Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Meet the Author: Romantic novelist Katie Fforde

© David O'DriscollKatie Fforde
Katie Fforde

Romantic novelist Katie Fforde’s working life is not all hearts and flowers. When it comes to researching books, she admits she is more than happy to get her acrylic nails dirty.

Mum-of-three Katie, 67, whose new book A Springtime Affair is out later this month, has even put herself through a Ray Mears survival course in the name of research.

And she says she owes that tough streak, and a love of the great outdoors to her Scots mother-in-law.

The Cotswolds-based author – who married Desmond Fforde in 1972 – tells P.S.: “Sometimes I get an idea for a book that won’t let me forget it but about which I have no experience. That’s when my research gets a little more out of left-field.

“No one who knows me can imagine me surviving in the wild without a down duvet, my own bathroom, and a silk pillow case.

“They would have been surprised to see me on a Ray Mears survival course.

“Ever since I’ve been married I have been going up to Scotland. My mother-in-law used to live on the edge of Loch Tay. After she died, the family kept a bit of land, reluctant to let go of a little bit of heaven.

“Desmond’s mother had always been a fan of billy-can teas, rowing boats on the loch and a sort of Swallows and Amazon lifestyle. So I learnt how to build a fire and keep it going early on in the relationship.”

She smiles: “Apart from wearing acrylic nails, I kept my end up quite well in the survival camp!”

This time round Katie – mum to Guy, Francis and Briony – was able to keep her hands clean, as her latest offering focuses on the relationship of fictional Gilly, a B&B owner, and mum to weaver Helena. With the arrival of spring comes budding new love – could it be the season of new beginnings for them both?

Katie says: “There are always reasons why I write a book, and A Springtime Affair is no different.

“I wanted to explore the relationship between mothers and daughters. More particularly the relationship between a woman, really quite like me (glammed up a bit!) and one who could be my daughter. My actual daughter has been married a while and has three children, so she’s not quite like my character Helena, but our relationship is interesting.

“It’s a friendship. We have fun, enjoy each other’s company and share almost everything. But we also protect each other from uncomfortable truths in a way you don’t with normal friendships.”

Real life filters into Fforde’s fiction, lending it authenticity. Her beloved Scotland featured in From Scotland With Love and Summer At Sea. She says: “The scenery in Scotland just asks to be written about. The lochs, mountains, the stillness, the colours, they all get my imagination going.”


Kate Fforde A Springtime Affair, Century, £14.99