I like writing happy endings. I LOVE throwing all sorts of problems at my characters, but I always give them the tools to fight their way out of the mess.
Wickham Hall
I try and write two books a year. Because of the way the publishing calendar works out, I've actually published four paperbacks since last February, but this will be the exception - not the rule.
I didn't start writing until I was in my forties. I ran my own PR and marketing agency for almost twenty years and had never had the inclination to become a writer until 2012. Now I can't imagine life without writing.
I am an avid reader and have always got a book on the go. I have to finish it once I've started even if I'm not enjoying it and I can't go to sleep at night until I've read a few pages.
My favourite author changes all the time. But Marian Keyes, Jenny Colgan and Kate Atkinson take some beating.
I plot my books out in great detail before I start writing. I need to know where a story is going first before I commit it to the page. That said, my finished novels often differ greatly to the original idea and a lot gets changed as I progress.
Research is very important to me as I like to get the feel of the setting. When I was researching Wickham Hall, I visited some lovely stately homes and was able to call it work! And I'm writing this article in Naples airport, on my way home from a trip to research a book for 2017.
Writing can be a very lonely existence sometimes and nothing cheers me up like a message from a reader who has just finished one of my books and felt like getting in touch. Thanks to social media, it is easy to send these sort of messages and I urge everyone to do so - it makes all the difference.
Some of my books are based on real locations: Appleby Farm is based on Old Hall Farm in Cumbria, the interior of Wickham Hall is loosely based on Doddington Hall in Lincolnshire and my new series due out in March, The Plumberry School of Comfort Food is based on LucyCooks, also in Cumbria.
Working hard and doing the best I can are very important goals for me. As a mum of two teenage girls, I want to be their role model and set a good example. If I can make a success of my career, I'm hoping it will spur them on to do the same.