Tyne O'Connell

Q: What were you like at school?

Shy and bookish. I preferred watching others to joining in. I was a little aloof or separate.

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

author

Q: Which three words describe you best?

books, laughter, friends

Q: What is your favourite word?

penchant

Q: What makes you cringe?

Paste and men with beards (they smell and look mean)

Q: What are you afraid of?

Bad taste, bad breath, bad anything

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

This afternoon

Q: What is your most treasured possession?

My laptop and my Kindle reader

Q: What do you do as a hobby?

Varies - lately I play dress up with my Barbies

Q: What strange habits do you have?

I always have one on the go. Lately it has been dressing up my Barbies, my teenage daughter wishes this will stop but she joins in anyway (as do her friends when they visit).

Q: What’s your favourite food?

Cup cakes, high tea, oysters, Steak tartare, battenburg cake

Q: What do you day dream about?

Travel & shopping

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

Played elephant polo

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

doctor

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

both

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

Nancy Mitford, my favourite writer, my favourite personality and my inspiration

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

Daring with lashings of flair. I admire bravery and truth. Its brave to be truthful

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

Cairo. I had already travelled extensively but Cairo was not as I expected. I loved the desert and the people and the way of life.

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

Be decisive

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

I’d like to be more decisive

Q: What has life taught you?

Don’t make decisions when I’m tired or angry

Q: How long have you been a writer?

I sold my first book to a publisher in 1995 but I have always been writing

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

Yes. When I was nine my rather intimidating imperious English teacher Mrs Bresser told me she found my writing “profound” even though I had written a funny story about an action hero gran “super gran”. One day after marking my story she looked into my eyes and assure me that I would be a writer. It meant a lot to me and gave me the goal, which shaped my life.

Q: Where do you do your writing?

In bed. As soon as I wake up I reach for my laptop which I sleep with and start writing.

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

I like the solitary nature of the writer’s life but it important to change gears so I make sure that I go out every evening to eat and meet with friends. I have however gone weeks just working and seeing no one. That can be unhealthy.

Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?

Living. Listing to others. I think a lot of writers feel like outsiders because we are always observing life.

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

Write. Even if I don’t feel like it I know the only way to break through is to do it anyway. If I waited for the muse I might wait a long time. I go searching for the mews in my work.

Q: What was your favourite book as a child?

First favourite book, Winnie the Pooh, all time favourite book – Pursuit of Love written by Nancy Mitford and based on her childhood.

Q: What book do you wish you had written?

The Pursuit Of Love

Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

Write. Every day set time apart to write.