Authors SL Roman, otherwise known as Laura Meloni Bywaters and Sarah Onions got fresh inspiration from the Tate Britain exhibition.

American Lee Miller took distinctive photos of London in the Blitz. She came from the artistic school of surrealism which meant she could find unusual images among the rubble.

In one of her shots she depicts a chapel in London where the formerly dignified main door is choked with bombed bricks.

Miller contributed a lot for the British Vogue fashion magazine through WW2, based in London, which worked hard to keep up the morale of readers.

Many women took on factory work while the men were away. The photographer was able to snap a model wearing a boiler suit, which were worn on the production line and made it look glamorous.

A description in the magazine refers to ‘Goggles, smart as sunglasses, are worn where sparks fly’.

The two authors of One Year One Night by SL Roman are now working on their second novel which is set in London in the Blitz, starting in 1940.

It has some of the same characters but also features new personalities including urchin kids who live rough in the city. Laura and Sarah do their own research and get ideas from reading, films, websites, exhibitions, live interviews and visits to libraries, museums and original settings. The Lee Miller photography exhibition at the Tate Britain in London runs until February 15 next year.

Note to editor. SL Roman is the pen-name of me, Sarah Onions and Laura Meloni Bywaters who both live in the borough of Kingston in SW London. I was born in Brighton in southern England and Laura was born in Rome. Permission for all photos has been applied for.

Now on sale in the US : https://www.amazon.com/One-Year-Night-2nd/dp/194715981X. Also, at https://redchairpress.com/node/657 and Barnes and Noble in North America.

The UK version is not available on Amazon.co.uk for the time being so anyone who wants to buy it should contact us through the new website slroman.com