Tell us about your latest novel in 15 words or less.
Hi Elle, it’s lovely to be here, on Chicklit Uncovered to tell you a little about My Husband’s Wives!
It is a contemporary story of love lost and found, of jealousy, misunderstanding and new beginnings.
What inspired you to write My Husband's Wives?
The book began with the premise of what if? I liked the idea of a world turning on the opening of a front door. It is however very much a character driven book, so really, the four women of the story brought it to its conclusion far more than I did.
Where do you do most of your writing?
Now, I write in a home office. It is upstairs and surrounded by bedrooms and the only window is a sky light, which reduces the distractions. I had my choice of rooms when the kids were small and they didn’t have the where with all to choose where they wanted to be. For the novels, I need a quiet space to call my own. Planning and working on more than one project at a time takes the kind of organisation that could eat up my time if I had to set up fresh every time I came back to the desk.
I quite envy people who write in cafes, but I couldn’t see that working for me, I know too many people and I could imagine I’d spend my time chatting or worse eating cake all day!
Where to start! The book I loved as a teenager was Ivanhoe. I also loved Emma and Pride and Prejudice. I grew up on mysteries mostly, so I devoured Agatha Christie and Sherlock Holmes.
In the last few years, I really enjoyed Elizabeth is Missing by Emma Healey and Eggshells by an Irish writer Catriona Lally. I adore Alan Bennet – then again, who doesn’t and my agent pointed me in the direction of Kate Morton, Frances Brody and Anne Tyler, all of whom I’ve really enjoyed recently.
Which part of My Husband's Wives did you enjoy writing the most?
It had to be Annalise. I had such fun with her. For me, her voice was so clearly in my mind that there were times when I knew I should get up and leave the book behind but she just would not let me go. Unfortunately, the publishing business is such that some of her had to succumb to the brutality of my electronic scissors, but still, I feel I know her and enjoyed her best of all. Would we be friends if she were real? We live in different worlds, but she’s one of those people that yes, I think when we’d meet we would laugh a lot.
Who is your favourite literary heroine?
This is easy – it has to be Emma. I think, she’s a little like Annalise… (perhaps that should be the other way round!)
Do you have any tips for readers who are looking to become published writers?
Like many ‘new’ writers, I have a stack of work that I felt ready to publish many times over the years. Again and again, my agent said that the right publisher would come along. It is (once the writing is half decent,) often a question of timing, but it is worth waiting for the right person to pick up your manuscript.
There is no greater joy than being told that a publisher wants to sign you and my advice is, if you have someone who knows the business, listen to them. If they know what they’re talking about and they have a track record, then pay attention to what they tell you. It’s worth waiting for a little while to work with good people – after all, it’s in your interest to place your book in the best hands possible.
On the other hand, don’t take to heart what people who haven’t the first clue about publishing have to say to you. There are more writer’s forums and courses and creative weekends out there now than you can shake a hat at. Make sure, if you’re spending money that the person giving the course has some track record, that they are published and have achieved some sort of success. Otherwise, you’re better off going out and purchasing a copy of Stephen King’s ‘On Writing,’ or Betsy Lerner’s ‘The Forest for the Trees.’
Are you working on anything else at the moment and if so, can you tell us?
I have Book 2 due with the publishers at the end of May. So it’s in good shape, but there’s always something to be done! I’m really excited about it. It’s a completely different story again with a back story that brings you to a different age!
And, I have an idea for Book 3… now, there’s a woman whispering in my ear and I have a feeling life is just about to get a bit more interesting for her…
Thanks for having me to visit on Chicklit Uncovered, I’ll be keeping an eye out for new releases and reviews!
Thanks, Faith!
My Husband’s Wives by Faith Hogan
Better to have loved and lost, than never loved.
Paul Starr, Irelands leading cardiologist, dies in a car crash with a pregnant young woman by his side.
United in their grief and the love of one man, four women are thrown together in an attempt to come to terms with life after Paul. They soon realise they never really knew him at all.
The love they shared for Paul in his life and which incensed a feeling of mistrust and dislike for each other, in his death turns into the very thing that bonds them and their children to each other forever.
As they begin to form unlikely friendships, Paul's deaths proves to be the catalyst that enables them to become the people they always wanted to be.
About Faith Hogan
She was a winner in the 2014 Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair – an international competition for emerging writers.
Her debut novel, ‘My Husband’s Wives,’ is a contemporary women’s fiction novel set in Dublin. It will be published by Aria, (Head of Zeus) on 1st of May 2016. She is currently working on her next novel.
Contact Faith Hogan
Faith Hogan’s debut novel, ‘My Husband’s Wives,’ is published on 1st of May 2016 by Aria (Head of Zeus). It is currently available to pre-order on Amazon and all good E-reading sites. Faith lives in the west of Ireland with her husband, children, a very fat cat called Norris and a selection of (until recently!) idle writerly mugs and cups. Follow Faith on Twitter at @gerhogan or like her on Facebook.comFaithhoganauthor/ or, if you’re really interested, you can catch up with her on www.faithhogan.com.
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