Friday, October 12, 2012

Author Spotlight: Ali McNamara, author of "From Notting Hill with Love...Actually"




When Sourcebooks approached me about featuring Ali McNamara on my blog, I knew EXACTLY what I wanted to ask her. Her charming story From Notting Hill with Love...Actually is a perky and excessively readable homage to Romantic Comedies.  It became quite obvious that I should ask Ali McNamara what she, as an expert, felt that the three essential facets of a good romantic comedy were.

And now, I turn it over to Ali:

ALI McNAMARA'S THREE ESSENTIAL FACETS OF ROMANTIC COMEDY:

Humour and romance (obviously!)

Good characters

The Feel-good factor

Humour & Romance:
Obviously it’s got to be funny! If it doesn’t make you laugh it’s not rom-com its just rom, and then I’m already bored if it’s all hearts, flowers and mush. But the laughs have to come from believable situations, not clowns throwing custard pies!
Romance: Same as before, if there not any rom then it’s a dull film. Even the top action movies these days always have a little romance in them to soften the main characters and add interest to the storylines.

Good characters:
Characters you care about, but something a bit different too with the odd quirk! And it must have a bit of ‘will they/won’t they’ also, to keep you guessing for a while!


Feel-good factor: That lovely warm snuggly feeling you get at the end of a movie, or a book when everything has worked out well for the characters and you can return to your own life happy that they will be!

A great example of this is Pretty Woman with Richard Gere and Julia Roberts.
Unusual quirky characters - a businessman and a prostitute. Lots of rom - the dresses, the jewellery, and Richard serenading her at the end of the movie. Much com – who could forget the ‘slippery little sucker’ as her snail went flying across the restaurant. And the feel good factor as Vivienne made good, became a lady and the couple were reunited at the end of the movie on the balcony of her apartment.

Have I managed to get all these facets into From Notting Hill with Love…Actually? I’ll let you be the judge of that… ;-)

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A friend of mine loaned me a copy of the book when it was first released in its UK publication and I guarantee it is the PERFECT chicklit to turn to with a cozy blanket and a glass of chianti! Happy Reading.

My thanks to Sourcebooks for the opportunity to feature Ali McNamara on the blog

Find Ali on the web:

Ali McNamara
Twitter @AliMcNamara



2 comments:

Kara said...

Thank you for this! I have been waiting and waiting to see if this one would be available on kindle and it is now! I had forgotten about it until seeing this. :) Can't wait to read it.

birdienl said...

This looks like a lovely autumn-curled-up-on-the-sofa read and amazingly enough, my library actually has it! So I ordered it immediately!