Colette Caddle

Every Time I Say Goodbye....

For me, getting to know the characters in my story is a bit like falling in love.

The first meeting: 

When I first came up with the characters for Every Time We Say Goodbye I had a loose idea of what they would be like but at that stage they were flat and two-dimensional and if you asked me to describe them you would have got a blank look.

The first time you feel the ‘spark’:

You know that moment! You get talking and suddenly you start to notice things: He has a lovely laugh, everything he says is interesting, or funny, or clever.  His smile gives you goose-bumps and you realise you want to know more about this man. Well, that’s the way I feel the moment I’m able to ‘see’ my characters, the moment they seem real to me. There’s nothing quite like it.

The first date:

These can often be disastrous but sometimes, just sometimes you look across at someone and think he could be ‘the one’. As the characters take shape and personalities develop I feel that same sense of wonder and excitement. Full of enthusiasm and on an absolute high, I can’t wait to open my laptop in the morning, dying to find out more about these people, longing to spend time with them.

Going steady:

Those first few weeks or months, you want your new love to think you’re perfect. You wouldn’t dream of going out without washing your hair, or being seen wearing a face. But as you grow more comfortable with each other and real life intervenes, the guards come down. This is when it’s easy to fall into a boring routine and stop appreciating each other and it’s the same for me when I’m writing. The ‘going steady’ stage is the hardest and most dangerous. I’ve set the scene, introduced my readers to all the characters and it’s all too easy to slip into a rut or lose interest. It’s especially worrying if doing household chores is more appealing than sitting down to write. At times like this I become disillusioned and that’s when it’s important to stay focussed or my story, my love, will suffer.

The doubts:

Everyone’s been there. The day you say to yourself ‘Is this really what I want? Is it going anywhere? Do I want it to? Does he?’ I ask myself similar questions every time I write a book. Is it any good? Should I give up and start again? Should I throw in the towel completely and take up knitting instead? It’s soul-destroying but that’s when you need a firm but kindly friend to remind you that you suffer the same doubts with every book and just…get on with it!  

The happy ending:

By the time I’ve written 100,000 words it’s fair to say that I’m immersed in my characters’ lives and, good or bad, I love them all. I get quite emotional when I have to say goodbye but if I’m lucky, really lucky, there is usually a new cast waiting in the wings and it’s time to start all over again...

Rebecca Chance

 

50 Shades/9½  Weeks: what do women really fantasise about?

By Rebecca Chance

What's your ultimate fantasy? What  do you want - really, really want, as the Spice Girls would put it? To be tied up? Spanked? Have someone yell at you because you dared to sunbathe topless, and whacking you across the boobs in punishment?

Hmm. Or, would your ultimate fantasy be something much more long-term and seductive? What if I whispered in your ear that you would never, ever, have to do housework again? No cooking, washing up, ironing, hoovering, laundry folding, stain removal, supermarket shopping, dry cleaner visiting, any more. Not only that: you wouldn't have to organise anything any more. No travel arrangements, no renewing your driver's licence and passport, no parking vouchers or council tax payments or home and contents and building and travel and life assurance, no - well, you get the idea. Someone else will do all of this for you. All you need to do is relax, surrender completely, and have a lot of fantastic sex to boot.

That does sound lovely, doesn't it? Like falling into a big, warm, luxurious bed. Or a Jacuzzi, bubbling deliciously, its water scented with very expensive oil. It’s the fantasy that, 34 years ago, made the book Nine and A Half Weeks by Elizabeth McNeill a cause celebre and a huge bestseller. Having met and moved in with the hero, the heroine lists the tasks that he does around the house. All of the above and more. He runs the bath for her, he dresses her, he feeds her from his plate as she sits happily on the carpet at his feet, tied to the table leg. He not only makes every single decision in the home, but does all the work that goes along with it. After listing everything he does, the heroine writes:

"What did I do? Nothing."

Nothing! Nothing! I can't even imagine doing nothing when I get home, and I bet you can't either. Do note, the heroine goes out every day to work: the book is allegedly a memoir of a period in her life when she was working in Manhattan as an executive for a large corporation. So she wasn't bored and aimless all day; she had to struggle in through the New York crowds to her office, put in a full day's work, struggle home again, walk through the door, take all her clothes off and then do absolutely bugger all for every single evening and weekend. Oh yes, apart from having increasingly kinky sex.

When I first read Nine and A Half Weeks, in my early twenties, as a footloose and fancy-free girl who was out partying all the time, all I focused on was the kinky sex. Naturally. There are some really hot scenes. But recently, now that 50 Shades Of Grey has been such a success, I pulled Nine and A Half Weeks off my shelves and re-read it. It's brilliant. In a mere 144 pages, it does what 50 Shades doesn't manage in over three times that amount. But what really struck me, now that I'm no longer a girl, or in my twenties, or partying all the time, was that the fantasy of not having to do any housework was just as compelling as a jolly good spanking. Honestly, it might be even more so…

I loathe the term 'mummy porn': it's sexist, patronizing and it excludes those of us who don't have kids. But, having said that, women with kids work even harder than I do at running their households. Every single survey since the dawn of time has shown that women do way more housework than men, even when they're both employed outside the home. I know I do much more than my husband, and he's really very good about it. The heroine of Nine and A Half Weeks earns her own money, is economically independent outside the home, and a happy slave inside it (at least at first). A slave with no duties, one who's free to leave at any time. Bliss!

Ana, in 50 Shades, is unfortunately much less feminist. She's a virgin at 22, waiting for a billionaire to pop her cherry, tell her what to do, and fund her lifestyle. But still… she doesn't have to do any housework either. Clever Ana. Isn't that the whole point of these books, the ultimate female fantasy? The longest-lasting one?

Hot sex, after all, only lasts a couple of years before it starts to burn out and transform into the more familiar, domesticated version. But not having to do housework? That could last forever. And it's priceless.

'Getting Emotionally Attached to My Characters' by Milly Johnson

When you find a scribbled note on your manuscript from your editor to say that ‘this section made me cry’ it’s incredibly hard not to chalk one up in the air. In fact, it’s impossible. Especially if it is the part of the story where even I had to break off and get a coffee because I was sobbing as I wrote it.

Author Milly Johnson

One of the questions I’ve been asked more than once is, ‘Do you laugh or cry when you’re writing?’ And the answer is a big fat yes. I can be found chuckling at my own jokes – which isn’t as big-headed as it sounds because often when they appear on the page, it’s the first time I’ve seen them. You’ll have watched comedians crack up at their own material and use the excuse, ‘Sorry, I haven’t heard that one before’ – and I know exactly what they mean. It’s as if someone else has made up the joke and used you as a conduit. And when I write about sad events, I am in the middle of the action feeling it all. In The Yorkshire Pudding Club, I felt very claustrophobic writing about Elizabeth running away from her father; in A Spring Affair, when Lou is clearing out her attic and breaking her heart, I was breaking mine; I was giggling to myself writing about the very fat dressmaker in A Summer Fling and in White Wedding I felt so desperately sad for Glyn’s parents, I had to stop myself trying to rescue them. And in my new book, A Winter Flame, the chapter that so affected my editor crippled me to write because (no spoilers) I didn’t want it to happen, but it had to – and I felt as guilty as a murderer. That’s the trouble with characters – they become too real and authors grow attached. And if you feel sad when someone you like dies in life, you feel a loss too when you have to ‘kill your darlings’. But I know that if my writing doesn’t move me, it isn’t going to move anyone else.

It’s not just laughter and tears I feel. I’ve had the vapours a couple of times writing a bit of a saucy scene. Gratuitous sex doesn’t fit into my novels, but my heroes and heroines are full-blooded people and occasionally it is necessary to have them indulge in some passion. I can come over quite melty because of some of the nice things that happen to my heroines, and feel hurt for them too. Sometimes I can do that by conjuring up old stored feelings of rejection and betrayal, sometimes I have to call on my imagination. If I didn’t have the capacity to imagine, I’d never have been able to write a book about a snow-filled Christmas theme park whilst sitting on the balcony of a ship cruising through near-tropical Mediterranean air. But then, I’ve had a career in writing greetings card jokes for years and it always happened that I was writing jokes about Santa sunbathing in the garden (that’s me sunbathing, not Santa) and composing gentle springy Easter cards in the middle of winter.

Sometimes you have to do a bit of research, of course. I can imagine a semblance of what it must feel like to be widowed young or to have won the lottery, but it hasn’t happened to me so I need to do some work on getting that right. Then again, people react differently to joy and crisis so at least you get some leeway. But knowing your characters well will give you an indication of how they would meet with any life-changing events. I like to get inside my ‘people’ and wear them like an overcoat, walk in their shoes. It sounds daft, crazy because it is. Writers are artists – total nutters – but perfectionist nutters. All we can do is accept that fact and carry on.

The Original Bad Boy: The Real Travis Maddox

Jamie McGuire

So many of my readers have asked if Travis Maddox is based on a real person. Could a womanizing, foul-mouthed charmer that you can’t help but love be out there somewhere? The short answer: Yes, yes he is.

My senior year of high school, I was thrilled to learn I had been accepted to an Oklahoma university far enough away not to feel like high school again, and close enough that I could take my laundry home to Mom when playing grown up got old.

I made friends right away, but one day, as I did sometimes, I felt like sitting at the lunch table alone. Wait. So your university really did have a dinky cafeteria where most of you had the same lunch time? Yes, really. On this particular day, sitting alone would garner the attention of our university’s version of the Walking One Night Stand. My very own Travis Maddox. That wasn’t his name, of course, but the cafeteria introduction of Travis and Abby compared to my experience was nearly verbatim.

“Travis” and I became fast friends, and although an obvious attraction existed, for whatever reason I was the one girl he didn’t immediately try to sleep with. We studied together. We made plans for the weekends. No one could figure us out, and just like Abby, I found myself fielding questions about our relationship daily.

On my 19^th birthday, my friends on the football team—including a Shepley and Brazeal—gathered to celebrate at Brazeal’s apartment. Although much fictional flair was added to that scene in the book, there were several parallels.

“Travis” was more a lover than a fighter, but he was just as devastatingly handsome, and charismatic. My best friend on campus, Robin, swore that the snag in my quest to rise above the friend zone was that “Travis” respected me, and truly cared about me, but just wasn’t ready at that stage in his life to find The One. I transferred schools before I had a chance to find out, and we lost touch.

Ironically, 12 years later, in my second year of Radiography school, I was waiting for a patient to dress after an exam in the hospital hallway. A man turned the corner, down the very hallway where I stood, and the second our eyes made contact, I knew. “Travis” stared back at me. His eyes lit up with recognition. “We know each other, don’t we. Yeah, we used to be buddies.”

I smiled as I was apprised of the highlights of his life since the time when we were important to each other. He was married, and his wife was four months pregnant. We congratulated each other on the paths our lives had taken, and he made a reference to what a great time in his life it was, those months we spent together. My heart ached when he walked away. Beautiful Disaster had been finished almost a year to the day.

How to Build a Business From Your Kitchen Table!

Holly Tucker and Sophie Cornish

Six short years ago, Holly Tucker and Sophie Cornish were maxing out their credit cards, trying to secure investment and crossing their fingers that their idea would take off. It did, and now www.notonthehighstreet.com  is a multi-million business, a platform for thousands of independent designer-makers and retailers. Drawing on their own story as well as those of all those that sell through their site, Sophie and Holly have sought to set out the nuts and bolts of how to start and run a business from home. Here are some of their top do’s and dont’s.

DO’S

1. RIGOROUSLY TEST IF YOUR IDEA MEANS BUSINESS. 

Our 'Down & Dirty' test is comprehensive and questions which will drill down, and help you define what will – or won't – work about your business idea. Crucially, it could save you a lot of wasted money and heartache further down the road. 

2.     WORK WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY

They are the ones who will go the extra mile for you. But it's vital that all parties understand what they're getting into. We both completed detailed questionnaires in which we had to be completely honest about our motivations, and set the time we were prepared to invest.

3. LEARN HOW MONEY WORKS. 

Your idea HAS to make money – if it doesn't, it's just a hobby. Testing the financial aspects of your business, as well as being properly prepared for investment, gives you a much stronger chance of succeeding. 

4. REMEMBER THAT THE CUSTOMER IS AT THE HEART OF EVERYTHING. 

Every single decision you make needs to have your customer at the heart of it – from the price point to customer services. Furthermore, from research right through to sales, you need to be engaged with your customer, and they need to be engaged with you. 

5. NOT ALL THE BEST IDEAS ARE ORIGINAL ONES. 

You don't have to reinvent the wheel to have a successful business idea. Sometimes, you just need to tweak something that already exists – whether that's in design, execution, price, service or delivery. Think about what in your world could do with changing or improving and that might be your business idea.

DON’T’S

1. DON'T COMPROMISE YOUR BRAND. 

However small your business is, you need to identify your brand – the unique thing that spells out what you do and how you do it (try to articulate six key brand principles). This brand identity will help you make fast decisions on everything from price point to company stationery, from product design to delivery.

2. DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE MONEY YOU WILL NEED. 

Take what you think you'll need and then double it. Then double it again. It takes a huge amount of money to set up and run a business for the first year. You need to keep your eye on your bottom line daily. We learned this the hard way when a year after we started we hit a wall – we hadn't properly accounted for the fact that growth and expansion costs money.

3. DON'T FORGET TO STOP AND BREATHE. 

When you’re getting started on your business you need to work hard – probably harder than you've ever worked in your life. Running your own business is all-consuming and striking a balance with your family life can feel nigh-on impossible. We’ve been there – and we talk about it in the book. There’s no hard and fast solution but you must schedule in downtime, too. If nothing else, relaxing will revitalise you and take you back to work with more energy and better ideas. 

4. DON'T WORRY IF IT GOES WRONG. 

Things do go wrong – it happens. Own your mistakes and move on from them. We don't beat ourselves up about the errors we made, we hope we learned from them.

5. DON'T FORGET TO ENJOY IT. 

You're running your own business because you're passionate about your idea and because you want a great working life on your own terms – don't forget that. We've had some dark days since starting the business, but we've had some incredible highs, too (Downing Street, the first million in the bank, the customers who let us know what we're doing right) and we still drink in the joy of owning our own business with offices that we love to go to work in. 

Build a Business From Your Kitchen Table (£14.99) is available from all good retailers.