Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have written one novel and one non-fiction book about yoga. I spent many years working as a freelance editor in the publishing industry and decided I had dedicated enough time to improving the writing of others, it was time to do my own!
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My novel is called Letting Go of Love: A World War I Love Story. It was inspired by the true stories of my grandparents and my obsession with family history. After researching the war experience of my grandfather and helping my mother to write her memoirs, I was ready to start my first work of fiction.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I like to jot ideas down on post-it notes, which are subsequently found all over the house!
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Every book that you read influences you in some way, but for this novel specifically I would say Pat Barker’s Regeneration trilogy, as well as My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor.
What are you working on now?
I am working on a kind of sequel to Letting Go. It is set in the 1920s in Blackburn, Lancashire and will draw on my husband’s experiences of growing up in that mill town.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I write a regular blog, which feeds into a local magazine as well as my social media pages
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Its a long haul, don’t be tempted to cut corners. Instead, make everything you do as good as it can possibly be.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
try, try and try again
What are you reading now?
Frog by Mo Yan
What’s next for you as a writer?
Hopefully I will have the opportunity to continue to write, whatever form that takes
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
The Grand Meaulnes by Alain Fournier
Birdsong by Sebastian Foulkes
Narcissus and Goldmund by Hermann Hesse
Author Websites and Profiles
MJ Keevil Website
MJ Keevil Amazon Profile
MJ Keevil’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account