Julia Sutton
What made you decide to become a writer?
I’ve always loved creative writing, since a young child. I used to create my own stories, complete with drawings and stick them together with Sellotape. As a teenager I aspired to be a music journalist or an author, but after choosing work over uni, I shelved the dream of writing for a living. Instead, I worked as a secretary in an engineering firm until I had my children. Having time out from work got me thinking about my love of books and creative writing. When my children were 1 and 3, I enrolled on a part time English degree at my local uni and after completing my studies I became employed as a teaching assistant. I absolutely loved working with children and decided to train to become a primary school teacher. While studying for my PGCE however, I became unwell and had to defer the course. As I was recuperating I had an idea for a romantic mystery story and began writing my first novel, The Lake Of Lilies. After many rejections I eventually signed a contract in 2014. Since then I have retired, studied for a Master’s in Creative Writing and written 11 other novels. I think the love of writing has always been in me and I definitely feel that it is my vocation.
How do you decide your plots? Are they taken from events that have happened to you? Do you base your characters on real people – or do you prefer to be fully creative and make them up?
Some of my books have been based on my own experiences and some are completely from my imagination. My four book School Of Dreams series is based on my experience of attending university. I have also written a mental health themed novel, which was based on my experience of my own mental health challenges. Then I’ve written a time travel fantasy, which was a product of my wild imagination.
I have based characters on real people. My summery rom-com, Cocktails, Wedding Bells & Summer Madness has a main character who is based on a friend. But the majority of my characters are complete fabrications.
What comes first for you – the plot or the characters? And why?
It’s usually the plot that comes first. I get a story idea and then the characters develop around it. I then usually come up with a working title. I’m not sure why I usually think of the plot first, I guess that’s just the way my brain is wired.
How many books have you written and/or published and which is your favourite?
I have written and published 11 books, with my 12th due out in a few week’s time and I’m halfway through my 13th. I’ve written a 4 book romance series, 2 Christmas themed romance novels, a romantic mystery, 2 romantic comedies, a time travel romantic fantasy and a psychological mental health book. Romance features in all of my books and romantic literature is my favourite genre to read.
My favourite book that I’ve written is called Love In The Spotlight and is my 8th book.
Tell me more about your favourite book – the plot, characters, setting, POV, tense…
Love In The Spotlight is a romantic comedy about a middle aged lady who transforms her staid life, when she lands a job as a backing singer for an upcoming boy’s band. It’s set partly in a Cornish fishing village and in London. It’s narrated in third person point of view, the main character is a lovely lady called Elizabeth Ryan. My next WIP is going to be the sequel to it, and I’m so excited to write it.
What is your favourite genre to write in?
This is an easy big yes for romance. I just adore writing about love and exploring relationships. I think romance has had a bad press over the years. There seems to be the assumption that romance is less of a genre, but in my opinion it is a wonderful genre to write and read in. I personally find romance literature inspiring, uplifting and a lovely bit of escapism.
Did you need to do research for your book? If so, how much did you do, how did you do it?
Yes I do research for all of my books. For example my Christmas novel, A Christmas Written In The Stars, was set in the 1980s so I researched the music and fashion. I also do a lot of research on settings e.g 2 of my novels are set abroad: Majorca and Crete, and even though I’ve travelled to those destinations, I still had to research to make the stories authentic. I’m planning on setting a future book in America, so I will need to do some lengthy research on that. I love the research side of writing a book – it’s one of my favourite aspects of creating a novel.
How do you feel about killing off popular characters? Is it something you enjoy doing in your own books? Have you done it?
Yes, I’m not ashamed to admit that I have killed off popular characters, but only because the plot of the story needed it. I did quite enjoy it, which was surprising, as I consider myself a big softie. I just let the story take over and as authors we have to do what the plot demands I guess.
Would you write any genre or do you stick to one?
I am presently writing in a different genre to romance. My 13th novel is a Young Adult family drama / adventure story. I am really enjoying writing it and am definitely open to exploring different genres, such as gothic, literary, in the future.
Do you write under a pseudonym or your own name?
Always under my own full name. I did consider writing erotica, which I’ve since shelved, but I did have a pen name for that.
Does your family read your work? If not, would you like them to? Are your books their thing? Would it bother you if they weren’t interested in reading any of them?
My daughter and husband read excerpts of my work in progress novels. Their feedback has been really helpful. I’m also part of a writing group with three of my online friends. We share and critique work, their feedback has been very helpful too.
Once a book has been published quite a lot of my family members read it – my mom, mother-in-law, kids, nieces etc…
How many hours a day or week would you say you spend writing? Is it a potential career for you, is it something you do outside your day job?
I spend about 20 hours per week on writing. I usually write in the week and have weekends off to spend with family. At the moment I see it as more of a hobby, as I’m not making much money from it, but I hope to progress within the writing industry and become more successful.
Is writing therapeutic for you, or does it cause you to stress out?
Definitely therapeutic 😊 I absolutely love creative writing. It makes me happy and gives me a sense of fulfilment. Nothing about it stresses me out.
How do you react to reviews? Would you prefer just good ones or are you okay to receive a bad one occasionally? How does this make you feel?
I’m going to be honest and admit when my first book was published the low reviews upset me very much. Since then I’ve become more resilient and have found that constructive criticism can be really enlightening. Now I don’t mind the low reviews at all. But it’s still lovely to receive a glowing five star review!
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