Guest Author Jan Ruth

Today our guest is Jan Ruth, author of yesterday’s book Wild Water. Here is a link to the post if you missed it. http://wp.me/p2Eu3u-5vR

Let’s find out more about Jan and her books.

1) Where is your home town?

My home town is in Conwy, North Wales. I wasn’t born here, I’m originally from Cheshire – so not Welsh either! However, I’ve always felt Wales is my spiritual home and it features as a setting for all of my books

2) How long have you been writing?

I’ve been writing for about 30 years. Back in the days before self-publishing I had various dalliances with traditional agents and publishers with my first book ‘Wild Water’ but sadly it didn’t really go anywhere. My stumbling block – at the time – was that it fell between genre and the male voice was too unusual. This was 20 years ago. I thought it made me unique but what did I know!

3) Do you have a preferred writing genre?

I write about people, the Welsh landscape and about situations I have knowledge of. This brings me firmly into the contemporary mould. I think genre is difficult to pin down with a lot of self published works, but without the confines of publishing houses the freedom of writing what feels natural can now (and should) come first.

4) What was the one idea which sparked off “Wild Water” ?

I wanted to write about the impact of a marriage breakup from the male point of view. At the time of writing, there were issues in my personal life which provided lots of accurate detail and fodder for fiction. Standard chick-lit is always about the hard-done-by female character and I set out to write about the other side. The book then developed into something deeper than chick-lit, with mature characters and of course, the Snowdonia setting.

5) Can you tell the readers a little about Conway?

Conwy is a medieval town set on the River Conwy in North Wales, UK. It is coastal and rural. The Snowdonia National Park provides a fabulous backdrop and the town is steeped in history, with a castle dating back to 1283.

6) Tell us about the buyer lined up to buy Anna’s Farm.

He’s intent on buying Gwern Farm to develop it into a leisure hotel. Anna doesn’t want to sell her rural idyll to this man, in order to have it destroyed, but her fiance, Alex, is determined to see the sale through.

7) What is Anna going to do once she’s sold the place?

Alex wants to buy a restaurant in Cornwall, but Anna’s heart isn’t really in it.

8) Why does Jack end up convalescing at Anna’s?

Jack is on a downward spiral, trying to keep his business afloat and stay sane in the face of his wife’s betrayal. His accident is a turning point for Jack and Anna when she offers a respite at Gwern Farm.

9) What are some of the tourist attractions that Anna’s B&B guests come to see?

The area around Gwern Farm is a paradise for walkers, bird-watchers, photographers and artists. There are many National Trust properties, castle and period houses in the whole of Wales and of course, it is a popular coastal area with many beaches.

10) Tell us where readers can finds out more about you and your books.