‘Life is for living!’ Westbury author publishes first novel at 63

DANGER, deceit and devotion… It’s a race against time in Westbury author Sandy Jones’ debut novel ‘The Mulholland Files’. 

The Mulholland Files reveals the thrilling story of Edward and Abby’s relationship after a mysterious photograph lands on Edward’s doorstep that puts both of their lives in danger. Sandy has been writing for the past 10 years – first starting as a hobby writer. Then, as part of her open university course studying creative writing, she wrote a short story which she has now extended into a novel.

Speaking to White Horse News Sandy said, “The characters just would not leave me alone, I needed to finish their story! Last year my mum passed away and I didn’t deal well with the grief, so I began writing the novel as a distraction. From then on, the story just flowed. I was able to pick the characters back up again and the story just worked! I broke all the rules they say are there when writing a novel; having it all planned out before you start writing. 

“However, I kept changing my mind about how it ended – which turned out great because the feedback I have received from people is that they weren’t expecting the ending! It is full of twists and turns that the characters led me to!

“I took inspiration for the book from a number of different personal experiences and the experiences I have shared with my husband. We have both had numerous jobs. I have worked for the MOD and the railway which feature in the book. No character is based on any specific person, but there are personal elements throughout.

“The writing process was fairly easy. The short story I already had, I used as a prologue to show the reader how the characters first met and their relationships. The novel then continues on the story with what happened next. I am currently a house guide at Longleat and, even though I retired last year from the railway, it has allowed me to fund self-publishing this book. Hopefully if this book does well and readers want to continue learning about these characters there may be a sequel! If not, I have another novel that I wrote a few years ago that I am currently tweaking, so the future may see a few more books from me. 

“I am publishing my first novel at the age of 63, having started writing in my 50s and would encourage any one else, especially women, who may be scared to start something late in life to give it a go! Do what you want to do in life – life is for living!”

You can purchase Sandy’s book directly from her https://sandy jonesauthor.com/ or through Amazon by searching ‘The Mulholland Files’.