Today, I am thrilled to be bringing you my first author interview. Meet Suzy Turner. A little while ago, I posted a review of Suzy's book tilted 'And Then There Was You'. So, let's find out a bit more about this talented lady.
Tell me about yourself.
Hi! And thank you so much for inviting me to your blog. My name is Suzy Turner and I’m an author of contemporary women’s fiction and urban fantasy. Although I’m a Yorkshire lass, I left England with my family when I was just ten years old. I’ve lived in Portugal ever since.
When did you write your first book?
I wrote my first book, Stormy Summer, in my mid twenties (twenty years ago!), but I didn’t publish it until a few years ago.
I see that you write two different genres under different pen names, both are worlds apart. What made you choose to write these genres?
Well, I started off writing chick lit because it was always my favourite genre to read back then. But then I developed a love for urban fantasy with the likes of Harry Potter and Twilight – and then, whilst on holiday in Canada back in 2011, I was inspired to write my very first YA book, Raven. I haven’t looked back since. I still adore both genres and can’t see me giving either of them up! I now publish all my urban fantasy books under my pen name SG Turner.
Tell me a bit about your love for women’s fiction.
It’s the light-heartedness, humour and friendships that appeal to me the most. I avoid reading anything with a sad ending if I can help it. I love stories that pull at your heart strings but always make you smile. And my favourite characters always have a quirkiness to them.
What has been your favourite contemporary women’s fiction book to write so far?
Aphrodite’s Closet (a Frambleberry novel) was so much fun to write! It’s about a woman who inherits a beautiful old building and ends up opening a sex shop with her best friend. It’s full of humour, friendships, romance and mystery too.
Who are your favourite authors and how have they influenced your work?
It was actually Jenny Colgan who inspired me to write in the first place. I remember reading the most amazing interview with her in Cosmo magazine (this is going back over twenty years) and I was so impressed and so inspired that I just had to put pen to paper. I loved all her books so much. Wendy Holden was another author who I couldn’t get enough of either. They both write such wonderfully funny stories.
What are you working on at the moment?
I’m writing another Frambleberry novel. It has no connection to Aphrodite’s Closet other than they’re both set in the same fictional town of Frambleberry. I haven’t given it a proper title yet though.
What advice would you give a new author?
I would say when you’re first starting out, avoiding reading your reviews because people can be so cruel! When I first published Raven, I almost gave up entirely because one person said such horrible things about my work and I took it to heart. Fortunately, I quickly developed a thick skin and now I know not to take any notice.
Lastly, what interests do you have outside of writing?
I’m actually a qualified yoga teacher so I like to do yoga every morning. I taught a couple of times but now I just do ‘classes’ with friends every now and again lol. Other than that, I spend most of my time on my computer lol. If I’m not writing, I’m working on marketing or graphics. Being an author isn’t just about writing–that’s actually quite a small part of it. All in all, it’s hard work, but worth it.
Thanks to Suzy for sharing some insights into her writing. Check out Suzy's work, or follow her on social media below :)
Hi Hayley! Thank you so much for this. It was great fun! And I was so delighted to have been your first interviewee!
Hugs
Suzy x