Truly, Madly, Deeply

My story - Making the Grade. Click on the cover.

Hooray! It’s Happy Truly, Madly, Deeply Publication Day!

Look what Amazon says about it:

This collection brings together all-new specially selected stories from star authors from the Romantic Novelists’ Association, including international bestsellers Adele Parks, Katie Fforde, Carole Matthews and Miranda Dickinson, and many, many more and is edited by Sue Moorcroft.

I’m one of the many more – how exciting is that?? Being amongst such illustrious authors is a dream come true.

My story Making the Grade was inspired by my experience as a pianist and music teacher.  So many times I heard: I wish I could play the piano. Parents would stroke the keyboard when they delivered their children to me for lessons and I would say: Then why don’t you give it a go?

Most reacted in embarrassed horror, but some took up the challenge, often with the excuse that they could help their son or daughter with their practice. I didn’t let on that it might be the other way round. Occasionally an adult learner would want to take exams. Actually want to. Clearly, for some, the lure of a certificate is very strong.

On the day, sitting in the waiting room can feel worse than the exam itself. The anxiety level is stratospheric even though the poor invigilator assures everyone that the examiner is lovely and kind and not at all scary. Coming back to my story inspiration, it occurred to me that I couldn’t recall ever seeing a man waiting to take a primary grade. That’s when I thought of my hero, and how uncomfortable he would feel sitting amongst all those talented children.

Todd’s a brave man, although his courage almost deserts him when he enters the exam room. The examiner isn’t scary; she’s terrifying! Beautiful, charming and so sexy he can’t concentrate at all. I remember seeing Evelyn Glennie looking terrific at the Olympic Games opening ceremony and thinking that Grace might have a similar, if somewhat quieter allure.

Being a pianist, I’ve accompanied many instrumentalists taking their music exams and usually they run smoothly, but not always. Of course, in real life, Todd would be in the exam room for five minutes then he’d go home and never see the examiner again but with such strong chemistry between Todd and Grace, that wouldn’t do at all. Besides, a story needs an upset, a problem, some sort of difficulty - what could possibly happen?

I so enjoyed writing Making the Grade. It makes me very happy to think that all my own hours of waiting room anxiety, have had the unforeseen outcome of providing such useful fodder for my own writing. And then to see my story published in Truly, Madly, Deeply…excuse me, I just have to go and play a fanfare! 

This link is for the Kindle edition of Truly, Madly, Deeply which contains all thirty five stories, including mine. The print edition only has twenty-four stories. Mine isn't one of them but if you would like to win a copy go HERE

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