Talented author Charmian Hussey, 73, has been named one of the Top 5 most inspiring women in the Southwest by newspaper Cornish Guardian. The article, which was published on Wednesday 21st December 2011, names her alongside esteemed peers; Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall Lady Mary Holborow, award winning newspaper editor Zena O’Rourke, Head-teacher Susan Rowe and Cricket player Katie Pearce.
Hussey has made many achievements throughout her life, not only as a unique and inspiring author. After pursuing a successful career as a fashion model, she studied Archaeology at the University of London, followed by a Doctorate on Turkish Pottery at Oxford. During her time as a student at university she was introduced by her lecturer Max Mallowan to his wife; crime writer Agatha Christie. Her friendship with Christie was an important influence on her future writing.
Her first novel ‘The Valley of the Secrets’ was finally published in 2002, fifteen years after completion. After numerous rejections from publishers and being thrown to the ‘slush pile’, she relegated her manuscript to the attic until her cousin established St. Pirans Press.
250 hardbacks and 3,000 paperbacks were printed and distributed to various booksellers across London. After a rave review in Country Life magazine, Hussey was thrust into the literary limelight. Her books were so high in demand that second-hand hardbacks were selling for almost £2,000 on eBay. Not bad for a woman who was rejected by London’s media for being “unpromotable.”
Hussey was approached by literary agent Peter Straus who represented her in a fierce bidding war to publish the novel. The winning bidder was Ann McNeil of Hodder who paid a substantial but undisclosed sum.
‘The Valley of Secrets’ follows the journey of protagonist Stephen who receives an unexpected letter from a strange source and sets off to the beautiful Cornish Valley.
The novel was written when her nine year old son Nicholas was a weekly boarder and she was a single parent making ends meet. The story was influenced by Nicholas’ interest in the Amazonian rainforest combined with her love of the Cornish countryside, which is articulated in a gloriously old fashioned way.
Her achievements don’t end there; her second novel ‘Howl in the Wind’ is also creating a whirlwind of attention and a huge amount of respect. It was completed after a bout of serious illness and is illustrated by Rose Forshall, who also resides in Cornwall.
The story is about wheelchair bound Lizzie, who visits Cornwall on a quest to find answers about her long dead father. It has been described by Baroness Tonni Grey Thompson DBE as;
“a brilliant read from a skilled storyteller”
Hussey has been commended for her thorough research into spinal injuries and she has chosen to donate half the profits from her novel to London Paralympics 2012 via two charities; Wheelpower and Poppa Guttman.
‘Howl on the Wind’ is available to purchase from http://www.atlanticpressbooks.com/ for £12.99 and special edition signed and boxed souvenirs are available for £100.
You can find out more about Charmian by following her on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/charmianhussey.
- Jessica Dutton
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