Are you ready for a Christmas novel with a difference? Having heard about Evonne’s Christmas romantic suspense novel, I had to ask more questions about What Happens at Christmas. We grabbed a corner of the café in Waterstone’s, and Evonne intrigued me with the promise of lots of twists and turns in the narrative. It is time for a Christmas book with a kidnapping from Evonne. Don’t worry, I think Santa is safe!
Jessie: I love to listen about the stories you are developing. You always get so involved with the characters and the research. Tell me about your Christmas book, What Happens at Christmas.
Evonne: What Happens at Christmas is a festive themed romantic suspense – so as well as the traditional things, like mince pies, carols and snow, it also has kidnapping and some nasty villains. Some of the festive things – a particular carol that is sung at a crucial moment, and the freak snow storm that I organised for the Brecon Beacons, are components of the plot – if you are looking for something a bit different in a Christmas read, it might be for you.
Jessie: How did you feel when you had finished writing your book, and did you miss any of the characters?
Evonne: It’s always a bit of a wrench to finish a book, even when you know you have left your characters in a good place – all except the villains, of course. You have spent many months with them and you know all their secrets. I especially enjoyed keeping company with Lori and Drew, and I do have a sort of idea for another plot that would involve them. As they now have their HEA, it would need another couple for the developing love story though, so we shall just have to wait and see on that.
Jessie: Did any of your characters misbehave when you were writing the book?
Evonne: Always. They talk back, they refuse to do what you expect them to do, they do things that are totally incomprehensible and only make sense fifty pages later, they complain about the plot … Some of my more alpha heroes refuse to talk at all. I’ve got used to it now. At least no-one has yet refused to fall in love with the right person. Yet.
Jessie: Why should I keep your book in my handbag?
Evonne: you are looking for something a bit more edgy for a seasonal read, What Happens at Christmas has suspense and danger along with the love story. The hero, Drew, is a writer who has a dare-devil streak. It gets him into some serious trouble, which Lori, the heroine, helps him out of, with the assistance of her four year old niece. A large part of the book is set at Christmas, but the story travels over the space of a year, during which time the character’s lives change considerably. I like to think Drew learns that he shouldn’t throw himself into things quite so recklessly. There are actually two very different Christmas celebrations in the book. Two lots of Christmas magic, and Lori finds that in between, some of dearest dreams have come true.
Jessie: Two lots of Christmas magic is perfect. It’s sound as if you have the story all wrapped up and ready for the readers. I am intrigued about your next project. What is the last sentence written in your writer’s notebook?
Evonne: It’s not exactly a sentence in a note book, it’s a post-it note, and it’s a time line for the names and ages of a set of characters. I love time lines. I always have to work out the ages of everyone who features significantly in the book, and how they relate to each other. One of my writer’s quirks. This one was a bit of a mystery when I found it, but I have now worked out that it relates to the hero and his two older brothers, in a novella that I hope will be out for Christmas 2020.
Jessie: I notice you’ve written four books and have lots of experience of writing. What is the biggest challenge for an author?
Evonne: For me, it’s keeping up the quality of the work. I want to give the reader the best possible experience inside the covers of a book that I can manage. I want each of the stories to be different, but all of them exciting and enjoyable. If I can create a page-turning book, that the reader can’t put down, then my work is done. That’s the aim, anyway.
Jessie: What is the best advice that you have received as a writer?
Evonne: ‘Keep going!’ A lot of other writers will say the same. You need stamina and persistence, when the rejections pile up. It was a long time, and many experiments in genres, before I found out what I really wanted to write, and finally got a publishing deal. During that time I learned a lot about the craft of writing, and I have to thank the Romantic Novelists’ Association for the help and encouragement I received. Once you have a deal, you also learn a lot from having a professional edit. It’s flattering and scary to have the attention of an expert focussed on your work.
Evonne writes romantic thrillers and romantic comedies. Her first published novel, Never Coming Home, won the Joan Hessayon award for the best debut novel of the year, presented by the Romantic Novelists’ Association. She likes writing about romantic locations, food, art, architecture, pretty clothes, shoes, nasty villains, brooding heroes and independent heroines. You can find out more about her books and her writing on her website.
Contact details and book links
You can find Evonne at Her blog http://evonneonwednesday.blogspot.com where she talks about writing and books and history and life and interesting places and research and anything else that comes into her head, every Wednesday.
On Twitter @evonnewareham
On Facebook as evonnewarehamauthor
Or you can contact her through her website www.evonnewareham.com
Please see all my author interviews at My Guests and my website and blog at JessieCahalin.com.
Initially, I complained that it was another rainy day in Wales and it wasn’t worth braving a potential storm. I was happy to admire the colours of the garden from my writing room, but the writing wasn’t flowing. Finally, I put on my walking gear and went to the Brecon Beacons. The beep, beep, beep of my phone was left behind as we drove into the heart of the impressive mountain range.
Always one to admire the cloudless blue sky, I was surprised by depth of the grey sky. I had been adamant that I needed the blue sky for some ‘blue sky thinking’, but I was wrong. I needed the reality of a dramatic landscape to chase away the writer’s block.
We stood in the landscape as the colours were dissolved by silver, grey and bronze tones. We discussed how the scene was changing before us, and how the moving clouds were like the curtains opening and closing on the stage. This made me aware that the weather re-writes the landscape in the same way that a writer changes the shades of meaning in a story.
It was like opening a book jacket into a giant book, when I opened the door into ‘
Passing through magical corridor from the main bookshop, I heard a little boy saying, “Wow!” to his mother, as they followed a staircase down into the children’s section.
A gentleman, wearing a white shirt and waistcoat, looked up from his book. “Oh dear!” he declared. “I think there’s more seating upstairs.” he muttered, into his book.
Clearly, this bookshop has been set up by a true book lover who values time to read, chat and eat. The ‘Book-ish’ cake menu has been designed to tempt the reader to stay. I chose The Queen of Hearts’ Bakewell Tarts. ‘
Indeed, I was delighted that Sara Gethin’s book, ‘
My Twitter and Facebook friends will understand my delight when I was handed my treasure in a brown bag that read, ‘BOOKS ARE MY BAG.’ I also discovered that the bookshop opened in the same month I launched my Books in my Handbag Blog.