Published UEA graduate giveaway!

Hi Christine! First and foremost, what inspired you to become a writer?

Follow Christine @chrisstovell

Hi! Chocolate is the short answer. Winning first prize in a national competition at primary school for an essay on an aspect of chocolate manufacturing. Halfway through my story ‘My Life as a Cocoa Bean’ I realised there could only be one tragic ending – an early lesson in planning ahead – but I won a big box of chocolates for something I thoroughly enjoyed doing and it set me on the path that took me from chocolate to Choc Lit.

It’s great to hear that you’re a graduate of UEA. What course did you study and did that help you on your path to success?

I read European Studies at UEA which included a summer studying German at Heidelberg University. After graduation, I worked mainly in research and policy departments, but pursued my creative writing in my spare time. I learned from a couple of near misses and I kept my eyes open for opportunities. When I read about a new independent publisher called Choc Lit in the trade press I wrote to them the same afternoon – and here I am.

Give us a quick synopsis of your latest novel.

Move Over Darling, my latest novel, looks at what happens when Coralie Casey, who’s escaped to a quiet coastal village in west Wales to set up her own range of natural beauty and cleaning products, meets Gethin Lewis, an artist living in New York who thinks he’s escaped his home village for good. A cast of supporting characters reflect the book’s theme which is about separation and reunion.

If you could give three tips to our budding UEA writers, what would they be?

Don’t anticipate the next big publishing trend; write the story you absolutely have to tell. That way you’ll write with feeling and passion which will come through to your readers.

Find your own voice; it’s the style that comes to you most naturally, the one that’s easiest to sustain. Don’t force it, because you’re going to have to live with it!

Bum on seat. The most important tip; it’ll see you though a 90,000 word novel and as many rejections as it takes until you succeed.

Would you like to win a copy of Christine’s novel Turning the Tide AND get your work published? We’re running a creative writing competition from 22rd March – 14th April – write up to 300 words in any format (prose, poetry etc) on the theme of ‘water’ and send it to [email protected]

The top three entries will win Turning the Tide and have their work showcased here on The Tab!