Tell us more about your background and journey.
I came into the world, so my mother said when all the leaves were falling from the trees like confetti in Crouch End, a suburb in London. My greatest joy as a child was to play outside with my friends and not return home until it was dark. My world was full of wonder and my imagination kept me from having to live in the real world.
Going to school was a chore as the harsh reality of having to get the required grades to succeed was sometimes overwhelming. My school friends told me that I was a square and I never really understood why they said that. I excelled at English and art and that was all I really wanted to do.
I started at art school but my family was too poor to pay the fees and I watched my father suffer from depression and lock himself away from his financial worries. Of course, nobody called it depression back then. It became a dark family secret.
I left art school and started work in a supermarket to help pay the bills and my father's mental health improved, My parents' relationship with each other was always a difficult one and I felt the burden of being my mother's emotional crutch too much to bear. At this time in my life, as well as painting, I liked to write poetry to express my feelings about my life. I have a quirky collection of poems locked away that I might publish one day.
I left art school and started work in a supermarket to help pay the bills and my father's mental health improved, My parents' relationship with each other was always a difficult one and I felt the burden of being my mother's emotional crutch too much to bear. At this time in my life, as well as painting, I liked to write poetry to express my feelings about my life. I have a quirky collection of poems locked away that I might publish one day.
At the age of eighteen, I left home, got a good job in an art studio in London, and started to live my life as an independent woman with the hope of making it big in the art world. My life took a turn for the worse. I was unlucky in love and was mentally tortured for a few years by narcissistic boyfriends. Somehow, I have always managed to bounce back and I believe this is because I am an optimist and a dreamer.
All these extreme experiences in life have made me a stronger person and have fueled my pen allowing me to write with a passion.
You will be glad to know that I have a lovely husband now and live by the sea in Littlehampton, West Sussex
You will be glad to know that I have a lovely husband now and live by the sea in Littlehampton, West Sussex
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
When my son was ten, he was having trouble finding a book he liked enough to read. At that time Harry Potter was really popular but he said to me that he didn't want to read anything about magic, witches, or wizards. He wanted to read something that might actually happen.
When my son was ten, he was having trouble finding a book he liked enough to read. At that time Harry Potter was really popular but he said to me that he didn't want to read anything about magic, witches, or wizards. He wanted to read something that might actually happen.
I said that I would write a book for him and came up with 3004, a dystopian story about two sixteen-year-old boys who are dumped in wasteland around London and must do their best to get back home without being killed. 3004 took me six years to write and my poor boy didn't get to read it until he was eighteen. He said he enjoyed it but much preferred to read autobiographies. 3004 is permanently free on Amazon.
After writing 3004 and publishing this book in 2011, I realized that writing novels is what I really like to do best. Since then I have written and published twelve books in various genres. During 2020/21 I have written a romantic suspense crime series (Waterfall Way) and I am getting some amazing reviews. Take a look here.
After writing 3004 and publishing this book in 2011, I realized that writing novels is what I really like to do best. Since then I have written and published twelve books in various genres. During 2020/21 I have written a romantic suspense crime series (Waterfall Way) and I am getting some amazing reviews. Take a look here.
Is it a financially stable career?
If you are a self-published author, then it is really difficult to get your book creations noticed and I spend many hours a week creating book-related content, videos, and artwork to promote my books.
If you are a self-published author, then it is really difficult to get your book creations noticed and I spend many hours a week creating book-related content, videos, and artwork to promote my books.
If you can get your book to #1 on Amazon then there is a chance that your book will start to sell and you might be able to give up the day job. With my latest series, I am hopeful that it will sell well and I can become a full-time author.
Who is your favorite writer and why?
I do like the classic story and my favorite writer is Thomas Hardy. In Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Hardy has created a tense love story and has entwined Tess's emotions with the land and paints a vivid picture for the reader.
I do like the classic story and my favorite writer is Thomas Hardy. In Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Hardy has created a tense love story and has entwined Tess's emotions with the land and paints a vivid picture for the reader.
Where does your inspiration come from?
I get my ideas from news stories, people I have met, my dark imagination, the landscape, and of course, from my experiences in life. Not many children have had to untie a cord hanging from a rail to stop their father from hanging himself.
What piece of advice would you like to give to future aspiring writers?
If you have a story in your head that you want to share with others then go ahead and write it down. Keep your chapters short with a cliffhanger at the end of each to keep the pages turning and enjoy the experience.
If you have a story in your head that you want to share with others then go ahead and write it down. Keep your chapters short with a cliffhanger at the end of each to keep the pages turning and enjoy the experience.
Once you have written your book get your friends, family, and beta readers to read it and see if there are any plot holes. Then edit it until you are 99% happy and then send it out to an editor and then a proofreader. Make sure your cover is similar to bestsellers in the genre you write in.
---
Bio
Natasha Murray is an award-winning West Sussex author. She is a diverse writer and produces books for all ages. During the lockdown, Natasha has written a romantic crime thriller series 58 Farm End, Julia’s Baby, and Waterfall Way (The Waterfall Way Series). These books are set in Findon, West Sussex, and Cork, Ireland. She says, “I enjoy writing and it is both a pleasure and a compulsion. There is nothing better in life than creating parallel universes.”
Interviewed by - Subham Biswas
Natasha Murray is an award-winning West Sussex author. She is a diverse writer and produces books for all ages. During the lockdown, Natasha has written a romantic crime thriller series 58 Farm End, Julia’s Baby, and Waterfall Way (The Waterfall Way Series). These books are set in Findon, West Sussex, and Cork, Ireland. She says, “I enjoy writing and it is both a pleasure and a compulsion. There is nothing better in life than creating parallel universes.”
Interviewed by - Subham Biswas
.jpg)
){kind=link}
0 Comments