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Bar Yarns w/ Katherine Howell

Katherine HowellIt’s hard to pin a good woman down (especially the busy author kind) but I’ve managed to persuade Katherine Howell into the bar for a yarn!

Here’s a beer coaster, KH. How about you scribble down the blurb for your new release.

My latest book is the seventh in my crime series about Sydney homicide detective Ella Marconi, and it was released on 1st Feb.

Two female paramedics murdered in a month. Is it coincidence, or are they victims of a serial killer? Detective Ella Marconi isn’t sure, but goes hard after her key suspects, including police officer John Morris. But each turn of the case throws up more questions and entanglements, and Ella and her partner, Detective Murray Shakespeare, struggle to find the truth among the lies. Ella also attempts to balance work and her relationship with Dr Callum McLennan, which is both growing both stronger and more difficult as they face Callum’s mother’s disapproval and the anniversary of his cousin’s murder. Meanwhile, Carly Martens – paramedic and close friend of the second victim – conducts her own investigation. She’s certain that her fellow paramedic Tessa Kimball is hiding something, and her refusal to let it go puts her, Tessa, and even Ella into more danger than Carly could ever imagine.Deserving Death

Well done, now grab a pew. What can I get you to go with your beer nuts? (Shandy? Wine Spritzer? Pink Lemonade?)

A:   I’m on the hard stuff – Coke please  🙂

Hey, did you hear the one about … 

A:   There’s only one joke I can ever remember.

What’s brown and sticky?

A stick.

Classic, no?

I’m a beer nut nut! What bar snack would you be and why?

A:  Salt and vinegar chips. Flavour like a punch in the mouth. Just like me  🙂

(Now I want some.)

Ahh, that beer hit the spot. Let me slip a drink coaster under your glass while you tell us—on a scale of 1 to 10—as a writer are you a messy desker or tidy desker?Katherine Howell's desk

A:   Well, I’d like to claim a six but it’s probably more like eight. But I know where everything is!

(Awww, pup-pieeeeeeee – and a cat!)

Okay, KH, The publican offers you free drinks all night if you will:

  • Dance to Gangnam Style
  • Sing John Denver’s ‘Take me Home Country Roads’ on the Karaoke machine
  • Spend an hour washing dishes

Which do you choose?

A:   dishes, dishes!!

(Chicken! Chicken!)

Time to liven the place up. Got a buck? We can crank up the old jukebox in the corner. You get to pick three songs.

  1.  Africa by Toto.
  2.  Stand Back by Stevie Nicks.
  3.  What a fool believes by the Doobie Bros.

Speaking of chickens… An author, an agent and a chicken walk into the bar… how do you know which one crossed the road?

A:  They all crossed it together. As the old saying goes, wherever there’s an agent there’s an author, and wherever there’s an author there’s a chicken.

There’s a stapler on the bar. Tell me what it’s doing there.

A:  For making coaster art during conversational lulls.

(I hope you don’t mean ours! No lull in ours – ever!)

The pub is the heart of a small town and most locals would be lost without one. What are three things you’d be lost without?

  1.  My partner
  2.  My cat and dog – one of them is standing right now on my desk staring at me – yes, the dog! When the cats’s on the desk staring at me she prefers to sit.
  3.  My family and in-laws.

There are a few good prizes up for grabs in the bar jackpot. Do you have a lucky number? Your lucky number is:

3.  Just on a whim.

Last drinks, my friend! It’s been great. But before we go, tell us how we can find out more about you and your writing/books.

Website:  www.katherinehowell.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Katherine-Howell-Author/145144028865590

Twitter: KHowell_author

[Tweet “@KHowell_author is at the bar having a yarn about her latest, Deserving Death.  @PanMacmillanAus”]

In the meantime, watch out … It’s on the way …

This storm season, in Calingarry Crossing, a perfect storm is heading Maggie Lindeman’s way.  

Find out more, right hereSimmering Season: April 1, 2014

For emergency alerts and warnings for Simmering Season, subscribe to Jenn J McLeod’s blog before you go, or LIKE her Facebook Page.

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Bar Yarns w/ Author Pamela Cook

Pamela CookFirst a Facebook friend,  more recently I had the pleasure of meeting Pamela in person at a NSW Writers’ Centre event, sharing a drink afterwards – a real one. Now, here we are sharing a cyber beer at the Calingarry Crossing pub and having a yarn. Okay, Pamela, here’s a beer coaster! Take a minute to jot down the blurb for your book.

A young woman on the brink of marriage uncovers a family mystery and heads off on a road trip in search of answers to the past and a missing piece of herself.

Miranda McIntyre thinks she has it all sorted. A successful lawyer, she’s planning her wedding and ticking off all the right boxes. When searching for something old to go with her wedding dress she remembers an antique necklace from her childhood, but her mother denies any knowledge of it.

 

Miranda is sure it exists. Trying to find the necklace, she discovers evidence that perhaps the grandmother she thought was dead is still alive. Ignoring the creeping uncertainty about her impending marriage, and the worry that she is not living the life she really wants, Miranda takes off on a road trip in search of answers to the family mystery but also in search of herself. Ultimately, she will find that looking back can lead you home. A captivating story of family, love and following your heart, from the author of Blackwattle Lake.

Well, don’t just stand there. Grab a pew. What can I get you to go with your beer nuts? (Shandy? Wine Spritzer? Pink Lemonade?) A: Since it’s summer I’ll have an ice cold shandy thanks Jenn. And make it a schooner 🙂

(That’s my girl!)

Hey, did you hear the one about … 

A: I’m absolutely hopeless at remembering jokes so I’ll pass on that and leave it to those who are actually good at it.

I’m a beer nut nut! What bar snack would you be and why?

A: Definitely a potato chip. Salty with plenty of crunch.

Ahh, that shandy hit the spot. Let me slip a drink coaster under your glass while you tell us—on a scale of 1 to 10—as a writer are you a messy desker or tidy desker?

A: Don’t even have to think about that one. I’m a very messy desker, probably around an 8 Essie's Wayout of 10. There’s a small space in front of the computer that’s clear but a couple of growing piles on either side and the rest of my office isn’t any better. But I do occasionally go on a rampage and clear some space. Usually when I’m procrastinating. I’m in between books at the moment (writing them, that is) so I’ve gone way past procrastination!

The publican offers you free drinks all night if you will:

  • Dance to Gangnam Style
  • Sing John Denver’s ‘Take me Home Country Roads’ on the Karaoke machine
  • Spend an hour washing dishes

Which do you choose?

A: The karaoke option. Although I’d probably have to down more than a couple of shandies to work up the nerve. I’ve never done karaoke in public (although it is on my bucket list!) but I do love a good singstar session. And John Denver takes me way back. Love that song!

(Let me get you another drink, then!)

Time to liven the place up. Got a buck? We can crank up the old jukebox in the corner. You get to pick three songs.

  1. Leave Me Alone or Funhouse by Pink. I adore everything about her – music, lyrics, looks and attitude!
  2. American Pie by Don Mclean. Because everybody knows the words and after a few drinks will definitely sing along.
  3. Khe Sanh by Cold Chisel. Takes me back to my youth and great nights listening to classic Aussie rock at local pubs.

The pub is the heart of a small town and most locals would be lost without one. What are three things you’d be lost without?

  1. My horse, Morocco. I’ve had him for 8 years now and although I’m still not that confident a rider, hanging out with him is one of the joys of my life. When you’re riding a horse you need to be totally focused so it’s a great way to leave everything else behind and just escape.
  2. Although I initially resisted the whole mobile phone thing I now have to admit I’d be lost without my iphone. It’s rarely out of my hand!
  3. My bathtub. There’s nothing better than soaking in a long hot bath with a chilled glass of white and a great book. The perfect way to relax.

There are a few good prizes up for grabs in the bar jackpot. Do you have a lucky number? Since I have three beautiful daughters I’d have to say 3 is my lucky number.

Last drinks, my friend! It’s been great. But before we go, tell us how we can find out more about you and your writing/books.

Hachette: http://www.hachette.com.au/books/9780733632082/
Website: www.pamelacook.com.au
Facebook: www.facebook.com.PamelaCook/Author
Twitter: @PamelaCookAU

[Tweet “@pamelaCookAU is at the bar having a yarn about her latest @hachetteAus release: Essie’s Way”]

In the meantime, watch out … It’s on the way …

This storm season, in Calingarry Crossing, a perfect storm is heading Maggie Lindeman’s way.  

Find out more, right hereSimmering Season: April 1, 2014

For emergency alerts and warnings for Simmering Season, subscribe to Jenn J McLeod’s blog before you go, or LIKE her Facebook Page.

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Zena Shapter shares a beer and a bar yarn

 

ZenaShapter300dpiJust last week I asked Zena to talk seriously about her writing process; she regularly chats about all sorts of serious ‘writerly stuff’. Check out her blog’s About and Becoming A Writer pages.

This week, as I invite her to visit Calingarry Crossing pub and share a beer nut and a chat, we meet the OTHER Zena, the whacky Zena, the party Zena who enjoys a little Gangnam style!!

 

Come on in, Zena. Grab a pew. What can I get you to go with your beer nuts? (Shandy? Wine Spritzer? Pink Lemonade?)

A: Thanks, Jenn! I’ve already had a few champagnes while I was editing by the pool earlier (I wish!), so I’ll have a Malibu and pineapple, please – no ice, well, as long as the pineapple juice has been chilled, which I’m sure it has!

Hey, did you hear the one about … 

A: How do penguins drink their whisky?

On the rocks.

Cute! I’m a beer nut nut, Zena. What bar snack would you be and why?

A: Flamin’ Hot Monster Munch, because they’re from England, they go well with beer, are very moreish, and really wake up your tastebuds.

Ahh, my beer hit the spot. Let me slip a drink coaster under your glass while you tell us—on a scale of 1 to 10—as a writer are you a messy desker or tidy desker?

A: 1 = people wonder how I can possibly work somewhere so tidy.

 The publican offers you free drinks all night if you will:

  • Dance to Gangnam Style
  • Sing John Denver’s ‘Take me Home Country Roads’ on the Karaoke machine
  • Spend an hour washing dishes

Which do you choose?

A: Dance to Gangnam Style – willingly and with gusto!

That’s the spirit. Time to liven the place up. Got a buck? We can crank up the old jukebox in the corner. You get to pick three songs.

  1. Rizzle Kicks – “Down With The Trumpets”
  2. Justice Crew – “Everybody”
  3. Ylvis – “The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)”

Okay, an author, an agent and a chicken walk into the bar… how do you know which one crossed the road?

A: They all arrived together but the agent crossed the road because a publisher walked by on the other side. The author stayed with the chicken so the agent could use them as a talking point and generate interest in the author’s new book, because every author needs a chicken to look interesting.

(Too true!)

Now, there’s a stapler on the bar. Tell me what it’s doing there.

A: It’s a decoration – because who uses so much paper they need a stapler these days?

The pub is the heart of a small town and most locals would be lost without one. What are three things you’d be lost without?

  1. Time to write.
  2. Hugs from my family.
  3. A good night’s sleep.

There are a few good prizes up for grabs in the bar jackpot. Do you have a lucky number?

I wish I had a lucky number! I’m not really a lucky person. But that’s okay, because I reckon I’m lucky in life these days, and I’m happy with that!

Last drinks, my friend! It’s been great. But before we go, tell us how we can find out more about you and your writing/books.

I’m part-cyber so lurk in most online social networks: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Goodreads, and I blog on my website too. Come and find me if you like wild rides through the gulches of adventure that spit you out breathless; or close-to-reality books of the unexplained, ones that take you away from the everyday yet stay so close it’s only when you shut the book you realise you’ve been away at all. Everywhere I’ve travelled in the world – and I’ve been to almost fifty countries – I’ve sought out unusual stories and uncommon sights, then taken copious notes on them. Now I use those notes to conjure thought-experiments and journeys into the ‘what ifs’ of fiction, the beyond and the magical… Life is magical. Life is about searching for improved existences and converting the unfamiliar into something more recognisable. Life is an adventure at once unseen and unlikely yet there and very real, sometimes thrilling and dangerous, yet ultimately ours to relish. If I can, with my stories I’ll show you just how thrilling and magical that adventure can be…

Hi! I’m a British-Australian author who loves putting characters inside the most perfect storm of their lives, then watching how they get out. I like wild rides through the gulches of adventure that spit you out breathless, and close-to-reality books of the unexplained. I’ve won seven national fiction writing competitions (all blind judging) and am represented by literary agent Alex Adsett. Watch this space for news on when my novels will be published! I also run the widely attended Northern Beaches Writers’ Group, and give regular talks/tutorials on creative writing and social media (because, after all, I am part-cyber!).

Fantastic. Please leave a comment for Zena and if you can, share the love online. Every author need good lovin! 

Tweet me: http://twitter.com/zenashapter
Connect me: http://facebook.com/ZenaShapter
Read me: http://zenashapter.com/blog

[Tweet “.@zenashapter is at the bar chatting to Jenn J McLeod http://wp.me/p1zse7-1oq”]

simmering-season_jacket

In the meantime, watch out …

It’s on the way …

This storm season, in Calingarry Crossing, a perfect storm is heading Maggie Lindeman’s way.  Find out more, right hereSimmering Season: April 1, 2014

For emergency alerts and warnings for Simmering Season, subscribe to Jenn J McLeod’s blog before you go, or LIKE her Facebook Page.