‘An Extra Shot continues to tell the story of Freddie and Jo-Jo. It moves backwards and forwards through time in a series of first-person flashbacks and describes how the couple fell in love as teenagers, why they drifted apart, what happened in their lives away from each other, and what happens when they meet up again over thirty-five years later.
A failed reconciliation in book one, Another Shot, has left Freddie at a railway station thinking about jumping under a train and Jo-Jo in a hotel room consumed with the dark secret she has carried for most of her adult life. Freddie is saved by his best friend, Jack Sparrow, and Jo-Jo is convinced by her daughter, Amy, to meet up with Freddie again. Freddie then persuades Jo-Jo to go away with him for a long weekend in Devon and the couple return home with their love reignited.
However, Jo-Jo can’t let their relationship continue without telling Freddie the truth about her dark secret. Is their love strong enough to get them through?’
Q&A
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1 – When and where do you prefer to write?
I prefer to write early morning up until about lunchtime and my preferred writing spot would be the Charles Darwin room at Shrewsbury Library, which is directly opposite Shrewsbury Castle. Most of the time though I make do with my study at home, watched over by my two cats, Boris and Tai.
2 – Do you have a certain ritual?
Coffee, coffee, coffee is a must to kick-start my writing synapses.
3 – Is there a drink of some food that keeps you company while you write?
Coffee, coffee, coffee. My favourite pit-stop is Ginger’s Coffee Shop in Shrewsbury for an Americano with hot milk.
4 – What is your favourite book?
Impossible to choose one, but ‘The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters’ by G.W.Dahlquist, ‘The Treatment’ by Mo Hayder and ‘Weaveworld’, by Clive Barker would be in the top ten.
5 – Do you consider writing a different genre in the future?
Definitely. I’d like to write a fantasy, dystopian novel at some point.
6 – Do you sometimes base your characters on people you know?
All of the characters in my stories are based on amalgamations of people I know or have known. Some are more caricature than others, but they all have some basis in real life.
7 – Do you take a notebook everywhere in order to write down ideas that pop up?
Absolutely. It even sits next to bed at night in case ideas drop into my head or snippets of my dreams stay with me long enough to write them down.
8 – Which genre do you not like at all?
My least favourite genre would be science fiction, but, to be fair, I don’t think I’ve ever read a science fiction novel. It’s just never appealed to me.
9 – If you had the chance to co-write a book. Whom would it be with?
My Granddad, who died before I was born. He was a life and soul of the party publican who had a wonderful life and lots of stories to tell.
10 – If you should travel to a foreign country to do research, which one would you chose and why?
New Zealand. It’s where one of my main characters, Jo-Jo, is planning to emigrate and I’ll need to find out more if I’m to write a sequel to the Shots trilogy.
Thank you, Stephen Anthony Brotherton and Rachel’s Random Resources.
About the author
‘I was born in Walsall, grew up in the West Midlands and now live in Telford with my two cats, Boris and Tai. After working in the health and social care sector for over thirty years, I have now taken early retirement to write the trilogy that has been rooted in my head for most of my life.
An Extra Shot is the second book in the Shots trilogy, which is based on a first love relationship I had as a teenager. It tells the story of Freddie and Jo-Jo, who are reunited in a coffee shop three decades after the end of their teenage romance. How they originally met, why they parted, what happens in their lives apart, and what happens when they reunite is all told through a series of first person vignettes. I am currently working on the final book.
Getting these stories down on paper has been a cathartic process. I hope you enjoy them. ‘
Social Media Links
Instagram @freddiejojoreunited
Twitter – https://twitter.com/FreddieJoJo1
Purchase Links
UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Extra-Shot-Stephen-Anthony-Brotherton/dp/1912881446
US – https://www.amazon.com/Extra-Shot-Stephen-Anthony-Brotherton/dp/1912881446
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