Author Harvest – Page 5 – Jenn J McLeod

Posted on 07/10/201529/02/2016 by Jenn J McLeod — 10 Comments

#WriteRoundOz w/ Rachael Johns w/ giveaway

Have you heard?

Rachael Johns has a new book out. So I am dropping by to say ‘Hi’!

Rach! Thank you for letting me park my rig on your…. new half-finished driveway. Mind the steep hill, Jenn. On second thoughts maybe you’d better park in the bay across the road, near the entrance to one of the many bushwalk trails around here.

What’s that I see written on your ‘welcome mat’?

The neighbours have better stuff!

Downsizing my life into a 24 ft caravan meant leaving lots of things behind in boxes. What (or who!!) would you have trouble leaving behind if you took off in a caravan?

I could NOT leave my pets behind – our huge, very naughty (Maremma) dog, Rose and our old, extremely affectionate tabby cat, Simba. I’d also need my electric blanket!

Whose home would you like to visit in your caravan and why?

I’d like to do a road trip right round Oz, a bit like you’re doing Jenn, and stop in and visit all my writing friends. They live in some very interesting places from the very bottom of Australia to the very top. We have such a big beautiful country and I reckon visiting all them would have me seeing a diverse slice of it. 🙂

(Oh, do it, Rach! We can have ourselves an author convoy and talk books all night long!!)

Do you REALLY have room at your house to park a fifth wheeler caravan and do you mind visitors? Oh, sorry, you don’t have to answer that one!!

See above re the caravan but yeah, happy to have visitors, as long as they don’t stay TOO long and disrupt my writing time. Us authors have to protect this time!

Country curiosities…

My latest novel, Season of Shadow and Light, has a strong horse theme. (I love what horses can teach us). If you were an animal what would you be?

Definitely a cat. I’m a huge cat lover. But can I specify that I live with a very good family who feeds me only the best tuna and lets me lounge on their beds all day?

You’re cooking and your food going up against the best cooks from the CWA (Country Women’s Association). What would be your winning dish?

Scones – proper ones, not the three ingredient easy variety. I’m a pretty much hopeless cook these days but for some reason I’ve always made perfect scones. And really, who can resist a warm scone fresh from the oven with a dollop of jam and cream?

About you…

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

Coming up with the initial idea and then pushing on through the doubt while I try to get the words down. The doubt seems to be arriving earlier and earlier in each book now and I always think I’ve finally lost the ability to craft a good story.

If someone was to write your biography, what do you think the title should be?

A Little Bit Crazy

Rach, you’re a fiction writer. Tell us a secret (any secret – about you, your books, etc) and we’ll guess if it’s fiction or furphy. 🙂

I write crime novels under a pseudonym.

Favourite four…

Favourite place in Australia – by the pool at my house in the hills.

Favourite holiday destination – French Quarter of New Orleans (I even set a book there)

Favourite movie – Father Of The Bride

Favourite quote – Don’t regret the things you do, regret the things you don’t do.

If I said to you, “Just entertain me for five minutes, I’m not going to talk,” what would you do?

Hand you over to my children – three boisterous boys can be VERY entertaining!

Find out more about Rachael Johns and her books…

Website – www.rachaeljohns.com

Publisher – www.harlequinbooks.com.au

Latest book – http://www.booktopia.com.au/the-patterson-girls-rachael-johns/prod9781743693070.html and

THE PATTERSON GIRLS

How can four sisters build the futures they so desperately want, when the past is reaching out to claim them?

When the Patterson daughters return home to Meadow Brook to be with their father after their mother’s death, they bring with them a world of complication and trouble.

The eldest sister, obstetrician Madeleine, would rather be anywhere but her hometown, violinist Abigail has fled from her stellar career, while teacher Lucinda is struggling to have the children she and her husband so desperately want. The black sheep of the family, Charlie, feels her life as a barista and exercise instructor doesn’t measure up to that of her gifted and successful sisters.

Dealing with their bereft father who is determined to sell the family motel, their loves old and new and a series of troublesome decisions doesn’t make life any easier, but when they go through their mother’s possessions and uncover the shocking secret of an old family curse, they begin to question everything they thought they knew.

A warm and wise novel about secrets revealed, finding your soul mate and the unique bond between sisters.

Want to WIN a signed copy of THE PATTERSON GIRLS (Australian postal address only.) CLOSED: Congrats Dale. Your book will be on it’s way soon.

Leave a comment below.

Take a stab at the FACT or FICTION. (Does Rach write crime novels under a pseudonym??)

If you like the sound of The Patterson Girls, check out my 2013 release, House for all Seasons, about four women finding their way back home to the country over four seasons.

#5 Best selling debut novel – 2103

Posted on 30/09/201529/04/2016 by Jenn J McLeod — 1 Comment

#WriteRoundOz w/ Georgina Penney

Everyone needs a holiday – right? Even those of us travelling full time. Well, I am doing a ‘fly in’ to visit Georgina Penny, before I ‘fly out’ and she’s thrown in a little ‘fact or fiction’ question at the end. ***

Georgina, if only I could have put the van on the plane, I could have parked my rig on your… Hmm, 4 acres of ridiculous lawn (that isn’t quite a farm) in the middle of some lovely hills in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

And what’s that I see written on your ‘welcome mat’?

You’d see a lot of spray painted bunnies covering up any writing that might have been there. Given how many real rabbits live in and under our lawn, we thought it would set the tone.

If I looked in your refrigerator right now, what would I find?

Raspberries! We recently moved here to Scotland and it’s berry season. I spend most of the time I’m meant to be walking and getting fit picking berries out of the hedgerows. There might also be a couple of bottles of Aussie wine in there too. Whenever I’m homesick, a glass of Margaret River white never fails to cheer me up.

Downsizing my life into a 24 ft caravan meant leaving lots of things behind in boxes. What (or who!!) would you have trouble leaving behind if you took off in a caravan?

My king sized bed! My lovely husband has the sleeping habits of a starfish and I would miss having the room.

Whose home would you like to visit in your van and why?

Right now, I’d probably vote for visiting my godson in Singapore. It might be hard to fit the van along side my friend’s apartment building but we’d give it a go!

Do you REALLY have room at your house to park a fifth wheeler caravan and do you mind visitors? Oh, sorry, you don’t have to answer that one!!

We love visitors! The more the merrier. We don’t know how long we’ll be in Scotland so we’re encouraging anyone and everyone to come take advantage of our hospitality. Put floaties on the caravan and come check out bonny Scotland while sipping a nice glass of Aussie wine. 🙂

Country curiosities…

My latest novel, Season of Shadow and Light, has a strong horse theme. (I love what horses can teach us). If you were an animal what would you be?

Given how much fun the bunnies in our hedgerow look like they’re having, being a Scottish rabbit doesn’t look like too difficult a life but if I really had a choice, I’d probably go for a squirrel. Our last expat location was Brunei and there were squirrels in the trees everywhere. They spent all their days nibbling nuts, teasing the monkeys and playing. Looked like a pretty great deal.

You’re cooking and your food going up against the best cooks from the CWA (Country Women’s Association). What would be your winning dish?

Nasi Ayam (Chicken Rice). I learned how to make it from a Eurasian Aussie master years ago. It’s super simple, just rice, chicken, soup and veges but so tasty. The perfect comfort food. If that didn’t suit the ladies’ tastes, I’d probably go with my mum’s tried and true caramel slice recipe. It used to win hearts and minds when I was growing up in country WA and I doubt it’s lost its magical powers in the intervening years 😉

About you…

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

Getting anything done in between moving around the place has proven a challenge of late but I’d say the first draft is the hardest bit for me. Pinning my story and characters down on the page is always a challenge. After that, the editing is a breeze.

If someone was to write your biography, what do you think the title should be?

‘So, Where Am I Again?’ So far I’ve lived in over 25 places in Australia and around 30 all up if you include international moves. It’s getting to the stage that if I’m unpacked completely, I begin to wonder when the next move is coming!

What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview? How would you answer that question?

Q: Are you inspired by real-life people and events?

A: All the time. I can’t write anything I don’t feel and I frequently ‘steal’ things from my own life and from those of my friends/family (or just plain anyone I run into). Although, by the time my books get written, any recognizable relation to the actual real-life event is usually so obscure it would take a detective to trace the source!

Favourite four…

Favourite place in Australia – Margaret River in WA.

Favourite holiday destination – I’m going to have to go for Margaret River again. From the beach to the bush, the place is amazing. The wine and the great food helps as wellJ

Favourite movie – Jaws

Favourite quote – ‘Lower your expectations and don’t assume anything’ from a fellow expatriate not long after we moved to Saudi Arabia 8 years ago. It’s proving to be a pretty good life motto.

If I said to you, “Just entertain me for five minutes, I’m not going to talk,” what would you do?

Probably tell you a crazy story from my time in Saudi Arabia. That or I’d give you a good book and read with you. 🙂

***You’re a fiction writer. Tell us a secret and we’ll guess if it’s true or not.

Georgina says: “I once knew a dog like Gerald in Irrepressible You.”

True or fiction, folks?

Thanks for dropping by,

Jenn J

Current release: Season of Shadow and Light (click image for more info)

Posted on 09/09/201529/02/2016 by Jenn J McLeod — 4 Comments

#WriteRoundOz w/ Jennie Jones – romance author

Fellow small-town fiction writer, Jennie Jones from Perth, Western Australia, lets me drop by in the fifth wheeler (as long as I do a little weeding on the way!!)

Check out the *** below for a little FACT or FICTION fun.

Thank you for letting my park my rig on your driveway–a five minute walk to the Indian Ocean.

You’re welcome, Jenn. Very impressed at the way you casually backed up a steep driveway and around two bends…but hang on to your drink because you’re still on a slope!

(It’s okay. I have wheel chocks!)

What’s that I see written on your ‘welcome mat’?

Beware of the cat (the small one).

(You have a big cat?)

Downsizing my life into a 24 ft caravan meant leaving lots of things behind in boxes. What (or who!!) would you have trouble leaving behind if you took off in a caravan?

My husband – because there wouldn’t be room for both of us (smile). But I’ve promised him I’ll write…

I miss my HUGE refrigerator. If I looked in your refrigerator right now, what would I find?

Scotch fillet steak for my husband and Eye fillet steak for me. Chilled champagne, cheddar cheese, iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, strawberries, low-fat vanilla yoghurt and yesterday’s Webber bbq chicken.

Whose home would you like to visit in your van and why?

Any country manor – so long as it’s elegant and grand and whispers stories.

Houses are definitely Jennie’s favourite things. Check out her titles!!

Do you REALLY have room at your house to park a fifth wheeler caravan and do you mind visitors? Oh, sorry, you don’t have to answer that one!! 🙂

It’s a complicated driveway and you were game enough to reverse up and around – if you could also do a little weeding while you’re here…you can stay.

Country curiosities…

My latest novel, Season of Shadow and Light, has a strong horse theme. (I love what horses can teach us). If you were an animal what would you be?

I’d be a cat. They’re so independent (so long as they’re fed on time) and so capable of looking after themselves (so long as they get what they demand when they demand it). But they are also very loving (when they want to be).

You’re cooking and your food is going up against the best cooks from the CWA (Country Women’s Association). What would be your winning dish?

Oh, heck. I’d lose, so maybe I’ll bring the wine.

About you…

What is the hardest part of writing for you?

I’m pretty good at starting a story due to ideas I have to get down, and it flows wonderfully from there for the first three chapters. I can grow the story at around three chapters per stage, but my huge stumbling block is making these stages glue together and make sense. So by three-quarters of the way through a first draft, I’m questioning my sanity. I don’t plot – even when I need to and think I’ve got the rest of the story outlined, the supposed plot changes as soon as I start writing – so I have to go through those difficult periods of wondering where on earth this is going and if it’s going to make the mark. One day, when I’ve got over twenty books under my belt, I might not find it so hard. That’s the hope, anyway.

If someone was to write your biography, what do you think the title should be?

She tried everything except parachuting (and bungy jumping).

What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview? How would you answer that question?

“How did you amass such a fortune, Ms Jones?” But I’d probably wake up before I answered…

Favourites…

Favourite movie: Jane Eyre (most of the many versions).

Favourite quote: “Fate keeps on happening” Anita Loos

*** NOW – You’re a fiction writer, Jennie. Tells us something about you and we’ll guess if it’s true.

I once spent two weeks auditioning for a musical dance troupe – and after all that effort, got the job. Only to discover we’d be touring Indonesia and would be performing the play naked. I turned the job down. They were all arrested in Indonesia during the first performance.

What do you reckon, folks? Fact or fiction?

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