🍴Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo ~ Linda Tyler

 

On this quiet Sunday morning why don't you put the kettle on, make your favourite breakfast and settle down for Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo

I am so pleased to welcome, Linda Tyler to Sunday Brunch

🍴Good morning, Linda. What favourite food are you bringing to Sunday brunch?

I’m a hopeless cook, so something simple like cream cheese and smoked salmon sandwiches.

🍴Would you like a pot of English breakfast tea, a strong Americano, or a glass of Bucks Fizz?

Buck’s Fizz. (A short answer there!)

🍴Where shall we eat brunch – around the kitchen table, in the formal dining room, or outside on the patio?

The patio, definitely. I love eating outdoors.

🍴Shall we have music playing in the background? And if so will you share with us a favourite song or piece of music that makes you happy?

Music can get in the way of good conversation, so I’d say no music. Singing makes me happy, though, and I consider myself lucky to be in a wonderful local choir – when covid regulations allow us to meet again.

🍴Which of your literary heroes (dead or alive) are joining us for Sunday Brunch today?

I have so many literary heroes, but I think I’ll say PG Wodehouse as I’m sure he was a lovely man and I’m a huge fan of his Blandings Castle books, and Julia Quinn to see if she’s as much fun as her Bridgerton novels.

🍴Which favourite book will you bring to Sunday Brunch?

I’d have to sneak in two: Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons, a rural satire in which penniless Flora goes to live with her cousins at their ramshackle farm in remote Sussex, and I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, a coming-of-age novel following the adventures of Cassandra who lives with her eccentric family in a dilapidated castle. I love rural novels with gentle humour.

🍴When you are writing do you still find time to read for pleasure? And is there a book you would like to read but haven’t had time for …yet!

I read at least one book a week and in a variety of genres. My to-be-read piles are in danger of toppling over on the desk and bedside table. The one that’s calling to me at present is Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens.

🍴What’s the oldest book on your book shelf?

The 12.30 from Croydon by Freeman Wills Crofts (1938), purchased because I was brought up outside Croydon.

🍴Where do you find the inspiration for your novels?

Usually from where I live or have lived. My debut book, a My Weekly Pocket Novel, Revenge of the Spanish Princess, a swashbuckling adventure set in the late 1600s, came about when we had an ex-fisherman’s cottage overlooking the sea. My latest novel, The Laird’s Secret, is based on my experiences when we moved to the north east of Scotland – although I must stress the story isn’t autobiographical! We went from London to living in a large but dilapidated farmhouse. I loved renovating our new home, the wild beauty of the Aberdeenshire coastline and the people we got to know. My next novel, another My Weekly Pocket Novel due out on 18th March, is a romantic adventure set at a country house party in the early 1800s.

🍴Have you a favourite place to settle down to write and do you find it easier to write in winter or summer?

I have no problem writing at any time of year, but it must be at my desk where I can lay my hands on reference books and have a view of the garden.

🍴When writing to a deadline are you easily distracted and if so how do you bring back focus on your writing?

I’m not easily distracted! When I’m writing I’m there, wherever my novel is taking place.

🍴Give us four essential items that a writer absolutely needs?

Computer/laptop, peace and quiet (does that count as two?) - and an idea of what is going to come next in the novel.

🍴What can you tell us about your latest novel or your current work in progress?

My latest novel, The Laird’s Secret, is set in 1950s rural Scotland. English photographer Christina holidays on the wild and beautiful north-east coastline of Aberdeenshire. There she meets the enigmatic local laird, Alex, who has a secret he wishes to keep from her. My work in progress features a medieval Highlander on the eve of an important battle. He meets a local lass who is from the enemy clan - and who is more than a match for him.

Bloodhound Books
18 January 2021

Linda, Where can we follow you on social media?

Twitter: @LindaTyler100

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/LindaTylerAuthorScotland

More about Linda

Born in London, Linda moved progressively north until settling with her husband in a village on the edge of the Scottish Highlands. A former legal academic and practitioner, she has kept chickens, bred dogs and raised children. Linda now runs holiday accommodation, sings in a local choir and is walked daily by the family dog.

🍴Thank you for taking part in Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo🍴

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