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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Chatting with Elaine Everest

Never mind A Gift from Woolworths! More like a gift to her readers as Elaine Everest delights us all with yet another book in this wonderful series. Once again I am privileged to be a participant in her blog tour so let me welcome Elaine and see what she has to tell us this time.

Starting to read A Gift from Woolworths was like cosying up with an old friend. Several old friends, in fact. Your characters are always so well-developed that we might have made the mistake of thinking we knew all about them. Not so. There is much more to learn in this book. But they are numerous. How then do you manage to ensure your readers know it’s Maisie, Sarah, Freda or Betty? Or indeed any of the others who feature. Not once did I have to flick back to the page before to check.

Thank you so much for the warm welcome to your blog, Natalie. It is always a pleasure to visit.

I’m so relieved you didn’t have to flick back to check anything – breathing a big sigh of relief here! I like to think I’m aware of my lovely readers as I write my books so stepping into a new scene I need to say not only where we are but who is in the scene. In fact I have a shopping list for each scene of what happens and who appears. I recall in my early writing days of receiving first edits for a book and my editor, at that time, writing in the margin ‘where are we Elaine?’ Things like this stick in my head so the next time I start a new scene I make sure it is clear. I treat each scene in a chapter as a standalone story starting with ‘Freda walked into the kitchen,’ or ‘Maisie bellowed at her husband’ until it becomes second nature to explain to my readers what is I want to say. I’m sure I get it wrong sometimes but I have a fab team supporting me at Pan Macmillan and they will soon point out my mistake.

There are several threads running through the book. I know you are a planner but can you tell us how you manage to interweave all the stories so that in the end we are left with one of Maisie’s beautifully finished garments rather than a tangled mess?

Good question! Before I start to write a book I like to know what will happen to each of my main characters so I write down each girl’s own story on individual pages. Some of their problems start later in the book – sometimes extra ideas come to me as I write! I then look at the war timeline as well as local and Woolworths events. This means some of the girls’ stories start later than others as they weave around a situation. Occasionally there will be an on-going storyline from a previous book (Ruby’s on off marriage comes to mind) so I need to check old notes and even read the previous book before I start to write. However, I do my best to tie up every thread by that last chapter. A tick sheet is handy in these circumstances.

I can almost touch the human spirit and camaraderie that emanate from your Erith community. It’s obviously an area you know and love well. What can you tell us about your personal connection to the place that is as much a character in your book as any of the living and breathing ones?

If anyone asks me where I come from I always say Erith and nearby Slade Green even though I’ve lived in Swanley for over twenty-five years. Visiting the area now I know that my Erith no longer exists but it is in my heart. I think of it as rather like Brigadoon and hope that perhaps one day the town I know and write about with it’s Victorian buildings and many shops will return. These days the area is just an extension of Greater London but dig around and there are glimpses of the old town we love so much. Pop onto Facebook and visit the groups set up by past school friends and locals and in an instant we are talking about the past – the ‘good old days’ that we think of with so much fondness. Currently we are chatting about St Augustine’s church where so many of us have been christened, married and said sad farewell to love ones. The London Borough of Bexley, where Erith now dwells, has a wonderful archive centre and along with local libraries there is a wealth of old photographs and information for us to view and discuss. At times it is as if the town I know is there just out of reach…

You aren’t afraid to confront reality. There are some harsh features and not everyone has a happy ending. Are these aspects easier or harder to deal with when you are writing them?

I write sagas so life isn’t always pleasant, although these days saga authors no longer write the predictable ‘gritty clogs and shawls’ kind of books from Catherine Cookson’s era. Anything could happen to my girls and has. Freda was attacked by a boyfriend in one of the earlier Woolworths books which is distressing for any young girl – I apologise now for putting poor Freda through so many failed romances. Maisie’s terrible family secret – I do love a secret! My girls and their families are normal people and sadly most people do encounter sadness and harshness at times. At least I can also give them happiness – one of the perks of being a writer.

Do you ever make yourself cry?

I was going to say no as I hate it when writers put something on social media to say they sobbed over their own words. However… In one of my earlier books my three girls all faced the death of a parent. A friend asked at the time if this was because I lost my own mum when she was only forty. I put more than a little of my own grief into my girls’ stories in that book – yes I shed a few tears.
Also, as I wrote the last chapter of A Gift from Woolworths and we reached the end of 1945 I felt as though my girls had grown up so much since we met them in 1938 and I was saying goodbye to them. At that time I wondered if there would be another Woolies book so I took an age to write that one chapter fearing the worse. Tears were in evidence then.

It’s no secret that the war comes to an end in this book, but our connection with your characters does not. Can we expect another Woolworths saga from you?

I’ve been promised by my publisher that we will return to Woolworths. I have such plans for the girls for the late 1940s onwards. My publisher is holding two outlines for more books and I’m looking forward to seeing what can happen, not only to the girls but also their children – after all Woolies didn’t close until 2008. However, before then there will be new girls and a new series, which I hope my readers will take to their hearts as they have with Sarah, Maisie and Freda. 

I have a short story in the My Weekly magazine at the end of November following a Saturday girl as Woolworths closes and if you listen carefully you can hear my girls…

Finally, A Gift from Woolworths will make a wonderful present, not just at this festive season but at any time of the year. Are you in a position to tell us what your next gift to your readers will be? And when?
My next gift will be a trip to the seaside in May 2019 with The Teashop Girls. We are visiting Margate and Ramsgate on the Kent coast in 1940 and taking tea in the famous Lyons Teashops. We meet Rose, Katie and Lily and their friends from the Sea View guesthouse. I can’t wait to introduce you!

Elaine xx

And I can’t wait to meet them! Thank you so much for sharing with us today, Elaine.

About A Gift From Woolworths:

Will the war be over by Christmas?

As the war moves into 1945 the lives of the women of Woolworths continue. When store manager, Betty Billington, announces she is expecting Douglas’s baby her future life is about to change more than she expects.

Freda has fallen in love with the handsome Scottish engineer but will it end happily?

Maisie loves being a mother and also caring for her two nieces although she still has her own dreams. When her brother appears on the scene he brings unexpected danger to the family.

Meanwhile Sarah dreams of her husband’s return and a cottage with roses around the door but Woolworths beckons.

Will our girls sail into times of peace, or will they experience more heartache and sorrow? With a wedding on the horizon, surely only happiness lies ahead – or does it?

Links:

Amazon Author Page

Author Facebook page

Twitter: @elaineeverest

Author Information:

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 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.

If you'd like to make some more stops on the blog tour you can find them on the banner below

The Wonder of Woolies - with Elaine Everest

Today I am delighted to welcome Elaine Everest. This was such an enjoyable interview to do – like taking a trip down memory lane.

Thank you for inviting me to your blog, Natalie.

Many of us will remember the iconic fascia that was Woolworths, sadly no longer a part of our high streets. What prompted you to choose them as one of your major characters?

I knew that my WW2 saga would be set in the town of Erith, Kent – Erith was situated in Kent at that time and true locals still think of it that way and not as part of Greater London. I knew that my main character, Sarah, would be starting work in the town and there she would make new friends and meet the love of her life. So where should I bring young men and women together in a place that would be recognised by readers? There were plenty of armament factories at that time but Erith was a thriving town with lots of busy shops. Coming from the area I recalled with fondness shopping trips to Woolworths in the sixties. We still had the original store with high counters and polished floors that had survived WW2 although it succumbed to a fire in the seventies. I’d been a Saturday girl at another Woolies store in nearby Dartford and the ideas started to form…

I appreciate that you wrote about an area in which you lived and were raised but you aren’t old enough to remember the events you describe, in fact you weren’t even born when they occurred. How did you undertake your research?

I grew up listening to stories of the area told by my family. In fact there is still a strong connection between ‘old locals’ of the town who meet on forums to chat and share memories of the good old days. To a writer this is a gift. Although we were never taught the history of WW2 whilst at school in the sixties, I’ve devoured history books to find out what happened. It fascinated me that the house I lived in when first married had survived both wars. Where better for the Caselton family to live than my old home? Local history archives held at The London Borough of Bexley were a great help, as was Erith Historical Society and the wonderful Woolworths Museum who came up with some gems about the Erith store that I was able to include in my story.

The Woolworths Girls tells the story of three friends, though one stands out as your main protagonist. Is this a theme you plan to carry through to your next book?

Yes. You will find this theme in many WW2 sagas. Three, four, even five friends who are thrown together in wartime sharing good times and bad.

Speaking of your next book, is it in the pipeline and what can your readers expect?

In The Butlins Girls, due for publication in Spring 2017, there are three girls thrown together at Butlins Skegness in 1946 just after WW2 ends as Billy Butlin reopens his well-known holiday camps. Molly Missons has fled Erith because of a family problem, aided by another friend who appeared in The Woolworths Girls. Each girl has her own reasons for being at Butlins which we find out as the story unfolds.

It’s been a long while since acceptance of your manuscript by your publisher, Pan Macmillan, to today’s publication. Can you tell us something about the process of assembling all the ingredients together to getting them onto the table?

These days authors seem to expect their novels to be published much quicker due to E-books and digital first. In truth it has always been the norm that traditional publishers contract books for the following year or even the year after that. Copy for The Woolworths Girls was filed at the beginning of last year and then the hard work began. Structural edits came first with the book being passed through each editing stage until Pan Macmillan and myself were happy with the book. Along the way I wrote the ‘end bits’ and I was included in the design of the cover – isn’t it lovely? My input was encouraged as models were chosen and the uniforms discussed. Then the PR team took over and that alone has been – and still is – another part of an exciting journey. As publication day draws near I’m already working on the edits for The Butlins Girls and planning my book for 2018.

You haven’t always written novels. What came before?

I’d always wanted to be a novelist but first, whilst honing my skills, I was earning a living with other forms of writing. I sold over sixty short stories to Women’s magazines and wrote prolifically for newspapers and magazines with features – my specialism was the canine world as it’s a big part of my life. I’ve been commissioned for, and written, three non-fiction books for dog owners and do continue to write for some of the publications. I’m called upon to broadcast about aspect of the dog world although I’ve given up my columns to focus more on my novels. Whilst promoting The Woolworths Girls it has been good to have the support of many publications and radio stations that I’ve worked for in the past. I also won, or was placed, in a few prominent writing competitions that not only helped me along the way to being a novelist but still look good on my writing CV. One was the BBC Radio Kent short story writer of the year and to this day the company have supported all my work, be it The Write Place creative writing school, charity anthologies such as Diamonds and Pearls which celebrated my thirty year remission from breast cancer or my books.

As a journalist and someone who runs a creative writing school, as well as being a novelist, how do you prioritise your time?

I have no idea! At times it can be hard to juggle everything. All I can do is make a list and try not to panic. However, my priority has to be my novels as that is my career. Everything else has to wait.

Finally, what do you do for relaxation – that is, if you have the time!
My relaxation is my dogs, or dog at the moment. Although I no longer sit on committees or write so much about the dog world I still like to get to dog shows and exhibit my Polish Lowland Sheepdog, Henry. I’ve been involved in dogs since the early seventies and like to promote the image of pedigree dogs as much as I can. These day we try to go away for the weekend and take in a championship show. It is so much more relaxed than the days we would drive to Wales, show a couple of dogs and then drive home all in one day – there again it's not always possible to do this on our motorways anymore. I’m hoping to have another puppy soon but not sure if it will be another Polish Lowland or my one true love – the Old English Sheepdog. I miss having them in the house.

Links:

Amazon

Twitter: @ElaineEverest

Facebook Author Page

Thank you, Elaine. Happy publication day and good luck with The Woolworths Girls.

Journeys Back in Time

If you follow me on Facebook and Twitter you will know that I visited the Imperial War Museum earlier this week in the company of Elaine Everest, Viv Brown and Sarah Craven. While the historical period I am hoping to write about wasn’t represented, I had a wonderful time at the ‘Fashion on the Ration’ exhibition. Here is Elaine to tell us more about it.

Elaine's book and some she purchased at the IWM

When my students mentioned ‘school trips’ during the summer break from The Write Place I suggested  the Imperial War Museum as I had an ulterior motive – the ‘Fashion on the Ration’ exhibition. My sagas are set in the 1930s and 1940s so to be able to see garments up close from the era was a chance I couldn’t miss. I wasn’t disappointed. I felt as though I’d stepped back in time and could see many of my ‘girls’ wearing the frocks and underwear on display. Peggy from Gracie’s War was the perfect example of the women who were advised to ‘make do and mend.’ As rationing was introduced women had to be inventive in order to look smart and keep up their morale.

In my forthcoming book, The Woolworths’ Girls (Pan Macmillan, March 2016) Maisie, one of my Woolies girls, is a keen dressmaker and could be relied upon to turn any second hand item of clothing into something chic for herself and her friends. ‘Keep up the morale of the Home Front by preserving a neat appearance.’ (The Board of Trade 1940) could have been written for Maisie!

My one worry as I walked through the exhibition was that I’d made a mistake. Was I right to have my young bride, Sarah, wear a nightdress made from a whisper of satin on her husband’s return from fighting the enemy? As I turned a corner and faced a display of undergarments and nightwear I knew my research was spot on. In front of me was a mannequin wearing the very garment that Maisie made for her best friend.

Even if you don’t write historical fiction I recommend a visit to the IWM for a dose of nostalgia before the exhibition ends at the end of August.

Thank you, Elaine. And now for a trip even further back in time. 

On my journey to the Imperial War Museum I immersed myself in quite another period of history. What amazing facilities are available to those of us who wish to write about an age other than the one in which we live. Here is what I did.

The postman doesn’t deliver very early these days but he came up trumps on Tuesday morning and my excitement mounted as I opened the envelope because I knew what it contained. I had ordered a copy of Louise Allen’s Walks Through Regency London. There’s a big hint in the title! I (along with many others) am a huge fan of Georgette Heyer and my ambition is to write a romantic novel set in the capital in Regency times.

While I acknowledge that the Kindle and its equivalents are a great boon to the reader on the move I decided to order not the ebook but the slim volume I now have in my possession. I wanted to be able to flick the pages; to look at the images; to jump from one place to another with ease. There are ten walks, each of approximately two miles. Such is the detail that I only had time to study the first walk. So engrossed was I that I nearly missed changing trains at Waterloo. A nice touch that, Waterloo, since it fits so well into the time frame. The detail is quite extraordinary. Because it is essentially a guide book I had expected it to be quite dry. Here is where I apologise to Louise Allen because it’s no such thing! It’s interesting, evocative of its time and it drew me straight into places I know so well from between the covers of my heroine’s books.

Even as I type this I am becoming more excited because the first walk is named St James’s and it starts at Green Park Station in Piccadilly. It just so happens, and this really is a coincidence, that I am meeting my sister this coming Friday afternoon in that very area. I will travel up to London in the morning with the book in my handbag and sample the first of what I know are going to be huge treats. I expect it won’t be long before my copy is covered with notes, highlighted in yellow and curling at the edges. I make no apology for this. It’s a book that's meant to be used. In the meantime, huge thanks to Louise for all the footwork (sorry!) she put in. I have already gained a great deal of pleasure and I haven’t even started yet!

Guess what my next blog’s going to be about.

Kate Thompson - following a thread

My guest today is Kate Thompson who tells us the fascinating story of a woman with whom she shares her name. I was gripped when I read it, as I am sure you will be. Kate’s first novel, Secrets of the Singer Girls, is a nostalgic wartime saga set in an East End garment factory and was published in March by Pan Macmillan.

For fifteen years, Kate worked as a journalist for national newspapers and magazines like the Daily Express and IPC’s true-life weekly Pick Me Up, before going freelance four years ago. She now combines freelance journalism with writing and is currently working on a prequel to Secrets of the Singer Girls, provisionally entitled, Secrets of the Sewing Bee.

Kate lives in Twickenham, Greater London, with her husband, two boisterous, energetic young boys and an escape-artist miniature Jack Russell called Twinkle. When she’s not chasing after her sons or Twinkle, she is to be found locked in the office at the end of the garden trying to write, on research trips in London’s East End, or slumped on the settee with a glass of red wine.

Here is a piece Kate has written about the inspiration behind Secrets of the Singer Girls.

The chilling moment I discovered I was a victim of a wartime tragedy!

Staring down the stairway that leads into London’s Bethnal Green Tube Station, I found myself about to be taken on a journey back in time.

On a spring day with streams of commuters descending the stairs, nothing could look more ordinary, but seventy-two years ago, tragedy unfolded on those steps. Little is known of the biggest civilian disaster of the Second World War, but in less than 30 seconds, 173 people, were crushed to death on the stairway that led down to what was then an underground shelter.

Not a single German bomb was dropped but, in the time it took for the air raid siren to sound, the narrow corridor was converted into a charnel house as a horrifying crush of people piled helplessly one on top of another. After the searchlights went on, an anti-aircraft battery in nearby Victoria Park launched a salvo of new rockets and, fearing a bomb, the crowd surged forward. A mother carrying a baby tripped on the stairs and, like a pack of cards, the shelterers fell, one by one. The scenes were unimaginable on that bleak March night in 1943.

My reason for wanting to visit the sight where so many people died wasn’t born out of morbid curiosity, however. I was there to research it as I had already decided to feature the Tube disaster in the novel I was writing. Set in the East End of London, Secrets of the Singer Girls attempts to unravel the mysteries that bind four machinists who work sewing Navy and Army uniforms for the troops. The research I had already conducted revealed a world of poverty, grim survival, immense bravery and human tragedy in wartime Bethnal Green. But it was discovering that I shared a name with a victim who died in the disaster which leant a deep poignancy to my research. Just who was the other Kate Thompson, and what led her to flee to the so-called sanctuary of the underground that fateful day?

Cursory research did not bode well. Kate was at the Black Horse pub in her favourite fur-collared coat when the sirens went off. She was a 63-year-old mother of nine, living in one of Bethnal Green’s roughest areas, when she perished. It would be easy to dismiss Kate as a victim battling for survival but to do so would be foolish. A closer examination into her life revealed some surprising results.

Kate Hammersley was born in September 1880 in Poplar, East London. At the age of 18, she married William Thompson, and moved to Bethnal Green, where she bore him seven sons and two daughters. They resided at Quinn Square in Russia Lane. Pre-war, Bethnal Green housed some of the worst slums in London and, of them, one of the most notorious was Quinn Square, a place where locals say you never went after dark and policemen only dared visit in pairs. Some of the flats contained illegal gambling dens and when the police were about, quick-witted residents would whistle off the balconies.

None of the flats had their own water taps or toilets, and tenants shared facilities on the landing between four families. Washhouse facilities were housed on the roof, and the women of the Square had to drag their laundry up six flights. According to one local resident, the stench from the toilets was unholy. Perhaps that’s why Russia Lane had its own bathing centre, known as a Personal Cleansing Station. So far, so depressing.

By August 1938, Kate Thompson and many others lived in a squalid, dilapidated hellhole. Residents reported broken steps, lavatory doors with no locks and broken facilities in the washhouse. Not only that, but the landlords were having a merry time at their expense, charging exorbitant rents for such miserly facilities. How did the feisty women of Quinn Square put up with this? The answer is, they didn’t.

According to the electoral register, Kate was registered to vote from as early as 1923. Perhaps it was this interest in politics that lead Kate to insist on her right to a decent standard of living. Far from being a dormant victim, Kate and the other residents promptly formed a Tenants Association and flatly refused to pay their rents until the rapacious landlords reduced them to more reasonable levels.

One landlord responded by attempting to evict a tenant. When the agent arrived on eviction day, the tenants, wielding placards and chanting, ‘Less Rent, More Repairs’, barred their way and the landlord was forced to beat a hasty retreat. The biggest rent strike ever seen in the East End sent the press wild.

Buoyed by their success, the tenants of Quinn Square paraded around Bethnal Green with their placards and picketed the estate office. Apparently, every time the landlord went into the Square – on one occasion even accompanied by a group of Sir Oswald Mosley’s fascists, who attempted to break up the tenants meeting by organised hooliganism – a huge crowd of women followed them and booed them out of Russia Lane, pelting them with hot potatoes. And so it was that Kate and her neighbours scored a resounding victory for the working-class underdogs of Quinn Square.  It would take more than an unscrupulous landlord and some bullyboy fascists to scare them into submission. The landlords acceded to their demands to lower the rent and carry out repairs, and the test case for arrears of rent made history, paving the way for success for other Tenants Associations. A year later, war broke out, and Kate began the second great fight of her life.

Quinn Square was demolished in the 1960s, but I believe Kate’s legacy remains today. It proves that you should never underestimate the fighting power of a woman when her home and her family are under threat – 1938 or 2015, it matters not, a mother will fight tooth and nail to protect the roof over her children’s heads.

The other Kate wasn’t afraid to stand up to corrupt landlords and fascists marching on her street. My 1940s namesake was a far stronger, finer lady than I. Indeed, it would appear that a love of a fur collar is about all we have in common. I wish I had one ounce of her courage and pluck.

http://www.stairwaytoheavenmemorial.org

Secrets of the Singer Girls is out now, published by Pan Macmillan

Thank you for featuring me on your blog, Natalie.

I’m so glad you could join me, Kate. What a fascinating tale. I can’t wait now to read the book

Links:

Email:              katethompson380@hotmail.com

Website:          www.katethompsonmedia.co.uk

Facebook:        https://www.facebook.com/SecretsOfTheSingerGirls

Twitter:           @katethompson380 or https://twitter.com/SingerSecrets

Amazon:         

Chatting with Elaine Everest

I am thrilled to welcome Elaine Everest today as my first guest. She has had a particularly busy couple of years – not that she was idle prior to that. I had several questions for her:

You haven’t always been a fiction writer. What did you do before and how did you make the transition?

My first sales were with short stories although I was also writing content for our breed club magazine. As the editor of a twice yearly publication that was posted around the world, I had to source articles about Old English Sheepdogs and their owners. Writers who have experienced this kind of work know that sometimes it is easier to write it yourself! Working on articles gave me the confidence to start to pitch ideas to magazines and newspapers and gradually my main income came from journalism with short fiction an added extra. In my spare time I worked on ideas for novels. Romcom, crime, historicals, I’ve tried them all!

In the Spring of 2013 you graduated from the Romantic Novelists’ Association (RNA) New Writers’ Scheme (NWS) with your delightful book, Gracie’s War. What came next?

I was thrilled to be accepted onto the New Writers’ Scheme although by that time I had three non-fiction books published.  Graduation and being part of the Joan Hessayon award was an added bonus. I met my agent, Caroline Sheldon, after we discussed saga writing when she was a guest on the RNA blog. She read Gracie’s War and asked if I was seeking representation. Of course I was!

So now you have an agent. How did things progress from there?

Since the early part of 2014 I’ve been working on another historical saga. This is set in WW2 in Kent. The research into the area at that time and getting to know my new characters and their families has been absorbing. At the end of September Caroline sent out the first part of the novel and only a couple of weeks later the lovely people at Pan Macmillan showed interest.

Many congratulations on securing a contract with Pan-Macmillan. Is there a map laid out for your future?

Thank you. My future will consist of a lot more writing! My first book is expected to be published at the end of 2015 with the second the following year. The books should be on sale in supermarkets which I find exciting as I often stop to look at the paperbacks written by my friends and wonder if mine will ever sit alongside them. I will be meeting my editor at Pan Macmillan soon and look forward to planning my future along with Caroline’s guidance. I’m still pinching myself!

What do you enjoy most about writing novels?

I enjoy recreating settings for my novels that come from an area I know well and where my family has lived for centuries. I like to create a believable life for my characters that take them through an interesting period in the history of England. All the settings in my stories were once real places and that takes a little more research. The area where Gracie, and Sarah from my next book lived with her nan, were once vibrant areas of Kent. Many living there now would not know of the past as the village and town have been absorbed into the Greater London area. Back in the time of WW2 the area was so different and it is this that I like to recreate in my writing.

How do relax when not working?

Dogs! Since 1972 I’ve owned, exhibited, judged and bred dogs. Apart from one crossbreed I’ve had Old English Sheepdogs and Polish Lowland Sheepdogs in my life. 99% of the time they have been pets but the other one percent has seen us at large and small shows around the country competing with the Paddipaws gang. At present we have just the one dog, Henry. Henry was imported from France and is a chocolate coloured Polish Lowland Sheepdog, the very first one of his breeding in this country. He has done well in the show ring and 2015 sees us stepping up the number of shows we attend as he heads towards competing to be a champion – fingers crossed. Saying that he is a joy to live with regardless of how he does in the ring. He will also be used at stud in the next year so there are lots of little Henry’s on the horizon which is making me broody for another puppy…
The dog world has also been important to my writing as I’ve written three non- fiction books for dog owners as well as making a living a journalist specialising in the canine world which has led to broadcasting on radio and my books appearing on television.

If you were a guest on Desert Island Discs what would be your chosen book?

Goodness that is a hard question! Could I take my Kindle? No? Hmm… In that case I’ll take the latest Ben Elton novel, Time and Time Again. I became a fan of Ben’s writing after reading his novel set in WW1 The First Casualty was so beautifully written and he did not stint on the horrors of what the soldiers endured whilst fighting for their country. In Time and Time Again he revisits WW1 but with a twist as it’s a time slip novel.

Elaine has sold over sixty short stories as well as many articles for national newspapers and magazines. She specialised in writing about the canine world (with three non-fiction dog books) but will write about anything if paid enough! In the past year Elaine has concentrated on her novel writing, graduating from the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s New Writers’ Scheme with her WW2 saga, Gracie’s War (Myrmidon Books), in 2012. She is a qualified tutor and runs The Write Place creative writing school in Dartford, Kent.

Elaine is represented by the Caroline Sheldon Literary Agency and has just signed a two book contract with Pan Macmillan.

Links:

Email: elaineeverest@aol.com

The Write Place: www.thewriteplace.org.uk

Amazon author page

Gracie’s War

Twitter: @elaineeverest

Facebook: Elaine Everest

Thank you for welcoming me to your blog, Natalie.

It’s been a pleasure, Elaine. 

If you would like to appear as a guest on my blog please email me on natalie@nataliekleinman.co.uk