It’s no secret that us Sassy Minxes are suckers for all things New York – our Sassy Guide to NY is coming VERY soon, we promise – but since our return from our favourite city back in November, we’ve been filling up on all things New York-y – pancakes, expensive make up purchases and Miranda Dickinson’s new book, Fairytale of New York – I mean, look at the cover, it’s freakin’ beautiful, isn’t it? – the words are pretty awesome too, in fact this is one of my favourite reads of 2009, if you haven’t read it, go buy a copy now – well, read all about author girl Miranda first then go buy a copy, that’ll work.

Describe yourself in 5 words please, Miranda…
Happy, romantic, optimistic, dreamer, witty

Miranda, your fabulous debut, Fairytale of New York, has recently been released, can you tell us what it’s about?
Fairytale of New York is a story of love, hope and life in Manhattan’s Upper West Side. It follows an English girl, Rosie, who loves living and working in New York. She has a successful floristry business and is surrounded by friends that love her – New York Times columnist (and force of nature) Celia, effortlessly charming but commitment-phobic Ed and kooky Marnie. Despite their constant attempts to persuade her to open her heart, Rosie refuses to even consider dating – until she meets Nate, a gorgeous book editor, who makes her start to think about the possibility of loving again… But a chance meeting brings her face to face with her past, revealing the reason why she fled to New York, six years ago, to start a new life…

Sassy Minxes hearts NY, what’s your personal must-see/must-go-to places in NY – care to share?
Confession time, here: although I’ve been in love with NY as long as I can remember, I haven’t been able to visit yet! I started writing Fairytale of New York because I couldn’t afford to go there and wanted an excuse to buy a travel book to research the city – I watched films set there, read countless books, spent many hours online researching and grilled any friend who had been lucky enough to go. Making sure that the NY in my novel was a mammoth task – I ended up researching everything from street plans to restaurant menus, apartment rents and even what kind of trees grew in the Upper West Side! Places that are definitely on my list to do when I visit (hopefully later this year) are:
GRAND CENTRAL STATION – everyone I know who has been to NY says this is a must – also the fab vaulted Oyster Bar underneath the station.
EMPIRE STATE AT SUNSET – come on, you have to do it in honour of Sleepless in Seattle’s final scene and An Affair to Remember…
CAFFE FALAI (Soho) – this Italian cafe-bistro is the inspiration for Caffe Marco, one of Ed and Rosie’s favourite Sunday eateries. It’s just a perfect NY venue and I will definitely go there when I visit!
ZABAR’S - an Upper West Side institution, this deli featured in You’ve Got Mail (my favourite chick-flick of all time!) and friends who have been there say the food and atmosphere is amazing.
SHOPPING IN SOHO – the boutiques, art stands and vintage shops make for one of the most eclectic shopping areas

Fairytale Of New York was discovered by Authonomy.com, what is it and can you tell us a li’l bit about the process?
Authonomy.com is a site for unpublished and aspiring writers, set up by HarperCollins. You can upload your work and other people read, rate and comment on it. There’s a fantastic community atmosphere on the Forum and it’s wonderful for building your confidence as a writer. I uploaded my novel – then called Coffee At Kowalski’s – onto the site in October 2008, really just to see what people thought of it. I was amazed at the responses – weirdly mostly from guys! It seems there are an awful lot of male closet chick-lit lovers out there! About a month after uploading my novel, I received an email from an editor at AVON (part of HarperCollins), asking to read the full manuscript – which was amazing but scary seeing as I hadn’t finished it! I spent three days and nights completing it and sent it to her, never expecting to hear from her again – but two weeks later I received a phone call from AVON’s publishing director, offering me a three-book deal!

Are you a full-time author-girl now, and if so, what’s a typical day in the life of Miranda like now?
I’m not full-time yet, so I write for two days a week and then work for three days a week as a feature writer for a food research company. On my writing days I tend to catch up on emails and research in the morning and then write through the afternoon into the evening. On ‘work’ days, I write when I get home and also at weekends. It varies depending on where I’m at in the writing/editing process: at the moment I’m just writing every available hour of the day!

What’s your motto for life?
Keep believing – I’m an eternal optimist and hope is probably one of my best features. My friend’s mum also has a phrase which I love: “Life has a funny way of sorting itself out” – that’s so true and it helps you to relax when you go through stressful stuff.

Can you share a li’l bit about your creative process please, Miranda – where do you write? What time of day do you write – that sort of thing…
The answer to that is whenever and wherever! I carry a notebook with me everywhere I go because stories are all around us. You’d be amazed the conversations I’ve overheard in coffee shops (one of my favourite places to ‘people-watch’)… Also, when people find out that you’re a writer they tell you unbelievably fantastic stories from their own lives and people they know – it’s a great way to do research! I live in the smallest flat and have an old desk in the corner of my living room where I do the majority of my writing, but I think it’s important to get out to write, too – a change of scene is a great antedote to writers’ block!

You’re a singer too, aren’t you? Tell us all about it Miranda!
I’ve been writing, recording and performing my own songs with a variety of bands since I was in my late teens and I also sing with a wedding band – great fun and you get to sing all the cheesy songs you love as well as nosing in on other people’s weddings. I’m currently self-funding my first album, which I hope to release later this year. You can hear some of the tracks at: www.mirandadickinson.com
Some of my songs are playing in radio stations across Europe and Africa and one track, Man Behind The Smile, one the International Singer Songwriters’ Association’s Best Newcomer Award in 2008 and was picked up by MTV for their programmes.

What do you love most about being a woman in the world?
Being girly! I love a good natter with great friends over coffee or food and I’m a sucker for a rom-com chick-flick. I think women get the chance to appreciate the important things in life: friends, love and beautiful things.

What 5 tracks would be essential to a MD soundtrack?
Ooh, great question! Only five?! OK, here goes:
1. Let There Be Love by Nat King Cole (quite simply, the best song ever)
2. September Grass by James Taylor (I only have to hear the first bar and I’m smiling!)
3. Let Go by Frou Frou (I’m a mahoosive Imogen Heap fan)
4. Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol (it reminds me of my boyfriend – awww!)
5. Sir Duke by Stevie Wonder (gets me up and boppin’ every time!)

What makes you jump-in-the-air happy?
Spending time with my fantastic friends (most of whom are in the wedding band) – I just love hanging out with them. Also (and I know I am such a child when it comes to these) snow, Christmas, birthday cake, hugs, any film by Norah Ephron and holding hands with my lovely boyfriend Bob.

Miranda’s Sassy List – what’s your favourite…
Book: The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen and Last Christmas by Julia Williams
City: I have to say Birmingham, near where I live. It’s got everything: great shopping, music, theatres and cafes and a completely unique atmosphere
Event: My friend Tash’s wedding – it was the most original, romantic day you could imagine
Highlight of the year: Walking into my favourite bookshop and seeing my book on display – I was a tear-stained wreck!
Movie: The Ugly Truth and The Proposal – I can’t choose!
Album: Eclipse by Imogen Heap
Quote: “For two pins I’d get myself a horse and a sword..” Sir Terry Pratchett on getting his knighthood
Website: www.notonthehighstreet.com – gorgeous, unique things from artisan companies

Fairytale of New York is published by AVON (HarperCollins) £6.99. Her second novel, Welcome to my World will be released by AVON later this year.

www.miranda-dickinson.com