I was absolutely delighted when it was announced at the Romantic Novelists’ Association RoNA awards ceremony at the Royal Airforce Club in Piccadilly last night that The Apothecary’s Daughter had won the Historical Romantic Novel category. Some wonderful novels were shortlisted for the RoNAs and I was proud that The Apothecary’s Daughter was amongst them.

It’s hard work writing a novel, especially when you also work full time. All those hours tapping away night after night when I’d rather be watching telly, all the times I got up at 5am to write a page or two before going to the office and all those weekends racing to meet a deadline, well, now I know it was worth it.

So a very big thank you to all the readers who loved The Apothecary’s Daughter. You made it all worthwhile.

Contemporary Romantic Novel winner – Katie Fforde
Epic Romantic Novel winner – Rowan Coleman
Historical Romantic Novel winner – Charlotte Betts
Romantic Comedy Novel winner – Jenny Colgan
Young Adult Romantic Novel Winner – Victoria Lamb

Judy Finnigan and Richard Madeley announced the five category winners who will contest the prestigious Romantic Novel of the Year during a glittering reception in London. The winning novels will now be read and judged by five independent industry experts, and the overall winner will be revealed at the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s (RNA) Summer Party on 16 May 2013.Annie Ashurst, current RNA Chair, told the capacity gathering of some 250 romantic fiction authors, publishers and guests how proud the Association was of its finalists and winners.”Tonight we are here to celebrate the success of our brightest stars. We are proud of their talent, tenacity and dedication to their craft. It is a lonely thing to write a novel, and to keep on going even as doubts set in – as they do with us all. Our Awards give us an opportunity to publicly recognising the enjoyment you bring to your readers. Congratulations to you all.”

Long-time RNA member, Sophie Kinsella, was honoured with an Outstanding Achievement Award for her continued contribution to the world of romantic fiction.

Sarah Mallory won The RoNA Rose Award with Beneath the Major’s Scars

Katie Fforde has won the Contemporary Category for the second year running with Recipe for Love. This category is for mainstream romantic novels set after 1960. The other competing authors included Veronica Henry, Mhairi McFarlane, Monica McInerney, Sue Moorcroft and Polly Williams.

In the Epic Category, which deals with issues or themes including multi-generational novels, Rowan Coleman triumphed with Dearest Rose. Other finalists included Madeline Miller, Dilly Court, Kate Moreton, Gill Paul and Liz Trenow.

Finalists in the Historical Category (set before 1960) included Charlotte Betts, Christina Courtenay, Kate Furnivall, Pamela Hartshorne, Susanne Kearsley and Mary Nichols. Charlotte Betts was declared the winner with her novel The Apothecary’s Daughter.

In the Romantic Comedy Category, for consistently humorous or amusing novels, the finalists included Jenny Colgan, Victoria Connelly, Jane Costello, Nicola Doherty, Belinda Jones and Jane Wenham-Jones.  Jenny Colgan claimed victory with Welcome to Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop of Dreams.

The Young Adult Category features protagonists who are teenagers or young adults and the shortlist this year included Jo Cotterill, Laura Jarratt, Marie-Louise Jensen, Victoria Lamb, Sarra Manning and Susan Waggoner.  Victoria Lamb was declared winner with her bookWitchstruck.

THE PAINTER’S APPRENTICE BY CHARLOTTE BETTS (Piatkus £7.99)

Another follow-up novel, The Painter’s Apprentice takes up the story of Beth Ambrose, daughter of Susannah, Charlotte Betts’s main protagonist in The Apothecary’s Daughter.

Brought up in a loving family, but living in a lunatic asylum which her step-father runs, Beth is a gifted artist.  But her world is rocked when a cousin from Virginia brings an unexpected proposition to the family.

Set at the time of the Glorious Revolution, when England is still beset by religious rivalries, this is a highly-recommended novel of love, tragedy, and the power of art.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/books/article-2278610/HISTORICAL-FICTION.html#ixzz2L512ZV00

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Then Waterstones in Staines have a blackboard in the window declaring that The Apothecary’s Daughter is ‘the perfect Valentines read‘. Amy said ‘This atmospheric and heartfelt book was one of the best books I read in 2012.’

There are six reviews on www.audible.co.uk, all of them five star.

• “Brilliant!”

  By Sarah (Sainte Foy Tarentaise, France) Dec 26, 2012

  I absolutely loved this historical novel and have been looking for more by Charlotte Betts (she has a new one out ‘The Painter’s Apprentice’but not yet on audio) Convincingly written, historically accurate, very absorbing – couldn’t stop listening! For lovers of historical fiction (a bit like Philippa Gregory but without the royalty). Very highly recommended. Loved it.

• “Surprisingly Good”

  By Victoria (Cambridge, United Kingdom) Aug 30, 2012

  I would never normally read/listen to a historical novel but it was really good. It appealed to both me and my mum (ages 24 and 55), a lovely story. Charlotte Betts takes you back in time and sets the scenes in this easy listen but heart felt book. A good story.

• “Step back into Plague-ridden London …”

  By Abi (LONGHOPE, United Kingdom) Aug 11, 2012

  I loved this story, and the narrator does a wonderful job of bringing the characters to life. It is a love story, but not ‘too soppy’, though the ending is a little predictable. You get a good sense of what it must have been like living in London at this terrible time – the horrors and fears, grief and desperation, the ideas that people had about where the plague was coming from, how to avoid it and treat it, and what it was like to be confined in a plague-house, etc. I really enjoyed it and I’ll be looking out for this author again.
• “loved it!! more please!!!!”

  By C (FARNBOROUGH, United Kingdom) Aug 1, 2012

  I absolutely loved this story, I actually cared about what happened to the characters, I wish Charlotte Betts would write more
• “Loved it”

  By melanie (Saltburn by the Sea, United Kingdom) Jul 6, 2012

  I really enjoyed this book from beginning to end. I will admit that the ending was obvious but its just a nice listen. You get lost in the story and really feel for the main character. I really enjoy Alison Weir and Philippa Gregory and this is a bit on the same lines. The author uses fictional characters within real historical events. I would recommend this book.
• “Loved it”

  By Joanne (Newport, United Kingdom) May 28, 2012

  Lovely atmospheric tale
  Didn’t want it to end – can’t wait for her next one. Really fell in love with the characters

The manuscript has been cut from nearly 150,000 words to a more manageable 114,000 words and polished to the best of my ability with patient advice from my lovely editor, Lucy Icke. I’ve learned a great deal by working on three novels with Lucy and would strongly advise all writers who wish to self-publish to employ the services of an editor first.

So, what’s next? Well, I’m putting together the ‘end matter’, the pages that often go at the end of the novel. There will be historical notes, acknowledgements, author biography and a bibliography. In this case I shall include a recipe for the Cinnamon and Raisin cake that was a particular favourite of Toby, one of the characters in The Spice Merchant’s Wife. I’m sitting here with a generous slice of the cake beside me as I write since I wanted to test the recipe before I included it in the book. I always take my research seriously, especially when it involves cake!

Once the end matter has been sent off I’ll tidy my desk and put all the reference books away before starting on a novelette, which must be completed and delivered by April.

Then the mass market paperback of The Painter’s Apprentice is due on the bookshelves on 1^st February.

The proofs of The Spice Merchant’s Wife will arrive for checking in a few weeks and meanwhile I’m booked to give several talks about my novels.

The Apothecary’s Daughter has been shortlisted for the RoNa’s in the historical category and there will be an exciting awards ceremony and party on the 26th February.

It’s an odd feeling that I needn’t get up at 5am tomorrow or spend every lunchtime, weekend and evening working on the manuscript of The Spice Merchant’s Wife. The novel has been the focus of my time for so many months that I feel strangely bereft. It reminds me of the times my children left home to fend for themselves in the big, bad world.

Not having a novel in progress makes me very unsettled, so already I’m researching the C18th and jotting down ideas in my notebook as they occur to me, waiting for that wonderful flash of inspiration that will breathe fire into the next novel.

If you’re feeling Christmassy and have a moment to relax with a glass of mulled wine of your own, you might like to read the following excerpt from The Painter’s Apprentice, set in 1687.

I wish you all a very happy and peaceful Christmas.

On Christmas morning Beth awoke to see grey fog and drizzle running down the window. The damp mist permeated the house, creeping in through the casements and causing the fires to smoke and the guests to huddle together, coughing.

Almost all the inhabitants of Merryfields braved the weather and walked to the church for the morning service, enduring the usual curious glances of the congregation. Nelly Byrne took off her shoes to show the Squire her red Christmas stockings and Poor Joan wept unrestrainedly at the thought of the baby Jesus lying cold in a manger.

The parson gave a rousing sermon against the ills of Popish practices, which set heads nodding in agreement and Johannes said Amen loudly enough for the congregation to turn and look at him. The parson ended the service with a call for peace and goodwill to all men.

Back at Merryfields, William, John and Noah dragged in the Yule log and worked the bellows to fan the flame until the sodden wood stopped steaming and there was a cheerful blaze.

Susannah and Beth decorated the table with garlands of ivy and sprigs of berried holly and lit a week’s supply of candles to dispel the gloom.

The centrepiece of the dinner was a great baron of beef sent as a Christmas gift by Princess Anne, surrounded by several roast fowl and buttered root vegetables.

Afterwards, Joseph and Emmanuel carried in a vast plum pudding with great ceremony, while Peg watched with a smile on her face and her hands on her hips, ready to spoon it into bowls. If there was more flour and suet and less raisins that usual in the pudding, no one seemed to notice. Spiced ale simmered on the fire, filling the Great Hall with the warm and comforting aroma of cinnamon, cloves and orange. The guests enjoyed their festive dinner but, for the family, nothing could make up for the empty place at the table where Kit usually sat.

Noah presented gifts to all the family and boxes of sweetmeats for the guests.

Beth unwrapped the roll of paper that he gave her, all tied up with a red ribbon and a sprig of mistletoe. She spread out the paper on the table and saw that it was a carefully worked pen and ink drawing of a church.

‘I thought you might like this,’ Noah said. ‘It’s St James Garlickhythe. I made a copy of my working drawing to show you how I’ve designed the new steeple.’ His brown eyes were slightly anxious as Beth remained silent.

‘This is the church that you say people call Wren’s Lantern,’ she said at last.

Noah smiled. ‘You remembered! The steeple is to be in white Portland stone and it will dazzle in the sunlight so that people cannot help but look at it.’

‘It’s so beautiful, Noah.’ She studied the intricate ascending tiers all set upon columns, reaching up for the Heavens. ‘Your line work is extremely fine.’

He grinned. ‘I had to work on it by candle light after the day’s work was finished and was fearful that I’d make a mistake, especially as I know your own artistic standards are so high.’

‘So that’s what you’ve been doing every evening!’ she said. ‘I thought you were avoiding me after I spoke sharply to you about your work on the royal nursery.’

‘Not at all.’

‘So how are the works progressing at Richmond?’ asked Beth.

‘I’ve finished the survey. It was no easy task as the Palace fell into disrepair under the Commonwealth. Once I’ve drawn up the plans they can be presented to the King.’ He pursed his lips. ‘I can tell by your expression that you still disapprove of my involvement.’

‘I’m afraid I do.’

He sighed. ‘It’s not my intention but I appear to have displeased you ever since I arrived, haven’t I? First because I didn’t understand how dedicated you are to your painting, and then because I carried the letter which resulted in Kit leaving Merryfields and now because I’m drawing up plans for the royal nursery.’

‘Your arrival at Merryfields was like a stone dropped from a great height into a millpond,’ said Beth. ‘And the ripples have spread far and wide.’ She looked again at the carefully made drawing. ‘But I shall treasure this.’

He gave her an uncertain smile.

‘And I have something for you.’ She handed him a small parcel.

Noah unwrapped the present and his face lit up when he found an apple-wood box to hold his pens and drawing instruments. Beth had painted the lid with an image of Merryfields surrounded by a garland of honeysuckle and roses twined all around.

‘I’ve never painted Merryfields before,’ she said, ‘but I’ve combined your love of architecture with my love for botanical art in this painting in the hope that you won’t forget us when you return to Virginia,’ she said. She had spent many hours painting the box, in an attempt to relieve her guilt for her previous coolness towards him.

He ran his finger over the silky-smooth lid of the box. ‘I’ll never forget you,’ he said, leaning forward to kiss her cheek, ‘and I’ll treasure this box always.’

She smelt the slight smokiness of the fire in his hair and the clean, comforting, male scent of his skin.

‘I miss my own family today,’ he said quietly.

‘What will they be doing now?’

‘Father will be bringing in the Yule log and Mother and my sisters, Maryanne, Abigail and Kate will be busy in the kitchen.’ He smiled. ‘Mother will insist on giving the servants a day’s holiday. The whole house will smell of baking and egg nog and cinnamon. There will be candles in the windows and in the afternoon our good neighbours, the Sharpes, will visit with their daughters Hannah and Amy.’ He stared into the fire, lost in thought.

‘Your poor father will be outnumbered by all the womenfolk,’ said Beth.

He sighed. ‘Indeed he will.’

Beth glanced at Kit’s empty chair. ‘I wonder what Kit is doing now? Imagine having only ship’s biscuits for your Christmas dinner!’

‘I expect it will be washed down with a swig of rum and there are sure to be other passengers who will sing a round of Christmas carols with him.’

‘And by next Christmas you will be back at home.’

Noah reached for Beth’s hand. ‘And then I’ll be missing you.’ He bit his lip. ‘I mean I’ll be missing all of you.’

They sat in companionable silence for a while, watching John roasting chestnuts, while Cecily danced about blowing on her fingers as she peeled off the hot skins.

Clarence Smith stood up in front of the fireplace and began to sing I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing In.

One by one the others moved into a circle around the fire and joined in. Joseph brought out his penny whistle and Old Silas accompanied him on his fiddle as the party worked through their entire repertoire of carols.

Noah joined in the singing with his clear tenor voice and Beth smiled to herself as she noticed how his thumb unconsciously stroked the lid of the painted pen box she had made for him. She felt a surprising tenderness growing in her feelings towards him. Perhaps he wasn’t as arrogant as she’d previously thought?  Sighing, she was overcome again by melancholy because Kit was no longer with them and because the following Christmastide Noah, too, would be gone.

Last year’s ball was a glittering occasion in the romance writers’ diary and I’m looking forward to catching up with friends old and new.

2012 Festival of Romance Awards Shortlists

Romance Reader Awards

Best Romantic Read
Chocolate Shoes and Wedding Blues by Trisha Ashley
Dearest Rose by Rowan Coleman
It Started with a Kiss by Miranda Dickinson
The Cornish House by Liz Fenwick
Vampire State of Mind by Jane Lovering
Dream a Little Dream by Sue Moorcroft

Best Historical Read
Mistress of the Sea by Jenny Barden
The Painter’s Apprentice by Charlotte Betts
The Silent Touch of Shadows by Christina Courtenay
Desired by Nicola Cornick
Hold on to Hope by Jean Fullerton
The Road Back by Liz Harris

Best Short Romance
Back to You by Natalie-Nicole Bates
The Sanctuary by Cara Cooper
Tomorrow Belongs to Us by Lynda Dunwell
Dancing with Danger by Fiona Harper

Best Ebook Read
Miranda’s Mount by Phillipa Ashley
Change of Address by Natalie-Nicole Bates
Evie Undercover by Liz Harris
Darcie’s Dilemma by Sue Moorcroft
Tangled Love by Rosemary Morris

Best Author Published Read
Strings Attached by Mandy Baggot
The School Gates by Nicola May
Truth (Glimmering) by Jane Miller
Build a Man by Talli Roland
Mysterious Master by Isabella Rose

New Talent Award
Little Boxes by Celia Anderson
The Chainsaw Masquerade by Milly Atherton
Forgiving Nancy by Janice Cairns
Sophie’s Secret by Marilyn Chapman
Blackout by Glenda Cooper
The Boys of Summer by Vivienne DaCosta
Cinderella’s Truly Scrumptious Wedding Cake Emporium by Andrea Davies
Wish You Were by Karin Dixon
When Storm Clouds Rage by Lesley Eames
Bride of the Year by Elaine Everest
Once Upon a… Secret by Susan Fortin
Not Such a Sweet Young Thing by Miriam Frendo
Angel with a Badge by Eileen Hathaway
Four Left Feet by Sue Jackson
Follow Me by Laura James
Hats Off to Love by Susan Jones
Lady of Leoncourt by Cathy Lennon
Blackfeather by Helen Mallinson
Changing Casanova by Holly Martin
Baby Number Two by Catherine Miller
Snowbound by Kristy Price
Love Comes Later by Mohanalakshmi Rajakumar
The Perfect Life List by Vanessa Savage
Smiling Through the Pain by Debbie White
Nanny in New York by Maria Wilson

Romance Industry Awards

Innovation in Romantic Fiction (Publisher)
Choc Lit – for continuing innovation and range in genre publishing
Samhain – for their expansion into diverse sub-genres with their retro romance and gay romance lines
DC Thomson – for a bold rebranding of My Weekly and People’s Friend Story Libraries as Pocket Novels
Xcite Books – for innovation in romance packaging with tactile covers for erotic Secret Library series

Innovation in Romantic Fiction (Author)
Mandy Baggot – for innovation in author marketing and using topical pop-culture
Sheryl Browne – for combining romantic fiction and cookery into the same book
E L. James – for invigorating the whole romance category
Sue Moorcroft – for her unusual and captivating plots

Publisher of the Year
Choc Lit – for their continuing rosta of award winning books
Cornerstone – for breaking sales records with the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy
Ebury – for innovation in both their mainstream and digital romantic fiction publishing programmes
Total-E-Bound – for now celebrating five years as the UK’s first dedicated romance digital publisher

Literary Agent of the Year
Carole Blake – for support to the romantic fiction genre
Valerie Hoskins – literary agent to publishing sensation E.L. James
Jane Judd – for support to the romantic fiction genre
Laura Longrigg – for support to romantic fiction and new writers via the Harry Bowling Prize

Film & TV Awards

Best Romantic Film
The Artist (France, dir: Michel Hazanavicius)
Bridesmaids (US, dir: Paul Feig)
Jane Eyre (UK, dir: Cary Joji Fukunaga)
Midnight in Paris (US, dir: Woody Allen)
My Week With Marilyn (UK, dir: Simon Curtis)
One Day (US/UK, dir: Lone Scherfig)

Best Romantic Television Programme
Sponsored by Rose and Crown Publishing
Birdsong (BBC One)
Call the Midwife (BBC One)
Downton Abbey (ITV1)
Grey’s Anatomy (Channel 5)
True Love (BBC One)
The Vampire Diaries (ITV2)

I’ve been in a long, dark tunnel for weeks now, working very hard to finish the first draft of The Spice Merchant’s Bride. There is a little light at the end of the tunnel as I’m approaching the Big Climax scene and will then only need to write the Resolution.

Once finished, there will still be a lot of work still to do. I’ll have to put on my Editor’s hat and slice out 30,000 of the words I crafted so lovingly. Each time I write a new novel I tell myself I must be more succinct but it never seems to happen! I will have to lose whole subplots and several characters to achieve a commercial length of 100,000 to 105,000 words.

I took a little time out this week to meet up with Slough Writers, a group close to my heart as they were there to support me when I very first started to write. I was very pleased when I was invited to meet them to talk about my novels.

I gave an account of what made me interested in writing historical fiction and how I did my research for this. Afterwards there was a lively question and answer time about how I met the deadlines (blood, sweat and tears!) and what it is actually like to be published.

It was lovely to meet up with old friends and recharged my batteries to power on to the end of The Spice Merchant’s Bride.

I would definitely invite you to transport yourself to London 1688 and the Glorious Revolution and to a very sweet love story that has totally enchanted me.
This is indeed my #1 read for 2012 and again I want to stress enchantment as the emotion that totally enveloped me on the journey of Beth and Noah. The story is simple and at times even predicatable but the characters and scenery burst with life.

You should definitely start with the Apothecary’s Daughter (the first book in the series) and then immediately procede to the Painter’s Apprentice.

If you are a fan of Philippa Gregory, then you will adore Charlotte Betts.

The Hungerford Bookshop is an independent bookshop situated in a listed building in the picturesque high street. The quirky shop is stacked high with all the kinds of books I like to read and it’s all too easy to lose an hour or two browsing the stock. In the basement is an antiquarian and second-hand department carrying over 4,000 titles.

For me the shop is sheer book heaven but if that wasn’t enough the owners, Emma and Alex Milne-White, regularly arrange interesting book-related events and talks by well known authors. Sadly, I’m not one of those (yet!) but I was delighted when Emma invited me, together with Tessa Harris who also writes historical novels, to talk at an event about our passion for history.

Emma Milne-White

We met in the Azuza Coffee Shop adjacent to the Hungerford Bookshop. This narrow-fronted shop gives no clue to the lovely glass atrium at the rear of the building, built into the space between a brick and flint wall and an ancient timber-framed house. This made the perfect backdrop for me to talk about the C17th houses of Restoration London before the Great Fire of 1666.

Tessa and I discussed about what inspired our love of history and the different ways that we research, while those in the audience sipped a glass of wine. We agreed that it was the small details of how people lived that fascinated us and gave a richness and depth to our writing.

I talked about my visit to Fulham Palace and how important that was for me to picture it clearly in my mind before I began to write The Painter’s Apprentice, since so much of the book is set there. I passed around copies of old plans and maps that had fired my imagination, read snippets from Culpeper’s Complete Physician and from Pepys Diaries, both amusing and serious, and presented a batch of home-made jumbals complete with a recipe dating from 1638.

Tessa described how she first found inspiration for her novel, The Anatomist’s Apprentice, at The Tate Modern where she saw the skeleton of an Irish giant. She read from The Reluctant Surgeon, a biography of John Hunter, that is a rich source of information for her novels.

Tessa and I both read passages from our novels and the evening ended with a lively question and answer session and a book signing.

It hardly seems like a year since The Apothecary’s Daughter was released and I’m already half way into Book Three, which will be published in August 2013. It sounds like plenty of time but it’s extremely hard work to keep on schedule to finish the first draft by October or November. Then my editor will read it and make suggestions for improving pace, developing characters and strengthening the plot. There will be several re-writes and the manuscript must be ready for the copyeditor to check by February if we are to meet the publication date of August 2013.

I miss the luxury of having as much time as I wished on crafting a novel in the days before The Apothecary’s Daughter was published.  In spite of a full time day job and working on Book Three in every available second of the rest of the time, it’s still incredibly exciting to be able to weave my stories and know that I will be able to share them with my readers.

Jean Fullerton, who also writes historical novels, invited me to be a guest author on her website and you can follow this link to read it. http://www.jeanfullerton.com/Jean’s-Blog