Party Post 16: Amy Andrews

Hi. I'm Amy. I've been reading romance novels since I first snuck off with my mothers at the age of eleven - thank you to Charlotte Lamb and Anne Mather. With my sixth book, The Surgeon's Meant-To-Be Bride, on the shelf in December (UK), I still cant believe I'm ACTUALLY a contracted author.

When I'm not writing, I'm juggling. Two kids, a husband, part time night duty, volunteer ambulance work, school committees, chooks, dogs, general mummy stuff etc etc. I'm pretty damn good at it too. So if this writing gig doesn't work out, I'm leaving home and joining the circus. Seriously though, I cant remember a time I didn't have some plot or other, some character or other talking in my head. So it was either bow to that or admit to a psychosis and seek treatment. Thankfully, I chose writing :-)

I am truly blessed to be living the life of my dreams.

Hi. First up I'd like to take the opportunity to wish everyone an early Merry Xmas and fervently hope that you are more organised with your Xmas shopping than I am. Too many things to do before the end of the year, including another book - yikes!!! Plus three out of the four of us have December birthdays, so it's a very busy time at my house.

Here in sunny Queensland it's heating up nicely so looks like it'll be another scorcher. Thank god for the air-con. It's the only way to eat turkey and plum pudding in forty degree heat. My entire extended family - aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins are all heading to a resort for three days over Xmas. Wall to wall air-con and a ten acre pool. No washing up and poolside cocktails - my kind of holiday.

So - Christmas come early? Well, it certainly will for me. My book, The Surgeon's Meant-To-Be Bride will hit shelves just before the jolly, fat man visits our houses.This is exciting for lots of reasons, not least of all because of my slightly narcissistic tendency of going into Kmart to just look at my book on the shelf. But mainly because I think this is my favourite of the ten medicals I've written. Why do I say this? Let me see - it was my first book accepted with no rewrites, it's very different in that the whole book covers just twenty-four hours (each chapter an hour of the day), I got to chop off legs and remove spleens and the h and h have sex in the first chapter!!!! Didn't think that would get through at all!!!

Prior to this if anyone asked, I always told them my favourite book was my very first one I ever wrote. Why? God knows it's perfectly awful. No, really, I kid you not. I pulled it out and looked at it not long ago thinking, maybe I could use it? Tweak it, polish it, it couldn't be that bad surely and it's another full MS, right? Wrong!! There is nothing redeemable about it at all. I can't believe I had the audacity to send it in!!! It's really, really bad. But regardless, it will always be up there amongst my favourites because it was the book that proved to me that I could do it. I could write an entire book. The day I wrote "the end" was the day I became a writer. And it's subsequent rejection was what spurred me on my writing journey because there's nothing more motivating than rejection. The day I received the form, thanks-but-no-thanks letter, was the day I became bloody minded. So I have a lot to thank that book for. Every. Single. Tragic. Word.

And Xmas is a time to be thankful and to spread some Xmas cheer. So, ho, ho, ho, I'm giving away 3 two-packs. Three lucky people will score copies of The Surgeons Meant-To-Be Bride and my previous release, Caring For His Child. But, you have to work for it. Yes, yes, mean Santa. Bwah ha ha ha ha ha.

The first three people who go to my website and answer these questions will be the winners. What is the name of Fran's puppy in "Caring For His Child"? In "The Surgeon's Meant-To-Be Bride" Harriet laments that of all the men in all the world she had to marry one that looked like a what? When you know the answer click on the "drop me a line" link on my homepage. When I have the three winners I'll announce it on the blog.

In the interim, I'd love to hear about your favourite book.

Good luck and Merry Xmas to you all.
Love Amy