Where I Write by Carol Thomas

This week I’m joined by good friend Carol Thomas, but before I introduce her, I have to say a heartfelt thank you to all of my readers who contacted me after my personal blog post last week – you can read the post here – I was so touched by all of the suggestions for filling the creative well and for improving your state of mind. I plan to do a follow up post soon to pull all of the suggestions together for those who might need them. The response made me feel very happy and definitely helped, so thank you.

My blog guest this week, Carol Thomas, writes wonderfully heart warming stories and a little bird told me that the paperback of A Summer of Second Chances published by Choc Lit is available from 5 July 2022, but it is already there for your Kindle. Over to Carol as she tells us about where she writes …

Thank you for inviting me onto your blog to talk about where I write, Morton.

As I don’t have a dedicated writing space in my house (there are five of us at home and always a list of chores competing for my attention), I tend to write out and about. Cafés are a great space with the bonus of the opportunity to people-watch. However, rather than share the interior of my favourite local cafés with you, I thought I would share some of the writing spaces that inspired aspects of my latest novel, A Summer of Second Chances.

While volunteering in my local Cancer Research UK charity shop, I often kept a notebook and pen on the counter, writing between customers. I found the charity shop, with the range of donations – each with its own story – and mix of customers, an inspirational place to write. A Summer of Second Chances is primarily set in a charity shop, so it was an immersive space to write scenes set inside All Critters Great and Small (the charity shop in my story). 

When I started writing the novel, I also had an office in the market town of Arundel. The view from the window looked across a range of higgledy-piggledy rooftops.

I sometimes heard snippets of conversations from the surrounding windows and gardens and often thought about the lives of the people within the houses. The close community I imagined became a part of the book. While Arundel has a medieval castle at its heart (also visible from my office window), my fictional village has Dapplebury House at its heart, the ancestral home of Henry Bramlington – the reluctant heir to the estate and family title. 

So, while I don’t have a dedicated writing space, I greatly enjoy writing out and about. The places I find myself in are woven into my stories. The rhythms of the voices I hear and the imagined lives of those around me inform my writing. One day, I hope to have a home office, but I am not sure I would ever want to write purely in a single space.

About Carol Thomas:

Carol Thomas lives on the south coast of England with her husband and four children. She has been a primary school teacher for over twenty years and has a passion for reading, writing and people watching. When she is not in school or spending time with her family, she can be found loitering in cafes drinking too much tea and working on her next book. 

Carol writes contemporary romance novels with relatable heroines whose stories are layered with emotion, sprinkled with laughter and topped with irresistible male leads.

Website and Social Media Links: 

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram | TikTok

About A Summer of Second Chances:

A heart-warming romance full of love, friendship and four legged friends!

Does first love deserve a second chance?

Ava Flynn sometimes feels like the clothes donated to her charity shop have seen more life than her, but ‘maximum dedication for a minimal wage’ is what it takes to keep her mother’s beloved wildlife charity, All Critters Great and Small, running especially in the village of Dapplebury, where business is certainly not booming.

But when Ava’s first love, Henry Bramlington, returns to the village, suddenly life becomes a little too eventful. Henry escaped Dapplebury many years before, but now he has the power to make or break the village he left behind All Critters Great and Small included. Can Ava trust the boy who ran away to give both her and her charity a second chance?

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Available in paperback and ebook.

Published by: Choc Lit

Purchase Links: Amazon | Kobo | iBooks | GooglePlay | Nook |

Other books by Carol Thomas:

Maybe Baby: http://getbook.at/MBAmazon

The Purrfect Pet Sitter: http://getbook.at/TPPSAmazon

Crazy Over You: http://getbook.at/COYAmazon

Thank you, Carol and I bet you miss that office view! I love your books and have included my review of A Summer of Second Chances below. Mx

5 stars – Loved Everything About This Book

This novel took me through a whole range of emotions from laughter to tears. It is so much more than a romance. I want to live in Dapplebury, work at the charity shop and go to the pub event evenings! I’m in love with hero, Henry and the lovely dogs in the story. I think I might have completely fallen out with best friend, Mary if I was heroine Ava though. Loved the journey the book took me on and would love a sequel.

Thank you for visiting my blog – Morton S. Gray – Author. I hope you enjoyed this post. You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Summer at Lucerne Lodge published as an eBook, paperback and audio download too – Amazon Check on my Choc Lit author page for other purchasing options here 

Christmas at the Little Beach Cafe published as an eBook, audio and paperback – Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks, Kobo, Nook Books, Google Play and Choc Lit for other options.

Sunny Days at the Beach is now available as an eBook, audio and paperback – Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks, Kobo, Nook Books, Google Play and at Choc Lit for other options.

Christmas at Borteen Bay is available as both an eBook and audio download – Amazon Kindle, Audio, Apple iBooks, Kobo and Choc Lit for other buying options.

The Truth Lies Buried is available from all eBook platforms – Choc Lit, Amazon Kindle, Kobo, Apple iBooks and also as a paperback and audiobook.

The Girl on the Beach published by Choc Lit is available as a paperback and from all eBook platforms –Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks, Kobo, Barnes and Noble and Google Play.