I interviewed author Maggie Richell-Davies about winning the  Historical Writers’ Association 2020 Unpublished Novel Award, with The Servant. Maggie says about her book: “It was inspired by a visit to London’s Foundling Hospital Museum, with its heart-breaking stories about the tokens desperate women left there in the hope that they might, one day, be able to reclaim their child.”

I also asked Maggie, who has been shortlisted for the Bridport Flash, Olga Sinclair and Joan Hessayon Awards, about what it’s like to be a first-time published author late in life.

Leslie: Can you explain what you mean by, “…my link with the north-east is reflected in my author name: Maggie Richell-Davies.” Continue reading THE COMPASSIONATE HISTORICAL NOVELIST →

I interviewed artist Isobel Moore, who says about herself: “I am a visual artist from East Sussex, originally from London. A domestic sewing machine is my tool of choice! I am inspired by colour and pattern, and I enjoy nothing better than finding an unwanted piece of fabric and breathing new life into it by adding it to my work. As well as colourful recycled fabrics, I love using old lace, beads, buttons, and recycled papers like maps and music. I have recently started to experiment with paint.” Continue reading THE ART OF IZZY IN STITCHES →

I interviewed author, philosopher and psychotherapist Lesley Hayes about the differences between the three stages in her creative life. Lesley abandoned a career as a best-selling writer to practise as a therapist, returning much later to writing books and, as a result, embracing a deeper sense of life.

Leslie: Can you describe the difference, please, between the books you wrote from 17 – 37 and those you’ve written after retirement. Why did you return to writing and how have you changed as an author?

Lesley: At 17 I began working on Honey Magazine, and showed the editor some of my short stories. She was so taken with one that she published it in the magazine. That was the start of a whirlwind rise to relative fame. Continue reading BEING AN AUTHOR: “TRUST IN GOD BUT TIE UP YOUR CAMEL” →

I interviewed Mary J. Oliver about her debut novel Jim Neat , which uses  an original mix of prose, poetry, found documents and photographs to uncover the secret history of her father as a vagrant in Canada. Jim Neat ranges across 20th century history,  adopting a legal structure to ‘make the case’ for the worth of Jim’s life.

Our archives are a dream-like portal to our unwritten histories – Mary J. Oliver.

Leslie: Your debut novel Jim Neat is a collection of documents putting a legal case about your father. Can you explain why you adopted this structure and what you set out to prove, please? Continue reading A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY IN MY FATHER’S FOOTSTEPS →

I interviewed Yorkshire author and broadcaster Julie Noble about her successes in three writing competitions – the Northern Writers Award 2019, Arvon Gold Dust Award and Moniack Mhor Two Roads – and her Radio 4 show ‘My Name is Julie’, in which she interviewed people closely involved with disadvantaged families experiencing Summer Learning Loss because of lockdown.

Leslie: How did you put together ‘My Name is Julie’? What did you learn about the issue and presenting this kind of radio material & working with worried people? Continue reading A WORKING CLASS WORD-SMITH IS SOMETHING TO BE →