The Author Hotline
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Josephine Feeney
http://www.josephinefeeney.co.ukfeeneymckay@btopenworld.com
To download this profile page, click HERE
Q: What were you like at school?
Happy and carefree - I didn't realise you had to work hard.
Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?
The owner of a sweet shop.
Q: Which three words describe you best?
future swimming star
Q: What is your favourite word?
Persephone
Q: What makes you cringe?
Parents who embarrass their children.
Q: What are you afraid of?
Heights and ill-health.
Q: When did you last have a really good laugh?
Yesterday. (I'm writing this first thing in the morning.)
Q: What is your most treasured possession?
My accordion.
Q: What do you do as a hobby?
Swimming; walking; playing the accordion; gardening; apple crushing, (in season.)
Q: What strange habits do you have?
Listening to the life stories of complete strangers on the bus into town.
Q: What’s your favourite food?
Home made pizza - using the Nigel Slater recipe.
Q: What do you day dream about?
At the moment - a sunny summer day with the windows open and the curtains flowing in a gentle breeze...
Q: What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done?
Knocking on people's doors then running away. (When I was a child of course.)
Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?
An olympic swimmer
Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?
Younger
Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?
My grandmother, Annie Hynes. Apparently, she was the 'pin-up mother' of her generation and a brilliant accordion player. She died in the 1940s.
Q: What quality do you most admire in a person?
Kindness and patience
Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?
Rome - so many different cultures and civilisations.
Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?
"Don't look down on anyone unless you're helping them up."
Q: What has life taught you?
To be patient and to take the long view.
Q: How long have you been a writer?
Since 1991 professionally. Before that I wrote in most of my spare time.
Q: Was there a specific moment in your life when you decide to become a writer?
In Sheffield in about 1982 when I was in a Writers' Group run by Berlie Doherty.
Q: Where do you do your writing?
Mostly in the back room downstairs but also in the local library and sometimes in the car whilst waiting to collect people from music, dancing, boxing, youth club or school.
Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?
Worst things: isolation; loneliness and rejection letters. Best things: the friendship and support of other writers; feeling of achievement when a reader says they enjoyed your work; spending time with my family when they need me.
Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?
Overheard conversations in public places; school visits; from my family; from childhood memories; newspapers and conversations with other people.
Q: Which of your own characters do you most identify with?
Sarah in "The Day My Parents Ran Away" as my father was ill a lot when I was a teenager.
Q: What do you do to combat “writers’ block”?
Do something completely different like cleaning, swimming, walking or cycling.
Q: What was your favourite book as a child?
I used to like comics more than books. My favourite was "The Bunty".
Q: What book do you wish you had written?
Momo by Michael Ende
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
Read everything you can. Listen, even when you're not inspired by what you're hearing. Write every single day. Write your first draft in pen or pencil - you'll never lose it because of a computer virus. Be realistic: make sure you have another means of earning a living. Be confident and realise that your story is unique.
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My Family and Other Natural Disasters
ISBN
014036511-7
Status
Out of Print -
Truth, Lies and Homework
ISBN
014037707-7
Status
Out of Print -
The Dadhunters
ISBN
000651784
Status
Out of Print -
Stealing the Hills
ISBN
0140816453
Published By
Penguin
Status
In Print -
The Day My Parents Ran Away
ISBN
0140385126
Status
Out of Print -
The Holy Terrors
ISBN
000675533x
Status
Out of Print -
So, You Want to be the Perfect Family
ISBN
0192752332
Published By
Oxford University Press
Status
In Print -
Makeover Madness
ISBN
0192752960
Published By
Oxford University Press
Status
In Print -
Robin Hood's Day
ISBN
9781406306408
Published By
Walker Books
Status
In Print -
Joshua's Story
ISBN
9780902254992
Published By
University of Leicester
Status
In Print
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