I’m delighted to welcome author Lisa Brace to my blog today. Lisa is going to talk to us about her debut romantic suspense novel, Star Survivor, and her writing life. So grab a cuppa, get cosy and let’s get chatting to Lisa. 😊

Blurb

The designer luggage is packed. The bodily fuzz removed. It’s time for Star Survivor.

Hollywood star Zoe Stenson, TV darling June Sharp, author Toby Masters and mumfluencer Emily Chase, are ready to take part in the world-renowned reality TV show Star Survivor.

The plan is to pretend to survive for the cameras, safe in the knowledge they’ll be retiring to five-star comfort amongst the palm trees and sparkling blue sea when filming stops.

But when the four celebrities are accidentally left on the wrong South Pacific island – a truly deserted one – no amount of Instagram followers or box office sales will help them.

Forced to swap the spotlight for spearfishing, their Bollinger for beach finds, and with the world’s press clamouring for them to be found – will it be the making or breaking of these washed-up celebrities?

Buy link: https://amzn.eu/d/7JghjHz

Welcome to my blog, Lisa.

Have you always wanted to be a writer?

I’ve been a writer for as long as I can remember. When I was a kid I’d write loose pages of stories and staple them together with a picture I’d drawn on the front. I’ve been scribbling ideas in notepads for years too, occasionally finding time to write a few words but I’d never manage to complete a novel and then lockdown came along. I worked freelance in PR and events and pretty much everything went on hold for a few months, so I began to write a story which would bring me joy.

Has any author inspired you?

So many. I love Marianne Keyes, Sophie Kinsella and Taylor Jenkins-Reid to start. They’re all authors I return to.

What do you like writing most?

I cause my agent many problems because I write across a lot of genres. Star Survivor is best described as a thriller rom-com but I love writing historical fiction based on incredible women too, and have my first historical novel out the end of May called Swim. I think what ties all my writing together is strong women, women as they age and what it is to be human.

Do you have a special place for writing?

I have a desk where I’m surrounded by books which inspire, and a dog under it who keeps my feet warm. There’s also way too many half used notebooks, because I have an obsession with them. I’d love a writing hut though, ideally overlooking the sea.

Is your writing ever inspired by your family or real life incidents?

Yes! The island Star Survivor is set on is based on the experiences of my sister who lived for five months on one for the C4 programme ‘Shipwrecked’. Many of the people and places I write about are drawn from experiences, people watching and general nosiness!

What are you writing at the moment?

I’m halfway through my second historical fiction, and I’m toying with a novel set around a boy/man-band that’s not quite where I’d like it to be yet but it’s getting there.

What inspired you to write this book?

I wrote it during lockdown after a rather feverish dream, brought on by watching Hunger Games and scrolling on insta, only to dream that I met Simon Cowell on a beach where he told me the bones of the story from beginning to end. When I woke up I realised it could be quite a fun story to write.

Lockdown definitely influenced the way I wrote my characters and how they were coping cut off from the world. A lot of how they felt, such as missing family and friends, and the luxury to just go and do something without being restricted to one place filtered into the story. It’s just they’re doing it on a stunning island – which was basically an excuse for me to search up stunning pictures of tropical islands!

What advice would you give to other writers?

Write! Read! If you want to write a book, you need to put words down. I know that sounds patronising but there’s no shortcut to writing. You have an idea, you have to write it down…and don’t get distracted by newer ones which ask to be written. And read. Read everything. Even if it’s in a genre you’re not comfortable with, it’s good to see how others do it. I learn all the time from other authors.

Great advice Lisa! Thanks so much for dropping by to tell us about your new book. I hope it soars.

Meet Lisa

Lisa Brace is an award-winning British writer, who combines writing novels with running her own business in the beautiful surroundings of West Sussex. She has worked as a journalist and copywriter for over twenty years and enjoys contributing features on a range of topics. As well as women’s fiction she also writes historical fiction with a female focused slant.

Star Survivor is her debut novel.

Author links:

http://www.lisabrace.co.uk,

Facebook.com/LisaBraceAuthor,

Twitter – @LBrace1

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