realise truths about relationships when I am writing fictional ones or I start to make sense of relationships that seem so odd to me. I’m very open and honest – I doubt very much that I have one single secret that someone doesn’t know – and I really enjoyed writing about Lydia who has been guarding her secret for thirty years. I find it so much easier to write characters who think in a totally different way from me.
This is interesting – I am unsure where I stand on this myself – to find it easier to write outside of my own character or to write someone akin to who I am; this is a good question to propose! No, I suppose not – none of us could claim that In retrospect but it’s how we each interpret how to progress through our lives and how to etch those insights in our characters is where we divide and draw out different inspirations.
Do you rely on a combination of research and imagination or do you write off the cuff seeing where the threads of a story can fuse together?
Fisher responds: I always feel a bit nervous discussing this subject because it is so easy to sound like a pretentious twit! I write character-driven books, so generally I have a clear idea of the sort of person whose story I want to tell and of the conflict that faces them. I think quite carefully about their personalities before I start writing, though they definitely develop as I get to know them better. However, because I write contemporary novels about ‘real’ women I don’t need to do anywhere near as much factual research as someone who writes historical or crime novels. I have a clear idea of the beginning and end of the novel but the middle tends to evolve as I write.
Hmm,… I did not think you came across that way at all!? Sorry to hit a nerve though, as I was just curious how you approached the backbone of creating your stories – it fascinates me – writer to writer, as everyone has their own process. I do agree – when your writing is set in the Contemporary world, it breaks down the overt need to dig inside research that takes volumes of reading and discovery to uncover (especially considering which century the story could be set in the historical past) but evenso, I wasn’t sure if writers who write about our everyday lives feel like the story-telling is easier because of this choice to focus on the present or a bit trickier – as we have a shared reality about what our contemporary world looks like and how life can be perceived. I think it’s clever smart to have such a strong caption of your idea first and then you embark on setting down the bones of your narrative from there! Quite lovely!
How did you choose to use humour as a way to segue the difficulties of the circumstances being faced inside “After the Lie”?
Fisher responds: Years ago I read The Help by Kathryn Stockett and realised how powerful humour could be in dealing with difficult issues and making them accessible to readers. Stockett tells the story of the prejudice faced by black maids from their white employers in Mississippi in the 1960s. The humour underlines, rather than detracts, from the seriousness of the message far more effectively than any dry lecturing on the evils of racism. Since then, I’ve tried to use humour in my books to illustrate the lunacy of bigoted people.
I personally felt more attached to the adaption of this novel in film than I did with Stockett’s novel; having seen the film and brought to such an emotional level of conviction by her characters and the heart of their story, I can definitely agree about how the humour bits helped to dissipate the harder bits slightly but for me, I was such an emotional wreck after that film, I truly walked out of the theatre with a heavy heart and a mind full of the layers of insight the story brought to the surface and eloquently dealt with everything as a whole.
Why do you think Women’s Fiction is broaching new horizons in today’s world where women are hunger for the stories being written now moreso than in the past decade?
Fisher responds: I think there are trends in fiction, just as there are in fashion, cars and everything else! There does seem to be a demand for grittier, darker stories currently but I don’t worry much about trends – I just write the book I would like to read.
Yes, I’ve noticed this myself – the grittier the better by some accounts, and here I am more of a traditionalist – enjoying the stories such as the ones I’ve been highlighting through Bookouture or previously reviewed by ChocLitUK and all the lovelies you’d find by other publishers in my Story Vault, where I happily reside in the stories which bring to light strong women and men, living very realistic lives but where the undertone doesn’t have to be set to such a hue of darkness! I have the tendency to read against trends as much as champion authors who are not as well known but who are developing such a strong array of stories, it’s a pleasure to share my discoveries of them with my readers and visitors alike. The Butternut Lake series by Mary McNear came to mind as I was composing my reply – such a clever series and set in the modern era with narrative directions which are rather apt for today’s reader. Thus, I do agree – write what your inspired to write, and the readers shall find your stories!
What drew your eye to approach Bookouture as a writer who wanted her story to take flight with an Indie Publisher?
Fisher responds: I have self-published and also been traditionally published by a major publishing house. I’ve tried to take what I have learnt from both of these experiences to find the right ‘fit’ for me and my books. The reason Bookouture appeals to me is because the management listens to the ideas of the authors and communicates very well. There’s no real sense of hierarchy – it feels as though everyone from the authors and editors to the proofreaders and management are working as a team to produce and market the best book possible. I was also attracted to Bookouture’s focus on marketing. There’s absolutely no point in putting a book out into a crowded market place if the publisher doesn’t have a well-defined marketing strategy for it.
I love finding this out about Bookouture as these are the attributes I love hearing about Indie Publishers – the ones who are focused on the author first and foremost and dedicated to the story being published secondly. It sounds like such a wonderful place to form a partnership as everyone has the best interests at heart for the book and gives the author a voice to help guide the process rather than it being micromanaged away from the author’s control. I can definitely respect finding the right home per story and also, keeping your eyes open to the possibilities which greet you. Well done!
What do you enjoy writing most: drama, comedy or a combination? Why?
Fisher responds: I love to inject a bit of humour into my books but I never set out to write a comedy, drama or otherwise. I aim to tell the stories of ordinary women and the conflicts and issues they face. Women who never have enough time in the day, who are so worn out by juggling young children, ageing parents, family politics and work that sometimes their husbands are just another thing to be ‘fitted in’ rather than glamorous women jetting about the world with impossibly handsome spouses and designer clothes! I try to examine a whole range of human behaviour and emotions – worrying about what other people think, jealousy, the strength of maternal love, the resilience and resourcefulness that people can display when they face disaster. I like to think that the fictional people I write about could easily mirror the life of a friend you have, a parent you know at the school gates, a mother you’ve chatted to at a football match…
To get so wholly inside the psychological make-up of your characters is a blessing – it not only grounds their realism for a reader it adds a hearty dimension for us to read! I love fully fleshed out characters – ones you can feel your heart become attached too, because you truly want them to succeed at what their doing or to overcome an obstacle if need be – or where your spirit feels uplifted for taking the journey. Likewise, I like being challenged too, as I read, to stir my emotions and my thoughts about different lifestyles and the choices people make as they live through their everyday hours. Literature has such a breadth of reality to choose from it makes being a reader more enjoyable when writers like you are giving their all to their characters! They truly do become the composites of our living world!
What are the top five tools you use as a writer? Either to write your stories and/or to connect with the writer and reader communities?
Fisher responds: When I’m plotting a book, I like to brainstorm with a few writer friends whose judgment I trust, as well as my editor and agent. I also force myself to write a minimum of a thousand words a day. I don’t allow myself to get stuck – if I’m finding writing hard, I write a later scene in the book and go back and fill in the gaps. But the most important tool is to carve out the time to get words on a page. To escape my teenagers coming in and saying, ‘Yeah, yeah, we know you’re working but ‘Is there any bread/can you take me into town/help me with my chemistry?’ or the dog dancing about wanting a walk, I have to disappear to a café to write. In terms of reaching the reading community, I love to interact with readers on Facebook and Twitter and a message from a reader saying they’ve enjoyed my book is motivational gold!
I admit on the last note, it is golden for me to interact with the writers whose stories are touching my life with such a brilliant light of joy, too. When my season arrives to focus on my own writerly pursuits, I’ll have to sort out a balance between life and my writing affairs, but until then – as a reader who loves the hunt for wicked good stories – it’s a blessing we live in a world which has enabled social media to allow us to connect to each other in a way we never could beforehand. The notes writers give us – as book bloggers and/or as readers are just as cherished as the ones we give to you (the authors). Joy shared is always a double rainbow of happiness.
How do you renew your spirit when you’re not researching and writing?
Fisher responds: When I’m not writing, I love cooking, entertaining and socialising. I’ve moved around a lot and have many friends who live abroad so we often have houseful of visitors, which I absolutely love. On a daily basis, I can be seen running after my naughty Lab/Giant Schnauzer as she hoovers up picnics, chases kites and lies down in the only muddy puddle in a five-mile radius. And latterly, I have really started to enjoy my garden. I get ridiculously excited when something I’ve planted from seed starts to sprout. Poppies are my favourite – I plant loads of them and then the dog dashes through them, scattering the petals like confetti. This year, I’m experimenting with growing my own veg – I’ve planted some spinach and carrots and will be so impressed if any of it actually makes it onto a dinner plate!
Ooh you’d love my neighbour whose had her third go-round of a victory garden! Never a green thumb but felt encouraged to live as green as she could with the plot of soil given to her – she’s sprouted so much from mere seeds it’s amazing me to no end! Especially as she had these incredible outcomes with her squash and her greens! Even some root vegs took stock of her efforts and as she re-cycles through the Seasons, I dream about my own victory garden – what I’d like to try to grow and how lovely it would be work in soil that is enriched and not so grumpy for a gardener to grow even flowered pots and plants! How lovely you have such a keen outlet!! I, too, know the joys of having world-wide friends as I’ve had them for most of my life – it’s a special blessing and may you have many wonderful memories together as you meet-up and unite!
Thank you so much for inviting me onto your blog, Jorie.
I’d like to thank Ms Fisher for sharing so much about her release but also, to give stock and praise to how social media is changing how we communicate with each other – writer, book blogger and reader together – giving notes of gratitude and spontaneous conversation, which in effect becomes a double joy shared by two bookish souls! It’s wicked brilliant to have such stimulating conversations with fellow writers and I must admit, I am enjoying this series of interviews I am hosting on behalf of the authors of #Bookouture!
Converse via: #WomensFiction & #Bookouture
This author interview is courtesy of Bookouture!
Site | Blog | @bookouture
I have a full line-up of engaging conversations by this Indie Pub across the pond who is starting to make a bit of a splash stateside! It’s my honour and pleasure to bring these conversations to my readers, whilst helping to expand our knowledge of wicked awesome writers of Women’s Fiction or Historical Fiction whose stories are full of heart and soul; just the way I love the genres to be! They are focusing on guttingly brilliant dramatic story-lines, whose fusion of realism and the introspective focus on a woman’s journey is not only pro-positive but inspiring to find.
My interviews run straight through til the end of April as Helen Pollard is next: 30th April!
I will be featuring a bloke whose writing spell-binding Thrillers which sound as if they leave you breathless for the dramatic climaxes but eager to solve the mystery inside his stories whilst you root for his characters! I’m referring to British Thriller writer Tom Bale – look for his conversation on 6th May!
The reason I chose the authors I have to interview is because if their books were readily at hand, I know I’d be lost inside them! I always interview authors (or offer guest posts) of whom I’d genuinely and earnestly want to read; it’s a precursor to the day when I can read their stories and a lovely interlude for my readers to find #newtomeauthors they might not have discovered either!
In case you’ve missed my previous interviews feat. #Bookouture authors:
- Teresa Driscoll | Last Kiss Goodnight
- Natalie Meg Evans | A Gown of Thorns
- Renita D’ Silva | A Mother’s Secret
- Debbie Rix | Daughters of the Silk Road
Let’s celebrate bookish conversations & the stories behind them!
Kindly leave your comments, thoughts and musings about this interview for Ms Fisher in the comment threads below! I welcome your commentary! Esp if you are a regular reader of Women’s Fiction where strong story-lines empower your readerly experiences!
Happy #PubDay #Interview feat. @KerryFSwayne! Tweet her your mortifying dog story! #AfterTheLie Click To Tweet
Similar to blog tours where I feature book reviews, as I choose to highlight an author via a Guest Post, Q&A, Interview, etc., I do not receive compensation for featuring supplemental content on my blog. I provide the questions for interviews and topics for the guest posts; wherein I receive the responses back from publicists and authors directly. I am naturally curious about the ‘behind-the-scenes’ of stories and the writers who pen them; I have a heap of joy bringing this content to my readers.
{SOURCES: Book Cover Art for “After the Lie”, author photograph of Kerry Fisher, author biography and book synopsis were provided by the publisher Bookouture and used with permission. Conversations with the Bookish Banner created by Jorie in Canva. Blog dividers and My Thoughts badge by Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com. Comment banner created by Jorie in Canva. Tweets are embedded due to codes via Twitter.}
Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2016.
Thank you so much for inviting me onto your blog – loved your questions! All the best Kerry xx
My pleasure, Ms Fisher! :)
I was wicked happy hearing you loved answering the questions which I loved assembling for you! I felt it turnt out to be such a wonderful conversation between us – it was a joy to help *celebrate!* your Pub Day!