TBR welcomes Linn B. Halton

TBR: Welcome to TBR, Linn. Will you share a little bit about yourself?
Linn: Giving up work was quite a turning point for me, initially it was because I had a strong feeling that my mother wasn’t well and I wanted to spend quality time with her.  Unfortunately she died only three months after I left work, but clearly fate had plans for me and I decided not to go back to work.  So I began writing in April 2009 and haven’t stopped since!

TBR: Tell us about The Restaurant and where it's available.
Linn: It’s formally launching on Aug 2, 2012 and will be available from Amazon etc as an e-book and in paperback, published by Sapphire Star Publishing.

Amazon UK - http://amzn.to/kvB3YA

Amazon US - http://amzn.to/kiUKfZ

The Restaurant @ The Mill is six individual stories, plus a cameo appearance by the resident ghost, named Sarah.  The cameo story was inspired by an unpleasant experience I once had when I was being shown around an old Mill.  The main story is about the couple who run The Restaurant and the other stories are customers who dine there frequently and it follows their lives and loves, highs and lows.

TBR: Please tantalize us with a story blurb or excerpt.
Linn: Age, relationships, and careers – we all appear to be so very different.  Yet beneath the exterior facade we show to the world at large, is that really the case?  The things we bury deep inside; the worries and fears we are unable to verbalise, and the hand fate takes in our lives.  Sometimes we fail to recognise in each other that innermost struggle and yet it exists for all of us on the path to true love. 

Six very different stories, six couples linked by The Restaurant @ The Mill which is owned by Hilary Marks and Ben Adams.  As the restaurant thrives the atmosphere is alive with conversation, snapshots of lives unfolding – each on their own personal journey.

And then there is Sarah… the lonely spirit who wanders the Mill looking for her beloved husband Michael… what is her destiny?

TBR: What inspired you to write about the theme?
Linn: Basing the story around a restaurant came from giving a friend, who is in the business, a lift to the gym each week.  Our daily conversations gave me quite an insight into what goes on behind the scenes and the idea grew from there.  Some of the characters in this book have appeared in other novels I’ve written and it was a nice chance to finish their stories in a meaningful way.

TBR: Are you a plotter or pantser?
Linn: Both – I plan in great detail, then have a shortened over-view.  If I’m talking, then I will have written out a full set of notes and I then take key words from that to put on cue cards.  I still over-run each time though!

TBR: Do you have a favorite quote you’d like to share?
Linn: ‘No man is an island’ is my favourite quote, penned by John Donne (1572-1631) from Devotions upon Emergent Occasions, Meditation XVII, 1624.

No man is an island,

Entire of itself.

Each is a piece of the continent,

A part of the main.

If a clod be washed away by the sea,

Europe is the less.

As well as if a promontory were.

As well as if a manor of thine own

Or of thine friend's were.

Each man's death diminishes me,

For I am involved in mankind.

Therefore, send not to know

For whom the bell tolls,

It tolls for thee.

TBR: Which of your characters would you most/least like to invite to dinner, and why?
Linn: I think it would have to be Thomas (laugh), he’s a charmer but a gentleman of course.  However, I think my husband wouldn’t be too happy … he’s much to attractive to women…

TBR: While creating your books, what was one of the most surprising things you learned?
Linn: That the mind takes you where it wants to go and you often find yourself on an unexpected journey of self-discovery.  The ‘plan’ I had in my head for when I finally had my ‘writing time’ and the stories I thought I would be writing, turned out to be very different from the reality.  However, it’s an exciting process and the journey is such fun I wouldn’t change one single thing!

TBR: Tease us with one little thing about your fictional world that makes it different from others.
Linn: Having a story revolving around a restaurant and the people who frequent it is quite unusual to begin with.  The fact that there is also a cameo role for the resident spirit, is also a little unusual.  I have been asked why Sarah has only been given a small role within the overall story, it’s because she is a catalyst in many ways.  It links the diners to the place quite nicely.

TBR: Any other published works?
Linn: Touched By The Light – a psychic romance with unexpected twists that will make you think about life after death; Being A Sceptic Is Oh So Easy – the true story of why I  now believe in the existence of life after death; The Quintessential Gemini, about a woman who lives her life according to her daily horoscope – a fun romance.

TBR: Where can readers find you on the web?
Linn:  Website: http://linnbhalton.co.uk/

Twitter Account @LinnBHalton: http://bit.ly/ksXMDS

Loveahappyending.com Author Page: http://loveahappyending.com/linn-b-halton/

 

TBR: Readers, Linn will give away one paperback copy of The Quintessential Gemini (international) to one lucky commenter. She'll pick a winner and announce the winner here. Be sure to leave your email address so she can contact you.

Thanks for visiting TBR, Linn. All the best to you.