REBECCA MASCULL

Novelist Rebecca Mascull writes not only as Rebecca herself but also as Mollie Walton. I was keen to find out how leading a double writing life works out in practice, but first of all I wanted to learn how it all started for Rebecca.

‘I’ve always loved writing stories,’ she says. ‘When I was eleven I wrote a fantasy story, at thirteen I started a cowboy novel, and while I was at university I wrote some short stories and started sketching out my first novel.

‘My teaching career subsequently took over my life, but my desire to write remained as strong as ever. I eventually left full-time teaching and did an MA in Creative Writing, making writing my Plan A instead of got a deal within a month of being first sent out.