Featured Post

Friday, February 1, 2019

INTERVIEW WITH VERONICA HELEY


Veronica Heley celebrated the publication of her 82nd book in December 2018, having been in the business for over 40 years. She is currently writing two gentle crime series set in different areas of London and three short stories a year for the Methodist Recorder. She has also written children’s and resource books, a biography, and some historical fiction, along with many articles and reviews. She’s involved with her local church and community affairs, likes to break for coffee with friends and does the garden when she has time. You can learn more about Veronica by visiting her website.   

INTERVIEW WITH VERONICA HELEY
 

If you had to describe yourself in one sentence, what would you say?
 

I’m a story-teller who writes about family crises and murders . . . in which the good always come out on top.
 

What do you do when you’re not writing? Any interesting hobbies?
 

I have cups of coffee with friends, I garden and I sing alto in a ladies’ choir.
 

What was your favorite book as a teen or child?
 

From fairy stories I moved straight on to Jane Austen.
 

Tell us three things about yourself that might surprise your readers.
 

I play Patience (Solitaire) with real cards, I always have two vases of real flowers in my living room, and I haven’t been to a hairdresser for fifty years.
 

What genre did you start out writing? Have you changed course? Is there something else you'd like to try someday? What is it?
 

I started in crime, switched to historical, did a stint of fourteen years writing children’s stories for the Christian market plus a biography of St Paul. I did the storyboards for some cartoons, and loads of reviews of books. Then came the text for three pop-up books, and at the turn of the century I was invited back into crime with a Christian background . . . and I’ve been there ever since. Oh, and I wrote a lot of short stories along the way. 

For years I lectured on How to Write. Every now and then I think I ought to put my notes into a book format. If my story-telling facility ever deserts me, then perhaps I will . . . but it doesn’t seem to have done so yet.
 
What’s the best writing advice you ever received?
 

The best advice I was given was to learn how to edit my own work. It took a while for me to do that but it’s paid off.  

Do you have any writing goals you haven’t met yet? What are they?
 

My next writing goal is to finish the umpteenth working through of my next book, get it delivered and accepted. After that . . . who knows? Once I thought it would be pleasant if my books were adopted for television, but I avoid swearing and explicit sex and cruelty. So no, that’s not likely to happen.
 

What are you working on now?
 

I’m working on the 20th Ellie Quicke mystery, which is probably going to be the last in that series. I’ve been living with Ellie for twenty years, and I feel she’s grown enough to do without me in future. What happens next? I haven’t the faintest idea. If God wants me to do another book about her, or someone in her family situation – or about Bea Abbot (the other series that I write about) then He’ll give me the idea for it. I leave all that to Him.
 

Tell us about your latest releases.
 

I have had two books published recently. One, from the Ellie Quicke series, came out last June with Severn House (September in USA). This was MURDER BY SUGGESTION which opens when
Ellie’s difficult daughter Diana turns up with suitcases in tow. Bunny Brewster has died of an overdose, and Diana’s husband, Evan, is convinced she is responsible for his friend’s death. Four other neglected, bored wives in their circle recently joked about ways to kill their husbands . . . and are also thrown out by their husbands . . . ending up on Ellie’s doorstep. Can Ellie work out who is responsible, and why?
 


Then at the end of the year Severn House brought out another Bea Abbot story, FALSE ACCOUNT. Wealthy Marcia Tredgold and her dowdy daughter Charlotte, visit Bea, asking for her to find replacement staff for them . . . but what Marcia really wants is to find out whokilled her two cats! A shocking event causes Bea to worry about Marcia’s own safety. Could the cats’ deaths be linked to other disturbing events? And whose account can be trusted in the web of secrets and lies which has been spun around the family?

 

What is the most important thing you’d like readers to take away from your books?
 

The most important thing is that however diffident or assertive we may be; however rich or poor, however difficult our family circumstances, our Christian background help us to get through whatever life throws at us.
 

Leave a comment, along with your contact information, and you could win a copy of Veronica's book, MURDER BY SUGGESTION!

13 comments:

  1. Well I hope one or more of your books do make it to television.
    Theresa N
    weceno at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I enjoyed hearing your writing story. It sounds to me like you have lots of good reading material that I’ve been missing out on. I also agree with you about movies. Hollywood puts entirely too much trash in them these days. Thank you for the interview.
    perrianne(DOT)askew(AT)me(DOT)com
    Perrianne Askew

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for the interview. My TBR pile has just grown a number of books higher. It is a shame that producers think people need swearing, violence, and explicit sex in their movies. Oftentimes times people want movies that bring hope and peace into a chaotic enough world. Keep on writing as the Lord prompts.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I think your books would be perfect for Hallmark Movies and Mysteries!
    lhanberry1 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks for the review and the chance to win. Book sounds really good.

    faithdcreech at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  6. interesting interview
    bn100candg at hotmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  7. I really enjoyed reading about Veronica. Quick question--do you live in England?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thank you for sharing about Veronica. I enjoyed this.
    leliamae54(at)aol(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  9. Enjoyed the interview. Fifty years without a hairdresser? Do you cut your own hair or not at all?
    tumcsec(at)gmail(dot)com
    Gail Hollingsworth

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi Veronica, I enjoyed learning about your many writing adventures and I look forward to reading your mysteries. I admire your last statement and totally agree thatj, no matter what comes our way, our Christian faith helps us to get through whatever life throws at us.
    Blessings!
    Connie
    cps1950(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  11. Congratulations on EIGHTY TWO (82!) books! Thanks for sharing interesting things about yourself! :) Nice to meet you! :) Badawson16 (at) AOL (dot) com

    ReplyDelete
  12. I think your books could be adapted by the Hallmark Channel. In the meantime, I have now added several to your titles / series to my read list.

    donna (dot) durnell (at) sbcglobal (dot) net

    ReplyDelete
  13. This book looks so good! I love mysteries! . Thanks for the chance. paulams49ATsbcglobalDOTnet

    ReplyDelete