Friday 29 June 2012

Some of Her Parts: Re-release!

The new cover for 'Some of Her Parts'.


I've been unhappy with the cover of my poetry book 'Some of Her Parts' pretty much since I designed it. But keep in mind it was the first book I had had published and I had no idea what I was doing.

Anyway, since it's first release with it's less than impressive cover in 2009, BZ Hercules have breathed new life into it, and all of a sudden it's come back to haunt me. SO, I've decided to re-design the cover to coincide with it's re-release!

It took me several hours to do last night, but I'm happy with what I came up with...it seems to be more 'Some of Her Parts'-ish...

I hope all of the readers like it, and thank you to everyone who has purchased it so far!

Thursday 21 June 2012

BBC Radio Suffolk

A while ago I did a phone interview for BBC radio Suffolk about my novella, 'Le Coeur de la Mer' (released April 14th 2012).

It was one of the most terrifying things I have ever done. At several points I was convinced I was going to either wet myself or vomit - thankfully I managed not to do either and it ended up going quite well. (Or at least that's what I've been told, I've never listened to it myself...)

Anyway I thought I would pop it up on here so that others can have a listen if they fancy it.

Enjoy!

Here is the link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00qcz5x

Thursday 14 June 2012

25 facts about: Author Andrew Lucas


My favourite authors when I was a child were Enid Blyton, C.S Lewis  and W.E Johns (Biggles).

2.    Favourite books: Watership Down, The Lost World (original).

3.    Favourite authors as a grown-up are Clive Cussler, Hammond Innes, Desmond Bagley & Jack Higgins.

4.    First story I wrote that made me want to be a writer was aged 11 years, a short story for English class – sci-fi, based on Battlestar Galactica.

5.    Started writing poetry at 15 for first ‘love’ girlfriend.

6.    As an author I begin with a few key elements and themes, and then I see where the characters take me – they often surprise me!

7.    I don’t like to put too much flesh onto the bones of supporting characters, especially when I know they are going to be killed off fairly quickly – I want readers to expend their emotional energy on the bigger characters.

8.    I do a lot of research about everything because I want anyone reading my books to experience accurate detailing and have a sense of realism.

9.    I don’t give myself targets e.g. two pages a day or a chapter a week. I write in ‘waves’ – often writing several full chapters over a couple of days and then tweaking them for another week or so before writing more.

10. I enjoy starting a new book the most – the middle is more of a slog but then I enjoy drawing the threads together at the end but have to force myself not to rush those last few chapters because I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

11. My books usually have a couple of fits and starts with plots and sub-plots before I see a way to bring in all the elements I want…together with others dictated by character development as the story progresses.

12. I dislike the over-use of swearing in books but do use it when a character demands it. If I read too much swearing in a book, I end up putting it down and never going back to it.

13. I often create sexual relationships/tensions between characters – just like real life but try not to be overly graphic – sensual rather than porn!

14. I always write in too much detail and end up having to reduce volume ruthlessly at the editing stage.

15. I will always consider myself a novelist first and foremost – I write poetry but only when the mood takes me, which isn’t very often.

16. I hate editing with a passion but do it carefully. I have to force myself to stop after a couple of complete edits, front to back, otherwise I’d edit forever and never publish anything.

17. I feel that I have more control over description; I often feel like an observer when characters start having conversations – these tend to take on a life of their own!

18. I write everything on a word processor – don’t like writing by hand, even notes.

19. My main female characters are usually based on women I have known intimately i.e. physical appearance and spirit.

20. I design my own book covers and logos, usually on WORD!

21. I enjoy writing main characters who are human i.e. have flaws, feel fear, make mistakes etc. Anti-hero rather than superman.

22. I believe writers are born, like painters and other artists – I don’t hold with ‘How to…’ books on the writing process; for me it isn’t a numbers game and creativity can’t be taught; the spark has to be inside you already ; grammar and sentence construction can be taught but that’s different.

23. I am genuinely grateful for anyone who takes the time to read something I have written, whatever the verdict. They have given my work a chance to be part of their life, which is humbling.

24. I love my Kindle and feel that e-books are the future, even though I love the feel and smell of a paperback in my hands.

25. I write for me – to tell the stories in my head to others – but I also want to leave something behind for my children; an important part of me that they can keep when I am long gone from this world.


BIOGRAPHY 

I have lived and breathed adventure stories since I was a child, from the exploits of wandering rabbits in Watership Down, through the Narnia books and Biggles, I have always been captivated by the wonderful worlds that great writers conjure.

As I grew up, I developed a taste for several authors but hit the jackpot the day I stumbled, quite by accident, on my first Dirk Pitt adventure. Nobody recommended Clive Cussler to me - I just spotted a good looking paperback cover one day whilst browsing in my local bookshop. Then to find that there were numerous other stories....and that Clive was still alive and writing more...wonderful! Added to the likes of Hammond Innes and Jack Higgins, I realised just how good adult fiction could be.

My first serious writing attempt came in my late teens, and took 2 years...fantasy adventure I called 'Champion Heart'...looking back now it had some nice touches but generally wasn't very good. I learned a lot about the process of writing, which meant it wasn't a complete failure.

By then I'd left school, gone to work in London for a large bank, got very, very bored and quit to go to university, where I studied scriptwriting for stage and screen. Novels on hold and a few years of producing movie scripts, television serial ideas and samples....again bounced back by countless agents and coming to nothing, although I remember getting a few stages through a selection process with a movie script and having a telephone conversation with someone from one of the large US film studios, who was kind enough to spot my potential and bother to arrange a call that basically said,'not there yet...but keep going.' In hindsight, it was a wonderful gesture although at the time I remember thinking that it was just another brush off.

Love, marriage, work, kids and my next novel, 'Underworld' took up the next 10 years. This book was much better but I ran out of steam at the end and never finished it; couldn't, still no idea why. Even now, I am unable to think of a way to tie the ends together properly - so I let it die a dignified death.

Another ten years passed, with a large chunk of this time being spend providing for a growing family and moving through several jobs, including a spell as a corporate video writer/director. By this time I had pretty much given up on the dream of becoming a published author....I could have papered a wall with the number of standard rejection letters I had received from literary agents by then, and for many of these years I gave no thought to writing anything else. I worked for the probation service, dealing with all types of offender before moving on to working with the victims of serious crime, or their relatives in cases of murder or manslaughter. I learned some valuable lessons about human frailty, and courage. Working with young offenders, and victims, led me eventually into teaching. I came to understand that catching children young enough to change behaviour was the key to keeping a lot of youngsters out of prison. I was always busy, at work or at home with my kids, but the writer inside me would just not lay down and give up the ghost. The truth is simple....I am a writer....anything else just pays the bills!

Anyway, to cut a long story short (incase you are growing very bored of reading this by now) in this 10 year period I wrote my first decent, complete adventure/thriller novel called RACE AMAZON. It was self-published in January 2010 as a paperback and I have just been able to make it available as a Kindle version on Amazon. I am really pleased with it, and the next book in the series is well underway, provisionally titled, SKELETON GOLD. It will be available this summer (2012).

I enjoy writing, as well as need it; it is a compulsion and I am grateful for anybody who gives their time and money to read my work. I intend to write at least one new James Pace novel each year from now on and I will do my best to make each new book better than the ones before.

As for me personally, I love riding horses and motorcycles, can strum a guitar not too badly, enjoy being near water (but not particularly in it, which is apparently odd for a Pisces!), have kept German Shepherd dogs for years and I am a huge fan of a decently chilled Pinot Grigio to accompany fresh prawns and crab on a hot summer day....especially happy if it can be sampled while aboard a boat!

Monday 11 June 2012

'Some of Her Parts'



My first poetry collection, 'Some of Her Parts' was written in 2008/9 amongst hot summers, hazy evening BBQs and late night beach walks around where I used to live.

It was first published in 2010 and received little publicity, then this year all of a sudden it has come back to haunt me. Sales are rocketing and publicity seems to be happening around me without my having to do much. (needless to say I am INCREDIBLY grateful - and slightly bewildered.)

Anyway, I'll put a little picture of my book up, along with where you can buy it and a few reviews. But the main reason for this post is to say thank you to everyone that has bought it, reviewed it, published it and sold it. I am so grateful to you all. x

Available to buy as an ebook and paperback from:

BZ Hercules: http://www.bzhercules.com/catalog/item/8504722/9373785.htm

Amazon (co.uk and com)

Barnes and Noble

Lulu.com




"Poetry from the mind of Natascha Tallowin takes on a life of its own in the collection SOME OF HER PARTS. Vivid imagery and wild descriptions color the contemporary topics of break-ups, illicit sexual trysts, aging, and writers of fiction, among many others. Odes to perfect dream men, Oats (a cat), and Dracula (a masquerader?) are some samples of the subject matter that Tallowin presents from her day to day observations of people, places, things, and thoughts. Tallowin's use of paradox, as in "The Boy" is a running theme through the collection ("Don't worry, I'm here; I'm your girl") as well as her tendency to call out individuals in particular ("Jennifer Schecter, For you the words from a salted tongue"), as seen in the title piece, "Some of Her Parts." At times dreamlike with glitter (although often it tarnishes...), and then suddenly venomous, Tallowin's poetry is consistently brilliant!" - BETH LYNNE



"It’s not every day that I find a collection of work that truly speaks to me. In this world of cookie-cutter stories and mindless literature created for the masses, it’s always refreshing to find an author who isn’t afraid to break convention and think outside of the literary sphere. This, however, is exactly what I found in Some of Her Parts by Natascha Tallowin.

A clear reference to “The L Word’s” resident writer, Jennifer Schecter, Tallowin’s work is both inventive and powerful. In this eclectic collection of both prose and poetry, Tallowin weaves through various stories, each narrator recounting a treasured memory, a lost love, a repressed fear, or a journey to self-discovery. Her poetry is moving, defying character gender and orientation to speak to the heart of the reader, to focus on the experience and emotion rather than the person.

In her ode to Jennifer Schecter, Tallowin unleashes a whirlwind of hatred and admiration for the woman, calling her both a monster and “the demon that tempts me.” The allusion to Jenny’s life and writing is as profound as it is stirring. Tallowin does a phenomenal job detailing Jenny’s downward spiral and the creative outpouring that resulted, as if Jenny acted as her muse and source of her inspiration.

Natascha Tallowin’s anthology doesn’t just focus on Schecter, but also delves into childhood innocence, lost loves, and painful memories. Her writing touches on aspects of life that every single reader can identify with, regardless of gender, orientation, or experience. The raw emotion Tallowin elicits, especially when her writing turns introspective, is deeply moving and left me wanting more.

While Natascha Tallowin’s collection of poetry and prose isn’t long, there’s not shortage of power that comes from it. Some of Her Parts is a wonderful foray into the heart and soul of the author as well as the reader." - CHRISTINA HOAR - WWW.CHERRYGRRL.COM



"A collection of contemporary poems guaranteed to make you mad, sad, and glad--and whatever other emotions you desire! This is a bedside companion that will remain on your e-book reader forever to help you through all break-ups, affairs, college entrance exams, and writer's block!" - BZ HERCULES

Sunday 10 June 2012

25 Facts: Poet and Author Natascha Scrivener

  1. I tend to only write in the evenings, or late at night when my daughter is asleep and my husband is at work. Having people around puts me off.
  2. I have to leave the room if someone is reading my work in front of me. It makes me cringe and curl up in a ball.
  3. I've been writing stories (as best I could) since I was 4. I have an old school excersize book from when I was that age where I wrote an (11 word) story about a dog puppet called Fred (accompanied by alarming illustrations).
  4. I can only write on my laptop. Pen and paper can't keep up with my train of thought, and by the end of it I cannot understand what I have written.
  5. I love making lists of things that I need to get done.
  6. I love ticking things off the list even more.
  7. Buying new stationary makes me more happy than meeting up with a friend.
  8. Most of my inspiration for poetry comes from music (and musical icons -David Bowie and Boy George).
  9. A few of my poems are written about my husband. (the nicer ones!)
  10. With poetry I rarely ever editor re write, with fiction I am there for days...
  11. Most of the inspiration for my fiction comes from minority groups and sexual deviants (either being the main theme or just a whisper of a passing line).
  12. My 'writing heroin' is Virginia Woolf.
  13. The writers I read the most of are Virginia Woolf, Joanne Harris, Sarah Waters and Peter Hedges. Wouldn't it be nice to be a mix of those!?
  14. I was once asked to sign my autograph by a stranger in the street,I was thoroughly confused and taken aback.
  15. I take criticism of my work better than compliments, although I would rather the latter!
  16. Although my work is often quite dark, I laugh more than most people.Often to the point of hysteria.
  17. I get struck by terrible blinding fear if ever I have to do a radio or in-person interview.
  18. I can write for hours without pausing or 'getting stuck', but find it very difficult to speak, even to friends and family.
  19. I hate the saying 'write what you know'.
  20. I love the quote: 'Why do writers write? Because it isn't there'.
  21. I hate the radio. It puts me in a terrible mood and then I can't write.
  22. I have written an (as yet unpublished) childrens story about a snap dragon.
  23. When I'm not gardening I'm planning home improvements, gardening, baking or playing with my beautiful daughter.
  24. All of my friends have 'proper jobs'. Sometimes I feel they don't think mine is as important...
  25. My husband also writes.(Better than me) 

25 Facts: Author Leesa Harker


Leesa Harker is a malteser addict (and author) from Ireland. I had the privilege of reading an excerpt from one of her novels (currently a work in progress) which had me giggling away and almost choking on a Hobnob. 
I have faith that we will be seeing her name in Waterstones' windows before too long...

1) I find it hard to settle into a career (before writing) and have had many. Many. Bank manager, car mechanic (yes, seriously), perfume spritzer in Debenhams, animal welfare person in N.I version of RSPCA. The list goes on...
2) I had a pre-mature mid-life crisis at age 27 when I left my £40k a year job and BMW Company car to get the bus to beauty school and spritz ignorant people with perfume in Debenhams.
3) I have an irrational fear of pigeons.
4) I also have an irrational fear of fireworks and loud bangs - party poppers, balloons etc. It's actually called 'phonophobia.' Children's parties are a fright-fest.
5) I used to go around knocking my neighbours doors when I was a kid interviewing them on random subjects (favourite colour/best holiday, etc) and writing their answers in my wee notebook.
6) I have diaries from 2001 to 2005 which terrify me to this day. I was living in England - it was crazy times. But excellent material for writing! Names will be changed, of course ;)
7) I have been writing poems and stories since I was a kid - one that springs to mind is about my (late) Granny farting. Can still remember that one. I think I was about 8 - my mum helped me write it.
8) I have loved books since...ever. I remember my sister looking at me like I was insane when I chose a 'Read it Yourself' book over sweets when my mum took us to 'Crazy Prices' supermarket for our weekly shop.
9) The book was 'Snow White and Rose Red' - I loved that book.
10) I read all of the 'Sweet Valley High' books when I was young and although it might seem a bit cheesey now, it made me realise that the world was bigger than little grey Belfast.
11) I am a serial procrastinator. Even this interview is averting my attention from some serious editing that needs done.
12) I love BIG BROTHER! Don;t shoot me - I just love people-watching. And the moment when their fakeness dissolves and the real person appears.
13) I love change. Have moved house 11 times in 12 years. I think writing lets me explore another life while standing still. It might help me!
14) I day-dream (on a regular basis) about my book on the shelf of Waterstones in Belfast.
15) I love love reading other authors' publication stories, how they got an agent and how they write. Another procrastination device.
16) My mum's Northern Irish, my dad's from Yorkshire and I have a Scottish granny. I'm a dolly mixture.
17) I like being close to the sea. Not 100% sure why but when I lived in middle-England, I felt trapped. It's a form of escape for me, I think.
18) I have a fetish for fancy pens and notebooks. Could spend hours browsing in Paperchase or other ridiculously expensive stationery shops.
19) The idea for my first novel has been in my head for about 8 years - I am so sorry I didn't write it sooner.
20) My mum is a great story-teller. As was her mum before her. I think it's a gene that's been passed down the generations. We have many days where my mum tells me tales of her childhood/growing up and I am literally crying with laughter. I can only hope to have some of her talent of characterisation and one-liners.
21) I am starting to write some of the stories (above) down so I can use them in future novels/short stories. Some of the characters from the estate in Belfast where my mum lived when she was young - well you couldn't make it up!
22) I am very impatient which is why I like reading and writing quick, funny poems. Especially like stuff by Wendy Cope and Roald Dhal etc
23) I cried at the last short story I wrote, so I'm thinking it might be very good. But then again, I cry at the 'Pampers' adverts so ...
24) I haven't the patience/concentration to watch a 90 min film but I can easily read for hours.
25) My birthday this year is 20.12 2012 - It's MY year!

25 Facts About: POET Jade Kennedy

I want to be able to interview as many authors as possible on this blog (with a 1year old, a baby on the way AND my own writing career, I don't have much time!). 


I feel it' incredibly important to help to promote fellow writers and their works- especially new ones. So I came up with the idea of asking authors to list 25 (or more) 'interesting' facts about themselves AS WRITERS (how they write, why, what etc). I've tested it out on four writers (including myself) so far. Please feel free to let me know if this does or does not work or appeal to you.


Here goes:


25 Questions with poet Jade Kennedy
http://www.jadekennedypoet.blogspot.co.uk/


1. I started writing from about the age of nine.
 
2. My fabourite genre to read is historical fiction.
 
3. My favourite authors are Elizabeth Chadwick, Philippa Gregory and Ken Follett.
 
4. My first 'proper' poem is called 'Written in the Stars' and is about astrology.
 
5. I only started writing seriously in 2009.
 
6. My poem 'Darkness' was inspired by a Windows screensaver.
 
7. Mostly my poem ideas start from a single line and snowball into a complete poem.
 
8. I first started featuring my work on the website allpoetry.com
 
9. While on allpoetry.com I wrote 130 poems.
 
10. My poem 'Orlando' was inspired by the book by Virginia Woolf and the film by Sally Potter.
 
11. My favourite poets are Dylan Thomas, Carol Ann Duffy and Pablo Neruda.
 
12. My poem 'Essence of Orange' was inspired by my first date with my husband Carl.
 
13. My favourite author when I was little was Roald Dahl.
 
14. The first book that really got me into reading was 'The Raging Quiet' by Sherryl Jordan
 
15. When I write I love to mix up words and language.
 
16. I prefer to write on my laptop and when its quiet.
 
17. I keep all my new poems in a file on my computer called 'Random Poems'
 
18. I was first featured on the website thisisull.co.uk with my poem 'City by the Sea'
 
19. I have written whole poems in my head laid in bed at night.
 
20. I prefer writing short poems.
 
21. I don't like to write about the everyday, I prefer to write about feelings, emotions and fantasy.
 
22. My poetry resonates more with women then men.
 
23. I cannot write in rhyme, I like the freedom of freeverse.
 
24. I am addicted to writing my blog.
 
25. My ebook 'Silver Threads' was published on the 31st of May by Valley Press.
 

A delicious surprise on a summers day....

I have just logged on to my laptop to find a thoroughly lovely review on Amazon of my first published poetry collection, 'Some of Her Parts'.

It's so lovely in fact that I feel the need to share it with you:

Poetry from the mind of Natascha Tallowin takes on a life of its own in the collection SOME OF HER PARTS. Vivid imagery and wild descriptions color the contemporary topics of break-ups, illicit sexual trysts, aging, and writers of fiction, among many others. Odes to perfect dream men, Oats (a cat), and Dracula (a masquerader?) are some samples of the subject matter that Tallowin presents from her day to day observations of people, places, things, and thoughts. Tallowin's use of paradox, as in "The Boy" is a running theme through the collection ("Don't worry, I'm here; I'm your girl") as well as her tendency to call out individuals in particular ("Jennifer Schecter, For you the words from a salted tongue"), as seen in the title piece, "Some of Her Parts." At times dreamlike with glitter (although often it tarnishes...), and then suddenly venomous, Tallowin's poetry is consistently brilliant!

- by the beautiful Beth Lynne of www.bzhercules.com (THANKYOU!)
P.S. The review is about me I promise, the book was published under my maiden name of Tallowin.