Tag Archives: Evonne Wareham

WELSH WRITING WEDNESDAYS: EVONNE WAREHAM ON WALES AS A SETTING FOR FICTION

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You’ve probably noticed that many romance novels and some crime stories are set in picturesque locations in the British Isles – Scotland and Cornwall are particular favourites.You don’t get books set in Wales quite so often, although dramas like The Pembrokeshire Murders are putting Welsh settings on the screen.

I’m a Welsh writer, living on the South Wales coast, who once worked for the National Parks. That’s a lot of baggage. I’ve set books in Wales in the past and am ambitious to do more. I write in the genre romantic suspense, which is better known in the USA, less so on this side of the Atlantic. If you’ve read books by Nora Roberts, Karen Rose or Karen Robards you’ll have an idea of what I am talking about. Those books are set in places like Sacramento, Washington and New Orleans, or sometimes in the American farmlands or backwoods.

It’s not so much the Welsh urban settings that appeal to me – although I’m sure that Cardiff and Llandudno can be interesting locations, if not sounding quite as glamorous as New York or Los Angeles. The attraction of Wales for me is the potential of the rural and coastal landscape, and the way that it can be turned in two directions. Wales is blessed with mountains, big skies for cloud watching and star gazing, and a beautiful and dramatic coastline, accessible from a coastal path that circles the entire country.

Is there anything more romantic than a deserted beach at sunset on a warm summer evening? A place for lovers to discover each other. But give the story a twist – the same beach in winter, or at night, with a storm blowing, and you have the backdrop for mayhem. A seaside or country cottage can be an idyllic bolt hole from the world or a deserted and lonely trap, with a heroine on the run. Writers think about these things. I’m often told that taking a walk with an author who is sizing up the surroundings for a good place to bury a body is a disconcerting experience. You get the picture.

The historic legacy of Wales, from castles to folklore, is another attraction. Welsh castles range from Castell Coch, a quirky Victorian Gothic Revival built on thirteenth century foundations, to massive medieval fortifications like Caerphilly, which were anything but quirky. The myths and legends of Wales are rich in magic and the supernatural. Traditional customs, like the Mari Lwyd, a poetic wassailing party featuring a horse’s skull, have plenty to tingle the spine.

There is also the attraction of the natural world. One of the perks of being an author is the ability to make your own weather, and Wales has plenty of that to choose from. If you need a fierce storm to strand your hero and heroine together, you’ve got it. Two of the things I like to play with as a writer are the impact of silence and writing against expectation of the setting. The silence of a lonely location can be peaceful or sinister, or even better, progress from one to the other.  A setting can echo a character’s mood – like a wet day reflecting bad news, but it can be very effective when bad things happen in good places. Being surrounded by beauty and sunshine can make a threat even more devastating.

Those are the things I get from setting a book in my home country. For me the landscape has romantic beauty and a wild and potentially sinister edge. As a Welsh writer, I want to be able to share that with readers.

 

 

 

WELSH WRITING WEDNESDAYS: WHAT I WRITE AND WHY – INTRODUCING EVONNE WAREHAM

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Who am I, what do I write, and why?

Well, I’m either an academic and bureaucrat who has a second career in romantic fiction, or a romance writer with a blamelessly boring past and an academic streak – you can take your pick.

I’ve wanted to be a writer ever since I was a teenager, but it took me thirty odd years and a lot of dead ends and near misses before I actually achieved publication. I had a paying career in local government and charity administration, a large part of it in London, most of which I enjoyed as I climbed the career ladder. When I wasn’t enjoying it I would take a lurch into academia – with a Master’s degree and then a PhD in History. Alongside that I was always writing, and always romance. Part of that was because of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, which encourages unpublished writers through its new writers’ scheme, which requires you to submit a manuscript for professional critique every year. It meant a great deal for an aspiring writer to be able to mix with other hopefuls and also published writers, many of whom are very big names and are generous with their time and friendship. I also like writing romance – for me it’s positive and life affirming and I always want a happy ending. I’m a thoroughgoing escapist where my reading matter is concerned, and that’s what I write too.

Photo credit: Sian Trenberth Photography

During those years of apprenticeship I experimented with all types of romance from family sagas to Regency historicals. I eventually noticed that everything I wrote had an element of crime in it, but I knew I didn’t want to write police procedurals or psychological thrillers – I didn’t have the expertise. Then, eventually, when I’d almost given up, I read an American novel in the genre romantic suspense – a hot love story with a crime element – it was The Reef, by Nora Roberts. It made me think – can I do that?

It turned out that I could. It still took a while. I had some success in American competitions for unpublished authors, including a reality contest run by a big romance review magazine – that was a roller coaster and a lot of fun, although I didn’t get anywhere near winning. Then at last, I got a British publisher who liked what I was doing – American style but with European locations. I achieved a dream and my first published book – Never Coming Home – won the award that the Romantic Novelists’ Association gives for the best new writer each year.

I write across the romantic suspense spectrum – some books are grittier than others. At the moment I’m enjoying a series at the lighter end, set in resorts on the French and Italian Riviera – plenty of glamour and sunshine and a sexy encounter or two. For the future I’m looking to return to the grittier stuff, and I want to set a lot more of it in Wales, my home country, where I’m now living. I love the landscape, especially the National Parks, for their romance and their more sinister potential for a thriller writer. My books can be dark and scary, and they have a lot more dead bodies than your average romance, but there will always be a love story and always, always, a happy ending.

 

You can find out more about Evonne on her website https://www.evonnewareham.com/home and her weekly blog https://evonneonwednesday.blogspot.com/

 

 

 

 

CARIADS’ CHOICE SAINT DWYNWEN’S DAY REVIEW SPECIAL

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Most people probably know that St Valentine is considered to be the patron saint of love, but did you know that Wales has its own equivalent? St Dwynwen’s day is celebrated on 25th January in the same sort of ways as her more famous counterpart – sending cards, giving flowers, having a special meal – anything in fact that says ‘I love you’. St Dwynwen’s own story is a sad one, told with an overlay of traditional folklore elements – beautiful princesses, thwarted lovers and people being turned into blocks of ice. Ill-fated in love, Dwynwen became a nun, founding a convent on Anglesey, and generously praying that true lovers should have better fortune. Frost magazine is marking her special day with some reviews from Welsh authors of romance books that have a Welsh connection.

Trisha Ashley A Leap of Faith, reviewed by Evonne Wareham

I’m an Ashley fan, and she has been one of my go-to feel-good reads in lockdown. That said, I had mixed feelings about this one. It has familiar ingredients – a slightly older heroine, with a biological clock ticking, a bit of mystery, some infuriatingly arrogant and entitled ex boyfriends and husbands, a supporting cast of eccentrics, crafts and baking and recipes. I loved the fact that it’s set in Wales, in an imaginary community on the Gower and has a rather gorgeous hero called Nye, who speaks with a Welsh lilt, although he was brought up in Manchester and his looks are more Viking than Celtic! On the down side, the book is twenty years old and has not been significantly updated and there are a couple of episodes of harm to animals that I found upsetting. With those caveats, I did enjoy the book. Probably one to choose if you have read her others and are completing your collection, as I was. If she is new to you, it may be better to begin with something more recent. Those involving chocolate are particularly scrumptious.

Sue McDonagh Escape to the Art Café, reviewed by Jan Baynham

The third in a series, Escape to the Art Café is another feel-good, uplifting novel that may also be read as a stand-alone. The author writes with pace and humour to keep the reader turning the pages. However, for me, her strength is in the characterisation. She creates multi-layered characters whom you care about. Both Flora and Jake are ones I really warmed to and as their backstories are revealed, I came to understand more about them. Set against the backdrop of the beautiful Gower peninsular and with a great twist towards the end, the theme of strong community so often found in Wales runs through the whole novel. I enjoyed it immensely.

Tracy Rees The Hourglass, reviewed by Jill Barry

Two different eras spring to life in this poignant story of youthful dreams and cold reality. We meet the competent Nora in 2014 at an unhappy time for her. In 1953, schoolgirl Chloe lives for her annual visit to Tenby, a town to which the troubled Nora is also drawn. But the two are linked by more than the Welsh seaside resort which, as the novel progresses, is viewed in all its colourful splendour through the main characters’ eyes. You’ll relive simple pleasures and wonder about the power of love and positive thought.

Evonne Wareham A Wedding on the Riviera, reviewed by Jessie Cahalin

A Wedding on the Riviera is a smoking hot romance entangled with an intriguing mystery. The runaway groom hooked me from the outset. An intricately woven plot ensured I escaped to the Riviera, Cardiff, Bristol and Bath.  Wonderful writing took me into the heart and soul of Nadine and Ryan and made me yearn for their happiness. I absolutely loved the tension created by the dubious dealing of Thackery. Drama, romance and glamour are packed into the novel. Will the perfect plan to catch a thief be thwarted?

 

 

 

 

 

 

INTRODUCING WELSH WRITING WEDNESDAYS

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Although it isn’t often mentioned in Frost, I am very proud of my Welsh heritage. I was born in Cardiff and my father was an Anglo-Welsh poet and literary critic, so it is inevitable I have an affinity with other writers with connections to the principality. So much so, I am a member of the Cariad chapter of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, and it is to these wonderful women I looked first when I was considering Welsh Writing Wednesdays.

The idea is simple; on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month one of us will bring you an article about writing in Wales. And replacing the ever-popular Sister Scribes’ Reading Round Up on the last Monday will be Cariads’ Choice.

So here are some of the wonderful authors you will be meeting through Frost this year.

Judith Barrow

Originally from Saddleworth, a group of villages on the edge of the Pennines, Judith has lived in Pembrokeshire, Wales, for over forty years.

She has an MA in Creative Writing with the University of Wales Trinity St David’s College, Carmarthen, BA (Hons) in Literature with the Open University, and a Diploma in Drama from Swansea University. She is a Creative Writing tutor for Pembrokeshire County Council and holds private one to one workshops on all genres.

Jill Barry

Jill began her writing career with short stories for magazines and anthologies, winning prizes and being both long-listed and short-listed. She is a multi-published romantic novelist who also writes Pocket Novels for D C Thomson and who draws on her varied career and her travels for inspiration. She has also written one psychological suspense novel which is published by Headline Accent. A member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and the Society of Authors, Jill enjoys mentoring new writers and is convinced she will never stop learning.

Jan Baynham

Originally from mid-Wales, Jan lives in Cardiff. As well as short stories and flash fiction, she writes full-length novels that deal with family secrets and explore the bond between mothers and daughters. Her debut novel, Her Mother’s Secret, was published by Ruby Fiction in April 2020. This was followed by Her Sister’s Secret in September 2020 and book three will be out next July.

A member of the Romantic Novelists Association, she values the friendship and support from other members and regularly attends conferences, workshops, talks and get-togethers. She is co-organiser of Cariad, her local RNA Chapter.

Jessie Cahalin

Jessie is a Yorkshire author living in Wales. Wales and words have a special place in her heart, and she wants everyone to meet the characters who’ve been hassling her for years. Penning women’s fiction is Jessie’s dream job, but she also writes travel articles and features for her blog and magazines.

You Can’t Go It Alone, her debut novel, was a bestseller in the UK and Canada. For Jessie, a good natter with other authors and readers is a special treat as she usually lives in her tiny writing room with Paddington Bear and a collection of handbags.

Alexandra Walsh

Alexandra is the author of The Catherine Howard Conspiracy, The Elizabeth Tudor Conspiracy and The Arbella Stuart Conspiracy, known collectively as The Marquess House Trilogy. A series of a dual timeline Tudor conspiracy thrillers, published by Sapere Books, the novels explore a secret hidden within history and the potential havoc its revelation could wreak. Her new book with Sapere, The Windchime, is due out in 2021. Another dual timeline story, set in present day and late Victorian times, it explores mental health issues, grief and rebuilding lives after the worst has happened.

Evonne Wareham

Evonne is an award winning Welsh author of romantic suspense – more crime and dead bodies than your average romance. She likes to set her book in her native Wales, or for a touch of glamorous escapism, in favourite holiday destinations in Europe. She is a Doctor of Philosophy and an historian, and a member of both the Romantic Novelists’ Association and the Crime Writers’ Association.