A former headteacher is feeling “like a rockstar” after releasing her first novel.

Caron McKinlay, 59, released her first book The Storytellers to a great response from readers.

The Storytellers, which Caron wrote during lockdown, explores feminist themes as three women trapped between life and death revisit toxic past relationships and unravel a haunting truth.

The Tranent resident said that the waiting period between finishing the book in 2021 and it being published was a nervous time.

She said: “It’s a strange feeling when you are counting down to the release date. You are scared to see how people will react to it.

“Will people like it? Will anybody actually read it?

“And then when it was released, I felt like a rockstar, I was getting messages from people and I was relieved and shocked by how successful it was.”

Caron left Tranent in the 1980s aged 25 for Sicily.

She lived in Italy for a year and gave birth to her two daughters, Francesca and Paola, on her return to the UK.

Caron then became a teacher and taught in various secondary schools before becoming headteacher at St Helens College 14-16 Academy in St Helens, Merseyside.

She has now moved back to Tranent with her husband Andy, after living in Edinburgh for a number of years.

The Storytellers briefly made it into the top-100 bestselling books following the release, something which Caron said was an honour.

She said: “I couldn’t believe that it was doing so well. I had never expected it to do so well.

“I follow a few book review clubs online and one of them called it the book of the year, which was just fantastic.

“I know a lot of these groups can be brutally honest with their reviews, so to hear that was brilliant.”

Caron will hold a talk at Tranent Library next Saturday (July 22) to promote her book and offer advice to aspiring authors.

She said: “It feels strange being back in my home town.

“I grew up in Tranent, so going to the library was part of where my love of books came from.

“It’s a new library now but I am looking forward to speaking there.

“I have done a few events like this, but I am probably more nervous for this one because there will probably be people I know there.

“It will give me a chance to speak with people about the book and also about the writing and publishing process.

“I’ll be honest with people about some of the difficult parts, and some of the things to look out for when getting a book published.

“It helps to know what publishers are looking for and how to sell your story.”

Her success as an author has helped Caron launch a new career as a literary scout, scouting books and looking for ones to pitch as TV shows or movies.

She remained hopeful that The Storytellers could be made into a film or show too.

She said: “There has been some talk of a potential deal, but nothing official yet.

“I am considering a second book too, a new story, perhaps with some similar themes but we will see what happens.”