Alcina Faraday isn't my real name.
No kidding. Alcina Faraday isn't anybody's real name. My plots sail pretty close to the reality of my business/academic life - I use an alias to protect the (very) guilty.
Alcina Faraday
I'm a bit of a dirty stop-out
I travel for work 2 or 3 weeks out of 4, mainly abroad. I have $41,120 CNY (Chinese Yuan), 15 euros and about £5 in my wallet right now.
I was a scientist long before geeks were cool.
My mother's mantra: you get one life; be yourself, do what makes you happy, screw other people's prejudices.Thanks mum.
I adore Portugal
I used to live in the Alentejo and I still miss it. The heroine of my second novel "These Modern Girls" is Sophia Blake, a Brit engineer who manages a VW factory in Lisbon. She's a bit hard core but I envy her in some ways.
Coincidentally...I used to manage high hazard chemical plants across Europe
It was tough but it was great. My nickname was "The Iron Maiden." I wore DMs and a hard hat for over ten years. Eat your heart out George Osborne.
Lycra's great isn't it?
I avoided exercise like the plague at school, and now I can't get enough of it - ParkRun, 10ks, Iyengar yoga.
I've been in love four times and married twice
The good thing about getting older is you make better decisions, more often. Of course, you still make lousy ones sometimes - and then you just need to be lucky.
I'm a (low flying) culture vulture
You know what I mean: Jane Austen, Film Noir, Classics. Perfect dinner party: George Clooney, Mary Beard, Brian Cox, Jodie Foster, Alexander Armstrong, Kristin Scott Thomas, Dr Christian, Carey Mulligan. Roast Lamb, apple pie, Alentejo red wine.
I overuse certain expressions at work
My top 3 are (apparently) "he's a complete halfwit", "that was a ludicrous decision", "that is a fabulous hotel".
My husband makes excellent cider
It's lethal.
