It's Saturday again, so it has to be a #Saturday Shorts interview time!
Today, it's the turn of my absolutely lovely author friend Jane Bwye, who has taken time out from her travels to sit on the big comfy chair! I've known Jane for some years now, since she's also a Crooked Cat Books author. She's been a visitor to this blog quite often, but not lately for an interview. She's here today with some great photos as well as a lovely glimpse into her recent writing and non-writing days.
Let's learn a bit about Jane...
Jane - Take a seat, please, and for my readers tell them a little bit about your life in general.
Hi Nancy! Thank you so much for inviting me over; it seems
like years since we exchanged notes. I never fail to admire your dedication to
marketing your books in your local area.
Nancy: Ah, you have to mean selling my novels at my local Craft Fair venues? I've had my winter rest time, and the Fairs will start up again in mid April. I love to be out and about talking to customers directly over the selling table! But back to the interview...
You have given me some interesting questions to answer, so
here goes…
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| Jane Bwye |
When would be your best writing time?
My best time for writing is in the mornings. My subconscious
sometimes works overtime while I’m sleeping, and I’ve been known to get up in
the middle of the night, grab a pen and rough paper, and write until breakfast
(can’t do without my breakfast). When the characters and the story take hold, I
can write any time of the day. But I always stop to give my self a break after
5pm.
Is there a particular social media platform you like best?
Without a doubt – Facebook is my preferred social media
platform. I feel comfortable there, and have made many friends through the
groups. I’ve found many people I’d forgotten I ever knew, and I’m still meeting
new friends who know people that I know. It is also easy to link my blogs with
my Facebook pages. I know Twitter does the same. Although twitter is powerful,
with its hashtags and fast responses, it is an animal which absorbs too much of
my time in the day. I’ve proved to myself that, given dedication it works well,
when cultivating contacts and selling books. I became addicted to it. Through
Twitter I even met up with a complete stranger for coffee in town, who’d flown
over from Singapore
But once I approached the boundary of 2,000 followers I fell
foul of the administration. When someone said Twitter had blocked my activities
because I followed more people than followed me… I did a massive cull. Then I
lost interest, and decided to escape from temptation. I must admit, I sometimes
check it to find out the latest of what’s going on in Kenya
Nancy: Facebook I can handle but I haven't found a way to be a regular properly on Twitter. Re-tweets are easy- chatting on Twitter is another ball game.
What's your latest book about?
Going it Alone is non-fiction! A small “How-to” guide for beginners who
want to start their own business. My wonderful publishers, Crooked Cat Books,
invited non-fiction submissions early in 2017, and I was reeling from finalising
Grass Shoots, the sequel to Breath of Africa,
with a standalone novella, I Lift Up My Eyes, coming in between.
You can access my books on Amazon from your part of the
world by clicking the links above.
Did you do any particular research for your non-fiction novel?
I didn’t want even to think about writing another novel. But
I decided to give non-fiction a go. It would be easy, I thought, as I’ve been a small business start-up mentor for
the past fifteen years and I have numerous experiences to draw upon. It was easy – I researched a different
model recommended by a friend, and glanced over other business guides. But the
model meant nothing to me: my mind doesn’t function properly when faced with an
assortment of named balloons and pie-charts. And most of the books were written
in a dry, dull style, aimed more at established businesses than at those
thinking of starting up for the first time.
I planned my Guide round typical sessions I have with my
clients. (I’m a small business mentor at People Matter, a little local charity
with a big heart for people who want to earn a living).
To make it more interesting, I decided to illustrate my
points with anecdotes taken from true life.
My characters include – among others - a gardener, a
leather-worker, a removals man, a disco-jockey, a signage expert, and a
computer buff.
Nancy: That sounds like a very different approach to a work of non- fiction! In fact it sounds very 'novel' like. Do you enjoy the final phases of writing a book, like the editing for example?
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| Courtesy of Jane Bwye |
Yes, I enjoy editing my own work; I suppose I’m a bit of a
perfectionist, but I find it relaxing.
Nancy: I mostly like editing, too, but having regained the rights to my 3 Celtic Fervour Series books from Crooked Cat at the same time has meant an awful lot of editing all, more or less, simultaneously. Added to that, is the fact that Book 4 of the series is only just becoming ready for its very first edit stages.
Can you tell us a bit more about the Jane who is not the author/ writer?
You ask me about myself – I’ve always loved horses, and
there was nothing better for me, than to ride over the hills and far away –
even when it snowed.
Nancy: Fabulous photo, Jane. Having the correct gear has to be a big help when riding out in the snow!
I no longer ride, so I have to be content with judging
dressage instead. Until recently, I’ve enjoyed walking over the hills – my
favourite place to “hide” out from life - but I’ve turned into a strictly fair-weather walker, so I
tend to socialise with friends round the bridge table instead.
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| Courtesy of Jane Bwye |
Nancy: I think that a good walk sounds great some days, but it doesn't tend to happen!
Jane Bwye has been a writer all her life, freelancing as a journalist
ever since she left school. She was brought up in Kenya, went to school there,
and forsook an Oxford career as a historian to get married and build a family
in the country she will always call her home. After fifty-five years in Africa,
Jane moved to Eastbourne , and started writing
novels.
Thank you so much for being a great interviewee, Jane. My very best wishes for your latest writing, and for all of your future writing projects. I'm sure that something will transpire from your latest adventures.
Slainthe!
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