tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75710646846191044312024-02-20T10:39:24.347-08:00Ruth DugdallRuth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.comBlogger84125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-46164939114467911572017-05-23T03:07:00.002-07:002017-05-23T03:21:32.640-07:00My Sister and Other Liars is born!<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">A few weeks ago, on <i>The Durrells</i>, Larry Durrell had a book
launch. Only one person attended, and only because he’d been promised cake. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I also had cake, and fizz, and
was overwhelmed when around 80 people attended my book launch this month. I’ve
learned, after years of the usual rejections and knock-backs, never to take a
single reader for granted. And a book launch is special, some writers even compare
it to having a baby. If <i>My Sister &
Other Liars</i> is my baby then I was pregnant for 7 years! It’s true that I abandoned
the manuscript, wrote two other books, but kept returning to it. “What is it
about this book?” one writer friend asked me, “Why can’t you just let it go?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">No, I couldn’t let it go. Here’s
why:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">All of my other five novels
are based on `big` cases, sensational ones that rocked the nation. My first
novel, <i>The James Version</i>, is based on
the murder of Maria Marten in the Red Barn. <i>Humber
Boy B</i> is inspired by the Jamie Bulger case. <i>Nowhere Girl</i> takes the germ of the Shannon Matthews story and
transplants it in Luxembourg. Alice, in <i>The
Sacrificial Man, </i>is a British version of the German cannibal killer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">My
Sister and Other Liars</span></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;"> is also based on a real case, but an
unknown one that took place in a town I can’t name because I don’t know it.
Seven years ago, by chance, I saw an interview with a teenage girl, whose sister
had been attacked and hit her head, rendering her brain damaged. She had no memory
of the attack and the police had no leads. They were closing the case. The teenager
said two things: firstly, “someone in this town knows what happened to my
sister and they’re not saying.” True, that. Look at the (excellent) recent
programme <i>Little Boy Blue</i>, about the
tragic murder of Rhys Jones. A significant number knew who’d shot him, they
just weren’t saying. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Second, she said, “He could be
next to me in the queue for chips. He could be driving the bus I’m on.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">This poor girl was haunted by
these two things, and I couldn’t stop thinking about her or her predicament. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">She became my protagonist,
Sam. And as Sam decides to find her sister’s attacker there are devastating consequences.
Sometimes, it is best not to discover the secrets that surround us and Sam
becomes obsessed, and sick, facing the chaos of lies and misinformation that
surrounds her sister’s attack. This manifests itself as anorexia, a disease
about control. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">I didn’t know I was writing
about anorexia until Sam was recognisably ill. My editor first named it, and my
research opened up a world of water-loading, excessive exercising, pro-Ana
sites, blue and brown kitchens and the stories of girls dangerously close to
death. I learned that of all mental illnesses, anorexia has the highest
fatality rate. And these details wound their way into Sam’s story, despite
warnings from editors that it would make the book a `marmite` read. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">What I felt I couldn’t do was
to tone down this part of the story: I owed it to the girls and their parents
who’d shared their stories with me. And I owed it to my readers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 150%;">So, the book is born. And if
you are reading this then maybe you are part of its journey, which is now beyond
my control. Off Sam goes, into the big wide world. I’m sending her on her way with
love. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-30064246790147559782016-10-26T07:10:00.005-07:002016-10-26T07:10:54.288-07:00Return of The Native <div class="MsoNormal">
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Last night I couldn’t sleep. I gazed wide-eyed at the
ceiling, listening to the waves and the caw of the gulls. It didn’t irritate
me; each push of sea against the shore made me breathe a tad deeper, it felt
peaceful. Alert to the world outside my window, I was filled with a restless energy
for dawn, so I could get up and explore my surroundings. I’ve been away for over two years, and I've missed it. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Confession time: I haven’t always loved Suffolk. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I was born in “Up North”, transplanted at the tender age of
seven, because of my dad’s work with the NHS. When we arrived in Ipswich I
sounded (with my Yorkshire accent) and looked (carrot hair) `different`, and the
playground can be tough if you don’t fit in. I missed my family and friends. In
Hull a latch-key dog named Ringo had adopted me, and I was heartbroken at
having to say goodbye to him. It wasn’t a happy beginning. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Initially we lived in one of the doctor’s flats on Pearson
Road, along with several cockroaches, then we found a house in the Chantry area.
Slowly, I began to make friends, and my parents bought me a dog who wasn’t
Ringo but Rufus. I started to settle. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’d just taken my O levels when my parents decided to buy a hotel
in Felixstowe. Having been made redundant a few times, Dad wanted to be his own
boss and Mum (then a school nurse at Thomas Wolsey in Ipswich) is a fantastic
cook, so she thought she’d be up for the challenge too. It’s no small thing,
giving up two careers to run a hotel, and I admired their ambition, but the
move meant I was once again in a town I didn’t know. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I decided to continue my studies in Ipswich, taking the
train each day and biking to Westbourne, dossing round friend’s houses as often
as I could to avoid returning to a place I couldn’t think of as `home`. I
thought I’d leave someday soon and never return.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I was wrong. Seven years later I was studying for my Social
Work qualification at UEA, in Norwich, and was offered a placement at the Felixstowe
probation office, so I moved back for six months. I decided, as a way to meet
people, to take a film course in Ipswich and on the first evening I met Andrew.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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Also a migrant to Suffolk at a young age, and also
someone who’d left for University but wound up coming back, our life stories were
twins. Within six weeks I knew he was the man I wanted to marry, and everything
I felt about the county changed changed.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It was during my maternity leave, whilst I was writing The Woman Before Me, that I began to feel part of the community. I joined the writing group
that meets at the library, as well as various mother and toddler groups. I knew
people, and I knew my way around. And when in 2005 I became a full-time
novelist I felt supported by local bookshops and books clubs. This sense of
belonging was priceless. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Often, in the evenings, Andrew and I would push the pram through
town and down a particular street to admire the houses. They reminded us of the
homes we’d seen on our honeymoon in New England, and one in particular looked
like it had a view of the sea. “If any of these ever come for sale, I’d buy
it,” I told Andrew. But I knew it was just a fantasy. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Thirteen years later I was walking past an estate agent just
as he was placing a new advert in the window. I recognised the house
immediately and called Andrew. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“It’s for sale,” I said. “We’re viewing it tomorrow.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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Three days later that, after much financial wizardry, the
mortgage adviser told me we could put in an offer on our dream house. Excited,
I called Andrew, “We can do it!”<o:p></o:p></div>
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“We can’t,” he said. “The firm are moving me to Luxembourg.
Or they’re making me redundant.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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Luxembourg. I couldn’t even place it on a map. I didn’t know
what language they spoke. And I boarded the plane on that first visit full of doubts
anxiety. I didn’t want to uproot my kids, like I’d been uprooted. I wanted them
to grow up around their grandparents, to have the sense of `roots` that I had
lost. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Against all expectations, Luxembourg bowled me over. The
main square, the Place d`Arms, is lined with restaurants and outdoor seating,
all around a bandstand area. The old city is built around a valley, looped by
the original fortress walls. The shopping area is classy, with designer shops
like Gucci and Dior next to wine boutiques and chocolate shops. It’s like a
city from a storybook, and as we sat in the square that first evening I felt
that maybe this could be a new chapter in my life, if only I was brave enough. But
I had a condition: I still wanted to buy the house, even though it would mean
renting it and someone else living in it whilst we were away. This was my
safety net, a foothold in Suffolk. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Four months later we moved to Luxembourg, enrolling the kids
in the nearby International School. With them making new friends, and Andrew busy
at work, Luxembourg was less structured for me. After I’d done all the usual
things that moving home requires I joined the gym, made friends and went for coffee.
But very quickly I found these things weren’t enough. I started work as a
volunteer at the local prison, one of only three Brits on the team, and made
links with local social workers and police. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One morning I was dropping the kids off at school when I
noticed several security guards hanging around. And a poster advising parents
not to let their children travel to school unaccompanied. I discovered that
there had been three attempted kidnappings in the past week, and people were
nervous but very little information was available. It was a lightbulb moment: I
knew I had found the subject for my fifth crime novel. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I began to research, reaching out to locals for their
stories, and to professionals for their expertise. I even had an audience with
the British Ambassador, Alice Walpole, of whom I asked just one question: “what
would you do if a British girl was kidnapped?” <o:p></o:p></div>
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This research took me into the darker parts of Luxembourg,
the areas where drug addicts and prostitutes live, and also the refugee
hostels. I was privileged to hear their stories, and hoped I could do justice
to them. I also had a stint in hospital, which changed the course of my novel
so it looked at several aspects of Luxembourg life. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In November `Nowhere Girl` was launched at an event hosted
by the British Ambassador in her Luxembourg residence. In her welcome address she
told the audience of social workers and police, scout leaders and nurses, how I
had come and asked her my question, and how she couldn’t answer. This was why
she wanted to host the launch; unbeknownst to me everyone in the room had been
asked to contribute to a new Child Protection policy, published that day. I
felt humbled, and also delighted. It was a wonderful occasion, and also a
perfect way to say goodbye. I was coming home. <o:p></o:p></div>
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So, the adventure is over. It wasn’t always rosy or easy,
but I wouldn’t have changed anything. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I’ve been home since Easter, and it’s been busy, with a lot
of focus on the upcoming Felixstowe Book Festival. Two weeks ago, along with fellow
crime author Daniel Pembrey, I spoke at the Luxembourg Embassy in London, with Prince
Louis of Luxembourg in attendance. The icing on the cake of my Luxembourg
adventure. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As I sit here, looking out to the sea from my dream house, I
know I’ve been lucky to have had the opportunity to live somewhere else. But I
also know that it’s true what they say; there really is no place like
home. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-72460117140595464652015-10-20T00:13:00.001-07:002015-10-20T00:13:09.809-07:00Nowhere Girl out this month!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5on8gGE8nXwRg6iQSw1ms7HLEoxax_C0_g8E-b6GJVC8_TMJ3wqW2p3w-Ad0-9tRamoSSUQdkEKbp2K5tjVHXI-r_FPW0jR4N6bwiZDcUG-eBgWf1BTLxL9wdtoMXDp_vq6ywmCnxn_VG/s1600/Invite-NowhereGirl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5on8gGE8nXwRg6iQSw1ms7HLEoxax_C0_g8E-b6GJVC8_TMJ3wqW2p3w-Ad0-9tRamoSSUQdkEKbp2K5tjVHXI-r_FPW0jR4N6bwiZDcUG-eBgWf1BTLxL9wdtoMXDp_vq6ywmCnxn_VG/s320/Invite-NowhereGirl.jpg" width="303" /></a></div>
<br />Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-54490842413384116692014-09-03T08:06:00.004-07:002014-09-03T08:06:49.713-07:00Humber Boy B - my next novel<br />
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<i><b>A blur in the sky, a
brick – no, a trainer, red – falls to the water… There seems to be a scuffle… a
hand grabbing at the dangling child. Then, with the awfulness of inevitability,
the hanging child drops, gravity takes him.<o:p></o:p></b></i></div>
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<b>A child is killed after falling from the Humber Bridge.
Despite fleeing the scene, two young brothers are found guilty and sent to
prison. Upon their release they are granted one privilege only, their
anonymity. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b>Probation officer Cate Austin is responsible for Humber Boy
B’s reintegration into society. But the general public’s anger is steadily
growing, and those around her are wondering if the secret of his identity is
one he actually deserves to keep.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<b>Cate’s loyalty is challenged when she begins to discover the
truth of the crime. She must ask herself if a child is capable of premeditated
murder. Or is there a greater evil at play?
</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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TO HULL AND BACK<o:p></o:p></div>
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Because you can’t go home, not really. Home isn’t fixed, an
unaltered state, and upon returning the native is changed, by what took them
away, by what happened since. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And so I return to Hull for the first time in many years. I
have married, had children, followed a career, written books. And Hull is
different to, the house I grew up in looks smaller than I remember, my
Grandma’s house has been bashed within an inch of its life by some DIY fanatic,
and the neighbours’ houses all have Alsatians. Or so the signs warn. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Do I belong here?<o:p></o:p></div>
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My children trail me, as we walk in the rain, across the
Humber Bridge. I’m thinking about my novel now, about the boy who dies, but
here is my son running with fingers touching the railing, a surmountable
barrier to the drop. It makes me shiver, connects me to the mother in my novel,
and this is why I came. To check that the Humber in my head, the one I’ve tried
to portray in the book, is real. The rain stings my face and the water is muddy
brown, all as I remember. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We drive down Hessle Road, past closed up Fireworks shops
and tanning booths. Poundland and Wilco are the only places that look thriving,
but the people are as friendly as my mother always says, more willing to chat
than their Suffolk counterparts. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We visit Arctic Corsair, and the guide’s accent as well as
his stories take me to the heart of Hull; this is a working city, built on hard
graft. My own family came here to follow the Herring from Brixham, big and tough
men who joined the police force and fire service, a legacy that hasn’t
translated down physically but may be there in other ways. I like places with
edges, I’m interested in crime, the ugliest cases. And my boy, the one in the
book, is the worst kind of criminals. Humber Boy B has killed another child,
despite being a child himself. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I may not be able to come home, but I want to find Ben’s
home, my Humber Boy B. As I walk the streets of the city I feel my perspective
shifting, and I don’t want him to be from the roughest parts, to be a boy who
could be explained away by neglect or abuse. His step-father, a minor character
up to this point, begins to breathe inside me. Could he be a fisherman? Working
on the Icelandic boats, away for three weeks at a time? An absent parent, but
for the best of reasons. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We go to The Deep, Hull’s world-class Aquarium, because Ben
would go there, and also because water is a major theme throughout the book. I
look at the jellyfish, with no hearts or minds, and wonder what Ben would make
of them. I enjoy the comical penguins, one of whom stares at the wall for
twenty minutes as if it is running a film, and wonder if Ben would have
laughed. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And this, I think, is why I’m here. To meet the characters
who have been growing in my imagination, to see if they can make their way in
the Hull that exists today. I’m still listening to the voices in my head, still
trying to get it right on the paper. It needs to be real, authentic. Ben needs
to live. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The answer will only be known when other people meet Ben,
and tell me that he does. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Humber Boy B is going to be published by Legend Press in
April next year. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-65389396936694146562014-04-14T10:29:00.003-07:002014-04-14T10:30:52.010-07:00Blog Tour, tagged by PENNY HANCOCK<br />
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt;">Thanks to Penny Hancock for
including me in the BLOG TOUR. I met Penny at a literary event in Southwold, disturbingly entitled Slaughter in the Scout Hut, and she was no more than 30 seconds into her talk when I knew I'd buy her book and love it. And I did: TIDELINE is wonderful, a forty-something woman's obsession with a youth gone wrong, a crime chiller for the MILF classes. Check Penny out on her website: www.pennyhancock.com.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt;">So, this Blog Tour is basically a literary pyramid scheme,
except instead of having to send a chocoloate bar or a pair of knickers (anyone
else remember that one?) you simply have to answer some questions on your blog.
So I shall do so, in the hope that someone will still send me a bar of
chocolate…(don’t worry about the knickers. That one always struck me as a bit
odd.)<b><i><o:p></o:p></i></b></span></div>
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<strong><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">What are you working on now?</span></i></strong><b><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">My Sister & Other
Liars.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<strong><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">Why do you write what you do?</span></i></strong><b><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">As always with my writing, it is inspired by a real
event. Several years ago I was watching a TV programme about a young girl whose
sister had been attacked, and left brain damaged. The girl was told that the
police had no idea who had attacked her sister and they were closing the
case.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">My novel starts at exactly that point,
fictionally working through what a girl in that position would feel and think
and – most importantly – do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;" />
<div style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 26px;">
<strong><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">How does your writing differ from others of the genre?</span></i></strong><b><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">I’m hoping it will appeal to
young adults, as well as older readers, as Sam is just sixteen years old when
she receives this devastating news. She decides that, if the police can’t bring
her sister’s attacker to justice, then she will. The story takes place over the
following 2 weeks, culminating on her 17<sup>th</sup> birthday, which is also the anniversary of
the attack.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<strong><i><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">How does your writing process work? </span></i></strong><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;">It takes months. Years. Who’s counting? It’s not a race, and
the reader doesn’t care how long it took, just so long as it’s a damn good
read! I write a first draft in a fever, and then edit by going over and over what I've written, never afraid to cut, always hoping to improve. </span></div>
<br style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;" />
<div style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 26px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial;">I’m attracted to stories that raise my anxiety, those newspaper headlines that
linger long after the paper has been binned. Writing is my way of working
through it.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"> </span></div>
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</div>
<br style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;" />
<h6 style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">
<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;">Okay, writers I
like and admire, and would add to the BLOG TOUR are
:<o:p></o:p></span></strong></h6>
<strong style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;">Gary
Murning </span></strong><strong style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;"><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt;">garymurning.wordpress.com</span></strong><br />
<h6 style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">
<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;">Guy
Mankowski </span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt;">guymankowski.blogspot.co.uk</span></strong></h6>
<h6 style="background-color: #e0e0e0; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">
<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal;">Sophie
Duffy </span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt;">sophieduffy.wordpress.
com</span></strong></h6>
Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-2784840014939977592014-04-04T04:46:00.001-07:002014-04-04T04:46:25.608-07:00Dugdall in the Duchy... <br />
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When I was a kid, I hated Sundays. The seventh day would yawn
ahead of me, defined only by boredom and roast beef. No shops, no plans,
nothing doing. Hitting my teens, the day only lifted at 5pm when the Top 40
boomed from radio and I could amuse myself for two hours trying to capture
songs on tape without any of the DJ’s chatter, a test of my digital dexterity
on the `pause` and `record` buttons.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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But then the world changed. Shops started to open, no-one
bothered with tapes anymore, and the weekend finally had function.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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That was many moons ago, but I find myself again thrown back
into that Sunday feeling. On my first Sunday in the Duchy I had no idea of the
time-warp that had happened overnight, until I arrived at the door of Auchan to
find it shut. To my open-mouthed horror, even IKEA was closed. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Deciding to take advantage of forced recreational time, we took
a family trip to Little Switzerland and discovered a wonderful walk starting at
the dramatic and steep Wolf Gorge then winding around sleepy villages and
dramatic rock formations, following the meandering stream back to the car, By
then our stomachs had started to grumble, but we couldn't find any place
selling dejeuner, no pretty café or bistro. Subway was open, but that wasn't
exactly the authentic experience we had in mind. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As we munched on our Hearty Italians, walking through the
picturesque villages, it felt like everyone else was snoozing. Could it be
true?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Embracing once again the Sunday feeling, last week we went to
MUDAM. Now, what I love best about modern art is its accessibility. It doesn't
stare at you from the wall, challenging you to study your art history’ no,
modern art is what we make of it. I’ll never forget seeing Tracey Emin’s tent,
embroidered with the names all the men she’d ever slept with. So simple, so
fascinating. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And MUDAM didn't disappoint. Lee Bul’s work especially grabbed
the attention of the kids, who sat rapt in front of the dozen or so retching
dogs, a homage to the artist`s own pet and lovingly re-worked in the same pose
using various materials. “I like the one with cotton wool.” “Nah, I like that
one, covered in tape!”<o:p></o:p></div>
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I think Ms Bul would have been delighted to see how engaged,
how thrilled, we all felt by her work but sadly the security guards weren’t so
delighted. They flinched every time the kids moved. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In the mirror instalation we discovered earphones that made
everything around sound dream-like, so we had great fun taking turns with the
headset and shouting at each other like we were in a coma, “Wake up! Don’t
follow the light!” Until we were told off.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’d love to have had Lee Bull with me at that moment. She is a
woman who dressed like a human squid for 2 weeks in TOKYO airport, so I don’t
think she’ d have had any truck with officious guards. However, as a rather
more timid creature, I whispered to the kids to hush and resolved that
next Sunday maybe we'll visit a cathedral. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Afterwards we drove home, via a garage for milk and provision,
and then had an afternoon snooze. When in Rome….<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-17844247772919305062014-02-27T03:27:00.000-08:002014-02-27T03:27:40.755-08:00Just Landed!<br />
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I’ve just landed in Luxembourg, and it’s been a bumpy entry.
Was it really less than one month ago that I was in Felixstowe, that seaside
town on the very edge of England, packing boxes, saying goodbye to loved ones?
If I could turn the clocks back just two weeks I’d tell myself this:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Bulbs. They aren’t the same here, and your removal men will
take yours from your lamps and standard lamps, leaving you stuck. Buy a supply.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Plug adapters. You know when Blockbuster closed down they
had a huge box for sale and you bought eight, thinking you’d done well? Think
again. Hairdryer, mobiles, laptops, EVERY lamp (even though they don’t have
bulbs!) Buy the whole box because you won’t be able to get any here for love
nor money. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Be prepared to go offline for a while. A long while. Think
of it as an Internet holiday. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Diet. Get that weight down because it sure as hell won’t go
down once you’re scoffing fresh pain and fromage. And drinking encore le vin. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Speaking of which, be ready to be told your French is bad
and please can you speak in English so you stop confusing people. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The good news? All of this is normal. So says my `Living in
Luxembourg` guidebook, which also helpfully pounts out that organised people who
are used to being in control will find the early months especially
disconcerting. Oui? Cest moi!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The kids, though, are fine. Ducks to water. Speaking of
water, and also speaking of those extra pounds, in the past two weeks I have
become a gym whore. I thought I might have found the perfect place, basically
because they offer a class that promissed a svelte figure tout suite, but sadly
the instructor hadn’t heard of women’s lib and spent the whole class referring
to double ds and derriers. Pa pour moi, sil vous plait. <o:p></o:p></div>
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My next attempt seemed to be going much better until I
ventured into the sauna area, to be confronted by naked men en masse. Very
Britishly, I fled in panic, not even doing the correct thing and checking my
bracelet over the switch to exit, but ducking under the barrier. My French was
simply not up to the lengthy explanations needed at the reception desk, so I
paid the extra suppliment for the 30 minutes (according to my bracelet) that
I’d spend in the sauna. As if I’d dare! I don’t even think it was a mixed
session. <o:p></o:p></div>
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And today, at a brave third attempt, I tried biking in the
water. Yes, aqua aerobics! Now, forgive me fellow Brits, but in the homeland
aqua exercise is for those who are expecting, or look as if they may be. Not
so, here in the Grand Duchy. These women were fit. They pounded those bikes
into the ground, and if there had been wheels involved they would have won
yellow shirts. But, more impressive to me, they wore the cutest outfits. Bows
and silver clasps and sparkly bits. The water shone with cubic zircona. <o:p></o:p></div>
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So, if you spot a Brit in a one-piece, it just might be me.
But in a few months, when I’m fully intergrated, I expect to be sparkling in
the water, or the water sparkling on me as I brave that sauna with no sense of
shame. Bon Chance!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-60306715867890525152013-12-21T02:07:00.000-08:002013-12-21T02:07:05.376-08:00Marshal Zeringue's My Book, The Movie Blog<div id="header-wrapper">
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<a href="http://mybookthemovie.blogspot.co.uk/">MY BOOK, THE
MOVIE</a> </h1>
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<span>They would ask me what actors I saw in the roles. I
would tell them, and they’d say “Oh that’s interesting.” And that would be the
end of it. --Elmore Leonard, in 2000, on the extent of his input for Hollywood's
adaptation of his novels</span></div>
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<span>Friday, December 20, 2013</span></h2>
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<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name">
Ruth Dugdall's "The
Sacrificial Man" </h3>
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<br />
<a href="http://www.ruthdugdall.com/about.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Ruth
Dugdall</span></a> is a British crime writer. She has a degree in English and Theatre
Studies from Warwick University and an MA is Social Work at University of East
Anglia, and has worked as a probation officer dealing with high-risk criminals
for almost a decade. She is the author of <i>The James Version</i> and <a href="http://newreads.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-sacrificial-man.html" target="_blank"><i><span style="color: #6c82b5;">The Sacrificial Man</span></i></a>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgglh5jpAuiNjaO4o-AHK_kpJvoz4MDhKXkoYz8E-tkgTOZ66Bhn-AOAAe0beZCNQFrJhChCXPHfXsxfbnLn5CLgRPOr84JzUcFedEb_TX91xMUGXHSn54_yM_RcDyGfTtSWgs_ct8Kegc/s320/Dugdall.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgglh5jpAuiNjaO4o-AHK_kpJvoz4MDhKXkoYz8E-tkgTOZ66Bhn-AOAAe0beZCNQFrJhChCXPHfXsxfbnLn5CLgRPOr84JzUcFedEb_TX91xMUGXHSn54_yM_RcDyGfTtSWgs_ct8Kegc/s400/Dugdall.JPG" width="270" /></a>Here she dreamcasts an adaptation of <i>The Sacrificial
Man</i>:
<blockquote>
To see one of my novels on the big screen is one of my favourite
daydreams. For many writers, especially crime writers like myself, a movie deal
is the Holy Grail.<br /><br />But then the crunch question – who has the icy
demeanour to play my uber-controlling, beautiful but brutalised
Alice?<br /><br />Alice is the central character in <i>The Sacrificial Man</i>, and
she has agreed to kill a man, and eat him. She does not see herself as a
criminal, but as a romantic heroine; she believes she is in a love story, that
in helping her lover to die she was performing an act of devotion. Imagine <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001046/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Julie Christie</span></a>, as
she was in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059113/"><i><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Doctor
Zhivago</span></i></a>, but with a knife.<br /><br />Julie Christie being a bit too mature
now, I think <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000173/"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Nicole Kidman</span></a> has
a suitably frosty and fractured demeanour. I’d enjoy watching her reveal Alice’s
motivations, but I’m not sure she could motivate the audience to empathise. An
actress with a track record in making unpleasant people sympathetic is <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000234/"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Charlize Theron</span></a>. Even her Dior
advert brings me out in goose bumps!<br /><br />My other female lead is Cate Austin,
the probation officer with the thankless task of writing a sentencing report on
Alice. Cate has to delve into the dark side of life, and she sometimes
struggles.<br /><br />Cate is my everywoman, so I imagine a warmer, girl-next-door
actress. My background is as a probation officer, so Cate has inherited some of
my traits; she’s a petite redhead, rather serious-minded. I think <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1659547/"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Carey Mulligan</span></a> would play her
well (though she’d need some henna).<br /><br />My dream director is <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0779386/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Jordan Scott</span></a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000631/"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Ridley Scott</span></a>’s daughter (I bet
she hates that everyone adds that, as if she has no identity in her own right).
In fact (confession time) I e-mailed her after I watched <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1183665/" target="_blank"><i><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Cracks</span></i></a>
because the themes seemed so close to what I hope to achieve with my writing,
and I just thought: “she would get me.”</blockquote>
Learn more about the book
and author at <a href="http://www.ruthdugdall.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #6c82b5;">Ruth Dugdall's
website</span></a>.<br /><br />--Marshal Zeringue
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<span class="post-author vcard">Posted by <span class="fn" itemprop="author" itemscope="itemscope" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person"><span itemprop="name">Marshal Zeringue</span>
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Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-36187751081220738272013-12-19T04:51:00.000-08:002013-12-19T04:51:17.467-08:00From the Legend Press Advent Calender<h3 class="entry-header">
<a href="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/mainsite/2013/12/legendary-advent-calendar-19th-december.html">Legendary
Advent Calendar - 19th December</a></h3>
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<a class="asset-img-link" href="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834019b023cbea5970b-pi" style="float: left;"><img alt="Ruth Dugdall 2" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00e54f0e675e8834019b023cbea5970b" src="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834019b023cbea5970b-150wi" style="margin: 0px 5px 5px 0px; width: 150px;" title="Ruth Dugdall 2" /></a>
<a class="asset-img-link" href="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834019b02698db7970c-pi" style="float: left;"><img alt="Legendsxam" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00e54f0e675e8834019b02698db7970c" height="225" src="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834019b02698db7970c-320wi" style="margin: 0px 5px 5px 0px;" title="Legendsxam" width="300" /></a>Each day on the blog we will be posting a special
festive offering, as we interrogate our authors about Christmas. Today's answers
are from Ruth Dugdall, author of <em>The Woman Before Me </em>and <em>The
Sacrificial Man.</em><br />
<strong>What do you love most about Christmas?</strong><br />I love Christmas
smells: mulled wine, fir trees, brandy butter. Also the cosiness; it’s the time
of year to get the fire crackling in the hearth and sit cosily watching DVDs.
Naturally, a bonus with this time of year is the food. I’m a sucker for mince
pies (so long as they’re warm) and anything with marzipan.<br />
<strong>What makes you a Christmas Scrooge?</strong><br />But one thing that
makes me a right Christmas Scrooge is `lists`. And people who ask for gift
vouchers / money. The whole point of the perfect gift is to find something
unique, something that is specific to that individual and shows how well you
know and care about them. This is not an item that anyone could put on a list,
as hopefully they haven’t even thought of it.<br />
It should not be useful or functional, but pretty or unique. Last year I got
my husband the marble arm from a statue. The previous year I got him a resin
skull used to train surgeons. Now, I ask you, who would prefer socks?<br />
Not all the family understands this philosophy. One year I got a steam cooker
(from a person who will remain anonymous) because said item was reduced at
Currys.<br />
<strong>How do you fit your writing around Christmas, or do you make sure you
have a break?</strong><br />Christmas is a great time to write because there is so
much inspiration, so many family tensions, so many opportunities for
alcohol-fuelled scenes of indiscretion.<br />
I jest. But only to a point; any season with such emotion attached to it is
ripe for an author. This is not just about happiness and excess, but also any
sad event is magnified. If a writer is sensitive to this, there are stories
everywhere. In fact, something happened just this morning at my son’s Christmas
concert, which will go straight into my next novel! (Must remember to change the
names).<br />
<strong>What is your favourite Christmas film or book?</strong><br />My
favourite Christmas film is `It’s A Wonderful Life`. My goodness, I could cry
just thinking about it…<br />”Why must you torment the children so?”<br />The house
with broken windows…<br />If you don’t know what I’m talking about then go order a
copy. You won’t regret it.<br />
<strong>What are you hoping for under your Christmas tree this
year?</strong><br />And this Christmas, what would I want in Santa’s sack? A
publishing deal for <em>My Sister And Other Liars.</em> I’ve been working on it
for a long, long time and I want it to make its way in the world. And I’ve been
so good this year.</div>
</div>
Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-45052536925647066302013-12-13T06:05:00.001-08:002013-12-13T06:05:32.889-08:00Goodbye to Felixstowe
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
I was in Body Pump class this morning, pulsing to the beat and
staring at the cold sea in the distance, Harvest House peering over the cliff
like an eccentric old Aunt, and suddenly I felt sad. So sad I thought I might
cry, right there and then, with 10kg of weight on my shoulders. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
It was a taste of grief, a moment when I realised that I’ll
soon be leaving this town I love. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
Felixstowe isn’t swanky, it’ll never be a town to host
Waitrose, but it has a beauty beyond even the most fashionable seaside towns. A
sandy beach, Edwardian houses, the Spa Gardens. It may be faded and
unfashionable but this place is my familiar, my safety, my rock. </div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
And the people of the town, not always warm to newcomers,
are the lifeblood. As I left the gym I saw the guy who works at the local
supermarket.</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
“How’s it going, babe?”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
I couldn’t lie. “I’m a bit stressed. I’m leaving town in
January. Scary.”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
“Yeah,” he agreed, “Everything’s scary once you leave
`Stowe. Come in and say bye before you go, yeah?”</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
My heart melted at this small offering as I thought, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">this will not happen to me in Luxembourg.
For starters my French isn’t good enough. <o:p></o:p></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
But if Felixstowe is my husband, I want Luxembourg to be my
lover. I want to fall, and hard, for its beauty. I want to be so bowled over
that I forget the cosiness of the familiar, forget the cinema where you can
order cheesy chips, forget the smell of salt in the
air as I sit in my beach hut and watch the waves. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
</div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Deep breath. Moving date is January 24<sup>th</sup>.
No going back now. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiktZ5Nb2Wjp1lEf3MWX4I0oi8eNWDEBSQEFZWn77GYnJB0V_EZ3Zw_EmXcuo58cYjEQb5LD5IbCwBjSjM59Kvo37xQQ6ZIUVXgehMYMQhzDXvIpdTAM0zl6ExdrCwkU3CYD86PS-mgxOYG/s1600/beach+hut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiktZ5Nb2Wjp1lEf3MWX4I0oi8eNWDEBSQEFZWn77GYnJB0V_EZ3Zw_EmXcuo58cYjEQb5LD5IbCwBjSjM59Kvo37xQQ6ZIUVXgehMYMQhzDXvIpdTAM0zl6ExdrCwkU3CYD86PS-mgxOYG/s320/beach+hut.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
My favourite haunts.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL6zkVnQSkzFVT24pQNexFnZdjaVbfOGsYRp20O3Hf3ZWuXzTknlfmYg3T7e5XBIZlbjUF8EI2iFsaMsAMH4DVBYeVghtb1NEzLcfR7WKltzUgAWld0SjhvCyPr_-4OgTKg9FX98W5TxPf/s1600/snowy+sea.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL6zkVnQSkzFVT24pQNexFnZdjaVbfOGsYRp20O3Hf3ZWuXzTknlfmYg3T7e5XBIZlbjUF8EI2iFsaMsAMH4DVBYeVghtb1NEzLcfR7WKltzUgAWld0SjhvCyPr_-4OgTKg9FX98W5TxPf/s320/snowy+sea.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-17608588264920782512013-10-11T03:27:00.002-07:002013-10-11T03:27:51.309-07:00Scary decision! I'm moving to LuxembourgWhen I resigned from my career to try and make it as a writer Andrew was 100% beside me. Over the years there have been many, many times when I doubted my decision and he has been the one to re-assure me: "It will happen! Just keep going!" And all of those other things that writers need to hear often to keep our fragile egos in-tact. <br />
<br />
I have been incredibly lucky, and his support meant I have had the time to write. <br />
So, now it's payback time. Andrew has a new job. IN LUXEMBOURG!<br />
<br />
Now, I hate change. I put this down to moving from Yorkshire to Suffolk when I was a 7 year old kid, a move which devastated me. I've grown to love Suffolk but more than that I love my family and friends. I love going to the shops and seeing faces I know. I love the fact that the guy in the paper shop knows my name, that the woman in the cinema knows the kind of films I like. This is a community and I relish a sense of belonging, something mourned losing when I was 7. I honestly thought I would never leave this town.<br />
<br />
If I was still a probation officer things would be different, but I work at home and I can write anywhere. So I've agreed to the move. How could I stifle Andrew's career when he has done so much to support mine? <br />
I'm scared. But I'm going to embrace the possibilities and roll with the changes (I hope!).<br />
<br />
And the start of it will be this blog. I'm not great at blogging but now I have a purpose. Hope a few people come along for the ride! Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-23785474666305958022013-05-14T03:28:00.004-07:002013-05-14T03:28:58.935-07:00Felixstowe Book FestivalI am so excited about the upcoming Felixstowe Book Festival, the first ever that the town has known. <br />
The line-up is impressive and there are events to suit everyone, including children. <br />
<br />
When I was approached by Meg Reid, the Festival Director, about doing a slot I suggested a panel of crime writers and decided to approach Michelle Spring and Sophie Hannah with the idea. I am delighted to say that both agreed, and our event is entitled:<br />
<br />
DEADLIER THAN THE MALE<br />
Why, for female writers and readers, murder can be so satisyfing!<br />
<br />
Like it? It was my idea, and a bit tongue in cheek, but it is a good question: with most criminals being male and most victims female, why is the genre so attractive for women. Are we mastering our own anxiety? Are we trying to re-claim a typically sexist arena? <br />
<br />
Come along and join in the discussion on June 16th (my birthday! What a way to celebrate...) at 2-3pm, The Orwell Hotel, Felixstowe. <br />
<br />
More information about the Book Festival can be found at:<br />
<a href="http://www.felixstowebookfestival.co.uk/">www.felixstowebookfestival.co.uk</a><br />
<a href="mailto:info@felixstowebookfestival">info@felixstowebookfestival</a> <br />
01394 279783Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-43916701400182674312013-02-04T01:52:00.001-08:002013-02-04T01:52:17.044-08:00WHAT DOES YOUR BOOKSHELF LOOK LIKE?<h3 class="entry-header">
A look at Ruth Dugdall's bookcase</h3>
<br />
<div class="entry-content">
<div class="entry-body">
<a class="asset-img-link" href="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834017ee80e40d9970d-pi" style="float: left;"><img alt="Ruthdugdall2" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00e54f0e675e8834017ee80e40d9970d" src="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834017ee80e40d9970d-320wi" style="margin: 0px 5px 5px 0px;" title="Ruthdugdall2" /></a>
<a class="asset-img-link" href="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834017d4099dc9b970c-pi" style="float: left;"><img alt="Ruth Dugdall 2" class="asset asset-image at-xid-6a00e54f0e675e8834017d4099dc9b970c" src="http://forward.legendpress.co.uk/.a/6a00e54f0e675e8834017d4099dc9b970c-320wi" style="margin: 0px 5px 5px 0px;" title="Ruth Dugdall 2" /></a>Here
is a glimpse of Ruth Dugdall's bookshelves, beautifully ordered and full to the
brim. Ruth is the author of <em>The Woman Before </em>Me, <em>The Sacrificial
Man </em>and <em>The James Version.</em><br />
Ruth comments on her bookshelves:<br />
<em>My bookshelf covers the whole wall and it's still too small. Spines are
ordered by colour, which might make you think I'm a bit OCD (which is true, but
the colour idea was my husbands who only values books for their aesthetic as he
doesn't read. When I met him I was impressed by his vast book collection, and by
the time I found out he hadn't read any of them it was too late. But that's
another story...) </em><br />
<em>As an English Literature graduate I have a lot of classics. It was a joy
to cull these after I got the damned degree; Piers Plowman was the first on the
fire, along with Gawain the Green Knight, though I later wished I'd kept the
Homer. </em><br />
<em>My book collection is eclectic, with a strong leaning towards Canadian
and American fiction. If I like an author I'll buy all their books, and these
will be together (whatever colour the spine) and included in that list are Chuck
Palahniuk, Margaret Atwood, Rose Tremain, Philippa Gregory and Josephine Hart.
If I really like an author the books are hardback. </em><br />
<em>I also have a section for books that have helped with research. I have
books on suicide and cannibalism, on deadly poisons and sado-masochism. I also
have enough erotica to know that 50 Shades of Grey is a pale imitation (some of
these books my husband has actually read...). </em><br />
<em>Finally, I have a shelf for my own novels, and they are propped alongside
other significant things, like my name badge when I won the Debut Dagger, and
the marzipan cake topper my mum made after I appeared on Woman's Hour. This
shelf is a bit of an alter to never giving up!</em></div>
</div>
Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-20778627205666818022013-02-04T01:46:00.001-08:002013-02-04T01:46:51.611-08:00Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-70807348929607792812012-11-25T05:19:00.001-08:002012-11-25T05:19:40.515-08:00<br />
<h6 align="center" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;">
<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">NEXT BIG THING…<o:p></o:p></span></strong></h6>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Thanks to Rebecca Giltrow
(rebeccahgiltrow.blogspot.co.uk), fellow Suffolk author, for tagging me in the
NEXT BIG THING. This is basically a literary pyramid scheme, except instead of
having to send a chocoloate bar or a pair of knickers (anyone else remember
that one?) you simply have to answer some questions on your blog. So I shall do
so, in the hope that someone will still send me a bar of chocolate…(don’t worry
about the knickers. That one always struck me as a bit odd.)<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> <o:p></o:p></i></b></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What is the working title of your book?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">My Sister
& Other Liars.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Where did the idea come from for the book?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">As always
with my writing, it is inspired by a real event. Several years ago I was
watching a TV programme about a young girl whose sister had been attacked, and
left brain damaged. The girl was told that the police had no idea who had
attacked her sister and they were closing the case. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">My novel starts
at exactly that point, fictionally working through what a girl in that position
would feel and think and – most importantly – do. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What genre does your book fall under?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It’s a
crime thriller. I’m hoping it will appeal to young adults, as well as older
readers, as Sam is just sixteen years old when she receives this devastating
news. She decides that, if the police can’t bring her sister’s attacker to
justice, then she will. The story takes place over the following 2 weeks,
culminating on her 17<sup>th</sup> birthday, which is also the anniversary of
the attack.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Which actors would you choose to play your characters
in a movie rendition?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I really love the actress, Jennifer Lawrence, from
Winter’s Bone & The Hunger Games. In fact, I’m going to see her tonight in
Silver Linings Playbook. I think she’d sensitively show the dark aspect to Sam,
but also her vulnerability. However, at 21 she’s too old, so I’d go for an
unknown British actress who no one’s heard of in the hope that she would bring
an authentic vibe with her debut performance. I like the idea of taking a
chance on a newcomer, because that’s what Legend Press did with me. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“In two
weeks I’m going to be 17, I’m also going to be a killer.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Will your book be self-published or represented by an
agency?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I’m represented by Clare Conville at Conville &
Walsh so I’m very, very fortunate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">How long did it take you to write the first draft of
your manuscript?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Months. Years. Who’s counting? It’s not a race, and
the reader doesn’t care how long it took, just so long as it’s a damn good
read! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What other books would you compare this story to
within your genre?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I’m interested in Gillian Flynn’s writing as she also
explores family dramas through the crime lens. I also like </span><span lang="EN" style="color: black; font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-size: 9.5pt;">Laura Kasischke </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">and Anita
Shreve. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Who or What inspired you to write this book?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It’s the
story in the brain that won’t be silenced. I’m attracted to stories that raise
my anxiety, those newspaper headlines that linger long after the paper has been
binned. Writing is my way of working through it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What else about your book might pique the reader’s
interest?</span></i></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Sam has anorexia, and I’ve done so much research on
the subject that I’m pretty sure I could tube someone if they needed me to.
It’s a horrible, obsessive, pervasive sickness and I hope I’ve portrayed it
authentically. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<h6 style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Okay, my 5 tags are writers I like and admire: <o:p></o:p></span></strong></h6>
<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Gary Murning<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">garymurning.wordpress.com</span></strong><br />
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<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Guy Mankowski<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">guymankowski.blogspot.co.uk</span></strong></h6>
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<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Sophie Duffy<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">sophieduffy.wordpress.
com</span></strong></h6>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.5pt;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/josie.henleyeinion"><span style="color: black; font-size: small;">Josie Henley-Einion</span></a><span style="font-size: small;"> josiehenley.blogspot.co.uk</span></span></h2>
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<h6 style="line-height: 200%;">
<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;">Andrew Blackman<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">andrewblackman.net<o:p></o:p></span></strong></h6>
Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-43539575585584536532012-09-14T07:26:00.002-07:002012-09-14T07:26:21.061-07:00Waiting for WymondhamI am really excited about appearing at the Wymondham Words festival next week, alongside Jim Kelly.
I know I'm excited because last night I had a dream about it. It was raining, and my books got sodden, and I was late! A typical anxiety dream, which I interpret as my brain `getting ready`.
Am I anxious? Well, of course. It's a public event and a little performance nerves is natural. But I also see this as a great opportunity to meet readers, and to hear when they have to say, as there will be a q&a session.
Also, I feel honoured to be teamed with Jim, whom I first met about ten years ago. I bought a book and asked him to sign it! I've seen him since (at Bodies in the Bookshop, Cambridge) and that was around the time of the New Angle Prize for Literature 2012. I was long-listed, but Jim actually won it.
Our chair is Ed Parnell, a fellow Escalator alumni, so I feel in safe hands.
If anyone wants more details the website is www.wymondhamarts.comRuth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-36827066361852179942012-07-23T11:45:00.003-07:002012-07-23T11:47:28.963-07:00Luke Bitmead Bursary. It was how I got published!Legend Press are excited to announce the opening of entries for the 2012 Luke Bitmead Writer’s Bursary. The award was set up shortly after Luke’s death in 2006 by his family to support and encourage the work of fledgling novel writers. The bursary is now the UK’s biggest award for unpublished authors. The top prize is a publishing contract with Legend Press, as well as a cash bursary.
Luke is the author of the brilliant White Summer (the first novel to be published by Legend Press), co-author of Heading South and his final novel The Body is a Temple will be published posthumously on 1st June 2012. Information about Luke can be found at www.lukebitmead.com.
Legend Press are pleased to be continuing this brilliant bursary for a fifth year, and hope to follow in the success of our previous winners Andrew Blackman (On the Holloway Road, published February 2009), Ruth Dugdall (The Woman Before Me, August 2010), Sophie Duffy (The Generation Game, August 2011) and J.R. Crook (Sleeping Patterns, July 2012).
Submissions from writers will be accepted from today 1st May until 3rd August 2012
Only adult fiction is eligible for this bursary. The author must be a UK resident. The judging panel will consist of Luke’s family, Legend Press and authors - with the full panel announced shortly.
Novels must be already completed before entry. Unfinished manuscripts will not be accepted. Your entry should be sent by email and must include the following:
- The first 3-4 chapters of your novel
- A detailed synopsis (max 1 page) – this should include the word count of your novel
- A personal statement outlining why you would particularly benefit from the bursary.
Submissions should be sent to: bitmeadbursary@legendpress.co.uk
Entrants must be aged 16 or over. There is no upper age restriction for entry but all submissions must be from first-time, non-published authors – particularly those who are talented but whose personal or financial circumstances are making it especially hard for them to focus on writing as a career.
The 2011 bursary was inundated with entries and we look forward to reading your work and discovering more talented authors, to join our fantastic alumni!
For all enquiries please email bitmeadbursary@legendpress.co.ukRuth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-18524517185489566992012-07-20T06:24:00.001-07:002012-07-20T06:33:20.075-07:00Love SickWhen I was in Sainsbury’s yesterday I bumped into an old friend. It was been two decades since I’d last seen her, when we stalked nightclubs together blagging free drinks from unsuitable men. I remembered that her boyfriend at the time, a very handsome guy with Kurt Cobain looks & matching melancholy, had asked her out and – when she said yes – promptly vomited.
Being young (ish) and prone to love stories with an element of pain, I was always stunned that this single act of devotion had not been enough to sustain their relationship. What more, I wanted to know, could a man do if losing control of his body functions was not proof enough of love?
I’ve always wanted love in my life, the kind with a capital L. Rows & recriminations, tears & tantrums and kisses passionate enough to make your mouth bleed. It’s a minor miracle that I’ve managed to stay with one man for 16 years, but luckily he never shouts, rarely swears and is an Alka Seltza to my more turbulent appetites.
But the security and stability in my own life has not stopped me wanting to explore the pain and power of doomed love in my novels. As a writer I was initially unaware of the demands that haunted me, writing my narrative with an ear for the story, the dialogue, the characters but not the darker truths. Only later, when discussing the books with groups, did it become clearer that the same themes are there, the same pre-occupations. This isn’t unusual. My daughter’s favourite author, Jacqueline Wilson, has written droves of books about mother who abandoned their offspring for a variety of reasons. My own favourite, Margaret Attwood, re-visits again and again the subject of woman’s identity. Josephine Hart wrote a series of `damaged` women, wreaking havoc on innocent males.
Love is at the heart of all of my novels, but it is not necessarily the most obvious story. In The Sacrificial Man the simplest, purest love is that of Lee and Alice. For Rose (The Woman Before Me) it is the love she feels for her mother. Ann in The James Version has a fatal love for William… it is these passions, thwarted as they are for various reasons, which leads the protagonist to unwise decisions and ultimate moral destruction.
In Sainsbury’s I exchanged a few words with my old friends and we parted in the coffee isle. But what I really wanted to ask her was if she’d ever found another lover who vomited for her? Perhaps she would have thought it a weird question, or may even have forgotten it ever happened.
But for me it was a love story.Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-28776317665829616562012-03-02T05:26:00.000-08:002012-03-02T05:26:10.478-08:00WANTED: Critical TeenagersSo, teenagers can be difficult and taciturn and generally negative? Good! That is what I want. Five of them, to be exact.
<br />Why, you ask?
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<br />Well, my current project is a novel entitled <em></<strong>em>My Sister and Other Liars.<em></em> It tells the story of Sam, a sassy and sardonic teen who is approaching her eighteenth birthday.
<br />When Sam was nearly ten her sister, Jena, was attacked and left for dead. Jena is now brain-damaged, and lives in a community hospital, unable to remember anything about the attack.
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<br />The police have no leads, they are closing the case. So Sam has decided to take matters into her own hands.
<br />She intends to find the man who attacked her sister, and to kill him.</strong>
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<br />Because most of the novel is told in Sam's voice I want five teenagers to read the novel and tell me what I've got wrong. Is Sam's voice convincing? What about the bands she likes and clothes she wears? What could I improve?
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<br />There is a prize!
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<br />All five of my critics will get a credit in the book when it is published and an invite to the launch party. They will also get signed copies of my other novels or (if they prefer) a book voucher.
<br />The teenager who gives me the most useful feedback will also have their name (or one of their choice) used in the novel.
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<br />How does that sound?
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<br />If you know of any teenagers who love reading and would enjoy helping me, then please contact me via my website, ruthdugdall.com, where you will find a `contact Ruth` button.
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<br />Many thanks!<blockquote></blockquote>Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-68365725268119485152012-01-17T02:38:00.001-08:002012-01-17T02:40:05.812-08:00Southend Libraries Book Festival
2012 marks the bicentenary celebration of the birth of Charles Dickens. His legacy still makes an impact in film, radio and theatre today. We are delighted therefore to bring Simon Callow to launch this year's festival with his talk 'Charles Dickens and the Great Theatre of the World.' This wonderful event brings to Southend one of our best loved actors and a tribute to the great Victorian writer.
Please note: Please contact us to check ticket availability for Simon Callow, Gold Pass Tickets and Silver Pass Tickets.
Simon Callow
Friday 2nd March 7.30-9.30pm
His career spans a wealth of film, theatre and writing but for most of us he remains one of our favourite actors, appearing in Four Weddings and a Funeral, A Room with a View and many others. His talk 'Charles Dickens and the Great Theatre of the World' launches this year's festival and will be hugely popular so book early to reserve your place. Individual tickets £10 or book as part of a gold or silver pass.
Please contact us to check ticket availability
Andrew Miller and Kevin Howarth (narrator)
Thursday 8th March 7.30-9.30pm
Shortlisted for the prestigious Man Booker Prize, Snowdrops documents a life of crime, corruption and moral decline in modern Russia. Andrew's debut novel was written while he was the Moscow Correspondent for the Economist but he emphasises it is not an autobiographical account. The novel comes to life in the expert hands of actor and narrator Kevin Howarth making this a truly memorable evening. Individual tickets £5 or book as part of a gold or silver pass
<b>Ruth Dugdall
Wednesday 14th March, 7.30-9.30pm
Award winning author Ruth Dugdall brings a fantastic novel in 'The Sacrificial Man.' A psychological thriller, the book weaves a tale that is both surprising and disturbing. Winning the Debut Dagger Award in 2005 set Ruth on the path to success as a writer but she remains keen to help others in the field and regularly runs workshops to help bring new talent to life. She is an inspiration and a wonderful speaker.
Individual tickets £5 or book as part of a gold or silver pass
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Vicky Kelly/Abbie Norbury and Relaxation/Rejuvenation Workshop with www.blossomdays.co.uk
Saturday 24th March 11-1pm
We are delighted to bring this local author and life coach for this wonderful workshop designed to help you get what you really want out of life. The session begins with a look at wellbeing and how to prevent stress and illness. As most people juggle too much the workshop will teach you techniques to unwind and help you find your point of control. To finish the morning you will learn gentle and restorative yoga poses which help quiet the mind and relax the body. They are designed for everyone and you need no prior experience.
This workshop is a must if you simply want to relax and enjoy life more, no matter what demands you have to deal with. Check out the website on www.blossomdays.co.uk.
Tickets £5 or book as part of a gold pass
Robert Goddard
Friday 30th March 7.30-9.30pm
His books regularly hit the Sunday Times Bestseller Lists, he is a master writer enthralling all with his plots and characters, his latest book Fault Line appears on the 29th March but perhaps most of all he is one of the most entertaining authors you can wish to hear - a great finale to our festival this year.
Tickets £7 or book as part of a gold or silver pass
Gold Pass Ticket - entrance to all events £26
Silver Pass Ticket - entrance to events but not the Workshop £22
All tickets include refreshments. To Book online please use the online form, phone 01702 215011 or visit the central library.
All events take place at Southend Central Library, Victoria Avenue, Southend on Sea, SS2 6EXRuth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-63024133699898335712012-01-03T10:41:00.000-08:002012-01-03T10:41:43.793-08:00My love affair with AmazonLike all affairs, it is not always easy.
Amazon is a fickle lover - one day I am rising the ranks, flushed with the excitement of seeing my sales increase and Amazon feeds me sweet statistics, telling me sales of Sacrificial Man are up 2000% (with my stunted maths knowledge I didn't even know that was possible...)
Other days I will log on, blissfully ignorant of the horror that waits in the form of a scathing review. I see the star ranking first, and sometimes log off, refusing to scroll lower and read the damning reviews.
Once I did this and, after restraining myself for three and a quarter hours, burst out during a family walk, "I got a shit review on Amazon."
Hubbie, one step ahead as always, nodded sagely. "Yes. I saw."
So, at the stroke of twelve on New Year's Eve I released my Chinese lantern into the air and resolved: I will NOT look at Amazon. I will beat this obsession. The book is the point. I worked hard, and I'm pleased with the end result. Let that be enough.
Oh, fool, that I was....
Today a friend e-mailed me to ask if I knew my books are currently 99p on the spurned site? Then I saw this on my publisher's site:
<b>The Woman Before Me - 25 in the Amazon Kindle Chart
Coming into the office this morning it was fantastic to see that The Woman Before Me by Ruth Dugdall is currently number 25 in the Amazon Kindle chart. The book is currently being promoted by Amazon for 99p.
It is fantastic to see this brilliant book doing so well... even beating Stieg Larsson, P.D. James and Martina Cole in the rankings. If you haven't read it yet, make sure you pick up a copy and let us know what you think
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So, back I go, to the arms of Amazon. Still scared to scroll down too far, doing it with one eye half-closed horror-film style.
My resolution broken, and it's only January 3rd.Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-31934763074715999782011-11-05T09:59:00.000-07:002011-11-05T10:03:26.374-07:00Dear AnonymousI just received an anonymous message from someone who has bought The Woman Before Me but is scared to read it in case it upsets them. As I can't respond personally (no e-mail address) I am using this site to send a response: yes, the subject is emotional. And you may cry; I cried when I wrote it. But when you finish the book I hope you will be left with the feeling that you have been on a journey you are glad you took. Will you let me know? x<br />To convince you further here's the latest: <br /><br />60 Amazon reviews for The Woman Before Me<br /><br />Word of mouth is a fantastic tool for promoting a novel, so it is great to see the fantatic reviews for The Woman Before Me by Ruth Dugdall on Amazon. There are now 60 reviews on the site (42 five star and 10 four star), and it is great to see such overwhelming support for this fantastic debut.<br /><br />Below are some of the fantastic endorsements:<br /><br />‘instantly engaging and kept me gripped throughout. I'd go so far as to say it's unputdownable… an impressive debut and I would recommend it without reservation.’ – TARguy, Colchester<br /><br />‘The characters are very rounded and believable, arousing sympathy and mistrust throughout the book. It's very pacy and keeps you guessing right to the end.’ – LadyMacbeth<br /><br />‘Dugdall spins a very clever web of deceit and entwines her characters into her story. I totally enjoyed the book, as did the book club.’ – May Bee<br /><br />‘the pages turn faster and faster as you go. This story is a refreshing change from the usual crime mystery, populated with real characters you can believe in. An excellent novel.’ – Frances Day, Gloucestershire<br /><br />‘I really liked the style of writing and the way it differed from so many other crime thrillers out there… I would not hesitate to recommend this book’ – Julia Shaw<br /><br />‘There were no winners among the characters in this novel but this is a winning book in more senses than one and I am glad I read it.’ – H Gore, Essex<br /><br />‘Dugdall draws her characters with consummate skill, using her personal experience as a Probation Officer in a women's prison to bring them to life. She holds the reader's attention through to the end’ – Wendy<br /><br />‘This story is about so many different things, loss, relationships, jealousy and obsession all displayed in a measured manner… Fantastic I hope Ruth Dugdall writes more for us’ – C. Bannister, Jersey<br /><br />‘psychologically acute; it is also, more importantly, very, very moving.’ – David Rose<br /><br />‘a finely crafted piece of observation. A precise study of human need… excellent stuff!’ – Gary Murning, author<br /><br />‘Dark and disturbing, this psychological thriller will stay with you long after you've put the book down.’ – S Lovett, Essex<br /><br />‘I loved this book even with its dark subject matter, and read it in two sittings. It is a real page turner and written with real insight into all the characters.’ – M. Squirrell<br /><br />‘Absolutely brilliant. I could not put it down and read it in a day. Still thinking about the characters now.’ – schoolescort<br /><br />‘this one is definitely addictive and definitely leaves you wanting more.’ – kayscarpetta, Cleveland<br /><br />‘What makes this thriller so successful is the way sadness and creepiness combine - in the sense that the reader feels that such a story could happen in anybody's life.’ – Petch<br /><br />‘This was a page turner from beginning to end… I cannot wait for the next installment from this author.’ – AY Smith<br /><br />‘With a fantastic eye for detail and sense of place this story will stay with you long after you've finished reading it.’ – Green One<br /><br />‘A dark and captivating read. Dugdall reveals her skills as a `wordsmith', creating a spare and compelling narrative that is both satisfying and disquieting.’ – bhgirl<br /><br />‘If you like dark and disturbing plots, this is for you! You'll be gripped by the relentless pace of the story and be prepared for a couple of shocks at the end.’ – Roz Colyer, Essex<br /><br />‘Pacy, believable, with characters you can really root for; Ruth Dugdall is a talent to watch out for.’ - Devon Violets<br /><br />‘It was marvelous, a real diametric juxtaposition of raw emotion and sophisticated narrative, pacy plotlines and luxuriously laconic descriptions reminiscent of authors such as John Connolly’ - MarkRuth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-87943340016772928122011-10-11T06:30:00.000-07:002011-10-11T06:31:31.553-07:0040 five star reviews for The Woman Before MeThe Woman Before Me by Ruth Dugdall has received a fantastic response so far from readers on Amazon - with 40 five star reviews posted up for the book.<br /><br />There is great word of mouth momentum behind this book - and we would love you to join the discussion by reading the book and reviewing online.<br /><br />Here are some reader's thoughts:<br /><br />'Ruth Dugdall has written her with great psychological insight and captures Rose's descent into obsession with chilling precision. I found myself desperate for Rose to do the right thing and yet simultaneously understanding her needs, even empathising with them. It's quite an achievement and left me disturbed long after I had put the book down. This is an impressive debut and I would recommend it without reservation.'<br /><br />'Ruth Dugdall draws her characters with consummate skill, using her personal experience as a Probation Officer in a women's prison to bring them to life. She holds the reader's atention through to the end, with its horrifying twist.'<br /><br />'This is a book that you're drawn into right from the start and it quickly becomes a page turner that you just can't put down. I didn't see the twist coming. The characters are very rounded and believable, arousing sympathy and mistrust throughout the book. It's very pacy and keeps you guessing right to the end. I can't wait to read Ruth Dugdall's next one. A totally unique book that creates its own genre. Great movie material.'Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-74555457325425057412011-09-03T00:23:00.000-07:002011-09-03T00:24:41.464-07:00by Jim Murdoch - most detailed reviewed on the internet? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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<br />Friday, 2 September 2011The Sacrificial Man
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<br />There is but one truly serious philosophical problem and that is suicide – Albert Camus
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<br />A year ago I reviewed Ruth Dugdall’s novel The Woman Before Me. It has the feel and shape of a crime novel but the twist is that we already know who the guilty party is; they’ve been apprehended, charged, tried, convicted, sentenced and are now up for parole. What the book does is follow the probation officer, Cate Austin, as she tries to come up with a recommendation to put before the parole board. There is a catch. The sole criterion for eligibility for parole is remorse and the prisoner in question, a woman called Rose Wilks, who has been charged with the accidental murder of a child, has always – and continues to – maintained her innocence. How can one express genuine remorse for something you say you never did? As it transpires, she is innocent of the crime for which she had been convicted, but everyone is guilty of something. Now, that might seem like a lot to tell you about Ruth’s first ‘Cate Austin’ novel but I have my reasons. If you have the time and the inclination you can read the whole review here.
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<br />I was very taken with The Woman Before Me. It has its weaknesses and I’m not going to ignore them but I loved the premise and frankly expected to be disappointed by her next novel which I imagined would fall back on a more traditional style. I thought this approach would work for one novel but that would be it. I’m pleased to say I’ve been proved wrong. The question is: Has she fallen foul to the law of diminishing returns? You know what I’m on about: you’re hungry and someone hands you a ham and mustard sandwich and it’s the very best ham and mustard sandwich that you have ever had in your puff and it’s so damn good that you want to eat it all over again, whereupon your kindly host hands you another, identical sarnie but it never is the same, is it? Whereas the first one was great, this second one is only very good at best.
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<br />The Sacrificial Man, much to my surprise, has exactly the same structure as The Woman Before Me. It’s as if Ruth has rubbed out all the characters in the first book bar Cate and filled in new ones. The ‘Rose’ character is now Alice, a university lecturer (Exeter College, English Literature). The crime is not murder, it’s assisted suicide, a crime that can attract up to fourteen years in prison so it’s not that it’s not serious, it is. The premise is the same and the approach the same – Alice gets to narrate her story and Cate’s side of things is told in the third person – and again the question is: what is, in this case Alice, guilty of? She’s been charged, tried, found guilty but not sentenced. This is where Cate Austin comes in. It is her job to make a recommendation to the court.
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<br />That surprised me. I thought that the judge would have simply decided that there and then. In an article in the East Anglian Daily Times, Ruth, who used to work as a probation officer herself, had this to say about the job:
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<br />I loved being a probation officer. They get a really bad press, but I think they do a great job. People generally have the totally wrong idea about what they do. They think they're there to befriend offenders and give them cups of tea and sympathy; actually, it's all about challenging them and getting them to accept what they've done and think about the victim.
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<br />Anyway, I’m pleased to report, Ruth Dugdall has got better at making ‘sarnies’. The approach may be identical but her writing has improved. It is still not a perfect novel and the main weakness in the first book for me is actually amplified by the fact that her new antagonist is a much bigger character this time. In The Woman Before Me, Rose doesn’t exactly jump off the page but Alice does. Do you recall Tim Burton’s Batman, the one featuring Jack Nicholson as the Joker? I remember at the time some criticism was levelled, quite rightly, at the film because Nicholson dominated the film. Some critics even went as far as to say the film should have been called The Joker there was so little of Batman in it. If this book had been called Cate Austin I might have said the same.
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<br />Alice Mariani suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder, a condition in which people have an inflated sense of self-importance and an extreme preoccupation with themselves. Dr Gregg, the psychologist assigned to assess her, asked Cate Austin:
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<br />“Have you heard of egomania?”
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<br />“Well, yes,” she replied cautiously, “but I didn’t think it was a medical term.”
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<br />“It isn’t. It’s the nineteenth century word for a Narcissistic Personality Disorder, but I think it sums things up nicely. I think Alice is a classic case. There are nine key features to the disorder, and my initial assessment is that she scores high on most of them. She’s preoccupied with power, arrogant and has a feeling of entitlement to act as she feels fit. Another feature is a lack of empathy.”
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<br />On top of this she is very beautiful. And knows it. She is poised, articulate, and comes across as very sure of herself. She drives an MG Midget (Cate, “a run-around in dull green with a dent in the wing.”) This is her book and don’t you forget it: she’s talking to you:
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<br />I’ve chosen you. You will listen. You are my judge, the true arbiter.
<br />
<br />Those words aren’t addressed to Cate or Smith or any other character in the book. Alice kicks down the fourth wall and makes sure you’re paying attention.
<br />
<br />(For the record, by the way, the most likely diagnosis for the Joker, although definitely a narcissist, is probably antisocial personal disorder.)
<br />
<br />So, what is her story all about? Alice has responded to an online advert:
<br />
<br />Man seeks beautiful woman for the journey of a lifetime. I will lift mine eyes to the hills, from whence cometh my help. Will you help me to die?
<br />
<br />The quote is from Psalms 121:
<br />
<br />1. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
<br />from whence cometh my help.
<br />
<br />2. My help cometh from the LORD,
<br />which made heaven and earth.
<br />
<br />If you read the entire psalm is has a similar feel to Psalm 23, the LORD is my shepherd. The appeal is from a guy who uses the Internet name, Smith – his real name is David Jenkins – Alice going by the name Robin, names which they mostly continue to use in the real world once they finally meet. Smith is not a crank, at least he doesn’t appear to be, he says he’s not terminally ill and despite quoting the Bible he doesn’t come across as a religious nut either. His online profile reveals little though:
<br />
<br />He’d been a fan of Morrissey in his teens and I imagined a melancholic youth with floppy hair smoking dope. He said he was a Catholic and, however lapsed, the faith was in his blood.
<br />
<br />It’s the name that first attracts Alice:
<br />
<br />To me, Smith was beautifully anonymous – an Everyman. I didn’t want the unique or standalone; I sought the mediocre, the average, the one lost in a crowd. I wanted the man who worked behind a desk, who microwaved cardboard meals, who rubbed the sore grooves down his nose, scored by his glasses, Mr Mousy Hair, Mr Nylon Shirts. Strange, that I sought the ordinary when I’m anything but.
<br />
<br />Others respond to his ad, but Robin/Alice is his choice.
<br />
<br />Her assessment of Smith is right on the nail. He works as an actuary for an insurance firm in London. He’s twenty-seven, a popular age to die, although John Keats, whose poetry and philosophy of life features, was only twenty-five. In chapter ten Cate gets to see Alice deliver a lecture on Keats, albeit one on film as she has been suspended from actual teaching duties. The talk ends with…
<br />
<br />As Keats said, ‘I conclude,’ projecting to the camera, ‘now more than ever seems rich to die. To cease upon the midnight with no pain. A perfect death is a way to cheat the dulling, dumbing effect of time. To die at the heart of love is the only way to preserve its purity.’
<br />
<br />Alice, predictably, enjoys watching herself onscreen:
<br />
<br />My onscreen image is beautiful, slim, clever. To Cate Austin, as to the students sitting enthralled, it must appear as if I have it all.
<br />
<br />So why would this clearly intelligent woman who has “it all” agree to help a complete stranger end his own life? She’s not a member of The Hemlock Society, although this pro-suicide organisation does take an interest in her case, in fact she doesn’t appear to have any strong feelings on the subject that don’t come out of a book and like many academics when asked a question she’s prone to respond with a quote. Or is that just a front? At her core she comes across as a Romantic. Even when she thinks about the very real possibility of a custodial sentence, this is what she comes up with:
<br />
<br />The word is too romantic, a beautiful lie. ‘Prise’, a word for open. Said quickly prison could be present – birthdays and Christmas. How can such a word mean something so ugly, so absolute, as incarceration? I shall say jail. The word is more honest, in it you can hear the clink of keys in locks. I like to be honest with words…
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<br />David Jenkins – Smith – on the other hand is very different but one can also see why, once she got to know him, there might have been some attraction. He’s a decent bloke, organised – his suicide note is written months in advance and goes to great pains to ensure that Robin, as he calls Alice, is protected from prosecution. He writes:
<br />
<br />Robin is no more responsible for my death than a train driver who runs over a guy who jumped on the tracks. She may be driving the train but she never made me jump. It will be me swallowing the drugs, knowing they bring death. The eating, too, is my request. Robin doesn’t even really want to – she’ll be doing it for me. And I’ll be alive at that point, so it’s not even illegal.
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<br />Right. I probably should have mentioned the eating bit. But I won’t, if you don’t mind, mention that bit. Yeah, I know, that puts a whole different complexion on everything. Especially since Alice is vegetarian. Is this all starting to ring bells now? Let me remind you:
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<br />Recently [in 2002], a man in Germany was put on trial for killing and consuming another German man. Disgust at this incident was exacerbated when the accused explained that he had placed an advertisement on the internet for someone to be slaughtered and eaten—and that his ‘victim’ had answered this advertisement. The man had first castrated his willing victim, and then the two had eaten the removed flesh. Following this, Armin Meiwes administered a drug, stabbed Bernd-Jurgen Brandes to death, cut him into pieces, and placed him in the freezer—a delicacy to be consumed over several months. – J. Jeremy Wisnewski, ‘Murder, Cannibalism, and Indirect Suicide: A Philosophical Study of a Recent Case’, Philosophy in the Contemporary World 14:1 (Spring 2007)
<br />
<br />The man in question was Armin Meiwes who was arrested in December of 2002 and, indeed, it was hearing about the case on the news that first sowed the seeds in Ruth Dugdall’s mind. Meiwes was put on trial in 2003, and convicted of manslaughter in January, 2004. He was sentenced to 8½ years. Of course Ruth references it in the book along with other similar cases; she’s obviously done her research. There are clear differences, however, between the circumstances surrounding David Jenkins’ death and what happened in Germany but, needless to say, the press, ever keen to sensationalise things, focuses on the act of cannibalism, something Alice thinks little of:
<br />
<br />It was like eating the dead skin from a scab. It was nothing. It was rubber and salt.
<br />
<br />As with The Woman Before Me the facts in this case appear clear cut. No one is accusing Alice of misrepresenting the facts or of trying to wriggle out of anything. But what we believe to be true isn’t always what turns out to be true. And that is what Cate Austin, as she carries out her investigation, uncovers.
<br />
<br />Like all novels of this ilk the suspense is derived from eking out information. As it happens the day of his suicide Smith posts a letter to one of his workmates, Krishna Dasi, that proves to be the sole piece of evidence that is needed to clarify what really happened and who is guilty of what and if Krishna hadn’t hung onto it for weeks before deciding to hand it over and, if, when he did choose to hand it over, he had picked a police officer rather than Cate Austin, or if Cate had been a faster reader than she apparently is (taking another 113 pages to get through something she could and should have read in an hour), then everything would have been done and dusted by page 163 or thereabouts. I’m being picky. It’s not as if her being a slow reader gets someone else killed. It just means that it takes a bit longer for everyone to find out the truths and how they change their lives.
<br />
<br />There is another layer to this book. We have Alice talking straight to us, we have Cate’s story and then we have a third story, the backstory where we learn where Alice came from and what happened to make her the person she has turned into. Really, the fact that she willingly agreed to be a party to someone’s suicide is one of the least interesting things about her once you learn about her mother and what happened to the two of them, how Alice ended up in care and also how Alice ended up rich: by the end of the book she’s been transformed from merely the accused into a real person. Smith, not so much, although we do learn a lot more about him, but this is Alice’s story.
<br />
<br />As with The Woman Before Me, Cate is the weak link. This is what I had to say about her last appearance:
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<br />I found Cate the most predictable character here. It’s a common ploy of crime novelists to have a fair degree of overlap between protagonist and antagonist and I never truly engaged with her. She does her job, metaphorically and literally.
<br />
<br />and I feel exactly the same about her in this book. I know that Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple’s talent as a detective lies in the fact she is unobtrusive, blending into the background where she can conveniently overhear relevant snippets of conversations but she still has character; in the early novels she’s a gleeful gossip and not an especially nice woman before Christie softened her down and made her more “fluffy”. In an e-mail Ruth said this to me:
<br />
<br />The question of whether Cate should be more to the fore was one I struggled with, and in earlier drafts she is much more present. I removed these sections as I felt Alice – and Smith – had such strong storylines and I was worried about distracting the reader. Maybe I was too heavy handed with my removals?
<br />
<br />It’s a difficult call. But my main feeling about Cate in this book is the fact that she does precious little detecting. Yes, she notices that Alice swapped vases – that was well spotted – but she failed to notice how ill Alice was until it was pointed out to her and Krishna simply hands her the vital piece of evidence; no one knows it exists before then. To be fair it’s more realistic this way – my wife and I are always tearing apart cop shows on TV apart for the remarkable leaps in deduction they make and don’t get either of us started on forensic evidence – but it does make her a bit dull; a necessary player but not a very exciting one. But then she doesn’t need to be; we have Alice.
<br />
<br />Bottom line? I enjoyed this. It asks some serious philosophical questions in the midst of everything and there are no easy answers. This is not just a crime novel or a psychological thriller. I like that. Ian Rankin chose to be a crime novelist because he realised that a detective was the perfect tool to prise open the lid of society. He’s a serious novelist masquerading as a crime fiction writer and I believe the same is true of Ruth Dugdall. The Sacrificial Man is also topical, Sir Terry Pratchett, for one, having raised the public’s awareness of the subject. The copy I was sent has four pages at the front praising Ruth’s writing but I’ll echo what Frances Day (an Amazon reviewer) had to say: both Ruth’s novels are a “refreshing change from the usual crime mystery, populated with real character you can believe in.” I would have no problems reading her next book but I would like to see something a little different next time. When William McIlvanney (another serious novelist) wrote his third and final Laidlaw novel rather than writing in the third person as he had done in his first two novels he wrote Strange Loyalties in the first person presenting a very different book. I would like to see Cate Austin come out of the shadows.
<br />
<br />I thought I’d ask Ruth about this.
<br />
<br />In your e-mail to me you said that you deliberately toned down Cate’s role in this book because Smith, and Alice, especially, are such large characters. That wasn’t the case in the first book and yet I still felt that she lacked in many ways. I see from reading other reviewers that this is the common criticism of your protagonist. How do you think you’ll avoid us saying the same about her next time?
<br />
<br />I’m responding all the time to what readers tell me. Because it took me several years to find a publisher I was, to a large extent, writing in something of a void, not sure how my novels would be received by the general public. Now that I am in the fortunate position of being published I often hear from readers, especially at book groups (I usually visit one every few weeks) and what I am hearing is that people are intrigued by Cate and want more of her.
<br />In earlier drafts of The Sacrificial Man there was more of Cate’s back-story, but I felt it distracted from Alice’s narrative (which, for me, is the pulse of the novel) so I deleted it. I’ve learned that readers see Cate as the voice of reason and are also interested in the rarely portrayed probation perspective. My next Cate Austin novel (Humber Boy B – a work in progress) will see her coming more into the foreground, and will reveal what motivated her to train as a probation officer. Readers have guessed that she has some skeletons in her cupboard and it’s time for me to reveal some of them.
<br />
<br />In both of these books the ‘bad guy’ is actually a woman. Obviously your experience working as a probation officer brought you in contact with a lot of ‘bad’ women. Do you think that the way that women are treated in the criminal justice system is different to males; mad rather than bad?
<br />
<br />I feel this very strongly. For me one of the final frontiers of feminism is to acknowledge that women are equally capable of violence, of harm, of terrible deeds, as men. As a society we are still shocked when women are involved in violent or sexual crimes and prefer to believe that the woman was either under the influence of a male or mentally ill. I know it’s anecdotal rather than statistical evidence, but I worked with many people who had been abused by women, and in several of the murder cases I supervised there had been women who were also involved who had avoided charge. Women are treated very differently by the Criminal Justice system and as long as that remains the case we won’t have a true picture of crime and the psychology behind it. Novels are just one way in which it is possible to challenge normal assumptions about criminal behaviour, and I hope my novels add something to this debate.
<br />
<br />You said in a recent Radio 4 interview that motherhood was one of the reasons you started writing in the first place. Can you explain?
<br />
<br />Well, firstly on a very practical level it gave me the time to really concentrate on writing. I’d gone from being a student into full time work, so when I was on my maternity leave it was my first real chance to really clear my head and start to pull together my ideas. I also think that when I was working I was very bound up in being a probation officer and the stresses of the job, so maternity leave gave me some distance and perspective. Motherhood is a very strong theme in both The Woman Before Me and The Sacrificial Man and having children myself meant that I cared even more about this very vital relationship. In my work I had seen how devastating it can be to have an abusive or absent mother, and it was natural for me to connect with this theme when I came to explain how Rose and Alice came to be the women they are.
<br />
<br />I noticed that you did a lot of work on this novel using the site Authonomy. Can you tell us a bit about that experience? Is it an approach you would recommend and, if so, why?
<br />
<br />I love Authonomy. It is a fantastically supportive environment, and I do believe it can open doors for people. At the very least it is a chance to meet (in cyberspace) with other dedicated writers and get feedback. This in itself is vital for a writer – we can’t be defensive about or work if we want to improve, and criticism that is given constructively is a gift. This is a lesson that can be learned on Authonomy, and in quite a safe way, as people are very generous with their support.
<br />
<br />Writing is lonely, but a site like Authonomy is the virtual equivalent of the office water cooler. You can log on, enjoy a chat, read a thread, then get back to writing.
<br />
<br />There are a lot of crime novelists out there and a seemingly never-ending stream of cop shows on TV, presumably read and watched by people who have never murdered anyone, nor would ever imagine murdering anyone. What is the attraction?
<br />
<br />Fear. We all fear having the rug pulled out from under us, and crime novels allow us to experience this vicariously and then see the world restored to its rightful order, as usually the conclusion of a crime novel is redemptive in nature.
<br />
<br />I believe you have two more books under your belt. Can you tell us a little about them?
<br />
<br />The next novel that will be submitted to publishers is called My Sister and Other Liars and is a totally different kind of novel. It’s a coming of age story about Sam, a teenage girl, whose sister was attacked and left brain damaged. The police have no evidence about the attack and are closing the case so Sam has decided to find her sister’s attacker and enact her own revenge.
<br />
<br />After that comes Innocence Lane, which is about a man who kills his wife, but says he was sleepwalking when he did this. The defence of sleepwalking has been used successfully in both the UK and USA and I think it’s a fascinating notion.
<br />
<br />Both novels are stand-alone pieces, set in Suffolk, and feature characters introduced in TWBM and TSM, although not Cate Austin.
<br />
<br />Well, all I can say is that I’m looking forward to reading them; Innocence Lane especially calls out.
<br />
<br />***
<br />
<br />Although the events that take place in it follow on from The Woman Before Me, The Sacrificial Man is a standalone novel. It is published by Legend Press and the last time I looked could be bought on Amazon, new, for as little as £4.00.
<br />Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7571064684619104431.post-76149649700219713552011-08-24T02:56:00.000-07:002011-08-24T03:05:15.150-07:00Back in the swing of things...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4vKPQ8rFFYVR56kKH8XLcEifbeZkuKjsU4Eyy1YV26NkF_eP6aOcih9UpGLztnBA5HbSFJnj8UZnPVsfaSfiDqJQd10Wt-e-XiE3Rj-60m0S_Aj7LXf30PEDoEdD4QcO_d701vF4nW5Gt/s1600/Ruth+on+radio.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4vKPQ8rFFYVR56kKH8XLcEifbeZkuKjsU4Eyy1YV26NkF_eP6aOcih9UpGLztnBA5HbSFJnj8UZnPVsfaSfiDqJQd10Wt-e-XiE3Rj-60m0S_Aj7LXf30PEDoEdD4QcO_d701vF4nW5Gt/s320/Ruth+on+radio.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5644359403782120338" /></a>
<br />
<br />Vermont was magical. It was my first time back since honeymooning there 13 years ago and we took the kids back to the same hotel which felt very special and nostalgic. Lots of mountain hiking (as the Americans call it) and swimming in `swimming holes`. In fact, the house we stayed in lost water for 4 days so swimming in the lake was our only way to wash! All adds to the experience.
<br />
<br />Now I'm back, climbing a different sort of mountain (washing!) and still on American time, which had better adjust soon as tomorrow is my first publicity event. At 2.30 (UK time) I'll be interviewed by Hannah on Talk Europe Radio. Then on Saturday I'm back to the book signings, at Waterstones in Coventry from 10am. Coventry was a good event last year with The Woman Before Me so I'm hoping to see some friendly faces again. If you live in the area please pop along & say hello!Ruth Dugdallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01579959563143366905noreply@blogger.com0