FUNKY FRIDAY - with Author Elle Field

I'm delighted to welcome fellow musical lover and writer, Elle Field to FUNKY FRIDAY this week.

So, Elle, you admit to being a fan of musicals - which is your absolute fave, the one you could watch over and over again, and why?

I've seen We Will Rock You five times, so that's definitely the one I could go back to the theatre and watch over and over again! I'm a big fan of Queen but sadly was too young to ever them see in concert when Freddie was alive - We Will Rock You is probably the closest I'll ever get to experiencing the magic of "Queen" live on stage.

What inspired you to put pen to paper?

I've been scribbling down stories all my life and always wanted to be an author. Since it's not a job you find advertised and can just apply for, it's something I had to do myself - putting pen to paper and cracking on with it. I decided that Arielle, the main character in my first book Kept, would have a childhood career dream like me; Kept explores whether she can make that happen, except her dream was to be the next Coco Chanel, not an author.

What's the first book you remember reading as a child?

Probably the Puddle Lane books. I used to love reading about the Gruffle, the Griffle, and all the other characters down on Puddle Lane. It was a TV series too, I remember, but I definitely preferred reading the books!

Dream time! Your ultimate book launch ... where would it be, who would be there? Food, drink, music, outfit?

Since my last book Geli Voyante's Hot or Not is set in London and Durban, I think my dream launch would take place on both sides of the Equator - I'd have two launches! Everyone who is anyone would be there - along with my nearest and dearest - and we'd eat and drink local delicacies, dance all night, and make sure that the party was awesome enough to meet Geli's approval so she'd include it as 'Hot' in her column! ;)

Tell us a bit about your writing day.

As I still work full-time whilst writing, I don't have the luxury of a writing day - I have to snatch hours on my lunch break, in the evenings, on weekends and when I'm on holiday. When I was in Turkey this summer, I would wake up early, edit for 2-3 hours, and then hit the pool. It was a nice routine whilst I was there, but it's harder to be a morning person here in the UK when the weather is raining and miserable. I'm more likely now to write in the evenings and into the night, but I make sure that throughout the day I do some promotion and engage with my readers (and friends) using social media.

What's your ultimate goal as a writer?

I'd love my books to be enjoyed by as many people as possible, and I would hope that they would touch people's lives and encourage them to follow their dreams like certain books have touched my life and influenced me.

QUICK FIRE ROUND

Planner or Winger?

Winger

Night or Morning?

Night

Doer or procrastinator?

Procrastinator

Writing/first draft or editing?

First draft

Tea or coffee?

Tea

Elle's books are available on Amazon and Goodreads (paperback).

You can also find her at her Blog or on Twitter and Facebook.

Thanks for joining me, Elle.

* * * NEWSFLASH * * *

'Lottie's Luck' has been making me proud and holding its own on Amazon.uk.  It's been in the Top 100 in the romantic comedy category and hovering around the #1,000 mark overall - I couldn't be happier.

The current work-in-progress is hurtling towards the end of its first draft and is on target for a June release.

Fanfare Please!

So did you have a lovely long weekend of Jubilee celebrations?  Did you feel a little let down by our Great British weather or were you not surprised?  After all, Bank holiday = rain!

I was dragged, kicking and screaming (literally!) by my Aussie husband to see the gathering of the boats for the flotilla, down on the Thames at Putney.  This involved parking the car and then taking a rather muddy hike across the common to get to the river.  Relieved I’d ditched the sandals and gone back to boots, the trudge with lingering sciatica was still not good.  Neither was the fine rain in my hair or the pain in my cold ears.  Not a very happy bunny!

Once we’d seen the majority of the rowing boats set off, hubbie was still looking rather too keen for more.  ‘OK.’  I told him.  ‘I’m happy to drive along the river to see what we can see from the car.’  Son seemed happy enough with this too as he could plug himself into his iPod and become a non-communicative teen again.

Little did I know that we'd end up near Battersea Park, where hubbie had other ideas - to find a parking spot and hit the river again.  Now, don’t get me wrong.  I’m not a misery guts but by this point I had the hump.  I’m not a massive Royalist, I have a very annoying bladder (which tells me I need to pee if it knows it can’t) and I HATE crowds.

But we did it.  Aussie husband loves the spectacle and pageantry.  He got his way and I was then rewarded with pizza and wine.  Son enjoyed giving us a running commentary of what the Queen might be saying.  ‘Oh, Phil!  Hope I didn’t leave the gas on.’  And, ‘Gagging for a G&T old boy!’  A good time was (eventually) had by all.

Then, yesterday we had our street party - well what can I say?  It was very British - we were drenched but we sang through the rain and did our best to enjoy ourselves.  Community spirit rules!

But during all of the festivities and jubilation, the main thing in the back of my mind was the arrival of today.  It might be have been a busy time for Queenie but it’s been pretty full on for me too.  FANFARE PLEASE, as today is the launch of my third novel ‘Completing the Puzzle.’

If you’ve read the Mummy Misfit books, I hope you’ll continue on my writing journey into romance and see what else I’m capable of.  Fingers crossed you’ll like it because I’m currently working on my fourth novel (release date December) and if you all say you just want more Misfit Madness, I may cry.  A lot!

So here’s the blurb:

Middle aged and middle-of-the-road,

Fee Crawford has been drifting through life in a passionless marriage

and hurtling towards the menopause.

With her twin boys grown up and needing her less,

why does she still feel incomplete?

Coping with her elderly dad, increasingly distant husband

and flighty best friend, Cordelia,

her life seems to be spiralling out of control.

Will a chance meeting with a handsome vet

be the missing link to make everything fall into place?

From the author of the ‘Mummy Misfit’ books comes:

‘COMPLETING THE PUZZLE’

A tale of families, love and mid-life crisis.

So, what do you think?  If you’re tempted, head on over to Amazon to pick up your copy for Kindle for just £1.97 or in paperback at Lulu.

It will be a scary week for me as I watch my sales and wait for the first reviews to trickle in.  But I have a lovely book launch dinner to look forward to on Saturday.

Watch this space, I may post photos.

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All THREE of my books can be found at Amazon or Lulu - just look for me, AMANDA EGAN