It is high time for a book update. Ready?
Lovely. Let’s crack on.
After several attempts by myself, and the cover designer to
explain vague artistic visions via Hotmail, we have now met. I have seen drafts of Carry the Beautiful’s front cover and they are utterly marvellous. One of them is being worked into the finished
product, as I sort out the final details.
Wooo - say it with me - hooooooo.
One such detail is the blurb for the back cover. This has been one of the hardest parts to box
off. Whilst I feel my story is multi-layered and complex in terms of genre,
others may feel it is simply ‘chick lit’.
It is not, as this isn’t a helpful genre or description for any
book. Indeed, the only time the word ‘chick’
is appropriate is when describing baby hens and roosters, but I digress. The more enlightened phrase of ‘Women’s
Fiction’ could feasibly be used, but again, I balk slightly at the gender
segregation. It isn't necessary. It’s a story, with men and
women, about work, relationships, murky pasts, and emotional ties. Something for everyone, regardless of genitalia.
In the feedback I received from my editor, she explained that at first she’d wondered if it was a psychological thriller, before reading it
all. There is definitely a hint of
mystery running through it. There are
unanswered questions that the reader, and indeed Tilda the female protagonist
need answering. Whether as readers, we
work it out before Tilda, will depend on how much we allow our minds to search
for the clues and hints along the way.
Ultimately it is about someone making sense of their life, revisiting an
intense romantic relationship from the past, and finally choosing to be
proactive in their own happiness.
However, in the spirit of caring and sharing, I am going to
post all my blurbs on here - in reality I only need one. This means my superfluous pithy paragraphs
won’t go to waste. It should also give a
bit of more insight into what Carry the
Beautiful is all about. Enjoy. I am spoiling you.
"Tilda Rudd sits on a bench and waits. The sun shines, pedestrians pass by, yet still she waits. Will she get the
answers to the questions she has avoided for so long? Can any good
come from her desire to find out? Leaving the past behind is no longer an option. Tilda has to confront it, whether she is
ready or not."
"Carry the Beautiful is a witty yet emotionally charged story of one woman’s mid-life crisis. It is the tale of
growing up, of loss and the unwitting compromises people make, long before they
realise their consequences."
"Tilda Rudd’s ability of controlling her feelings and slapping on a smile is severely tested after reaching her fortieth birthday. Her past must be confronted and she can’t put it off much longer. Her journey down Memory Lane reveals a young woman open to possibility, and at odds with the tightly wound control-freak she has become. Is it the alcoholic solicitor or the travelling artist that hold the key to where it all went wrong? And who is the angry old man with just days left to live?"
"Tilda Rudd's midlife crisis crept up slowly, but since her
40th birthday has been impossible to ignore. Her past, that she
suppresses so carefully, must be confronted. Tilda's journey takes her
back to 1996, to her student days, and to the person she once was, before she let
life call the shots."
Second one!!!
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