Being a writer seems like the most perfect job in the world- and according to auther Carole Matthews- it is! She tells us what the perks of the job are for her upon the release of her new book Paper Hearts and Summer Kisses.  

Carole Matthews by Charlie Hopkinson

Carole Matthews by Charlie Hopkinson

  1. Some kind publishers and authors send me fabulous books to read ahead of publication. What’s not to love? I’ve just finished reading The Marsh King’s Daughter by Karen Dionne which was breathtaking and next up is The Summer of Impossible Things by Rowan Coleman.
  2. I’m very lucky to be able to work from home. I have a lovely office at the top of a three-storey house which overlooks a park. When all my poor neighbours are scraping ice off their cars in the winter, I only have eleven stairs to climb to go to work.
  3. I can do lots of lovely things in the name of research. Writing romantic comedy, I can make sure I feature a lot about cake, chocolate and champagne in my novels. Why would I ever switch to crime and hang around in courts or morgues?
  4. My readers are the best. I get to chat to them every day on Facebook and Twitter and call it ‘Essential Social Networking’. We have some great laughs and they’re a constant inspiration.
  5. I don’t think the pleasure of seeing your book in a bookshop ever gets old. I’ve written 30 novels now and I still get a thrill when I find myself on the shelves.
  6. I spend my days making up stuff about people who don’t exist and get to call that a job. I was always told off in school for daydreaming, yet I’ve made my living from it for the last twenty years.
  7. There’s never a day when I don’t look forward to going to work. I think it you have a job that motivates you, there’s nothing better. I’d hate to spend my weeks wishing I was doing something else.
  8. I organise lovely reader outings and we go on a jaunt somewhere nice which usually involves afternoon tea. It’s great to be part of a group of like-minded ladies. Many friendships have been started by people who’ve only met through Facebook due to their love of my books. That’s fab.
  9. I’m blessed with a great publishing team at Little, Brown who understand my need for spreadsheets and graphs yet also like to take me to lovely places for lunch.
  10. Having lovely messages and emails from readers who say that my books have got them through rough times or have got them back into reading when they haven’t touched a book for years or something I’ve written about has touched them. Those are the things make my fingers type a little bit faster.