Perhaps it would be simplest to start at the very beginning.
I was born into a family that loved books and had an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, always seeking to widen its horizons. Not only did my parents love books, they bought books. And they even bought a large bookcase to house and protect them; a rare piece of furniture for a two up two down miner's cottage.
I had books bought for me for Christmas, for birthdays, and sometimes just because they were interesting and were affordable. It wasn't too long before I was saving my pocket money to buy my own books at the bookshop or the Schools' Furnishing Store in the nearby town. I also borrowed books from the County Lending Library held every Thursday evening in the assembly hall of the Boys' Elementary School. All these books and my Arthur Mee's 'Children's Encyclopaedia' were a constant source of wonder and delight. Most of them I read again and again.
My imagination was further fired by plays on the BBC Home Service. My father, never noted for his ability as an electrician, or for any other DIY talent, drilled a hole through the living room ceiling to pass a wire from our radio up to my bedroom and into a loudspeaker placed on the chest of drawers. 'Saturday Night Theatre' swept me away to other times and other places as I lay curled up in my bed on dark winter nights, my feet now and then searching out the hot water bottle.
And of course the radio introduced me to classical music, my mother's great joy, which soon became mine.
For the sake of brevity, we move forward many years omitting all references to grammar school and college, a rewarding teaching career, a wonderful marriage and a precious son who, having just graduated from university, decided to spend the Summer travelling around the USA, leaving us wondering how to spend our summer holidays.
Now we arrive at that other beginning; my first visit to Spain.
Why choose Spain for a five week holiday? It wasn't my choice, it was my husband's. Although we had visited France many times I still would have preferred France, after all we did meet in Paris. I spoke French reasonably well, whereas my Spanish was non-existent. But I relented; Morton's book had played its persuasive role to perfection.
Spain it was, then, for five weeks; and my life was changed forever. Apart from all the obvious attractions of this most glorious country it was the history, particularly the historical connections with England that caught my attention.
There was the tomb of Catherine of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, in Toledo Cathedral. In Salamanca, the church dedicated to St. Thomas a Becket, built by Queen Eleanor of Castile, daughter of our King Henry II. Pastrana, and the home of the Princess of Eboli. She was allegedly a mistress of King Philip II at one time married to Queen Mary Tudor. These all brought back memories of historical novels read in my teens.
And then one day we visited the small town of Tordesillas where Queen Juana I of Spain had been held prisoner for fifty years. Morton gave a brief but rather startling description of her as 'a maniac dressed in rags crouching on the floor surrounded by dishes of uneaten food'.
This queen, sister of Catherine of Aragon, mother of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and grandmother of Philip II, was dealt with in those few words; dismissed as mad.
Yes, this brief comment by Morton started it all, started my mission. I was hooked. I had to find out about this Juana; Juana la Loca, Joan the Mad.
First I had to learn Spanish then my quest for information could begin.
More about me
For years, not a day passed without my doing a couple of hours with several Spanish language text books. Meanwhile I was finding out more about Juana. The more references I came across the sadder I became at the increasing number of times she was dismissed in a few lines or less as being mad. But there was still a long way to go. My Spanish was good enough now to read Spanish sources. Exciting days were to follow in the Biblioteca Nacional in Madrid, other public and private libraries in Spain, and the British Library in London.
Fortunately, my husband had his own special topics to research so it was no great hardship for him to accompany me during many hours and he found it decidedly preferable to all the miles I'd made him trek, footsore and weary, to take pictures of palaces, castles and cathedrals, or to check out tombs and monuments. Libraries were definitely more comfortable.
Yet life is never easy; as often as I discovered new and exciting 'facts' I was faced with conflicting information, all from authoritative sources.
More than 100 books later, mostly biographies but also plenty of historical fiction, I had enough information to form my own strong opinions and a growing frustration about the injustice meted out to Juana. I liberally shared my sentiments with my husband.
One day, I guess he had heard enough, he answered, 'If you feel so strongly about it why don't you write your own book about this Queen Juana?'
Could I, a retired Primary and Infant Teacher, write historical fiction? My husband's challenge was enough; that is precisely what I did. I wrote 'That Other Juana'.
It hasn't been easy, but it has been a labour of love. And there is no denying that without my husband's support and encouragement it could never have happened - then I would feel guilty on two counts: the first, and most serious, I would have disappointed Juana by not telling her story from her point of view; the second, my bookshelves would always have been that one book short.
After many attempts, I finally found a literary agent in London who was impressed with my debut historical novel and encouraged me to continue with my writing. Her efforts secured me my first contract and That Other Juana will be published in Portugal in 2009.
In 2006 I was elected a member of the Society of Authors.
Meanwhile with much help from my husband we formed our own publishing company, VeritasPublishing, in order to get the book into people’s hands and get it read.
But having done so much research and discovered so much about Juana and her family I found I just had to carry on writing. A Matter of Pride (Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor) – Juana’s son - was published in May 2008, and Wives & Other Women (Philip II of Spain) – Juana’s grandson - was published later the same year.
I am fortunate to have been given the opportunity to meet some of my readers, at readings and discussions at local libraries, with reading groups and at charity coffee mornings. It has been a wonderful experience: listening to reader’s opinions, answering their questions, sharing thoughts and observations and, of course,being encouraged by their thirst for more Spanish history and historical fiction.
I am always happy to hear from readers: opinions, suggestions or questions are welcome.