But I Smile Anyway…

I am very pleased to have my fellow Spellbound Books author to introduce to you all, today. Mark David Woollard will be chatting all about his much-anticipated sequel, The Undatable Gay Comes Again!

Hello, and welcome to But I Smile Anyway, Mark.

HELLO RITU. Thank you for having me!

Let’s get you set with a drink, first. Tea, coffee, hot chocolate, or maybe a masala chai? Or are you hankering for a Savvy B?

PLEASE
a LARGE GLASS of New Zealand Savvy B. There is no other that can pass my lips besides a
glass from the Marlborough region.

If we’re going masala tea, I can offer you some homemade pakoras, or a fresh batch of cupcakes baked by my daughter this morning. The savoury pakoras would work with said Savvy B, too, to be honest!

I love a pakora. But I’m also a devil for cake so I will have both please. Don’t be shy!

A man after my own heart (or stomach! 😂)

Now, I’m always nosy, and feel like I’ve known you for a while, since we had our first releases with Spellbound at around the same time! So, could you tell me a bit about your journey to becoming a published author, Mark?

Oh my god. I’d forgotten that Marriage Unarranged came out at a similar time to the first undateable gay. It was a long, hard journey, which I’m sure every published author says but it really was. I
think I sent the manuscript of the undateable gay to about fifty publishing houses over the space of about five years and it kept getting rejected. Until, that is, Sumaira from SpellBound caught a glimpse of it and she said, YES PLEASE. She’d only seen the first 5,000 words but didn’t want to see anymore. She just signed me onto a two book deal immediately so she must have been impressed. I think her words were, “I already know I’m going to love the rest!” Thank god the first 5,000 words were
decent. Hahaha! 😂

Oh, I do love Sumaira and Nicki! They are the best, aren’t they? (No, I am not biased, Peeps!)

Do you have a special place where you do all your creating and writing? Somewhere away from the craziness of family?

I’m really boring. I literally can write anywhere. No special place. It’s normally at my desk in my flat with a large cup of coffee if I’m writing in the morning. Or a large glass of Savvy B if I’m writing in the evening. But I know you have a special writing room, don’t you Ritu? I’ve seen photographic evidence on your Facebook. Is that where you do all your writing?

I am lucky that we have the space for me to have my special room, yes! Originally, I had the best room upstairs, away from everyone, with my own toilet, too, so I could lock myself away, if need be. Then Hubby Dearest realised his office was too close to the rest of the bedrooms, and he can be pretty loud when he’s on the phone, disturbing Lil Princess’s sleep/study/whatever it is that teens do in their rooms. So we ended up swapping, and even though I am closer to the rest, now, I have a gorgeous view of the garden from the huge window in my new room and lots of space for my bookshelves. Yay! I love sitting in here, to write. I have been very productive!

What kind of books do you enjoy reading, yourself?

I love a good rom-com. I’m a sucker for them. But I also love a memoir-style story. I’m currently reading Queer and Catholic, the life of this gay bloke who becomes a monk, basically. And this will
make you happy – I’m off to Bali in two weeks, and I’m taking, wait for it, STRAIGHT AS
A JALEBI as my holiday read! OMG! Now I am nervous! I hope you enjoy it! And lucky you, going to Bali! You will have a blast!

What prompted you to write the stories that you have?

So, The Undateable Gay actually started it’s life as a dating column for a gay magazine in the early 2010’s. I used to write about my unsuccessful dates. So that’s how it started. What prompted
me to write them was this: I thought if I’m not going to have any luck with men, I might as well make some money by telling people stories about them! Hahahaha. And after a few years, I suddenly thought, I could turn these columns into a book. So that’s what I did. And it’s been quite cathartic. Do you find that when you write?

Writing is a real release, I agree. I write lots of things, not just my stories, but my feelings, too, when I need to, and I always find that helps release tension.

Let’s get back to your latest release, The Undatable Gay Comes Again. Come on, be truthful, how much of your writing is based on your life, and how much is pure fiction?

If I tell you that, I’ll have to kill you. No, only joking. Well, I think every person in the arts, whether an author, actor, or singer, draws on their own life experiences. Do you?

Yup, I think our lives definitely have a way of seeping into our work, especially if there are situations we write about that we could have experienced.

The Undateable Gay is based on my own dating experiences and those of my friends, and obviously, I’ve used artistic licence. But I’m not brave enough to tell you which bits are true…

You have written some pretty straight-forward, graphic scenes in the books. Has your mother read them? (Hee hee!)🤭

Hahaha. A review for the first book said it was the love child of Fifty Shades of Grey and Bridget Jones and that actually made me happy and proud. I hope my mother hasn’t read it. I don’t think she has because she’s not backward in coming forward, my mum! She would have said, THAT IS DISGUSTING! Hahaha. But I’ll tell you a funny story, my future mother-in-law asked about my book because she was interested that I was an author, and I told her, I don’t think you should read it; you’re not the target audience. But one night, she sent a photo of herself holding a copy and I shit myself. My fiancé did, too. And I said, well, I warned her so if she’s decided to go ahead and read it, that’s her decision.
Anyway, a few weeks later, I received an email from her that simply said: I’ve just finished your book. No judgements. That was it. Hahahaha. But she hasn’t forbidden her son from marrying me, so I think it’s all fine. But I’m not sure she’ll be buying the sequel. Lol. BTW, Have I got any graphic scenes to look forward to in Straight as a Jalebi?

Well, there are a couple of scenes… I still haven’t heard from my mum about her feedback on the book, because she hasn’t read it yet, but there were a couple of mild ones in Marriage Unarranged, and my Pops, who doesn’t even read, decided he would proudly read his daughter’s first novel, then had to stop at said scene! 🤪 But, he did pick it up and read the whole book, about a year after, and said he couldn’t be prouder!

Were COVID, and the lockdowns, as bad for you as they were for Mark, the fictional character?

Wasn’t COVID awful? That part is based on real life, unfortunately. I didn’t cope well with the lockdowns. My ‘proper’ job besides writing is as a massage and beauty therapist so obviously I couldn’t work because our industry was closed down. That made me feel quite worthless like my whole career was disposable. So, I did have panic attacks and anxiety, sadly, whilst that was going on. And my best friend
looked after me. Luckily, nothing as bad as what happened to Mark happened to me but I know many people that completely broke mentally. How was COVID for you?

I think COVID treated us all in horrible ways. I am a teacher by day, and it was one of the toughest times, trying to coordinate 4-5-year-olds with remote learning and being bashed by people who didn’t know just how education in lockdown worked. This, along with trying to get my own children through some tough times, including my son doing his GCSEs, and my daughter having her first two years of secondary school disrupted, leading to Mental Health issues, and the beginnings of a possible ASD diagnosis, was tough. And we were constantly worrying about our vulnerable parents, one set of whom were three hours away. I did manage to write, though, so that was a plus!

I love to be nosy and ask this. What is next for Mark David Woollard? Will we get that sequel, as you hinted at, at the end?

I’m actually really busy at the moment. I’m opening my own training school next January for massage therapists, reflexologists and beauty therapists so I’m so busy preparing for that. And I’m writing something completely different- a textbook for REFLEXOLOGISTS. That’s a very different genre
and style- but what can I say? I’m eclectic. As for ANOTHER sequel to THE UNDATEABLE GAY- I’m not sure. I don’t think I’ve got another one in me right now. Maybe in ten years, I’ll do a Bridget Jones, go for the trilogy, and return with THE UNDATEABLE GAY’S BABY. Watch this space!

Well, that sounds like something I would be up for reading! And good luck with the training school! What an epic adventure! And check you out, writing a textbook!

Thanks for having me, Ritu! Cheers! 🥂

You are most welcome, and I look forward to hearing more about how you get on with everything! 😊

The Blurb

Think you’re unlucky in love?
You know nothing of dating misery until you’ve delved into the world of the undateable gay.

Mark Morgan is back and he’s still struggling to catch a break in the dating minefield of the gay world. Or is he?

With two potential beaus in his orbit, Mark discovers it’s possible you can find two Mr Rights in your life. But what happens when tragedy strikes? And a global pandemic hits? Will he pick himself up and carry on?

With best friends Tullene and Buttplug on hand to guide him through troubled waters, he discovers he can survive with a little bit of help from your friends. AND a copious amount of his favourite tipple, Savvy B…

But will he get his happy ever after?
The road to true love is a bumpy one.

Buy Link: https://amzn.eu/d/a5hScwf

My Review

The Undatable Gay Comes Again : The Funniest sequel you will read this year! by Mark David Woollard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh my goodness, where do I even begin with this? TW: Definitely open door MM action. You have been warned, oh, feint-hearted ones!
Mark David Woollard, you are a naughty man, aren’t you?
I loved the first book, The Undateable Gay, and we were left with a bit of a cliffhanger and a bit of a wait until Mark decided to deliver the sequel to us.
But it is here, and just as filled with downright naughty, sometimes cringeworthy, but mostly funny escapades of our (middle-aged, though he doesn’t really want to admit it) MC, Mark Morgan. He is not related to that Piers!
Mark is desperate to find a relationship status quo that solves his dilemmas. He loves a quick hook. Grindr does its job, but as he gets older and the effects of Covid and the lockdowns hit home, he realises he might want more than a quick bunk up.
Again, this reads like a gay Bridgit Jones diary as we learn all about his latest escapades and fumbles in random places, as well as some near misses.
There is a little sadness, but I shan’t go into that here.
Mark’s best friends are a giggle, and there is, as expected, plenty of Savvy B swigging occurring throughout. In fact, if you are going to read, maybe equip yourself with a large glass. I can’t guarantee you won’t be snorting it back out if you read a particularly saucy scene!
A lovely conclusion, with the possibility of more escapades (of a more sedate nature? Maybe… but probably not, given Mark Morgan’s track record!) to come!

About the Author

Mark has been writing since the tender age of 8, ever since his father bought him a typewriter home from a neighbour’s skip. He graduated from Brunel university in 2009 with a 2:1 BA in Creative Writing where he discovered his talent for writing comedy and melodrama.

When he’s not writing, he can generally be found with a glass of New Zealand Savvy B in his hand. And to be honest, he can even be found with one in his hand if he is writing!! He says some of his best work has been written whilst under the influence.

He is a swimming fanatic and does 70 lengths daily. And he swears blind that his enthusiasm for the sport has absolutely nothing to do with the men in tight speedos. He is also a keen Walker. He’s often out in the Surrey Hills on a Sunday, partaking in a ten mile walk. Well, he says he’s got to keep his bottom nice and tight because you never know who’s looking!

FACEBOOK: Mark David Woollard
INSTAGRAM: markdavidwoollard
X: @MarkyWoollard83