Another interview. Read my answers to Rita Chapman's questions.

Another interview with me as the interviewee has gone live. Rita Chapman is featuring the interview she did with me on her website at the moment. You can find it HERE. (or read it below)

Love,

Joni Martins
https://sites.google.com/
view/jonimartins/

This week it is my pleasure to interview Joni Martins.  Would you please introduce yourself to my readers, Joni and share something about your life.

Hi, I’m Joni and I am in my early fifties. I’m a happily married mum of four and have recently retired early and taken up my hobby of writing again. I used to write a lot when I was a child, but since I became an adult and had a job and a household to contend with, I did not have as much time to write as I would have liked to. My job did involve quite a bit of writing, though.

When did you write your first book and how did it come about?

From September 2017 onwards, I was on leave from my job and I took early retirement from the 1st of January 2018. During those months I decided that I might as well take up my hobby of writing again if I had time to myself. I started my first book at the beginning of December and I published it by the end of the month. The subject was due to a rather vivid imagination.

I wrote a few short books as a child, but I have never made those available to the public, although I still keep them. I’m quite nostalgic that way.

Do you always write in the same genre or do you mix it up?

So far I have written four books in the same series. The genre is a romance novel, but with suspense, mystery and psychology included. My fifth book in the series is due to be published at the end of August and I am putting the finishing touches to it at the moment. I have also written a short erotic adventure story which has not been published as it was a special edition just for my husband.

There are more books due in the same series, but I have plans for other books in a different genre. One will be a cookbook, another two will be partially autobiographical books. 

When you write, do you start with an idea and sit down and let it evolve, or do you make notes and collect ideas on paper beforehand?

Usually, I will come up with ideas for a book when I’m doing something different. While I was driving over to my job in the past, I would have a sudden idea and work it around in my head a little (while still keeping an eye on the road). As soon as I have a chance, I write the conclusion down on my computer or even in notes on my smartphone. I use a programme called Eclipse Manager to keep track of my ideas and in which stage of progress they are. Recently, I am using yWriter to outline my books. Although I put broad outlines down, I just write and let the story evolve as I go, sometimes changing the course of the story as I had planned it.

Would you like to give us a short excerpt from one of your books?

This is an excerpt from my first book ‘Captive Love’. It is the starting scene and chapter of the novel and shows Lydia’s confusion when she wakes in an unknown place.

It was pitch-dark around me and I was unable to see anything. No light seemed to penetrate to where I was. Where the hell was I? My bedroom was never this dark; it had not even been this dark that time the street lights failed. I moved my hand in front of my eyes. At least I tried to. Instead, I found I was unable to move them sufficiently to reach. What on earth was going on?

I tried to work out where I was. It felt a little damp here and there was a faint smell of mould. It was a bit nippy and, as I mentioned, pitch-dark. This was definitely not my bedroom! I was unable to move my arms much. I could feel them move against my ears when I tried to move them. I wiggled my arms a little more and something seemed to be scraping at my wrists.  Something rather rough appeared to be holding my wrists together. I tried to move my fingers a little and only just managed to 

touch what felt like some rough rope bound around my wrists with my right pinkie.

A slight panic arose. Where was I? Why? How?

Okay, it was time to work out where I was. Panicking would not help me. I needed to concentrate on my breathing, slowly out, slowly in. With every breath, I started to feel a little bit calmer. Don’t get me wrong, I was still panicking. But I felt a little calmer anyway.

I could feel something soft against my back. Could this be a mattress perhaps? I tried to move my legs. Not much room to manoeuvre there either. I tried to put my feet flat on the mattress and was only just able to do that. I gently pushed myself up to get some more room to move for my arms. My legs were now fully extended and they had no more room left to move.

First I moved my arms a little to my left. It did indeed feel like a mattress. Next, I moved them up a little and I could follow the rope to something which felt smooth and cold. It felt like metal. I concentrated hard to find out what it was exactly. There seemed to be some loops and twists. It appeared to be the headboard of a bed.

I tried to move my hands down a little, but could only just reach the top of my head. Even when I moved my head back, I was unable to reach the ropes with my teeth. It was not much use at this time. I moved my arms to my right and felt the mattress again. Stretching my arms as far as I was able, my fingers grazed on something rough, cold and uneven. I moved my hands along the surface as much as I could. There was a dip, then something rough, then a dip again. It felt like brickwork, a wall.

Where was I? How did I get here?

I tried to recall the last memories I had. Memories of my friends Krista, Freya, Josie and I in the pub surfaced, but they were a little vague. I tried to remember a little harder. Smiling faces, drinks on the bar, dancing. These were the flashes going through my brain. The surfacing memories indicated that we had a lovely night and had a great time together. We all had a few drinks, but not enough to explain the headache and fuzzy head I was experiencing at the moment. I hardly drank any alcohol at all, at the most two drinks. Last night had been no different. We had just been sitting and chatting at the bar. We danced a little as well. No strangers had been in the pub. Everyone knows everyone in the small village we live in. It had just been a quiet night out after a shopping trip in the afternoon.

After my head cleared a little I remembered that I had left the pub earlier than my friends as I needed to get up early for work. Did I get to my car? I couldn’t remember whether I made it to my car; it all remained a bit fuzzy.

Then another memory surfaced.

I got outside and felt a little wobbly and lightheaded. An arm was put around my waist and a voice said, “It’s okay Lydia, I’ve got you. Let me help you home.” The voice was familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it.

It was a male voice. Who was it? Where did he take me?

My breathing started to increase and I could feel my heart beating faster. I felt breathless and tingly and quite lightheaded. I could hear the blood rushing through my ears. I was starting to panic a little again. I lay back for a moment and tried to calm myself down. Breathe in and breathe out slow breaths. I was starting to feel a bit better again. Not as lightheaded as I was before.

Suddenly I could hear some noises. I tried to place where they were coming from. Was it in the same space I was, was it mice perhaps? I heard scuffling noises. No, they were not near. It sounded like they were coming from above my head.

There the noises were again. Now they sounded more like footsteps. Some shuffles, then some creaking noises like floorboards. Next, there was a squeaking noise and a slight bang. There was a sound like water hitting water. Next, it sounded like a toilet was being flushed.

Someone else was here! I opened my mouth to scream for help, but then shut it again. Would it be such a good idea to let them know I was awake, or would it be better to try and find out as much as I could before they found out?

I couldn’t quite make my mind up. I also still felt a bit drowsy. What had happened to me? Why was my head hurting and fuzzy?

Why had I had a reaction like this after only two drinks?

The noises coming from above started to fade. I tried to keep my eyes open, but somehow I drifted off to sleep again.

Who is your favourite character and why?

This is an impossible question to answer. I love all my characters equally. The same can be said about my children, I love them all the same. The characters I feel for most are Sam and Theo. Sam is one of the lead characters in the first book and he has had a troubled youth. Theo suffers from a terrible depression in the third and fourth book. You can’t help but feel for him. I felt that much for Theo during the writing process that I was in tears during a few scenes.

Which of your books gave you the most pleasure to write?

I guess that would be the first one I wrote and published. The reason is that I finally sat down to do what I had wanted to do for a long time. And I had now finally done that. Every book I wrote so far has been enjoyable. The fifth novel was harder to gather the motivation for as I received harsh criticism from a person who used to be close. This meant I suffered from a minor bout of depression forcing me to reassess what I was doing and how I was doing it. I’m glad to say I have now put this problem behind me and, following constructive criticism and useful advice from a fellow writer and beta-reader, I am now enjoying re-editing the fifth book before its release at the end of August.

What is the best marketing tip you have received?

At the moment, I am not sure what the best tip has been yet. I am only just finding my feet in this new world of self-publishing and try to listen to all advice I am given. Twitter, Facebook and giving away freebies have all been good advice. Which advice will work best only time can tell.

How would you describe yourself?

I am someone who has several neurotic streaks and suffers from OCD a little. Fortunately, I have learnt to put that characteristic to good use rather than let it rule my life. The order I crave in my daily life is also the factor that helps me to stick with what I’m doing. I’m a perfectionist, who realises that there is no such thing as something being perfect. Quite a quandary. Giving up is something which does not come naturally and I, therefore, tend to continue until I have achieved what I want to achieve.

What do you do when you are not writing or reading?

My usual day starts with doing whichever housework I need to do that day, including baking fresh bread for the family by hand. If the weather is good enough (and not too hot) I will work in the garden. Other than that, I love to make cards, draw, create digital papers and I also run a crafting challenge blog. Too many hobbies to count and not enough time.

If you could holiday anywhere in the world, where would you choose and why?

I am a person of simple tastes. For many years, my favourite holiday has been to go camping in France with my family. Hook the trailer tent at the back of the car, put all essentials in the boot and simply drive to the campsite and enjoy yourself. No need for fancy things, no need to make life expensive. Just pure enjoyment.

If you have owned pets, do you have a funny story you would like to share with us?

When I first moved out of my parents’ house and moved into my apartment, I had a Rhodesian Ridgeback (Kyra) and two cats (Whiskey and Minou). They were all females, and I got them while they were still a puppy and kittens. Kyra liked to treat the cats like they were her pups and she would pick them up by their necks and carry them through the living room. They would initially complain loudly but then accept their fate.

Whiskey, the smaller cat, liked to use a bread basket as her own bed and Minou loved to jump up to the door handle and open doors that way.

One day, she jumped up to open the front door and instead locked the bolt at the bottom of the door. When I returned home later that day, I could not enter my flat, and I needed to feed a coat hanger through the mailbox to pull it up again before I could enter my flat.

She did the same thing to my husband, who actually let himself in the flat by jumping down on my balcony from the balcony above and opening the bedroom door.

What is the biggest factor for you when selecting a book to read?

It is difficult to say what the biggest factor is. The title, the cover and the blurb all work together to help me decide. The title and the cover may look inviting but if the blurb does not attract me I will leave the book behind.

Do you have your own website? 

Yes, my website is at https://sites.google.com/view/jonimartins/. Have a look and if you are interested why not register an interest in becoming a beta-reader for my fifth book?

Are you working on a new book at the moment?

At the moment I am re-editing my fifth novel in the ‘Friends, family and love’ series called ‘Holiday Love’. I am also outlining the sixth book in the series. I have not yet decided the title.

Do you have any events or book promotions coming up that you would like to tell us about?

My first book is available as a permafree at many retailers including Amazon, Barns and Noble, KOBO, Scribd and Apple. It is called ‘Captive Love’ and tells the story of a misplaced love, psychological trauma, an abduction, friendship and love. The direct link to buy this book at the store of your choice (for free) is https://books2read.com/u/mYogEV.

The second, ‘Freed Love’ is available at a reduced price in an 18+ and a censored version.

‘Holiday Love’ was published at the end of August!

https://www.amazon.com/
ebook/dp/B07GZ4YRLY/