7 Apr 2013

Two years ago Carly Roberts split from her lover, Daniel Edwards, after he caused a terrible sailing accident that cost her both the use of her right leg and her Olympic dreams. Unable to watch his climb to double Olympic success, she stayed in the Cornish village they grew up in, while he travelled the world.

Racked with guilt, knowing he destroyed her future, Daniel has finally returned home to make amends. But he didn’t expect to fall in love with her again.

However Carly has her own life now and it doesn’t include him. She can’t forgive him for the catastrophic injuries that changed her life. While the storms of a Cornish winter lash their village home, can Daniel persuade her to give him a second chance?

1. If you could work with any other author, who would it be and why?

I am a big fan of the classics and would love to work with Jane Austen for the day, seeing how she created such wonderful characters.

2. What would be a typical working day for you? When and where do you write?

I have just acquired my own study after five years of working on a laptop in the siting room. I start working in my dressing gown, then have breaks to fit in the housework and a shower. Lunch is eaten at my desk, before a final tidy up before the school run.

3. What is the hardest part of the writing for you?

Finding the time, I would love to be one of those authors who sit down and work for a full day, but sadly the washing won't walk itself to the machine, no matter how many times I've tried to persuade it.

4. When and why did you first start writing?

I've always written, right from a young age. I started to take it seriously five years ago, when I focused on short stories for the women's magazines. After a couple of years of doing that, I decided I had gained enough experience to start a novella. This later got expanded, on the advice of an editor, into Winter Storms.

5. How did you come up with the idea for the book your book?

I pictured the setting first, the wet cobblestones of a seaside town, gleaming after a storm. Then the harbour, surrounded by high, black cliffs. The moment I gave my main character, Carly, bright red hair, she came alive.

6. Are you a big reader? If so, what are you reading now?

Like all writers, I'm a heavy reader. I write historical fiction too and at the moment I'm reading Lost Voices of the Edwardians a fantastic collection of stories of the era, by the people who lived through it.

7. Do you have any advice for other aspiring writers?

Think of it as a profession. Like any profession you have to learn how to do it. It takes times and a lot of rejections before you finally get an email offering you a contract. But when it arrives, it's the best feeling possible.