Wild Women Authors feature L. B. Griffen and The Twenty-One-Year Contract, a 2022 Vintage Rose release out of the Wild Rose Press. With author Griffen is fashion designer Kathleen Gray who will go first.
Good
morning, Kathleen. Thank you for speaking with us. Let’s begin with where you are
from. I used to live in Somerset but
ran away to London when I was fourteen. 1950s London is so different to rural Somerset,
but I’ve settled in. Luckily, my lovely Uncle Jack understood why I ran away,
and has supported my desire to become a fashion designer, and in London!
Tell
us a bit about The Twenty-One-Year Contract. I was adopted as a baby. It’s the 1950s and I had no
idea who my mother was, but my family were wonderful, and my life in rural Somerset
was idyllic. I always wanted to find out about her, but the law doesn’t allow
it.
I guess I was thought of as a bit of
wild-child. I loved to climb trees, and got up to mischief, but I also loved
fashion and sewing. It was something I excelled at. My adoptive mother ran her
own sewing business and including me in all of it. Then, my family were in a
tragic traffic accident and they were gone. I felt abandoned all over again.
My lovely Uncle Jack lives in America
and works across the world. He tried his best but he needed to get on with his
life. That’s when I decided to run away to London. Where else better than to
build a life in fashion. I got a job in a posh London atelier. I mixed with the
rich and famous and have even made clothes for the infamous Dorian Craddock. She’s a
dangerous gangster. Watch out Dorian, you never know what is going to happen to
you.
Now I’m planning to try and find my
mother, but there’s so much more between all of these pages I would love to share
with you. Please, join me in my world. I will welcome you with open arms.
What
did you think the first time you saw Harriet Laws? Harriet was lovely, sweet, and for some reason when I
met her quite by chance in the library, I felt a connection. Then, as
coincidence had it, she came to the Atelier where I worked and guess what—I made
her a cocktail dress. Harriet and I became the best of friends. We are so much more
than that now though.
What was
your second thought? Harriet was genuine and strong, but
I worried about her when she met CJ. He mixed with Dorian Craddock, you remember
I mentioned her earlier. She is dangerous. Her father was hanged for murder. CJ
Rutherford was just as unscrupulous, and it seems his designs on Harriet
worked. They married and I didn’t even know about it. Now she’s gone missing. I
really don’t know what to do.
Do you
feel it was love at first sight? No,
not for Harriet. I think CJ swept her off her feet. But when I met Alex? Yes.
Definitely.
What
do you like most about Alex? Alex is an
upcoming back bencher. He’s wonderful, my ying to his yang. Without him keeping
my feet on the ground I wonder what might have become of me. He’s so supportive
and has brought the issues of the homeless to light in the commons. We do the
soup kitchens together on a Sunday. Where else might you find someone so
dedicated and supportive?
How
would you describe Alex? Honest.
Reliable and totally committed to a cause he believes in. If you had him on
your side you would know you were in safe hands.
How
would Alex describe you? Oh, dear.
Maybe he would be kind. He loves me, that’s so clear. He might say I am a
little difficult, wild at times, and I guess a little eccentric, but he keeps
me grounded.
What
made you choose fashion for a career? That’s
an easy answer. I seem to have a knack of seeing fabrics and working with my
clients to design something that is flattering and fashionable.
What
is your biggest fear? Losing Harriet.
Losing Alex. Losing my baby.
How
do you relax? Well, I loved to go to
all the parties Dorian used to throw, but I grew out of that. It seems the
seedy side was getting more dodgy. Now, I listen to music and when I get a chance
go for walks and dancing.
Who
is your favorite fictional character? My
Uncle Jack is first. Though I love Dorian Craddock. I love to hate her.
What
is the best piece of advice you ever received? Take a deep breath and identify what to do next.
Thank
you again, Kathleen. Now we’d like to chat with L.B. starting with what movies
or books have had an impact on your career as a writer? I love You Have Mail. It’s a tearjerker, and I adore a good romance. Will
they won’t they. In fact, I’m in the middle of writing a contemporary romance
at the moment. I also love Of Mice and Men as my stories are about the
underdog. I want them to win. I want them to survive. I like to draw on issues
that some people might find a little challenging. Like Harriet, in Secrets,
Shame, and a Shoebox who has difficult marriage. Like Kate, who was born
out of wedlock and was adopted and the feelings around abandonment and the
final coming of age and acceptance.
Then, of course, I adore One Flew
Over the Cuckoo’s Nest for the description, the flavour of the time, the
humour. Nurse Ratchet is my Dorian Craddock. Nasty. I love writing nasty. I
like my antagonists to shine and make them someone you love to hate. But I also
love writing the lighter side of life after all it is woven throughout.
Is
there an event in your private life that you were able to bring to this story
and how do you feel it impacted the novel? Absolutely. In fact I would say everything I write is based on
experience of life. Adoption was not uncommon when I grew up in the 50s – yes,
I’m that old. Also, I saw the Dorian Craddocks. The not so nice world. But I
was lucky and side-stepped people like that. Later, during my working full-time
paid jobs I met a wonderful array of people. Each with their own stories that
blew me away. I would never have imagined the lives they led. They were survivors.
My stories are filled with surprises and survival, to mark and respect each and
every one of them.
Tell
us a bit about your publisher: how did you hear about them and what influenced
your decision to submit to them? I
loved the notion that The Wild Rose Press set up in business to support upcoming
authors. The CEO has experienced the difficulties and saw it a way forward. I did
tons of research to discover who was open for submission and in the genre I wrote.
It’s the only way. Unless they come to you.
What
book[s] currently rest on your TBR pile? Goodness I have a stack. I’ve just read Corinne LaBalme’s Summer
People. Great fun. Totally recommend. I have Where the Crawdads Sing.
I watched the film and wanted to read how she wrote the story as there’s so many
gaps in the film. I’ve got Re-Writes of the Heart by Terry Newman on my
list, just put it down and reviewed. Brilliant, clever, and fun. There’s a ton
more, but I won’t bore you.
Last, what's up next for
you and when can we expect to see it on the shelves? My WIP is a contemporary romance. I
hope to have it on the shelves by early next year. It’s an exciting project,
and as its in first person different to my others. It is still a story of
survival, but it has much more humour.
www.wifeinthewest.com
– a blog for budding writers and highlighting authors
www.instagram.com/lynngriffinauthoruk
www.Facebook.com/lynngriffinauthor/
www.twitter.com/lbgriffinauthor
Best of luck on your book. It sounds good!
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