The name Liz Foster may sound familiar. Liz has written a monthly article in The Village Observer for the past seven years. Her column is called Life’s Rich Pattern.
Liz’s debut novel, The Good Women’s Guide to Making Better Choices, was released in January 2024. The Book has been described as a warm, funny, and outrageously unfair novel about deception, financial fraud, goat’s cheese, and starting over.
We asked Liz questions about the Book and her life in Lane Cove.
Tell Us About The Good Woman’s Guide to Making Better Choices
The Good Women’s Guide to Making Better Choices features Libby, a forty-something woman from country Victoria who lives in Bondi with her financier husband Ludo and their two children.
When Ludo is jailed for financial fraud, and her friends and family lose tens of thousands of dollars, Libby feels agonizingly complicit for hosting the final investor pitch in their home.
Matters go from atrocious to worse when her possessions and home are repossessed, Libby is sacked, and a priceless family heirloom is wrecked. While camping out at the rural goat farm where she was raised, she creatively re-evaluates her life choices.
What Prompted You to Write a Novel?
Eight years ago, I was recuperating from major surgery and treatment for breast cancer. I was getting better, but it was a long road to recovery. It felt as though my career and life opportunities had been taken away.
My doctor told me my health was my new career, and I thought, where’s the job satisfaction in that?
My husband suggested in an off-the-cuff way I should write a book, and the next day, I enrolled in a creative writing course. It was brilliant fun, taking my mind to new places and helping create storylines and characters with all the time on my hands, so it was therapeutic.
It also seemed a natural progression from my articles in The Village Observer.
This is my first published novel but my second manuscript. The first one is set in a scrapyard in the Inner West. It’s the one I wrote while honing my craft and recuperating, so it’s very dear to my heart, but I can see it’s not good enough to publish in its current state.
How Long Did It Take to Write the Book?
This is well and truly a lockdown book – the best part of eighteen months plus longer to finesse edits and so on.
What Inspired You To Write Feel Good Fiction?
As a reader, I enjoy all genres (except dystopia!), but as a writer, I always wanted to write something that puts a smile on the reader’s face. Commercial fiction is a broad genre, but for me, the other appeal is making it relatable, featuring real people who live real lives today. Libby could be your mother, sister, cousin, or partner. I want people to think, what would I do?
How Difficult Was it to Write Your Book and Have it Published?
The hardest thing about writing any book is finishing it.
So many writers start with guns blazing and then give up.
You must press on, do courses, learn the craft, and make it as good as possible.
It’s hard to get signed by a traditional publisher, even if your work is great. The final X factor is always the element of luck. My agent put the manuscript in front of my publisher when she was looking for a light-hearted summer read for her January 2024 window. If I’d written crime, fantasy, or a thriller, it would have stayed in the top drawer at that point!
Have You Got Some Tips For Other Lane Cove Locals Who Would Like to Have Their Book Manuscript Published?
Connect with others in the industry and learn as much as you can. Make your manuscript as perfect as possible—practice video pitching and writing punchy synopses. And if you don’t succeed at first, keep going!
Are You Working On Another Book?
I am editing my next Book. It follows the parallel lives of two jurors on the same court case as the case develops. One of them thinks the defendant’s guilty, and the other believes he’s innocent, but they both change their minds. It’s just as light as this one, though!
What Do You Do When You Are Not Writing Books?
I’ve worked as a strategic marketer and copywriter for most of my career and still work as a Communications Manager for a nursing home in Ashfield. It’s a wonderful job and environment but a challenging role during the pandemic! I produce a bimonthly in-house magazine called Heartbeat, where I interview residents and staff members, plus other features – their stories are always so inspiring.
Tell Us About Your Book Launch
I had a local launch at Gallery Lane Cove with family, friends, and other writers, which was wonderful. Author Joanna Nell interviewed me, and the good people of Burns Bay Bookery came along to sell books on the night.
Were You Inspired by a Place or Person in Lane Cove?
No specific places or people in the Cove inspired me, but I wrote about fifty per cent of the novel in the library!
What Do You Like About Living in Lane Cove North?
Everything you need is within spitting distance, but our street also backs onto the bush. It’s the perfect locality without being too built up, close to the national park, but 20 minutes to the city on the bus. And it’s so central if you’re heading anywhere else, like the Hills district or Parramatta – half an hour to anywhere!
What’s Your Favourite Thing To Do in Lane Cove?
Walk my pooch in the local bush reserve or Blackman Oval. Go for a bike ride in the national park. Play tennis at the Lane Cove West Club on Saturdays. We’ve lived here for twenty-one years, so you can hardly leave the house without running into someone you know.
What’s your Favorite Lane Cove coffee shop?
In my immediate hood, it’s O’Sheares on Mowbray Road. In Lane Cove, it’s La Provence (two coffees after the gym as a treat!!)
Where Can Locals Buy the Book?
You can purchase my Book from Burns Bay Bookery (some copies are signed). It is also available in all good bookstores and online retailers. The paperback is available in ANZ only at this stage, but ebook and audio formats are available worldwide (audio out at the end of January).
Where Can Locals Meet You?
I’m also doing a Q&A with author Ber Carroll at Lane Cove Library on Tuesday, 20 February 2024, from 6.15 pm to 7.30 pm. You can book for this event here.
You can also see Liz at the Chatswoos Library on 2 February 2024 – Book here.
Liz Foster Contact Details
Liz has just relaunched her website, including a monthly newsletter, Lizzie’s Lighter Look on Life, featuring lifestyle snippets and recommendations on books, TV shows, podcasts, and more, as well as book news.
Website: www.lizfoster.com.au
Facebook: @lizfosterauthor
Instagram: @lizfosterauthor
TikTok: @lizfosterauthor
Newsletter signup: https://bit.ly/lizziesnewsletter
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