Book Promo & Author Interview: The Baby & The Bride (The Debt & The Doormat #2) by Laura Barnard

Please welcome Laura Barnard, author of The Debt & The Doormat on the blog today, sharing her new release of the second book in the series, The Baby & The Bride. Check out the book and the author interview below! The first book in the series is currently FREE!! Get your copy here: Amazon US Amazon UK - Lynn

The Baby & The Bride (The Debt & The Doormat #2)

Synopsis:

Sequel to the #1 Amazon Best-Seller, The Debt & the Doormat (available for FREE) 
Poppy and Jazz’s lives sound perfect on paper. Jazz has a new baby and Poppy’s getting married. But their realities are very different. 

Poppy must strive to keep her cool new job with crazy hours, while trying to keep Ryan happy. Before she knows it her wedding has got out of control, thanks to her mother, the runners at work are bullying her, her parents are in financial difficulty and she’s doubting everything and everyone she ever knew. 

Meanwhile Jazz is struggling with motherhood, something a credit card won’t fix. Why won’t this baby give her a break? Will Jazz be able to cope before she loses it? 

And will Poppy make it down the aisle? Will Ryan even be waiting?

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Author Interview:

1. When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? 

When I was a teenager.  I’ve always adored books and thought it would be cool to one day write one myself.  One year I just thought, I’m going to give it a try. 

2. How long does it take you to write a book? 

I don’t think there’s any science to it yet!  The Debt & the Doormat took two and a half years, but there was a lot of stopping and starting.  The Baby & the Bride took nine months start to finish, but it was hard going!   

3. What do you think makes a great story?

I think if you can relate to the characters and feel like you’re rooting for them to have a happy ending. 

4. What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

I do all of my writing at night as my eighteen month old daughter is so full on I can't get a thing done during the day!  So I generally work from about 7.30pm to at least midnight.

5. How do you balance family and writing?

I dedicate my day time to my daughter.  That way I don’t feel like I’m compromising our time.  I’m actually so lucky to be able to do that.  My husband and my Mum however do help out massively in regards to cooking and cleaning – skills I wasn’t blessed with!

6. Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?

Everywhere!  Stories from friends, newspaper articles, TV storylines.  I basically like to find an initial idea but then change it around and think ‘what if this happened?  And then what if that happened?’

7. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book/s? 

I didn’t realise how lovely the book community is!  At first I was a bit embarrassed to contact book bloggers and reviewers, but I quickly learnt that everyone is lovely and genuinely wants to help you in achieving your dream.  It's a really lovely place to be.

8. How many books have you written? Which is your favourite? 

I’ve now written two books; The Debt & the Doormat and the sequel, The Baby & the Bride.  It's hard to say which one was my favourite as they are so different.  The Baby & the Bride concentrates more on the aftershock from decisions made in the first book and how it's going to end up.

9. Are your characters based on anyone you know?

Personality traits are definitely taken from people I know, but no one person is a specific character.  It wouldn’t really be my imagination then, plus my friends would kill me!

10. Do you have a favourite place you love to write?

At home.  I have a desk squeezed into the corner of my sitting room, but a lot of the time I’m on the sofa, half watching TV at the same time.  I love a crime drama in the background!

11. How hard is it to get published?

I’m self-published so I’d say very hard!  However, what I didn’t realise was that you could have massive success just doing it yourself.  The Debt & the Doormat was number one best seller in Amazon free humour for a month and it's won Best Laugh Out Loud Book of 2013.  I never imagined that kind of success.

12. What do your family and friends think about your books?

They love them!  Although my Mum and husband haven’t actually read them, as they’re not really readers.  I personally prefer that anyway, as if they critiqued it, it would hurt the most.  I still hold my breath when friends read it and I don’t relax until they’ve finished.  I realise that everyone reads a book differently so I’m never sure they’ll enjoy it.

13. What do you like to do when you are not writing?

I love reading, having movie nights with mates and sleeping!  Pretty boring really, but I’m normally too tired to do much else!

14. Do you have any suggestions to help aspiring writers better themselves and their craft? If so, what are they? 

I would just tell them to force themselves to write something every day, no matter how small or irrelevant.  I think the more you do it the more of a habit it becomes and things start to flow.  I also think there’s a lot to be said about not piling pressure on yourself – don’t set out to write a book, just write a funny story.  Something might come from that.

15. As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up? 

I originally wanted to be a journalist, but as I got older I realised how much stiff competition there would be and that it was a lot of unpredictability about where you would be every day.  I wanted something a bit more stable and you don’t get anything more relaxed than writing books in your pyjamas!

16. What are your favourite books and which authors inspire you?
I have so many favourite books that it would be unfair to name just a few.  I love Sophie Kinsella and Lindsay Kelk as they write hilarious chick-lit, but I’m still finding new authors that I adore.  Belle Aurora is amazing, I’ve just discovered Mia Sheridan and I’m currently reading This Man by Jodi Ellen Malpas.  Being in touch with all of these book bloggers is great as I get fantastic recommendations that I wouldn’t have heard about before.

17. For an aspiring writer what do you feel are certain do's and don’ts for getting their material published?
Don’t worry too much about a publisher recognising your talent.

Do look into self-publishing.

Don’t give up.

Do respect book bloggers/reviewers and remember they are crazy busy

Don’t be embarrassed to make a fool of yourself and put yourself out there. I’ve been known to give my card to people in shops – no shame!

18. What are you working on now?
I’m working on a new stand-alone book, which is currently un-titled.  It's about a party girl who is sent to live with her cousin in the Yorkshire countryside.  All she wants to do is join her friends in Mexico as a club rep.  She hears about a volunteering incentive being run by the local council.  The volunteer with the most clocked hours in the local care home in a month wins flights of their choice.  She makes it her mission to win this, but in her desperate need to escape she discovers a lot about herself and what she really wants from life.

About The Author:

My name is Laura Barnard and I am an author from Hertfordshire, UK. My first chick-lit novel, The Debt & the Doormat was an Amazon number 1 best-seller and won Best Laugh Out Loud Book of 2013. It is available via Amazon, Smashwords, iBooks. Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository and many more. 

In my spare time I enjoy drinking my body weight in tea, indulging in cupcakes the size of my face, drooling over hunks like Jamie Dornan, Ryan Gosling and Leo Dicaprio...oh and my husband of course! I like wearing yoga clothes and reading fitness magazines while I sit on the sofa and eat chocolate. I'm a real fan of the power nap and of course, READING!

I write not to get rich or famous, but because I LOVE writing. Even if one person tells me they enjoyed my book it makes the midnight typing worth it!

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