I first met Cathy Bramley on the Writers' Workshop Self Editing Course run by the wonderful Debi Alper and Emma Darwin.
Over the six week course we students and tutors chortled our way through
snippets of Tell Me What You Want, Cathy's second novel, a comedy about three
women who meet at a funeral. It's a setting for a comedy which had me tittering
from the off but I liked its more serious undercurrent, too.
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| Cathy and a telephone box of Conditional Love |
So when I heard that Cathy had published her first novel, Conditional
Love, as an eBook, well, what could I do? I had to crack open the iPad and
launch myself into my first ever electronic read of a novel. Remember that bit
about me not being at the front of the queue with technology? Suffice it to
say, Conditional Love which I read on my (stationary) bike in the kitchen
instead of the bath, has inspired me to download further fiction. But it's in addition
to
tradition books – don't tell my bank account – she adds
quickly.
I thought I'd catch up with Cathy to ask here about
Conditional Love and being published.
And where did she get those cakes?
1.
Conditional Love feels to me like a Bridget
Jones sprinkled with Marian Keyes overtones. Is this how you see it?
A herd of butterflies went on the
rampage in my intestines when I read this question, I can’t tell you! Bridget
Jones’ Diary is such a clever book and I love the humour in it. I adore the
films even more. And as for Marian Keyes, well, you couldn’t have paid me a
bigger compliment if you’d tried. I read Mystery at Mercy Close shortly before
writing the final draft of Conditional Love and Sophie Stone, who’s a
Nottingham lass, kept lapsing into a Dublin accent in my head as I was writing
her.
2.
Conditional Love is self-published. What made
you decide to self-publish?
I’m incredibly impatient. I
wanted to start my writing career THIS year, not wait for a year to get picked
up by an agent, then wait another year for a publishing deal, then another to
see my book in print. Also I was a teeny bit scared that despite the feedback I
had had on the book, everyone would point their fingers and laugh and no agent
would show any interest in me.
I’m severely lacking in
experience in the publishing world, however, I DO believe that if your book is
good enough, there is no right or wrong way to do it.
I do want to be traditionally
published. I have chosen to go about my quest for publication this way, aiming
to build a profile, get good reviews and prove to prospective agents and
publishers that I can write and I will work hard to promote my books.
3.
Would you recommend self-publishing?
It seems to be working for me. So
far my efforts are meeting the aims that I set out to do. I’m sure it’s not for
everyone. I hadn’t really appreciated how much work it would entail. I’m re-writing
my second novel and would ideally like to be able to devote more time to it.
But being publisher, marketer and editor can be very time-consuming!
4.
Conditional Love had a wonderful launch with a
Conditional Love cake, a telephone box full of your books and a visit from the
local mayor. You've also had BBC interviews and were recently signing books in
Waterstones – how have you managed to set all this up on your own?
I’ve worked in marketing all my
working life and I have my own small marketing and PR agency. That said, I’ve
never promoted a book, or myself before. But it was easy for me to get hold of
the right contacts in the media, to write my own press releases and call up the
Mayor (who incidentally I met on Twitter!)
In my head, I knew what I wanted
my book launch to look like. I wanted a community event, a tongue-in-cheek poke
at the champagne-fuelled, stuffy literary affairs that you see in the press.
Conditional Love is a comedy set in a Nottinghamshire village; the Lambley
phone box was the perfect venue for my party. I did everything on a shoe string
– we borrowed the tables form the church hall and got the cake from Asda. I
even used our blunt kitchen scissors for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. It took
the poor Mayor ages to saw through that ribbon!
The book signing event was
surprisingly easy to organise. I emailed the store, they checked the book out
and gave it the thumbs up, nine days later I was in!
5.
Do you enjoy the promotion?
Yes. I love it.
6.
Your male characters are either despicable (I so
wanted to punch Marc) or a little wet (if quite appealing) around the ears. Did
you enjoy writing them? Are they based on truth (she asks mischievously)?
Marc was initially based on a
blend of Jason Statham and Jamie Oliver! I intended him to be a bit more cheeky
chappie than he turned out, but he seemed to insist on it. Nick was totally
fictional. That’s a complete lie, but it’s all I’m going to say.
7.
Bridget Jones-esque Sophie is frustratingly
naïve and gullible for the first half of the novel -albeit very amusing – was
she difficult to write?
If I was Sophie’s friend I’d have
sat her down and given her a damn good talking to. For Heaven’s sake, she’s
thirty two! But I did really like her, all the same. Sometimes people get in a
rut and it takes something major to shake them out of it… Sometimes I have to
remind myself that she was a figment of my imagination and I really should stop
worrying about her. To answer your question, no she wasn’t difficult, just a
bit frustrating to work with at times.
8.
There's lots of interesting detail about design
and architecture, did you know much about this or have you been doing your
research?
Property is one of my passions. I
could waste hours on Right Move (in fact I have) Tony, my husband and I built
our own house and much of my knowledge comes from that.
9.
The title is perfect! Was it difficult to come
up with?
That book had more titles than
I’ve had black boots, nearly. Home is where the heart is, No place like home,
Hard hat and heels… Then one day Conditional Love popped into my head and I
breathed a sigh of relief. The sequel is called Your Place or Mine. No, I
haven’t started it yet, before you ask.
10.
You're currently writing Tell Me What You Want,
a book about three women who meet at a funeral and the spontaneous pact they
make there, can you tell us a bit more about this?
Well, I say it’s called Tell Me
What You Want, of course, that might change…
It’s a comedy (I hope) about
three very different women who meet at a funeral and in a Carpe Diem moment
decide to help each other’s wishes come true within six months. Sarah is a new
mum with an antic-bacterial gel habit, struggling to combine motherhood with
her wish to become the firms youngest partner, Carrie has a past she would
rather forget and a burning desire to wear a bikini and Jo is a
commitment-phobic workaholic with a hidden romantic side and a failing shoe
business. The clock is ticking for them to achieve their dreams, but first they
must be brave enough to admit what it is they really really want…
Find out more about Cathy's
writing over here. here
Today is
Book Blast day for Stories for Homes, an anthology of short stories by
published and aspiring writers, loosely based around the theme of 'home'. As
the days and nights get colder and the world a little more sparkly in the
fortnight running up to Christmas - for some - there will be 80,000 children
homeless in this country. And that's not to mention their parents. All profits
from the sale of Stories for Homes go directly to the housing charity, Shelter.
All monies will help support their Christmas campaign to help find
accommodation for some of these homeless people. We're hoping for
record sales today.
And finally, for my London friends, Stories for Homes is being launched at The Bookseller, Crow on the Hill, SE London from 6pm this Friday 13th December. Drinks and giggles will be a-plenty if I know the wonderful driving force behind the book of Debi Alper and Sally Swingewood. For my northern friends, watch this space as we're hoping to organise similar up here :) 
