Interview with Author Joanna Challis:
Hi Joanna. Thank you for doing this interview. I would like to welcome you to the Romance at Heart Interview and Author Grilling session. *bg* We are interested to find out as much about you as we possibly can, so lets get started...
- Please tell us about your latest book.
MURDER ON THE CLIFFS is the first in a new romantic murder-mystery series featuring Daphne du Maurier as the heroine.
Walking on the cliffs in Cornwall, Daphne stumbles upon the drowned body of a beautiful woman. She soon learns that the mysterious woman was engaged to marry Lord Hartley of Padthaway, an Elizabethan mansion full of intriguing secrets.
As the daughter of the famous Sir Gerald du Maurier, Daphne is welcomed into the Hartley home, but when the drowning turns out to be murder, she determines to get to the bottom of the mysteries of Padthaway – in part to find fresh inspiration for her writing, and in part because she cannot resist the allure of grand houses and long buried secrets…
- Generally, how long does it take you to write a book?
6 - 8 months
- Do you have a set schedule for writing or do you just go with the flow?
I try to write every day. Sometimes for hours, sometimes for short blocks. I find I get fidgety if I haven’t written for a couple of days because my characters are always on my mind – plaguing me to write their story!
- Where do your ideas come from?
Travel, old houses and mansions, photographs, secret diaries, people in general, what motivates them and why.
- Please tell us about yourself (family, hobbies, education, etc.)
I am of Welsh origin and live in Australia. I started writing when I was a little girl and finished my first novel at 15. My hobbies are travel, writing and reading, - I have piles of books in every room of the house.
- Who are some of your other favorite authors to read?
Daphne du Maurier, Victoria Holt, Jane Austen, the Brontes. I also love Agatha Cristie and all the British based murder mystery series like Inspector Morse, Inspector Linley, Midsomner Murders, Frost etc.
- How many books have you written, how many have been published?
Written about 14 novels. 4 are published and 3 under contract. They are SILVERTHORN, THE SECRET OF THE PHOENIX, THE PENGRAGON LEGACY, EYE OF THE SERPENT – all traditional ‘Jane Eyre’ type novels set in the late Victorian Era.
- Are you in control of your characters or do they control you?
A bit of both, I’d say. I start out with their life in view, how elements in the book will change them but they invariably take over and write their own story (within boundaries, of course!).
- Are there any words of encouragement for unpublished writers?
Write what you love to read. Write every day. Never write for the ‘market.’
- What can we expect from you in the future?
PERIL AT SOMNER HOUSE is the next Daphne mystery. It is complete and I am writing the third tentatively titled DEATH AT THE VILLA. I will post news and release dates on my website: www.joanna-challis.com.
Thank you very much for taking the time with us and answering our questions. I really appreciate this interruption to your busy schedule. Good Luck, and we will be looking forward to the next delightful creation from your talented imagination whether it be Victorian Romance or mystery!
Yours in good reading,
Rose!
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