But I Smile Anyway…

Loving this series!

Peeps, I am extremely excited to have another fabulous author and interweb friend come to visit and have a chat! Gillian Harvey is here to chat about all things writing, and her newest release, A Month In Provence!

Hello, and welcome to But I Smile Anyway, Gillian! Let’s get you set with a drink, first.

I have tea, coffee, hot chocolate, or masala chai, here. I must admit I am not the best coffee maker, so my trusty Tassimo will have to do!

Coffee, please!

And what would you like to nibble? I have all the usual, biscuits, carrot cake, and even samosas, but I did pop over to the supermarket to grab a few pastries, in case you preferred them!

Ooh, a bit of everything, thank you!

Gillian, I have read a few of your books now, and they have all been based in France. Tell me, did your writing journey start before you moved out there? What or who inspired you to start writing?

I always loved reading as a child, and can remember having the ambition to be an author when I was around five years old! I loved writing short stories and poems as a child – and still remember the thrill when a poem of mine was read out in assembly when I was about seven.

The Arctic

It’s big and cold,
With snow and ice,
I wouldn’t think
It’s very nice
Not much sun
Too much snow
I’m glad I’m not
An Eskimo

Despite having this ambition, I never really ‘believed’ I’d become a published author. It seemed to be the sort of thing that happened to other people. I finished my first book aged 24, but it was when I moved to France aged 31 that things really started to take off.

I had PND after having twins in 2012 (I have five children now, so busy times) and wanted to do something to engage my brain. I took a freelance writing course, not really expecting to get anything published.

A couple of years on, I had established a career as a freelance writer – and now regularly write for national publications. The course also helped me to understand more about my potential readers and shape my work accordingly.

I finally landed an agent in 2016, only for my first book to be published slap bang in the middle of the pandemic in May 2020. I released my second a year later.

But it was when I started to write for Boldwood last year that things really took off. ‘A Year at the French Farmhouse’ released in September 2022 has – to date – sold over 100,000 copies, and I’m so excited for what the future holds.

This is all so exciting, and inspirational!

I can tell that living in France has inspired your last few books, heavily. Do you go visiting all these place for research before you write?

I’ve lived in Limousin, France for over a decade now, and my first ‘French set’ book ‘A Year at the French Farmhouse’ was set in my local area. ‘One French Summer’ – my second read, was set close to Bordeaux – an area I’ve been on holiday a few times. So those ‘research’ journeys took place long before the books took shape!

Now I’m starting to explore areas of France to set my new novels, and I try to visit in person or set novels in places I’m familiar with from holidays or trips to give that authentic feel. Google Earth is also very helpful to refresh my memory!

God bless Google Earth!

I always ask this one, but do you have a special place where you write? An office, a writing nook? Or are you one of those writers who can grab their notebook or laptop and write pretty much anywhere?

I just need a bit of peace and quiet. Sadly, this can be a rarity! At the moment I write in my office in the eaves of our house. I used to have a lovely room downstairs set up, but as the children grew, I got shunted upstairs (my choice, but it doesn’t mean I don’t regret it sometimes!). I can sympathise, especially in the lats house we lived in!

Still, my little nook has become a haven for me to sit and think and write when I get the chance.

Do you have a favourite out of all your books written, so far? Do you have any finished manuscripts that you think would never see the light of day?

I find that each book I write I love more than the last. I never know whether that’s because my writing is improving and evolving all the time, or just because the latest one always seems exciting, shiny and new!

I have several manuscripts that almost made it but didn’t quite. I used to think I’d try again with them one day, but now I enjoy writing so much and feel my writing is better with each novel – I see them as part of the learning process. Although at the time, rejection was TOUGH!

Let’s get back to the book of the moment, A Month in Provence. Your main character, Nicky, has been through a lot, and sacrificed so much for the decade leading up to when we as readers, join her. What was your inspiration for her story?

I’m fascinated by the idea of second chances. When I first started writing for women’s magazines back in 2012, I was in my early 30s. At the time, like many people, I had rather fixed ideas of what women at ‘midlife’ were like. But interviewing so many people for real lives, I discovered so many women that changed my perceptions! Women seem to get a rebirth at this age – perhaps because kids have flown the nest, or there’s been a change in their lives.

It made me realise I had fixed ideas about this life stage.

When I started writing, it was all about women in their 30s, and I was even encouraged by one editor at a former publisher not to stray into the 40s. But I believe that the world needs to wake up to how brilliant these years can be. I don’t think I fully ‘knew’ myself until I was 40. Maybe the old adage that ‘life begins’ at this age is true. Being a woman of that certain age, too, and an avid reader, it makes my heart happy to have main characters I can relate to, so thank you!

Nicky is someone who’s ‘frozen’ in time after a trauma a decade before. Her world shrank as she focused solely on her children and making sure they had a good childhood. Now they’re independent adults, she hasn’t realised she’s still ‘stuck.’ It takes a chance offer from a friend to shake up her world and make her realise it’s time for a brand new life.

I loved the idea of her becoming a reality TV star! (I do love a bit of reality TV to help forget life, sometimes…) Is this something you have ever envisaged yourself getting involved in?

Like many people I’m fascinated by reality TV. I used to love it when it first became a ‘thing’ (Big Brother 2). But over the years I think some of it just plays for the ratings. And we all know now how much ‘reality’ TV is shaped and staged. There’s a bit of that in ‘A Year in Provence.’ Oh, gosh, yes. Loved the early Big Brother shows, but now I am being forced to watch Love Island with my daughter, and it is quite painful!

But I also love the fact that certain shows (Britain’s Got Talent, etc) can take someone from zero to hero – give someone a chance that maybe they’ve missed out on in life. ‘The Great B&B Rescue’ in ‘A Month in Provence’ is that kind of show – it forces Nicky out of her comfort zone and gets her to tap into her talents in a way she may not have done without the pressure of the cameras.

Robert was one of those slow-burn heroes who you begin to love more and more as you read the book, and peel away layers. He also needed that make over, along with his business. Did you enjoy writing his transformation?

I loved writing Robert. It was a challenge to make him a likeable character without giving too much away at the start. I used his dog, Buster, to give hints that he must be quite a nice guy. He’s always affectionate to the dog, and the dog is fiercely loyal. It’s just humans he struggles with at times.

His transformation in the book was great fun to write – and the makeover chapter is one of my favourites!

Another one of my standard questions… what is next on the horizon? Any tidbits you can share with my readers, about what is coming next, from you?

I’m just working on edits for my next novel – also set in France – about Mark and Emma, a couple who buy a chateau but bite off more than they can chew. They are also struggling with infertility (something I’ve been through myself). When Mark falls down the stairs and ends up in hospital all seems lost. Can Emma find the strength to save the chateau alone?

Another one I can’t wait to read when it’s ready! And, since the topic of my next book is infertility, I am extra interested!

Thank you so much for popping over for a visit, Gillian!

Thanks for having me, Ritu!

The Blurb

Interior designer Nicky always used to know how to make the best of things. Ever since she lost her husband though, things haven’t been easy. She’s had to raise her two daughters alone and she’s so proud to see them all grown up, and she knows that’s down to her. But she can’t help but feel like she doesn’t know what to do with her life now… But then her best friend begs her to help out. Jenny is a TV exec and her new renovation show is in peril. Only Nicky can help. The catch – Nicky needs to fly to Provence… tomorrow. To renovate a tumbledown B&B. Jenny doesn’t mention the fact that the grumpy B&B owner Robert seems to need a makeover too. Or that the budget is next to nothing… Will Nicky be able to turn the B&B’s fortunes around, save her friend’s job, and maybe even find some happiness for herself, under the blazing hot French sun this summer…? Totally gorgeous, escapist, uplifting fiction that lets you escape to sun-soaked Provence. Perfect for fans of Sarah Morgan, Jennifer Bohnet and Debbie Macomber

My Review

A Month in Provence by Gillian Harvey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Gillian Harvey is fast becoming one of my must-read authors, so I snapped up the chance to read her latest release, A Month In Provence.
I always love it when characters are of a certain age, where I feel I can relate to them all the more, and our MCs are exactly that in this book.
Nicky is a woman who has been grieving for ten years, always putting her daughters first and never allowing them to feel the gap created when they lost their father. Her best friend offers her the opportunity of a lifetime. A way to reclaim some of the dreams she dared to dream before her world was rocked to the core.
She finds herself in Provence for a month as a business advisor and interior designer and, most importantly, a TV presenter, as she heads a reality TV style project to do up a floundering B & B Business.
Robert is the owner of said business. In the beginning, he is a bit grumpy and stand-offish, but with layers to peel, giving us a glimpse of a much more sensitive soul with a story as tragic as Nicky’s.
I loved how they built a tentative friendship over the month that she resides in his ailing B & B, and all the misdemeanours as they attempt to get things ship shape for the TV crew that keeps surprising them,
The cast of side characters is also a joy to get to know, from the local business owners to Nicky’s two daughters, and not forgetting Buster the dog!
Honestly, I loved this story so much. It is filled with hope, and there are emotional moments as well as some giggles, too. I read this within a few hours and wished there was more to come!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an ARC.

Author Bio

Writer  Journalist  Author

Freelance writer and author Gillian Harvey lives in France with husband, Ray and their five children. She regularly pens articles and short stories for UK magazines including Woman’s Weekly and People’s Friend. She also writes opinion pieces and has been published in Independent, Guardian, Metro.

Gillian started her career in the teaching profession working at secondary school level. After moving to France in 2009, she started freelance writing for publications in the UK, France and the US.

Gillian has written a monthly column in Writing Magazine since 2020. She has previously been columnist for Prima Baby and Living France magazines.

Gillian’s first novel ‘Everything is Fine’ was published worldwide with Orion in May 2020. Her second, ‘Perfect on Paper’ was published in UK May 2021. She has since moved to Boldwood Books where she published the best-selling ‘A Year at the French Farmhouse’ and, most recently ‘One French Summer.’

And click below to find Gillian on Social Media!

Social Media Links

https://linktr.ee/gillianharveyauthor