Guest Author: Paula Martin

A warm welcome again to online writing friend, Paula Martin, whose contemporary novels I always look forward to reading. I’ve already enjoyed His Leading Lady and Fragrance of Violets, and now Changing the Future is getting near the top of my reading list! Paula has kindly written a fascinating guest post about the long journey her latest book took to publication and the research needed about volcanoes.

Changing the Future Blurb

Lisa Marshall is stunned when celebrated volcanologist Paul Hamilton comes back into her life at the college where she now teaches. Despite their acrimonious break-up several years earlier, they soon realise the magnetic attraction between them is stronger than ever. However, the past is still part of the present, not least when Paul discovers Lisa has a young son. They can’t change that past, but will it take a volcanic eruption to help them change the future?

Changing the Future has had a long history!

Four years ago, while on holiday in the USA, I happened to meet a Harlequin best-selling author who, on hearing that I’d had 3 books published by HQ in the 60s and 70s, encouraged me to start writing romances again.

When I got home, I found the box in which I’d dumped a pile of half-written stories 30+ years earlier when I was a divorced and single parent with two young daughters and a full-time teaching career, and simply didn’t have any time to devote to writing.

One novel was complete but was rejected by HQ in the 70s. At that time they wanted brooding and domineering alpha-men as their heroes so my story of two teachers who meet again (at a school in North West England), a few years after an acrimonious break-up obviously didn’t fit their new formula.

I thought about this story and, as I was still setting my sights on Harlequin, decided to re-locate the story in America. The heroine became a teacher at a college in Virginia but I decided the hero had to have a more upmarket job. He’d previously been a geography teacher; instead, I decided (or maybe he decided?) he was a famous volcano expert. What did I know about volcanoes? Nothing, apart from the fact that they occasionally erupt and send ash clouds into the sky!

I started reading up about volcanoes in general, and specifically those in Hawaii. I studied photos and videos, and read a lot of reports and first-hand accounts of eruptions. At the same time, I was checking my facts about American colleges with a couple of friends.

Six months later, I sent the manuscript to Harlequin, and then had to wait for nine months for them to reject it! By this time, I’d written another novel which had been accepted (by another publisher) and was part way through two more. So the volcano story was put to one side.

I picked it up again last autumn. By this time, I was well aware of its weaknesses, particularly too many flashback scenes which slowed it down in the first few chapters, but I still thought it had possibilities, so I settled down to another re-write. I moved the setting (again!) back to England, abandoned the flashbacks, and added several more scenes to develop the relationship between the hero and heroine. Hawaii was now too far away, so I had to start researching volcanoes in Iceland. I made masses of notes but probably used only about five percent of what I’d found out about volcanic eruptions. However, that other ninety-five percent of research was necessary to ensure my five percent was reasonably accurate!

The final version of Changing the Future is very different from the one I wrote back in the 70s (I think I retained and adapted about three scenes from that original story). It’s different, too, from the re-write I did four year ago, not simply because of the different setting, but also because writing my other novels taught me a lot about tightening my writing style and developing my characters.

P.S. And, just to show that research for novels can come in useful elsewhere, I did win a point for my team in a pub quiz when I knew what a correlation spectrometer measures!

Thank you very much for that excellent post, Paula!

Changing the Future is available in e-book or paperback from Amazon UK and Amazon US

You can find out more about Paula on her WEBSITE, BLOG and Heroines with Hearts

Paula Martin had some early publishing success with short stories and four contemporary romance novels, but then had a break from writing while she brought up a young family and also pursued her career as a history teacher for twenty-five years. She has recently returned to writing fiction, after retiring from teaching and has had two more novels published, His Leading Lady, and Fragrance of Violets. Another novel is currently awaiting release and she is working on a fifth.

Paula lives near Manchester in North-West England, and has two daughters and two grandsons. Apart from writing, she enjoys visiting new places and has travelled extensively in Britain, mainland Europe, the Middle East, America and Canada. Her favourite places are the English Lake District and Ireland. She’s also interested in musical theatre and tracing her family history.

Featured Author and Guest Post: Paula Martin

I am delighted to welcome wonderful writer and good blogging friend Paula Martin back to my reading and writing blog today. Paula’s new novel, Fragrance of Violets, is set in the beautiful Lake District and it’s obvious that this author knows her setting.

Paula has kindly written a very interesting post about the importance of knowing the background detail for any novel set in a real place, and she practises what she preaches! Thank you for this, Paula.

But first, an intriguing blurb and buy links:

Fragrance of Violets

The title comes from a quote by Mark Twain: 'Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it'.

The story, set mainly in England’s beautiful Lake District, is about two people who need to forgive each other and also deal with other issues in their lives.

Abbey Seton distrusts men, especially Jack Tremayne who destroyed their friendship when they were teenagers. Ten years later, they meet again. Can they put the past behind them?

Abbey has to forgive not only Jack, but also her father who deserted his family when she was young. Jack holds himself responsible for his fiancée’s death. He’s also hiding another secret which threatens the fragile resumption of his relationship with Abbey.

Will Abbey ever forgive him when she finds out the truth?

Find Paula’s books on the Whiskey Creek Press website; Amazon (UK) and Amazon (US)

Setting my Novels

Many years ago, some scenes for a major British film were shot in my home town. We watched some of the filming one evening. When the film was shown the following year, of course we went to see it. In one scene, a bus pulls up outside the Town Hall. You could sense the reaction all over the cinema, with people muttering ‘Buses don’t stop there.’ In that split second, the illusion was lost as people with a personal knowledge of the location were distracted by an inaccuracy.

A minor detail, I know, but it has stayed with me, over 40 years later. I’ve read similar inaccuracies in books about places I know. Someone drives along Quay Street in Galway – nope, it’s a traffic free zone. Someone looks out from the White House and sees Pennsylvania Avenue beyond the Washington Monument - wrong, the Monument is south of the White House, and PA Ave is north.

In my opinion, writers must always take into account of the fact that one or more of their readers will know the place(s) in their book(s) unless, of course, they are completely fictitious. All the research in the world will probably not give you the information to avoid making an error which causes the reader to say ‘Buses don’t stop there’ (or similar).

This is why, so far, I have set my novels in places with which I’m familiar. His Leading Lady was set mainly in London, which I know fairly well. Fragrance of Violets is set in the Lake District, an area I know intimately. The village in this story is based on a real village, but I’ve given it a different name and ‘moved’ a few buildings around! Similarly, in my June release, Changing the Future, I’ve used a real Lakeland village (a different one) but given it a new name.

Eighteen months ago, I wouldn’t have dreamt of setting a novel in Egypt, but having spent two weeks there, I think (hope!) I absorbed enough to write reasonably authentically about Luxor and the Valley of the Kings. I had to do more research than, for instance, a novel set in the Lake District, but at least I had a basic knowledge on which to build.

When I was writing a fan fiction story, I set part of it in Galway City in Ireland. I’d never been there and, to my knowledge, none of the people on the loop where I was going to post it had been there either. However, I still wanted to make sure my setting was accurate, so I went over to Galway for a few days. I walked from the Cathedral to Eyre Square, and then down Shop Street and Quay Street to the harbour at Claddagh. Maybe I could have done that on a street map or even with Google street view but it wouldn’t have been the same. I was able to absorb not only the sights, but also the sounds and smells, as well as the whole atmosphere of the place.

In short, I need to experience a place for myself. Not simply to avoid basic inaccuracies, but also to help my readers to experience it too. I admire those writers who can use settings with which they’re not personally familiar, but I find I need to be comfortable with my setting in order to give it some authenticity.

You can find out more about Paula on her Website; Blog; and Group Blog (with 3 other writers)

Paula Martin had some early publishing success with short stories and four contemporary romance novels, but then had a break from writing while she brought up a young family and also pursued her career as a history teacher for twenty-five years. She has recently returned to writing fiction, after retiring from teaching and has had two more novels published, His Leading Lady in June 2011, and Fragrance of Violets in 2012’. Two more novels are currently awaiting release and she is working on a fifth.

Paula lives near Manchester in North-West England, and has two daughters and two grandsons. Apart from writing, she enjoys visiting new places and has travelled extensively in Britain, mainland Europe, the Middle East, America and Canada. Her favourite places are the English Lake District and Ireland. She’s also interested in musical theatre and tracing her family history.

Author Spotlight - Paula Martin

Today, I’m delighted to welcome UK author Paula Martin to the Author Spotlight. Paula’s new contemporary romance, His Leading Lady, is one of the most enjoyable stories I’ve read over the last few months, and what a lovely cover. From the moment I started reading the first chapter, I was completely hooked and had to keep reading the rest of the book until the very satisfying ending.

The characters are very well drawn, with a perfectly matched hero and heroine. The background setting of a theatre and stage musical was the icing on the cake and seemed completely authentic, greatly adding to the enjoyment of the main story between Jess, one of twin sisters, and Kyle, the arrogant director. The added touch of mystery surrounding the disappearance of Lora, Jess’ twin, and the ensuing impersonation by Jess gave the romance a lovely touch of suspense. Highly recommended!

Paula was kind enough to answer the following questions. Thanks for being here, Paula!

Have you been writing fiction long?

It would be easy to say all my life – or at least from when I was about 8 or 9. I was a voracious reader as a child and my first stories were based on some of the books I read (usually school stories like Malory Towers). Soon, however, I was developing my own characters and, once I got to my teens, writing romances. My first novel was published when I was 25, and was based on one of the romances I’d written about ten years earlier. I had four novels published in the 60s and 70s and several short stories in romance magazines, then didn’t write any fiction for about twenty five years. Instead I wrote articles for several years for the UK Girl Guide magazine, one every month as the editor gave me my own ‘page’. I came back to writing fiction about four years ago, initially with fan fiction. Then, after a serendipity meeting with a Harlequin writer when I was America, I decided to try my hand at novels again.

What made you decide to set your novel in the theatre world and did it involve a lot of research?

I’ve always been fascinated by the theatre but, although I had a few minor roles in school plays, I couldn’t really act to save my life (can’t sing or dance either!). However, in the 80s and 90s, I worked backstage with two local amateur Musical Theatre Societies, and for about ten years I produced two shows each year with the junior section of one society. I was privileged to work with a lot of very talented youngsters and it was wonderful to see them develop in confidence, acting skills and stage presence. Many of them are still involved in musical theatre, and I know that at least five of them went on into professional theatre.

I’ve never worked in the professional theatre (although I have been backstage at the two big theatres in Manchester, does that count?), but I reasoned that rehearsals are pretty much the same as in the amateur world, as well as the glitches which happen with scenery and props. The main research I had to do was about how professional shows are financed; the rest came mainly from my own experiences.

Why did you set one scene in Scotland? (Which I loved!)

Once I had my hero’s name, Kyle Drummond, he HAD to have Scottish ancestry, so when I wanted him to introduce Jess to the (previously unrevealed) writer of the musical show, I decided to take them up to Scotland for the weekend. Also it had to be Argyll because the show is based on an old legend from that area. I think I had to do more research for the Scotland chapters than anything else – looking at maps and photos, tower houses, even finding out if there were any private airfields near Oban. I wanted to take a trip up there to make sure I got it right, but time didn’t allow, so I had to draw on my experiences of other parts of Scotland which I’ve visited.

Did you make up the story of the show they are putting on in the novel? (Great story by the way!)

Having decided that Kyle had a Scottish background, I needed the show to be based on a Scottish legend. I googled until I found a legend I liked, and one which I could visualise being adapted into a musical. It’s based on the legend of Black Colin of Argyll, or at least the part of the legend when Colin goes off to the Crusades leaving his young wife behind. The story of him cutting a ring in two and giving half to his wife is part of the legend, and provided the title of the show ‘Token of Love’. I’m wondering whether I could pitch the idea to Andrew Lloyd Webber or Cameron Mackintosh? (Definitely, Paula!)

Do you go to the theatre a lot?
Not as much as I used to. When I was a child, my parents were Gilbert and Sullivan fans so my very first experience of musical theatre was ‘The Yeomen of the Guard’ when I was about eight. I loved it (and still love the G and S shows). Repertory theatre was also still alive then, so my mum used to take me the weekly plays if she thought they were ‘suitable’ for me. Then I discovered Rodgers and Hammerstein shows through the Amateur Operatic Society in my home town, and I was hooked!

Once I started working with our local group in the 80s, I also went to a lot of other societies’ performances in various parts of Manchester (and further afield sometimes). I used to go to many different musicals and plays at the professional theatres in the city too, and once spent a week in London with my teenage daughter (who was also stage-struck) when we went to every afternoon and evening show we could fit into the week. That was in the days when theatre tickets weren’t as expensive as they are now! Nowadays, I tend to go mainly to the amateur shows, although occasionally I venture into the city centre for a professional show and, more rarely, to London. But I did go to Dublin last year, simply to see Stockard Channing in ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ which is my favourite play of all time.

What is your favourite stage musical?

This has to be ‘Les Miserables’ which I’ve seen about ten times, both in Manchester and London. I LOVE the songs – and even thinking about ‘Do You Hear the People Sing’ and ‘One More Day’ can make the hairs on my neck stand on end.

Of the shows I’ve worked with, either backstage or producing with my junior group, ‘Carousel’ is probably my favourite (I always cry at the end), although ‘Calamity Jane’ comes a close second, and then there’s ‘Guys and Dolls’ and ‘The Sound of Music’ and – okay, I’ll stop now!

Any tips for newer writers?

The classic answer to this is ‘Don’t give up.’ But maybe more important than that is: A first draft is not a finished manuscript. Learn the craft and the mechanics. Yes, spelling, grammar, punctuation and sentence construction are all important. So work at it. Write a good story and write it well.

Thanks so much for having me as a guest on your blog, Rosemary, and for giving me such interesting questions to answer.

Paula Martin lives near Manchester in North West England and has two daughters and two grandsons.

She had some early publishing success with four romance novels and several short stories, but then had a break from writing while she brought up a young family and also pursued her career as a history teacher for twenty-five years. She has recently returned to writing fiction, after retiring from teaching and is thrilled to have found publishing success again with her contemporary romances.

Apart from writing, she enjoys visiting new places. She has travelled extensively in Britain, mainland Europe, America and Canada - and a few years ago she fell in love with Ireland which she visits at least twice a year. Her other interests are musical theatre and tracing her family history.

His leading Lady is available from the publisher Whiskey Creek Press, Amazon (UK) and Amazon (US)

You can find out more about Paula on her Website and Blog