I am pleased to have as my guest today, author Stevie Turner. I have been following Stevie’s blog for a couple of years and her posts are fun, interesting and informative. She also holds a short story contest most months. She is a prolific writer as you can see and enjoys attending rock concerts. Stevie and her husband love spending time at their holiday home on the Isle of Wight, a place I love and included in Amanda in England.

Stevie Turner grew up in the East End of London and was fortunate enough to attend an excellent primary school which encouraged creative writing. After winning an inter-schools’ writing contest, Stevie began to keep a diary and often added little stories and poems to it as the years went by. However, she did not take up writing seriously until 2013. By this time her two sons had left home and she had more time to herself.

Stevie has now written 10 novels, 6 novellas, 1 memoir, and 18 short stories, winning a New Apple Book Award in 2014 and a Readers’ Favorite Gold Award in 2015 for her third novel ‘A House Without Windows’. You can find details of all her books on her website http://www.stevie-turner-author.co.uk

Stevie still lives in the same picturesque Suffolk village that she and husband Sam moved to in 1991 with their two boys. One of her short stories, ‘Lifting the Black Dog’, was recently published in ‘1000 Words or Less Flash Fiction Collection’ (2016). She has also written an article ‘Look on the Bright Side of Life’ which was included in the 2016 book ‘They Say I’m Doing Well’ which are articles about mental illness, proceeds of which go to the charity MIND.  Her screenplay ‘For the Sake of a Child’ won a silver award in the Spring 2017 Depth of Field International Film Festival, and gained interest from an independent film production company based in New York.

1. What made you decide on the type of books you write?

I write realistic women’s fiction with a psychological twist, also suspense and darkly humorous books. These are the genres I like to read, and the type of books I am interested in. I couldn’t write a fantasy novel even if you paid me to do so!

2. How long have you been seriously writing?

Since 2013. I began to work part-time then, the children had grown up and flown the nest, and I had more time on my hands. I had always dabbled with writing poems and stories since childhood, but it wasn’t until I was in my fifties that I realised I had been privy to a wealth of life experiences over the years. I think 2014/2015 were my most prolific writing years.

3. Where do you get your ideas?

From life events, from items of news on TV or radio, and from tales I’ve been told over the years. I only write about realistic situations.

4. What is your writing process?

I don’t have one. I write when I feel like it. When the words don’t come I stop and do something else.

5. Where do you do your best writing?

In my quiet, air-conditioned front room. Sam works from home upstairs in his office, and I sit downstairs and write. Sometimes he comes down for a cup of tea and we even talk to each other.

6. How long does it take you to write a book?

How long is a piece of string? I have no deadlines to meet, and only write when I feel like it. Therefore one book could take months. My latest book ‘A Marriage of Convenience’ was completed in about 3 months

7. Do you work on more than one story at a time?

Never. I’d get totally mixed up with all the names and characters and end up writing a load of gibberish. No, I see one book through to the end.

8. How do you come up with names for your characters?

I don’t like fancy names – plain good old-fashioned names suit my characters. I also like short names so I don’t have to keep typing long ones. I write down various short traditional names and pick the one I like best.

9. What books did you read as a child?

Mostly Enid Blyton’s ‘Adventure’ series or the Mallory Towers’ series. I used to love books about private schools. I also liked the Nancy Drew mysteries by Carolyn Keene. I wanted ‘titian’ hair like Nancy!

10. Who are some of your favourite authors, and why?

I like the psychological thrillers that Mark Edwards writes. I also like Gillian Flynn and Paula Hawkins’ books, again because of the psychological aspect. I also like books by A.J Cronin, L.P Hartley, and R.F Delderfield.

11. What advice would you give an aspiring author?

Write for a hobby. Don’t expect to earn your living from it, because there are too many other authors out there all trying to get their books out in front. Expect nothing, and you won’t be disappointed.

12. Tell us about what you are working on now.

Absolutely nothing! I’ve just finished ‘A Marriage of Convenience’, which will be published on 6th July, and I’m going to take a couple of months off over the summer to enjoy my holiday home on the Isle of Wight and spend time with the family. There’s more to life than writing…

Thanks so much, Stevie for being a guest on my blog. 

 

My review of A Marriage of Convenience

 

Make sure to connect with Stevie on her social media links and check out her amazing books. 

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

Amazon.uk: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stevie-Turner/e/B00AV7YOTU/

Website: http://www.stevie-turner-author.co.uk

Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Stevie-Turner/e/B00AV7YOTU/

Amazon Author Page (worldwide): http://bookShow.me/B00AV7YOTU

YouTube: https://goo.gl/E8OHai

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7172051.Stevie_Turner

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StevieTurnerAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/StevieTurner6

Pinterest: https://uk.pinterest.com/stevieturner988/

WordPress Blog: https://steviet3.wordpress.com/

Audible: http://goo.gl/sz1cXS

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/preview?vpa=pub&locale=en_US

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/105747643789021738179/posts/p/pub

BookSprout: https://booksproutapp.com/author/875/stevie-turner