Please welcome, friend and author, Katie Loveley...

...to the blog this week.  Hello Katie, (real name, Alyson), and thanks for making time to be here today.  So, tell me all about your latest book?
KLL  My current release is another social drama which raises awareness of current issues within our society.  I am very excited about this, my third contemporary fiction novel and sincerely hope that the readers enjoy this story of Willow and Gabriel, a young couple whose lives take a very different path from what the reader might expect.  The book will be published on April 29th and is available for pre-order Here. 

AW   What first got you into writing and why?
KLL  Writing is in my blood.  It is in my DNA.  I have always felt driven to put pen to paper on a daily basis since I learned to write.  I clearly remember my early days in infant school when I was taught the magic of putting my thoughts into words.  As I got older, I progressed from writing in my diary to writing in a journal, to date I have diaries and journals spanning sixty-one years.
As I left childhood behind, my love of reading and writing did not wane.  My work as an NHS nurse in primary care put me in close contact with the public and the many health and social problems encountered.  Many of these issues I felt could be fictionalized and written in a way that could reflect how life can sometimes run out of control even for people who could be considered strong minded and in control of their lives.
AW   You write issue-driven contemporary fiction.  Is it all imagination or do you also do research?
KLL  I was in a good position to research public health statistics and outcomes which helped me to decide the social and medical issues I wished to fictionalize, in addition I met many patients who led very interesting lives and shared their stories with me.  The characters in my social drama series are all from my imagination and from my observation of other people.
I’m often asked ‘how much of the stories came from my own life?’  The answer is thankfully, not much, but that does not mean that I have not used and exaggerated some of my own experiences and observations.
AW  And what about other types of writing?  Have you dabbled with other genres, short stories or poetry?
Yes is the answer to all three genres.  I truly enjoy writing poetry and do so on a regular basis.  I find that writing poetry gives me an emotional release.  I have written many poems, a few of which are published in my collection of illustrated poetry titled Chameleon Days.  This is also available as audio, which was quite an experience I can tell you.
I have written short stories for the occasional competition and magazine but prefer novels.
Under a different pen-name I have written a collection of illustrated children’s books based on the amusing antics of my hens.  Titled ‘Morning Mystery’ from the Coop Chaos series, this is aimed at the age range two to six years.
AW  Famous authors such as Roald Dahl and Dylan Thomas had a special space for writing.  Do you have a writing shed of your own?
KLL  My special place for writing is on our wonderful narrowboat that is moored in Mercia Marina South Derbyshire.
AW    And finally, what do you think your eight-year-old self would think and say about you and what you have achieved today?

KLL  A very good question Angela, one that I have recently considered during my voluntary work as a school reader at the very same primary school that I attended as an eight-year-old.
While helping the teachers with literacy lessons (which have become so important since lockdown created a huge drop-in writing and reading competencies) I have reflected on myself at their age.
I clearly remember how much I enjoyed primary school.  My favourite place was the library which to me was the most magical of places.  The year I turned eight was 1961.  The swinging sixties around the corner and the year that the farthing coin was removed from circulation.
More importantly, it was the year that the first man went into space.  This was a hot topic at school for me and for my imagination.
Coming from a working class background the very idea that one day I would become a published author would have been beyond my wildest dreams, despite the fact that I was already writing on a daily basis in my treasured lock up diary and writing short stories.
Back then authors were put on a pedestal by me, I would have considered them like a celebrity, or someone to be revered.
If I was to turn back the hands of time and tell little Alyson that one day, she would be an author, I guess she would smile and say ‘well I was named after a children’s author called Alison Uttley.  Although my father decided to spell it with a Y.

about the book…Nature lover, Willow embraces life to its fullest potential.  After all, she is living her life as two people.  When her identical twin sister, Molly, sadly dies a short time after birth, Willow carries with her the memory of sharing the same beginnings of life.

When Willow becomes a mother, the voice of Molly begins to drown out all sense of reality, as post-natal depression takes over her every thought.
Gabriel is a third-year medical student when he begins a relationship with Willow. Coming from a very different background of pious parents, he hides his own secret.  This is a secret that eventually has far-reaching consequences.
Gabriel is not the only one with a long-hidden secret.  His parents have a lot to answer for and are the driving force behind the events that unfold in his life.

Union Blues is available for pre-order Here

You can get all of Katie's books, in print or e-format, on Amazon and you can follow her on Facebook and on Twitter