December 20 - 26, 2023
Writing sparks Jess’ creative flame By SIMONE KERWIN
ONE silver lining of COVID-19 lockdowns was the space they provided for creative people to develop and share their work. So it was for Jess McFarlane, as she embarked on her journey to becoming a published author with her novel ‘Widow’s Flame’. “I’d pitched a few books to publishers before, with no takers,” Jess, who recently relocated to the North East, explained. “I was taking a break, not entirely sure how I was going to go about it. I knew I wanted to be a published author, but the whole process seemed super daunting. “I’d been writing and finishing other books, and then COVID hit. “My mother-in-law asked for a book to read and I sent her ‘Widow’s Flame’. She read it within a day and got back to me with an all-caps text, saying I needed to publish it ASAP. “I queried it to my publisher, and in a month they got back saying they’d like to publish it.” The book was released last
year through Shawline Publishing Group, and Jess said the path to publication through the hybrid agency had been “eyeopening”. “I’ve learnt a lot. But I’m grateful for my experience, as I know my worth as an author, and I know what I want and how to ask for it now,” she said. Jess said while it was scary to send her work out into the world, she had also found it exciting. “I feel like I’m baring my soul to people, that they’re taking a really good look into not only my brain, but my heart,” she said. “I’ve had some really great feedback. It’s been so humbling, especially when I see people who have picked up the message I’d put into my story: that Blair (the widow of the title) isn’t meant to be a likeable character; she makes herself to be just as bad as the men who killed her husband.
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◆ CHARACTER-DRIVEN: Jess McFarlane with her latest release, ‘Widow’s Flame’, which tells the story of a widowed Irish woman seeking justice for the murder of her husband. PHOTO: Kurt Hickling
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