Today I’m delighted to welcome Kit Fielding to the blog with a special guest post. Kit is the author of Under Vixens Mere, a compelling historical novel rich in atmosphere, intrigue, and place. Before we dive into Kit’s thoughts and inspirations, let’s take a moment to look at the story itself and what readers can expect from Under Vixens Mere.

If poor Harry Jones hadn’t lowered himself into the water one freezing winter’s night, a long-buried secret would never have come to the surface.

If …

Big Ed and Milly had been able to have children,

Karen hadn’t longed for love and romance,

Lorrie hadn’t finally ditched Petra,

Dinah hadn’t found out the truth about Barry,

Jed hadn’t dealt drugs and got Anna pregnant,

Carl Thomson hadn’t come looking for him,

and Moses hadn’t heard the commotion …

then there would be no story of Vixens Mere to tell.

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Guest Post from Kit Fielding

I’m often asked when do I – and when did I – find time to write? The when should be fairly easy in the present day because, although we’re not exactly settled folk, we have weeks of house-sitting for people that need their premises, and their animals, cared for while they holiday or visit the other side of the world. I can find myself a quiet spot in a stranger’s kitchen or study, and, warm and comfortable, fire up the laptop. This sounds a very uncomplicated description but I sometimes envy a writer who can curl up in the same spot months on end without the distractions of my eternal curiosity.

I can find it difficult to concentrate when there’s sunshine, or rain, or frost, or snow, or anything, outside the window. I take a walk, have a wander. Have a think. I assuage my guilt by promising I’m going to write twice as much when I get back. Sometimes though it usually means an early start and a late finish to catch up. So my writing nooks are rooms in other people’s houses and, if we’re staying on a campsite, the cramped confines of our motorhome. 

The past tense of ‘when did I find time to write’ makes me wonder how I did manage to because, previously, and in self-employment, my writing time was much more limited. I would write before going to work, in tea breaks, at lunch time, and when the children were in bed. Hours plundered from a family life. This is when you realise – as I’m sure fellow writers do – that you need the understanding, and sacrifices made, from a loving partner. It may be your compulsive dream but someone else also has to live it as well. That is why when I look at the moderate success that has been achieved, I think of it as our success. Not mine. Ours. The power of two. 

And it’s not only a ‘when did I’ it’s also a ‘where did I’ because I’ve written in new houses with paint still drying on the walls. I’ve written in renovated, eternally dusty, old barns: in static caravans – boiling in the summer and bitterly cold in the winter.  I’ve written wherever we happen to have been living. All the same, the literary path is a stony one to follow and though it has been more than difficult, and frustrating at times, it has been a rewarding journey. 

I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

Giveaway to Win 3 x Stacks of 5 Inkspot Publishing books (UK Only)

*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome.  Please enter using the Gleam box below.  The winner will be selected at random via Gleam from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data.  I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.

Win 3 x Stacks of 5 Inkspot Publishing books (UK Only)