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The next big thing …

Colured post-it notes and highlighter pens... that's me in revision mode.

I usually don’t say much about my books until they are finished, but I’m about to make an exeption.

Last week my dear friend and fellow writer Jean Fullerton tagged me in the “next big thing” round. That just happened to coincide with me typing ‘the end’, which is always a reason to celebrate.

Except of course, there’s still a bit of review and polish to be done – but essentially the story is finished.  

So.. here goes…

 

• What is the title of your next book?

The working title is Flight to Coorah Creek.

I really like the title and hope it stays the same when the book  is published. All my other books have kept their working titles – so fingers crossed.

• Where did the idea come from for the book?

A few years ago, I was medi-vacced (is that how you spell it?) out of the central Australian desert by the Royal Flying Doctor Service. I recovered and was fine, but the whole experience stayed with me… as did my admiration for the men and women of the RFDS. I thought anyone who worked for an organization like that would make a marvellous hero… or heroine.

 • What genre does your book fall under?

I write contemporary stories – and there is a central romance so I guess it’s a contemporary romance. I envisage this book to be the first of a series set in the same small outback town. Each book has an independent story, but the same characters and people appear in every one. The reader will, hopefully, feel that picking up one of the books is like returning home to a familiar place and old friends.

 What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

I must make it part of the contract that I get to be present during all the casting calls for the hero!!

Gosh – that’s tough. I might have to spend days casting the hero!

My initial reaction is to say Hugh Jackman – he’s Australian and looks pretty sexy in an Akubra Hat (in the film Australia).  But Hugh has appeared on this blog more than once before – so perhaps it’s time I looked a big further.

Adam, my hero, can be quite funny, but he also has a darkness about him.. so maybe Alex O’Loughlin (from the TV series Hawaii Five-o and Moonlight). He’s an Australian actor, can do both dark and funny and then there are those scenes where he has to take his shirt off.

• What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?

One sentence? I have enough troubly doing a one page synopsis…

How about…

They both came to Coorah Creek to escape their past: can they find a future together?

 • Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I started writing this book because I wanted to tell this story – and it was not contracted. I can’t say anything right now – but hopefully I will have some news about publication in the not too distant future.

 • How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

I have had the idea floating around my head for a few years. When I finally was able to get serious about writing it – about nine months. Thats’ how long it take me to write all my books – more or less.

 • What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I moved to the US two years ago, and started reading Robyn Carr’s Virgin River Series. I also read Jodi Thomas – particular her Harmony series. Susan Wiggs Lakeshore Chronicles also come to mind. If you like these ‘small town’ books, you’ll feel right at home in Coorah Creek.

 • Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Year ago, as a reporter, I met a Catholic Nun who was a nurse in a children’s hospital, specializing in burn patients. She was inspiring and I always knew I wanted to put a character like that in a book. I write romance, so she couldn’t be the heroine – I just had to wait until a story came to me where this character could play a central role in helping our hero and heroine find their happy ever after.

 • What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

I am Australian and grew up in the outback. I can crack a stockwhip and heft a bale of hay with the best of them. Wherever I go in the world, people hear my accent and say they would love to visit Australia, but it’s such a long way to go. It’s really not that far away – only as far as your nearest bookseller. In my books I try to capture the atmosphere of the outback – not just the place, but also the very special people who live there.

 

Ok – enough about me. I still have to finish spell-checking  Flight to Coorah Creek.

To see what some of my writer friends are doing, I’m going to tag.

Sue Moorcroft

Like me, Sue writes contemporary fiction and short stories. She is pretty much at the top of my ‘must buy’ list. She made me fall in love with a character called Ratty –  seriously – he was smokin’ hot. I can’t wait for her next hero to come along.

Lynne Connolly

In the wake of the 50 Shades phenomenon, I thought we should drop buy and see what Lynne is up to. She’s been writing super sexy romances – and erotic romances – since long before Christian Grey came along.

Rachel Brimble 

I’ve long been a big fan of Romantic Suspense. There is a great history of it in the UK – with people like Mary Stewart and Daphne du Maurier, but it’s been hard to find new UK set romantic suspense. Rachel is about to change that.

Keep an eye out for these ladies books – I do.