The Raided Heart by Jennifer C. Wilson - Book Tour + Giveaway
The Raided Heart
Meg Mathers, the headstrong youngest sibling of a reiving family on the English-Scottish border, is determined to remain at her childhood home, caring for the land and village she’s grown up with. When an accident brings her a broken ankle and six weeks in the resentful company of ambitious and angry young reiver Will Hetherington, attraction starts to build. Both begin to realise they might have met their match, and the love of their lives, but 15th century border living is not that simple, as Meg soon finds herself betrothed to the weakling son of a tyrannical neighbour, Alexander Gray. When tragedy strikes, can Meg and Will find their way back to each other, and can Will finally take his own personal revenge on Gray?
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Author Q&A
1. What is the first book that
made you cry?
It made me cry because of the
nightmares it generated, rather than any emotional reason, but it was a book I
read at school called, I think, The Wall, about two boys who ran away,
and I’m sure the titular wall fell on somebody at one point, hence the
nightmares…
After that, I remember crying at The
Other Boleyn Girl, even though I knew fine well what the ending had to be,
and then thinking what an amazing writer Philippa Gregory was, that she could
bring you to tears over something which is recorded historical fact.
2. How long, on average, does it
take you to write a book?
The Raided Heart is a bad example, having started it when I was 13
(I turned 35 this year…), but usually, I can write a first draft in around six
to nine months, so one new project a year is achievable. I would love to write
more, but it would just drive me mad. I’ve often used NaNoWriMo, aiming for
50,000 words in a month, to give me an initial shove in the right direction,
but have only successfully completed it twice, once with The Raided Heart,
and then with Kindred Spirits: Tower of London.
3. How do you select the names of
your characters?
For the Kindred Spirits series,
I was so spoiled, just writing about historical characters, there was no real
‘creating’ required. Meg and Will in The Raided Heart’s names just
fitted, happily, but it is something I’m aware of. The other historical
romances I have planned in my head are all set in Scotland, in the 1400s and
1500s, and the list of names for aristocratic heroes and heroines is fairly
limited!
I do read a lot of non-fiction about
the times and places I write about, to make sure I get a feel for things, and
by doing that, I can pick up the names which fit into the story, whether
they’re the hero, the father, or the threatening neighbour.
4. What creature do you consider
your "spirit animal" to be?
I’ve always felt a kinship to the
killer whale. They are such beautiful animals, and they get a bad press, even
with the name ‘killer’. Yes, they’re a top predator, but they are also so
graceful and majestic (sadly, I’m not blessed with these attributes!). Watching
a scene in an Attenborough documentary when I was little, as one swept onto a
beach to catch a sealion pup was also what made me want to become a marine
biologist, so I suppose I have them to thank for my career too.
5. What are your top 5 favorite
movies?
I’m not really a
huge movie-watcher, but every so often, something grabs me and I adore it.
These five are definitely the best for me.
-
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
-
The Princess Bride
-
Dirty Dancing
-
Grease
-
Mary Poppins
6. If you were
the last person on Earth, what would you do?
Beg the new
overlords for forgiveness?
7. What
fictional character would you want to be friends with in real life?
These are good
questions! A lot of the books I read are fictionalised accounts of real people,
so I’m not sure Anne Boleyn or Mary Queen of Scots would count? In terms of a
purely fictional character, I think being friends with Miss Marple would be
fascinating, as long as you didn’t wind up in too much trouble.
8. Do you have
any advice for aspiring writers?
It is such a
cliché, but keep writing. It’s like a muscle, and the more you exercise it, the
stronger it’ll become. Whether it’s prose or poetry, just keep writing, find
your own voice, and the genre / style you’re happiest writing in. Ideally,
doing this as part of a writing group, either in person or online, is even
better, as writing isn’t known as the most sociable of activities.
9. What book do
you wish you had written?
Back to The
Other Boleyn Girl, I think. As I said above, the fact that it can make you
believe Anne is going to be released by Henry, and everything is going to be
alright, just shows how well-written it is. And, ok, maybe having the chance to
be on set for either of the adaptations wouldn’t have been so terrible either!
10. Tell us 10
fun facts about yourself! :)
This is
challenging, but I’ll give it a go…
1. I was bitten by a shark as a child.
2. I attended part of the funeral of my first leading
man (Richard III).
3. I’m trained to help rescue stranded whales,
dolphins and seals.
4. I’m terrified of dinosaurs (yet still have the urge
to watch Jurassic Park when it’s on TV).
5. As well as writing, I love making my own jewellery.
6. When I was a child, I really wanted to work on a
fish farm.
7. I’m slightly addicted to cosy crime dramas on TV,
even though I don’t read much crime fiction.
8. I was an active SCUBA diver at university, even
though I’m a little nervous about sea monsters.
9. I can name (in order) all the colours of Joseph’s
Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat.
10. I still get excited at the chance to collect an
autograph for my collection.
Author Bio – Jennifer C. Wilson is a marine biologist by training, who developed an equal passion for history and historical fiction whilst stalking Mary, Queen of Scots on childhood holidays (she has since moved on to Richard III). Enrolling on an adult education workshop on her return to the north-east of England for work reignited her pastime of creative writing, and she has been filling notebooks ever since. In 2014, Jennifer won the Story Tyne short story competition, and has been working on a number of projects since, including co-hosting the North Tyneside Writers’ Circle. Her Kindred Spirits novels are published by Crooked Cat Books and her time-slip novella, The Last Plantagenet?, by Ocelot Press. She lives in North Tyneside, and is very proud of her approximately 2-inch sea view.
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