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Ask the Author: Kelly Gardiner

“Ask me anything you like about writing, publishing, or about the characters and historical research in my books.” Kelly Gardiner

Answered Questions (9)

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I think you should kill off Mr. Hurst in a sequel to Miss Caroline Bingley, Private Investigator. What do you think?
Kelly Gardiner Ha! I will say that we're working on book 2 now and Mr Hurst is not dead (not yet, but now you suggest it...) but he's certainly not very popular with either of the Bingley sisters. Or us!
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Will we see more of Miss Caroline Bingley?
Kelly Gardiner Hi there. We certainly hope so. We're working on book 2 at the moment, and we're calling it (so far) An Accomplished Woman.
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When co-authoring a crime novel how did you divide up the work and how did you decide who would write what?
Kelly Gardiner Hi. Sharmini (my co-author) and I plotted the way ahead together and then whoever was keen to write certain scenes wrote those. After we'd drafted our scenes we swapped them over to start the process of evening out the voice - at the beginning it was different, because Sharmini is a star at writing close to Jane Austen's voice (as we've based the novel on one of her characters) while I'm used to writing a more modern voice and action scenes. Then we swapped back and forth so often now we can't always remember who drafted what.
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Who is your favorite fictional couple, and why?
Kelly Gardiner Lizzie and Darcy.
Or maybe Princess Marya and Nikolai Rostov.
Or maybe Maud and Sue.
Or maybe Little Dorrit and Arthur.
Or Villanelle and the Queen of Spades.
Or Jake and Lady Brett.
Or Damen and Laurent.
Or ...
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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
Kelly Gardiner 1917 is partly inspired by my own family history - my great-grandmother was very active as a suffragette and peace campaigner, and my great aunts were involved as children in the anti-conscription campaigns of 1916 and 1917. But my grandfather joined the air corps after the war. I always wondered how the women of his family felt about that.
The characters aren't my family members, but they are my fictional tribute to my ancestors.
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Wow. You're from Melbourne. Melbournians are always briliant. I really enjoyed reading your books. The characters, the beautiful settings and especially the fact I could learn so much from a novel, was a very enlightening and lovely experience. I was wondering whether there was going to be a third book? I've become quite invested in Isabella, Willem and co. and what wonderful places you will take us.
Kelly Gardiner Hi Aliah. Ha! Do you think there's something in the water supply? Thanks so much for getting in touch and for your responses to the books. I'm not sure about a third book yet - I have it planned out in my head (Isabella and friends return to Puritan London) but I have a few other projects on the go at the moment. I would like to bring Isabella and the Signora face-to-face with Cromwell. How do you think they'd get on?
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Hello, So I recently stumbled across your book Goddess in an attempt to see what had been written about Julie d'Aubigny - a person I just learned about but certainly need to know more! I know you have an e-book version of your book but I tend to consume my reading old-school and as resident of the US I was wondering when there might be a hardcover/paperback version available here in the States? Thanks! Reagen
Kelly Gardiner Hi Reagen, Sorry for the delay in replying - I'm on a research trip at present and too preoccupied for my own good. Thanks so much for getting in touch. Julie is a fascinating woman, isn't she? I've compiled a little biography of her here, if that helps:
http://kellygardiner.com/fiction/book...
Sorry, I don't know the date yet for the US paperback release but will let you know when I do. Otherwise, the HarperCollins website lists some online retailers who can deliver - but that's from Australia (http://www.harpercollins.com.au/books...).
Will post here when the date is confirmed for US and UK paperbacks.
Best wishes,
Kelly
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What are you currently working on?
Kelly Gardiner After three books set in the seventeenth century, I've turned my attention back to World War 1. I'm rewriting something I wrote a few years ago (War Songs, a novel for adults), and then I'll go on to research and write a children's book, 1917, which has been commissioned by Scholastic for publication in 2017.
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What’s your advice for aspiring writers?
Kelly Gardiner Read and write. It's basic, but true. Read everything, including genres you might not normally read for recreation, as they may have a lot to teach you. Read like a writer - try to figure out how the author is creating the effect on you as a reader. And write as much as you can, whenever you can. Don't worry about whether it'll get published - you can't get anything published until you've written it. So write. Edit. Rewrite. Read. Write some more.
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Kelly Gardiner
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