The Accidental Life Swap: A Book In Pictures

There are lots of different stages to writing a book, from the initial spark of an idea, to reaching milestones of 10,000 words, 20, 50, The End, and then the hard work of edits begin before the euphoria (and a pinch of fear) of publication. I thought I'd share some images of the different stages of writing The Accidental Life Swap!

The book started off with the aid of this little gem. Writing Love by Alexandra Sokoloff explains how to use the three act structure screenwriters use, with a focus on romance/romantic comedies (it has a new cover now, but this is the cover it had when I purchased it).

It's always nice to celebrate milestones, and that first 10,000 is a belter!

All my books are fueled by tea.

Most of the animals (and there are quite a few!) were named by readers on my Facebook page.

You can see more info here

More milestones to celebrate!

And then reaching those beautiful words: The End.

Except it isn't really The End. There's still SO MUCH work to do!

Starting with the first round of edits.

I had some more help for the editing stage:

The Emotion Thesaurus

The Rural Setting Thesaurus &

The Urban Setting Thesaurus 

These books help me to build on the draft I already have so I can add more depth to the story and make it shine.

Ebook Publication Day!

I ran a giveaway for my newsletter subscribers to celebrate publication day. The prize was a gorgeous little house pendant, which I think fits perfectly with the book.

Paperbacks!!!

Sometimes one moment can change your life forever…

Rebecca Riley has always been a bit of a pushover. When her glamorous boss, Vanessa, asks her to jump, she doesn’t just ask how high… she asks if her boss would like her to grab a coffee on the way back down!

So whilst overseeing the renovation of Vanessa’s beautiful countryside home, the last thing Rebecca ever expected was to be mistaken for her boss – or that she would even consider going along with it! Far away from the bustling city and her boss’s demanding ways, could she pretend to be Vanessa and swap lives, just for a little while?

Amazon UK | Amazon US | Kobo | iBooks

The Accidental Life Swap: The Playlist

I always put together a playlist for my books, whether it's songs that have inspired the story (or kept me motivated while writing it) or music that I feel fits the theme of the book. With The Accidental Life Swap, I added songs that were either mentioned in the book, or songs that I imagined Rebecca choosing to play on the pub's jukebox.

You can listen to the playlist here on the blog, or click here to open in Spotify.

Sometimes one moment can change your life forever…

Rebecca Riley has always been a bit of a pushover. When her glamorous boss, Vanessa, asks her to jump, she doesn’t just ask how high… she asks if her boss would like her to grab a coffee on the way back down!

So whilst overseeing the renovation of Vanessa’s beautiful countryside home, the last thing Rebecca ever expected was to be mistaken for her boss – or that she would even consider going along with it! Far away from the bustling city and her boss’s demanding ways, could she pretend to be Vanessa and swap lives, just for a little while?

Amazon UK | Amazon US | Kobo | iBooks

A False Identity: My Favourite Five In Film

Have you ever pretended to be someone else? In The Accidental Life Swap, timid Rebecca finds herself pretending to be her boss, Vanessa, channelling her self-confidence and ability to always get what she wants. There are many films where the main characters invent a new identity and I thought I’d share a few of my favourites with you.

Loosely based on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, She’s The Man centres around Viola, who disguises herself as her twin brother, Sebastian so she can join a boys’ football team when the girls’ football team is cut at her school. There are complications when Viola starts to fall for teammate Duke, who is in love with another girl and thinks Viola is a dude. Lots of fun!

When lounge singer Deloris Van Cartier witnesses a murder, she’s put in witness protection – in a convent. While staying there, Deloris will have to pretend to be a fellow nun, which is a challenge for opinionated, fun-loving Deloris.

Daniel Hillard goes to desperate measures to spend more time with his children when his wife files for divorce, disguising himself as a Scottish woman called Mrs Doubtfire when his ex-wife advertisers for a housekeeper. All is going well for Daniel when he’s given the job, until he finds himself in some sticky situations and having to switch between his true self and Mrs Doubtfire.

Akeem, the prince of Zamunda, is set to marry on his 21st birthday. The marriage has been arranged by his parents, but Akeem wants to marry for love. Postponing the wedding, Akeem travels to Queens, New York, under the guise of a poor student and finds work in a family-run fast food restaurant. Can Akeem find love, or will he have to return to Zamunda to marry a virtual stranger?

In Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, the main characters Freddy and Lawrence use their false identities in order to con money from wealthy women, though they have different styles of doing this. When Lawrence and Freddy have a bet to settle their rivalry, they choose an heiress as their target, with the winner being the first to con $50,000 from the unsuspecting woman.

So, those are my top 5 new identity films. Do you have a favourite of your own?

Sometimes one moment can change your life forever…

Rebecca Riley has always been a bit of a pushover. When her glamorous boss, Vanessa, asks her to jump, she doesn’t just ask how high… she asks if her boss would like her to grab a coffee on the way back down!

So whilst overseeing the renovation of Vanessa’s beautiful countryside home, the last thing Rebecca ever expected was to be mistaken for her boss – or that she would even consider going along with it! Far away from the bustling city and her boss’s demanding ways, could she pretend to be Vanessa and swap lives, just for a little while?

Amazon UK | Amazon US | Kobo | iBooks

The Accidental Life Swap: Fun Facts

Take a sneaky peek behind the scenes of The Accidental Life Swap with a few fun facts!

Sometimes one moment can change your life forever…

Rebecca Riley has always been a bit of a pushover. When her glamorous boss, Vanessa, asks her to jump, she doesn’t just ask how high… she asks if her boss would like her to grab a coffee on the way back down!

So whilst overseeing the renovation of Vanessa’s beautiful countryside home, the last thing Rebecca ever expected was to be mistaken for her boss – or that she would even consider going along with it! Far away from the bustling city and her boss’s demanding ways, could she pretend to be Vanessa and swap lives, just for a little while?

Amazon UK | Amazon US | Kobo | iBooks

My Favourite Board/Family Games

Who doesn’t like a board or family game? Gathering the family together to play, hoping it doesn't come to blows as competitive streaks emerge and sore losers vent their frustrations (or is that just me? I’ve been known to resort to mild violence/threats of). Whether it’s a whimsical game with plastic mice avoiding capture or a battle of wits, board games are the perfect medium to bond and have fun with your friends and loved ones (unless you’re playing with someone like me. My best advice in this situation is to duck). Board/family games feature quite a lot in The Accidental Life Swap, so I thought I’d share some of my favourites with you!

Trivia and a board game in one. What’s not to love? I have to admit I’m not a fan of the pesky sports questions (I haven’t a clue about any sport. My only strategy is to have a guess at Tiger Woods for all golf questions, Andy Murray for tennis and Manchester United for football) and my georgraphy knowledge – or lack of – is scary. But you can buy specialised packs of questions now – no more pesky sports or geography – wahoo!

For the most fun, you need one of the older versions of this game as the new ones don’t launch the pirate out of the barrel with nearly as much force. It was always hilarious when the pirate clunked somebody on the head on the way down, and it was even funnier if the poor sod hadn’t moved away in time and the pirate thwacked them in the face.

A classic that can go on for hours or even days (and that’s just deciding who has to be the banker). Rubbing your hands together with glee when somebody lands on your property pimped up with a hotel. The euphoria of landing on Mayfair – and having the money to buy it – when you already have Park Lane. Picking up a Get Out of Jail Free card. Of course, it isn’t as much fun when you’re having to hand over your hard-earned cash, but it’ll be your pay day any time now…

Even the name is fun. Kerplunk. It is probably my favourite name of all the board/family games out there. Kerplunk. It isn’t so fun having to set it all up, but once those straws are all in place and you’ve managed to get all the marbles to stay inside the tube, you’re in for a treat.

Another classic. Highlights include making multiple words in one go, using high-scoring letters on triple word tiles and finally getting rid of that Q.

I loved this as a kid, even if the timer grated on you. The only downside is the blind maze that is probably the most rage-inducing element of any game, ever. In the end, you just have to wiggle the lever until that bloody ball finds its way out. I’m angry just thinking about it.

So those are my favourite board/family games but what are yours? Let us know in the comments below!

Sometimes one moment can change your life forever…

Rebecca Riley has always been a bit of a pushover. When her glamorous boss, Vanessa, asks her to jump, she doesn’t just ask how high… she asks if her boss would like her to grab a coffee on the way back down!

So whilst overseeing the renovation of Vanessa’s beautiful countryside home, the last thing Rebecca ever expected was to be mistaken for her boss – or that she would even consider going along with it! Far away from the bustling city and her boss’s demanding ways, could she pretend to be Vanessa and swap lives, just for a little while?

Amazon UK | Amazon US | Kobo | iBooks

The Accidental Life Swap: Meet The Characters

The Accidental Life Swap is out now and I thought I'd share a quick intro to some of the characters:

Rebecca is feisty on the inside but a bit of a wet lettuce on the outside (sorry, Rebecca, but it's absolutely true). She knows what she wants from life, but she lacks the ability to go for it. When her boss asks her to take over the project management of her new holiday home, Rebecca can’t say no and so she finds herself in the middle of nowhere, in charge of a refurbishment and without a clue of how to manage the project or its builders. 

Rebecca’s boss, Vanessa is feisty inside and out. She knows what she wants and doesn’t care what she has to do – or get others to do – to achieve her goals. When the project manager of her holiday home development is unable to continue with the task, Vanessa has no qualms about sending Rebecca to take her place. Rebecca has no experience in project management, nor any desire to carry out the role, but this is irrelevant information. Vanessa has a deadline that must be met and it’s now Rebecca’s responsibility to make sure it all goes to plan. 

Stacey has lived in Little Heaton all her life and now runs the animal sanctuary next door to Vanessa’s holiday home. She’s grateful for Rebecca’s help when she arrives in the village, but how will she react when she finds out the truth about her new friend? 

Led by Vincent, builders Harvey, Oliver and Todd have been working on the development for the past few months but they’ve fallen behind schedule. With Vanessa’s non-negotiable deadline, can they finish the job on time under Rebecca’s leadership? 

Emma is Rebecca’s best friend. She’s a bit of a gossip, but she has a heart of gold and is always willing to lend a hand wherever she can. 

Sonia is Rebecca’s workplace nemesis; they started working at Vanessa Whitely Events at the same time but brown-nosing Sonia is climbing the corporate ladder at a pace while Rebecca is still dithering at the bottom, deciding whether it’s safe to take a step up to the next rung. But if Rebecca can pull of the refurbishment, she may finally catch up.

Sometimes one moment can change your life forever…

Rebecca Riley has always been a bit of a pushover. When her glamorous boss, Vanessa, asks her to jump, she doesn’t just ask how high… she asks if her boss would like her to grab a coffee on the way back down!

So whilst overseeing the renovation of Vanessa’s beautiful countryside home, the last thing Rebecca ever expected was to be mistaken for her boss – or that she would even consider going along with it! Far away from the bustling city and her boss’s demanding ways, could she pretend to be Vanessa and swap lives, just for a little while?

Amazon UK | Amazon US | Kobo | iBooks