My guest today is Wendy Clarke.
1. I know you've only
been writing for about three years, Wendy - so I don't suppose you've seen
any changes in the womag market or noticed magazines being more open
to genres they'd not previously have considered?
Over the last three
years, I have seen a definite change in the types of stories The
People’s Friend are happy to accept. As one of their regular
writers, I know that as long as difficult subjects are handled
sensitively, it is now possible to push the boundaries a little. For
example, I have written about bereavement, disabilities, a child with
Asperger’s syndrome, divorce and post natal depression. I was also
told I was the first person to sell them a ghost story. It is
definitely a mistake to think that their stories are about teashops
and cupcakes!
2. In your article in
Writing Magazine you mentioned your 'signature style' could you
describe that?
My stories have been
described as having emotional depth – I hope this is true.
3. You've become very
successful very quickly. Obviously the fact you write really good
stories has helped, but I believe teacakes are also important?
Oh yes, the teacakes! I
am very lucky to have a writing friend Tracy Fells living near me and
once a month we sit in our local tearoom and put the writing world to
rights. The support she has given me has been incredibly valuable...
and it was over teacakes that I came up with the idea of putting
together my first collection of stories, Room in Your Heart, last
year.
4. You're very
disciplined and write a new story every week. How do you manage that?
I’m lucky in that I
have the time to do it. Since being made redundant four years ago
(which is when I started writing) my only regular commitment is
walking my step-dog... oh, and writing my novel!
4. Is it true that your
husband reads all your stories?
Yes, poor thing. He has
an engineer’s brain and is able to look for errors without getting
caught up in the stories themselves. Having said that, he is very
good at recognising if I’ve written a ‘so what’ story (as
Gaynor from Woman’s Weekly likes to call them) – if I have, his
face says it all. He is incredibly supportive, though, and immensely
proud of my writing.
5. I've heard that some
writers use real people and situations in stories, especially if
something has annoyed them. Do you ever do that?
I very rarely, if ever,
base my characters on real people. I do, however, use situations
people have told me about in my stories... a lot. One of the stories
in The Last Rose, called New Beginnings, came about after a good
friend told me that she received texts from her baby grandson
(written by her daughter of course). He would sometimes tell her he
was having a bad day and I knew at once that it would make a poignant
story.
6. You have two lovely
collections of short stories available, Room in Your Heart and The LastRose - will there be more?
I have been asked for
more, so I hope so... just not for a while!
7. I understand you're
working on a novel now, does that mean you'll be giving up the short
stories?
I know I should but I
just can’t. I love writing short stories – the variety and the
way they allow you to visit so many different centuries, characters,
settings and situations. The only way I might give them up is if
someone offered me a mega book deal... any offers?
8. What has been your
happiest or proudest writing moment so far?
A have two perfect
moments – when I sold my first story... and then when I sold my
hundredth story!
9. Can you pass on a
tip for other womag writers?
I’ve said this before
and I think it’s become my mantra - just start
writing: write the story you would like to read yourself and write it
from the heart. If you
love it, it’s more likely that the editors will too.