Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo ~ Cath Cole

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'm delighted to welcome Cath Cole to Sunday Brunch

Welcome to Jaffareadstoo, Cath. What favourite food are you bringing to Sunday brunch?

Boursin cheese on digestive biscuits.

 

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

English breakfast tea with skimmed milk.

 

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

Outside on the patio

 

Shall we have music playing in the background, and if so do you have a favourite piece of music?

Yes, please music. – “Embraceable You” sung by Frank Sinatra

 

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

Melvyn Bragg (I wear lipstick if I watch him on TV), Margaret Forster, Pat Barker, Elizabeth Strout, Mary Lawson, Maggie O’Farrell and Sarah Donati.

 

Which favourite book will you bring to Sunday Brunch?

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout.

Simon&Schuster
2007

 

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!

Yes, I am an avid reader. The Regeneration Trilogy by Pat Barker

 

Where do you find the inspiration for your novels?

Life experiences – my first novel was about five girls training to be nurses in the 1960’s. I qualified as SRN in 1969. I am also intrigued by overheard conversations in public places.

 

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

I write in our “snug,” surrounded by family photographs and small gifts given to me by our grandchildren. I am more productive in winter.

 

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

I work well to deadlines. Perhaps my early nursing background influenced me to work to time limits. I am a stickler for being on time. Unfortunately, my family do not always appreciate my commitment to punctuality.

 

Give us four essential items that a writer needs?

A belief in the story they are telling.

A comfortable writing place.

Honest writing friends to critique their work in progress.

Curiosity about people and places.

 

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

I am currently seeking representation for my third novel “Snapshots.” The novel is a family drama where the reader is asked to consider if Izzy, an adolescent girl, her mother Paula, grandmother Jean and great grandmother Mary are a loving supportive family or a resentful disparate brood. The work is set against the social, cultural and political backdrop of 2018/19 including Brexit, the potential election of Donald Trump and the Royal Wedding of Megan Markle and Prince Harry.

“There Was a Time,” is in draft and picks up the story of Sarah, one of the nurses from my first novel “Home from Home.” In part one of the novel – Then - Sarah is a young health visitor in Bolton in 1979/80. She struggles with concerns about the validity of her work. The narrative follows Sarah as she visits new mothers and their infants, a new immigrant woman from Pakistan, an elderly couple and a family with a disabled child. The second part of the work – Now - is set during lockdown. Sarah is now in her early 70s and classed as being old and vulnerable. The background to the novel reflects the social and cultural mores of time frames - Then and Now.

Cath, tell us about yourself

After a working-class upbringing in Bolton I trained as a nurse and health visitor and eventually a lecturer and nurse tutor. Following a successful career as a lecturer I became principal of a further education college. After rescuing a failing further education college, I was appointed OBE.

I am a published author who has twice held number one position in both the Amazon UK (medical) and Australian (saga) charts with my novel Home from Home. The publishers of Home from Home (Corazon) is enthusiastic about my work, but it does not fit their list. My second novel Everyday Lies, published by UK Book Publishing, has garnered top reviews on Amazon. I hold a M.A. in Creative Writing from Edge Hill University and am a member of the Society of Authors.

I am an avid reader. I enjoy travel, particularly cruise travel. I am married to Ron and enjoy our family life with our son, daughter-in-law and three grandchildren. Time spent with friends is precious.

In Spring of 1954 Sheila, Arthur and Elaine Brooks are caught in a web of everyday lies, fibs and and deceptions. Fibs and myths like Father Christmas, bogey men, wicked witches and the origins of babies. Deceptions like, adultery, domestic abuse, illegal gambling and homosexuality. Can the family survive these untruths?

Where can we follow you on social media?

Facebook page: Catherine Cole

Instagram: catherinecole1269

Thank you for taking part in Sunday Brunch with Jaffareadstoo.

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