Meet Kristen Bailey, mother-of-four, gin-drinker, binge-watcher, receipt hoarder, hapless dog owner, enthusiastic but terrible cook.
Kristen lives in Fleet, Hampshire, in a house overrun by Lego and odd socks.
Her debut novel, Souper Mum, was released by Accent Press in June and its sequel, Second Helpings, is released on 17th November.
My name: Kristen Bailey – hi! Nice to meet you…
My family: I’m married to Nick and have four kids all ranging in age from two-ten years.
I never mention them by name but in my own blog, they are all named after characters from Game of Thrones: Jon Snow, Arya, The Hound and Daenerys.
We also have a very loyal but mental dog called Barney.
I was born in…Hammersmith and raised in South West London but my mum is Singaporean and my dad is Guyanese.
I’m a bit of a wanderer as a consequence.
In the last twelve years I’ve lived in four different countries.
But now live in…fabulous Fleet in Hampshire…famous for its pond, voted the best place to live in the UK and also (apparently, nothing to do with me…) sex-toy capital of the UK.
I really am not sure how they worked that one out?
One thing I’d change about me…I’d be a far better homemaker.
I am incredibly messy and can be very disorganised.
Laidback
My children will bear testament to this….many a school run is spent remembering all the forms/reading books/ school coats that we’ve left in the front hallway…
One thing I wouldn’t…By that measure, I am also very laid back and don’t sweat the small stuff.
I often try to laugh things off rather than take them too seriously.
Earliest childhood memory? Stealing some earrings from a market stall somewhere and being frogmarched by my mother to go and return them and apologise.
They were green earrings. I was four years old.
Favourite writer? Roald Dahl will always be the reason I probably started writing.
I can still vividly remember reading his books as a child and thinking they were the most fantastic things ever.
It’s almost as if he unlocked a door in my brain to create, to make up stories and think beyond convention.
Best thing about my life? I think it has to be that I have a great partner in life and four happy and healthy kiddies.
I think you only have to look at world events to know that having a roof over your head and access to good medical care and other securities means you can’t want for much more.
Worst thing? First world problem but there are six people in my house so the laundry situation is pretty dire.
Where do all these clothes come from?
Socks, socks, socks…
Why do they only spill things like ketchup, chocolate, blackcurrant cordial?
Don’t get me started on the socks…
Friends or Big Bang Theory? I like to feel there’s room for both.
I don’t discriminate, I love both.
Actually I’d love a mash up of both shows.
Can you imagine if Sheldon and Phoebe met in real life?
It’d be amazing!
Greatest extravagance? Probably from earlier this year, I bought myself a ‘publication present.’
It was a Cambridge Satchel in canary yellow.
It’s the most expensive bag I own but I love it…people have also said it means I’m very spottable in a crowded room.
What you don’t know about me? I have four tattoos.
They all range in size but I have an arrow on the top of my right wrist that’s shaped into an ampersand.
Keep going
I like that I can see it when I write or type.
It’s a reminder to me to keep going…there is always an AND…
My guilty secret? Remember I told you I stole some earrings from a market stall when I was four years old.
They were not the first pair of earrings I had stolen.
Don’t tell my mum…sssssshhhh!
Book Blurbs:
Souper Mum is the story of Jools Campbell, a stay-at-home mother of four, who becomes an unlikely foodie hero when she stands up to a pompous celebrity chef, Tommy McCoy on a reality show.
Armed with fish fingers and a severely limited cooking repertoire, we watch as she becomes a reluctant celebrity and learns some important life lessons about love, family and the joyless merits of quinoa.
Available to buy on Amazon.
Second Helpings: Exactly eighteen months after squaring up to a pompous TV chef, Jools Campbell finds herself back in the fame game as she becomes a judge on a family cooking show.
How will she cope being back in the limelight, juggling being a working mum?
What happens when she finds out her old nemesis, Tommy McCoy is her fellow judge? The knives are sure to fly as ‘Souper Mum’ makes her triumphant return.
Available to buy on Amazon.
Find Kristen at:
Twitter/Instagram: @baileyforce6
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