Interview with Vanessa Wester
Vanessa Wester is bilingual in English and Spanish, since she was born and raised in Gibraltar. She obtained a degree in Accounting and Law from the University of Southampton, in England, United Kingdom. Initially, she embarked on a career in Chartered Accountancy. After less than a year, it was obvious she was not cut out to work in an office! A change in vocation led her to become a secondary school teacher of Mathematics. For the last ten years, she has been a stay at home mum and gives up a lot of her time to voluntary organisations. Her favourite hobbies include singing, reading, baking and swimming. She is also a qualified A.S.A. Swimming Teacher. Writing is a way to express herself and escape from everyday life. She now lives in the Isle of Wight.Random question first! You used to be a teacher, any funny stories you can remember from that time?
Well now you mention it. There are a lot of stories I could tell you but the funniest one (as a teacher that is) was when one of my pupils decided to walk out of my class…
Just when the class had settled, Mark opened the door and sauntered in. He adopted his usual “what’s the problem” stance. Good looking and carefree, what did he care what the teacher thought. He was late – deal with it.
The teacher sighed as the class erupted and welcomed him in. Peace gone. She watched him sit down, a challenging smirk pasted on his face. ‘Long time no see,’ she said, hands clasped together, chest leaning into them. ‘You know since you’re been gone the class has been very quiet. It’s been peaceful.’
The teacher felt good about the comment. It was good to have the upper hand.
‘Fine!’ Mark shouted. ‘Then I’ll leave. Seeing as you don’t want me here anyway.’
The teacher watched him, without getting flustered; and waited until his hand was on the door handle. ‘You know. I have to tell you that if you walk out that door I will be forced to do several things. Firstly, I’ll have to write a pink slip. That will mean a detention. Secondly, I’ll have to let the head of year know – and that’ll mean your parents will be called. And thirdly, you won’t learn anything – so you’ll fail your exam. So, I suggest you turn around, sit down again and let me get on with the lesson.’
Mark stared, stunned and speechless. Without another word he turned round, made his way back to his chair and kept quiet.
It was the best lesson I ever had and no-one ever challenged me again. Ha ha… one for the teacher!
Haha, I wish you had been a teacher in some of my lessons at school! So when did you realise you wanted to be a writer? Do you remember what inspired you?
I wanted to be a writer as a child. I used to write loads of stories and was obsessed with Agatha Christie. I loved English with a passion and I was very good at it until G.C.S.E.’s came along. Being of the academic sort, I started to get lower grades and became convinced I was rubbish. I wasn’t – but I thought I was. I moved on to sciences and never looked back. Until the day I watched an interview with Stephanie Meyer. She explained how she was a stay at home mum, had an idea and gave it a go. Well for years I’d been writing down ideas and never pursued them. I always ended up reading a book or watching T.V. My husband works away a lot and I had a 1 year old who I had to be at home for. I needed to use my brain. So I thought… what the heck! I wonder if I can… so I did.
That’s brilliant, why shouldn’t you? What books do you read? Do you read books in your genre, or books very different from it?
I read anything that interests me… from paranormal romance to historical fiction to cookbooks to non-fiction. My preferred choice is romance, then thrillers, then historical fiction. Twilight hit the spot for me. I love Jeffrey Archer and Ken Follett. The Pillars of the Earth was awesome. I just read a book by Sarra Manning, You don’t have to say you love me, and I love her style too… you can see more about what I read on Goodreads… and I have posted a few reviews already.
Your first novel, Hybrid, sounds really interesting. Can you tell us more about it?
Okay, this is the hard bit. I have to learn to talk about my book. I’ll include the blurb I came up with – see what you think! Lol…
University should be about independence, new opportunities, friends and expanding the mind. For Steven Thorn, it’s the start of a new life. Just not the one he anticipated. As his resolve is put to the test, he ends up losing everything. For who could live a normal life as a HYBRID.
Steven Thorn has no trouble settling in at University. Having grown up at boarding school, he is used to living away from home. He’s smart, so studying comes naturally. When it comes to making new friends, he’s cautious. Usually, he receives too much unwanted attention. Caitlin Chance catches him off guard. She’s the first girl he has ever felt an instant attraction towards and the more he gets to know, the more he likes.
However, the romance is cut short when Caitlin leaves University after a suspicious suicide. Now Steven is alone, Ingrid gets her chance and it doesn’t take long for her to discover that Steven is a HYBRID.
The wheels are set in motion for his radical upheaval.
Now they know he exists, they will come to get him…
So what inspired this novel?
This is a very hard question. Honestly, the idea popped in my head and I used several of my own life experiences to make it more real. I went to The University of Southampton, played waterpolo there, am a swimmer, love sharks, am good at maths and I am a redhead… so I guess this book has a lot of me in it. Even though my main character Caitlin is not me and I never studied maths as a degree. I also did not meet my husband at university…that’s another story.
Where can we find your novels?
On Amazon (UK) (US). I am in the process of moving it to the KDP scheme. It may go back on Smashwords in the future. We’ll see.
What can we expect to see from you in the future?
I have nearly finished the second book in the series and have several other books that I’ve started, one includes a children’s book aimed at 9+. Lots of ideas… love it!
Awesome, it’s always good to have lots of stories on the go! Last question of randomness! If you could be a hybrid yourself, what would you be a hybrid of and why?
I would be a shark and human. A version of a mermaid… how cool would that be?!
Cool-but scary!
You can find out more about Vanessa Wester on Goodreads, Twitter, and on her blog. Thank you for being here, Vanessa, any final words?Thank you so much for interviewing me. It feels weird for people to actually care about my little old thoughts. For so many years I have lived in a bubble, now I feel like I’m breaking free, and I can be who I really am and enjoy life to the full. Writing has been very good for my marriage! I don’t get so lonely when he’s away… and he can chill after a hard days work knowing I’m happy!
Great having you here.
University should be about independence, new opportunities, friends and expanding the mind. For Steven Thorn, it’s the start of a new life. Just not the one he anticipated. As his resolve is put to the test, he ends up losing everything. For who could live a normal life as a HYBRID.
Steven Thorn has no trouble settling in at University. Having grown up at boarding school, he is used to living away from home. He’s smart, so studying comes naturally. When it comes to making new friends, he’s cautious. Usually, he receives too much unwanted attention. Caitlin Chance catches him off guard. She’s the first girl he has ever felt an instant attraction towards and the more he gets to know, the more he likes.
However, the romance is cut short when Caitlin leaves University after a suspicious suicide. Now Steven is alone, Ingrid gets her chance and it doesn’t take long for her to discover that Steven is a HYBRID.
The wheels are set in motion for his radical upheaval.
Now they know he exists, they will come to get him…
Now click on this link for my review of Hybrid!
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