ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
KENT AUTHOR PROFILE
KATIE GINGER
BASED BY THE BEAUTIFUL KENTISH SEASIDE AND A LONGTIME LOVER OF THE WRITTEN WORD, ESTEEMED AUTHOR KATIE GINGER HAS A MIGHTY COLLECTION OF ENTHRALLING BOOKS TO HER NAME. SHE ALSO HAS AN EQUALLY BELOVED STACK OF DREAMY DESTINATION ROMANCE NOVELS WRITTEN UNDER THE PSEUDONYM ANNABEL FRENCH.
Katie, please tell us about your author journey. I’ ve been writing now for about eight years, which seems crazy! I started writing for HQ Digital, another HarperCollins imprint, under my own name and then moved to Avon to write as Annabel French, writing romances set in dreamy destinations. I only started writing after I got made redundant and it was the best decision I ever made.
Has any person, place or thing significantly influenced your writing? This is a great question. I’ ve always been a huge reader and have always leaned towards romance, so of course there’ s the traditional writers like Jane Austen who have influenced me. I think they’ ve probably influenced every romance writer ever! Recently though, I’ ve loved seeing the rise of more spicy romance books and how younger romance readers are seeking something different.
Have you always been drawn to the wonders of romance, or have you explored other genres within your writing, too? Romance is and always will be my first love. I can’ t help it; I’ m just a sucker for a happily ever after. I love uplifting fiction and given the state of the world, disappearing into a romance book brings me unimaginable joy. Having said that, I have dabbled in historical fiction( still with strong romance threads) writing as Emma Royal for Penguin Random
House. This series focused on working-class women working below stairs at Buckingham Palace just as Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne. If you want The Crown meets Downton Abbey, then you’ ll like these, but romance is my day job.
You live beside the beautiful Kent coast; has this inspired your work at all? As I write destination romances set in beautiful European locations, being by the sea often inspires my work. The thing I love most about Kent is that you have the beach one way and rolling green fields the other way. If I can’ t get away to the destinations I’ m writing about, a stroll in the woods or along the seafront nearly always gives me inspiration. But inspiration can come from literally anywhere or anything; sometimes it’ s a place or person and sometimes it’ s a snippet of conversation. I’ ve heard some really weird and wacky things, and always make a note on my phone because you never know when it’ s going to come in handy for a book or a character.
Tell us about your next release, The Floating Copenhagen Cafe. What can our readers expect? I loved writing this story. It was actually one of my favourites. They don’ t always flow, but this one did and I was able to visit Copenhagen on a research trip which was amazing. The book, which is due to be published on 2 July, is about Milly, who’ s reeling from a recent heartbreak when she’ s offered the chance to go to Copenhagen for a gorgeous summer and help revive an idyllic but struggling cafe on the canal. She jumps at the chance for a fun, drama-free, solo summer floating along the Danish canals. But then she meets Theo, the café’ s beautiful but brooding chef who challenges her at every turn.
As they work together and their fiery connection grows, Milly wonders if she might have finally found everything she’ s been looking for. Their sizzling attraction is undeniable, but Milly and Theo have both been hurt before and Milly worries that their carefully guarded hearts might be closed to love forever. As summer draws to a close, Milly must decide if she’ ll fight for their relationship or retreat to her carefully curated life in England.
What’ s next? I’ m really happy to say I’ m writing some more destination romances for Avon and the next one will be out in November. It’ s going to be set in Lapland at Christmastime, which sounds pretty perfect to me.
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