There will always be people who prefer the feel of a physical book. Younger readers today are more used to reading on their devices. Many schools don't even have a single hardcopy of school books so they know nothing more. But in the long term, although a majority of younger readers are likely to use their phone, or kindle or pc or laptop; there will always be those who love the smells, the feel of a holding a book, being able to feel part of the story they're reading rather than scanning and skimming lines on a screen. True readers. True lovers of books. I believe books will still be with us for a good few years to come - long live book lovers! haha! Thank you for asking your question.
Oo... now that's a tricky one! What would I change about myself? I'd like to be taller for one haha! At 4ft 6.3/4 inches people have thought I was a kid for a long time ha! I've always felt I have had to 'prove' myself. I'd love to have been slimmer, I've always been short for my weight haha! These are probably what most people would change about themselves I suppose. I've always been a shy extrovert if that makes sense? I can keep quiet when in groups of people, but start me off on a topic I love and I'm like to Duracell bunny - I can go on again, on again, for as long as I have an audience - and beyond at times now that I've started to write, I just continue on paper! Thanks for your question.
I never in my wildest dreams consider writing as a career, no! ha! I often wonder why my Journey Into Authorship even happened, but I was literally 'driven' for two whole years, to write 'Joan: Put on a happy face' If I wasn't researching or writing, I was dreaming scenes... Joan came alive. At times I would be talking to my sons as Joan, the way she'd speak as a medieval person... you know that strange way of speaking that they seemed to have in the past. "You're not Joan" they'd tell me. At the time it was like I was being possessed. Even now, I can sit at the computer with the intent of writing a certain scene and it'll change or one of the other characters will say something that changes the who line of thinking lol! Writing is definitely a strange experience. And I'm not alone in that. Although for a while I thought I was going crazy lol! But after I won a place in Brian Cohen's Ad School and got chatting with other authors, I realised my experience was not unusual at all phew! what a relief that was lol! Thank you for your question.
It was July 2018. I was sat watching a TV show called Good Morning Britain with Kate Garraway. One of her guests was a puppeteer I knew (I'm an entertainment agent by day). He thought he was on the show to discuss his recent loss of work. Cancellations of so many bookings all because he was doing Punch & Judy shows. The presenters on the other hand had their own agenda's; they brought onto the show Tricia Goddard as a second guest and confronted the puppeteer of performing shows that promulgated racism and domestic violence. No such thing he tried to tell them. When he was told to put that puppet away, his minstrelling puppet was painted black, he was so frustrated by their interview that he simply said 'I don't understand what the problem is - they're only blocks of wood!' 'Only blocks of wood...' 'Only blocks of wood?' That phrase resonated through my brain for days. Eventually Judy, otherwise known as Joan, or Dame Joan to be precise, seemed to come to life in my mind! Every day I was mithered by thoughts that what if they weren't only blocks of wood, but had once been real people! Or maybe they were still alive! How would they feel being called only blocks of wood? And that's when my writing began. With 'Joan-put on a happy face'. Thank you for your question.
