Singles dating sites, glass blowing and swimming pools with Eva Scott

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT SEPTEMBER 2020

Eva Scott is a newcomer to the paperback rural romance scene and I fell head over heels for her sweet story Lonely in Longreach. The quirky news articles scattered throughout the story made me grin, as did meddling teenage matchmakers and the rugged outback setting. Eva writes with a fantastic fluency and humour that will make her a big hit with fans of this genre.

Author spotlight

Five fast minutes with Eva Scott

Do you have a good luck charm or a special token that sits on your desk/in your office?

I have a small pineapple, associated with good fortune in feng shui, and a grass bunny. I don’t know why I like the grass bunny so much but I do.

Favourite exercise to counteract all the hours sitting at the keyboard?

I walk my dog every day and that’s a fantastic way of breaking the long periods of sitting. I go to the gym two to three times a week to lift weights and I do yoga with my husband, who is a yoga teacher when he’s not doing other things.

What’s your go-to weekday dinner dish?

Chickpea curry. Everything except the pumpkin comes out of a can and I always keep some packets of microwaveable rice so I have no excuse not to eat something healthy no matter how tired I might be feeling.

Which career would you choose if money wasn’t a factor and writing wasn’t an option?

I would have been a glass blower. I’ve tried my hand at it a few times in the past and I love it. Something about that molten glass and the process of transformation that sets me on fire (forgive the pun). It’s the ultimate mindful occupation and you get something beautiful at the end.

Favourite book from your childhood?

Probably Little Women. I fluctuated between wanting to be Beth (such a good girl - there’s a whole conversation needed to be had there) and Jo (the writer and rebel). Time has shown me which character fits better.

Which jelly bean do you eat first, and which do you leave until last?

First to go are the red and last, are the black.

Have you done anything special with any of your advances?

Gone on a mini break to the Sunshine Coast. I love it up there. My kind of people.

Spot where you seem to get the best bursts of writing inspiration?

At the dog park. We have an enormous park on the peninsula where I live, filled with wonderful trees and big open grassy spaces. Me and the dog are both off leash so I can wander about in the sunshine and work out any knotty plot problems at my leisure.

You’re snowed in on the side of Mount Hotham with access to only one novel and one electronic device. Which do you choose?

I would take Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall and an electric kettle.

Favourite Aussie book so far for 2020?

I’ve had such little time for reading this year (home schooling has sucked it up, thank you COVID-19) but I hugely enjoyed Darry Fraser’s Elsa Goody, Bushranger. My TBR pile has to be stacked in two piles beside my bed for OH&S reasons. I’m looking forward to the school holidays and the chance to catch up a little bit.

On the top of my Christmas wishlist is….

A swimming pool – and I’m getting one too. Other than that I’m really hoping for a copy of Richard Fidler’s new book, The Golden Maze. If you hadn’t worked it out by now, I’m a huge history nerd.

Best one-line sentence from one of your book reviews?

That would have to be from the HappyValley lads: ‘Look out rural romance writers we have a contender racing to grab your reign.’

I get a vision of myself in a battered tiara on a throne made of hay bales. Hilarious.

Lonely in Longreach

Sleepless in Seattle meets rural Australia in this fresh romantic comedy about optimism, online dating and love at first sight.

In the red heart of Queensland, two teenagers playing matchmaker are about to turn more than one life upside-down.

Widower Sam Costello has no time for love. When he's not working on his farm, he's trying to figure out how to connect with his teenage son Levi.

But Levi is about to finish high school, and he has big plans to move to Sydney for university with his best friend Maddie. If only he didn't feel so guilty about abandoning his dad. Maddie has her own reasons for wanting to go to Sydney and she's not going to let Levi's dad ruin her future happiness. Mr Costello needs a girlfriend and, with her talent for matchmaking, Maddie is the girl to make it happen. By the time Mr C figures out what she's done, surely he'll be too in love to be angry.

Journalist Sarah Lewis has a good job, a nice boyfriend and a safe life in Sydney. Though sometimes she wonders if life has more to offer than nice and safe. When she starts working on an article about finding love in the outback she finds herself asking whether journalists should become this invested in their research. But there's just something about Lonely in Longreach. Could it be that the man behind the dating profile is the key to the passion she has been looking for?