Tarvin Online Editor Becomes Author

Fi Miles has been one of our editors since 2020. She recently revealed the exciting news that a book she has been writing over the past few years has finally been published.

The Second Life of Ged Baker by F.E. Miles is available on Amazon and Kindle, and Fi is planning a book signing in September. Hopefully, she can persuade talented cover artist, Tarvin resident, Darren Tarplee-Williams, to come along too.

Fi ran a freelance writing business, creating print, web and Social Media copy for local firms. In Summer 2019, while on holiday in her favourite Cornish village, she was inspired to write about residents of an exclusive nursing home which overlooks the pretty bay of Coverack. We caught up with Fi to find out how the novel came about:

Where did you get the idea for your Novel?
"My uncle worked as a live-in gardener and handyman at an exclusivenursing home in Cheshire in the 1970s. I spent rainy days listening to the fascinating life stories of the residents.When I'm in Coverack, I often hike past the nursing home, and that summer, asI passed, I began to wonder what the people had done in their lives to afford to stay in such an exclusive place. As I hiked the Coast path, imaginary residents popped into my head, and I couldn't shake them out. I began to write about them, and Ged Baker's story really began to take shape. I found myself still tapping away on my laptop at 2 am that first day!

When did you decide to turn a story into a novel?
"I wrote the story in fits and starts, fitting it around family and work. I had to take pauses in writing the story to research certain aspects of the novel, especially the medical aspects, which I wanted to get right. The following summer, after writing more during lockdown, I had well over 100,000 words. Thinking I might have somethingworth reading, I connected with some authors at an arts festival and another who runs a gift shop in Coverack. She introduced me to the idea of self-publishing, which now appears to be the norm fordebut authors. I soon realised that I needed to hone my skills in order to finish and edit the book, so I enrolled on two creative writing courses.

As part of the second course, Fi wrote a short story for Tarvin Online, based on her Mum's wartime experience and then asked a few of our regular contributors and readers and a published author to read the manuscript. Their feedback was encouraging and honest, helping her to polish the story and improve the book.

Being an "Editor" for Tarvin online, how did you find the editing of your own novel compared?
Checking spelling and grammar on a 200-word article for Tarvin Online is one thing; copyediting a 150,000-word novel is quite another! It took months of long evenings and weekends in 2024. I had to become a grammar and punctuation nerd! Grammarly and other tools are helpful, but you still have to pore over every single sentence, checking that you have used the same spelling of certain names in every instance, ensuring that the dates make sense, checking that speech marks are all "66 and 99" or '6 and 9' (see what we did there)? I learned such a lot about punctuation and grammar that I'd forgotten from my school days.

Was it expensive to Self-Publish?
"It certainly wasn't cheap. I couldn't justify spending over a thousand pounds of our then household income on what was, as I saw it, a bucket list fantasy. I saw a vacancy for a buyer at Bentley Motors and decided to apply. I've now been full-time at Bentley for four years, and I love it there, plus, it has given me enough spare income to self-publish.

How did you decide on the Cover Artwork
I sent a passage of the book and a brief to my good friend, Darren Tarplee-Williams, and he came back a month or two later with some initial sketches, which I really loved. We chose one to turn into a watercolour, and he has absolutely nailed it! It's exactly how I imagined this scene. The cover artwork is particularly important as book illustration is a big part of the story. My favourite comment from someone inregard to the cover image was "it looks like a memory".

How did you feel when the book was published?
I was so excited about it, I could burst! My projects like this usually end up ina cupboard, forgotten about, as I don't have the confidence to put them out there, but I think with age and parenthood, I'm not so self-conscious. If people like it, they like it; if they don't, that's fine too.
I am immensely grateful to allthe people who pushed, cajoled, and encouraged me to get it published, especially my boys and husband, Rob, and my four fabulous readers.

Is there an Audiobook?
Not just yet. I am researching how to create one. It could take a while to get it published, but I'm determined to give that a go, as I know many people prefer listening to books instead of reading, and Ilove giving my characters a voice.

Are there more books in the pipeline?
Definitely! I am currently researching the second bookand pulling the story together. I still have a number of imaginary residents of Porthcovery Grange bursting to tell the secret of how they can afford to stay there.