Be strict about point of view If you’re writing from the vantage point of a child, create a voice that sounds like a child (in tone and perception if not vocabulary). Remember God is in the detail The stronger our impression of something happening to a particular person at a particular time in a particular place, the greater our sense of recognition.

From her early years with her numerous operations in hospital. Her school days to her leaving home. Her relationship with food, friends, and moving homes, to her marrying the love of her life, and the trauma of helping her beloved son suffering with depression...this woman has suffered so much, but has painted on a smile, and carried on for her public / readers! Alice Jolly’s Dead Babies and Seaside Towns is about motherhood, grief, infertility and the British coast.From her childhood, where there was no blueprint for success, to building a career as a bestselling novelist against all odds, Amanda Prowse explores what it means to be a woman in a world where popularity, slimness, beauty and youth are currency?and how she overcame all of that to forge her own path to happiness.

Tears streamed down my cheeks as the realisation hit that some situations hit much closer to home than others. I've been there before, too, and maybe, I'm there right now.

Summary

I hate to admit that I've never previously read an Amanda Prowse book, but there was something about the title - Women Like Us, that I found appealing. I'm so glad I trusted my instinct. Amanda is a huge supporter of libraries and having become a proud ambassador for The Reading Agency, works tirelessly to promote reading, especially in disadvantaged areas. Amanda's ambition is to create stories that keep people from turning the bedside lamp off at night, great characters that ensure you take every step with them and tales that fill your head so you can't possibly read another book until the memory fades... Amanda Prowse has opened up about her life in a way that I feel will relate to many, many women out there.

This memoir got really close to my heart as I was able to relate to the author's family when she was growing up, got so crazy about books and reading, how the experiences and the people we meet during our developmental stages leave an impact on us for the rest of our lives.

This memoir was a rollercoaster to say the least, incredibly raw and real - the author really laid everything bare. It’s a story of real life, success, struggles and mainly hope for everything to come right in the end. It’s not all rainbows and unicorns, but I think that’s what makes it a really special read. It’s not just universities that want to be ethically clean and legally invulnerable. Publishers do too, and memoirs can be a minefield. It’s hard enough being honest with yourself (Mark Twain: “When a man is writing a book dealing with the privacies of his life – a book which is to be read while he is still alive – he shrinks from speaking his whole frank mind”), but when you’re writing candidly about others the stakes are even higher. According to George Bernard Shaw, “All autobiographies are lies” because “no man is bad enough to tell the truth about himself during his lifetime, involving as it must the truth about his family and friends and colleagues.” Give signposts Find ways to help the reader along, especially if you have a complex plot and a large cast list. You’re our guide and we need to be able to follow you – and to trust you to tell us the truth.