Where are you from?
Hampshire, United Kingdom
Why do you write?
I was born with a vivid
imagination, so I write to save myself from going crazy!
As a child, I was well known for
descriptions of my perpetual dreams and sometimes, nightmares. I was the Sarah
Bernhardt of the family, loving to entertain with almost unbelievable stories,
and dramatic renditions of my dreams.
In that fuzzy period between sleep and waking,
I can see colors, read text, go shopping, hear music and speech and participate
in anything on land, sea, or water. I never learned to tap-dance, but in
Dreamland, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers move over! I can fly like a bird, sing like Maria Callas
or Kylie Minogue, and drive any vehicle.
Why do I write? Certainly not for fame and riches, but to feed my
passion.
What inspired you to
write your first book?
I'd had many stories and articles
published by 1985, and enthusiastically
entered writing competitions. Amongst
prizes like cash, books, and publication, I also won two treasured medals in
Australia, where I was living then. One was for a competition created in the
name of famous Australian author, Rolph Boldrewood, who wrote prolifically
about Australian bush-rangers, including Ned Kelly.
One such competition was created during
Australia's second centenary, in 1988. During research, I came across a report
of a four-month old baby being torn from its convict mother's arms during
preparations for transportation with the First Fleet in 1787. I began thinking that surely so many people
being huddled onto small sailing ships for eleven months, would sometimes
smile, play tricks, get up to mischief in trying to outwit their jailers? Not
that I intended to make light of those savage years when Australia was founded,
but I looked for other humane stories.
What I gathered, became my first novel, The Four Elizabeths. Then I wrote the sequel, Elizabeth's
New Life.
What genre do you typically write?
I have mainly written fiction. The previous stories used a lot of facts, but
"Laura's Gold" is pure fiction, apart from geographical
scenarios.
Do you feel like you have a specific writing style?
‘0My work has been compared to that
of my two favorite authors, Barbara Bradford Taylor and Catherine Cookson. Not that I consider my writing to be in their
league, but I do enjoy their styles and try to emulate them.
How long does it usually take you to write a book?
About six to nine months to get the
story 'down on paper', as every writer is advised to do. But the subsequent revision(s) take much
longer. I haven't been able to afford a professional editor, and it is amazing
how many times you can gloss over an error. You are so closely wound up in the
story you become blind to an upper case letter where a lower case one should
be. Or the misspelling of a name, like
Lilian at the start and Lillian a few chapters later. So to answer your question, I'd say
approximately a year to write a book, but hopefully that time frame will
shorten as my editing improves.
What do you do to conquer writer’s block?
With such an imagination as I am blessed with,
I'm happy to say I've never suffered with such an impediment. But I realize it
becomes a real stumbling block for many authors. One suggestion is to write two columns of ten
words or names, then try matching them together. E.g. What would Aunty Jane do with a
rotten cabbage? Answer: Probably
toss it into the garbage can. Then I immediately remembered me putting out the
garbage can, one day, not knowing my husband had filled it with putrid,
dissolving chicken poo, which he'd learned was good for the garden. I was quite
ready to report the garbage man for not emptying our can, which really would have set feathers flying.
More than likely I wouldn't have
received courteous service after that, and the garbage man wouldn't have
received his Christmas can of beer. Just
writing or reading something like that, softens the block, and before long you
have overcome it.
What can you tell us about your favorite character from your
book?
Bel Carter makes a brief appearance
in "Laura's Gold" but I love her. She epitomizes the
typical gold-miner's wife both in dress, style and language. The harshness of
the new country has already impacted on the two timid and polite English
ladies, Laura and Jemima, but they are not prepared for the brashness of Bel
Carter since her gold-miner husband had received a poor report from the
Assayer, so "went out back and shot himself.”
What actor or actress would you like to see play your
character in the movie adaptation
I think Dame Judy Dench would bring
Bel Carter to life. She has that great
attitude of standing no nonsense, but underneath has such a sensitive heart.
Sandra
Bullock, would be my personal vision of Laura, and someone like Kylie Minogue
could portray the fragility of Jemima.
To play the part of the boorish Joseph Martin, I would cast Russell
Crowe.
Who is your favorite author and what is it about them that
inspires you?
Catherine Cookson mostly writes
about women struggling against their situation and I admire the way she
portrays them. She creates that 'page-turning'
style that make it difficult to stop reading.
She uses plain, simple language and her scenic description brings the ‘place’
and time factor to life in the reader's mind.
What book are you reading now?
"The Tinker's Girl" - another Catherine Cookson
novel. A fifteen year old girl, who lives in a
workhouse is offered a position as maid-of-all-work by the owners of an
isolated farm, Before long, she discovers that she has exchanged one kind of
drudgery for another. The evocation of the period when it was customary for
servants to know and keep their place makes excellent reading, and of course,
all ends happily.
Tell us about your
current projects?
Right now, I am busy with research
and planning the sequel to "Laura's Gold" It has a working title of
"Lydia" and tells of Laura's daughter, who is now a doctor and covers
nursing events during WWI and the immense role undertaken by women for the
first time during the wartime. . ‘Work fast but accurately' will be the main
goal, as I hope to have the book published and available for this year's 100th
Anniversary of the outbreak of World War One.
My partner's only three uncles gave their lives during "the war
to end all wars,” and the novel is to be written partly, in honor of their
sacrifice.
If you had to do it all over again, would you change
anything in your latest book?
In afterthought. I think I would add
a little more atmosphere, as few people realize how basic
Australia was in 1890. If you consider the mere 236 years since its colonization,
to have achieved its status as a world power, both in sport and economics, is
surely one of the greatest success stories of today.
Can you share a little of your work
with us?
Here is an extract from Laura's Gold, Chapter
2 about my Bel Carter.
“A tired looking woman with her hair drawn back and her
long black skirt stirring more dust, walked towards them. She looked at Jemima,
then Laura.
"That's my place over
there," She indicated a building across the way. "Shall I take her
for a drink? She looks worn out, poor little thing."
Laura's relief showed. "Thank you
so much, ma'am. I'll inform Mister Martin when he comes back. He shouldn't be
long. Just one moment..." She took the horses a few paces to the trough
and tethered them there as they drank noisily. Remounting the dray, she
assisted Jemima to her feet, and the woman lifted her arms to steady the young
mother as she got down. Jemima's legs almost gave way under her, but with
support she managed to cross the street and enter the building. Although
stuffy, it was a good deal cooler than outside, and the woman dragged forward
two wooden chairs for them both, before dipping water from a barrel in the
corner of the room. She poured it into enamel mugs and handed her visitors one
each.
"Me name's Bel
Carter," she began. "Well Isabel really, but none of these ignorant
sods can be bothered to say me full name. Where've
you come from, then?"
Laura and Jemima drank gratefully. "This is Mrs Jemima
Martin, and my name is
Laura
Marchant. We arrived from England this morning, on the SS Mariana."
"Well I'll be damned," said their new
acquaintance, smoothing calloused hands over
her wispy hair, as though Queen Victoria
herself had graced her humble shack. “Well, what
you doing in Ballarat, then?"
Jemima roused feebly. "Ballarat? This is
Ballarat?"
"S'right," chuckled Beth. "The most
God-forsaken part of the country you could have
come to."
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your
writing?
Oh dear, yes.
Getting the story drafted, is usually easy. But finding the time to develop the
narrative, and the hours needed to revise, and revise, and revise, is the real
challenge. I can't afford a professional
editor, so have to do it myself. After months of close living with the story
and characters, it is very difficult to spot errors, like an upper case letter
when it should be in lower case. Or spelling slips like Lillian, instead of
Lilian. But hopefully, my editing will
gradually improve and use less of my time.
Do you have any advice for other
writers?
Yes, Patience, Perseverance, and
Pride. Be prepared to use Patience when
things don't go well, Persevere when you
feel you can't go on, (Writer's Block, for instance), and Pride. Don't be shy
to say you are a writer, or learning to be one.
Taking pride in your work helps enormously towards marketing books
Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your
readers?
Firstly, I'd thank them for taking
the time to read my work. Secondly, I'd be grateful if they would talk about my
books to friends and relatives. Lastly, I'd appreciate them communicatig with
me through my social pages on Facebook, Linked In. Twitter and my own web site,
http://marym224.co.uk
For More on Mary!
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