Awards of 2012

Many thanks to my friend and fellow writer/blogger, Jamie Tucker Dougan for tagging me this week in his Awards of 2012 blog.

Jamie wanted to sum up the year with a few quick-fire questions.  So here goes with my answers:

One word to sum up 2012.

Interesting!

Song of the year.

Olly Murs and ‘Troublemaker’ - I love this song and it never hurts to see Olly in action, does it?

Album of the year.

Ok so it’s a couple of years after its release date but this album first came onto my radar last year so I think it counts.  It’s the fab Caro Emerald and ‘Deleted Scenes from the Cutting Room Floor’  It’s a little bit quirky, raunchy and Burlesque and always has me singing along and ready for a shimmy.

Highlight of the year.

Seeing my book at #1 free in Kindle and then the subsequent sales on the back of that.

Hero of the year.

My lovely husband.  I know, reach for the puke bucket but I do mean it. Even in the most dire of times he stays upbeat and positive and I welcome every new day and challenge we share together.  I wouldn’t be a published author without him and I love him for his support and the constant laughter.

Sports star of the year.

I’m not a sporty person but I fell in love with Mo Farah this year.  That open smile just melts my heart and when he so effortlessly beat The Cube and won £250,000 for charity, I cried buckets.  Yes, I’m a soppy cow!

Movie of the year.

It’s an oldie but a goodie and one we finally got to share with our son so I’d have to say, ‘Rainman’ -  OK it’s not a 2012 movie but it was part of our year and I defy anyone to watch this film without laughing and crying.

TV show of the year.

Sorry, you either love it or hate it but it has to be Miranda - the inspiration behind my latest novel ‘Stilettos & Stubble’

Also ‘Mrs Brown’s Boys’ and ‘Come Dine With Me.’

Crush of the year.

Whenever I write I have Gold TV playing British sitcom reruns constantly in the background and I have a super soft spot for Geoffrey Palmer  in ‘As Time Goes By’.  Craggy, lived-in and cosy with a dry sense of humour but an underlying sexiness!

On the other side of the coin, I have the hots for Olly Murs - way too young, way too wrong!

So what would your answers be?  How would you rate your 2012? Please feel free to post your own blog or leave your comments here.

You can purchase all 4 of my books or my Christmas novella at Amazon for Kindle or at Lulu in paperback. Thank you and Happy New Year!

'STILETTOS & STUBBLE' is released!

WOO HOO!  Today’s the day!!!

Wednesday 28^th November is the official release date for my new romcom, ‘Stilettos & Stubble’.  It can be downloaded straight to your kindle for just £1.97 here at Amazon UK or here for the States, Australia and India.  You can also bag yourself a paperback copy at Lulu.

For those of you who haven’t read the blurb yet, here goes:

All her life Persephone’s

been branded a

‘Big Girl’.

Criticised by her outwardly perfect mother,

dearly loved by her father, she’s the

‘Queen of Low Self Esteem’.

Finding herself suddenly

immersed in a world of

glitz and glamour,

where nothing is quite as it seems,

will she finally realise

‘It’s what’s inside that counts’?

You can also go to Amazon and click on ‘Look Inside’ (this feature will kick in soon) to read the first few pages and see if it’s the book for you - if you like a few giggles, some gorgeously camp men and a sprinkle of romance, I’m sure it will be!

Releasing a book is draining, so tonight will be spent checking my sales figures and sipping bubbly with my hubbie - the official launch will be on 8^th December with a couple of close friends who have supported my writing journey.  It will, no doubt, be a raucous affair - watch this space for the blog and photos.

But as I recover from one release, I'll be preparing for another.  My novella, ‘Christmas Deliverance’ will be on sale from Saturday 1^st December - also at Amazon and Lulu.

Want to see the cover?

Drum roll …

And to whet your appetite, here’s the blurb for that one:

It’s that time of year again and the

Willoughby family think they’ve

got everything wrapped up.

Each concealing their own issues, they

return to widowed mum Maggie

to play at happy families.

But an unexpected delivery

challenges their perceptions of one other

- and of themselves.

Grab a mulled wine, snuggle up by the fire

and share a family Christmas with a difference.

Because Christmas doesn’t always deliver what you want

- but sometimes it might be just what you need.

Hope that’s left you wanting more and feeling just a tiny bubble of festive spirit.

Right, I’m off to check my sales!  I leave you with the acknowledgements for ‘Stilettos & Stubble’ as they appear in the book and, as I’m in a party mood, the song which I associate most with my ‘new baby’.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I had such fun writing this book

and just as much fun researching it.

Drag queens and gay guys love to talk

so I had no problem gaining the info I needed!

I really hope I haven’t forgotten anyone here as

I know they’d have my guts for garters!

So huge thanks go to:

My dear friends Geoffers and Eddie

Barbara Bush

Titti La Camp

Wilma Ballsdrop

David Somerset Barnes

Steve Phillips (Stella)

Ian Tink

And for giving me leads to drag queens:

Mireille Eustace

Alison Stockley

Thank you ladies.

 With love to a new friend Jackie Martin

who has been a huge supporter of my books

and wants to be my PA!

As always for my lovely Mum, Robes and Ben.

Chatty Man meets the Misfit

With the release of ‘Stilettos & Stubble’ just over a week away, I’m feeling a little giddy with all the work and excitement.  Releasing a new book is an exhausting process - the writing really is the easy part - and I’m constantly referring to my faithful list to make sure that everything is on track and ready to go.  Poor hubbie has been worked to a frazzle and I couldn’t do any of this without him.

So as I sink further into my ‘pre-release’ madness, this week I’m indulging myself in an imaginary interview.

Let me set the scene for you … 

‘Stilettos & Stubble’ has been picked up by a HUGE hot-shot producer and is being made into a feature film.  (See, I told you it was indulgent!) and I’ve been invited to talk on Alan Carr’s ‘Chatty Man’- where better?

Hair and make-up have worked wonders on me and I’m wearing a simple, but sexy black jersey dress and strappy shoes.

 

 So that’s me ready to go then - cue huge round of applause as Alan welcomes me on set and I manage to get to my seat without tripping or flashing my knickers.

ALAN:  So, Amanda, what can I offer you to drink, my love?

ME:  Well in the style of my Mummy Misfit books, I guess it has to be a ‘Pink Cock’ if you’ve got one there, Alan.

ALAN:  (huge guffawing and much showing of many teeth)  Oo-er, Missus!  I most certainly have got one hiding somewhere in here and I’m rather partial myself, so I think I might join you.

ALAN:  (sipping and wiping froth from his mouth with a suggestive wink)  Ooh, yum.  Good choice, girlfriend!  Now, tell me a little bit about the novel that this fab movie is based on?  I might just have another pink cock while you chat, if that’s OK?

ME:  Well, Alan, ‘Stilettos & Stubble’ tells the story of a larger than average lady who finds happiness in the most unexpected of places - the film is going to be huge fun with a great cast and soundtrack.

ALAN:  Ooh, yes the music is wonderful.  I had a great little work out to it in the shower this morning - some fantastic tracks, I have to say.  So, what gave you the idea to write about an Amazonian woman?  It’s not the usual type for a chicklit novel, is it?  And you don’t mind me calling it chicklit do you - not gonna hit me with your handbag?

ME:  No, I don’t mind at all!  There’s no shame in writing or reading chicklit - there’s a massive market for it, as much as it’s slagged off.  I got the idea from watching an episode of ‘Miranda’ and suddenly I found I had a whole plot in my head.

 ALAN:  Now, I’ve seen a few clips and it really is very funny but it also has a bit of a message going on in there, doesn’t it?  See, I’m not as thick as I look!  (pulls face at camera)

ME:  Yes, Alan.  It’s all about accepting people for what they are - going beyond the outside shell.  I think everyone in the story learns that in one way or another.

ALAN:  Well with a face like this, I’m all for that philosophy!  More cock?  (he tops up my drink.)  Now, it’s been a really exciting year for you, hasn’t it?  It’s not just the film coming out but also a mini series based on the ‘Mummy Misfit’ books.  How exciting is that?

ME:  Very exciting!  My readers have often told me that the Misfit books would make great TV but it just seemed that it would never happen.  Now it’s almost in the can and I think they’ve done a great job with it.  It’s everything I’d hoped it would be.

ALAN:  Is it true that you got chased out of Putney by Yummy Mummies wielding designer handbags because they were so annoyed with you?  

ME:  No Alan, that’s not true.  Most of the mums have been very supportive - and those that haven’t obviously see a snippet of themselves in the nastier mums in the book.  That’s their problem - I’m having the last laugh!

ALAN:  And what about ‘Fenella’ - Mummy Misfit’s best friend?  She’s the posh totty with a heart, isn’t she?  Is she real or made-up?

ME:  There is a Fenella in my life but the character was very loosely based on her.  It is a work of fiction and I think people need to remember that.

ALAN:  So are you saying that your Fenella wouldn’t sing a song on your breakfast bar and then fall off?

ME:  No, I’m not.  My Fenella would definitely do that!

ALAN:  Ooh, we should get her on the show!  Now, you often have gentlemen of the homosexual persuasion in your books - why is that?

ME:  Well, coming from a theatrical background, a lot of my friends were gay and I always felt more comfortable with them than I did with the girls.  Writing about them just comes easily to me.

ALAN:  If you were going to write about a really handsome gay guy looking for lurrrve (raises eyebrows at the camera) would you use me as inspiration and what would your plot be?

ME:  (trying to contain laughter)  Of course I’d use you, Alan, and I think I’d have you working as a topless carwash assistant who meets the man of his dreams when he brings his throbbing Lamborghini in for a rub down.

ALAN:  (gulps at his pink cock and fans himself)  Oooh, now that’s one book I’d definitely like to read - got a bit hot under the collar there!  (wipes forehead with a lace hankie)  OK, moving swiftly on now, I think we’ll finish up with the closing music from ‘Stilettos & Stubble’ - an uplifting little number, ‘I Am Woman’.  Huge thanks to the lovely Miss Amanda Egan for being on the show - we’re off to share another couple of pink cocks and have a boogie.

 ‘Stilettos & Stubble’ will be released on Kindle at Amazon and in paperback at Lulu on 28^th November.  ‘It’s what’s inside that counts’