Wicked Ambition
What can you tell us about your new book Wicked Ambition?
Wicked Ambition is a sexy, high-glam rollercoaster of a revenge thriller set in the music industry. It revolves around three women: Robin Ryder, the UK’s brightest solo star, rescued from a dark past via an X-Factor-type reality show; Kristin White, a California pop princess, whose boyband beau Scotty is hiding an explosive secret; and Turquoise, my favourite, the wild-haired chartstormer whose sordid beginnings threaten to come back to haunt her… Wicked Ambition is my most sensational novel yet. If you’ve ever wondered what goes on behind the closed doors of the super-rich, this is the ride for you!
Please tell us about the development of your three key characters throughout the novel.
Turquoise goes on the biggest journey. The man she seeks vengeance against is one of Hollywood’s biggest A-list players, but behind the pristine smile he’s evil through and through. Payback comes at a price, and she must find the courage to take it. Kristin’s world was masses of fun to write because it begins so princess-perfect, the kind of vanilla glossy life we imagine Californian rich kids enjoying – but when wild revelations shatter that reality, for the first time Kristin has to grow up, wise up and take control. Robin starts out in London and her history is the furthest cry from fame and fortune. Over the course of the book she realises her instincts about being followed are founded: someone is out to get her, and will stop at nothing till the prize is theirs…
Do you believe behind every famous person there is someone looking to strip them of their success?
No. While we live in a culture that likes to speculate on the minutiae of every tiny thing a celebrity does, most of us don’t bear any ill will towards that person. But where there is a personal investment, a wronged family member or acquaintance, say, or more prosaically a fan obsession, malevolent intentions can flourish. It’s the oldest drama there is: the fallen angel. What goes up must come down, and the higher a star rises the further there is to drop.
You used to work in publishing before you become a writer so please tell us about your role in this profession?
After university I applied for experience at every publisher in London. All I wanted was to work with books. I started off doing an internship at Little, Brown and while I was there a job came up for Editorial Assistant – I interviewed for it and was hired. The business of producing books fascinated me. I loved seeing how dog-eared manuscripts were turned into glossy hard-edged novels, and over the years I moved up to Editor position, where I was responsible for reading authors’ work and preparing it for publication. It was an awesome job that I was sad to leave, but when the writing bug caught up it was just too hard to resist.
How much has that experience affected getting published?
Knowing the industry stood me in good stead. Publishing is a business like any other and the key thing is to be clear on how your novel can make money. How commercial is the idea? Where would it be positioned in the market? What bestsellers might it sit alongside? I also understood how hard it was to get a deal, and the importance of trying, trying and trying again. My first book Hollywood Sinners was rejected by eleven publishers, but rather than accepting defeat I reminded myself of what I already knew: that every author at some point in their career faces rejection. It’s part of the job. The only thing that matters is to keep going.
What is the appeal of 'bonkbusters' for the reader?
In a word: escapism. Bonkbusters are gateways into glittering worlds that most of us can only dream of, worlds where anything goes and our wildest fantasies can be played out. They’re ideal holiday reads because they encourage us to switch off from everything, from our ordinary lives, concerns and troubles, and get totally swept away. Bonkbusters are big-canvas books peopled with outrageous characters, larger-than-life plotlines and dazzling locations. Oh, and sex!
What is your writing process?
I’m pretty impatient. Once I get an idea for a book I want to begin it immediately, get to know my characters, see where the story takes me. What I should do is plan it a bit more, because 70,000 words in I often get tangled up and need to unpick the knots before I can carry on. Planning is a funny thing because too much of it can make the writing rigid – characters and plotlines need room to grow of their own accord – but at the same time not planning enough leads me down cul-de-sacs and wrong turns. Once I begin the writing I live the book every day. I tend to work to quite short deadlines (3 or 4 months per novel) so there’s no getting away from it. I’ll try to keep to 9 to 5, Monday to Friday, but that isn’t always possible. Some days I’ll barely get off the starting blocks; others I’ll be tapping away till it gets dark. I’m planning a new book at the moment and I can’t wait to dive in.
How much did your degree in English affect your writing?
I was studying rather more serious texts at university so not that much!! I mean obviously it did a little, but my main education in the world of bonkbusters were the books I read as a teenager (Jackie Collins, Jilly Cooper, Shirley Conran) – I’d say those classic 80s romps affected my writing the most. That said, reading outside the genre is important, learning how authors construct their worlds, whether we’re talking Fitzgerald or Fifty Shades, so in terms of absorbing literature of all flavours it was a very useful degree.
When you look back at your first novel that you wrote in university, The Hardest Part, what do you think about it now with more experience as a writer?
Ha! That’s what I think. The Hardest Part was a bit of fun. I had the urge to write and it seemed to entertain my friends. There wasn’t much of a story (love-struck actor struggling to get roles), it was mostly sex, but the reaction I got made me think I could have a stab at doing it seriously some day. I haven’t looked at it in ages and I’m fairly confident it’s awful.
What is next for you?
I have a Mills & Boon coming out in September. It’s my first go at writing for this amazing institution and I can’t wait. Glittering Fortunes is set in England but with a Hollywood twist. It’s a love story – but expect raunchiness too! I’m also working on my next bonkbuster, which will be out summer 2014.