Wendy Gill - Author Life

Wendy Gill, author of The Fat Man and his Toad, has just released her second book on the 28th September 2017, called The New Sam Daggett. We thought it would be a good time to catch up with the author and find out a little more about her.

Did you always dream of becoming an author?

Writing a book was the last thing on my mind.  I had a husband, two children, a dog, full time employment and then grandchildren, all before I retired.  I never had time to think about spending hours at the computer.

What was your first job?

I left school at the age of 15 and found employment working in the office of Ernest Silverwood Ltd, a toy wholesaler, where I stayed until Mr Silverwood retired and the company closed down.  I was sorry to leave they were good employers.

How did you come about writing your book? Was that your intention or did you start writing for fun?

No, you could say I blame it on The Isle Of Man TT.  During the TT week my husband is glued to the TV, and it's not my choice of viewing, so I logged on to my computer.  Not being an internet surfer, I was not on Facebook, Twitter or any of the other social media networks; I was met by a blank computer screen.  I decided to write a children’s story; it didn't matter what I wrote, since nobody was ever going to read it.  On completion of this story, I went on to do some illustrations for it, much to the disgust of my two children, I admit I am no artist, but it didn't matter, as nobody was ever going to see them.

I was in a charity shop one day and I saw a book called Writing For Dummies. I thought, ‘That’s me,’ and as the book was priced up at 20p, I splashed out and bought it.  In the next charity shop, I spotted a book called How To Get Published and this was priced up at 80p, so I trotted home with two books stowed away in my shopping bag.  These two books virtually had the same information in them:

1. If you are an unknown author, odds on getting a book published are very low.
2. Get yourself an Agent.
3. Send your M.S to a proof reader.
4. When you send your first three chapters to a publisher send it recorded delivery and enclose a SAE, also recorded delivery, for the return of the MS and they will write and tell you what is wrong with your work.

There were lots of other things inside the books, but these were the four points that registered with me.  I could see no point in going to all that expense to have my work returned to me, telling me what was wrong with it.  My writing career was ended before it began; all thought of trying to get the story published left my head.

TT week came around again, and I was staring at a blank computer screen, so I decided to write a romance.  It did not matter what I wrote, since it was for my eyes only and so, The Fat Man And His Toad, was born.  I printed it off and took it downstairs to sit in the comfort of an armchair to proof-read it, but before I got the chance to do so, my sister Valerie turned up unexpectedly.  I went into the kitchen to make a cup of tea and when I returned with it, my sister was reading the MS.  She put it down and made no comment, ‘That’s it,’ I thought ‘No good.’

When she was leaving, she picked up the MS and said, “Can I take this home, I want to see what happens?”. I told her I hadn't read it through yet, but she wanted to take it anyway.  She rang me to say I should get it published, but I was convinced she was biased, being my sister and all.  Valerie and I went down to Devon to visit our other sister, Carol. and of course, the subject of writing cropped up.  Although my sister Carol and her husband had not read the story, both said "Get it sent off, what have you to lose?"

When I got home, I googled book publishers and Pegasus Publishers was the first one I saw and luckily for me, it was an easy site to follow and there, in black and white, it said, ‘EMAIL US YOUR FIRST THREE CHAPTERS.’  No agent required, no proof-reader required and no postage cost.  Nothing to lose.

I emailed the first three chapters of The Fat Man And His Toad to Pegasus Publishers and I have never looked back.  The rest is history. 

What was your life like before you became an author?

I had a very sheltered and protected childhood, with a loving mother and father, and two elder sisters, who were my best friends and still are.  Sheltered, because my parents were poor, there was never any spare money to go off on holiday or even into town.  My father was strict about where we went and whom we went with, and my mother was kind and gentle. We had a good home life and in those days, everyone who lived on our street was in the same position, no one had any money, and no one missed it.

Did you face any struggles before becoming an author? If so, how did you overcome them?

After we got married, we lived in a single room flat in Barnsley. Then, after twelve months, we bought our first house. Kevin and I had two children, and when our son Spencer was eleven years old, we bought our second house, moving from an end terrace house to a semi-detached house. Both Kevin and I went out to work to make ends meet. There were no crèches when our children were small like there are now, so Kevin worked days and I worked evenings. First job I got after my daughter, Deborah, was born, was part-time in a fish and chip shop three evenings a week. I have had various other jobs, but all interesting and very varied in nature, and as my son says, I would need ten sheets of paper to list them. I spent ten years on a motorway service area in the petrol station, eight years in the office for Barnsley Chamber of Commerce Training, and for the last ten years of my working life, I was the audio typist for Halifax Property Services. I will skip over all the others.

Now that you are a published author, how has your life changed, if at all?

I thought that once I had retired, all decision making regarding work had come to an end.  Having a book published has opened life up in different directions and now, I never know what is going to happen next.  I am a behind the scenes person really, a bit of a hermit and this is taking me into the unknown.

Can you please describe a typical day in your life now?

Not much has changed except there is now more work to be done, but it is also exciting and scary not knowing what to expect next.

What is your most memorable moment of your life as an author?

When I received that big brown box from Pegasus Publishers and I opened it up and saw The Fat Man And His Toad in print.