Chatting with Elaine Everest – Time for Tea

Today it’s my great pleasure to welcome Elaine Everest to the blog once more.

Well here we are again, Elaine, chatting about another new book, this time Christmas with the Teashop Girls. So, with your builder’s tea and my rather weaker version, let’s begin.

Thank you for having me, Natalie. Any chance of a digestive biscuit with my mug of builder’s tea? Certainly, but if you’re going to dunk let me know so I can turn away.

In Christmas with the Teashop Girls, no less than with all your previous books, you take us back to a period in our history in which you are so obviously immersed that you live and breathe it. Bearing in mind that you weren’t even born then, can you talk us through the process that has given you such a deep understanding of east Kent in the Second World War years?

I rely heavily on my own memories of the late fifties and sixties and those of friends and family who have told me about life in the forties. I’m a Kent girl through and through. If I was a stick of seaside rock, I’d have ‘Kentish Maid’ running through me! Born and bred in North West Kent many of our early holidays were spent in Ramsgate and, while there, Mum would arrange for us to take coach trips out into the countryside. We’d journey down by coach or train and I still have vivid images in my mind of passing farms and hop fields until we spotted that first glimpse of the sea. I’m still the same now, but sadly many farms and hop fields have vanished to be replaced by housing and industrial estates – and lorries!

Non-fiction books, documentaries, postcards, photographs, newspaper archives, films, museums, and anything remotely related to my favourite era and I’m back there in an instant. As I write this it is Saturday afternoon and I’m waiting for the film ‘Genevieve’ to begin on the Talking Pictures channel. Yes, it is set in the fifties, but much is the same as the forties and I can sigh over Kenneth More…

If it comes to sighing over Kenneth More I’ll join you. And that first glimpse of the sea is still wondrous, isn’t it? Staying on the subject of research, you move some of your characters to London for part of the story. Did this aspect require a different approach? What ‘tools’ did you use?

My characters often travel to London in my Woolworths series. In the Teashops books London is important as it is the home of Rose’s future in laws; she is there the day the London Blitz starts. I was born and brought up in Erith, on the south bank of the Thames and very close to the docks as the river winds its way to London. Dad worked for Erith Oil and Cake Mills nearby and much of the work was manual and included unloading ships at their own jetty. This was long before he moved up the promotion ladder. He would take me to the river and point out foreign ships and also tell me about those that docked at BOCM. When it came to write those scenes, I could see the detail in my mind’s eye. I would also go to my library of over a hundred non-fiction research books and also watch documentaries on London dockland and the Blitz. Anyone wishing to write sagas needs to know their area well – as well as its history. I find that many books where the author has just made up an area, or simply picked a setting without knowing it well can stand out a mile as they don’t hold a warmth for the area.

Your locations – Sea View, Lyons Tea Shop (Margate), Lyons Tea Shop (Ramsgate), the Ramsgate Tunnels – fact or fiction?

Mainly FACT! Both the teashop in Margate and the one in Ramsgate did exist but now sadly long gone.

Do you recall that during one of our writing retreats we tracked down the old sign to the Margate teashop in a back street of Margate? Oh yes, I remember that! The terrace overlooking the sea is part of a hotel. Nothing remains of the Ramsgate teashop and the building is now part of a chain of pubs. I did stand on the pavement in front of the building to get a feel for the street and look at the view down to the harbour so I am aware of what my girls could see.

The Ramsgate Tunnels are very real and still exist. They saved the lives of thousands of locals during WW2 when they were used as air raid shelters. It is said that every local was no more than ten minutes

Courtesy of Ramsgate Tunnels Museum

from an entrance. Today we are able to visit the tunnels and take part in a guided tour and hear the stories of the war years. I’d recommend every person visit at least once. There is also a 1940s café for anyone needing a cuppa and slice of cake.
Sea View is my invention although is you stroll up Madeira Walk there is a hotel at the top of the road that I adopted as Flora’s guest house. These days it is a hotel and restaurant. I wonder if they realise …?

It isn’t just a sense of place. Your characters are central to your plot and we come to feel we know them personally. You have a large cast. Where do you draw them from?

I start with my main characters and ask myself what kinds of family and friends she would have. I need to get under the skin of my characters to see what makes them tick; this shows me what kind of person they would not like – and that’s when my ‘baddies’ appear. As each book in a series comes along, I won’t drop a character from a previous story as in real life this does not happen. I’m fortunate that my publisher gives me a free hand with my stories and doesn’t ask for a different person to take the main stage in each book. My stories wouldn’t work like that as every character is important and my readers would soon complain. I value my readers and their input will always be important to me.

It seems appropriate that we’re drinking tea while discussing the famous Lyons Tea Shops and Corner Houses. With Butlins, Woolworths and Lyons you have picked iconic settings for your fabulous stories. Can we expect more of the same or do you have another in mind?

Any chance of a second cup? Good idea.

My first series was never meant to feature an iconic workplace as it was just where the girls worked. Come to that it wasn’t supposed to be a series! However, such is the heartfelt nostalgia that I continued with another book and a series was born. By the time The Woolworths Girls was published I’d already written The Butlins Girls with the setting ideas mainly coming from my childhood holiday to Warners Holiday Camps and also my maternal grandparents’ links to Billy Butlin’s fairgrounds. The Teashop Girls series stemmed from my fond thoughts of time spent in Ramsgate and Margate and also visiting Lyons Corner houses during the 1960s. It was so funny when The Bookseller labelled me ‘The Queen of the Workplace Saga’ as I’d not given any thought to my settings. These days I seem to have started a new bandwagon with publishers and authors jumping on board a new and popular sub-genre. Some of their books work and some don’t.

Personally, I love a prologue. What makes you use this particular device?

Books always need to start by drawing a reader in on the first page – as I often tell my students! Sagas often don’t as they have gentler starts in the first few pages. That’s why I feel they need a prologue. I like to write a prologue in order for the reader to want more and then read on. Often it is a scene from later in the book that does not give away any spoilers but starts the reader wondering…

My next book, A Mother Forever does not have a prologue but does have an epilogue. It suits the story, plus the first pages starts with more of a bang.

2020 has been a very difficult year, almost as if we are also living in a war zone. How have you coped?

Gosh hasn’t it been a year and a half? I like to think I have coped. If anything, I’ve had more time to write and also to consider my future as an author. There are new genres I’d like to try and ‘things’ I’d like to change. I miss going out to meet readers and chat about books. 

I’ve also missed going away to the coast, and also seeing friends and running my classes. Thank goodness we have a very good Facebook page where students attend online classes, so successes continue. I do know that come the end of the war on this virus I’ll be very choosy about where I go - and possibly never venture into London again. I value life more and get very angry at people who don’t follow guidelines to help stop this horrible virus in its tracks.
I do know I’ll never get off my soap box though!

Finally, if you hadn’t been an author (No, you’re not allowed to stop) what other profession might you have chosen?

A very interesting question!

At different stages of my life there have been career options. As a teenager my mum suggested working for Warner’s Holiday Camp as a Green Coat. I loved the idea of entertaining and had always attended dance classes since the age of three. Sadly, school exams and boyfriends meant I never gave that career choice another thought.

At the age of sixteen with a bright future ahead of me I did consider teaching. I attended open days at teacher training colleges and spoke to the right people about this. It would have meant staying on at school for a sixth year to gain my A-levels, but my parents could not afford to support me, even though by then like all girls of my age I’d taken on a Saturday and holiday job to save. They would not consider a grant as that was taking charity and they were proud people. Considering the options and talking to a neighbour who had a high-flying job in London I decided to look into business courses at Erith College of Technology. The course I followed back in 1970/71 was called ‘Business Machines and Commerce’ and certainly covered all aspects of what a young woman needed to find a great job. I left with more qualifications than I’d ever have needed to attend teacher training college and doubled up on ‘O’ levels for English subjects due to the college using a different exam board and gained an A level in the subject as well. Mum was pleased as by the time my exam results came through and I’d secured that first job she was seriously ill and passed away a couple of months later.
I wish she’d lived to see me climb the career ladder to work  in management then succeed with my writing. She’d have chuckled to see me gain the required teaching certificate to teach as well – and to run my own writing school. I like to think she knows. To use an old expression, you’ve done her proud.

Thank you so much for your interesting questions, Natalie, and taking part in my blog tour.

Elaine xx

It’s always a pleasure, Elaine. I look forward to the next time

Natalie xx

 

ABOUT CHRISTMAS WITH THE TEASHOP GIRLS

The friends return in a moving story of love, bravery and hope set in 1940 – a guaranteed winter warmer full of festive spirit. Bestseller Elaine Everest is the author of the much-loved Woolworths Girls saga series.

It’s late 1940 and the war feels closer to home than ever for Rose Neville and her staff at the Lyon’s Teashop in Margate. The worry of rationing hangs overhead as the Nippies do their best to provide a happy smile and a hot cup of tea for their customers. When a bombing raid targets the Kent coastline, Lyon’s is badly hit, throwing the future of the cafe into jeopardy.

The light in Rose’s life is her dashing fiancé Captain Ben Hargreaves and she’s busy planning their Christmas Eve wedding. But she must also plan to take two new stepdaughters into her life and get on the right side of her wealthy mother-in-law, Lady Diana. Is Rose ready to become a mother?

When Rose’s half-sister Eileen makes contact, it seems that Rose’s dreams of having a sibling are coming true at long last. But her friends begin to suspect that she’s hiding something… As the wedding draws near, the bombings intensify, putting everything and everyone Rose loves in danger. Only one thing is for sure: it will be a Christmas she never forgets . . .

ABOUT ELAINE EVEREST:

Elaine Everest is from North West Kent and she grew up listening to stories of the war years in her home town of Erith, which features in her bestselling Woolworths Girls series. A former journalist, and author of nonfiction books for dog owners, Elaine has written over sixty short stories for the women's magazine market. When she isn't writing, Elaine runs The Write Place creative writing school in Hextable, Kent. She lives with her husband, Michael and sheepdog Henry. You can find out more about Elaine on Twitter @ElaineEverest or Facebook /elaine.everest

Elaine Everest lives in Kent is available for interviews and to write features.

The Teashop Girls is published by Pan Macmillan on 15th October price £7.99 as paperback original.

 

 

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Taking Tea with Elaine Everest

Well it looks like she’s done it again! Elaine’s latest saga, The Teashop Girls, brings a new cast of characters with all their hopes and dreams, and their tragedies, too, to delight us and bring a tear to our eyes. Here she is, chatting with me over a cup of tea.

Thank you, Natalie. You know I like mine strong – where’s the cake?

One of the first things that strikes me is how well the names of your characters fit so perfectly with the era in which they’re set. Do you spend long choosing the right ones and do you ever change your mind half way through the book? For example…No, she’s not a Gertrude, I’ll call her Gladys?

Hmm it is funny you should mention this. I had a big problem with Rose’s mum’s name. She started as Lizzie, but it wasn’t right. Then Esther… Then a few more I’ve forgotten. One day Flora popped into my head and it felt right. Then she flowered into a proper character I could work with. Originally, I meant to name Katie after a flower as well but, it would have been a flower too much!

Very early in the book you talk about Sallys and their work behind the counter at the iconic Lyons teashops. Your research is always meticulous but how on earth do you uncover a fact like the one that puts these girls where they are because of their height? It’s these details that ring so true; that authenticate your work. How you go about such in-depth research?

Research is the key when writing historical novels. I like to dip into any document, book or film that relates to the era and my characters. If it is useful for my story, then I save it. Sometimes a snippet of information, such as the Sallys, pops up and I think of a scene where it can be used. Once I have a grasp of the life my characters would have led, I can tell their story. Researching history does not mean we have to fill our books with facts and numbers to the point that the history takes over, but it must give a flavour of the past to be able to create a backdrop to the story we wish to tell.

As with The Woolworths series, you have three girls around whom the story revolves but I was just as enchanted by their friends and families and how they evoked the principles and matter-of-factness of the people who lived in those difficult times. I found Mildred a particularly interesting character. Was she fully-formed before you began writing?

Mildred was a gift! She was just supposed to walk into the kitchen of Sea View and have her dinner. However, she hung around and made a nuisance of herself and become a valuable member of the cast. I often find I can have fun with the secondary characters while the main characters play out the story.

You obviously know Ramsgate very well and your descriptions of Dunkirk and the little ships bring to life a terrible event in our history but also one of which we can be proud. Can you tell us what it was like writing about such an emotive issue?

I’ve written about Dunkirk before and find it so emotional to think of the owner and the small boats heading off over the Channel to save our lads. I was fortunate to have attended the 75^th anniversary of the Little Ships and visited Ramsgate to witness what was left of these brave little ships heading out of the harbour surrounded by a flotilla of other vessels willing them on to France. Overhead a Spitfire and a Hurricane flew low over the crowd. So close I could see the face of the Spitfire pilot. I’ve never felt so emotional. It is occasions like this that remind us what is great about our wonderful country.

We have learned to recognise Elaine Everest as a saga writer, but you’ve also written other fiction, non-fiction and features. Have these all been in your own name or have publishers asked you to change it? Do you ever write under another name?

I’ve worked as a freelance writer since 1997. In all that time I have NEVER written under another name.
Sometimes publishers will ask us to use a pen name. I was warned it could happen with my sagas but thankfully it didn’t. Someone at the publishing house mentioned that Elaine Everest had a nice ‘ring’ to it and was it my pen name? I laughed and pointed out that ‘reader, I had to marry him’ to gain this name!

You’ve left us with some happy endings and some questions which are begging to be answered. Can we expect a sequel to The Teashop Girls?

There is to be a sequel. Currently I’m scribbling notes and have a reasonable idea of what I will throw at my girls next. Once my agent and editor have approved, I’ll be starting work on the book and hopefully this will be published at the end of 2020. Before then Wedding Bells for Woolworths is to be published in the spring of next year.

It’s been lovely chatting to you as always, and there’s nothing to beat a good cuppa! Thank you for joining me today.

Thank you so much for hosting me today. Can you squeeze another cup out of that pot? X

Of course. And this time we’ll have some cake!

About The Teashop Girls:

The Teashop Girls is a warm and moving tale of friendship and love in wartime, by the bestselling author of the Woolworths series, Elaine Everest.

It is early 1940 and World War Two has already taken a hold on the country. Rose Neville works as a Lyon’s Teashop Nippy on the Kent coast alongside her childhood friends, the ambitious Lily and Katie, whose fiancé is about to be posted overseas in the navy. As war creates havoc in Europe, Rose relies on the close friendship of her friends and her family.

When Capt. Benjamin Hargreaves enters the teashop one day, Rose is immediately drawn to him. But as Lyon’s forbids courting between staff and customers, she tries to put the handsome officer out of her mind.

In increasingly dark and dangerous times, Rose fears there may not be time to waste. But is the dashing captain what he seems?

  

The Teashop Girls is the new book by Elaine Everest, much-loved author of the Woolworths Girls series. Available on Amazon

About Elaine Everest:

Elaine Everest, author of bestselling novels The Woolworths Girls, The Butlins Girls, Christmas at Woolworths, and Wartime at Woolworths was born and brought up in North West Kent, where many of her books are set. She has been a freelance writer for twenty-two years and has written widely for women's magazines and national newspapers, with both short stories and features. Her non-fiction books for dog owners have been very popular and led to broadcasting on radio about our four legged friends. Elaine has been heard discussing many topics on radio from canine subjects to living with a husband under her feet when redundancy looms.

When she isn't writing, Elaine runs The Write Place creative writing school at The Howard Venue in Hextable, Kent and has a long list of published students. Elaine lives with her husband, Michael, and their Polish Lowland Sheepdog, Henry, in Swanley, Kent and is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, The Crime Writers Association, The Society of Women Writers & Journalists and The Society of Authors.

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