Manuela Cardiga's Blog, page 85
December 5, 2013
Review for Manuela Cardiga's "GUILTY PLEASURES - The Food and Fornication Fables""
I had no idea what I was getting into when I started this book, but boy am I glad to have been on for the ride. I loved this book. Cardiga has a talent for mixing romance and humor...and food, such delicious food. I love all the detail Cardiga added in this book. I didn't even know a lot of the food listed, but it sure as hell sounded delicious. I loved all of the elaborate events.
The story was quite an interesting one that I just couldn't put down. Lance is approached by Millie's overbearing and quite evil mother. She wants Lance to impregnate Millie so she can have a grandchild to raise. He is desperate for money that will help save his mother, so he agrees. He takes on the persona of a man named Will so he could work at Millie's unique restaurant, Guilty Pleasures. It is a restaurant that offers more than just food, it offers fantasies. People who want elaborate plays or supermodels who want to pig out on nothing but chocolate without being ridiculed, Guilty Pleasures will give it to you. Will soon falls in love with the place. It is something fun and exciting every night and he has warmed up to Serge, who causes a lot of people to quit. He soon starts to have feelings for Millie and wants to leave Lance behind and live his life as Will, start a new life. He is afraid of what would happen if Millie found out why he was there in the first place.
I really loved the characters in this book. Millie was adorable and very funny She was also very perky. I think it is a crime for someone to be that happy at 4 AM in the morning. I loved hearing her backstory. It made sense why she didn't want anything to do with men. I wasn't a big fan of Lance's, at first. He was the kind of guy I would punch in the teeth before I talked to him. When he first sees a picture of Millie, all he can do is point out her cellulite and other tiny things he doesn't like. I did warm up to him after a while though. When he took on the persona of Will, we see a different side of him and I liked it a lot. I also loved his story. He is a sex therapist that refuses to have sex because he has been used and tossed aside and he won't go through that again. I also loved Serge. He was an absolute riot. You never know what he was going to say, but you know it will be entertaining. I also enjoyed Mrs. Belmont. Oh what a great lady. Her and Serge were just too much.
I am so in love with this book. Seeing these two people who have been damaged in the past find their way to each other was a great experience. You willl find yourself rooting for them and you will want them happy. I love the chemistry between them. They really steamed up the pages. I love the characters, the twists and this incredible story. Cardiga definitely has a winner here. I am so in love. Highly recommended.
http://offbeatvagabond.blogspot.pt/2013/12/release-day-review-guilty-pleasures.html
The story was quite an interesting one that I just couldn't put down. Lance is approached by Millie's overbearing and quite evil mother. She wants Lance to impregnate Millie so she can have a grandchild to raise. He is desperate for money that will help save his mother, so he agrees. He takes on the persona of a man named Will so he could work at Millie's unique restaurant, Guilty Pleasures. It is a restaurant that offers more than just food, it offers fantasies. People who want elaborate plays or supermodels who want to pig out on nothing but chocolate without being ridiculed, Guilty Pleasures will give it to you. Will soon falls in love with the place. It is something fun and exciting every night and he has warmed up to Serge, who causes a lot of people to quit. He soon starts to have feelings for Millie and wants to leave Lance behind and live his life as Will, start a new life. He is afraid of what would happen if Millie found out why he was there in the first place.
I really loved the characters in this book. Millie was adorable and very funny She was also very perky. I think it is a crime for someone to be that happy at 4 AM in the morning. I loved hearing her backstory. It made sense why she didn't want anything to do with men. I wasn't a big fan of Lance's, at first. He was the kind of guy I would punch in the teeth before I talked to him. When he first sees a picture of Millie, all he can do is point out her cellulite and other tiny things he doesn't like. I did warm up to him after a while though. When he took on the persona of Will, we see a different side of him and I liked it a lot. I also loved his story. He is a sex therapist that refuses to have sex because he has been used and tossed aside and he won't go through that again. I also loved Serge. He was an absolute riot. You never know what he was going to say, but you know it will be entertaining. I also enjoyed Mrs. Belmont. Oh what a great lady. Her and Serge were just too much.
I am so in love with this book. Seeing these two people who have been damaged in the past find their way to each other was a great experience. You willl find yourself rooting for them and you will want them happy. I love the chemistry between them. They really steamed up the pages. I love the characters, the twists and this incredible story. Cardiga definitely has a winner here. I am so in love. Highly recommended.
http://offbeatvagabond.blogspot.pt/2013/12/release-day-review-guilty-pleasures.html
December 4, 2013
THE INK BLOT GUEST SPOT: - ONE DAY TO GO : "GUILTY PLEASURES - The Food and Fornication Fables" by Manuela Cardiga
Get a "taste" right here!
“Can you believe this, Will? Here we place fake dew on berries, for people who sell fake dreams and pay real money so they can eat real food without anyone knowing. Amazing. They go out and eat macro/micro/molecular or whatever is in fashion for the week, when their bodies crave something fat and rich . . . we are like a dirty secret. They come and eat with their hands and they lick their fingers. Here is the world.”
Lance laughed and shook his head.
Serge waved the spray mister about. “People are ashamed to eat good food in decent portions in public, but you get a two-bit whore teaching bored housewives how to give great head on morning TV.” He sighed and shook his head. “And let me tell you, she didn’t know what she was talking about. Best practitioner of fellatio in the world was the Empress of China.”
Lance’s jaw dropped. “Empress of . . . are you serious?”
“What an artist . . . the man could make a stone come. He was a eunuch, a real pure from birth, reared in the Forbidden City. He trained us—the new arrivals—decided on our speciality, and our look. He was an old, old man when I knew him, but he still had all his own teeth, and was limber and graceful as a gazelle. A very wise man. He told me I had to decide, as a freak, if I’d rather be a clown or a demon. He said we oddities—and he spoke from experience—attracted the cowardly and the cruel. Easy targets for the unimaginative, you see.”
Lance nodded soberly. “A wise man, your friend.”
Serge smiled grimly. “Yes, he was. So I was the demon, and Yusuf was the angel. What a spectacle we were, Will. Food for the gods’ lust, or the devils’. Yusuf was a hermaphrodite, see. Beautiful, Will. Never have I seen a more beautiful face. He had breasts and a body to make Aphrodite weep with envy, and a man’s prick he had, but the Empress always presented him fully clothed in a long white virginal shift, his hair loose like an angel’s, and then he’d wet the shift down. It would cling, see, the breasts of Venus, the prick of Mars. Some bastards would pay to see us freaks together.”
“My God, Serge, how did you stay sane?”
“Willie, things are simple. You do what you do to survive. We all pander to the powerful’s desires, don’t we? Only today, it’s even worse. Since survival is practically guaranteed, these people obsess over the basic things that signify survival—food and fucking. My father said that when the few value our art the most, is when the many are the most hungry. He was right.”
Look for "Guilty Pleasures - The Food and Fornication Fables" by Manuela Cardiga
TOMORROWGet it online or at a Bookstore near you! http://ph.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/books/detail/108
It will be on sale at Amazon.com from the 5th of December as as e-book and Paperback!http://www.amazon.com/Guilty-Pleasures-Manuela-Cardiga/dp/1612131921/ref=sr_1_31?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385422100&sr=1-31&keywords=The+Writers+Coffee+Shop
“Can you believe this, Will? Here we place fake dew on berries, for people who sell fake dreams and pay real money so they can eat real food without anyone knowing. Amazing. They go out and eat macro/micro/molecular or whatever is in fashion for the week, when their bodies crave something fat and rich . . . we are like a dirty secret. They come and eat with their hands and they lick their fingers. Here is the world.”
Lance laughed and shook his head.
Serge waved the spray mister about. “People are ashamed to eat good food in decent portions in public, but you get a two-bit whore teaching bored housewives how to give great head on morning TV.” He sighed and shook his head. “And let me tell you, she didn’t know what she was talking about. Best practitioner of fellatio in the world was the Empress of China.”
Lance’s jaw dropped. “Empress of . . . are you serious?”
“What an artist . . . the man could make a stone come. He was a eunuch, a real pure from birth, reared in the Forbidden City. He trained us—the new arrivals—decided on our speciality, and our look. He was an old, old man when I knew him, but he still had all his own teeth, and was limber and graceful as a gazelle. A very wise man. He told me I had to decide, as a freak, if I’d rather be a clown or a demon. He said we oddities—and he spoke from experience—attracted the cowardly and the cruel. Easy targets for the unimaginative, you see.”
Lance nodded soberly. “A wise man, your friend.”
Serge smiled grimly. “Yes, he was. So I was the demon, and Yusuf was the angel. What a spectacle we were, Will. Food for the gods’ lust, or the devils’. Yusuf was a hermaphrodite, see. Beautiful, Will. Never have I seen a more beautiful face. He had breasts and a body to make Aphrodite weep with envy, and a man’s prick he had, but the Empress always presented him fully clothed in a long white virginal shift, his hair loose like an angel’s, and then he’d wet the shift down. It would cling, see, the breasts of Venus, the prick of Mars. Some bastards would pay to see us freaks together.”
“My God, Serge, how did you stay sane?”
“Willie, things are simple. You do what you do to survive. We all pander to the powerful’s desires, don’t we? Only today, it’s even worse. Since survival is practically guaranteed, these people obsess over the basic things that signify survival—food and fucking. My father said that when the few value our art the most, is when the many are the most hungry. He was right.”
Look for "Guilty Pleasures - The Food and Fornication Fables" by Manuela Cardiga
TOMORROWGet it online or at a Bookstore near you! http://ph.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/books/detail/108
It will be on sale at Amazon.com from the 5th of December as as e-book and Paperback!http://www.amazon.com/Guilty-Pleasures-Manuela-Cardiga/dp/1612131921/ref=sr_1_31?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385422100&sr=1-31&keywords=The+Writers+Coffee+Shop
December 3, 2013
THE INK BLOT GUEST SPOT: - Countdown to Release: "GUILTY PLEASURES - The Food and Fornication Fables" by Manuela Cardiga TWO DAYS TO GO!
Manuela Cardiga's forthcoming Novel "Guilty Pleasures"!
ExcerptLance Packhard, sex therapist, the world’s number one G-spot sleuth and premier undercover man, was flummoxed. Never in his long career had he been faced with such a challenge.Millicent Deafly—his mark—ignored him. Him. It seemed almost impossible. Instead of eyeing his magnificent body, Millicent was lasciviously fondling a cucumber. Her eyes misted. Her delicate pink tongue flicked over her pouty lower lip.“Yes. Oh, yes!” she whispered. “Tonight, yes . . .”Lance had spent the last hour following her through the local supermarket trying to get her attention, to no avail. Millicent ignored him at the fruit and vegetables section, and at gourmet cheeses he deliberately brushed up against her back, murmured an apology in his huskiest bedroom voice, and accomplished nothing.Undeterred, he followed her to the wine section, where he attempted prolonged eye contact. Alas, she always seemed to be looking in another direction, and Lance found himself trailing her into the Seafood Court. There, he liberally doused himself with a powerful pheromone spray he usually avoided using because of the unpleasant side effects.But again nothing happened. Nada.All he got was a serious skin rash from the pheromone spray and a multitude of lustful supermarket attendants—not all female—insisting on giving him a “hand.”Lance should have known when he first saw Millicent that she was trouble—big trouble. In fact, he should have known before. He’d never been hired by a mother. Husbands hired him, lovers, concerned friends, even someone’s boss once, but never a mother.Something in the almost always competitive mother/daughter synergy precluded a mother from fixing her daughter up with a man she fancied herself, and let’s face it, Lance was well aware that all women fancied him. From his dark, silken hair to his sinewy—and talented—toes, he was regarded as prime genetic material, and he had improved on nature’s bounty. He worked out four times a week—running for an hour each morning before sun-up—and rigorously watched his diet. He used a moisturiser, a hair conditioner, and carefully barbered his muscular chest and abdomen, while cultivating a becoming three-day scruff. All this was in addition to a six-foot-three lean and mean frame, a sculpted face with dreamy green eyes, and a sulky, sarcastic mouth.Everything about him screamed absolute bastard and he came across as absolutely irresistible.
And what happens when an irresistible object collides with an indifferent target? Something’s gotta give . . .
Look out for Guilty Pleasures from the 5th of December 2013!On-line, in a book store near you, or in your own kitchen...
Guilty Pleasures - The Food and Fornication Fables can also be pre-ordered on
http://ph.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/books/detail/108
It will be on sale at Amazon.com from the 5th of December as as e-book and Paperback!http://www.amazon.com/Guilty-Pleasures-Manuela-Cardiga/dp/1612131921/ref=sr_1_31?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385422100&sr=1-31&keywords=The+Writers+Coffee+Shop
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ExcerptLance Packhard, sex therapist, the world’s number one G-spot sleuth and premier undercover man, was flummoxed. Never in his long career had he been faced with such a challenge.Millicent Deafly—his mark—ignored him. Him. It seemed almost impossible. Instead of eyeing his magnificent body, Millicent was lasciviously fondling a cucumber. Her eyes misted. Her delicate pink tongue flicked over her pouty lower lip.“Yes. Oh, yes!” she whispered. “Tonight, yes . . .”Lance had spent the last hour following her through the local supermarket trying to get her attention, to no avail. Millicent ignored him at the fruit and vegetables section, and at gourmet cheeses he deliberately brushed up against her back, murmured an apology in his huskiest bedroom voice, and accomplished nothing.Undeterred, he followed her to the wine section, where he attempted prolonged eye contact. Alas, she always seemed to be looking in another direction, and Lance found himself trailing her into the Seafood Court. There, he liberally doused himself with a powerful pheromone spray he usually avoided using because of the unpleasant side effects.But again nothing happened. Nada.All he got was a serious skin rash from the pheromone spray and a multitude of lustful supermarket attendants—not all female—insisting on giving him a “hand.”Lance should have known when he first saw Millicent that she was trouble—big trouble. In fact, he should have known before. He’d never been hired by a mother. Husbands hired him, lovers, concerned friends, even someone’s boss once, but never a mother.Something in the almost always competitive mother/daughter synergy precluded a mother from fixing her daughter up with a man she fancied herself, and let’s face it, Lance was well aware that all women fancied him. From his dark, silken hair to his sinewy—and talented—toes, he was regarded as prime genetic material, and he had improved on nature’s bounty. He worked out four times a week—running for an hour each morning before sun-up—and rigorously watched his diet. He used a moisturiser, a hair conditioner, and carefully barbered his muscular chest and abdomen, while cultivating a becoming three-day scruff. All this was in addition to a six-foot-three lean and mean frame, a sculpted face with dreamy green eyes, and a sulky, sarcastic mouth.Everything about him screamed absolute bastard and he came across as absolutely irresistible.
And what happens when an irresistible object collides with an indifferent target? Something’s gotta give . . .
Look out for Guilty Pleasures from the 5th of December 2013!On-line, in a book store near you, or in your own kitchen...
Guilty Pleasures - The Food and Fornication Fables can also be pre-ordered on
http://ph.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/books/detail/108
It will be on sale at Amazon.com from the 5th of December as as e-book and Paperback!http://www.amazon.com/Guilty-Pleasures-Manuela-Cardiga/dp/1612131921/ref=sr_1_31?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385422100&sr=1-31&keywords=The+Writers+Coffee+Shop
December 2, 2013
THE INK BLOT GUEST SPOT: GUILTY PLEASURES - Countdown to Release: Interviewing Manuela Cardiga
Tell us a bit about your novel.Briefly: a red-hot narcissistic compulsively healthy-living control freak - Lance Packhard - who happens to be a bankrupt sex-therapist (writing a book called “Sensual Secrets of a Sexual Surrogate”) gets hired to impregnate a woman who just loves food. Millie Deafly. She’s not interested in men, let alone someone like our hero. So in order to get close to her, he gets himself hired as an assistant to the Chef at Guilty Pleasures - a dinner club belonging to our heroine - and her partner, Serge. Serge used to be a prostitute in Istanbul, a fluffer in skin-flicks in Vegas and is now a Master Chef in London. He’s also a homosexual black dwarf with major personality/sensitivity issues. Every night a new set of crazy guests come to the Guilty Pleasures to pig out, and poor Lance (as his alter-ego, a geeky but sexy Will) finds himself sucked in to a riotous world of eccentricity and sensuality quite unlike anything he’s ever experienced. He suddenly finds himself falling madly in love with his “subject”… and about to be outed as an impostor! If you want to know how it ends, read the book! (It’s really funny) Every chapter opens with “advice” from Lance’s how-not-to book, and closes with excerpts from Millie’s diary. I had an obscene amount of fun writing this book. I hope my readers enjoy reading it.
What gave you the idea for Guilty Pleasures? How long did it take you to write?
One night we had a Girl’s Only dinner at a friend’s place. We had something Mexican I’d made, I believe; and lots of wine. Lots. Lovely red wine, which led to confession time; so these wonderful, bright, successful, stunningly beautiful women started talking about their sex lives. And they weren’t getting any “Satisfaction” as Mick might say. So I got home and suddenly Lance showed up and says: “Hello! I’m Lance Packhard, Pubic Detective Extraordinaire! Looking for a lost Orgasm? Call me! Satisfaction guaranteed!” THEN Serge pushed him aside. “This arsehole doesn’t know WHAT he’s talking about! You wanna know about sensuality, desire and passion for life? You talk to ME! I was -and still am - the absolute BEST in the business! Lemme tell you a story…” And that is how it happened. I wrote a chapter a day, for about three months. That was it. I was taking dictation...
Which character was your favourite to create? Why?
I didn't CREATE him. He just showed up! I loved living with Serge inside my head. He is funny and fierce and loyal. A survivor. A wonderful character. I had a hard time keeping him in his place. He wanted to take over the whole book! Only way to get him to behave was to promise him he would get his OWN book...He's still here, waiting.
If you were asked to make a soundtrack for Guilty Pleasures, what songs would be on it? There is a soundtrack to it! I love music and it keeps creeping up in the story! I would use a lot of James songs for Millie: Laid, She's a Star; Waltzing Along; oh and Cure: Love Cats; but her "shattered song" would be "Someone That Cannot Love" by a brill singer called David Fonseca. Lance is a Neil Diamond fan so a lot of his scenes would go thatta way; Lance's broke up song would be "Creep". Serge would be snazzy, cheeky and jazzy; Hendricks is a Goth...
If your book was turned into a movie, who would you choose to play the leading characters?
Oh that is HARD! Millie would be Adele...Sensuous, so utterly lovely! Lance/Will would be Diogo Morgado (he can do cocky sex-appeal AND geeky-vulnerable and he is so gorgeous).I don't think I could convince Morgan Freeman to do an entire movie on his knees, so Serge would be Peter Dinklage. He is AMAZING; he forces me to interrupt writing so I can watch him in Game of Thrones..
What’s your writing process like?
I don't really have one. Really. The characters write themselves. The story tells itself to me. I listen, I write it down. I'm just as astonished at how things turn out as anyone else. The characters just show up, push me around, tell their story and then leave...
About the author
What is a normal day for you? Take us through your usual routine.
I have a pre-pubescent pre-teen girl? I don't do normal.
My usual routine starts at 7:00, I go to work (day-job, starving writers etc).
I take a train along the shore, and then a long walk by a sea wall to the office. (My desk is separated from the ocean by a 12 foot high picture window and a 5 meter wide quay, it's what keeps me sane).
So I work, I go home at the end of the day, 18:00 train ride. Get home, make dinner; the usual gripes: "Mom! YOU RUIN MY LIFE!"; I put in another three hours on the keyboard, and usually try to be in bed by 24:00...
When you’re not writing, what else do you like to do?
Oh I love reading, and drawing, and painting and cooking. I love music too, I love singing (badly and loudly!)... And I love writing. I do it even when I'm not doing it, if you know what i mean.
Tell us about the day you found out Guilty Pleasures was going to be published.
How did you react?
After about a year of sending the manuscript to agents and publishers, I got used to receiving these e-mails that said: "WE LOVED YOUR STORY! I killed myself laughing, the Acquisitions Department loved the concept; however...It is not our Genre.Don't give up, it's a GREAT story!" Everyone laughed, everyone loved, nobody published...HUNDREDS of lovely encouraging "no"'s. So one day I saw another e-mail, I clicked on it. I read it. I didn't understand a single word it said. So I read it again. And again. It was weird. I just couldn't understand. My daughter came over and said: "Mom, why are you crying?" And I was. So I told her, "I think someone wants to publish the story, but I can't be sure." And she started crying too.
Is there a certain book that has made a lasting impression on you?
Yes. Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird. It is so absolutely perfect.
Also "The Count of Monte Cristo" by Alexander Dumas. It was my first "grownup book".
My Father gave it to me when I turned 7. I love that book.
What made you want to become a writer?
Oh dear....You think people WANT to be writers??? It's not a choice, it's an affliction, a compulsion. Stories possess and overwhelm you. You either let them out or explode.
If you were planning your perfect aphrodisiac recipe, what would it be and why?
Let me tell you a secret…There are no “perfect aphrodisiac recipes”! The secret is eating with someone who awakens you in every way: your heart, your mind, your sensuality. So the perfect aphrodisiac recipe? The main ingredient is the guest.You can serve pizza, or baby quail stuffed with wild rice and pine-nuts in a port-wine chocolate and orange zest sauce. The intention is what spices the dish, tantalizes the palate and arouses desire! Serve what ever you serve with fire in your eye and a pout promising kisses.
What do you think the most important thing in a relationship is?
There are two, as far as I’m concerned: love and acceptance are indivisible. And don’t underestimate the quality of kindness. Kindness is the sexiest quality.
If you were stranded on a desert island, what five things would you want to have with you?
Chocolate, lipstick, eyeliner, silk stockings, and a bold Knight on a quest...
What’s next for Manuela Cardiga?
I have absolutely no idea! I'm waiting for life to surprise me.
(there is a novel harassing me, but I'm considering a restraining order)
Bonus Questions
Favourite movie/TV show/food/season?
Favourite movie.
JUST ONE?
It's a Wonderful Life; The Piano; Blade Runner; Breaking the Waves; When Harry Met Sally; Black Cat White Cat; Dangerous Liaisons, just about anything directed by Clint Eastwood or starring De Niro.
(I hate De Niro). Sorry, there are just too many.
TV Show
Game of Thrones
(I dont watch TV. This is an exception)
Food
Are you kidding? Don't ASK things like that!
Season
Summer. Autumn. Winter. Spring.
Who would you give the award to for best first kiss (in a movie)?
The award goes to: COLIN FIRTH! In anything. The man can kiss...
(Did you see what he did in "The Diary of Bridgit Jones"? He MADE that movie)
Sweet or salty?
Both. Separately or together. Also spicy...
Worst fear?
I wake up, and this is a dream.
Guilty Pleasures - The Food and Fornication Fables can be pre-ordered on
http://ph.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/books/detail/108
It will be on sale at Amazon.com from the 5th of December as as e-book and Paperback!http://www.amazon.com/Guilty-Pleasures-Manuela-Cardiga/dp/1612131921/ref=sr_1_31?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385422100&sr=1-31&keywords=The+Writers+Coffee+Shop
What gave you the idea for Guilty Pleasures? How long did it take you to write?
One night we had a Girl’s Only dinner at a friend’s place. We had something Mexican I’d made, I believe; and lots of wine. Lots. Lovely red wine, which led to confession time; so these wonderful, bright, successful, stunningly beautiful women started talking about their sex lives. And they weren’t getting any “Satisfaction” as Mick might say. So I got home and suddenly Lance showed up and says: “Hello! I’m Lance Packhard, Pubic Detective Extraordinaire! Looking for a lost Orgasm? Call me! Satisfaction guaranteed!” THEN Serge pushed him aside. “This arsehole doesn’t know WHAT he’s talking about! You wanna know about sensuality, desire and passion for life? You talk to ME! I was -and still am - the absolute BEST in the business! Lemme tell you a story…” And that is how it happened. I wrote a chapter a day, for about three months. That was it. I was taking dictation...
Which character was your favourite to create? Why?
I didn't CREATE him. He just showed up! I loved living with Serge inside my head. He is funny and fierce and loyal. A survivor. A wonderful character. I had a hard time keeping him in his place. He wanted to take over the whole book! Only way to get him to behave was to promise him he would get his OWN book...He's still here, waiting.
If you were asked to make a soundtrack for Guilty Pleasures, what songs would be on it? There is a soundtrack to it! I love music and it keeps creeping up in the story! I would use a lot of James songs for Millie: Laid, She's a Star; Waltzing Along; oh and Cure: Love Cats; but her "shattered song" would be "Someone That Cannot Love" by a brill singer called David Fonseca. Lance is a Neil Diamond fan so a lot of his scenes would go thatta way; Lance's broke up song would be "Creep". Serge would be snazzy, cheeky and jazzy; Hendricks is a Goth...
If your book was turned into a movie, who would you choose to play the leading characters?
Oh that is HARD! Millie would be Adele...Sensuous, so utterly lovely! Lance/Will would be Diogo Morgado (he can do cocky sex-appeal AND geeky-vulnerable and he is so gorgeous).I don't think I could convince Morgan Freeman to do an entire movie on his knees, so Serge would be Peter Dinklage. He is AMAZING; he forces me to interrupt writing so I can watch him in Game of Thrones..
What’s your writing process like?
I don't really have one. Really. The characters write themselves. The story tells itself to me. I listen, I write it down. I'm just as astonished at how things turn out as anyone else. The characters just show up, push me around, tell their story and then leave...
About the author
What is a normal day for you? Take us through your usual routine.
I have a pre-pubescent pre-teen girl? I don't do normal.
My usual routine starts at 7:00, I go to work (day-job, starving writers etc).
I take a train along the shore, and then a long walk by a sea wall to the office. (My desk is separated from the ocean by a 12 foot high picture window and a 5 meter wide quay, it's what keeps me sane).
So I work, I go home at the end of the day, 18:00 train ride. Get home, make dinner; the usual gripes: "Mom! YOU RUIN MY LIFE!"; I put in another three hours on the keyboard, and usually try to be in bed by 24:00...
When you’re not writing, what else do you like to do?
Oh I love reading, and drawing, and painting and cooking. I love music too, I love singing (badly and loudly!)... And I love writing. I do it even when I'm not doing it, if you know what i mean.
Tell us about the day you found out Guilty Pleasures was going to be published.
How did you react?
After about a year of sending the manuscript to agents and publishers, I got used to receiving these e-mails that said: "WE LOVED YOUR STORY! I killed myself laughing, the Acquisitions Department loved the concept; however...It is not our Genre.Don't give up, it's a GREAT story!" Everyone laughed, everyone loved, nobody published...HUNDREDS of lovely encouraging "no"'s. So one day I saw another e-mail, I clicked on it. I read it. I didn't understand a single word it said. So I read it again. And again. It was weird. I just couldn't understand. My daughter came over and said: "Mom, why are you crying?" And I was. So I told her, "I think someone wants to publish the story, but I can't be sure." And she started crying too.
Is there a certain book that has made a lasting impression on you?
Yes. Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird. It is so absolutely perfect.
Also "The Count of Monte Cristo" by Alexander Dumas. It was my first "grownup book".
My Father gave it to me when I turned 7. I love that book.
What made you want to become a writer?
Oh dear....You think people WANT to be writers??? It's not a choice, it's an affliction, a compulsion. Stories possess and overwhelm you. You either let them out or explode.
If you were planning your perfect aphrodisiac recipe, what would it be and why?
Let me tell you a secret…There are no “perfect aphrodisiac recipes”! The secret is eating with someone who awakens you in every way: your heart, your mind, your sensuality. So the perfect aphrodisiac recipe? The main ingredient is the guest.You can serve pizza, or baby quail stuffed with wild rice and pine-nuts in a port-wine chocolate and orange zest sauce. The intention is what spices the dish, tantalizes the palate and arouses desire! Serve what ever you serve with fire in your eye and a pout promising kisses.
What do you think the most important thing in a relationship is?
There are two, as far as I’m concerned: love and acceptance are indivisible. And don’t underestimate the quality of kindness. Kindness is the sexiest quality.
If you were stranded on a desert island, what five things would you want to have with you?
Chocolate, lipstick, eyeliner, silk stockings, and a bold Knight on a quest...
What’s next for Manuela Cardiga?
I have absolutely no idea! I'm waiting for life to surprise me.
(there is a novel harassing me, but I'm considering a restraining order)
Bonus Questions
Favourite movie/TV show/food/season?
Favourite movie.
JUST ONE?
It's a Wonderful Life; The Piano; Blade Runner; Breaking the Waves; When Harry Met Sally; Black Cat White Cat; Dangerous Liaisons, just about anything directed by Clint Eastwood or starring De Niro.
(I hate De Niro). Sorry, there are just too many.
TV Show
Game of Thrones
(I dont watch TV. This is an exception)
Food
Are you kidding? Don't ASK things like that!
Season
Summer. Autumn. Winter. Spring.
Who would you give the award to for best first kiss (in a movie)?
The award goes to: COLIN FIRTH! In anything. The man can kiss...
(Did you see what he did in "The Diary of Bridgit Jones"? He MADE that movie)
Sweet or salty?
Both. Separately or together. Also spicy...
Worst fear?
I wake up, and this is a dream.
Guilty Pleasures - The Food and Fornication Fables can be pre-ordered on
http://ph.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/books/detail/108
It will be on sale at Amazon.com from the 5th of December as as e-book and Paperback!http://www.amazon.com/Guilty-Pleasures-Manuela-Cardiga/dp/1612131921/ref=sr_1_31?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385422100&sr=1-31&keywords=The+Writers+Coffee+Shop
November 30, 2013
Lady Da Grind Missed a Kiss
Oh poor Lady Da Grind,
She did so sob...
Oh she cried
And pled and trembled
Cause the dream kiss
In no way resembled
The tender mouth
For which she sighed.
Manuela Cardiga
November 29, 2013
THE INK BLOT GUEST SPOT: "Faerie Tale" by Grant Harbison
Suffering Socrates
I’m awoken with fright
For once again that mischievous young sprite
Has set my alarm for the middle of the night
Blurry and beat I stumble out of bed
Trip over the cat and land on my head
The pain is immense as I lay on the floor
But I try to persevere and crawl to the door
As I get to the door the wind slams it shut
Dazed and confused I sit on my butt
Mustering strength I continue to toil
To the sanctuary of the of the kitchen and the kettle to boil
When I get there I find the power has been cut
And stare at the sympathetic face of my mutt
Moaning and cursing I head to the porch
I need light
Need to find my torch
When I get back to the bedroom
I’m far from amused
Because the fucking sock faerie thinks she’s got me screwed
For she’s mixed up my socks and stolen my shoes
Grant Harbison
I’m awoken with fright
For once again that mischievous young sprite
Has set my alarm for the middle of the night
Blurry and beat I stumble out of bed
Trip over the cat and land on my head
The pain is immense as I lay on the floor
But I try to persevere and crawl to the door
As I get to the door the wind slams it shut
Dazed and confused I sit on my butt
Mustering strength I continue to toil
To the sanctuary of the of the kitchen and the kettle to boil
When I get there I find the power has been cut
And stare at the sympathetic face of my mutt
Moaning and cursing I head to the porch
I need light
Need to find my torch
When I get back to the bedroom
I’m far from amused
Because the fucking sock faerie thinks she’s got me screwed
For she’s mixed up my socks and stolen my shoes
Grant Harbison
Loving This Living Moment
Oh you are
My constant
Silly smile;
I look a fool
And love it
Oh you are
The spark
That lights my eyes;
I feel alive
And love it
Oh you are
My senses devouring
The dazzling present;
And the delicious treasure
Of anticipating
Pleasure.
I am here,
And love it.
Manuela Cardiga
My constant
Silly smile;
I look a fool
And love it
Oh you are
The spark
That lights my eyes;
I feel alive
And love it
Oh you are
My senses devouring
The dazzling present;
And the delicious treasure
Of anticipating
Pleasure.
I am here,
And love it.
Manuela Cardiga
