10 things author Charlotte Betts wants readers to know about her

30 October 2018

Ahead of the publication of her new book, The Palace of Lost Dreams tomorrow (October 31), we asked author Charlotte Betts to write up 10 things she'd like all of her readers to know about her! Find out what she had to say below...

Photo Credit: James Greed

1. I came to writing very late in life and my first published novel didn’t arrive in the book stores until I was 61. Since then I’ve had seven novels published – one every year - so it’s never too late to start a new career. Now that writing shapes my life, I find it astonishing that I didn’t begin much earlier. Of course, five children and my own business, which involved a fair amount of overseas travel, may have had something to do with that!

2. From the time I could first spell out the letters in my Ant and Bee picture books, I was a voracious reader. The great thing for me about reading, and writing, is that it’s an escape from the real world. Both can take you somewhere different allowing you to vicariously experience another person’s life, gain new insights about the world or discover, from a safe place, how you might deal with powerful emotions or dangerous situations.

3. My husband and I live in a C17th cottage in the woods in Hampshire. Walking straight out of the door into woodland with Hattie, our rescued border collie, is a daily pleasure. There is something new to enjoy every day and we regularly encounter deer, squirrels, foxes and sometimes a badger. I’m always astonished by the rich variety of fungi, though I never dare to eat them. ‘Forest bathing’ has become popular in Japan but I don’t need to leave Hampshire to gain the benefits.

4. I visited India a few years ago and have never forgotten the impact it made upon me. It was a complete assault on the senses and, when I look at the photographs I took then, I’m immediately transported back to the heat, the intense clamour of the streets and the mixed aromas of cinnamon, jasmine and drains. I found the decaying grandeur of the vast palaces and forts impossibly romantic and often dreamed about walking through them alone, listening to the whispers of times long ago. It was this that inspired me to write The Palace of Lost Dreams.

5. My first career was as a fashion designer but after I had my children, I returned to art school and retrained as an interior designer, later working on the design and installation of hotel interiors. As an impoverished working mother, I was once persuaded, at very short notice, to teach oil painting at an evening class after the appointed lecturer moved away. I made it clear that although I painted in watercolours, I had no formal training in oils. The college was desperate to keep the class going and begged me to step in. I mugged up on technique before every class and at the end of the year my students said I was the best teacher they’d had. I still feel a fraud, though!

6. Although I write historical fiction, I didn’t enjoy history at school. I found learning lists of dates by rote unbelievably tedious. What always fascinated me was how people lived in the past. As a child I loved it when my parents took me on visits to stately homes and I imagined sleeping in the four foster beds or being a scullery maid in the cavernous kitchens. Only now do I understand that political history matters because of the effect it had on ordinary people. My interest is in writing about ordinary people in extraordinary times rather than Kings and Queens, though I have given cameo roles in my books to some members of royalty.

7. I enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Walking in the countryside is one of the best ways to lift the spirits and brilliant for sorting out plot problems. Baking is one of my passions and I love it when the house smells of new bread or chocolate cake. I made the wedding cakes for two of our children and friends never leave my table hungry. Gardening is good for the soul, even though it takes my back longer to recover these days. On winter nights I like to light the wood-burner and watch a good drama on the television. Family is important to me and I like nothing better than to get all the generations together for lunch.

8. The way a writer’s mind creates a story fascinates me. I find it essential to daydream. Perhaps due to my artistic training, I have a very visual imagination and I must picture a scene in detail before I can write it. I try to visit the location first, or at least look at photos and maps. I need to know what angle the sun is coming from, what my characters are wearing and what they are thinking – even if they are saying something quite different. Once I have all this in my head I view the scene as if it were a film, rolling it back and re-running it if something strikes a wrong note. Only when I can ‘see’ the whole scene will I start to write.

9. I’ve always been fairly shy but writing has opened up my life. Not only have I made a circle of new author and publishing friends but it’s forced me out of my writing cave. Part of the business of being a writer is to promote your books so now I talk to groups and give lectures at conferences. This was really scary at first as I had no training in public speaking but now I take it in my stride. There are always lots of questions from the audience at the end of a talk and it pleases me enormously that people are so interested.

10. I pride myself on always meeting deadlines. This was essential for my commercial design practice and writing novels combines similar creative and commercial aspects. I’m a bit of a control freak (actually a total control-freak) and always plan novels in detail, just as I’ll work out a time plan for cooking a celebration dinner and keep an updateable packing list for holidays. I always carry a notebook and make lists. Lots of lists.