Marie Godley

Q: What were you like at school?

I was shy and quiet at school. I didn't like sport but I loved History.

Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?

Like most children that changed depending on how old I was at the time.

Q: Which three words describe you best?

Kind, Scatty and Small.

Q: What is your favourite word?

Honey. Used to talk to my kids, the dog and lots of other things. Don't ask me why.

Q: What makes you cringe?

Embarassing situations.

Q: What are you afraid of?

Anything happening to my family.

Q: When did you last have a really good laugh?

Yesterday, with my daughter. We tend to laugh at not a lot, to the bemusement of my husband.

Q: What is your most treasured possession?

Apart from my children, my grandparents' rings.

Q: What do you do as a hobby?

I read a lot of books, childrens as well as adults. Walking is good, especially as I live 5 mins drive from the beach and 10 mins from the New Forest.

Q: What strange habits do you have?

None or all of my habits are strange depending on who you talk to.

Q: What’s your favourite food?

Got to be Chocolate or for a meal, a good home made Sheperds Pie.

Q: What do you day dream about?

Mythical creatures especially if I'm staring at the clouds, they are so full of interesting shapes.

Q: What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done?

Nothing!

Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

Archaeologist.

Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?

Definetly younger.

Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?

My Great Grandad.

Q: What quality do you most admire in a person?

Always, Kindness to others.

Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?

The Peak District in Derbyshire.

Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?

To be myself.

Q: What would you most like to change about yourself?

Nothing.

Q: What has life taught you?

To be nice to everyone.

Q: How long have you been a writer?

3 years.

Q: Was there a specific moment in your life when you decide to become a writer?

No, It just happened.

Q: Where do you do your writing?

Anywhere when I'm writing in my note pads, especially the garden in the warm weather but I type my stories on my computer which is in the dining room.

Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?

The best is creating characters that you believe in and stories that children enjoy. The worst is when someone doesn't like what you've written or the wait to hear back from the publisher.

Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?

Life, things I see when I'm out walking.

Q: Which of your own characters do you most identify with?

The mad ones. Although I often see my kids in the characters I have written.

Q: What do you do to combat “writers’ block”?

Sometimes I take time away from writing, sometimes I write about something else, the answer usually comes.

Q: What was your favourite book as a child?

Although I loved Enid Blyton's Famous Five it has to be The Brother's Lionheart by Astrid Lindgren.

Q: What book do you wish you had written?

Nobody elses but the best book that is still within me to be written.

Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

Keep trying. It may take time but if you want to write a book and get it published you have to keep trying.