For Better For Worse is a story is about bigamy, something which was a lot more prevalent when it was more difficult, if not impossible, for the ordinary man or woman in the street to get a divorce. I asked myself, what if? What if, three women who had married the same man, overcame their natural indignation, pain and anger and worked together to make a new start for each other? And that’s how the book started.
Pam Weaver
Please tell us about the character Annie Royal.
Annie Royal is the youngest of the three wives. A romantic and a dreamer, she has a rude awakening when she discovers she is not married. In this day and age, it’s hard for people to understand the stigma of being a single parent in the 1940’s and the fight women had to try and keep their babies. With no financial help from the government, no affordable child care and the impossibility of getting a place to live without a male guarantor, most were forced to give them up for adoption. Annie is a fighter and determined to keep her son but even she can’t do it on her own. Together with Kaye and Sarah, their common plight blossoms into a genuine friendship.
How did the idea for the story evolve?
I once worked in a premature baby unit attached to a maternity ward in a large hospital. One night a patient was brought in. A woman had knocked on her door saying, ‘The man you’re married to is not your husband because he’s still mine.’
The shock brought on an early labour. FBFW was triggered by that memory. I also believe that when they are up against it, some women have an amazing ability to turn something bad into something positive. In situations like that, friendship becomes a bedrock as it does for Sarah, Annie and Kaye.
You write both fiction and autobiographical work so do you have a preference between the two?
Without a shadow of a doubt, I much prefer to write fiction. When I write, I know where my story will end, but like my readers, I go on a journey. I get surprises along the way too. I love it when my characters take on a life of their own and do something I wasn’t expecting!
The book has been compared to Maureen Lee and Katie Flynn, so how does that make you feel?
Maureen and Katie are both prolific authors. It’s hugely flattering to be compared to writers of their stature but I have an awful lot of catching up to do!
What is next for you?
I have developed a passion for the town in which I live and I have discovered that Oswald Mosley and his army of Black Shirts have a history in Worthing. The skirmishes during his visits in 1934, will be the perfect backdrop which alters Ruby Bateman’s life forever. The book will end as the war begins but as for what happens in between… well, I’m still on the journey.
