Usually he writes non-fiction, local history, true crime, biographies, but April 1st is also the ;publication date of his collection of Yorkshire based short stories - Uncle Albert. (Priory Press)
What is the book about?
I wanted to go back to my childhood –in fact I think my best
writing has always been on that theme. The stories are an exaggeration of
people and events from a Yorkshire village in the 1950s. I wanted to make it
larger than life, very much influenced by Peter Tinniswood, who used to write
about a northern family, or maybe a bit like Carla Lane’s Bread.
What made you write these stories?
I decided I’d had enough of miserable tales
about crime and decided that I wanted to encourage people to smile at a thoroughly
daft character.
Is Uncle Albert based on someone real?
Only in a very small way – about
2 % of Albert is actually my real Uncle Albert, from Churwell, near Leeds. He and Aunt Ivy never had children, and they
looked after me when I was little, as Mam went out to work as a dressmaker in a
clothes factory. Later, they gave a home to three boys – sons of my Uncle Harry
Medd.
Is the village where the stories are set a real one?
Gawpham is vaguely Churwell but there is
something mythic about the lace- it’s locked into my DNA. There are key locations
such as the cottage garden, the working men’s club and the small-holding.
Did you use the local dialect words when you
were a kid? (the ones you have to explain in a glossary for non Yorkshire tykes!)
I was a dialect speaker until the age of 7.
So I asked my mates, ‘Are tha laikin’ aht toneet?’
‘Are you coming out to play tonight?’
Description
Everyone has an Uncle Albert somewhere in their family tree and he's usually the one having a quick smoke around the back while trying to think up a new get-rich-quick scheme that doesn't actually involve work. The sort of uncle who is wonderful to talk about unless he actually turns up on your doorstep carrying a still-moving sack and wearing a furtive look.Uncle Albert is a nostalgic look at life in a small Yorkshire village when Tetley's Yorkshire Bitter was still made in Yorkshire and a pie and a pint with ketchup was at least two of your five-a-day.
Was the
title difficult to create? – or do you find satisfactory titles always to be a
tough ask?
I rarely get to keep a title that I've come up with - usually my editor chooses one that fits the book in the Presents line-up. The last title I had used as a working title for my book was the previous book - A Question of Honour so I was pleased to keep that. But when I was writing this, to me it was just 'Alyse and Dario's story' and my editor rechristened it Olivero's Outrageous Proposal. She's good at thinking up good titles - and the one she has for my next book is just fabulous. (But I can't reveal that until it's all signed and sorted and officially scheduled)
Would you say it has the Kate Walker
hallmark – and if so, what exactly is that key element that makes a Kate Walker
story?
Oh that's a tricky one - I'm not sure authors are the best at describing their 'hallmarks'. I did have an editor once who said she loved my dark heroes (and she wasn't just talking about tall dark and handsome) so there's that of course. And there's an intensity of focus on the emotional journey of the hero and heroine. And there's also an intensity of passion! I'd have to go with the way Romantic Times described it: This couple heats up the pages with their battle-worthy banter and sensual conversations.
Is the
hero a personal favourite? (Where does he stand vis a vis the long line of
heroes in all the books?)
Dario was fun to write and I fell in love with him as I wrote his story. But then I'd have to say that about every hero I write. They're all my favourite when I've just finished writing there story (not so much when I'm battling with them to get the story written!)
I'm loving having Dario's story in my hands - but I'm afraid I have to confess that I'm now being unfaithful to him with Nabil my new, sexy, scarred sheikh hero!
Do you still get a thrill when your new book
drops through the letter-box?
Even when I'm not so keen on the cover it's still a special feeling- and then seeing the book in the shops is always a thrill
I
If you compared yourself to Him Indoors, what
differences would you find – that is, in the kinds of writers you are?
Dario Olivero, Alyse Gregory was supposed to be a way to reap revenge against his estranged half brother. But Alyse carries the key to the family acceptance he's always craved and, realizing just how much trouble she's in, he can't turn away.
One solution!
A marriage proposal is not what Alyse was expecting. But this deliciously sexy Italian will resolve her family's debts if she becomes his convenient wife... Her head says no but her body begs her to say yes.
With an intensity rivaling the Tuscan sun, their mutual desire soon escalates to something inconvenient, creating a whole new dilemma!
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