I’m delighted to welcome popular author Amelia Berry onto my blog today. Amelia is going to talk to us about her writing journey and her latest book, Cooking up a Christmas Storm . So grab yourself a cuppa, get cosy and let’s get talking to Amelia.

Amelia Berry is a novelist, short story writer, editor and writing tutor, based in Worcester, where she lives with her husband. No kids. No pets. There were goldfish once. That ended badly.

She writes romantic comedies as Amelia, Ally Sinclair and Alison May. Her Highland Cookery School series is out now. https://www.herabooks.com/series/the-highland-cookery-school/

In her non-writing time Amelia is a tour guide for the National Trust. You can find out more about her at www.alison-may.co.uk, on Instagram @MsAlisonMay or on youtube – www.youtube.com/@alallyalison 

Welcome to my blog, Amelia. It’s interesting to see that you’ve had books published under several different names. Can you tell us about your writing journey?

Well I’m going to be a little bit naughty and subvert the writing journey question I think. Normally when we talk about our writing journeys we talk about the time before our first publication and the excitement of getting ‘the call’ about our first deal, and that’s a huge moment for any writer, but actually I’d rather talk about my more recent journey.

Please do! I’m intrigued. 🙂

In 2023 I parted ways with my agent – very amicably and mutually and with minimal drama – but with absolute terror that it could very easily be the worst decision of my writing career. An agent is the person who pitches your work to publishers and negotiates deals. Some publishers will make contracts directly with authors, but a lot won’t deal with you directly, so having an agent can be a massive career advantage for any author. I didn’t sign with an agent until 3 years after my first book came out, and becoming agented felt like a huge step, but, although my agent was great and did three deals for me over the seven years I was with her, none of them quite worked out to be the big breakthrough I was hoping for, and so I decided to move on.

The fear then was that I might never get another publishing deal at all. I’d definitely reduced my options in terms of publishers who might consider my work. So the call confirming my first new deal after I left my agent – for three romantic comedies set in a cookery school in the Scottish Highlands – was almost more exciting for me than my very first sale to a publisher. That was the call that meant the dream wasn’t over and I hadn’t accidentally ended my career mid track.

At the moment the first two of those three books are out – A Recipe for Love and Cooking Up A Christmas Storm – and I’m just putting the finishing touches to book three which will be out next spring. And I love all three books, partly because I love Scotland and I love food and I really really love romance, but also because of what those books represent. They were books I wrote to kick off the next phase of my career, and they’re books that represent the idea of me taking control of my own writing journey.

Since I signed the contract for these three romcoms I’ve gone on to sign a deal for two paranormal crime novels (think Ben Aaronavitch meets Miss Marple meets Bridget Jones) and I’m full steam ahead writing the first of those. And then, who knows? Maybe at some point I’ll look for a new agent. Maybe I’ll tear up the writing career rulebook altogether and pitch myself to some of those publishers who only take agented submissions. Maybe I’ll publish my own work directly to readers. But I’ve learnt, while writing three warm, funny, romances set in a Scottish castle and selling them myself, that I can take charge of my own writing journey. I don’t always know quite where I’m going next, but I’m increasingly excited to find out.

Congratulations, that’s amazing! Wishing you much success with these projects and your future writing, Amelia.

Amelia’s latest novel is Cooking Up A Christmas Storm

Can you find love if you can’t be yourself?

Jodie Simpson’s life is falling apart.

She’s been dumped by her girlfriend, Gemma, lost her job and is about to be kicked out of her flat. When she mistakenly opens a letter addressed to Gemma and finds a job offer to work at the Highland Cookery School, she makes a momentary decision that will change her life forever.

Jodie heads to the Scottish Highlands to begin her new job – as Gemma. But it all starts to work a little too well, and she finds herself loving her new life at the cookery school. As the snow starts to settle and the festive magic cast its spell, she finds herself falling for Pavel, the estate caretaker.

But Jodie cannot keep up her fake identity forever and a storm is brewing.

If she tells the truth, will she lose the new life she has built for herself, and the man who might just be The One?

An uplifting romcom that fans of Sarah Morgan, Heidi Swain and Katie Ginger will adore

Buy link: https://www.herabooks.com/books/cooking-up-a-christmas-storm-amelia-berry/

Highland Cookery School Series: https://www.herabooks.com/series/the-highland-cookery-school/