Rose Auburn interview

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

A little introduction:

Hello, I write and review under the pen name, Rose Auburn.  The name is taken from a minor character in Somerset Maugham’s Ashenden novels. I work as an Editorial Reviewer for two online publications, and also review through my website blog, for mainly small-press and indie authors.

I live in London, England with my husband, daughter and cat. 

When did your love of books begin?

I can’t remember a time when I was not reading. My parents and grandparents were avid readers so we lived in a house full of books. I was not only thoroughly encouraged to explore them but it was assumed, as night follows day, that I would!

In my family, reading was on the list with eating, drinking and sleeping as integral activities that you did every day and which kept you alive, in all respects. To not have a book in your hand or pocket was considered most strange.

Most of my memories, childhood to present, are punctuated with what books I received as presents, what books I bought, what books I found, what books I wanted, and what books I was reading at the time. 

When did you start to have the wish to become an author?

I have always made up stories in my head. I live my life with an imaginary narrative running through my mind, and did so from a very young age.  Natural progression to scribble it down although it always makes me quite nervous!

It was, and still is, my escape, and just spending thinking time trying to find that perfect descriptive phrase or twist in the tale is time well spent, in my opinion. Even if I have exhausted an avenue, a simple thing such as an overhead conversation or an interesting face will kick an idea off or rejuvenate an already existing one.

I don’t recall wishing to become an author, it just seemed something that was intrinsic, and therefore accepted that writing would always feature even if just as a hobby. 

How have you found the process for becoming an author?

Frustrating. Like many things in life, the doors are fairly closed unless you have an angle. You make a little progress only to then fall back. The struggle is a major factor in my reviewing for indies; there are some truly fantastic writers out there who aren’t being given a break.

In common with a lot of writers, I am quite an introspective, slightly sensitive person who is uncomfortable with self-promotion and publicity. This is a problem regardless of your publishing route and you do have to be massively prepared to come out of your shell, persevere, and develop a pretty thick skin. 

However, that is the possibly the same whatever path you choose (or chooses you) in life and not always a bad thing.  It is certainly not easy but then nothing worth anything, ever is. 

What would you say to those wanting to become an author?

Read my above answer!!   And, keep writing. 

Tell us about your book/books:

I published Cobwebs of Youth in 2017. It’s a romantic suspense novel although there is a secondary sub-plot of the main character, Lara, trying to achieve her ambition of becoming a children’s book illustrator. There are quite a few tangents to the plot so it’s pretty involved, and I often wonder how on earth I managed to pull it all together. I was bringing up my daughter and working part-time in London, but with writing, when you believe in your story, it demands to be written!

I finished my second novel, Rosalie & Mika, which is set in Portugal, last year. It’s much shorter than Cobwebs of Youth and darker in tone. Although I would still describe it as romantic suspense, the genre definitely leans more toward literary fiction. I am aiming to publish it next year when I get a free moment between reading and reviewing! I also have a collection of short stories in the pipeline and another dark suspense which has the working title of Black Glitter. Also debating whether to publish some of my poetry.

What do you love about the writing/reading community?

The genuine support and interest.  Rare to find these days, and even rarer online. 

If you could say anything to your readers what would it be?

Thank you, you really have no idea what it means to know that someone is reading something you wrote and is (hopefully) engaging with the story and the characters.

If you loved my book, tell everyone, if you hated it, tell me!

Where can people connect with you?

Through my site: roseauburn.com - my reviews, prose and poetry samples as well as book details are on there.

Good, old-fashioned email: RoseAuburnBooks@gmail.com

Twitter: @RoseAuburnBooks