Jane Costello

Melissa Nathan Award

Jane — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 11:21:58 +0000

I always despise the return from a sunny holiday; my post-holiday blues tend to be virtually purple. And this time was worse than most. After a spectacular Easter break in Florida, I stepped off the plane in my flip-flops only to be battered in the face by rain and experience a rapid loss of feeling in all digits due to the cold.
The situation could’ve been catastrophic for my generally sturdy levels of good-humour … until I received some news from my fairy godmother (aka publicist) Emma Harrow that bowled me over. She emailed to say: ‘I take it you’ve heard you’re nominated for the Melissa Nathan Award?
Melissa Nathan was a hugely talented and brilliantly funny writer of romantic comedies. She died aged just 37 in 2006 and, in her honour, this literary award was established – to recognise novels that ‘combine the magical, life-enhancing elements of humour and love.’
Judges include Jo Brand, Joanna Trollope, Jessica Hynes, Sophie Kinsella, Morwenna Banks, Liza Tarbuck, Gaynor Allen (Head Book Buyer for Tesco), Andrew Cleaves, Managing Director National Express Coaches (the sponsors of the award) and Freya Wright (Book Buyer for Waitrose). So – quite a committee.
I’m up against some fantastic authors, some of whom I count as friends, including the irrepressible Milly Johnson, Jenny Colgan, Allie Spencer, Sarrah Manning and Jane Lovering.
We all find out the result at a glittering awards ceremony (they always glitter, don’t they?) on 12th June . . . so watch this space!

Little Black Dress – flash competition

Jane — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:16:00 +0000

I absolutely love Little Black Dress – if you haven’t checked out their super-glam website – www.littleblackdress.co.uk – I suggest you do so fast. So I’m delighted to announce that I’ll be partnering up with them in a number of ways in the next few months, details of which I’ll post soon. In the meantime, they’ve launched a competition to toast our new friendship and are giving away ten signed copies of All The Single Ladies. You can enter HERE. Good luck!

Marie Claire

Jane — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 09:31:17 +0000

Will you be proposing marriage today?

Jane — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 11:12:54 +0000

LIKE many teenagers, I was what you might call feisty, in the same way you might call a rampaging Rottweiler spirited.
If anyone had predicted that being a woman would ever stop me from doing something in life, I’d have quoted the Female Eunuch at them until their ears bled.
Even as an adult – after the hormonal mayhem of adolescence fizzled out – I’ll still happily call myself a feminist and will take on anyone around the dinner table on subjects ranging from pay inequality to Nuts magazine.
But there’s one step I won’t take: ask a man to marry me.
As 2012 is a leap year, today – February 29 – is traditionally when women do just that, turning on its head the conventional course of events.
It’s a custom that’s been in place for centuries, one supposedly made law in 1288 by Queen Margaret of Scotland, who in many ways sounds like my kind of gal: she ordered that if the proposal was refused, a fine would be levied – of a silk gown.
Trouble is, no dress is worth it as far as I’m concerned – not silk, not lace, not haute couture Valentino embellished with hand-spun gold thread.
It’s a standpoint I made plain to my boyfriend, lest he cleared his diary today and put his mum on standby for some big news.
We’ve been together for almost a year and are madly, possibly sickeningly, in love.
While I wouldn’t have a single sleepless night if my ring finger remained unadorned forever, I’ve no doubt I would be the happiest woman alive if he asked me to marry him.
But would I pop the question myself? Not a chance.
Which you might find odd for someone with a keen sense of empowerment, who respects every woman’s right to make her own choices and grapple with the not-always-forthcoming hand of fate.
It’s not as if there is a shortage of precedence: even Queen Victoria proposed to Prince Albert in 1839 (though admittedly because he was of a lower social standing, not because he’d failed to notice she’d left the Boodles catalogue lying around).
And a massive part of me admires anyone with enough bloody-minded backbone to renounce the old-fashioned way of doing things.
Despite all that, I know this much: Even in the twenty-first century, if a man REALLY wants to marry you, in most cases, he will ask.
He will not squeeze your hand meaningfully at friends’ weddings, wistfully hoping you get the message.
He will not walk slowly past jewelry shop windows, optimistic that you’ll take the hint.
He will not snuggle up in front of Wedding Crashers on DVD and whisper: ‘I read a survey today that said marriage makes couples have more sex.’
He will simply ask.
Whether we like it or not – no matter how enlightened they are, or how zealously they do the washing up – most men still think of proposing marriage as their job.
Nine out of ten proposals continue to be made by men. A vox pop of my male friends made it clear that most wouldn’t thank you for doing it for them – one said they’d feel ‘robbed of a defining moment in life’ and another that it would ‘steal their thunder’.
And, although only the hardest of hearts could fail to be moved by the wonderful Sex And The City character Miranda asking for Steve’s hand in marriage, I won’t be following suit.
Because the fact that most men still relish the idea of proposing – when the right woman comes along – would leave me with one, inexorable question (even if he said yes).
Why had he never felt sufficiently strongly about me to do it himself?
As the statistics bear out, marriage can be tough enough as it is without leaping into it with someone who isn’t 100% sold on the idea.
Lukewarm is no good. Indifferent just won’t cut it. A marriage needs to begin with your man so in love that he can’t bear the thought of you slipping through his fingers.
Now, I know there will be men whose reaction will be: Hang on a minute . . . you can’t have things all your way! If you want equality, you have to roll up your sleeves and get stuck into the hard work too – and that includes proposing.
Except, equality never meant having to do everything ourselves. If that was the case, there would be no such thing as Kwik Fit Fitters.
Moreover, feminism was never supposed to ruin anyone’s fun – or deny us the heart-stopping pleasure of being on the receiving end of a proposal, something women have enjoyed since the day someone came up with the idea of marriage itself.
If you’ve ever watched Ryan O’Neal’s blazing-eyed proposal to Ali McGraw in Love Story, or read Mr Darcy declaring to Elizabeth Bennett ‘how ardently I admire and love you’, this must surely resonate.
I know some might think I’m simply not brave enough, or not as liberated as I think. Surely – some will argue – if your man is proving as responsive to hints as a house brick, there’s nothing wrong with taking the bull by the horns yourself.
But this is not what the hard-fought battles of feminism were about. This is a mere distraction from the real issues: domestic violence, sexism in the workplace, pornography, misogyny – that unpleasant list that still leaves us plenty with which to concern ourselves.
We never fought for the right to not be swept off our feet by men we love.
We never fought for the right not to have a man make the ultimate declaration of his respect and affection.
And we certainly never fought to remove any effort on a man’s part when it comes to committing to one another. Unless I’ve got it completely wrong, feminism isn’t there to add to our already burgeoning to-do lists. It’s on our side, remember?
As with anything in life, there are of course exceptions. A friend’s mum proposed to her dad because she didn’t want to ‘live in sin’ – and 38 years later, they’re still together.
It also strikes me that, if you’ve turned a man down once, you could hardly expect him to keep coming back for punishment. In that case, you’d better start rehearsing your speech.
But for my part, I won’t be joining in today, even if my teenaged self would have been appalled. Although perhaps she’d be too busy rolling her eyes and dying her hair a ravishing shade of industrial tarmac to worry about it.
If a proposal is ever on the cards between my boyfriend and I, it’ll be him who makes it. I think if most of us are entirely honest with ourselves, that’s the way we’d prefer it.

Mother’s Day book signing

admin — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 22:37:21 +0000

If you’re anything like me, it’s never easy finding something both original and just plain lovely for your mum on Mother’s Day. Well, I may have the perfect solution . . . if you can get to Southport on 3rd March anyway. I’ll be in Waterstone’s in the town between 1pm and 2pm on that day, signing copies of All The Single Ladies and writing personal messages for mums who love reading. This is surely the perfect Mother’s Day gift: it lasts longer than M&S roses and is totally calorie free!

Frog, frog, frog, frog . . . prince!

Jane — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 14:26:50 +0000

Seeing as it’s Valentine’s Day, I couldn’t resist getting a little bit soppy – and have shared the story of how I met my boyfriend with this week’s Sunday Telegraph. He wasn’t at all easy to find, as will become patently obvious from the piece! You can read my kiss ‘n’ tell (almost) here

Sunday Telegraph

Jane — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 14:21:59 +0000

Valentine’s book signings

Jane — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:37:50 +0000

Book signings can be a daunting affair for an author. I’m still haunted by the anecdote one store manager told me about a celebrity (a household name) who was booked in for a signing to promote his autobiography. They hired crash barriers in anticipation of the grand event . . . and two people turned up. I’m happy to say that significantly more than two people turned up at my signings in Liverpool and Ormskirk at the weekend – and it was fantastic to meet all those who came along. If you couldn’t make it this time, I’ll be bringing news of some pre-Mother’s day signings soon – so watch this space.

Cajioh

Jane — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:45:19 +0000

Book signings

Jane — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 14:16:58 +0000

For all those who’ve been asking about signings, I’m happy to report that I have two lined up (with more to follow). They are on February 11th at Waterstone’s Ormskirk (1pm-2pm) and Waterstone’s Liverpool One (3pm-4pm). I’ll be signing copies of All The Single Ladies just in time for Valentine’s Day – so if your significant other is in danger of presenting you with some Esso chrysathemums, I suggest you start hinting quick!