I’m delighted to welcome Paula Williams to my blog.
Hello Paula. It was great to connect with
you through the Romantic Novelists’ Association. Over the years, I’ve found the
RNA to be a wonderful group in which to meet lots of fellow authors and
affiliate members, all of whom are eager to share exciting news about books.
Here are a few questions which will
hopefully give your readers an insight into some of the things that matter to
you.
Arabella: Are there any organisations,
writing, or reader groups, you belong to? And, how do they support or help you in
creating such wonderful, inspirational novels?
Paula: I belong to the Crime Writers' Association
and The Romantic Novelists Association, both of which are a great source of
inspiration and information. I came through the amazing New Writers'
Scheme of the RNA and am forever grateful to them for this wonderful resource.
Arabella: Where do you read? Sofa or bed
or ____?
Paula: Everywhere! I have always got
several books on the go at any one time, so I read wherever I happen to be. I
now have a phone that is waterproof (or so they say) which means I can - and do
- read in the bath. I read in the car (when I'm the passenger,
obviously!), when my husband is watching sport on TV - and sometimes, if the
book I'm reading is compelling, I even read when I should be writing!
Arabella: In your latest release, Rough and Deadly, who is your favourite character and why?
Paula: Rough and Deadly and is the second in my
Much Winchmoor Series of Murder Mysteries and my favourite character (apart
from Kat, the main character, of course) is a feisty old lady called Elsie
Flintlock and her sidekick, Prescott. (Sorry, that's two!). As
I say in book 3 (which I'm currently writing): "If ever a pair deserve
each other, it's Elsie and Prescott. She's a cantankerous old lady
with scarecrow hair, a liking for Homer Simpson slippers and a tongue sharp
enough to slice shoe leather. He's a cantankerous dog with hair like an
over-used toothbrush and a liking for ankles, trousers, anything within range
of his snapping jaws."
Elsie and Prescott made a brief appearance
in Murder Served Cold, the first in the series and, since then, have
refused to go away.
Paula: I'm a bit of both. Every time I
start a book, I vow that, this time, I'm going to be all grown up
and sensible and plot everything out before hand. But it never works
out like that. In fact, when I started writing Murder Served Cold, I
didn't even know who the murderer was until I was about two thirds of the way
through the first draft and beginning to panic! With Rough and
Deadly, I had a vague idea - and with the third, Burying Bad News, I knew right
from the start who the murderer was – but I have no idea how I'm going to tie
up all the loose ends and red herrings.
Arabella: Which do you prefer to wear:
Slippers, stilettos, pumps, or boots?
Paula: Boots. Walking
boots. 18 months ago, we have adopted a seven year old rescue dog, a
Dalmatian called Duke, who gets us out walking every day, whatever the
weather. Hence the boots.
(Paula, Duke looks adorable and I'm
sure he gives you hours of pleasure.)
Arabella: We all have a long list of books
we keep meaning to read but never have the time for --- which book is a must
read for you this summer?
Paula: I have such a long list of books in my TBR
pile that it's just as well most of them are in ebook form, otherwise I'd
be in danger of being crushed beneath them. Since being
published by Crooked Cat Books I've found some wonderful (new to me) authors. But
my most recent read, which I loved and read within days of its release was
Where the Dead Fall by M.J. Lee, the second in a police procedural
series featuring DI Ridpath. Next on my list is "What She
Saw" by Wendy Clarke. Wendy, like me, started her writing
career as a short story writer and I've always enjoyed her work, so am really
looking forward to reading this, particularly as she's published by Bookouture,
as I always enjoy their books.
Arabella: Which do you prefer to wear:
beach shorts and top, a long evening skirt and blouse, pyjamas and slippers?
(Paula, after one of your long
invigorating walks, I'm now imagining you and Duke (and hubby of course),
curled up before a roaring fire of an evening, with you wearing a pair of these
comfy, cosy Dalmatian slippers... J)
Arabella: What about your future plans?
Any books or series in the making?
Paula: I'm currently working on my third Much
Winchmoor novel and am hoping to independently publish some stand alone books
later this year. It's a huge learning curve, but something I am
really looking forward to, although I am really going to have to work on my
marketing skills.
Thank you for joining me on Arabella’s
Blog and Chit-Chat, Paula.
Your latest murder mystery sounds full
of adventure and suspense, and I’m sure your readers can’t wait to discover if
there’s to be true romance amid the pages of your murderous plot.
Best wishes and lots of happy-ever-after
writing.
Arabella Sheen
About Paula Williams
Paula Williams is living her dream. She
has written all her life – her earliest efforts involved blackmailing her
unfortunate younger brothers into appearing in her plays and pageants. But it
is only in recent years, when she turned her attention to writing short stories
and serials for women's magazines that she discovered, to her surprise, that
people with better judgement than her brothers actually liked what she wrote
and were prepared to pay her for it.
Now, she writes every day in a lovely,
book-lined study in her home in Somerset, where she lives with her husband and
a handsome but not always obedient rescue Dalmatian called Duke. She
still writes for magazines but also now writes novels. A member of
both the Romantic Novelists' Association and the Crime Writers' Association,
her novels often feature a murder or two, and are always sprinkled with humour
and spiced with a touch of romance.
She also writes a monthly column, Ideas
Store, for the writers' magazines, Writers' Forum. And has a blog
at paulawilliamswriter.wordpress.com. Her
facebook author page is https://www.facebook.com/paula.williams.author.
And she tweets at @paulawilliams44.
Not only that, but when she's not writing,
she's either tutoring, leading writing workshops or giving talks on writing at
writing festivals and conferences and to organised groups. She's
appeared several times on local radio - in fact, she'll talk about writing to
anyone who'll stand still long enough to listen.
But, as with the best of dreams, she
worries that one day she's going to wake up and find she still has to bully her
brothers into reading 'the play what she wrote'.
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS
Blog. at paulawilliamswriter.wordpress.com.
Her facebook author page is https://www.facebook.com/paula.williams.author.
Twitter. @paulawilliams44.
Website. paulawilliamswriter.co.uk
ROUGH AND DEADLY.
Everyone knows Abe Compton’s Headbender
cider is as rough as a cider can get. But is it deadly?
When self-styled ‘lady of the manor’,
Margot Duckett-Trimble, announces she wouldn’t be seen dead drinking the stuff,
who could have foreseen that, only a few days later, she’d be found, face down,
in a vat of it?
Kat Latcham’s no stranger to murder.
Indeed, the once ‘sleepy’ Somerset village of Much Winchmoor is fast gaining a
reputation as the murder capital of the West Country and is ‘as sleepy as a kid
on Christmas Eve’ when it’s discovered there’s a murderer running loose in the
community again.
Kat has known Abe all her life, and she is
sure that, although he had motive, he didn’t kill Margot. But as she
investigates, the murderer strikes again. And the closer Kat gets to finding
out who the real killer is, the closer to danger she becomes.
This second Much Winchmoor mystery is once
again spiked with humour and sprinkled with romance – plus a cast of colourful
characters, including a manic little dog called Prescott whose bite is
definitely worse than his bark.
BUY LINK
Hi Paula, Thank you for joining me on Arabella's Blog and Chit-Chat. Wishing you lots of happy walks with Duke and also good luck with your latest release - Rough and Deadly.
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