Isn’t Sheba a gorgeous horse? (She’s the one on the left!) Jennifer Scoullar, on the right, is not bad for an author either!!! Okay, I’ll stop horsing around now. Jen is damn good, actually. I fell in love with her first novel – Brumby’s Run. (Check my review on Goodreads)
The good news today is Jen is celebrating her second release by giving away a copy of Currawong Creek to one lucky reader. (You have a week from today to leave a comment below.)
Okay, Jen, start by telling me … Is it scones and tea or some other homemade delight you have whipped up for me today?
Mum’s butter-milk scone recipe with quandong jam. Only the best aussie tucker for you Jenn!
(Appreciate that great aussie tucker, Jen! NB readers: We will try to not make this a “Jen mutual admiration society” blog post, okay?!)
At home…
My mum says garden gnomes make a house a home! Are you loud and proud in your love of garden gnomes at home, a closet gnomer or with a strict ‘no gnomes’ policy at your place?
I’m a closet gnomer. Don’t actually have any gnomes at home, but they were a popular feature of gardens when I was a child. The sight of them always brings on a sweet feeling of 
nostalgia.
(Love a closet gnomer, although I guess you are now outted!)
What vegetable (or fruit) have you always wanted to grow at home?
Tomatoes, and I do!
If I came to your home and looked in the refrigerator, what would I find?
Not much at the moment. I’m working to meet a deadline and have forgotten to go shopping.
(I know that feeling!)
If you sorted your wardrobe by colour, what colour would stand out? (Ahh, do you sort your wardrobe by colour?!)
Black and purple. Now that’s a good procrastinating suggestion! I’m off to sort my wardrobe by colour …
(Get back here, Jen.)
What are you wearing now? (Be honest!)
Shoes and socks, blue jeans, a purple skivvy and a blue canvas vest.
Whose home would you like to housesit and why?
Varuna, the magnificent Writer’s House in the Blue Mountains. It just oozes literary inspiration!
(Oh, yeah! We could do a Jennifer invasion!)
Country curiosities…
We love a sunburnt country (slip, slop, slap and all that). What’s your ideal hat? Or are you a boots person?
Both – favourite hat and boots: Akubra and RM Williams, of course!
(I’m sure Sheba enjoys the RM Williams quality too!)
If you were a tree (or animal) what kind of tree (animal) would you be?
I’d be a Bunya pine tree.
Now for the big question… Why did the chicken cross the road?
To get away from the battery cage and join its free range friends.
(Yaaaaaaaaay! May there be many more.)
About you…
Your turning point: when was that point in your life that you realized that being an author was no longer going to be just a dream but a reality and a career?
When I scored my first contract.
What is the hardest part of writing for you?
Finding time, to start with. And then perhaps balancing the competing interests of my characters. I need to present different points of view credibly and sympathetically, even if I disagree with them.
If someone was to write your biography, what do you think the title should be?
Giving It A Shot
What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview? How would you answer that question?
I’ve always wanted to be asked if I’m as good a rider as my main characters. Then I’d lie and say yes!
(Would Sheba agree though?)
Fun stuff …
What does your protagonist think about you? Would he or she want to hang out with you, the author, his/her creator.
Clare from Currawong Creek would approve of the fact that I’m a lapsed lawyer. She wouldn’t want to hang out with me because I’d try to steal her boyfriend. (Always wanted to go out with a vet!)
(I love that you’ve named your character ‘Clare’!!!!! 😉 )
If you could trade places with any other person for a week, famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional, with whom would it be?
Philadelphia Gordon from Nancy Cato’s All The River’s Run.
(Wow! That’s a blast from the past. So wish a good Aussie mini series like that!)
If I said to you, “Just entertain me for five minutes, I’m not going to talk,” what would you do?
Mime Hamlet
(Curious!)
What food would you be?
Chocolate
What was the best thing before sliced bread?
Butter
Name 5 uses for a stapler that has not staple pins.
- Weapon
- Paper weight
- Door stop
- Hammer
- Objet d’art.
(It scares me how many authors have said ‘weapon’ as their first choice!!!!! Should we be afraid?)
How weird are you? Rate yourself on a scale of 1 (not) to 10 (very).
9
(Not so weird, Jen.)
How about you tell us about Currawong Creek.
‘When Brisbane lawyer Clare Mitchell finds herself the unlikely guardian of a small troubled boy, her ordered life is turned upside down. In desperation, she takes Jack to stay at Currawong Creek, her grandfather’s horse stud in the foothills of the beautiful Bunya Mountains.
Being at Currawong takes some getting used to, but it also feels like coming home. Her grandad adores having them there. Jack falls in love with the animals, his misery banished and Clare finds herself falling hard for the kind, handsome local vet.
But trouble is coming, in the form of the Pyramid Mining Company. Trouble that threatens to destroy not only Clare’s newfound happiness, but also the livelihoods of her new neighbours, and the peace and beauty of the land she loves.’
Thank you for joining me at the busiest time of the year for you, Jen. I know Currawong Creek is going to gangbusters.
Readers: Leave a comment below for your chance win a signed copy of this heartfelt and passionate rural romance from the bestselling author of Brumby’s Run. Winner announced here is a week from now. NOW CLOSED. Thx everyone.
Connect with Jennifer Scoullar. By the way, Jen’s website is a treasure trove of information. She loves people to pop into Pilyara.
Website: http://jenniferscoullar.com/
Twitter @pilyara
Facebook Jennifer Scoullar – Author
Yep, Nicole has a signed copy of House for all Seasons ready to deliver to your (Australian) postal address.
Well, look who I have managed to pin down for two minutes! Don’t suppose you’ve managed to find time to bake for me, Annie — what with all your contract deadlines, numerous editing jobs and generally being available to anyone who needs advice? (Ummm…like me!!) 
(animal) would you be?