The title of this week’s blog is not directly to do with the facts of life. It’s World Environment Day tomorrow and it made me think about how important it is for us all to do ‘our bit’ no matter how small that bit may seem.
I feel very fortunate to have a home with a garden, which I appreciate is not the case for everyone, and I’ve become more mindful over recent years about putting out food for the birds – both seed and fat balls – all year round. It’s not only for their benefit, I get an enormous amount of pleasure watching them feed. It helps me relax and take a few deep breaths between bouts of ‘wrestling’ with the copy edit of The Woman on the Beach. Because of my eye operation, I can only work in one-hour stints, so it seems to be taking longer than usual and it needs to be finished by Tuesday! Eek!!
Back to the calm oasis of my garden; I’m also very aware of planting that attracts the bees. This close-up of the poppies visible in the first picture, shows our beautiful ‘fuzzy’ friends hard at work collecting pollen. I originally planted poppies to commemorate our gorgeous old cat, Poppy who we lost at Easter three years ago and now we have self-sets in various places in the garden.
So, the poppies are a bee magnet, as are the foxgloves and the ceanothus bushes that I mentioned on last week’s blog – I thought you might enjoy this little video of them buzzing away…
We also have buddleia for the butterflies – any other bee and butterfly attracting plant suggestions would be welcome in the comments section below.
Trees are also so important for our environment. We have two large silver birches in our garden, which pre-date us living in our house by many years, a well-established leylandii hedge on one border and laurel and holly on the other.
My favourite tree though has to be this stunning acer. It is beautiful for nine months of the year, the foliage turning from this vibrant green through shades of yellow, orange and deep red in the autumn. I love touching it too! We have another smaller one in a pot on the paved area at the bottom of our garden. Our son was dropping very large hints when he moved into his new home last Friday, but so far, I’ve managed to resist!
Well, it’s the first Friday of June, so time to introduce you to the third author in my Between the Lines feature. M.M.Chouinard is a USA Today bestselling author. Her Detective Jo Fournier series comprised of The Dancing Girls, Taken to the Grave and Her Daughter’s Cry. Her new book, The Vacation, published last week, is a standalone psychological thriller. As you’ll see from the cover, it features a figure dressed in red on a beach, not unlike my latest book, The Woman on the Beach, but there any similarity ends.
Just to say, I think my first question on Between the Lines may have been slightly ‘lost in translation’, but I’m licking my lips at Michelle’s answer to question 4 – I LOVE a mochachino. I’ll leave you with Michelle….
On the first Friday of every month, I’ll be introducing you to fellow authors in Between the Lines.
Q & A session with Michelle Chouinard
Posted on June 4th 2021
1. What was your first job after leaving full-time education?
I left my job as a professor to write full time, and have never looked back!
2. Who was your first crush – real life or famous?
My first crush was a boy in my fifth grade class named Armando. He was super cute!
3. What was your first piece of creative writing outside of school/college/uni?
I’ve been writing fiction as long as I can remember, so I’m not sure. But my first published fiction story was in the local paper when I was eight.
4. Do you have a favourite tipple, alcoholic or otherwise?
Mochas! Coffee + chocolate = bliss…but I’m happy with any type of espresso drink, really.
5. Are you a cat or dog person?
Both! I have three cats and a dog. I’d also have horses and rabbits and ferrets and Tasmanian devils, too, except my husband would walk right out of the door…sigh…
6. What is your favourite TV show or series from the past twelve months?
The Flight Attendant. Sooo good!!
7. Do you have a favourite holiday destination or special memorable holiday?
I’d hate to have to pick one! My most recent was to France to be at a friend’s wedding. We rented a car and got to drive around the country, and that was amazing, both the wedding and the country.
8. Do you like to read in the same genre as you write?
I do, but I read in lots of other genres, too. Women’s fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, and non-fiction are probably my favorites.
9. How do you deal with negative reviews?
No author writes for every reader on the planet—different authors appeal to different readers. Some readers aren’t going to like my books because they just aren’t a good fit, and that’s okay. I certainly don’t like every book I read, even some that are adored by hundreds of thousands of readers! Some people do like what I do, and those are the people I write for. I put my energy toward learning and growing so I can give them the best possible experience with my books.
10. Cast your mind back to when you were thirteen and complete the following sentence:
When I grow up I want to be… I was fascinated by two things early on—research psychology and writing, and I wanted to do both of those things. The cool thing is, now I’ve been able to do both! 🙂
A big thank you to M.M. Chouinard for being the third author to feature on Between the Lines. Maybe it’s an age thing, but I just couldn’t get into The Flight Attendant at all… my daughter and my son’s girlfriend loved it though!
I wish Michelle every success with her new novel, THE VACATION.
Julia x
THE VACATION
The Thanksgiving retreat was meant to be a time for them to get away from it all, miles from the secrets that threaten to tear their family apart. But they’re each hiding something:
Rose hopes the pretty house overlooking the sea is just the break her family needs. But as she gazes at the water and remembers her own childhood, she is utterly terrified.
Brandon knows his wife Rose has barely forgiven him for his affair. He’s started drinking again, a road that led him to disaster once before.
Brianna, Rose’s sister-in-law, is recovering from her fifth miscarriage, and when she looks at her adorable niece, she can’t help but see the daughter she deserves.
Then three-year-old Lily disappears from her bed in the villa. Isolated in what should have been paradise, it quickly becomes clear that one of them took her.
As one by one their secrets are uncovered, who will be destroyed next?
A completely addictive thriller about every parent’s worst nightmare that will keep you guessing into the early hours of the morning.
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