10 Things I want my readers to know about me by Rosie Archer

The inspiration for the Canary Girls to be set during WW2 came from the bravery of the women and men, workers in the Armaments Yards, who lost their lives or became extremely ill due to the dangerous materials with which they worked. The women were called Canary Girls because their skin turned yellow. I live near the bomb factory named in my novel.

One day, while giving a talk, I was shown photographs of women who had worked in the bomb factories. Young women, smiling, wearing turbans, looking towards the future, towards the end of the war and I asked myself, what if. . .And the novel began itself.

My characters aren't taken from real people. That's too difficult for me to do and real people would seldom act the way my characters do. But to me my characters are real. I worry about how they are going to solve their problems.

There are always bits of me or of my life in my novels. I think the bad times make me appreciate the good times. Hopefully if someone reading my words is experiencing sadness-or happiness - they will realise that I've been there too.

When I write I have two helpers! My cat Bertie curls up at my feet and my little girl cat, Daisy, sits at the back of my chair. I write in my upstairs front bedroom which is my workroom and the noise from the television downstairs filters up to me. I can't write in silence.

If you haven't already guessed, I love cats. In my earlier books my character, Vera, had a cat called Kibbles. After a few books I realised Kibbles was about a 100 years old! The afternoon I wrote him out by killing him off, it upset me so much that later I was crying as I walked along the street!

I love to travel and when away I always write in notebooks on the beach or by the pool. So if you go somewhere hot (I only go to warm places) and you see a blonde female frantically scribbling, it could well be me!

I think to be a writer you must read. How else can you tell what is selling? What genre is popular? I read voraciously. You are never alone with a book.

In my novels I try to show how women confide in each other, help each other, stick together through good times and bad. I am lucky to have such friends as the ones I invent. I hope I reciprocate!

Gosport is full of people who are 'the salt of the earth'. I've seen many changes but the people remain full of warmth and hope. I've lived in other places but have always returned to my roots. My home town is to me like an old warm overcoat or a comfy pair of slippers. Gosport is an inspiration and I hope I do it justice.