50th party blog guest - Anna Cleary

I met Anna Cleary through an author loop. Although we haven’t actually met in person (because she’s in Aus and I’m here in the UK), when we do, the world will have to look out because we will so be putting it to rights! Actually, I can think of our ideal itinerary. Breakfast in Venice. Lunch in Rome (or maybe Paris?). Dinner in Vienna (followed by a performance of Beethoven’s Seventh). There will be ice cream. There will be chocolate. There will be lots of talking and laughing – and definitely music, because Anna understands my nerdy classical music side. Actually, I’m going to out her, because she’s done one of the nicest things ever for me: when my hearing loss got a bit worse, last year, and I was whining post-appointment about needing a second hearing aid and I might never hear Beethoven properly again, this box arrived. I was expecting a delivery for something else, so I just signed for the box… and then I realized said box was from Fortnum & Mason. I opened it to discover the nicest dark chocolates I’ve ever, ever, ever had. That was Anna sending me a hug from the other side of the world, with a card telling me that once I was used to the new hearing aids I’d really enjoy Beethoven again. (And only a writer would quite get why Beethoven’s important to my work.)

Anyway. Over to Anna:

Thanks for the invite, Kate. (Waving, and big grin from Australia)

Congratulations Kate on reaching your amazing milestone of FIFTY books for Mills &Boon in such an astonishingly short time.

I first met Kate online when I joined the Modern Extra girls, who morphed with dizzying speed into the Modern Heat girls and then whirled into the Riva girls.

Some of us were green. Well, let’s be honest. I was green. Green, naive, and wet behind the ears. And I may not have been the only one.

From the first Kate was our friend and often our auntie. Always helpful to newbies bamboozled by the twists and turns of the publishing world, she shared all she had to give. So warm and wise, so generous.
I appreciated all this about her then as now, but it’s her ability to laugh until she’s helpless and her stomach hurts that really draws me to her. I love a good deep laugh myself!

So much about Kate strikes a chord with me. Apart from the fact that she’s brilliant, witty and erudite; loves history, Shakespeare and music; adores dogs; makes scintillating little visits to Europe from time to time and writes half a dozen wonderful books a year, she raises amazing kids, takes her gorgeous hubby ballroom dancing, and can cook like an angel!

I haven’t met her in the actual flesh yet, but I’m hoping to. Look out Norwich. I’m on my way.

Since I’m here, I may as well mention a small Modern publication of mine that adorned the bookshelves for a fleeting time in the summer. It has a bit of everything in it— music, romance and passion, with a soupçon of heartbreak thrown in.

They called it Keeping Her Up All Night. It kept me up more than one night writing it, let me assure you!

I have a couple of copies to give away for anyone who’d care to risk it, so if you’d like to leave a comment I’ll be delighted to pop them in the mail!

You can find out more about Anna at her website http://www.annacleary.com or talk to her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/anna.cleary.12?ref=ts