Wednesday 3 July 2013

Getting to know ... Sarah England


What genre would you say your novels fall into, or do they defy classification?
Expected falls into humour, with a splat.
 
What made you choose that genre?
It kind of chose me. I’m the Queen of Jinx - the sort of person who gets trapped in revolving doors, trips up, says the wrong thing, gets into a mess and can’t get out of it etc. – so I decided to make it into an art form. 

How long does it take you to write a novel?
I have only written the one and it took about two months. The editing then took about three weeks but I did it at least eight times. So it’s a little difficult to say. I am hoping my next one will be around the three month mark.

What is your work schedule like when you're writing?
Totally erratic. My husband keeps normal hours, which massively interferes with my abnormal ones. I can type frantically for 4-5 hours with no break and not noticing the time. Then I can lie there like a tragic drama queen for a whole morning doing absolutely nothing.

Where do you get your ideas for your books?
Tragically mine are from real life experiences, or someone else’s tragic life. Sometimes odd characters and plot ideas pop into my head as I go along and a new seam of thought opens up.

When did you write your first book and how old were you?
Well I have been a short story writer for about 8 years or so now – with many, many short stories in national magazines, papers & anthologies. So my first publication was in 2006 with My Weekly. However, my first attempts at novels, which I had the brass neck to send out to publishers because they were such tomes of utter tosh, were sent out in 2002. Oh the shame. Expected is my first published novel and I was 48 when I first drafted it out.    

What do you like to do when you're not writing?
Read. I also shop like a demon. And I have a gorgeous springer spaniel called Harry, who doesn’t get walked enough.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?
Just how much I started to love my characters and how they took on a life of their own.

How many books have you written?
I also have a collection of thrillers called 3am and Wide Awake which is currently out with Alfie Dog Fiction and also on Amazon. These are mostly medical, supernatural, horrors and thrillers with twists.

Which is your favourite book and why?
It has to be Expected because there is so much of the young ‘me’ in the very stupid Sam….

As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
I used to devour all my mother’s Victoria Holt’s and wanted nothing more than to be a beautiful heroine. An actress. I then went on to become a dingbat daydreamer who tried to make people laugh.

What are you working on now? 
I am about to start one of two projects – either a sequel to Expected or a supernatural thriller. I veer wildly between horror and comedy….

Sarah has had over 140 short stories published and a serial with Woman’s Weekly called Someone Out There, published March 2013. She currently has two published books – a short story collection, 3am and WideAwake, and a comedy novel Expected.

Twitter: @sarahengland16
Smashwords: free download of short comedy: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/sengland

Critique Service for Writers
Flash 500 Flash Fiction Competition
Flash 500 Humour Verse Competition


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