Summer of No Regrets by Kate Mallinder

Hi All!
Today I am here with an interview with Kate Mallinder!

Cover of Summer of No Regrets by author Kate Mallinder

Title: Summer of No Regrets
Author: Kate Mallinder
Publisher: Firefly Press
Published: 2nd May 2019
Format: paperback
Pages: 232
Source:: N/A
Add It: Amazon UK Goodreads.
Summary: After their exams, four sixteen-year-old best friends pledge to live a summer regret-free, doing what they want to do however much it scares them: Sasha agrees to spend the holiday with her father in Geneva, having not seen him for six years, but is not expecting his new girlfriend, or the young man in the cafe. Shy Hetal decides to go to science camp, and finds a new competitive spirit. Nell gets a summer job, but after her accident her mother is scared to let her out of the house – so to do what she wants she will have to lie to her parents. Cam goes to look for her birth father, scared of the future when she can no longer stay with her foster family. What will she find? As all these choices become difficult, even dangerous, they will need to turn to each other for the strength to face the future.

Q&A

What is your favourite thing about writing books?
When it’s going well it feels like flying; that amazing feeling you get when you’re reading an addictive, brilliant story, only better. Literary heroin. Unfortunately this happens less than 25% of the time, so that can be tough, always chasing that feeling.

Who is your favourite character in your book and why?
This is like trying to pick your favourite child and is totally impossible! I love my four main characters so much, but each for different reasons. One of the other characters I really enjoyed writing was Papa John, Cam’s foster dad. He’s a man of few words and large heart. And what he doesn’t say, he makes up for in eyebrow wiggles and big hugs.

What is your favourite drink to consume while writing?
Tea. I’ve got some extra large mugs so I don’t have to get up so often to refill, but the tea has to be near-continuous.

Do you have any bad habits while you’re writing?
Snacking, procrastinating, thinking I have to have done everything else on my ‘to do’ list before I’m ‘allowed’ to write. Daydreaming, staring out of the window and wandering about on twitter. It would be scary how much more I could do if I just got on with it (though there is an argument that procrastination is mulling time and is essential!)

How do you research your books?
I tend to research while I’m writing. I’m never quite sure what will need researching until I start writing, but once I’ve met my characters and know a little about what’s going to happen to them, I start reading round the subject, both fiction and non-fiction. Often at this stage I find out facts that give me ideas of how the story will go, or interesting things to add in to make it more real. I find knowing when to stop researching really hard. It can be a bit of a rabbit-hole in terms of time.

Are you a plotter or a pantser?
I’m a bit of both. I start off by free writing to find characters, to find conversations and to find connections. Once I’ve got some possible characters and their potential stories, I roughly plan out some scenarios. Then I write a bit, plan a bit and write a bit more until I’ve got a first draft. It’s quite messy, but it seems to work for me. I’m still learning to trust my process as some days are zero words written days, but the plotting and planning will have leapt forward and that’s okay.

If you could live in any fictional world, which would you choose and why?
I’d LOVE to be a Gallagher Girl – young and smart and kickass and confident and saving the world with your friends. What’s not to love?

If you could befriend any fictional character, who would you choose and why?
I would love to chat to Miss Marple and hear all her takes on people’s characters and what makes people tick. In time, maybe I could convince her she needs a side kick. I’d love to be her Watson!

About the Author

Kate Mallinder lives near Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire. She loves writing stories for children and teenagers. Her debut book, Summer of No Regrets, is for teens. She is fueled by tea and snacks (turkish delight and after eights are the current favourites) and works while her children are at school. She enjoys running events for schools.
Kate has been living with ‘no regrets’ for a while, and some things work out and some things don’t. But she’s never regretted trying. Which was the inspiration for her story.

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