The Literature Network - First novel has the last laugh Interview She is a farmer's wife from Cornwall whose first novel - after languishing in an attic for 15 years - is the talk of the publishing world. Agatha Christie, once her friend and mentor, would have approved

First novel has the last laugh Interview She is a farmer's wife from Cornwall whose first novel - after languishing in an attic for 15 years - is the talk of the publishing world. Agatha Christie, once her friend and mentor, would have approved

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From: The Sunday Telegraph London
Date: 20040411
Author:Emily Bearn

The publishing industry delights in unlikely sensations, but the case of Charmian Hussey - a 64-year-old farmer's wife from Cornwall - is about as good as they come. Her first novel, The Valley of Secrets, was completed in 1987. It was described as "an adventure fantasy for children aged nine to 90" - a fantasy which failed to transcend the editorial slush pile.

After umpteen rejections, Hussey consigned her manuscript to the bats' droppings of the attic. Fifteen years later, it has resurfaced, precipitating one of the fiercest bidding wars ever to have been fought in the publishing world.

The ...

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First novel has the last laugh Interview She is a farmer's wife from Cornwall whose first novel - after languishing in an attic for 15 years - is the talk of the publishing world. Agatha Christie, once her friend and mentor, would have approved

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