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Did you know 2009 is the

60th anniversary of Harlequin? 

Find out more in Ally's Press Release.

And check out who she would cast to play

the hero and heroine in every book she's written!

I love the Collingwood football team, New York, Las Vegas, Italy top to toe, my fox terrier Squiffy, but I'm still on the fence about my hubby's two black-headed pythons, Mary and Frederick.

 

I also love "The West Wing", stationery, M&Ms, thunderstorms, cold coffee, the colour red, Jack Vettriano, the Cherry Poppin' Daddies, US presidential elections, steak dinners, the Yankees, mushy movies, Brown Brothers wine, Ugh boots, "The Little Mermaid", velvet jackets, citrus scents, tart tastes, gardenias, dancing with my eyes closed, bubble baths, muscat grapes, getting paid to write books, and most of all playing with my beautiful baby girl.

 

Then there's my love of...

 

BOOKS

 

'Catch 22’

by Joseph Heller

(wittiest, most clever, twisty, turny shocking, fantastic writing on the planet)

‘The Prince in Waiting’ Trilogy by John Christopher

 (the writer who first gave me a love of reading - an out of print young adult gem)

 

‘The Princess Bride’

by William Goldman

(glorious, sweet, heavenly, hilarious, tongue in cheek)

 

‘Ice Station’

by Matthew Reilly

(you will not be able to stop turning the pages!)

'HMS ULYSSES’

by Alistair Maclean

(My Mum's favourite book - a real gut-wrencher - I could barely read the last three chapters through the tears)

 

All of the Stephanie Plum books by Janet Evanovich

(Joe Morelli, Grandma Mazur, all those destroyed cars, out of control hair, and the best cliff hanger ending to a book ever!)

All of the Harry Potter books by J K Rowling

(look past the hype, look past the rags to riches story, and look to the language, especially of the early books  - a pure delight)

 

With these guys I know I will never go wrong...

 

Dick Francis
LaVyrle Spencer

Jodi Piccoult

 

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TV SHOWS

 

Tour of Duty

 

The West Wing

 

Sex and the City

 

Shameless

 

The Sopranos

 

Arrested Development

 

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MOVIES
 

The Godfather Trilogy (from the first moment I laid eyes on the lot of them I was determined to marry an Italian!)

Notting Hill (the ending is my version of heaven)

The Little Mermaid (What a heroine!  And what a hero!!!)

Aliens (nothing like the others, but its my very, very fave!!!)

 

Field of Dreams (you can't beat a bit of magic in the air, the soundtrack gives me goosebumps)

 

Pride and Prejudice (No explanation required, I'm sure...)

 

Dirty Dancing, When Harry Met Sally,  Funny Girl, The Way We Were,

La Femme Nikita, Cyrano de Bergerac (nothing like a weepie romance!)

 

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MOVIE LINES

 

"You're gonna need a bigger boat."

Jaws
 

"I have to return some video tapes."

American Psycho

 

"What do they think I am, dumb or something?  Why I make more money than Calvin Coolidge put together."

Singin' in the Rain
 

"Nobody’s perfect."

Some Like It Hot

 

"Excuse me while I whip this out."

Blazing Saddles
 

"Do you know what's wrong with you?"

"No, what?"
"Nothing."

Charade

 

for more great movie lines check out the recent top 100 American movie lines as judged by the America Film Institute...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How and why did you start writing?
 

 

The short answer is because my folks gave me pretty coloured crayons and taught me the alphabet, and the long answer has more to do with butterflies flapping their wings...

 

Thanks to Mr McBurnie, my grade 7 teacher, who introduced me to the wonderful books of John Christopher.  Thanks to a childhood adulation of actor Christian Bale that made me see Henry V.  And then to Kenneth Branagh and his mate William S, without whom I would not have gone on to achieve a double English major at University.  It’s so true that the smallest of decisions can make our lives twist and turn more dramatically than we know at the time.

 

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How long does it take you to write a book?

 

Between a month and forever...

 

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Where do you find ideas for your stories?
 

 

Ideas are the easy part – it’s finishing the damn book that takes the work!  I am a flimmer.  I start with a title (first thing that comes to me 99% of the time) then a couple of characters and then a fresh word file.  And off I go.
 

I think of it like my chocolate cake recipe.  I make the cake first in a rush.  I know the basic ingredients of my particular cake and mix them together in whatever order comes to hand.  Then once cooked I put it in the fridge for a while before adding the layers of icing; the layers of story and back story and bits and bobs that I only later learn about the characters and their journey.  So the cake is edible without the icing but it is so much richer and yummier and infinitely more digestible with icing.

 

I think you also have to be super aware of your surroundings.  Be prepared to write down any tiny idea you have.  Listen in on conversations.  Really listen to song lyrics which are often romance novels pared down as small as one can go.  Travel!

 

I particularly love New York (a new world around every corner, noisy, energetic, glorious, beautiful, messy, overwhelming - I have to be dragged away kicking and screaming every time I go) and Italy (Check out this gorgeous scene from Bellagio on Lake Como.  Heaven on earth!  Think of a snug elegant hotel on a a lake, surrounded by snow covered mountains.)  Take your inspiration wherever you can get it.

 

Check out my writing hints page: Inspiration Is All Around! for ideas on how to harness your ideas...

 

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How long did it take for you to get published?

 

To get my first book published, from the moment I began writing it to the day I received that most gorgeous of phone calls - just on 2 years.   When I first decided to write a book it had to be a romance for Mills and Boon without a doubt!  I had read them since I was a kid, slithering beneath my grandmother's bed to pull out a shopping bag full on every visit.

 

I joined the Romance Writers of Australia and under their guidance and with the support of friends, family and the Project Muse gang (a bunch who gave and still do give much needed back slaps and kicks in the pants) and a few recommended 'How to' books here I am!!!

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