Mary Fitzgerald by John Quinn
When I Was Young was first self-published on Amazon Kindle under the title The Imperfect Tense. I was very lucky and six of my self-published titles were picked up by Arrow, an imprint of Random House, and this novel was the first title they'd read and offered me an 8 book deal on the strength of it.
The story, set in 1950, is about a girl going to France on a school exchange visit. She has an unhappy home life on a Pennine hill farm with an angry, exhausted mother and a father who has been left damaged by years in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. Initially disappointed at with being placed on a farm in France when she'd yearned for a taste of city life, she soon learns to love the difference between her bleak home and the lush fields and vineyards of the beautiful Loire Valley.
As the story unfolds the difficulties of the French family, also damaged by the war, are revealed, but Eleanor is so entranced by the place that she is desperate to stay. She tries to ignore the small acts of malice conducted by of the some members of the French family and revels in the affection of the others. When her mother is taken ill and her father admitted into an asylum, she is allowed to remain in France. Her life and consequent love affair begins.
Please tell us about the character of Eleanor.
Eleanor is a naïve scholarship girl who constantly feels awkward in the presence of her wealthier school. She has had little attention or love from either of her parents and this trip abroad is an opportunity for her which she knows will never come again. She is a young sixteen year old when we first encounter her, but throughout the novel we see her growing up and becoming a woman.
What made you set the book in France?
I set the book in France because that is where I went to on my school exchange and have visited the country almost every year subsequently. However, I've always loved the Loire Valley with its rich history and vast natural beauty.
Please tell us about your research process into the novel.
While I'm reasonably conversant with both the French language and the history of that region, I spent several weeks reading and compiling notes about local food, vineyards and culture. Added to this I found it necessary to go on another lovely holiday in the region, poor me.
You have worked in many jobs, such as nursing, children's clothes and book shops, so when did writing come into the mix?
I've been writing, on and off, for decades, whether it was stories to entertain my children when they were very young, or a comic novel set upon my experience of living in West Virginia (the trouble was that the most truthful account was one which no one would ever believe). However when I had an idea for a whimsical story set in Wales I found that I had to buckle down and complete it. It was after that that I took my craft seriously, even though it was to be another fifteen years before I found a publisher.
What is next for you?
Keeping on writing, I have a strong idea for my next book and am currently in the research stage, while looking forward to starting the actual writing itself. As for publications, I have a new book ready to hit the shelves in August. It's called What Tomorrow Brings and is a love story about a young journalist in the years leading up to and then covering WWII.
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