I was already an established author writing as Tamara McKinley when I was approached to write a series of books set in a boarding house on the south coast of England during WW2. And so the Beach View Boarding house series was born and I have come to regard my characters as family, always welcoming the chance to be with them again during each book. They make me laugh, they make me cry and they make me want to shake them sometimes, but they get on with their lives, just as all of us do.
Sweet Memories of You
· My inspiration for Sweet Memories of You came from earlier books in the series. Peggy Reilly's sister, Doreen, has been talked about, but never seen, and I thought it was time I delve into her life to see how the war is affecting her. The courage of the men who endured such danger on the Atlantic convoys to keep Britain fed gave me the story, and this was further enhanced by a tragedy in London that was kept firmly under wraps until very recently.
· Doreen and the Reilly family might be fictional, but they are very much alive to me, and when I return to Cliffehaven and Beach View Boarding House, it's as if I'm coming home. Like Peggy Reilly, I worry about them all - except for Ron and his dog Harvey, who are a law unto themselves! And perhaps I love them the most, for they continually surprise me with their shenanigans.
· I was born after the war, and so much has changed in our world that Peggy wouldn't recognise it now. And yet people don't change. They still fall in and out of love, feel joy, sorrow, fear and loss, and have to fight the same battles to overcome all the hurdles life throws into our path. Having had a bit of an 'interesting' life, with more than a few hurdles to vanquish, I feel I'm well qualified to write about them, and perhaps bring some consolation to a reader going through the same thing, for none of us are alone in our struggles even though it may feel like it at the time.
· I live with my husband and surviving cat in a tiny hamlet on the south coast of England. My children have long since flown the nest for more exotic realms in the sun. I write in my small back bedroom which is stuffed with books and has views out over my pretty garden to the South Downs. I like to immerse myself in the war years and therefore I prefer total silence, but now my husband has retired, that's not always possible because he does like to hammer and saw things. I work from ten in the morning until six at night five days a week, and if a deadline is looming, I also work at weekends.
· My cat is a tabby called Tilly. I love her very much, but as she walks all over my computer and demands to be cuddled every five minutes she's banned from my office. But she sits on my lap every evening and gets her fair share of attention, before decamping to my husband's rounder, softer and warmer stomach where she purrs like well-oiled motor.
· I was born in Australia, raised by my grandmother and two great-aunts and came to England to finish my education. I go back frequently to visit my son and two grandsons in Queensland, and stop off to see my younger son in Thailand. But England is my home now, and I count myself lucky that I live in such a beautiful village amid such spectacular scenery.
· When I was ten I wanted to be an actress, a singer, or a dancer, and if I hadn't discovered my calling as an author, I might very well have failed spectacularly in musical theatre. I go to see a show when I can, and just loved Miss Saigon, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and The Commitments.
· My favourite authors are, Ken Follett, Judith Nunn, Jilly Cooper. Leon Uris, Kate Mosse and Gerald Seymour. An eclectic mix, I know, but I devour books of all kinds, and there's nothing better than a ripping yarn to keep me out of mischief when I'm not writing.
· Sweet Memories of You is the tenth book in the Beach View Boarding House series, and they have consistently been in the Sunday Times Bestseller's List. Unlike most books in the saga genre, they're now being published in France.
Sweet Memories of You by Ellie Dean is published by Arrow on 28th January 2016 in paperback, priced £5.99
To learn more about Ellie Dean, go to her website www.ellie-dean.co.uk