I was “The Woman on the Beach”

Since my last blog, we’ve had a couple of celebrations in our household, my husband, Chris’s birthday on Bank Holiday Monday, but prior to that it was our wedding anniversary the previous Friday, 27^th August. Chris and I have actually lived together for over forty-three years, but he only made an honest woman of me two years ago on a beach in Mauritius. I love the wedding picture at the top of this blog. I kid you not, less than two seconds later I was sprawling in the sand in my gorgeous wedding dress because those four (from L to R Chris, our son Dan, daughter’s boyfriend Reece and Reece’s son Taylor) had dropped me! At least it was a soft landing.

We’d long agreed that if we ever got married it would be on a beach somewhere with just close family and a couple of friends, so for us it was the perfect day. Our son was Chris’s best man, and also walked me down the aisle (a red carpet laid over the golden sand) and our daughter was my maid of honour. It’s a memory that will live in my heart and mind forever.

I’d chosen that date, because it would have been my mum and dad’s platinum wedding anniversary if my dad had lived – our wedding bands and my engagement ring are platinum for that reason. I mentioned on my last blog that Mum and Chris’s mum, Audrey were coming to stay for a few days, but my mum stayed on for a couple of extra days, so she was here for our anniversary and what has always been hers too. It was good to hear her reminiscing about the ‘going away’ outfit she had, complete with hat and gloves of course, to travel to Belgium for their honeymoon. That was pretty unusual for the late 1940’s I believe, as most couples chose a British coastal resort, but our family has always liked to do things a bit differently!

It was good to see both mums and along with trips out to see our son and our daughter in their new homes, and meeting the puppies of course, we were able to let them entertain themselves by giving them copies of my latest book! Mum rang this morning to say she has finished it and loved it, in fact she was chatting about the future of all the characters as though they were real people – just as it should be, I guess. Mum is actually very honest when it comes to my books, as is my sister, Lynda.

This is a What’s App message she sent me earlier in the week, saying she was finding the book ‘riveting’ – praise indeed! I was clearly so shocked that I made the ‘rooky’ error about planting potatoes rather than digging them up!

Actually, I have been growing a few veggies this year. We won’t exactly be feeding the five thousand, but we’ve had lots of kale and our runner beans and tomatoes are just starting to crop. A first attempt for me, but I’ll definately have another go next year.

We had a very busy day on Monday for Chris’s birthday. Dan and his girlfriend, Katie came round to ours with puppy, Quin for a barbecue lunch. They also brought this utterly delicious coffee cake which Katie had made. Sophie, Reece and his two children, Amber and Taylor arrived with puppy, Baxter and we all went for a walk in the woods before Katie and Dan left, and I made vegetarian lasagne for the rest of us for dinner.

I thought I’d share the humorous birthday cards Chris received… I particularly love the one about the bin going out more than Chris does!!!!

In a few moments, I’ll introduce you to Beth Miller and her new book in my Between the Lines feature, but before I do, I have some book news of my own. For the past week, The Woman on the Beach has been in the top 100 in the Amazon Kindle main chart, which is pretty exciting in itself.

However, yesterday I awoke to an orange flag denoting that she was number one in the Romantic Suspense chart, and this morning she had climbed to number 40, in the main chart, her highest position so far. I’m totally thrilled and very grateful if you’re one of the people who has bought a copy and helped her to reach these lofty heights. If you haven’t ordered yet but have been meaning to, my publisher suggested that the price might go up as early as Monday – only by a pound, but what is the saying? If you look after the pennies, the pounds will take care of themselves!

Well, enough about me and mine, let me introduce you to author Beth Miller. If her book Starstruck is anywhere near as amusing as her answers to my questions it will be a laugh-out-loud read. And the great thing is, she has very kindly offered a signed paperback as a prize to one lucky UK entrant to this competition. To be in with a chance, all you need to do is leave your answer to the question, the relevance of which will become clear when you’ve read about Beth and her book, in the comment section at the bottom of this blog before midnight on 16^th September.

What was the name of the drummer in The Muppet Show?

1. Phil Collins
2. Micky Dolenz
3. Animal

Good luck and now, here’s Beth.

 

Q & A session with Beth Miller

Posted on Sept 3rd 2021

1. What was your first job after leaving full-time education?

I had a gap year before going to university, during which I worked for six months in an art and stationery shop in St Pauls (since bulldozed to make way for the stock exchange!); and six months on a computer magazine called MicroDecision, where I got my first taste of writing in the real world. After leaving university my first job was as a psychology lecturer in North Wales.

2. Who was your first crush – real life or famous?

Famous: Bob Geldof, around the time of I Don’t Like Mondays. I liked how scruffy he was. Real-life: at the same age that I liked Bob (approx. 12), I used to volunteer at a playground for disabled children, and I had a crush on an older worker there. He was probably no more than 16 but seemed very grown-up. Mark, I can now reveal that the secret Valentine’s card was from me!

 
3. What was your first piece of creative writing outside of school/college/uni?

Do we count the letters I made up for the otherwise empty reader letters page on MicroDecision magazine? If not, then it was probably a short story I wrote from a prompt at creative writing evening classes in my late twenties. I still remember the prompt: it was ‘Lying face down….’ I was rather proud of the story, and the teacher said she enjoyed it. That gave me a great boost.

4. Do you have a favourite tipple, alcoholic or otherwise?

Tea. I like tea better than most other things (and I don’t just mean other drinks. I like tea more than I like some people). Specifically, Numi Morning Rise breakfast tea. I have to order it in bulk, 200 teabags at a time, from Holland.

5. Are you a cat or dog person?

I find dogs a bit frightening. I like cats, because I like that they don’t bother with you unless they want something.

 
6. What is your favourite TV show or series from the past twelve months?

It’s been a big year for telly, hasn’t it. Slings & Arrows (on Youtube). Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (for the third time – me and my kids join in with all the songs). Call My Agent. We Are Ladyparts. Derry Girls. We’re hate-watching series 6 of Gilmore Girls.And we’ve just discovered Only Connect, now in its 17^th series.

 
7. Do you have a favourite holiday destination or special memorable holiday?

We go to Swanage in Dorset every year. Classic British holiday: Punch & Judy, ice-cream, fish and chips. Plus the outstanding Chococo café, and thousands of intriguing half-stories waiting to be written in the commemorative plaques on the pier.

 
8. Do you like to read in the same genre as you write?

Not while I’m actually writing; I can end up copying a book it if it’s too like mine or has too distinctive a voice. I read a lot of non-fiction when I’m writing my first drafts. But otherwise, yes, the so-called ‘women’s fiction’ genre (which could just as usefully be called fiction, I think) is my favourite genre, alongside than funny novels of any kind. If it’s funny, I’ll read it, whatever the genre.


9. How do you deal with negative reviews?

I have a thick skin, so I read them all. I even read the reviews on Good Reads, which I believe is relatively unusual. For a while, I had a one-star review as my twitter profile: ‘Language, threesome, blasphemy, abortion, disgusting!’ My editor was cross about that review but I admired how snappily well-written it was. And accurate, to be fair.

Not everyone’s going to like every book. There are books that I think are stone cold masterpieces that have loads of one-stars. The only reviews that irritate me are the one-word ones. ‘Poor’. I always feel like they should put a bit more effort in. If you’re gonna trash a book, trash it properly.

 
10. Cast your mind back to when you were thirteen and complete the following sentence:

When I grow up I want to be… working backstage at the Muppets. An unfulfilled dream, alas.

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Sally Marshall is just your ordinary suburban woman, who gets by performing as a tribute act to a pop star (Epiphanie, even more famous than Beyonce).

Until one day she is asked by the real Epiphanie to do a life swap for a couple of weeks. Epiphanie trades Madison Square Garden for doing gigs in pubs, while Sally is catapulted from suburban semi life to double for a mega-star, her life turned upside down.

But which life will they each choose in the end?

Laugh-out-loud and unputdownable, Starstruck will leave you feeling warmer about all the different lives we choose.

Starstruck was published in August 2021 by Farrago.