Smashwords author interview

Interview with Sarah Jane Butfield 

What's the story behind your latest book?

Glass Half Full is the story of how our Australian dream was tested by adversity. The journals from which the book is written were never intended to be the basis for a book, they were written as form of self help to get me through some of the most traumatic experiences of my life. 

 

What motivated you to become an indie author?

I originally thought only friends and family would be interested in reading about our experiences, which is why I self published. However, it has been an amazing experience to have other people read my story, email me and offer advice and support. It is quite a surreal experience. 

 

How has Smashwords contributed to your success?

I chose Smashwords because it has a great reputation and the ease of following the 'how to' guides made the process easy, even for a PC dinosaur like me. 

 

What is the greatest joy of writing for you?

Being able to express my inner most emotions freely and honestly. 

 

What do your fans mean to you?

It is still amazing to think that total strangers become fans when you write about your life and experiences. Having said that my new found fans are not only supportive by buying the book and sharing the experience, but many empathize with our story and can relate to it. 

 

Who are your favorite authors?

I admire the work of Lisa Genova, and I enjoy reading anything by James Patterson.

 

What inspires you to get out of bed each day?

Writing!!! I often wake in the night with ideas and thoughts that are then scribbled into my notepad, therefore in the morning I am ready to go, exploring and collating them. It's a real buzz. 

 

When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?

With my family!! 

 

How do you discover the ebooks you read?

Online forums and ebook communities. 

 

Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?

My first experience of writing for an external audience was during my creative writing diploma course and it was called 'Beyond breaking point.' This story was also based on a real life experience in my formative years. 

 

What are you working on next?

The follow up to Glass Half Full is titled 'Two dogs, our bags and no idea,' it follows our arrival in France and our French escapades as we renovate a rural property, enjoy being closer to our children and experience the highs and lows of expat life.
I have two other books in first draft format including a chick lit romance with a working title of 'Without Love' and another true story which documents my life before I met Nigel, with a working title of 'Yesterday once more - the Ben and Jack years.' 

 

Published 2013-12-12.

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/378919

Perils of night time driving on the Plenty Highway in Outback Australia

Extract from Glass Half Full, our Australian adventure.

Chapter  10

Some of the other perils of the darkness are firstly the potholes; the car suddenly unearths them without warning, causing the car and its contents to plunge down and then up, whilst everything in the car including us goes into a state of motion. CD’s fly out of the rack, the mobile phone holder forgets its role ends up in the foot well with the mobile phone. The car fridge bounces off the platform, as Jaime’s head hits the roof, as she is already seated high up due to sitting on bedding and pillows. Just as you regain some degree of composure you hit another one, and the process continues, exhaustingly.

Secondly, in the darkness you do not know who or what could be lurking or prowling around.  There are families and groups of people who live ‘out bush’ in terrain that would appear uninhabited. In the under-growth, other inhabitants await unsuspecting visitors; scorpions, snakes and spiders, many of which are venomous, and a bite from some species would need more than a first aid kit. There is little to save you in the middle of the desert, with no means of summoning assistance.

Therefore, the last thing you need in this setting is a puncture.  Hearing that familiar thud as the deflated tyre makes a revolution on the corrugated road surface made us look at each other with that look of, ‘Not now. Please God, not now!’

 “Don’t worry we have a spare,” Nigel’s says reassuringly as Jaime stirs from her travelling slumber. “Just hold the torch. We will be on the road again in no time.”

Famous last words: I stand, holding the torch as Nigel loosens the wheel-nuts and places the jack under the vehicle, his tell-tale look towards the heavens tells me all is not going to plan.

 “We need a piece of wood; the jack doesn’t go high enough.” Laughingly he says, “A piece of two by four would be good.”

I can feel my head shaking, as my heart rate is increasing. I can see no humour in this situation, and my brain is saying; ‘fat chance, look where we are. No houses for hundreds of kilometres and you expect me to find something like that.’

I turn, as if to look, in what I know will be a fruitless task, and the torch turns with me. Nigel shouts, “Hey, I need the light here.”

As I turn back he shouts: “Stop!” I freeze, keeping as still I can although shaking with fear, expecting that Nigel has spotted a snake or scorpions approaching my light. As the light from the torch shines on the uneven, corrugated road surface there, as if placed for exactly this type of  road side emergency, is a piece of wood, if not exactly as near as damn it two by four.  Nigel picks it up and hysterical laughter ensures.

A gift from the gods, divine intervention or just bloody good luck, that piece of wood helped us to get the spare wheel on and we were trucking again.

Read more in Glass Half Full available at:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GP1T7GQ
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00GP1T7GQ 
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/378919

Meet the boys from Glass Half Full

Todays requested photograph is of our precious boys, Dave and Buster. They are Australian cattle dogs and they have been with us since 2008/2009 respectively. They have accompanied us on road trips, adventures in outback Australia and on many wild camping excursions in various states.
In this photograph they are at Mayfield Conservation Reserve in Tasmania, as we explored the beautiful coast line on a weekend break, camping by the beach watching seals and dolphins.
The boys love camping and you can read about Dave's adventures with dingoes, and how we rescued Buster from an RSPCA centre in Chapter 5 of Glass Half Full

 

Author Sarah Jane Butfield: Sneak peek! A mother's nightmare relived

Author Sarah Jane Butfield: Sneak peek! A mother's nightmare relived: A mother's nightmare relived in Chapter 12 of Glass Half Full. 'The surgeon and his entourage of medical students walked in, and b...

Sneak peek! A mother's nightmare relived

A mother's nightmare relived in Chapter 12 of Glass Half Full.

'The surgeon and his entourage of medical students walked in, and began chatting. I walked to the door to see if the nurse was on her way with the dressing trolley. As I turned to look at Jaime, I saw the surgeon reach for the wound packing; it was as if I was behind glass, unable to be heard. 

I was shouting, “Stop no! Please God no!”

Instead of waiting for the nurse to return, with the saline to soak the gauze pack before removal, the wound packing was yanked out.

Jaime hysterical and uncontrollable leapt off the bed, blood spurting from the ripped out IV cannula site. As I reached her, she was curling up in the foetal position on the floor, shaking and screaming. Blood and serous fluid leaked down her leg from where the gauze pack had been removed. The surgical team made a hasty exit, shouting orders for pain relief and assistance, whilst the nurses rushed in around us. I cradled Jaime in my arms, rocking her as if she were a baby until they came with a morphine injection.  I could not let anyone else near her. When the injection started to take some effect, alone I gently lifted Jaime onto the bed. I laid beside her, holding tight, I never wanted to let her go again.'

May 2010

Sept 2012

The psychological aftermath,

The news, no matter what day of the week, month or year is predominantly reporting disasters in some form. Natural or manmade the results are the same.

In Australia a variety of disasters, occur each year caused by bush fire, flood, drought and cyclones. The cost of disaster is not only measured in the property, crops and business that is lost, but also the human cost, the loss of lives. The psychological trauma however is less widely reported and publicised.

How do you cope or deal with the loss of very personal possessions, which cannot be replaced? I refer here to gifts that children make for their parents during their school years, hand crafted Birthday cards, homemade gifts, locks of baby's first haircut, etc. The process of grieving for these lost precious items and memories is immeasurable.

Whatever the item, if it has no monetary value it is labelled as insignificant as the bureaucratic process of dealing with disaster begins. Bureaucracy decides what is 'important and significant' and ultimately valuable.

Across the world people lose their family members, pets, property, possessions and precious items in horrific circumstances. After the initial wave of aid or assistance has been given, and they have relocated and need to start rebuilding their lives, they then have to deal with the personal psychological cost.

It is becoming a sad fact that natural disasters like floods, fires and cyclones are going to be progressively more common. However, the Australian Psychological Society is effecting support networks within Australian communities to enable them to be ready and prepared psychologically, for extreme weather emergencies, to facilitate a better chance of recovery post event. They collaborate with the Red Cross, to develop resources and training that will prepare people for future events. 

The sense of loss, not always felt until the shock has lifted is ever present, and at times like Christmas and birthdays, it stirs in your soul.

‘Time is a great healer,’ this is a very true saying, but some things take more time than others, so patience, a virtuous quality, is needed for those affected and those around them.

With your glass half full, why not settle down to a good read this evening.

It’s too cold to go out so why not sit yourself down and download my Glass Half Full ebook; it is only $0.99 on Smashwords and £0.77 on amazon.co.uk until Monday.

Follow the links and if you enjoy it why not think about ordering paperback copies as Christmas stocking fillers for friends and family!!

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/378919

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00GP1T7GQ/