Okay, Laurey here we go. Can you tell us a little about your book?
My debut novel, A Girl’s Guide to Fairy Tales, is a lighthearted humorous romance , which follows the interwoven lives of four friends
who are in search of their happy ever afters without even realizing it. I
wanted to create a world my readers could relate to – situations they may have
even found themselves in…all with a fairy tale twist.
I have just started my second novel, another lighthearted
romance, but I am also looking to start writing a young adult fantasy fiction
novel which has been in my head for years. Therefore, the stories I like to write
are just the ones that come into my head, whatever genre they may be.
I know what you mean about the stories popping into your head
and can't rest until you put them down, paper or laptop. How
much
of yourself, if any, do you put into your characters?
They say ‘write what you know’ so to make my characters
believable, I couldn’t help but put facets of myself into them. As for their
trials and tribulations – I unashamedly borrowed from the lives of my
girlfriends after realizing that when it comes to work, love, relationships and
bad dates, many of us have been there and done that and got at least three
T-shirts.
I wanted the reader to relate to all the things my
girlfriends and I have laughed and cried about over copious bottles of wine in
the last few years.
So right Laurey! I don't know a woman anywhere who hasn't
"been there done that" and have a several T-shirts to show for
the heartache. How do
you keep sex scenes fresh and exciting so
they don't become stale or
repetitive? (That is, if you write
them.)
No sex scenes – just sexual references.
Is there
a story that you’d like to tell but you think the world
isn’t ready to receive
it?
I think the world we live in today is ready for anything.
Based on what is out there now, I think you're right! What do
you
do on a typical writing day?
I am a morning person so I find that I can get quite a lot
done so long as I’ve had a caffeine injection. I write until the words won’t
come anymore and then I will move onto something else. I love keeping fit so
often I will go to the gym and let my thoughts mull around my brain and by the
time I sit back down at the computer, the words miraculously return.
In terms of word count, I aim for around 1,000 on a writing
day. If I get stuck, then I don’t force
it as I end up writing crap. And that is not conducive to a good novel.
Isn't that the truth. I set goals to, but if I go for count instead of
quality, I end up redoing the "crappy" parts anyway. Do you
prefer writing about perfect characters or flawed ones
and why?
If the character was perfect, the story would be boring as
there is no such thing as a perfect character (except Mary Poppins perhaps). I
like to make my characters as real as possible and because I feel everybody has
a flaw, that’s how I create my characters. It’s just working out how deep the
flaws run and if they affects other people besides the character themselves.
Flaws provide conflicts, problems and therefore resolutions, which are the
foundations of any story.
Yes, perfection can be boring. When you
have writer's block
how do you break free?
It is so frustrating and hard not to see yourself as a
failure for a couple of hours while you try and unblock your brain when
writer’s block strikes. Breaking free is not easy but I often find that a bit
of reading, watching television, visiting relatives or good old-fashioned
people watching can sometimes spark the idea that gets you started once again.
From the
moment you conceived the idea for the story, to the
published book, how long
did it take?
I self-published my ebook so from start to finish, with a
full-time job as a reporter in between, it took me roughly a year.
When it
comes to writing, are you an early bird, or a night owl?
Early bird usually - but if the ideas are there I can easily
convert and write well into the night.
Have you
ever awakened in the night with the need to write? If
so, how do you deal with
this urge?
I like my sleep so I can’t say this has ever happened.
However, I do often find that as I’m drifting, I come up with ideas or
conversations I want my characters to have. When that happens I have to fight
the urge to continue drifting, throw back the covers and fumble for the pen and
paper I keep at the side of my bed to ensure I make a note of the epiphany
before I forget it.
You could
throw a party with any five people (living or dead)
who would you pick and why?
1 - Definitely my mum as she was the one who encouraged me
to start writing after hearing me talk about nothing other than the stories
that were in my head at the time.
2 – Marilyn Monroe to add a touch of glamour.
3 – British comedian Michael MacIntyre as laughter is good
for the soul.
4 – Gerard Butler because he’s gorgeous
5 – Sophie Kinsella so I could chew her ear off about how to
get published.
What is
the last line of your last WIP you worked on that you
wrote?
The last line of my current work in progress, A Girl’s Guide
to Glitterati, was:
The bullshit filter in
my brain managed to transform the rest of her sentence into nothing more than
‘blah blah blahs,’ which were far more palatable than what she was actually
saying.
However, there is no guarantee that this will make it into
the final cut!
If you
could be one of your characters - Who would you be?
And why?
I would be all of them – as without spoiling the novel A
Girl’s Guide to Fairy Tales – they all find their happily-ever-afters. What can I say? I’m a sucker for a happy
ending.
What is
one of your guilty pleasures to enjoy?
The Twilight Saga
What are
at least five things you have on your bucket list and
have you done any of
them?
1 - Go travelling – done (South East Asia, Australia and New
Zealand)
2 - Run a marathon – not done. The furthest I can run
without stopping is five miles.
3 – Have a family – not done
4 – Write a novel – done one and currently working on two
and three.
5 – Cook a Christmas dinner from start to finish unaided –
definitely not done
6 – Become a journalist - done
I’m sure there will be a lot more – but I can’t think of
anymore this second.
Do you
listen to music when writing? Do you feel like some
stories write themselves a
soundtrack with specific music? If so,
what book and what kind of music
influenced it?
I listen to the radio currently just for background noise
and quite low so I don’t get distracted.
However, when I write some of the action sequences in my
fantasy fiction novel, I am planning on playing fast paced music to see if it
inspires me. It will be a trial and error sort of thing.
Okay, last one. Tell us
five random things about yourself.
I am training to become a fitness instructor.
I am planning to start ballet lessons again at my old dance school.
I love West End Musicals – my favorite possibly Phantom of
the Opera.
I think peanut butter and jam (jelly) is the best sandwich
combination ever. Thank you America.
My family lived in Italy for three years from when I was
five.
Brief biography
My name is Laurey Buckland and I am a 27-year-old freelance
reporter from Nottinghamshire, UK.
I was a reporter at the Newark Advertiser for two and a half
years and have a BA Hons degree in English Literature and Language from the
University of Birmingham.
As this is my first novel, which I have self-published on
Amazon and iBooks, there is not much else to say except I hope this is the
first of many more books to come.
A Girl’s Guide to
Fairy Tales synopsis:
For daydreamer
Maddie, obsessive compulsive Clare, over dramatic Isobel and happy-go-lucky
Sophie, life is more a world of tragic than magic. For Maddie it’s a constant
battle against the monotony of a job she hates while her heart aches to be
somewhere else, for Clare it’s a perpetual struggle to vanquish her teenage
insecurities and to see herself for the woman she really is, for Isobel it’s a
refusal to reveal her true self for fear it’s not what everyone imagined her to
be and for Sophie it’s a willingness to believe in a rumour that threatens to
poison her perfect relationship.
But with the love and support of their friends and a little bit of luck, the girls soon realize that happy ever afters are not just reserved for fairy tale fiction – as long as they start believing in them.
But with the love and support of their friends and a little bit of luck, the girls soon realize that happy ever afters are not just reserved for fairy tale fiction – as long as they start believing in them.
EXCERPT:
I knew I had to keep the rhythm going if I
was going to get that all important result. However, my wrist was already
beginning to scorch under the pressure. I let out a huge gasp as the fire
spread up my arm and into my shoulder but I disregarded the pain and continued
to pump like hell.
I would not admit defeat
easily but why was it taking so long? I usually had infinite stamina and
succeeded within minutes – yes I was that good, the envy of all my friends in
fact. But today that stiff peak eluded me. I had lost my touch.
My phone buzzed like an
angry wasp trapped under a glass for the seventh time, its dull drone
punctuating my grunts of frustration. Teeth clenched, eyes shut, I gave one
last exerted effort and pumped like mad before letting every sinew relax with a
dramatic huff.
‘Clare, I’m kinda in the
middle of something,’ I snapped as I eased the cramp in my neck.
‘You’re always in the middle
of something Maddie.’
‘Look, I’ll be there in ten
minutes okay?’ I lied.
Ten minutes was my standard
guestimation for any departure, whether I had hair to wash, nails to paint or
clothes still to iron. Actually scrap that last one. I had never so much as
picked up the bright pink Russell Hobbs iron my grandmother had bought me as a
house warming present two years ago. I mean, why iron when you could dry
clothes perfectly straight on the radiator? Anyway, Clare ironed things twice,
including her thongs, so in reality I was merely helping to balance out the
domestic equilibrium.
‘It will take you twenty
minutes to get here at least,’ she said in a partly disappointed, partly pissed
off tone.
‘Okay, I’ll be there in
thirty minutes then.’
‘No you won’t.’
‘Yes I will,’ I protested
feigning offence. My hair only needed a brush, my makeup was already done and
although I needed to find some clothes to throw on, I could still be leaving in
ten minutes. ‘No Clare,’ I asserted, ‘I promise I will be there in thirty
minutes. Time me if you like?’
‘It’s alright. Just make
sure you’re here. It’s Sophie’s big night and I won’t have you spoiling it.’
Clare was not just a
perfectionist, she was an exorcist of all things unorganised and tardy and
could make anyone’s head spin with her clockwork rituals and need for order.
‘How could I spoil her night
when I’m the one who’s going to make it all the more special with my big
surprise?’ I asked.
‘Oh yes! Is it as fabulous
as I imagine?’ she enthused.
I sniggered as I listened to
Miss Jekyll suddenly rip the phone from Miss Hyde’s grasp. Our friend Isobel
was meant to be the actress, not Clare the neat freak. ‘You’ll just have to
wait and see,’ I teased. ‘Besides, it’s an artist’s prerogative to be late.’
‘Yes well...finish whatever
it is you’re doing and hurry up. Your thirty minutes start now,’ she ordered.
‘Can we make it thirty-two
minutes please as it could take a while to scrub this stuff off my hands? This
one is a lot stickier than I expected.’
BUY LINKS:
Amazon UK
Amazon US
iBooks
Thanks for honoring me with your guest post today Laurey. Good luck with sales and I'd love to have you back anytime.
Don't forget to leave Laurey some love.
Cynthia Arsuaga
Congrats on the book...sounds like you have many irons in the fire and manage to keep it all going. Book looks tasty.
ReplyDeleteCheers!
Elizabeth Knightbrige
ps....preparing a Christmas dinner by ones self...is very overrated...I know from experience.
Wonderful interview, ladies! Laurey, it was great getting to know more about you!
ReplyDeleteThank you for kind words and thank you so much Cynthia for hosting me on your blog. All the best, Laurey
ReplyDelete