AUthors2You new books, new authors, independent publishers and authors
Author Page: Susan Watkin

Susan Watkin

My day job is as a lawyer, but I spend a lot of my free time researching and writing about things that interest me. "Independent scholar" is perhaps a phrase that well describes me. I am happiest when I am being creative - and being creative includes photography as well as writing.

What inspired you to write?

Back in my school days I discovered that I was more fluent in writing than I was verbally, and that was probably my first inspiration to write. My first published writing was in the late 1970s (an article on book collecting in "The Lady") and an article on wind up gramophones in an collecting magazine, an article on poisonous plants in "New Scientist", and a series of articles on collecting for the local newspaper). I have been writing "Word Wise", a monthly article on words for "Mensa Magazine" for over fifteen years and have also written a series of articles about words for "New Internationalist".

What genre do you write in?

Non-fiction, although I would like to write a novel.

What books have you written?

"Know Your Onions or Mrs Beeton's Hinterland" - a selection of Victorian recipes and household hints.

"And The Baboon Played Chess With The Emperor".  I have for a long time been fascinated by Victorian scrapbooks, particularly those containing cuttings from newspapers and magazines - they contain such a wealth of snippets on a wide range of subjects.  This book is my modern recreation of a Victorian scrapbook made up of cuttings from books and magazines published in the early to mid nineteenth century.

"Old Groaners" - a selection of Victorian humour.

"Trust in God, & Keep Your Powder Dry".  A few years ago I bought an album of opinions hand-written in the last decade of the nineteenth century and the first decade of the twentieth century. The opinions seem to have been written by student teachers based in the London area. The album offers a fascinating glimpse into the interests of "normal" people of the time.

"Silence in Court: a selection of Legal Humour" - a selection of legal humour gleaned from Victorian books and magazines. 

"Cats of Katapola" - photos of cats on the Greek island of Amorgos.

"More Cats of Katapola" - more photos of cats on the Greek island of Amorgos.

"Snow in Naxos" - snow is supposedly rare in the Greek islands, but I have seen snow in the islands more than once!  This book contains some of the photos I took on the Greek island of Naxos in February 2004.

I have also contributed to two law books - in the series "Halsbury's Laws of England" and "Butterworths Encyclopaedia of Forms and Precedents".


Snow in NaxosKnow Your OnionsAnd the baboon Played ChessCats of Katapolakalo taxediOld groanersTrust in God and Keep Your Powder Dry

What is the address of your official web site?

http://susanwatkin.wikidot.com/

Who are your favourite authors?

Wide and varied!

I am currently reading "Nella Last in the 1950s", extracts from Nella Last's diaries written for Mass Observation.  I have also recently read "Nella Last's War" and "Nella Last's Peace".

I want to re-read some of the books by Patrick Leigh Fermor, who died recently.

I regularly dip into the Oxford University Press reference books available on line at home through public libraries - especially the Oxford English Dictionary.

For relaxation I like reading good traditional detective stories - including Ruth Rendell, P.D. James, Patricia Wentworth, Ngaio Marsh, Michael Innes, Dorothy L. Sayers, John Dickson Carr, and Edmund Crispin.  And I enjoy Agatha Christie!  And I have also re-read Enid Blyton's "Famous Five" stories many times!

What are your top five writing and/or publishing tips for budding authors?
  1. Try to find a niche subject to specialise in. Write about something that you are enthusiastic about. Without enthusiasm behind it, your writing is likely to seem dull and stilted.
  2. Try self-publishing (but avoid the vanity presses). Self-publishing your first book may be a steep learning curve, but you will almost certainly feel a sense of satisfaction when you hold your book in your hand.
  3. Investigate e-books. The first edition of my next book (about my travels in Greece) will be solely in e-format.
  4. Effective networking. Try to use social media to spread the word about your writing activities and your interests behind your writing.
  5. Try not to have too many projects on the go at once. Or at least have a clear sense of priorities and know which book you intend finishing next. With just two main projects on the go at once, progress on one may act as a spur to progress on the other. But too many unfinished projects may lead you to wonder if you will ever get any of them finished!

Any final words of wisdom?

I hope you enjoy reading and dipping into my books.