The author hot seat specials are designed
to help readers get to know both popular, and up and coming authors, a little
better. The questions are broken into sections - About your writing, about you,
fun stuff and finally. Some of the questions are easy, other may need a little
more thought and some may cause our author friends to hesitate before answering—still, they all
answer.
Today we welcome Charlotte Howard to the hot seat, her new book The Black Door is out and Charlotte is hitting the blog tour highway in order to get the word out. I'm so happy to have her here today.
Getting Started:
Tell us
about your latest book. What was your inspiration for writing it, is it part of
an ongoing series, the characters, the genre etc?
The Black Door is a contemporary
romance / light erotic romance novel (it lies somewhere in between!). It
revolves around the life of Imogen Pearce, a recently divorced mum of four who
is fast approaching 40. She starts working for Ryedale Incorporated, and finds
herself having to compete against the younger generation for clients. She’s
offered the account for Sean and Cherry Rubin’s adult shop, Wicked Ways. It’s
not long before she realises that the shop is a front for a private club called
The Black Door, and that she actually knows a few of the members.
It’s a book about discovery – Imogen sees people she knows in a new
light and secrets are revealed, but more than that, it’s about her discovering
herself.
I was inspired to write it after a reader of my previous books made a
comment about heroines always being young, beautiful and rich. They wanted a
heroine who was older, and struggling. So I created Imogen.
Cal Ryedale, the owner of Ryedale Incorporated
and sort-of hero, isn’t perfect either. Imogen doesn’t even find him attractive
to begin with. He’s married, and uses cheesy lines (“my wife doesn’t understand
me”), but as with Imogen, his character develops over the story and we see a
kinder side to him.
About your writing:
How many books
have you written during your career so far and which is your favorite?
I like to say three. My first two, Seven Dirty Words
and Four Letter Words are part of a duet, with the first being published in
2013. But I did write a novella back in 2010 and self-publish it. I don’t like
that one though – I did it all for the wrong reasons, and it wasn’t all that
good.
I don’t
have a favourite. That would be like asking me to choose between my children!
(I think most writer’s say that.)
Have any of
your books received negative reviews and how did you handle the situation?
Seven Dirty Words received a 2-star review on
Goodreads, but it was from a man saying he didn’t enjoy it. That doesn’t bother
me though because I wasn’t aiming for a male audience when I wrote it!
I think the
worst review I’ve had was for my self-published novella – it got a 1-star
review on Amazon. Negative reviews don’t tend to bother me because everyone is
entitled to their opinion, and you’re never going to please everyone. But, this
one did bother me because it was written out of spite. It was from someone I
used to work for, who created the review after I quit the team and we fell out.
I think that’s very childish. I’ve always said as long as the review is honest
I’m happy, even if you do rate it at 1-star, I appreciate that. But if you’re
going to slate someone’s work just because you fell out and wanted to upset
them, then that’s not fair. However, it was on the SP novella which I took out
of print!!
Do you believe in writer’s block and if so, how do you overcome it?
Yes. Yes I do. Every now and then I get completely
stumped and don’t know what to do. As a writer, whose career sort of depends on
being able to write, I find it quite upsetting when I sit and stare at a blank
screen, unable to think of anything.
Sometimes
taking the dog for a walk and simply getting some fresh air can help, but there
have been times when I’ve committed the ultimate sin and hit delete on the
entire manuscript.
When that
happens I switch the laptop off and take a break for at least a week. Even if I
find myself wanting to write after a couple of days, I refuse to and have a
whole seven days off. By the end of it, I’ve got a whole new idea in my head.
What is the one genre you would never
write and why?
I never say never. However, I have tried writing
children’s stories and can’t do it. I have a lot of respect for anyone who can
write for kids! Horror would be difficult for me as well – Stephen King
terrifies me (well, his stories do), so writing something along those lines
would give me nightmares!
Have you ever
written a book that you’ve regretted publishing and why?
Yeah – the self-published attempt. I wrote it when
I was pregnant with my daughter, thought it was perfect and refused to edit. I
spent nearly 3 years sending it out to agents and publishers (unsurprisingly it
got rejected) then decided that KDP made it easy to self-publish and would do
that instead. Big mistake.
I was
arrogant and naïve to think that it was even remotely ready to be seen in
print. Back then, all I wanted was to see my name on the spine of a book.
If a reader
said they wanted to write a book, what advice would you give them?
Do it! But before you consider attempting to get
it published, or self-publishing it, join your local writer’s group and ask
them to critique it. Constructive criticism is your friend – as long as it is
constructive and not just “yeah that’s crap”. Ask how to improve it, take part
in writing exercises, and NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK!
I love my
fortnightly meet-up with Yeovil Creative Writers. It’s 2 hours where I can talk
to like-minded people, read 1200 words out and get some tips on how to improve
it. My writing has improved drastically since joining, and I’ve made some
life-long friends as well.
About you:
Tell us what a
typical day in your life is like?
There’s no such thing as typical in this house!
I’m always on the go, and if I’m not running around after the children, walking
the dog, or volunteering and doing charity work, I’m glued to my laptop and
writing.
My 5 year
old son thinks he’s a werewolf, who climbs EVERYTHING. My daughter is a
girly-girl and loves to dance and sing.
I also volunteer at our local primary school and for the Girl Guiding
Association, so every day brings something different.
What sort of things put you in a bad mood?
My husband will tell you that’s not difficult to
do. Lack of sleep is probably the worst thing. I need a minimum of 8 hours or I
am the worst person to live with. That or interrupt me when I’m mid-write. If
I’m in the flow of writing a scene and suddenly the phone rings, or the dog
barks, or anything, and I get irritated!
Do you have a bucket list and what’s one thing you still want to do that you
haven’t done?
Oh yes. I add to it quite a lot. I’d love to play
a villain in a film – like an evil witch or similar. I have a great evil witch
laugh according to my kids.
What makes you
laugh?
My kids. They come out
with some cracking lines. Out of the mouth of babes and all that. The other day
we were shopping, and a young girl walked past wearing a pair of extremely
short hot pants. My son piped up with “Mummy, that girl forgot to put her
trousers on. I can see her bum.” I shouldn’t have laughed, but I did.
What is the most embarrassing
thing you’ve ever done?
Too many to list, and tequila has usually been involved.
Do you
like to read and what are you reading at the moment?
I usually have three or four books on the go at any given
time. At the moment I’m reading Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs and Not Juliet by
Ella Medler.
If you couldn’t write anymore,
what would you do instead?
A few years ago I would have said working as a vet nurse,
since that’s what I did before kids. But since volunteering at the school I’ve
realized how much I love working with children. It’s very rewarding, so I’d
probably say working as a teaching assistant.
Fun Stuff:
If you could go out with one famous person who would it be and why?
Will Smith. No contest.
I’ve been a huge fan since the late 80s / early 90s and his Fresh Prince days.
Do you have a habit that drives your partner/friends/family nuts and
what is it?
Talking. I could win
medals for talking. I never shut up.
In your opinion, what makes a person attractive?
The ability to put up with
me.
What is the strangest food
you’ve ever eaten?
Oh wow. I like to try new foods, and if I’m in a different
country I will eat whatever is their traditional dish, so I’ve eaten horse,
baby octopus, shark, snails, frog’s legs and stuff that I don’t know what it
was!
Would you rather have a
classic 1969 convertible Mustang or have the use of a beach side condo any time
you want?
Beach-side condo.
We’ve been through the “nice car stage” (MR2 – two of, RX8, Rover 220 GSi
Turbo, Lexus iS200…) and now have a busy family life, so being able to relax on
the beach whenever we wanted would be a welcome change.
And finally:
Would
you rather survive an apocalyptic event (yes, even a zombie apocalypse) or die
instantly without knowing what happened to your family and friends?
I’d probably die – I’m rubbish at
surviving. Even in my dreams when I’m being chased, I’ll hide in a cupboard and
then come out just as the baddie is going past! I’d like to survive though.
We went through a “prepping” phase at one point. We’d been watching
DoomsDay Preppers, and decided it would be cool to own our own bunker. We
didn’t get that far, but I do have a cupboard full of tins of hotdogs and bags
of flour.
Blurb:
Imogen Pearce is a single mum of four children and fast approaching 40,
she works at Ryedale Incorporated where she has to battle a younger and smarter
generation to get to where she wants to go. If that means taking on the account
of Cherry and Sean Rubin’s adult shop, then she will. But what happens when
Imogen discovers the private club that they run at the back? And what happens
when she realizes she knows quite a few members?
Excerpt:
Men. All the bloody same.
My mind traced back to the day I had given up on
one-sided monogamous relationships.
The children were at school or work, and the sun
was beating down. It was a glorious day, and I had decided to go home for
lunch, rather than spend it in a stuffy office.
I pulled up outside the house and a fleeting
thought passed through my mind when I saw Connor’s car sitting in the
driveway. My husband of eighteen years had had the same idea.
I crept into the house, hoping to surprise him.
But, it turned out that his idea had involved a slutty bottle-blonde.
I wanted to blame the events that followed on a
red mist descending over me. The truth is that in the time it took for my
mind to register that some tart was riding my husband in what I later
found out was known as reverse cowgirl, my mind had calculated the
necessary response.
The skank lost a good handful of bleached hair,
roots and all. I allowed her to gather her clothes and watched as she
tugged her pants on whilst running out of the house. If nothing else, the
neighbours got a good show.
Connor yelled at me. But his words were drowned
out by the blood pumping in my ears. I marched back up the stairs and into
his little study. Opening the window, I saw Miss Slut stood in the middle
of the road, screeching obscenities at me. I looked at the Ferrari in our
driveway and smiled.
I think his Xbox enjoyed its first and final
flying lesson as it sailed out of the window. The fact that it landed in
the bonnet of his prized mid-life crisis proved that Karma does exist.
Connor. Holly.
I made a mental note of the two names at the top
of my imaginary hit list.
I blinked and I was back in the boardroom.
Buy Links:
About the Author and where to find her online
British
author Charlotte Howard, was born in Oman and spent much of the first part of
her life flitting between Oman, Scotland, and England. Now settled in Somerset,
Charlotte lives with her husband, two children, and growing menagerie of pets.
Her
career as a writer began at an early age, with a poem being featured in an
anthology for the East Midlands. Since then Charlotte has written many short
stories and poems, and finally wrote her first full-length piece of fiction in
2010.
During
what little spare time she has, Charlotte enjoys reading and writing (of
course), spending time with her family, and watching action movies whilst
eating curry and drinking tea.
Charlotte
is an active member of Yeovil Creative Writers.
