Wednesday 9 October 2019

Welcome to Romantic Suspense Author - Kate Ryder


I’m delighted to welcome Romantic Suspense author Kate Ryder to my blog.


Hello Kate, I’m always excited when a Romantic Novelists’ Association member steps up to the mark and is willing to delve into their personal and working life in order to share some of their inspirational experiences with readers. But before we discover more about your latest release, Secrets of the Mist, here are a few questions which will hopefully give your readers an insight into some of the things that matter to you.


Arabella: Authors can release books, making them available to readers in various ways…via an agent, or working directly with a traditional publisher, or they can even go the self-publishing route. Which method of publishing do you prefer, and why?
Kate: I don’t have an agent.  Before being traditionally published I was an indie author and there are pros and cons to both.  As an indie you have full control over the finished article and, being a creative soul, I loved this.  However, marketing is tough and this is where having a publishing house behind you comes into its own.  I am happy to say that Aria’s marketing department ensures my books reach a far wider audience than I could ever hope to.


Arabella: Who or what inspired you to write your latest release, Secrets of the Mist?
Kate:  A few years ago, my husband and I moved from Sussex to Cornwall to restore a 200-year-old cottage.  We ended up having to gut it and take it back to four walls – I lived on a building site for 4 years!  During the extensive renovations we discovered a time capsule, hidden by a previous owner, which sparked my imagination and made me consider past occupants and the lives they may have led over the preceding two centuries.  The seeds were sown for Secrets of the Mist during a chance conversation with an acquaintance who told me about a Dartmoor cottage she once owned that had an unusual internal stained-glass window and unaccountable cold corners.  At the time, I was a member of a local writers’ group and I wove all these elements into a short story, which I read out to my fellow writers at the next workshop.  They were all eager to find out what happened next, so I decided to see where the story took me.  Three months and 85,000 words later I had a novel!

Arabella: If the person of your dreams, (husband/wife/partner/or superstar), were to take you out for the night, where would they take you and what would you do?
Kate:  Not necessarily the person of my dreams (although he is gorgeous, just way too young… sigh).  I would like to spend time with Aidan Turner in Dublin.  Not only is he generous with his time with his fans (so far) but also pleasingly easy on the eye and eloquent!  I’ve visited the city twice but I’m sure he’d show me interesting areas I haven’t discovered.  We’d spend the day together while he showed me his city of birth, progressing to early evening drinks at his favourite watering hole.  Then we’d move on to a discreet restaurant where we’d enjoy fine dining while discussing his suitability as the lead character in my novels, Summer in a Cornish Cove and its sequel, Cottage on a Cornish Cliff.  We’d finish the evening off visiting his apartment in Dublin (I’d be sworn to secrecy not to divulge its location) where he’d show me his paintings and present me with a signed original.  I’d say I couldn’t possibly accept such a generous gift, but he’d insist, pointing out that if he was going to be the lead in the screen version of my books I would have to accept.  I mean, how could a girl refuse?
  
Kate…
Just for you (and your readers), I went on Wiki and pinched a photo of Aidan Turner. I hope everyone's hearts are throbbing with passion. :)   


Arabella: A slice of Chocolate Cake, a piece of Fruit, or Burger and Fries?
Kate:  Definitely Chocolate Cake.  I try to eat healthily (most of the time) but a girl has to have the occasional indulgence… and preferably one that looks like this!


Arabella: Currently, what is your most favourite T.V. programme, and why?
Kate:  My life is one huge juggling act and I don’t often watch TV.  However, I am viewing Series 5 of Poldark.  This series focuses on the years between Winston Graham’s seventh book, The Angry Tide, and eighth book, The Stranger from the Sea.  I’m intrigued to find out how screenwriter, Debbie Horsfield, will combine the various elements of social and political history of the time in this missing period of Ross and Demelza Poldark’s continuing story.

Arabella: When writing a book or chapter, which do you concentrate on first: plot, character, or setting?
Kate:  I envy those writers who are plotters because I definitely fall into the pantser camp.  Cornwall is a setting that speaks to me and never fails to provide massive inspiration.  However, once in the creative flow, the characters tend to take over and write their own stories… despite futile attempts to rein them in!

Arabella: How do you research your novels and characters?
Kate:  I thoroughly enjoy researching a novel.  So many doors open, which tend to lead to yet more opening doors, and I find it a highly satisfying source of learning.  I like to spend time in the actual setting, if possible, absorbing the atmosphere and getting a sense of place.  Then I check its history to discover any elements that could be woven into the story.  Once back at my desk, I use Ordnance Survey/Google to double-check that my characters’ actions/journeys are possible.  For instance, in my current WIP, I had the heroine watching surfers in the sea from her car in the public car park, but when I visited the setting I found that wasn’t possible – a building blocks the view of the beach.  I rewrote the scene and the heroine ended up sitting at a table in the beach café, which enjoys uninterrupted views of the sea, while indulging in coffee and cake.  She didn’t complain!

Arabella: What advice would you give to someone who is starting out on their writing journey?
Kate:  To believe in yourself and never give up – the only failure is abandoning your dreams.  Publishing is a huge journey and when starting out you tend to be impatient for results.  My advice is to take a deep breath and keep the bigger picture in sight.  If you write romance, join the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme, which offers invaluable advice and support.


Thank you so much for joining me on Arabella’s Blog and Chit-Chat, Kate. You've been a fabulous guest and really entered into the spirit of things. Oh...to have been in your shoes when you discovered that time capsule whilst renovating your house. A priceless moment, I'm sure.
And about your evening with Aidan Turner – (apart from saying: “please stand in line to get to him”), I hope your day (and night...) together fulfils your every dream.
Wishing you the best of luck in signing Aidan for a starring role in the film adaptation of Summer in a Cornish Cove and its sequel, Cottage on a Cornish Cliff.
Good luck with your latest release, Secrets of the Mist.
Best wishes and happy writing…
Arabella Sheen


About Kate Ryder

Originally from the Home Counties, Kate now resides in the diverse and inspirational county of Cornwall, which provides a glorious backdrop for much of her writing. Her career has encompassed travel, publishing and property, and she currently divides her time between selling fabulous country piles that she can't afford and writing romantic suspense.  Together with her ever-supportive husband, a gorgeous Arab horse and a newly acquired 'rescue' cat, Kate lives in the beautiful Tamar Valley in a 200 year old cottage that she and her husband painstakingly restored and which provided the inspiration for her third book with Aria.


Website and Social Media Links:

Amazon link:  https://amzn.to/2KCSY1J



Blurb: Secrets of the Mist:

A gorgeous timeslip romance for fans of Kate Mosse, Diana Gabaldon and Barbara Erskine.
Maddie is restless in London. She has friends, a job and a sort-of boyfriend, but something in her life is missing. Then she visits the ancient village of Walditch, deep in the Dorset countryside. Something stirs in her, and on a whim she buys a centuries-old cottage and moves there three months later. Her friends think she's crazy, but for Maddie it feels like coming home.
Late at night in the cottage, Maddie hears strange noises and sees mist gathering indoors and out. When she starts investigating the cottage's history, she becomes drawn into the tragic story of a family who lived here 400 years ago. Meanwhile, Maddie starts to fall in love with a local carpenter – but he has a relationship already...
Can Maddie solve the riddle of the past? What is her connection with the family that lived there so many years ago? And can she and her true love ever be together?

Previously published as The Forgotten Promise.

Buy Link: Available for PRE-ORDER on Amazon  https://amzn.to/2KCSY1J

Release Date:  19.09.19

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