He laughed. ‘Phew. Don’t worry about it. That was a long time ago. And I’m the one who should apologise.’
‘Why?’
‘For walking out the way I did,’ Sean said slowly. ‘For not calling you back. I shouldn’t have let you go. But the longer I left it, well …’
‘I understand,’ Hayley said. ‘I just wanted to make sure you’re okay. That you’re happy.’
‘That’s sweet,’ Sean said. ‘And I’m good, Hayley. Never better.’
‘Really?’
‘Really. Still working as a paramedic and we’re living in Brighton now.’
‘Kids?’
‘Yeah, a girl and a boy. Melanie wanted more but I can’t handle it.’ He laughed.
‘Melanie?’ Hayley frowned.
‘Yeah, my wife.’
‘Did … did you meet at work?’ Hayley asked.
‘Good guess,’ he said and laughed again. ‘She was a newbie, first day on the job. We were both sent to this massive accident … I guess you could say it was love at first defib.’
Hayley smiled. ‘It sounds like you two were meant to be.’
CHAPTER 57
Finding Home
On the Friday two weeks before Christmas, Hayley left work at four o’clock. She wanted to get home early and surprise Rick and the kids.
When she arrived in front of their house with the big brass number sixty-eight on the door, she lingered for a moment, and watched her family through the living room window.
Millie had some silver tinsel in her hands and was chasing Danny with outstretched arms. Danny laughed and ran as he shook a Christmas stocking. Rick stood by the window and smiled as he tried to take some pictures with his phone.
As Hayley looked at them, she knew she needn’t ponder her choices. They had always been the loves of her life, she’d just lost sight of it all for a while.
And in the end it seemed to be the littlest things that were making the biggest difference. The Post-it love-note Rick left for her in her briefcase. A heart she drew for him with lipstick on the bathroom mirror. The laundry he took care of before she even mentioned it. The quick phone calls at lunch time, only to say ‘I love you.’ A touch, a kiss, however brief, when they walked past each other in the kitchen.
Her heart swelled as she watched them. Millie had caught up to Danny and was tickling his face with the tinsel. Rick look out of the window and when he spotted her he waved and an enormous grin lit up his face. She raised her hand and waved back, her smile as large as his.
I could have been a passer-by looking in on someone else’s life. But it’s mine.
She ran up the front steps.
There was no other time or place that she wanted to be.
THE END
Author Q&A
1. Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Like many aspiring authors I loved writing at school and bugged my teachers when I felt too many days had gone by without a creative writing assignment, much to the dismay of some of my classmates. But after I left school I didn’t make writing a priority. In my twenties I was too focused on studies and then my career, climbing the corporate ladder within a recruitment company. Suddenly I was in my thirties. I had a demanding job and we had three children in rapid succession, so writing remained ‘something I’ll get around to’ for almost another decade. That changed when we came to Canada in 2010. I had the opportunity to work less and from home, and at last I got creative.
2. Which author has inspired you most?
There are so many. Stephen King for his incredible imagination and no nonsense writing advice. I often refer to his book On Writing. I’m a huge fan of Lisa Jewell too. I have all of her novels and am in awe of the increasing complexity and sophistication of her stories and characters. I love Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Reese’s co-written books for their fantastic humour. David Nicholls’ novels are clever, funny and poignant. Jojo Moyes is a master at dealing with challenging subjects in a skilful manner. And J.K. Rowling, of course, who is incredible on every level.
3. Do you have a certain place where you like to write?
I usually work in the home office I share with my husband Rob, although I’m alone during the day when the boys are at school and he’s at work. In the evenings I’ll often read a new passage to Rob because he’s fantastic at giving feedback and asking that pesky but crucial question ‘Why?’
Sometimes I’ll work in a coffee shop, at the library, or wherever one of our sons has a sports class. I’m the crazy lady in the corner, muttering and furiously scribbling notes. When I’m not at home I write freehand. Putting pen to paper makes me think differently and I find it particularly helpful when I’m stuck on a section or if I’m outlining something new. In fact I write most of my short stories first by hand, and they’re often prompted during a writing workshop.
4. Can you tell us about your journey to becoming a published author?
It’s been fraught with trepidation and self-doubt, and from what I hear I didn’t start in a logical way. Instead of practicing with, say, a couple of short stories, I jumped straight into writing Time After Time. I finished the first draft in about six weeks, but now I know it wasn’t that great and certainly not good enough to secure agent representation. After a mountain of rejection letters I had the novel critiqued, which was essential in making progress.
I took a few weekend writing workshops and wrote a number of short stories. Then I attended weekly writing classes and won a spot on Curtis Brown Creative’s six-month online novel writing course. The classes fuelled my passion for writing and the comments on my pieces gave me the confidence to continue. And while obtaining feedback was incredibly helpful, the opportunity to see other people’s writing – how they created believable plots and characters – proved invaluable. It opened my eyes and mind to structuring things in different ways, trying out other techniques, and removed the fear of admitting, ‘I’m stuck here. Help.’
Shortly after the Curtis Brown Creative course I secured representation from The Rights Factory in Toronto, which felt incredible. After a round of edits, Time After Time was ready to be submitted to publishers. As soon as it went out I fretted until I realised things were, quite literally, out of my hands. I had no more control over the manuscript so I took a deep breath and concentrated on my second novel. When HarperCollins made an offer to acquire Time After Time a little while later I couldn’t believe it. Actually sometimes I still can’t!
5. Why did you write Time After Time?
I’d lived in Canada for a while but still felt homesick. The HR company I’d launched was failing, all of which left me feeling pretty lousy. One morning I started wondering what my life would have been like if I’d made different choices – if we hadn’t left Switzerland, for example. That was when the idea for the novel popped into my head. My sons were on holiday so I took them to an indoor playground, lined up snacks and water bottles on the table and said, ‘Eat, drink and play as long as you want.’ Three hours later I had the outline of the novel and three happy but exhausted sons.
I felt a ‘What if …’ theme would resonate because most of us have second-guessed our choices at some point. I wanted to show that while an alternate life might be perfect in our imagination, the reality could be the complete opposite. The best things that have happened to us might still be right in front of our eyes – it’s seeing past the daily routine and the mundane parts of life that can be the biggest challenge.
6. What is the best thing about being an author?
It’s impossible to pick only one!
Meeting other writers – whether already published or aspiring to be – and people in the writing community is always a highlight. I have found writers to be supportive and encouraging, interested in the stories we have to tell each other, and full of pertinent advice. I recently asked a ten-book author if the feelings of insecurity about writing ever go away. She laughed and replied, ‘No, and nor should they. A good writer always has to question their work.’ It m
ade me feel a lot better!
Another wonderful side is the joy of making things up – I love having a few words, a line of dialogue or an unusual character or object, and creating a story or a scene around it. Letting your imagination run wild can be liberating. You can do anything you want because you decide if anybody sees what you’ve written, so you can go as crazy as you please.
But I think the best part has to be seeing and hearing people’s reactions to a story. ‘I laughed out loud when …’ or ‘I cried so hard at …’ is an amazing thing to hear and I’m always humbled by the feedback I receive. One of my test-readers for Time After Time said when she finished the novel she hugged her husband and told him how much she loved him. To think that my story generated that reaction is incredible. I hope to entertain people with my stories and have them enjoy the time they spend with the characters. If I can do that then I truly have the best job in the world.
7. What are you writing next?
I completed my second novel, which is about lies, betrayal and how one untruth destroys two families. It was a challenge because the story is told from three view-points; mother, father and teenage daughter, and spans more than twenty years. I read some of the father’s chapters to my husband to ensure they were masculine enough, and I listened to a lot of 80s music to get myself back into a teenage mindset. Thankfully I didn’t have to break out my old legwarmers – or perm my hair!
I’m now working on the outline of my third novel, as well as a children’s chapter book series. I want to keep telling stories for as long as people will let me!
8. Do you have any tips for aspiring writers?
Read as much and as often as you can. If you want to write a great story then you need to read great stories too. Don’t wait for inspiration to hit you to start writing. Let your imagination wander or better yet, let it completely loose. Write a sentence, a paragraph, a page. Scribble complete nonsense – it doesn’t matter. Chances are you won’t show your first draft to anybody. Looking at it that way it can help the words flow.
Take a writing class, attend a workshop, join a writing group. Surround yourself with people who are aspiring or published writers too. When you’re ready, have the courage to ask for feedback on your pieces. In time, trust your instinct on which comments not to consider. If, for example, the room is divided then go with your gut. If the majority is of the same opinion then the feedback is definitely worth a closer look.
You’ll need more than a bucket load of patience in this business so if you’ve submitted something and are waiting for feedback then try to put it out of your mind. Start a new project, keep writing and don’t give up!
And finally, keep a pen and notepad next to your bed. When you scribble ‘Kill Ellen!!!’ with black eyeliner on a magazine in the middle of the night your spouse will look at you funny the next morning. Trust me. Best of luck!
Acknowledgements
So many people were involved in shaping this novel. ‘It takes a village’ doesn’t even begin to cover it.
To start with – Mum and Dad, my sister Joely, my besties Becki and Emma, my great friends Reena and Paul – you saw the very first (rather pathetic) draft and instead of laughing you encouraged me to continue. You believed in me far more than I did. Thank you.
Chris Wakling, Anna Davis, Rufus Purdy and all my Curtis Brown Creative classmates; Amy, Anton, Avi, Diana, Fynvola, Ginny, Greg, John, Kalbinder, Kathelijne, Khuram, Melissa, Nicholas and Quentin – you are all truly wonderful. Thank you for making Hayley’s journey much more fun.
Maria McCann & Leah Fairbank – your unfathomable critique made a whole box of lightbulbs go off in my head. Thank you for making me a better writer.
Brian Henry – your workshops and classes always inspire. Thank you for your critique, suggestions, humour, patience, advice, insights and for introducing me to The Rights Factory. You really are my angel in disguise.
My classmates from Brian’s QuickBrownFox classes; Bieke, Brian C., Dave, Donna K., Donna Y., Glen, Gord, Janis, Lyanne, Maggie, Marilyn, Michele, Nydia, Rob, Sally, Shauna and Sheila – thank you for the weekly debates and ideas. Keep writing!
Mary, Judy, Adrienne and Lorie – my fantastic beta-readers. Thank you for helping me iron out those pesky plot points and adding the vital finishing touches.
Sam Hiyate and Cassandra Rodgers from The Rights Factory. You took a chance representing a new author and I will be eternally grateful.
Natasha Harding, editor extraordinaire and the rest of the amazing HarperCollins crew, in particular Louis Patel and Helena Sheffield for their social media prowess, Alison Groom for the beautiful cover design, Helen Huthwaite and Oli Malcolm, the two power houses that head up the team, Ellie Wood, editor and great champion of this book, Hannah Welsh in sales, and Anna Thomas for her hawk-eye copy-editing. It’s been a pleasure working with you. Can’t wait to see what we do next!
Robert, Leo, Matt and Lex – without you none of this would have happened. Thank you for everything.
And finally a huge thanks to you, the reader, for choosing this book from the hundreds of thousands out there. I am honoured.
About the Author
Hannah was born in the UK and grew up in Switzerland. Unsurprisingly she loves chocolate, mountains and cheese, and books, of course.
When she moved to Canada with her husband and three sons in 2010 she went through an (early) mid-life crisis. Maybe it was the failed attempt at a start-up company or the fact she suddenly found herself in her forties, but one morning she decided to follow her oldest passion; she started writing and never wanted to look back. Hannah writes for adults and children, and has a soft spot for quirky short stories, many of which have been published online. Time After Time is her first novel. She lives in Oakville, Ontario.
To find out more please visit www.hannahmckinnonwriter.com or follow her on Twitter @mrselectrilight
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
http://www.harpercollins.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor
Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada
http://www.harpercollins.ca
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand) Limited
P.O. Box 1
Auckland, New Zealand
http://www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London,SE1 9GF
http://www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007
http://www.harpercollins.com
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