New book

A 41-year-old single mother from Littlehampton has bypassed the corporate publishing giants to score an international break-out hit with her debut novel – all while balancing full-time care for her five children.

Writing from her dining room table under the pen name R T M Kennedy, Roxanne Kennedy has quickly achieved a series of publishing milestones after launching her debut book A Hidden Romance.

The book has just been officially purchased and added to the permanent digital collections of both the New York Public Library and the Brooklyn Public Library in America. It also secured direct sales across eight different countries worldwide in its first month.

“I wrote this book in the quiet moments between looking after my family and managing doctor appointments,” Roxanne said: “To know that a story which started at my dining room table here on the Sussex coast has crossed the Atlantic and is now sitting on the digital screens of New Yorkers via their library apps is a complete dream come true. I want to show other parents that you can reach a global stage from home.

“After going through one child having an aggressive cancer a few years ago and then another one being diagnosed with a form of epilepsy not long after, I am trying to create a career for myself that allows me to be more present for them while creating a better life for my children. “

The book has been self-published and is available on EBook across major platforms. The paperback is available on Amazon, Waterstones and other online bookstores.

“This is a medium spiced man-loves-man romance which is one of the biggest selling genres across the globe. The idea was to write a realistic story line, with plenty of yearning, supportive friends and ultimately a happy ending. As a single mum of five children with absolutely no creative writing, I planned and wrote it over four months and had it professionally checked by a literary consultant.

“This all started after I became obsessed with the hit crave TV show Heated Rivalry based on Rachel Reids Game Changer series. After watching the show I purchased the books and fell in love with MM romance. Reading 29 book this year so far, I would regularly talk with people in my gym about the books and we would exchange titles and discuss the plot of various MM romance novels. One person in particular would find fault in a lot of the plots so I decided to try and write one myself. Halfway through the first draft I was highly impressed with what I achieved and decided to self-publish just to say it was something I had achieved. I never expected to sell any as I am completely unknown, no website, no newsletter and barely any social media followers.

“This is a stand-alone novel. I am currently working on a second stand-alone novel, and I do also have a four/five separate book series I have mapped out that I would like to do. I am a first-time author. I have never even taken any creative writing classes, I have had to learn writing, self-publishing, book cover creating, and marketing as well as everything else it consists of by myself in a short space of time.”