Author Interview with Lola Blake

 

Help me welcome Author, Lola Blake to the Author2Author Blog Chat.

Full Author Bio

LOLA BLAKE grew up in Australia’s Surf Coast Shire before moving to Melbourne to study creative writing. After completing her Bachelor’s degree, she spent the next ten years trying out various careers and travelling before finally deciding on teaching. She is now a full time author and is currently working on her upcoming Seven Sisters book series.

Coming Home is Blake’s first novel and was written in eight weeks, during a visit to the seaside. Dying to be Thin was Blake’s second novel and was inspired by true events. Lust, which will release next month, is the first book in Blake’s upcoming Seven Sisters series.

Lola is an avid reader and regularly updates her blog (www.lolablake.net) with book reviews and news about her upcoming series. She loves networking with other readers and writers and can be contacted at her twitter handle @lolablakes.

She now lives in Melbourne with her husband and two children and still retains her love for the beach.

Tell us more about yourself?
I live on the surf coast in Australia with my two kids and husband, which keeps me busy as you can imagine! Despite this, I still find time to write, walk my dog and get to the beach as often as the weather and time permits. I like to unwind by reading books in the bathtub. I’ve lost more than a few good paperbacks this way, so I’ve switched to audio books lately.
I’m not really one for television but I’m absolutely addicted to my Twitter feed and check it obsessively. 

 How would you describe 'your book (s)'?
It’s difficult for me to classify my books as the three that I’ve released so far have all been so different. I’m a bit of a daydreamer so every book I write is really just a product of my imagination. My work has been classified from every genre from paranormal romance (Coming Home) to Young Adult (Dying to be Thin) to Historical Fiction (Lust).-    I favour realism over happy endings so don’t expect any wouldn’t-it-be-neat-if endings from me!
 

 What Genre is your work mainly? Do you tend to stay in the same vein or are you hoping (if not already) to explore new ventures?
Lust is the first in a series of seven books, all of which focus on social double standards and trauma. The books will range in genres and include historical fiction, paranormal fiction, feminist, chicklit and general fiction.

 Share with us a quote from one of your favourite characters
“I hate being fat. I hate being Thin. Most of all, I hate that I care.” – Becky from Dying to be Thin. I think this nicely sums up how most women feel in regards to their body image regardless of shape and size.

 Is it hard to come up with new ideas and/or plots?
No. Like I said, I’m a daydreamer whose mind is constantly thinking up new scenarios and predicaments. I actually struggle to find the time to get them all down on paper!

 How long does it take you to complete a finished

book?
Depends on the book. Dying to be Thin was written in two weeks and didn’t need much editing. On the other hand, Lust was extended from a 7000-word story to a 54000-word story and went through several rewrites before I was happy.

 What inspired you to write 'your book (s)’?
My overactive, never-at-rest imagination! 

Who was the easiest character to write and why? Hardest and why?
Linda in Lust was by far the hardest because she was an emotionally draining character. Becky (Dying to be Thin) and Sara (Coming Home) also had their challenges but I found them to be more relatable. Sara was the most enjoyable character to write about because she underwent such drastic changes. She was by far the most complex person I’ve ever written about. 

Are your characters based on real people? People you may know or TV/Movie stars?
Not generally. However, Becky (Dying to be Thin) is loosely based on a high school friend who had an eating disorder. I was discussing it with her one day and she shared part of her high school journal with me. Parts of it are reconstructed in the narrative of Dying to be Thin. 

Without giving anything away, what is/are your favorite scene(s) in 'your book'?
My favourite scene in Lust is when Patty, the rebellious teen turns up and causes havoc at the convent. She was a fleeting, yet brilliant character that really challenged the status quo. 

If 'your book (s)' had a theme song, what would it be and why?
Lust is set in the 60’s, so I would have to say the theme song would be something from the era. Something by the Rolling Stones perhaps.
 

Do you listen to music while you write your book (s)? If so ... what songs?
I was channeling a lot of Lana Del Rey when I wrote Coming Home. In fact, now that I think about it, if Coming Home had a theme song it would be Dark Paradise by Lana Del Rey. If you’ve read the book and know the lyrics, you’ll understand why. 

What’s up next for you?
I’m about to start editing Gluttony, which is the second novel in the Seven Sisters series. 

Do you have any other Talents or hobbies other than your literary wand?
My ability to juggle motherhood, full-time work and writing whilst simultaneously maintaining the maturity of a twelve-year-old. 

A little background into your writing: when did you start? What was your first piece? First published piece, tell us about your general history…My first published piece was Coming Home in 2014, however, I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. 

 Do you have any favorite books or authors?
Liane Moriarty, Marian Keyes, Stephen King, Tammy Cohen just to name a few!

  

Here could you give us a few words to people who haven’t yet read your book (s), sell your work ;)
All my work is fiction-realism, meaning that all the characters and circumstances are relatable, real, rarely happy-ever-after and always complex. I like to tell tales about the uglier side of the life, the hidden part that lurks beneath the veneer of the status quo! 

 Do you have a snippet?
The opening paragraph of Lust: We pull into the long driveway at Loxley House and wait for the iron gates to swing back. They groan on their hinges, crying out in protest at having to separate. I peer out from the backseat of our Cadillac Station Wagon where my head has been resting against the window for the entire eight-hour journey. I have watched city pavement give way, first to gumtrees and bush, then to the rocky ranges of the Blue Mountains. Now I watch ominously as we ascend up the driveway, beyond the ten-feet-high concrete walls that surround the house and its generous land. There will be no escape from here. Even if I could get over the wall or sneak through the gate, the nearest town is miles away. You could die out here. A grown man could perish in this heat, let alone a young girl in my condition.   The drive up the hill is taking longer than expected. It’s steep, windy and unrelenting. Dad drops a gear and puts his foot flat to the floor to combat the tor. I remember something my year nine economics teacher, Ms Harris, told me. Mental asylums were built on top of big hills and mountainous ranges. There was a belief, and some medical practitioners still believe, that the cold winds on top of the mountain could blow the crazy from you, cleanse your soul once and for all. I wonder if the same rationale applies here. But this is not a mental asylum, I remind myself. This is something worse.

What Will You be Focussing on This Year & Next?Volume 2 of The Seven Sisters series, Gluttony, is scheduled for release in August. The next two volumes, entitled ‘Greed’  and ‘Sloth’ will be released next year so I’ll be busy working on those books. 

 Find Lola:

·       Facebook

·       Twitter

·       Amazon

·       Blog 

·       Books

https://www.dss.gov.au/our-responsibilities/families-and-children/programs-services/forced-adoption-practices

Past and Present Works

·       Lust: A Seven Sisters Story (Volume 1 in a 7-Part series)

·       Dyingto be Thin

·       Coming Home