The Z Files: Jan Ruth ~ Sagittarius

Astrology ~ a bit of fun, a load of rubbish, or something to take seriously?

I invited around 70 writers/bloggers to write a piece about how typical they are of their sign, and how its traits affect their writing life ~ if at all...

Has your favourite writer been featured yet?  Links to all previous posts at the end of this one :)

Galloping over the mountains of Snowdonia and aiming her arrows at the Amazon bestsellers list, I'm delighted to welcome highly acclaimed contemporary women's fiction author Jan Ruth, a (you've guessed it) Sagittarius! 

 
If you love mature contemporary romance, animals and Welsh hills, Jan's your archer :)  You might also like her In The Christmas Chair series of author interviews ... and her fabulous photographs of the glorious Welsh landscape.  Look at THESE and scroll down to the Winter ones, they're my favourite!

That's Jan waving at you from yonder hills...

Sorry to make demands on your Sagittarian freedom, Jan, but could you canter down and tell us about your ninth sign writer self?

"The centaur. I think I was actually born half a horse. I could whinny from the age of 8 and so far as horses are concerned, I’m still obsessed. Although November 23rd means I was born on the cusp, I’m a true Sagittarius. I’m the Tigger of the zodiac, an optimistic equine adventurer searching for the truth with my bow and arrows, and always on the move.  

I love big outdoor spaces, dogs and horses. I tend to prefer the company of funny men who can talk about politics, poetry and philosophy when the need arises. I have a disgraceful pile of ironing and a full rack of wine, but my walking boots are well waxed."

"I’m annoyingly blunt sometimes and prone to sarcasm and exaggeration, but I dispute the fact we tend to be disloyal! I’m intensely loyal... unless you cross me, then I might be tempted to draw an arrow, although they’d more than likely be as blunt as my fingernails. 

How does this manifest itself in my writing? Surprisingly, I write - mostly in a saggy dressing gown surrounded by last night’s pots and pans - fast-paced contemporary fiction set in Snowdonia and my male characters tend to epitomize the witty anti-hero, usually with a couple of dogs in tow. 

Readers, I’m truly Saggy."

 

Yes, I think we can agree on that last sentence; another contributor for whom I had to highlight nearly the whole article for phrases particularly relevant to the sign!  You can catch up with Jan and find all about her books on her blog and/or follow her on Twitter; it being near Christmas I'll give her special mention to her seasonal short stories, details HERE and cover below!

I've found two fellow contemporary women's fiction lady archer writers for Jan...

...Ms Middle Class family drama herself, Joanna Trollope...

... and a more recent bestseller 

and the other half of Ricky Gervais (I just found out!), Jane Fallon

Up Next: Scorpio

Previous Posts:

Leo and Aries: Terry Tyler and Julia Proofreader

Leo: Rose Edmunds, Anne Goodwin, Alex Johnson,

Aries: Joanne Phillips, Trisha Ashley, Cynthia Harrison

Gemini: Haydn Lee, Norah Colvin, Jerome Dumont, John Privilege,  
Shelley Wilson,

Aquarius and Capricorn: Nicky Black

Aquarius: Cathy Ryan, Lynda Renham

Capricorn: Georgia Rose, Wendy Janes, Annie Lyons, Steffany R

Sagittarius: Adrienne Vaughan, Rachel Amphlett, Wendy J Lennox,  
Katrina Mountfort,

Cancer: Emma Gray, June Kearns, Sarah Boucher, Katie Oliver, Mark Barry

Virgo: Louise Marley, Elizabeth Ducie, Barb Taub

Pisces: Lizzie Lamb, Julie Haiselden, Maria Savva, Sacha Black,

Scorpio: Gen Gannon, Stacey Garrity, Gemma Lawrence, Robert Leigh, Catherine Hokin, Jenny Twist,

Taurus: Valerie-Anne Baglietto, Valerie Poore,

Libra: Tom Hocknell, Jen Ammoscato, Joanne B

The Z Files: The New Romantics ~ Pisces, Cancer and Sagittarius/Ophiucus

Astrology ~ a bit of fun, a load of rubbish, or something to take seriously?

I invited around 70 writers/bloggers to write a piece about how typical they are of their sign, and how its traits affect their writing life ~ if at all...

Has your favourite writer been featured yet?  Links to all previous posts at the end of this one :)

***

A special three-in-one today!  Three romance writers, Lizzie, June and Adrienne, who, collectively, (with their friend Mags Cullingford) are known as The New Romantics.  You can find them all together at home, HERE and on Twitter HERE.

Now, let us meet them individually ~

First, the Pisces lady with her heart in the Highlands, Lizzie Lamb.  She's the author of lighthearted romcoms, the latest of which is Scotch on the Rocks.  You can read more of what she gets up to on her blog, and follow her on Twitter.

Now, please swim out of that loch and tell us about your Pisces self, Lizzie!

"When I'm a #good fish I am artistic, idealistic, imaginative, a dreamer, romantic (definitely!), and at times visionary.  As an indie author and self-publisher, I have learned to be adapatable and multi-talented - proofreading, editing, promoting of my novels on social media and always thinking of the next novel.  I hope I am popular; but when I want to pursue a course of action to its conclusion I can be as my grandmother described - a 'persistent little bugger', chipping away at peoples' resistance until I get what I want.  Or, as I see it, charming them into submission.  The heroine most like me in these circumstances is Charlee Montague in Boot Camp Bride.

When I'm a #bad fish I can appear remote, spaced out, living in my characters' world and holding imaginary conversations with them.  This leaves me feeling vague, other worldly, as if I've just woken up from a beautiful dream.  I hate being dragged out of my writing to complete mundane tasks like cooking and cleaning.  However, conversely, I can't work if I'm surrounded by chaos and disorder - those two fish swimming in opposite directions, remember?  Although I am pretty goal orientated, I find it hard to make decisions.  In this mode, the heroine most like me is Ishabel Stuart in Scotch on the Rocks."

Luckily for me, the perfect match for a Pisces woman is a Virgo man - rooted, practical and loyal. Pisces is Virgo's opposite sign and, like moth to flame, Virgo men can't help but feel fascinated by the seemingly elusive fish.  My Virgo husband and I have been married for forty-four years, so it must be true that opposites do attract."

A more typical fish you couldn't find!  Who else could I choose for Lizzie's Piscean writing partner than wonderful Jilly Cooper, to whose work Lizzie's is sometimes likened?  For me, Jilly was the person who started the whole modern light romance/chick lit genre, in the 1970s.  My favourite was 'Prudence', and I know Lizzie's was 'Emily' ~ set in the Highlands! 

  

***
 

Next, a big hello to June Kearns, born under the sign of Cancer.  June writes light historical romance, and is currently working on a book set in 1960s London and California.  Her first publication was described as 'Jane Austen meets Zane Grey': The English Woman's Guide to the Cowboy; for the second she celebrated the flapper era in The 20s Girl, the Ghost, and all that Jazz.  All June's book news can be found HERE, and she scuttles out of her shell on a regular basis to appear on Twitter!

Please walk this way, June... sideways, if you must...

"I'm a Cancerian - and pretty much true to type!  Favourite postition: behind the shell, peering out (taking notes?).  A voyeur!  Helpful for a writer...

Family orientated?  Well, I married into a big Irish family and now have quite a sizeable one myself.  My Pisces husband (Terry's note: both water signs, great match!) calls the above picture of me, taken last month staring out over East bay, 'I left my heart in San Francisco'.  When our eldest son when there to work 10 years ago, that Tony Bennett record kept me boohooing for weeks.  I've a bit of a penchant for aunts and odd family eccentrics (fraught-in-plus-fours) in my stories, too.

Teacher:  I taught for a while BC (before children) and did supply AD (after subsequent financial dip).  Telling other people what to do, though, was knocked out of me a long time ago!"

"Self-obsessed?  Oh dear.  P'raps a bit.  It can be a nasty trait in an only child.  All those years spent contemplating your navel and thinking how to fulfil yourself in life.  Thankfully, marrying into a large family knocked that out of me.  It's pointless going away somewhere to sulk, if it takes hours before people realise you're missing and can be bothered to try and find you.  

Need too much reassurance?  Yes, yes, yes.  But this is not good!  Smacks of self-obsession again. I've been using horoscopes in my current WIP, and other bits of my own profile have seemed eerily accurate.

Ruled by an emotional, ever changing moon.  Yes!

My issues: cliquishness, cheapness, cattiness.  Oh, I say!  

Female friends are my life blood:  Ooh, they certainly are!  Adrienne and Lizzie for starters."

A famous writing partner for June?  I've chosen one of my all time favourites, Cancerian historical and theological novelist, Susan Howatch.

***

  

And finally....

....bringing up the New Romantic rear with oodles of fire sign glamour, here's Adrienne Vaughan, who welcomes you to her world of romance and adventure HERE, and on Twitter HERE.  She's the author of contemporary romances The Heartfelt Series, and is an adventurous Sagittarius! But that's not all....

Adrienne isn't just a centaur; she also sits within the 13th sign of Ophiucus.  Let her tell you about it...  

"Many years ago I interviewed a jewellery designer who made custom pieces for rock bands and superstars.  Working on a collection of precious pendants featuring signs of the zodiac, he asked me my birthday and promptly decreed me Ophiucus, the 13th sign, a constellation which sits inside Sagittarius over a few days in late November.  Represented by a serpent snaking round a sword, it's the sign of the Wounded Healer and is still used today by the medial profession.

Fascinated as I was by this revelation, I like to think I exhibit traits of both Ophiucus and Sagittarius.  Ophiucus is a seeker of peace and harmony, reaching for the stars figuratively and literally and is reknowned as a healer.  I practice Reiki and, having learned how to treat humans, went on to work with horses, so maybe that's the centaur in me!

Sagittarians are - allegedly - frank, courageous and generous, enjoy intellectual pursuits, and love travel.  I can identify with these traits; I love to travel and totally infazed if a plane I'm to catch is delayed, thoroughly enjoying the experience of sitting in an airport writing for hours on end.

I once had to write the Horoscople column for a magazine I worked on, or the space would have been empty with many disgruntled readers.  I quickly invested in Linda Goodman's Sun Signs and linked traits to family and friends.  Some still say they were the most accurate horoscopes they ever read!  Resourceful?  Another trait, methinks!"

I saved a lady from the Top Table of light romance authors for Adrienne - super Sagittarius, Sophie Kinsella!

Many thanks to Lizzie, June and Adrienne! 

Coming next?   

Must be something about the sign ~ another bestselling Aries!

Previous posts (click on the name for the article)
Leo and Aries: Terry Tyler and Julia Proofreader
Leo: Rose Edmunds, Alex Johnson, Anne Goodwin
Aries: Trisha Ashley, Cynthia Harrison
Gemini: Norah Colvin, Haydn Lee, John Privilege, Jerome Dumont,  
Shelley Wilson,
Aquarius: Cathy Ryan, Lynda Renham
Capricorn: Annie Lyons, Wendy Janes, Steffany R
Aquarius and Capricorn: Nicky Black
Sagittarius: Rachel Amphlett, Wendy Lennox, Katrina Mountfort
Cancer: Sarah Boucher, Katie Oliver, Mark Barry,
Virgo: Elizabeth Ducie, Louise Marley, Barb Taub
Pisces: Julie Haiselden, Maria Savva, Sacha Black
Taurus: Valerie-Anne Baglietto Val Poore
Scorpio: Stacey Garrity, Catherine Hokin, Robert Leigh, Gemma Lawrence, Jenny Twist,
Libra: Joanne B, Jen Ammoscato