I send my newsletters every month and every now and again I put one on the blog so you can see what kind of content I send out.
Hello readers and book-loving friends. It’s a bit late to wish you all a Happy New Year, but better late than never! This month I’m working on my new novel set during the Partition of India in 1947 just after Indian Independence.
The River Between Us – work in progress
Partition – the 80th anniversary of this historic event will be in 2027. It is one of those subjects for which I can never do enough research, or do enough justice to the stories of those who lived through it. By focusing on my main characters, I’m trying to hammer out one story out of the millions of possibilities that exist. The story includes the jaw-dropping experiences of an Anglo-Indian woman, Edie, based on my aunt’s life in India, as well as a Muslim family who leave for the newly-formed Pakistan, and a Hindu family who stay. For those of you who don’t know, I have family on my father’s side in India and my father was brought up there in Kolkata – then Calcutta. I have longed to know more about this history which intersects with some personal stories of my relatives – now all sadly passed on. Here are my research books – such a lot of reading.
The Astonishing Past – the Central Recovery Operation
In which displaced women were shunted about like pawns on a chessboard.
After the violence of the division of India into India and Pakistan, the Central Recovery system was set up to recover women who had been taken by men of the ‘other side’ and it attempted to return them over the border to their families. This was a government initiative. But imagine – you are a woman who has now got children in your new life, and you don’t want to leave them behind. Or – you were worked as a slave by your previous family and don’t want to return to them. Or, you have grown to love your wife and don’t want her returned to another man. So many stories – and that is only a small part of the book.
It should be finished by April, after which it will go through a long punishing edit! I’ll tell you a bit more about it once it’s all complete.
Here is my coffee time video, and one I have used to glean details of setting and atmosphere for the new book. Take a look at Calcutta in 1947 with this British Film Institute video of a bygone era. (12 minutes).
Left: This is the heart of Calcutta’s “business district,” 1945. It was the “Times Square” of Calcutta on Chowringee Road.
A Taxing Affair
Like many other self-employed people, I’ve been doing my tax returns ready for the January deadline. Ugh. It is eye-opening when you realize exactly how you spend your money. When I saw how many books I’d bought that year, it explained why the shelves are groaning!
WW2 Special offers this month – grab a January bargain!
Last Train to Freedom is on offer in the US for 99c.
http://mybook.to/TransSiberian
Operation Tulip is on offer in the UK for 99p
Australian WW2 fan? You can buy The Shadow Network for $4.99 here.
GIULIA TOFANA SERIES
The Cameo Keeper continues to do well, with some lovely reviews from readers. I have just read the proposed pilot script of Episode 1 for a TV series based on these books. Fingers crossed that a producer will want to make it because the screenplay is fabulous. There are now four books in the series. Thank you, those who have read, rated or reviewed and kept these books in the public eye. Here’s the link to them all.
For Writers
I know how hard this job is, so keep going!
My writing process for The Cameo Keeper – an interview.
Here’s a nice selection of tips on writing engaging historical fiction from Writers Digest.
What I’m reading
Well, apart from mountains of research – I’m reading a lot of Cold War novels, the most recent being ‘A Shadow in Moscow’ by Katherine Reay.
Market Research – I love to know what you enjoy in my books so if you have time, ping me an email with which of my books you’ve enjoyed most.
Happy reading everyone!
Until next time
Deborah x
