As I announced yesterday - April 1st is the official publication date of my latest book Olivero's Outrageous Proposal. But, as I'm sure so many of you know, I'm not the only writer in this house. My husband, Stephen Wade, also known as the Babe Magnet is also a multi-published author.
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)
So, to mark this double publication date, I thought we'd do a double blog post with each of us talking about our own new titles - but there's a twist. I've interviewed the author Stephen Wade - and he's interviewed the author Kate Walker - so here's the result:
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.
A wonderful collection of Yorkshire-voiced short stories by Stephen Wade which will appeal to young and old alike.
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?
Oh yes! That's one of the best bits of being a published author - seeing the new book, with a shiny cover and somehow the words look so different in printed form.
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?
I think the different sort of writers we both are just proves the truth of the fact that there is no right way to write a book - we all have our own processes, we go about this writing business in very different ways and neither is better than the other we both end up with published books in the end.
I write in silence and the books take time to put together - thinking of the emotional story and the motivations of the characters etc. And my characters get very serious and intent about things - there's none of the humor that Albert brings to the page, This Stephen Wade person writes fast - specially with Uncle Albert! and always has music playing while he's at the keyboard - often jazz which I can't stand. So it's just as well that we have managed to set ourselves up in separate studies so we can each work in our own way.
What's that they say about opposites attract? It certainly seems to be so with two such very different writers.
Description:
One problem...
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!
From there it was off to Haworth where the book launch for
the Babe Magnet’s book of short stories Uncle Albert
was to be held in The Black Bull.
Saturday was a cold rainy day but we still enjoyed exploring
and revisiting some of our favourite places in Haworth before we got ready for the evening and the official
book launch. There were glasses of
prosecco, great snack food (the Black Bull does great food) live music – and of course Uncle Albert! There
were even Uncle Albert beer mats all over
the bar tables. I’m not sure that many
of the regulars in the bar quite knew what was going on but they enjoyed the readings and several of them came
up afterwards wanting to buy copies of the book for their Dads on Father’s Day.
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