Kay Bell's Blog

I'm excited to announce that my latest book is on pre-order right now on Amazon, Apple, Barnes and Noble, Booktopia and Kobo, with other sites to follow soon.Set on an outback cattle station and following the journeys of two Americans: modern-day backpacker Chase Miller and 1960's governess Rebecca Golding, The American Governess examines Australian and American society of the time.So, how much of it is true?I spend a lot of time researching before a single word appears on the page. Over the decades, I've travelled extensively through Australia and the USA, and I'm fortunate that my husband and thriller-writer TW Lawless grew up on his family's North Queensland cattle station. The characters and situations are fictional, and The American Governess is definitely not a family memoir, however the situations in which the characters find themselves are absolutely based on reality.I hope you read The American Governess, not because I wrote it, but because it offers an insight into another world and another time.

Ella's Secret Family Recipes has been nominated in 2017 Australian Book Industry Awards Small Publishers’ Adult Book of the Year. You can imagine that we're very excited!Please keep your fingers crossed for our success. GO ELLA!

I'm very excited to announce that Ella's Secret Family Recipes will be featured at the writers' retreat at Castle Crom in Ireland between 8 and 13 March 2017.Ella will also be exhibited at the London Book Fair this year. It's a very big deal for the publishing trade and it's all happening between 14 and 16 March 2017 in West London. Wish us luck!

I'm blown away by the review Ella's Secret Family Recipes just received. Here's a taste: "this is total entertainment, coupled with a look back at history through the eyes of the women who make up the basis of Kats ‘Greek’ family, that turns out to be not so Greek after-all!"Read the whole review at https://t.co/j3lieGufFX

I baked my special spanakopita yesterday, just as I've done hundreds of times before. The verdict? Delicious--see for yourself! The recipe is in Ella's Secret Family Recipes, but you'll have to read the book to get it! I promise, it's as good as it looks.

Today was a big day, starting with Bowral and concluding with the ABC radio's Nightlife interview with Dominic Knight, talking about Ella's Secret Family Recipes, food, cooking and the importance of food to culture and traditions. I am bowled over by how nice the presenters are, how gentle they are to newbies like me, and how forgiving. I was treated unbelievably well by everyone at the ABC.I now have a real appreciation about how hard their job is. Interviewing on radio requires real skill and vast knowledge. Dom had done his research and was so helpful when I ran out of steam. The interview will air nationally on Nightlife tonight.T.W. and I arrived at the studio early and I left him on the couch while I "powdered my nose". I came back to find him gesticulating in the direction of the backs of three people walking down the corridor. I can recognise the legs of an old rocker anywhere. I'd just missed Richie Sambora and extraordinary guitarist girlfriend Orianthi Panagaris. Did I mention I'm a fan of Bon Jovi? Orianthi is one of the best rock guitarists in the world. Great timing! Running after them would have been just too tacky. T.W.'s still laughing.I survived the interview and, by the end, was actually relaxed enough to enjoy it. Thanks Dominic Knight and the ABC!

Just finished a breakfast radio interview with Graeme Day on 2ST Highlands station. He was so kind and helpful, he made it a breeze for me. I think I'm slowly getting the hang of this...Coming up: an interview on ABC's Nightlife...

I was interviewed by Fred Mafrica today for The Couch TV chat show airing tonight at 10pm EST on Aurora Foxtel's channel 183. Was I nervous? If you watch, you'll probably guess!

I'm thrilled that Ella's Secret Family Recipes is in Farrell's Bookstore Mornington, Readings, and QBD all over Melbourne. It 's been really well-received.I have an interview with Gippsland radio coming up. ABC radio will also be interviewing me about Ella soon and it will be going national! I'll post further details closer to the event.

Ella's Secret Family Recipes is finally ready.It has been a labour of love and I have many people to thank, not least my publisher Campanile Publishing, my husband Tom, my editors and my family. Those beautiful eyes on the cover belong to my goddaughter, Natasha, who was kind enough to agree to be the public face of Ella. It was a fabulous shoot and I am incredibly proud of her.Launching a new book is like sending a beloved child out into the world. I can't protect her any longer. Good luck Ella, may all the stars align for you!At the end of Ella I've included some of my own family recipes. Try them if you dare!