Biography - Rosanna Ley
About Rosanna Ley
Rosanna Ley has worked as a creative writing tutor for over 15 years. Affiliated to several colleges and universities in England, she also runs her own writing courses in the UK and abroad. She has worked with community groups in therapeutic settings and completed an MA in creative writing for personal development in order to support this. Her writing holidays and retreats take place in stunning locations in Italy and Spain and whilst not teaching or writing she mentors and appraises the work of new writers. Rosanna has had numerous articles and short stories published in UK magazines, and 12 novels of contemporary fiction published in the U.K, Germany, Greece and the U.S.A under a pseudonym. Her books are inspired by the culture and landscapes of Italy, Sicily and the Canary Islands and feature strong female voices from the past and present, along with an intense undercurrent of mystery and romance. Rosanna spends some time every year travelling around Europe looking for writing inspiration and more tranquil settings for writing holidays. She loves cliff walking and her favourite writing place is somewhere with a sea view. When she is not travelling, Rosanna lives with her artist husband in a Victorian cottage in West Dorset by the sea.
Mermaid motif on building in Umbria became the inspiration for La Sirena, The Mermaid's Villa.
Q&A with Rosanna Ley
How did you start writing?
From a young age I wrote poems about everything - from my parents not understanding me to my feelings about my teddy bear! I wrote a play at school in history about Henry II and Thomas A Becket that filled a whole exercise book. I poured out teenage angst in verse. And I dabbled with creative writing as part of a college course when I was 18. Some years later, in my mid-twenties, writing grabbed me again quite by chance when I tried to sign on to an adult education pottery class that was full. Flicking through the brochure I found creative writing. Why not? In a matter of days I was hooked again. I poured out poetry, articles, short stories, journals, you name it… The first article I had published (in 'Mother and Baby') was about my four year-old son’s unshakeable belief that he could fly. As you might imagine it was funny but scary at the same time... (He seemed so sure!) I went on to write short stories for women’s magazines and eventually a novel and after a couple of years it was me tutoring that creative writing class! My first novel was typed on a manual typewriter and returned by a literary agent as reading more like a psychological dissertation. Hopefully, I’ve come on a bit since then...
What is your working day like?
My main aim is to avoid looking at e-mails and social networking sites until I’ve got some work done! If I am in the middle of writing a novel, I deal with anything urgent first thing and then try to work in the mornings planning a scene – often longhand – or thinking something through. This might involve going somewhere like a café or a beach (depending on the weather) to write in a notebook. Then I get on to the computer and do a long stretch until lunchtime. After lunch I try to have a walk – it’s too easy to sit hunched over a computer all day; it’s important to stretch out, exercise and take some thinking time – and then I’ll either do some revisions or some research, depending on what stage I’m at. The internet is incredible useful for research but it is a distraction. Sometimes you can lose hours that way! If I’m doing mentoring work I’ll spend a lot of time reading and also writing up reports for authors or chatting with them. If I’m travelling and doing research then I’ll be out and about with my notebook all day and I’ll try to write things up in the late afternoon or evening. Once I feel I’ve achieved a day’s work (and this doesn’t always happen!) I’ll sort out post, admin work, e-mails and so on. I usually have a list of tasks to be achieved that day and I take great pleasure in crossing off each one when it’s done... Last thing at night before I go to sleep I try to think about the scene I’ll be writing in the morning so that it can start composting in my head... Unfortunately, I’m often so tired that I don’t get very far with that one. But who knows what’s going on in your subconscious while you sleep..?
Where do you write?
Wherever the mood takes me. I love writing longhand into a notebook and so I’ll take that to a café or a park bench or a clifftop and just get inspiration that way. It’s especially important for me to write scenes in the actual setting of the novel. If I’m working on my computer I’m at home at my desk and then I’m fully focused on the words rather than the inspiration.
Have you been to Sicily?
Yes. It’s a magical landscape. I was fascinated by the contrasts: the darkness and light; the tranquil with the undercurrent of menace; the beauty next to the undeniably rather seedy. These contradictions intrigued me. When I read up on the history of the island and the Sicilian fairy tales and myths it all started to make sense and I decided to use Sicily as a setting for the novel. And then of course there was the Sicilian food…
How did the idea for your book originate?
It originated with Sicily which I visited in October 2008. I was beginning to do some underwater snorkeling with the help of my husband – a qualified diver – and I also liked the idea of writing about a woman who was exploring the island both under and above the water. And the Sicilian food… (why do I keep mentioning that?) started me on a pathway to Flavia, the grandmother in the story, who was obviously going to be Sicilian and immersed in Sicilian cuisine. I also wanted to use three strong female voices from three generations to express their differences but also their undeniable connections and how this relates to their culture and their roots.
Did the book involve special research and/or travel?
Apart from going to Sicily, I also researched the history of the island – including the Mafioso connections. And I had to research aspects of World War II – as this affected British pilots and Sicily – and post war conditions in the UK and Sicily. I did some snorkeling in the bays off North West Sicily in order to write about the underwater landscape and researched the Marine Conservation areas and underwater caves there. It was also important to find out about earthquakes and how the earth moves… I researched the rail journey from Sicily to England undertaken by Sicilians after the war; there is no doubt that England was perceived as holding work and life opportunities that did not exist in the general poverty of post war Sicily. Last but not least I did a lot of enjoyable research about Sicilian fairy tales and mermaids!
Your novel describes the bonds between mother and daughter beautifully – how did you approach writing this?
Thank you. The mother and daughter bond is very special to me. I’ve always had a good relationship with my own mother and I have two amazing daughters with whom I’ve always been very close. I’m lucky in that they have talked to me a lot over the years about their lives and their feelings, and I suppose I’ve absorbed a lot of that and been able to express it on the page. Not that any of the characters are based on my daughters, but you do get a general sense of voice. In the book, Flavia is a strong character who has suffered great disappointments in her life – some of them due to the behaviour of her own parents. I wanted to convey her strength and her vulnerability. She wants Tess to have a different life, one of her own choosing, and yet she still can’t help trying to protect her from things she perceives as dangerous due to her own experience. I think that this is one of the dilemmas that mothers face. Another dilemma is what happens when our daughters shut us out – because they think we won’t understand, or because they’re trying to assert their individuality and independence. As mothers we need to get through that stage – it’s a case of damage limitation really, and that’s what happens between Tess and Ginny. Ginny shuts her out, but equally, Tess doesn’t confide in Ginny. Lack of trust like this can often signal the beginning of a breakdown in any relationship. If we keep talking we’re communicating and there’s more chance of being understood!
Did the writing of The Villa bring any surprises for you?
The writing of every novel hopefully comes with its own surprises which is one of the things that makes writing such fun! This one started off in my mind as being somehow linked with volcanoes – but that never really happened. I hadn’t intended Flavia’s recipes to feature, but after tasting the Sicilian food it seemed a great way of allowing her to pass on a legacy to Tess. The novel became more historical in flavour too and I became much more caught up in Flavia’s past story than I had expected. I got interested in Sicilian fairy tales during my research and I like the idea of myth and legend being used symbolically within a story – so that went in. And when we were travelling around Italy – while I was also writing the book – we came across a beautiful pink villa with a stuccoed mermaid above the front door, which gave me the idea for La Sirena – the mermaid’s villa. Finally, my husband began using sea glass as a material for his artwork (just like Tonino!) but in this case I’m not sure which came first – the chicken or the egg...
What are you writing now?
My new novel again weaves a contemporary narrative with a historical storyline and features three women discovering the truth about their shared past. The central theme is whether everyone has the right to know the truth surrounding their birth and it is based on the true life happening of the scandal of Spain’s stolen children – . The novel is set in West Dorset, Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands and Barcelona. Ruby discovers that her family is not what it seems and embarks on a quest to discover her true identity, Vivien has a secret burden which is about to be revealed, and Sister Julia has to decide whether to hand over a document she has kept hidden for decades.
'ninos robados'
What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
Never give up! Write a bit every day. Listen to the feedback of others (preferably those who know what they’re talking about) but ultimately listen to your own heart.
Co.No.: 05437517 at 55 Baker Street, 7th Floor, South Block, London W1U 8EW
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