Vox: Short audio from the RLF: Recent Episodes
Royal Literary Fund
Caroline Sanderson interviews novelist and culture historian Dr Mark Blacklock.
Caroline Sanderson interviews novelist and culture historian Dr Mark Blacklock.
The post Mark Blacklock appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
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The post James Attlee – The Perfect Place To Write appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The post Michaela Morgan – Getting Published: What No One Tells You appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The post Charlie Hill – My Most Treasured Moments As A Writer appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The post Sarah Jasmon – Letter To My Younger Self appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The post Simon Robson – Life-changing Literature appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The post Alison MacLeod – The Writer And Technology appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The post Jeremy Treglown – The Perfect Place To Write appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The post Jasbinder Bilan – The Biggest Surprise Of My Writing Life appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
I’d managed to publish three collections of poems alongside my academic career but had been too busy working and caring…
I’d managed to publish three collections of poems alongside my academic career but had been too busy working and caring to build on my achievements. The time I should have devoted to producing academic papers had been spent writing poetry. I managed to publish three collections alongside my academic career but had been too busy working and caring to build on my writing achievements.
The post Elizabeth Holloway – The Writing / Life Balance appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
It simply never occurred to me that I could or ever would become a writer. My working-class roots put it…
It simply never occurred to me that I could or ever would become a writer. My working-class roots put it well beyond any horizon of mine. I came to writing late in life, having never for a moment thought I would become a published novelist. It simply never occurred to me that I could or ever would become a writer. My working-class roots put it well beyond any horizon of mine.
The post Guinevere Glasfurd – The Writing Life appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
It was impossible for me to go into a stately home (a treat for a seven year old) and not…
It was impossible for me to go into a stately home (a treat for a seven year old) and not enquire whether there had been any blood shed, or bones found. It was impossible for me to go into a stately home (a treat for a seven year old) and not enquire whether there had been any blood shed, or bones found in the priest hole. Becoming a crime journalist and then a crime novelist was always on the cards.
The post David Mark – The Writer And The City appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
As pilgrims we were captivated by the landscape as it changed around us, concerned with basic facts of where we…
As pilgrims we were captivated by the landscape as it changed around us, concerned with basic facts of where we would eat and sleep. I had no desire for a fictional world. As pilgrims we were captivated by the landscape as it changed around us, concerned with basic facts of where we would eat and sleep, and charged with the encounters and conversations that shaped each day. I had no desire for a fictional world.
The post Phoebe Power – Life-changing Literature appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
There was no one in the once-a-monastery-now-a-restaurant but us. A young couple came in with their baby, only to leave…
There was no one in the once-a-monastery-now-a-restaurant but us. A young couple came in with their baby, only to leave after a hushed conversation with the waiters. There was no one in the once-a-monastery-now-a-restaurant but us — maybe the festival had booked the whole restaurant, which didn’t strike me as out of keeping with the general oddness of this globetrotting cohort of writers and translators.
The post Thomas Bunstead – The Festival Experience appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Words are a re-ordering of dream, an attempt to drag down the superconscious into the good old conscious, where theatres…
Words are a re-ordering of dream, an attempt to drag down the superconscious into the good old conscious, where theatres are and publishing happens. Words are a re-ordering of dream, an attempt to drag down the superconscious into the good old conscious, where theatres are and publishing happens. But too much world-order and the dream-power is lost. I have to stop, dip back down into sleep.
The post Peter Oswald – Dreams And The Writer appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
A comic squib about domestic angst, which began ‘There’s a nasty niff in the downstairs loo’, developed its own agenda……
A comic squib about domestic angst, which began ‘There’s a nasty niff in the downstairs loo’, developed its own agenda... A comic squib about domestic angst developed its own agenda and finally clinched itself in a line, ‘For they are in the world, and you are not’. The tribute to my late partner which I had struggled for two years to write. It had written itself. Or had it?
The post Pamela Scobie – Inspiration appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
I do believe that, alongside metaphors, allegories and similes, a writer’s life itself is but another literary device to be…
I do believe that, alongside metaphors, allegories and similes, a writer’s life itself is but another literary device to be incorporated into their work. I do believe that, alongside metaphors, allegories and similes, a writer’s life itself is but another literary device to be incorporated into their work, particularly when their own lives start feeling like a cluster of meaningless oxymorons. Difficult? Enormously so.
The post Vitali Vitaliev – The Writing Life appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Of the origin stories I read the one I liked best was about Jimi Hendrix releasing a pair of parakeets…
Of the origin stories I read the one I liked best was about Jimi Hendrix releasing a pair of parakeets in Carnaby Street. The origin story I liked best was about Jimi Hendrix releasing a pair of parakeets in Carnaby Street. Hendrix spent several months in the city before his death at the age of twenty seven. ‘There’s no place like London’, he said. ‘It’s like a kind of a fairyland.'
The post Sonia Faleiro – The Writer And Nature appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
I was asked to co-translate a doorstep on Joseph Beuys, then a monograph on choreographer Pina Bausch and her innovative…
I was asked to co-translate a doorstep on Joseph Beuys, then a monograph on choreographer Pina Bausch and her innovative dance theatre. Yet still winging it. When I was asked to co-translate a doorstep on Joseph Beuys, then a monograph on choreographer Pina Bausch and her innovative dance theatre, I realised I was dealing with the great and good of the German postwar avant garde. Yet still winging it.
The post Steph Morris – Being Genre Fluid appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The green room can be daunting when you’re starting on your literary career but I’ve usually found it a source…
The green room can be daunting when you’re starting on your literary career but I’ve usually found it a source of conversation and news. The green room can be daunting when you’re starting on your literary career but I’ve found it a source of conversation and news. After a solitary winter of writing, there’s nothing better than meeting others to discuss the vicissitudes of being a published author.
The post Sarah Ward – The Festival Experience appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
People don’t realise how little money there is, is because — until they are published and they find out —…
People don’t realise how little money there is, is because — until they are published and they find out — writers don’t often put a number on it. One of the reasons that people don’t realise how little money there is, is because — until they are published and they find out — writers don’t often put a number on it. It’s embarrassing, how little you got paid for the thing that you worked so hard on.
The post Tom Lee – Getting Published: What No One Tells You appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Julia Cameron states that writer’s block needs to be radically reconfigured as a sign that the writer has too many…
Julia Cameron states that writer’s block needs to be radically reconfigured as a sign that the writer has too many ideas, not too few. Julia Cameron states that writer’s block needs to be radically reconfigured as a sign that the writer has too many ideas, not too few. When I read that for the first time, it wasn’t so much a lightbulb moment as a full-scale Son et lumière in my head.
The post Claudine Toutoungi – Writer’s Block appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
A photograph is often very revealing. I’ve written an entire novel based on a photograph album owned by the adjutant…
A photograph is often very revealing. I've written an entire novel based on a photograph album owned by the adjutant and commander of Auschwitz. A photograph is often very revealing. I've written an entire novel based on a photograph album owned by the Adjutant and Commander of Auschwitz, and the more I looked at the images he chose to preserve in the album, the more I saw.
The post William Ryan appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Life is a constant rearrangement of priorities, and sometimes we need to remember that writing — though a compulsion we…
Life is a constant rearrangement of priorities, and sometimes we need to remember that writing — though a compulsion we love — is just one of them. Life is a constant rearrangement of priorities, and sometimes we need to remember that writing — though a compulsion we love, a lifelong illness we that can't quite shake — is just one of them. More than simply surviving, we should try to live well.
The post Martin Day – The Writing / Life Balance appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
There’s something wonderful about writing when there’s snow. It deadens sound and blankets everything with clean lines. There’s something wonderful…
There's something wonderful about writing when there's snow. It deadens sound and blankets everything with clean lines. There's something wonderful about writing when there's snow. It deadens sound and blankets everything with clean lines. It clears out the mind and makes the world a hushed, waiting space to fill with words.
The post Rebecca Mascull – The Perfect Place To Write appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Writers must cast aside whichever exciting project they are now working on to go back in time, just as the…
Writers must cast aside whichever exciting project they are now working on to go back in time, just as the reader is taking the book forward into their lives. Writers must cast aside whichever exciting project they are now working on to go back in time, just as the reader is taking the book forward into their lives. Pity the poor writer who struggles to remember why they wrote the book in the first place.
The post Katherine Stansfield – Publication Day appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Knowing your own best work rhythms will save you both from making excuses, and from expecting too much of yourself…
Knowing your own best work rhythms will save you both from making excuses, and from expecting too much of yourself at the wrong moment. Knowing your own best work rhythms will save you both from making excuses, and from expecting too much of yourself at the wrong moment. You will learn to identify quite distinct phases; when you are on song as opposed to merely competent.
The post Lawrence Sail – How I Write appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
What genre would Shakespeare be? His works contain horror, history, myth, fantasy, ghosts, crime. Dickens, too. What genre would Shakespeare…
What genre would Shakespeare be? His works contain horror, history, myth, fantasy, ghosts, crime. Dickens, too. What genre would Shakespeare be? His works contain horror, history, myth, fantasy, ghosts, crime. Dickens, too. I always have a Dickens on the go, and dip in just as I would a giant bag of pick and mix. I want a novel to have it all; why not?
The post Alexandra Benedict – Being Genre Fluid appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
I stopped to smoke a cigarette, talking aloud to myself in a near-fury that I had a commission waiting for…
I stopped to smoke a cigarette, talking aloud to myself in a near-fury that I had a commission waiting for me and no pitch to make. I stopped to smoke a cigarette, talking aloud to myself in a near-fury that I had a commission waiting for me and no pitch to make, nothing to inspire the officer that she had done the right thing awarding money to a man who'd never written a play.
The post John Retallack – Inspiration appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
I learned very early on as a self-employed freelancer that the answer to ‘Can you do this paid work?’ is…
I learned very early on as a self-employed freelancer that the answer to ‘Can you do this paid work?’ is always ‘Yes’. That has stood me in good stead. Writing often has to come second place to the work that has more immediate returns. I learned very early on as a self-employed freelancer that the answer to ‘Can you do this paid work?’ is always ‘Yes’. That ethos has stood me in good stead.
The post Doug Johnstone – The Writing Life appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
There was actual advice but the real, unspoken advice was that they were all there. All doing it. Managing with…
There was actual advice but the real, unspoken advice was that they were all there. All doing it. Managing with or without a day job. There was actual advice but the real, unspoken advice was that they were all there. All doing it. It struck me when I came down for breakfast the following morning that there was nothing to stop me from joining them at their metaphorical table.
The post Anna Woodford – The Best Advice I Ever Received appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The writers that grab me these days are those who pull and push not only at the limits of language…
The writers that grab me these days are those who pull and push not only at the limits of language but at those of form. The writers that grab me these days are those who pull and push not only at the limits of language but at those of form. Lydia Davis takes the already chameleon short story and whittles it down to single paragraphs, stacking sentences into collages.
The post Clare Fisher – Writers Who Inspire Me appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
On that rainy afternoon in O’Connell Building, surrounded by my classmates, my love of drama ignited: recreating Joan of Arc’s…
On that rainy afternoon in O’Connell Building, surrounded by my classmates, my love of drama ignited: recreating Joan of Arc’s last night on Earth. On that rainy afternoon in O’Connell Building, surrounded by my classmates, my love of drama ignited. You tasked us with devising a dramatic scene: recreating Joan of Arc’s last night on Earth. Maybe some of her rubbed off on me that afternoon.
The post Fiona Evans – Letter To My Teachers appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
I watched my new desk as its surface got covered with more and more piles of paper and books, and…
I watched my new desk as its surface got covered with more and more piles of paper and books, and found myself using it almost… never. I watched my new desk from my bed as its surface got covered with more and more piles of paper and books, and of course, I found myself using it almost… never. Eventually, I ditched the fantasy that the desk would make me more professional.
The post Juliet Clare Bell – How I Write appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Can I even dare to hope that somewhere out there are readers with all my volumes, from the very first…
Can I even dare to hope that somewhere out there are readers with all my volumes, from the very first in 1988 to the most recent? Can I even dare to hope that somewhere out there are readers with all my volumes, from the very first in 1988 to the most recent, five years ago, on their bookshelves? That having got something out of the one you read first, you were drawn by the next?
The post Alan Jenkins – Letter To My Readers appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
The Scillies are the place my imagination retreats to when I’m grappling with a plot, or a new set of…
The Scillies are the place my imagination retreats to when I’m grappling with a plot, or a new set of characters. I return there every year. The Scillies are the place my imagination retreats to when I’m grappling with a plot, or a new set of characters. The uncluttered beauty of the landscape triggers my creativity, which could explain why I return there every year.
The post Kate Rhodes – The Perfect Place To Write appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
We didn’t know that the ‘Firaq’ in Ghulam Nabi Firaq was a takhalus, a pen name that poets in the…
We didn’t know that the ‘Firaq’ in Ghulam Nabi Firaq was a takhalus, a pen name that poets in the subcontinent adopt early in their poetic lives. For years, we didn’t even know that the ‘Firaq’ in Ghulam Nabi Firaq was a takhalus, a pen name that poets in the subcontinent adopt early in their poetic lives. He was simply Firaq Sir. A serious-looking, large man who was always immaculately dressed.
The post Mirza Waheed – Letter To My Teachers appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
I mentally wander. I encourage that same delicious distractibility which makes me such a poor listener at lectures. We dream…
I mentally wander. I encourage that same delicious distractibility which makes me such a poor listener at lectures. We dream up situations and conundra and resolutions for people who have never quite existed. To try to achieve that ‘flow’ state of deep concentration, I encourage that same delicious distractibility which makes me such a poor listener at lectures.
The post Penny Boxall – Dreams And The Writer appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Hugo William’s advice is that voice when I need it. My job isn’t to get better as a writer. My…
Hugo William’s advice is that voice when I need it. My job isn’t to get better as a writer. My job is only to do what I can. Hugo William’s advice is that voice when I need it, as I often do. My job isn’t to get better as a writer, or to worry about how people will respond, or if they will respond at all. My job is only to do what I can: to show up every day, and start scribbling.
The post Jonathan Edwards – The Best Advice I Ever Received appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Publication is wonderful — both euphoric and humbling. But in the days and weeks that follow a book’s release, I…
Publication is wonderful — both euphoric and humbling. But in the days and weeks that follow a book’s release, I feel a strange sadness. Publication is wonderful — both euphoric and humbling, and I’ve been dazed by it each time. But in the days and weeks that follow a book’s release, I feel a strange sadness. As if something had physically left me, that I looked for but couldn’t find.
The post Susan Fletcher – Getting Published: What No One Tells You appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
Isn’t that deadline a manifestation of yourself, your hopes, your ambitions, your drive to produce something of substance that, against…
Isn’t that deadline a manifestation of yourself, your hopes, your ambitions, your drive to produce something of substance that, against all odds, communicates truly? If you’re lucky, something else kicks in: a kind of defiance that makes you dig deep. Isn’t that deadline a manifestation of yourself, your hopes, your ambitions, your drive to produce something of substance that, against all odds, communicates truly?
The post Clare Morgan – Writers And Deadlines appeared first on Royal Literary Fund.
'The important thing about writing, for me anyway, is to speak from the heart. Integrity’s important. I’m not writing Disney stories.'
The important thing about writing, for me anyway, is to speak from the heart and to be truthful. I’m not writing Disney stories, I’m trying to tell tales that are sincere, honest and that matter to my readers; to stimulate emotion, to make people think.
'On no account was he to read any of the manuscripts. His job was to open the envelopes, riffle through the pages, and post back to the author.'
His instructions were clear. On no account was he to read any of the manuscripts. His job was to open the envelopes, riffle through the pages to give the impression that someone had read them, and then put the envelope back in the post to the author.
'Writing fiction is, word by word, a balancing act. And, to put it simply, how close to keep to the real and how much to make up?'
Writing fiction is, word by word, a balancing act. What to say and what not to say? How much to focus on detail, while pressing onwards to keep up the momentum of the narrative? And, simply, how close to keep to the real and how much to make up?
'I would like a cat without muddy paws, who definitely likes me, to sit at my feet and not on my notes. I would like gherkin sandwiches to arrive unannounced...'
I would like... a cat without muddy paws, who definitely likes me, to sit at my feet and not on my notes. I would like gherkin sandwiches to arrive unannounced at lunchtime. I would like flakes of snow to be falling outside the picture window...
'January was an unforgiving month. But if you stopped, if you looked, if you listened, there was so much to get excited about. There were plants to spot, animals and birds. '
January was a hard, unforgiving month. But if you stopped, if you looked, if you listened, there was so much to get excited about. There were plants to spot, animals and birds. There was fun to be had, running and playing along rivers and canals.
'I can trace my entire journey to adulthood — to my passions, my career, values, priorities — through you, like landmarks I didn't always notice as I passed.'
I can trace my entire journey to adulthood — to my passions, my career, values, priorities — through you, like landmarks I didn't always notice as I passed through. But now running my finger back along the map, I see how you shaped my route.
'Poetry provides some unique satisfactions; the epigrammatic click of a word locking a couplet, the exact phrase that nails a sound, texture, colour or movement. '
Poetry provides some unique satisfactions; the epigrammatic click of a word locking a couplet, the exact phrase that nails a sound, texture, colour or movement. A little like completing a crossword. (Actually, I don't do crosswords; I work on a sonnet.)
'The willingness and ability to be genre fluid affords you versatility and experience. The market can be brutal.'
What's so great about a backlist of unpublished failures? Well, my answer is that the willingness and ability to be genre fluid affords you versatility and experience. The market can be brutal, and good deals for commercial fiction are like hen's teeth.
'You are very much expected to do your own marketing as far as possible. People who draw a salary from marketing want to know what marketing you are doing for yourself.'
In today's climate, you are very much expected to do your own marketing as far as possible. People who draw a salary from marketing want to know what marketing you are doing for yourself while importuning you to tell them what they ought to do.
'My mother made inquiries about acquiring a patch of land near the rice paddies and apple orchards not too far from the main village. '
My mother made inquiries about acquiring a patch of land near the rice paddies and apple orchards not too far from the main village. Our own piece of land in the idyllic Kashmir countryside. I still wonder what life might have been if she had succeeded.
'I had a date when I would hand the book to someone else, and that was a gift. I found I loved having a deadline. It made me more focused.'
I had a date when I would hand the book to someone else, and that was a gift. I found I loved having a deadline. It made me more focused and motivated, and that has continued ever since. Now, if I’m not given a deadline, I request one.
'When I write my first draft in ‘just a few hours’ out of ‘seemingly nowhere’, I did not of course write the book ‘in a few hours’ and it certainly wasn’t out of ‘nowhere’.'
When I write my first draft in ‘just a few hours’ out of ‘seemingly nowhere’, I know that I did not, of course, write the book ‘in a few hours’ and it wasn’t out of ‘nowhere’. If you’re interested in this process, I recommend Alex Soojung-Kim Pang’s book, Rest.
'You said you felt cheated, that you’d never done anything on this earth you wanted to. I want to tell you you did everything Mrs B.'
When my mum went to visit you in hospital a few weeks before you died, no more than a year into retirement, you said you felt cheated, that you’d never done anything on this earth you wanted to. I want to tell you, you did everything Mrs B.
'When I was sure that no one was about, I would talk to myself about the play as loudly and urgently as I could. I began to voice the characters. I had loud family rows.'
When I was sure that no one was about, I would talk to myself about the play as loudly and urgently as I could. I began to voice the characters. I had loud family rows with myself. The cows stared. The darker it got, the freer I felt. I finished a first draft.
'The near-dream state is artistically useful. I believe that’s why many writers write at the beginning or the end of the day — burning the midnight oil or rising to work at dawn. '
The near-dream state is artistically useful. I believe that’s why many writers write at the beginning or the end of the day — burning the midnight oil or rising to work at dawn. To mine that seam of creativity that we have access to closer to our dreams.
'Art bereft of life must risk desiccation: on the other hand, where the sheer welter of life and its demands encroach too forcefully, the writer may fail to find a proper focus. '
Art bereft of life must risk desiccation: on the other hand, where the sheer welter of life and its demands encroach too forcefully, the writer may fail to find a proper focus. And the need to earn a living may lead a writer away from her or his real gift.
'The chances are W. G. Grace himself was born with less fuss than my opening paragraph. By lunchtime I had become a gibbering wreck.'
The chances are W. G. Grace himself was born with less fuss than my opening paragraph. By lunchtime I had given him a date of birth, an address, two parents and four grandparents. In the process I had become a gibbering wreck.
'By writing at least 250 words every single day, even when I’ve spent the day distracting myself, I become more productive when I do put the hours in. '
By writing at least 250 words every single day, even when it’s midnight and I’ve spent the day distracting myself, I become more productive at those times when I do put the hours in. Even if the 250 words are rubbish, they keep story and characters alive.
'As he grabbed a handful of crisps he delivered possibly one of the most insightful and concise critiques of my work I have ever received. ‘It’s alright. You know.'...'
As he grabbed a handful of crisps he delivered possibly one of the most insightful and concise critiques of my work I have ever received. ‘It’s alright. You know. When you’re reading it.’ (It’s possible, dear listener, I exaggerated the Birmingham accent).
'I often invite creative writing students to write an observation during class exercises. Why? Hadn’t I, at the age of fourteen, sworn off dutiful recording?'
I often invite creative writing students to write an observation during class exercises. Why do I ask them to do it? Hadn’t I, at the age of fourteen, sworn off dutiful recording? What happened, between then and now?... I read Anna Karenina.
'‘Any questions?’ I could hear the panic bubbling in their voice. There had to be questions —how else would they fill the remaining fifteen minutes?'
‘Any questions?’ I could hear the panic bubbling in their voice. There had to be questions —how else would they fill the remaining fifteen minutes? ‘Anyone? Anything?’ Finally, a hand slowly rose. ‘Where did you get your sweater from?’
'I was nervous about meeting this brilliant poet. But within half an hour I knew she was my kindred spirit.'
As I made my way from the big house to the lodge, I was nervous about meeting this brilliant poet. But Hilda turned up late with her juicer and laptop. Within half an hour I knew she was my kindred spirit; by the end of the week, the sister I don’t have.
'Jo Ann Beard’s ‘The Fourth State of Matter’ reads like literary fiction but is actually a true account of a college massacre. Its genre-defying form was a revelation. '
Jo Ann Beard’s ‘The Fourth State of Matter’ reads like literary fiction but is actually a true account of a college massacre in the United States. Its genre-defying form was a revelation. It seemed to give me permission to write about the tragedy in my family.
'Many years ago, I read Faiz and Lorca before embarking on a novel, and I remember feeling fresh, full of wonder, as if I was writing a story for the first time. '
Many years ago, I read some Faiz and Lorca before embarking on a novel, and I remember feeling fresh, full of wonder, as if I was writing a story for the first time. Poetry does that. Reading a collection of poems might then be akin to a blood transfusion.
'I am a planner. But a kind of magic happens in the writing itself, whereby plots I’ve planned veer off in unexpected directions.'
I am a planner. But a kind of magic happens in the writing itself, whereby plots I’ve planned don’t work, or need modifying, or veer off in unexpected directions, not to mention the pesky characters. They have an annoying habit of being autonomous.
'Who makes or invests millions on a high-seas epic about lesbian pirates written by a complete unknown? Nobody. '
He listened silently before thanking me for my time and then I retreated feeling like the most micro-brained fool in the writing world. Who makes or invests millions on a high-seas epic about lesbian pirates written by a complete unknown? Nobody.
'Iain Banks said there was a secret website called www.ideasforwriters.com; ‘You just go there and it generates ideas for you’. '
When the time came for audience questions, the late, great Iain Banks got the inevitable one. Without pausing he said there was a secret website called www.ideasforwriters.com; ‘You just go there and it generates ideas for you’.
'While it’s true that most writers get better at receiving negative feedback, to have too hard a skin can be synonymous with no longer caring about your work.'
People will tell you to shrug it off, to develop a thick skin. I’m not sure this is entirely helpful. While it’s true that most writers get better at receiving negative feedback, to have too hard a skin can be synonymous with no longer caring about your work.
'My desert island discs luxury would be my MacBook, a solar-powered battery and a satellite-based broadband connection. What do you mean, that's cheating?'
My desert island discs luxury would be my MacBook, a solar-powered battery and a satellite-based broadband connection. What do you mean, that's cheating? On their own, none of them is more useful on a desert island than a rock.
'You're doing the right thing by reading everything you can. All the words you've consumed so far, and will do, have infused into the brain I have now. '
You're doing the right thing by reading everything you can. All the words you've consumed so far, and will do, have infused into the brain I have now. So, thank you! You've flavoured it like gin, with the best botanicals. And you'll like gin, later, as well.
'Then my parents got sick, and suddenly life wasn't solely about the highs and lows of school friendships and pet ownership, and adventures on holiday in Cornwall. '
Then my parents got sick, and suddenly life wasn't solely about the highs and lows of school friendships and pet ownership, and adventures on holiday in Cornwall. It was dark and scary and challenging and very difficult to understand. So I wrote about it.
'The rich, mellifluous word-music of Dylan Thomas spills into my drab winter morning like sunshine. In that moment, I learn the power of the spoken word.'
Some are bemused, some boys think the whole thing is ridiculous. But for me, the rich, mellifluous word-music of Dylan Thomas spills into my drab winter morning like sunshine. In that moment, I learn the power of the spoken word.
'Is soIs one a writer first and a human second? Many writers have outed themselves and said so. '
Is something missing in the human department? Is one a writer first and a human second? Many writers have outed themselves and said so. And if they didn’t say so, they were too busy smelting other people’s lives into prose to notice.
'I was relieved to find myself, in this hopeless longing for the inanimate, in the company of Nabokov.'
I find myself, in this hopeless longing for the inanimate, in the company of Nabokov, who, target shooting at a fair, won a porcelain pig. He writes: ‘I abandoned it on the shelf at the hotel when I left town. In doing so, I condemned myself to remember it'.
'This impetus to make Ovid ‘new’ resulted in various narratives of bodily modification, from sex changes to the extreme body artist Orlan'
This impetus to make Ovid ‘new’ resulted in various narratives of bodily modification, from sex changes to the extreme body artist Orlan, who through plastic surgery recreates herself as mythic figures. This sort of ‘translation’ is a large part of how I write.
'The particular freedom and concentration of that moment has never left me. An hour in which I felt ecstatically happy: peaceful, productive. '
The particular freedom and concentration of that moment has never left me. An hour in which I felt ecstatically happy: peaceful, productive. You’d taught me, aged fifteen, that as writers we write our moments into being, that we draw on what’s around us.
'On the seventh of July 2005, just after 9 a.m., do not catch that westbound Piccadilly Line tube into central London. Turn back. As I did. '
I have no advice, only a practical warning. Make a note in your diary. On the seventh of July 2005, just after 9 a.m., do not catch that westbound Piccadilly Line tube into central London. Turn back. As I did. Your best writing will still be ahead of you.
'We tolerate the disorganised genius who can never submit their work on time because their work is worth the wait. Most of us are literary mortals.'
We tolerate the disorganised genius who can never submit their work on time because their work is worth the wait. Most of us are literary mortals, however, and we aren’t afforded the luxury of being unreliable.
'In a London-centric publishing industry, I’m making something of a name for myself as a writer of wrongs in Manchester.'
In a London-centric publishing industry that has long sidelined the North West in fiction, I’m making a name for myself, not only as a writer of wrongs in Manchester, but also as an author of historical saga, set in the NHS’s first hospital in Trafford.
'It is the loss of faith that I recognise and find so resonant today. It is resonant because we no longer stress over how faith-less we are. '
It is the loss of faith that I find so resonant today. It is resonant because we no longer stress over how faith-less we are. How would my post-Camus, post Jean-Baptiste man, (a theatre director, not a barrister) behave if he had left that stranger to drown?
'In strange pandemic times, I found this continual cycle comforting. No matter what happens, the bulbs you plant in autumn will come up in spring. '
In strange pandemic times, I found this continual cycle comforting. As Sue Stuart-Smith observes: ‘When things are precarious…it is with the promise of spring that nature vouchsafes us an answer’. Bulbs you plant in autumn will come up in spring.
'Barbara Pym's renaissance was sparked in 1977 in the TLS when both Lord Cecil and Philip Larkin claimed her as ‘the most underrated novelist of the century’.'
Barbara Pym's renaissance was sparked in 1977 in the TLS when both Lord Cecil and Philip Larkin claimed her as ‘the most underrated novelist of the century’. Her books were republished, and, joy of joys, she was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
'I have a very low boredom threshold, so if I bore myself, I know I’ll bore you and you’ll rightly put me aside and pick up someone more interesting. '
I have a very low boredom threshold, so if I bore myself, I know I’ll bore you and you’ll put me aside. Even when wading through the endless stream of W. G. Grace’s cricket statistics, I always wanted to breathe life and drama into individual matches.
'Aquariums, zoos, safari parks, they’re otherworldly places: so many things there have clearly just landed from outer space. So many things there are clearly us.'
Aquariums, zoos, safari parks, they’re otherworldly places: so many things there have clearly just landed from outer space. So many things there are clearly us. In enclosure after enclosure, tank after tank, I find poem after poem.
'In my teens, I made sure the entire family knew about it by donning my writing trousers – jeans with quotes from Sylvia Plath scribbled on them.'
When I started writing in my teens, I made sure the entire family knew about it by donning my writing trousers – jeans with quotes from Sylvia Plath scribbled on them – and wafting upstairs to my writing desk. Years later, I wrote a poem about that desk.
'Even the fiercest, toughest girls responded to your unfeigned kindliness, your motherly affection. With hindsight I see how much you would have liked children.'
Even the fiercest, toughest girls responded to your unfeigned kindliness, your motherly affection. There’s sadness in remembering that, because I see how much you would have liked children. I don’t know if you realised how important you were.
'I needed to learn that so much happens in the prewriting stage when the mind is working in the background, churning ideas and working stuff out.'
I needed to learn that so much happens in the prewriting stage when the mind is working stuff out. I was sitting down to write like I was clocking on to a shift. I hadn’t played with the screenplay and was placing huge demands on this moment.
'I heard the words I’d typed – one day, years ago, not feeling like a ‘proper’ writer – brought to life on my TV screen. A dream achieved. '
Last night I watched the film of my novel; no eyes on me, no need to alter my expression for fear of upsetting the director. I wore pyjamas and heard the words I’d typed – years ago, not feeling like a ‘proper’ writer – on my TV. A dream achieved.
'What am I thinking of when I write? Why do I think I am doing it? I am bringing my attention to lived experience '
So, if not books, what am I thinking of when I write? Why do I think I am doing it? It seems to me that I am bringing my attention to lived experience — be that my own or how I imagine that of others to have been. I’m focussing on shades of experience,
'I see writing for publication as a contract. I make up stuff that I hope will inform, entertain, scare, thrill or amuse the reader.'
I see writing as a contract between the writer and the reader. I make up stuff that I hope will inform, entertain, scare, thrill or amuse. I spend time reworking the raw material my imagination has provided into something that, I hope, works for you.
'I joined the Barbara Pym Society and attended their conferences in Oxford, where I bought Pym swag and home-made quince jelly.'
I joined the Barbara Pym Society and attended their conferences in Oxford, where I bought Pym swag and home-made quince jelly, and yearned to win a prize on the Pymbola. I took to the world of Barbara Pym with a zealot’s enthusiasm.
'When I'm in editing mode I almost can't read other writers' work, because everything feels overwritten. I can't stop my internal editor adding imaginary comments.'
When I'm in editing mode I almost can't read other writers' work, because everything feels overwritten. I can't stop my internal editor adding imaginary comments in the margins. A lot of published novels really could have done with killing those darlings.
'My speech emerged so late, and so mangled, that it was experienced by others as either foreign or gibberish; in the England of the day, synonymous.'
I was an outsider within my more fissile than fusional nuclear family. My speech emerged so late, and so mangled, that it was experienced by others as either foreign or gibberish; terms which, in the England of the day, were understood as synonymous.
'Different spaces. Different states. They’ll jostle and shoulder each other. Important stuff will get pushed out on either side. '
Different spaces. Different states. They’ll jostle and shoulder each other. Important stuff will get pushed out either side. And you’ll get cross. All you can do is maintain a basic level of health and safety; do the writing you need to do to stay sane.
'If only you could have the friendship of fellow-poets, the respect of your peers! But all that’s some years in the future. '
If only you could have the friendship of fellow-poets, the respect of your peers! But all that’s some years in the future. Your life so far hasn’t given you much social confidence, and your parents, supportive as they try to be, don’t really understand.
'There are male writers who think being a writer will impress the ladies, which it never does. Best say you’ve recently been invalided out of the Royal Marines. '
There are male writers who think being a writer will impress the ladies, which it more or less literally never does. Best say you’ve recently been invalided out of the Royal Marines. I once told a young barbershop trainee I was a fairground safety inspector.
'I’m not the kind of poet whose work is archivable in the conventional way. Only a forensic IT specialist would be able to retrieve all the earlier iterations.'
I’m not the kind of poet whose work is archivable in the conventional way. The first draft is overwritten by the redraft, and all subsequent edits until the final version. Only a forensic IT specialist could retrieve all the earlier iterations of a poem of mine.
'I became mildly obsessed – okay, not so mildly – with a friend who described herself as an ‘arch-planner’. '
I became mildly obsessed – okay, not so mildly – with a friend who talked about her folders of research and her identical ring-bound notebooks, each page neatly marked with bullet points charting every pre-planned chapter she was going to write.
'Names read out in reverse order. Ten, nine, eight. With each name, another swig of Bloody Mary. Seven, six, five. Where was my name? '
Tension ramped up. Names read out in reverse order. Ten, nine, eight. With each name, another swig of Bloody Mary. Seven, six, five. The crunch of celery in my ear. Four, three. Where was my name? Two. No? My name was last. I’d won!
'I whittled the cemeteries down to two. My editor was adamant — two was still too many. And of course she was right.'
I whittled the cemeteries down to two. My editor was adamant — two was still too many. She was right. My personal, emotional, response was blinding me to the fact that if I wanted to write about cemeteries of World War I, I should write a different book.
'Half way down the first page of a new novel I’d shrug. Nothing wrong with the writing, just that I felt I knew it already. Ditto cinema. Weeks passed, then months. '
Half way down the first page of a new novel I’d shrug. Nothing wrong with the writing, just that I felt I knew it already. Ditto cinema. Weeks passed, then months. That span of openness I’d hoped for took on a different aspect. I began to feel lost.
'I phoned Paddy Power the bookmaker and asked for odds on a novelty bet: Scarborough winning a Scotsman Fringe First. I got odds of 16 to 1.'
I phoned Paddy Power the bookmaker and asked for odds on a novelty bet: Scarborough winning a Scotsman Fringe First. I got odds of 16 to 1 and was going to put all of Debbie Horsfield’s money on but they capped my bet at fifty quid.
'Sometimes, when I sit down to write, despondent because my mind feels empty, the magic happens anyway. '
Like Dorothy Parker, I love ‘having written’. Sometimes, when I sit down to write, despondent because my mind feels empty, as though nothing worthwhile can emerge, the magic happens anyway. As if my hand is guided by an unseen force.
'I remember the thrill of excitement that went through me. Here was my favourite TV programme in book form! It was like a dream come true.'
I remember the thrill of excitement that went through me. Here was my favourite TV programme in book form! It was like a dream come true. I wanted both books, but opted for the non-Dalek one because it had a multi-tentacled creature on the cover.
'When I talk to RLF students or children in schools, I show them that scribble. Inspiration often comes in snatches of thought.'
When I talk to RLF students or children in schools, I show them that scribble. I show them my notebook, full of crossings out. I do this to illustrate that inspiration for me often comes in snatches of thought; that a story doesn’t usually arrive fully formed.
'The Internet took you away from the breathtaking scene you were about to put into words. You allowed the internet to hijack you.'
You’ve lost the thread of the fantastic idea you’d hit upon at night (you were onto something, weren’t you?) and are now struggling to hold it all together. The Internet took you away from the breathtaking scene you were about to put into words.
'Take two steps forward’, he said. ‘Now, what can you see?’ I described the shape of the music on the page, the way that lines went up or down...'
Take two steps forward’, he said. ‘Now, what can you see?’ I described the shape of the music on the page, the way that lines went up or down. Another two steps forward. Then, I could discern groups of notes, the way they twisted and turned.
'There’s a badger set in the woods beyond the chip shop; muntjac deer in the cemetery. A few years back, two tiny red pandas escaped from our zoo. '
The heron isn’t our only wildlife. There’s a badger set in the woods beyond the chip shop; muntjac deer in the cemetery. A few years back, two tiny red pandas escaped from our little zoo. I never saw them, but it was on the regional news.
'There’s something wrong. Your inner critical voice knows it, but you can’t put your finger on the problem. It can’t be that phrase or sentence that you love, can it? '
There’s something wrong. Your inner critical voice knows it, but you can’t put your finger on the problem. It can’t be that phrase or sentence that you love, can it? That part you have polished to perfection, that might even be the first words you wrote.
'Wipeout is a leap of faith, propelling you down a near-vertical drop until you’d spark if you weren’t drenched. Wipeout is for tough kids.'
Wipeout is a leap of faith, propelling you down a near-vertical drop until you’d spark if you weren’t drenched. Corners, twists, turns, at death-defying speed, until you’re flung like spent flotsam into the churning waters below. Wipeout is for tough kids.
'It’s probably no coincidence that the passages picked out by readers, as scenes that ‘stayed with them’, seem to be those where I actually walked the ground. '
It’s probably no coincidence that the passages picked out by readers, as scenes that ‘stayed with them’, seem to be those where I actually walked the ground. Goose down caught in grass by the lake, rain hanging on barbed wire, like notes on a stave.
'I was bundled into a double-act with the late Howard Marks, international drug trafficker turned memoirist. Our preparations were not exactly rigorous'
I was bundled into a double-act with the late Howard Marks, international drug trafficker turned memoirist. The performance amounted to Mr Marks giving his usual drinking and spliffing stage turn, interspersed with me reading successive passages.
'Over the past thirty years I’ve pretty much jumped from one project to the next. I even took a laptop on a family holiday and got up early to write. '
Over the past thirty years I’ve pretty much jumped from one project to the next. I even took a laptop on a family holiday and got up early to write. What kind of holiday is that? Not only was I working, I wasn’t entirely with the people I love.
'You kiss boys. You stay up whispering to your girl friends about kissing boys. You do not think that you are thinking about kissing girls. '
On Saturday nights, you put on a miniskirt and drink (and often throw up) vodka orange in south London living rooms. You kiss boys. You stay up whispering to girl friends about kissing boys. You do not think that you are thinking about kissing girls.
'I choose to walk through Victorian parks with Edwardian characters, rather than real-life friends. Sometimes the characters hold my hand. Mostly they’re cross with me.'
I choose to walk through Victorian parks with Edwardian characters, rather than real-life friends. Sometimes the characters hold my hand. Mostly they’re cross with me, annoyed, critical, but it’s my job to understand them, not theirs to understand me.
'I was brought up in a loving working-class family. This instilled a level of safety that allows me to investigate the darker side of life.'
I was brought up in a loving working-class family. This instilled a level of safety that allows me to investigate the darker side of life, exploring another person’s pain and injustices. But there’s always humour: the co-existence of darkness and light.
'Inspiration and good writing don’t just come from sitting at a desk, no matter how good the view. Ideas come in flashes when I’m out-and-about. '
Inspiration and good writing don’t just come from sitting at a desk, no matter how good the view. For me, ideas come in flashes when I’m in a hurry, out-of-place and out-and-about. Twists and truths present themselves when I’m walking the dog.
'My friend’s untimely death galvanised me: I went on an Arvon course, primed by the book she had told me to read, my head stuffed with the English Civil War. '
My friend’s untimely death galvanised me: I went on an Arvon course, primed by the book she had told me to read, my head stuffed with the English Civil War. As I sat at Lumb Bank, I saw a man sailing away from England. He trailed destruction...
'I think there’s always an element of choice for a writer — there is a secret (or not so secret) pride. It’s an inner toughness, an icy shard.'
Writers often talk of an inner compulsion, of having to write. Rachel Carson was big on this. So too was that old showman Ernest Hemingway. But I think there’s always an element of choice — a secret (or not so secret) pride. It’s an inner toughness.
'When they asked if I’d consider writing a Doctor Who drama for them I was excited but alarmed. I’d never written a script before.'
In 1999 Big Finish had been granted a licence by the BBC to produce official full-cast Doctor Who audio dramas, and by 2007 were releasing a drama every month. When they asked if I’d write for them I was alarmed. I’d never written a script before.
'More recently, I self-published my first series in the States. I was the proverbial old dog, learning new tricks! '
I self-published my first series in the States. I was the proverbial old dog, learning new tricks! I designed my own Twitter, Instagram and Facebook banners. I commissioned book covers from a professional designer. I organised a US blog tour.
'I’m busy being a producer’, I said, ‘but hope, at some point, to take a career break and dedicate myself to writing... something'. '
I leaned back in my chair and thought for a moment. I wanted to sound like one of the gang. ‘I’m busy being a producer’, I said, ‘but hope, at some point, to take a career break and dedicate myself to writing something. There isn’t time right now’.
'Where Keats goes into rhapsody over the many forms of beauty in nature, a Fariduddin Attar examines the human ego and the self.'
Where Keats goes into rhapsody over the many forms of beauty in nature, a Fariduddin Attar examines the human ego and the self through the tongues of his allegorical bird assembly. Coleridge’s ice still gives me the chills.
'I found myself trying to get into a prison, past a guard who looked me up on Wikipedia on his phone to check that I was really a poet.'
I found myself trying to get into a prison, past a guard who looked me up on Wikipedia to check that I was really a poet. Inside, I read poems about growing up in the Welsh Valleys, translated into Italian for an audience of grinning prisoners.
'I fell into that pavilion with the intense relief of diving into sleep after a broken night with a newborn baby. I just sat down and wrote. '
I fell into that pavilion with the intense relief of diving into sleep after a broken night with a newborn baby. I didn’t hesitate — I just sat down and wrote. A novel for young readers, a picture book and a premise for a series. A dam had been broken.
'There’d be a jacket design, a blurb on the back, table of contents at the front, and often not a lot in between.'
These were generally a few foolscap pages, folded in half and held together with now-yellowing Sellotape. There’d be a jacket design, a title, an ornate declaration of authorship, a blurb on the back, table of contents, and often not a lot in between.
'After I’ve done my original work for the day, I type it all up. This might sound like an arduous duplication, but it’s actually my first edit.'
I like to spend time getting my first draft right. The writing, of course, does end up on a computer. After I’ve done my original work for the day, I type it all up. This might sound like an arduous duplication of effort, but it’s actually my first edit.
'No wonder it can be painful to make that cut. Those precious words are the unsuitable lover we’re obsessed with.'
No wonder it can be painful – impossible even – to make that cut; no wonder we fiercely cling to it against all advice. Those precious words are the unsuitable lover we’re obsessed with, the dodgy cad, or perhaps a narcissistic reflection of our self.
'The difference between the city and the countryside for me is that we tolerate imperfection, chaos and even ugliness in urban locations. '
The difference between the city and the countryside is that we tolerate imperfection, chaos and even ugliness in urban locations in a way we couldn’t in the countryside. The great poets celebrated the perfection of daffodils and honesty of rustic life.
'As lockdown hardened I discovered that my writing/life balance needed more balance. I missed the students and working through essays. '
As lockdown hardened I soon discovered that my writing/life balance needed more balance. I missed the students and essays. I missed the buzz of campus, colleagues and the sanctuary of my RLF office that I was allowed to use on non-teaching days.
'Generous and complimentary reviews in the literary pages will pass unnoticed by your friends and relatives; one condescending remark will be seen by everyone.'
No one tells you that the generous and complimentary reviews in the literary pages will pass unnoticed by your friends and relatives, but one condescending remark will somehow be seen by everyone, and their commiserations will haunt you for decades.
'A Post-it note, a child’s drawing, even a prescription for folic acid never collected. I plot my life through the books I’ve read.'
Select a book from my shelves, open it and you’ll find an unconventional bookmark — a Post-it note, a child’s drawing, even a prescription for folic acid never collected. My bookshelves contain secrets; I plot my life through the books I’ve read.
'If I’d had to sum it up in a word – the motive force behind my writing – I might have said ‘freedom’. That was the feeling.'
I left home the day I left school, began a new life in a bedsit. I lived on glucose tablets, Saveloy sausages and chips. I wrote stories and poems. I was very happy. If I’d had to sum it up – the motive behind my writing – I might have said ‘freedom’.
'‘Welcome home Odysseus. I’m glad you finally made it back. I’m relieved that you had a bath and got yourself rubbed with oil.''
‘Welcome home Odysseus. I’m glad you finally made it back. I’m relieved that you have had a bath. From the bedroom window I saw you after you slaughtered the suitors and got our son to rip off Melanthius’s genitals and feed them to the dogs.'
'Thank you to Sister Marie Joseph, for reading us Bible stories every day, shining a light on a world of conflict and drama and complex family relationships. '
Thank you Sister Marie Joseph, for reading us Bible stories every day, shining a light on a world of conflict and drama and complex family relationships like no other. I still bring flowers to your grave. And Miss Medland, for encouraging me to write stories.
'What she said helped, in part because of that careful use of tense: 'When your first book is published, everything will change'. As if it was a certainty'
What she said helped, in part because of that careful use of tense: 'When your first book is published, everything will change'. As if it was a certainty that a book by me would be published, and if I could reach that milestone, the going would get easier.
'I’d rewrite Shakespeare’s Tempest. I hadn’t read it, but Caliban was all I needed to know. I re-formed the play to my own dream-vision.'
I’d rewrite Shakespeare’s Tempest. I hadn’t read it, but Caliban was all I needed to know. I re-formed the play to my own dream-vision, but the lavish production I envisaged was stymied by the realities of a small market town and adult scepticism.
'Terms have been coined to describe novels that do not ignore climate catastrophe and ecological collapse: ‘cli-fi’, ‘eco-fiction,’ ‘speculative fiction’. It ghettoizes the subject'
Terms have been coined to describe novels that do not ignore climate catastrophe and ecological collapse: ‘cli-fi’, ‘eco-fiction,’ ‘speculative fiction’. ‘Cli-fi’ is especially revealing, bracketing such stories alongside science fiction, as imaginative dystopias.
'Suddenly I could write all day. When horses are released from stables after being locked inside, they gallop across open fields, free at last.'
Suddenly I could write all day, uninterrupted. The only way to describe my elation is by using a metaphor. When horses are released from stables after being locked inside, with no sunlight or fresh air, they gallop across open fields, free at last.
'Most of those artists I met when I was a boy shared one thing. They wanted to create more than anything else.'
Most – and not all, but most – of those artists I met when I was a boy shared one thing in common. They wanted to create more than they wanted to do anything else. Initially I didn’t find that certainty inspiring. If anything, it was off-putting...
' I love maps for their own intrinsic beauty — their colours and outlines. I love them for helping me to know a little more.'
I love maps for their intrinsic beauty. I love them for helping me to know a little more. But I love them most of all because they are sources for my best daydreams, even now; as in my childhood, I still imagine the lives in these far-flung places.
'A thoroughly enjoyable event for my World War One novel was based around a period afternoon tea, complete with posters, bunting and wartime recipes.'
A thoroughly enjoyable event for my World War One novel was based around a period afternoon tea, complete with posters, bunting and wartime recipes, and the question and answer session occurring speed-dating style as I moved around tables.
'Choosing precisely the right piece of text to submit to the cursor’s jaw or the pencil’s jab is never fortuitous. There are criteria, clear in my mind.'
Choosing precisely the right piece of text to submit to the cursor’s jaw or the pencil’s jab is never fortuitous. There are criteria, clear in my mind, that preside over each choice: mood, pace, proportion and what I call the curve — a quality of tension.
'‘What are you up to?’ she asked. Her friend replied, ‘I’m bleaching the spoons.’ This friend was Val McDermid and even she was prone to bouts of procrastination. '
On a day when she’d rather do anything but write, Frances Fyfield phoned a friend. ‘What are you up to?’ she asked. Her friend replied, ‘I’m bleaching the spoons.’ This friend was Val McDermid and even she was prone to bouts of procrastination.
'To see the world afresh we ‘make it strange’. It is also a way of creeping close to realities and fears we have difficulty talking about. '
To see the world afresh we ‘make it strange’. It is also a way of creeping up close to realities, instincts and fears we have difficulty thinking or talking about. For Les Murray’s ‘Pigs’ the abattoir, and hence death, is incomprehensible:
'I think about books all the time. Books I’ve read and books I want to read. I compile lists in my head of books I want to buy. '
I think about books all the time. In bed at night, in the shower, when I’m cooking a meal, during country walks, on long car journeys. I think about books I’ve read and books I want to read. I compile lists in my head of books to buy and in what order.
'Some young adults are turning away from apps that find ever more devious ways to devour their attention, and towards the immersion of a good book. '
Some young adults are turning away from apps that find ever more devious ways to devour their attention, and towards the immersion of a good book. Poetry has been unexpectedly catapulted into bestseller lists by Instagram poets.
'Being bullied taught me a valuable lesson: I became self-reliant, learned to look inside for sustenance. It made me, I hope, more compassionate.'
Being bullied taught me a valuable lesson: I became self-reliant, learned to look inside for sustenance. It made me, I hope, more compassionate, more sensitive to other people, other creatures, other worlds; made me an outsider by choice.
'For the entirety of my twenties, I was rejected. I took it seriously. I treated rejection like a job. I worked at it, and I worked hard. '
For the entirety of my twenties, I was rejected. I took it seriously. I treated rejection like a job. I worked at it, and I worked hard. The wages were brown envelopes with my own handwriting on them, thumping onto my welcome mat after I’d sent them.
'Every morning is a feline re-enactment of an Ancient Greek drama, with me, the inadequate director, stage manager and Chorus.'
Every morning is a feline re-enactment of an Ancient Greek drama, with me, the inadequate director, stage manager and Chorus, attempting to re-write the inevitable scenes of bursting tension, churning violence and epic wailing.
'After ten years as a novelist, I find the ‘perfect’ surroundings are not necessarily as conducive to writing as I thought...'
After ten years as a novelist, I find the ‘perfect’ surroundings are not necessarily as conducive to writing as I thought. My three-screen computer set-up, while it’s incredibly useful also makes it ridiculously easy to check Facebook and Twitter.
'George Saunders develops the acronym TICHN — things I couldn’t help noticing. In other words, referring back to his advice ‘Don’t say something for no reason'.'
George Saunders develops the acronym TICHN — things I couldn’t help noticing. In other words, referring back to his advice ‘Don’t say something for no reason’; if you include a detail, make sure it means something, and repeat it, with subtle variations.
'I felt swept away by Ondaatje’s prose, as if by water — often I would need to climb ashore or set the book down to spend time with these words.'
I felt swept away by Ondaatje’s prose, as if by water — and yet so often I would need to climb ashore or set the book down in order to spend time with an expression or a character’s reply because these words were too beautiful to be hurried through.
'Many writers whose work is described as ‘literary fiction’ are uncomfortable with the label, largely because they’re unsure it actually means anything. '
Many writers whose work is described as ‘literary fiction’ are uncomfortable with the label, largely because they’re unsure it actually means anything. If I say my work is ‘literary fiction,’ I’m cheating whoever’s listening. I’m also cheating myself.
'I’d like to suggest that inspiration, when it occurs, is more often a reward of close focus and intense working than of visitation: a bonus rather than a living wage. '
I’d like to suggest that inspiration, when it occurs, is more often a reward of close focus and intense working than of visitation: a bonus rather than a living wage. Itcan be the work of memory and association as well as of the imagination.
'Writing a novel, one has to feel strongly about the theme that is its driving force, so discovering my underlying concerns has been helpful.'
In a dream diary recurring themes become apparent. When committing the time and effort required to write a novel, one has to feel strongly about the theme that is its driving force, so discovering my underlying concerns in this way has been helpful.
'It occurred to me to wonder, each time I signed one of these letters, how many disappointed writers would remember my name with hostility.'
It occurred to me to wonder, each time I signed one of these letters, how many disappointed writers would remember my name with hostility, and how many invisible enemies I had made during my tenure as queen of the slush pile.
'I tried to get my novel published, naïvely posting it off to publishers without realising that, whatever they claim, they never look at unsolicited submissions. '
I came back to Britain and tried to get my novel published, naïvely posting it off to publishers without realising that, whatever they claim, they never look at unsolicited submissions. It was turned down by all of them, but I kept on writing.
'In documentaries, the limits of your storytelling are largely set by where you point the camera. I learned to parcel up what I saw and heard into units of story.'
In documentaries, the limits of your storytelling are largely set by where you point the camera. I had a tough boss who told me, bluntly, ‘If you haven’t shot it, Polly, you haven’t got it.’ I learned how to parcel up what I saw and heard into units of story.
'Nick Hornby gave up writing novels, claiming that he was sick of his own company. He became a screenwriter instead,'
Writing, with all its knockbacks and critical judgements, can be a lonely road. Nick Hornby gave up writing novels for a while, claiming that he was sick of his own company, but he couldn’t walk away completely. He became a screenwriter instead,
'Just when you started to look at that page, someone needed a diaper change. Another one cried ‘I want snacks, dad!’. '
Just when you started to look at that page, someone needed a diaper change. As soon as you got into a rhythm later in the day, another one cried ‘I want snacks, dad!’ Words such as ‘concentration’ and ‘focus’ acquired new meanings.
'The vibe was all so positive — until three weeks later, when the agent emailed that she didn’t feel the same. I was crushed. '
I sent letters and had meetings, and spent a couple of hours with one who I realised, then and there, was definitely the agent for me. The vibe was all so positive — until three weeks later, when she emailed me that she didn’t feel the same. I was crushed.
'What you’ll discover is that one of your (our) greatest failings is destined to become the catalyst for great personal change.'
What you’ll discover is that one of your (our) greatest failings is actually destined to become the catalyst for great personal change. I’m speaking about your seething, confrontational angst towards, and quiet disregard for, formal education.
'Most human perception is probably lucky guesswork. To be truly an outsider, therefore, brings this disadvantage to the fore. '
Most human perception is probably lucky guesswork. To be truly an outsider, therefore, brings this disadvantage to the fore. I found, when researching books in India and Pakistan, that because I knew nothing, I was always in a questioning state.
'When working as an invigilator of public exams, I would gaze around the hall of silent candidates, imagining scenes from my novel-in-progress.'
When working as an invigilator of public exams, I would gaze around the hall of silent candidates in a kind of reverie, imagining scenes from my novel-in-progress and composing lines of dialogue in my head. Ideas seemed to flow more freely.
'I spent three weeks prevaricating. I must buy a new shed. I could modify a shipping container. I even looked at pimping an old VW camper.'
I spent three weeks prevaricating. I must buy a new shed. I could modify a shipping container. I even looked at pimping an old VW camper so I could sleep in peace, parked in a field, and wake up to write. It was the only way I could go about this...
'If you are now reading my words, and if we accept that words are only as valid as the mind that chooses them, we are in a kind of partnership.'
So if, by picking up my novel, you are now reading my words, and if we accept that words are only as valid as the mind that chooses them, then we are both now in a kind of partnership, me writing the words and you reading them.
'Etymology of rejection is important here: rejection means thrown back. You send something out and it’s thrown back. '
Etymology is important here: rejection means thrown back. You send something out and it’s thrown back. Over the years I’ve come to see that it’s good to understand that rejection of a piece of work isn’t the same as rejection of me as a writer.
'My nearest bookshop was essentially a sex shop but stocked some excellent pop culture books. To see my book in their window was an unparalleled thrill.'
I was living in Soho, and the nearest bookshop was the Original Soho Bookshop, essentially a sex shop but it also stocked some excellent pop culture books on the ground floor. To see my book displayed in their window was an unparalleled thrill.
'My husband, a furniture maker, helpfully offered to build me a shed at the end of the garden. I declined. '
My husband, a furniture maker, offered to build me a shed at the end of the garden. Coveted writer’s headquarters, a short gravel path away. I declined. His suggestion made me feel ejected from the family home. I had to explain that I feared loneliness.
'Some of my fellow coffee shop typists seem quite happy to join the queue for a refill, leaving their precious equipment and wordcount. '
Some of my fellow coffee shop typists seem quite happy to join the queue for a refill, leaving their precious equipment and wordcount sitting on an unattended table. I’m far too paranoid to get up without packing everything away.
'I spend a lot of time in extreme environments where books of length are essential. Tolstoy’s doorstops were made for polar whiteouts. '
I spend a lot of time in extreme environments where books of length are essential, preferably printed on bible paper (forget electronic devices: cold sucks out the juice before the end of chapter 1). Tolstoy’s doorstops were made for polar whiteouts.
'It’s never been clear to me what’s meant to happen in that bottom drawer. Will your manuscript magically rewrite itself? '
It’s never been clear to me what’s meant to happen in that bottom drawer. Will your manuscript magically rewrite itself, freed from any interference by you? Will it sit there, until some editor has a Eureka! moment and shouts, ‘Get me the author!’?
'Like insomnia, or memory loss, or madness, writer’s block is something I prefer to keep in my peripheral vision. '
Like insomnia, or memory loss, or madness, or perhaps more like the mysterious face behind your shoulder in the mirror at midnight, or the black dog racing through the village at night, writer’s block is something I prefer to keep in my peripheral vision.
'When you’re used to publishing work in a book or journal, the idea of having words carved into stone is thrilling — and terrifying. '
When you’re used to publishing work in a book or journal, the idea of having words carved into stone is thrilling — and terrifying. A poem in a pavement is public, that’s public with a capital ‘P’. There are different responsibilities and considerations.
'I love writers who can explain hugely complex subjects in a way that makes them accessible to the lay reader.'
I love writers who can explain hugely complex subjects in a way that makes them accessible to the lay reader. Max Hastings’s and Antony Beevor’s deservedly popular war books have done this magnificently, as did Piers Brendon’s The Dark Valley.
'My desire to make science fiction feel grounded, and contemporary drama strange and surreal, is probably just an example of human contrariness.'
My desire to make science fiction feel grounded, and contemporary drama strange and surreal, is probably just another example of human contrariness. Ask me for a story about apples and there’s some part of me that wants to do a painting of pears.
'Another thrilling moment was the casting of Pete Postlethwaite as Van Gogh. His voice expressed all of Vincent’s passion.'
Another thrilling moment was the recording of the play. Pete Postlethwaite's voice expressed all of Vincent Van Gogh’s passion, obstinance, delight, anger and fervour. His Lancashire accent was perfect for the part. A mesmerising performance.
'I had no idea anyone else would ever read what I had written, let alone publish my story, so nothing about it mattered, giving me complete creative freedom. '
I had no idea anyone else would ever read what I had written, let alone publish my story, so nothing about it mattered, giving me complete creative freedom. Writing a book now has become a different experience, more satisfying and more terrifying.
'Familiarity risks blinding the writer to what is special. I want to recognise the habitual, but not be numbed by it.'
I want to recognise the habitual, but not be numbed by it; to retain both first and lasting impressions of a place. It demands both sufficient experience to write with authority and distance to write with liberty, without misrepresentation or betrayal.
'All the tables at Simple Pleasures were occupied by people on laptops; coders, writers, poets, songsters.'
The tables at Simple Pleasures were occupied by people on laptops; coders, writers, poets, songsters. Nobody looked as if they had more than two cents to rub together. My writing flew at that café, winged on optimism: everyone powered by dreams.
'I’ve lost count of the number of artists I’ve seen live and become a fan of because I was saving my spot in the crowd for another band I liked. It’s similar at the book festival. '
I’ve lost count of the number of artists I’ve seen live and become a fan of because I was saving my spot in the crowd for a band I liked. It’s similar at a book festival. The force of a writer’s personality, the life they give their characters, can attract followers.
'‘Nothing you ever write is ever wasted.’ What’s that supposed to mean? That you will be able to reuse the words?'
‘Nothing you ever write is ever wasted.’ What’s that supposed to mean? That you will be able to reuse the words? Upcycle them into something like a patchwork quilt or a genteelly distressed sideboard? Or, the process of writing teaches you something?
'I also decided I would move to a new story each week, regardless what shape a piece was in. '
I would move to a new story each week, regardless what shape a piece was in. Ultimately, I coached myself, I can make it better later. The goal was to generate acceptable drafts of twelve stories by Christmas. Stay positive, keep the work rate up.
'Your newly chosen philosophy degree gradually morphs into a literature one, with a dose of Sartrean self-creativity.'
Your newly chosen philosophy degree gradually morphs into a literature one and with a dose of Sartrean self-creativity (life being malleable, existence rather than essence) you edit the university’s poetry magazine, write stories, plays, even act...
'He slapped a silver-cover version of J. D. Salinger’s novel down in front of each one of us. ‘Read it,’ he said.'
He slapped a silver-cover version of J. D. Salinger’s novel down in front of each one of us. ‘Read it,’ he said, ‘all lesson, for homework, and the next lesson and homework, until you’ve finished it.’ Thirty-five minutes later, the change in me had begun.
'At some point, the Doom would fade enough for me to jump back into whatever I’d been trying to write before it began. But my characters were just words. '
At some point, the Doom would fade enough for me to jump back into whatever I’d been trying to write before it began. But my characters were just words. And my words: just other people’s, only clumsier, less necessary, more shameful.
'She made us choose a poem and learn it off by heart. It would be useful, she said, if we were ever bored and at a dinner party; we could recite in our head. '
She made us choose a poem and learn it off by heart. It would be useful, she said, if we were ever bored and at a dinner party; we could recite in our head. I couldn’t imagine ever being at a dinner party, but I can still recite ‘Ode to a Nightingale’.
'You don’t need to be gregarious, but you do need to be curious. As Seamus Heaney suggested, we should be vulnerable to delight. '
You don’t need to be gregarious, but you do need to be curious. As Seamus Heaney suggested, we should be vulnerable to delight. I find being alone essential, and I’m happy to stray along the border of loneliness, but it’s good to have a change.
'Summer sprinted on with face masks and hand washes, and centuries-old talk about the weather had shifted to Covid. '
As spring tore away from the calendar of seasons, summer sprinted on with face masks and hand washes, and the centuries-old talk about the weather shifted to the uncertainty of regulations about Covid. I started heading out earlier in the mornings.
'I have written at least four full-length novels that will never see the light of day. A couple have been roundly rejected by publishers.'
I have written at least four full-length novels that will never see the light of day. A couple have been roundly rejected by publishers, and I have not had the temerity to show the others to anyone for fear they might somehow slip past the gatekeepers.
'Having acquired an agent, you haven’t got it made: that even a top agent can send your book round and get a resounding No. '
No one tells you that, having acquired an agent, you haven’t got it made: that even a top agent from a well-established firm can send your book round all the publishers and get a resounding No. That even when you’ve rewritten, the answer is still No.
'People in books — they’re important. So, when I found a girl in a book who was like me, that makes me feel important. '
I never thought I was important. People in books — they’re important. So, when I found a girl in a book who was like me, when I read about her, that makes me feel important. So when I get to the end, I just go straight back to the beginning again.’
'I could picture the scene clearly. Suddenly what I believed to be an exotic story contained a personal element.'
I could picture the scene clearly — wooden panelling on the walls, the newspaper held across the fireplace to momentarily stop the draught while lighting the coals. Suddenly what I believed to be an exotic story contained a personal element.
'Women are often expected to stick to one area of interest – often a ‘female-centric’ one – possibly because we’re not expected to be versatile.'
Women are often expected to stick to one area of interest – often a ‘female-centric’ one – possibly because we’re not expected to be versatile in the first place. We’re expected to continue doing the first thing we become known for.
'Muriel Spark had it right, spending most of the year in a whirl of social engagements, and retreating to a hotel where she would write.'
Muriel Spark had it right, I think, spending most of the year in a whirl of social engagements, and retreating to a hotel where she would live undisturbed for months writing her books. Unfortunately, that option is not available for most of us.
'My interest in Venice dates from the mid-seventies, when I watched Don’t Look Now on late-night TV. '
My interest in Venice dates from the mid-seventies, when I watched Don’t Look Now on late-night TV. The melancholia of the film was redoubled by the fact that I was watching it alone on New Year’s Eve... 1977 became 1978 without my noticing.
'My reading is profligate, promiscuous, a hopeless addiction that has grown chronic over the years. '
My reading is profligate, promiscuous, a hopeless addiction. The evidence mounts behind the closed door of my bedroom. Broken-backed volumes that slip from my hand in the middle of the night accrete over weeks on the rag rug by my bed.
'Literature festivals can be like jazz — it’s a known song, but each singer makes it sound so different.'
No two festival years can be the same. Literature festivals can be like jazz — it’s a known song, but each singer makes it sound so different with the unique chemistry of the three Aristotelian unities of time, action and space.
'With the exception of some very big names and some airport novels, there is simply no money in books. '
With the exception of some very big names and some airport novels, there is simply no money in books. This has corroded pretty much every professional publishing relationship: that of writer to agent, agent to publisher, and publisher to writer and bookseller.
'I found myself creating narratives to go with the photographs. Who did those abandoned shoes belong to? '
I found myself creating narratives to go with the photographs. Who did those abandoned shoes belong to? Who cared enough for the child on the beach to photograph her? When strangers (literally) collide on an escalator?
'Letters, notebooks and diaries testify to an ability to write with tolerable coherence without prior planning. Everything else has me pacing...'
Letters, notebooks and diaries testify to an ability to write with tolerable coherence without prior planning. Everything else has me pacing, note-taking, sketching out paragraphs, dictating, binning and starting anew — before I sit down to the screen.
'Self-isolation has become so ingrained as to be virtually indistinguishable from addiction. You gravitate to the periphery, outside but looking in.'
Self-isolation has become so ingrained as to be virtually indistinguishable from addiction. You still gravitate to the periphery, outside but looking in, close enough to discern the moving parts, distanced enough to have some sense of the whole.
'Unfinished poems, beginnings of stories, ideas for plays, an abandoned novel, pieces for radio which never were aired, articles which never were published...'
Unfinished poems, beginnings of stories, ideas for plays, an abandoned novel, pieces for radio which never were aired, articles which never were published, which weren’t even sent out for publication, thoughts, quotes, things observed, read, overheard…
'A friend was so incensed at being sacked from a daily newspaper that she was inspired to write a bestseller.'
Commonly, a writer is driven by heartbreak, fury or the desperate need for money. A friend was so incensed at being sacked from a newspaper that she was inspired to write a novel which became a bestseller. ‘It was pure hatred which drove me’, she said.
'There were no clear routes for becoming a writer. Degrees in creative writing had not yet mushroomed at the universities; I’d had no idea that writing might be taught. '
There were no clear routes for becoming a writer. Degrees in creative writing had not yet mushroomed at the universities; I’d had no idea that writing might be taught. How novelists learnt their craft and made a career of it, to me was an utter enigma.
'I was once drowsing through a press brunch at Claridge’s in my days as a consumer journalist, when the late Dame Barbara Cartland arrived...'
I was once drowsing through a press brunch at Claridge’s in my days as a consumer journalist, when the late Dame Barbara Cartland arrived. For a second, it was possible to imagine the maturity of one’s own career being a matter of grand arrivals.
'‘Kill your darlings’ is high on my list of unhelpful comments about writing, almost as bad as Connolly’s dismissive ‘pram in the hall’.'
‘Kill your darlings’ is high on my list of unhelpful comments about writing, almost as bad as Connolly’s dismissive ‘pram in the hall’ which implies parents (and probably especially women) can’t be good writers. We need greener metaphors for creativity.
'In many ways, the ‘pram in the hallway’ has not been, for me, ‘a sombre enemy of good art’. Having a child has given me access to different people, places and concerns.'
In many ways, the ‘pram in the hallway’ has not been, for me, ‘a sombre enemy of good art’. Having a child has given me access to different types of people, places and concerns, as well as reconnecting me with my own childhood.
'Books written by friends have a special, honoured shelf to themselves. Histories, biographies, novels, memoirs. Some of them write quite a lot. '
Books written by friends have a special, honoured shelf to themselves. Some of them write quite a lot. I vote we ask the Prime Minister to insert another month into the year so we can catch up with our reading. The Romans used to do it, after all.
'The stylists, all from northern Italy, would complain about their husbands in their dialect. I spent my early years eavesdropping.'
I had a Saturday job at a hair salon in London’s Soho. The stylists, all from northern Italy, would complain about their husbands in their dialect. Many of the customers were prostitutes; they’d exchange news in a secret code. I spent my early years eavesdropping.
'Working on a book can be gruelling. The feeling that you’re writing into a void can spawn an imagined readership of crippling inner critics '
Working on a book can be gruelling. The feeling that you’re writing into a void can spawn an imagined readership of crippling inner critics — and make it harder to nurture the two qualities that a writer needs above all: self-discipline and self-belief.
'I found a single email, sent by the organisers of a writing competition, inviting me to a reading and presentation, but my phone was out of service. I had been shortlisted.'
I found a single email, sent by the organisers of a writing competition, inviting me to a reading and presentation, but my phone was out of service. I had been shortlisted, and I needed to call them by the following day, or my place would be forfeited.
'When I learnt about the witch trials that had taken place in my home county of Essex, fiction finally called to me.'
When I learnt about the witch trials that had taken place in my home county of Essex, fiction finally called to me. My research uncovered a catalogue of horrors, born out of ‘othering’ and intolerance, and sparked a desire to bring them to light.
'I want to write about people who are creative, courageous, eccentric, mystical. They have a less appreciated side that deserves attention.'
I want to write about people who are creative, courageous, eccentric, mystical. They have to have a less appreciated side that deserves attention. They have to be absolutely themselves. What could be more inspiring?
'‘Flow’, named in the mid-twentieth century, describes a mental state characterised by an intense absorption'
‘Flow’, named in the mid-twentieth century by the Hungarian-American psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, describes a mental state characterised by an intense absorption, the loss of self-consciousness and an altered perception of time.
'E. L. Doctorow’s liberating idea that ‘writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights.'
E. L. Doctorow’s liberating idea that ‘writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.’ Whether you’re a plotter or a ‘pantser’, this is sound advice.
'We decided to release new titles at specific shows. This was our first brush with the idea of event publishing although we were unaware of that term. '
We decided to release new titles at specific shows. This was our first brush with the idea of event publishing although we were unaware of that term. Using the annual schedule of comic conventions, we tied each new release to a particular show.
'He explained that everything else from now on — the agent, the publisher, the deal, the reviews, the readers, the prizes, none of it will be as thrilling as this moment. '
He explained that everything else from now on — the agent, the publisher, the deal, the reviews, the readers, the prizes, none of it will be as thrilling as this moment. As satisfying. This is the zenith of all writing, when the writing is done.
'Jayne Anne Phillips' slim collection Sweethearts was published when she was in her early twenties. She calls the writing ‘pieces’. Each is a page'
Jayne Anne Phillips' slim collection Sweethearts was published when she was in her early twenties. She does not refer to its contents as stories or poems; she calls the writing ‘pieces’. Each is a page, a snapshot of small-town American life.
'A comfortable chair is essential, unless one is a Woolf or a Hemingway (who wrote on their feet), or a Sitwell or Capote (who wrote recumbent). '
A comfortable chair is essential, unless one is a Woolf or a Hemingway (who wrote on their feet), or a Sitwell or Capote (who wrote recumbent). A swivel chair – also known as a spinny or revolving chair – is my go-to option.
'Left alone with no idea, your imagination begins to work overtime. The book is dying on its feet.'
Generally, editors only call you if there is good news. So, if they don’t call, that could mean nothing is happening. Left alone with no idea, your imagination begins to work overtime. The book you cared about so passionately, is dying on its feet.
'Carrot comes into view — another ep of latest Covid Netflix addiction. Only if you’ve done your pages. Comes as Mrs Danvers’ voice.'
Carrot comes into view — another ep of latest Covid Netflix addiction. Only if you’ve done your pages. Comes as Mrs Danvers’ voice, icy, stern and always delivered wearing black at top of stairs. There is no Rebecca or nameless heroine in our house.
'I sent in a physical copy of the novel rather than a Word doc., banking on the fact no-one would wordcount it. It would stand on its own merits.'
I sent in a physical copy of the novel rather than a Word doc., banking on the fact no-one would wordcount it. It would stand on its own merits, and either feel the right length for itself or not. As it happens, it was the right length for itself.
'You baulk at the term ‘networking’ and think it’s somehow shabby. It’s about getting to know people. Collaboration and trust are key. '
You baulk at the term ‘networking’ and think it’s somehow shabby. It’s about getting to know people. If you were a producer or director, wouldn’t you want to work with someone you’ve already met and hopefully liked? Collaboration and trust are key.
'Seventy-four years after Dickens’ night-walk, in the year 1930, Virginia Woolf sets out from Bloomsbury to the Strand, to purchase a pencil.'
Seventy-four years after Dickens’ night-walk, in the year 1930, Virginia Woolf sets out from Bloomsbury to the Strand. Her object is not to get through the night but to purchase a pencil. Under cover of this, she can indulge in the pleasure of rambling.
'If I kept the window open, my room was filled with the white noise of the sea, which could block out the radio in another room, or the barking dog.'
If I kept the window open, my room was filled with the white noise of the sea, which could block out the radio in another room, or the barking of a dog in a distant garden. (The absolute enemy of the writer is the barking dog, or the owner of one.)
'I quickly found that playing to halls full of excitable children, and getting a laugh from them, was unimaginably rewarding. '
I quickly found that playing to halls full of excitable children, and getting a laugh from them, was unimaginably rewarding. I don’t just mean financially. Working alone at a desk, I’d never been that aware of the effect that my work could have on others.
'Agents and editors, producers and commissioners, say they are looking for the original writing voice. Surely the process behind it has to be just as unique? '
The one thing agents and editors, producers and commissioners, say they are looking for is the original writing voice. And if the voice is to be original, surely the process behind it has to be just as unique? I don’t have one set way of doing things.
'In my rewrite of It’s a Wonderful Life, George would be Georgia. On a cold Christmas Eve, she sits alone. Born at a time that allowed her dreams, but no chance to pursue them. '
In my rewrite of It’s a Wonderful Life, George would be Georgia. On a cold Christmas Eve, she sits alone. Born at a time that allowed her dreams, but no chance to pursue them. The wife who made her husband’s life easier and the mother who made cakes.
'Orkney is experiencing a cultural renaissance fuelled to a large degree by British people’s fascination with their preliterate past. '
I lived for a year in Orkney, off the north coast of Scotland. Orkney is experiencing a cultural renaissance fuelled to a large degree by British people’s fascination with their preliterate past. The secrets of the time before a word of English was spoken.
'Surely this has been done before? The answer, invariably, is: ‘Well, yes, it has been done,’ (after all, what hasn’t?) ‘just not in this particular way...'
You know an idea has legs when it simply won’t go away. Sometimes it seems too good to be true. Surely this has been done before? The answer, invariably, is: ‘Well, yes, it has been done,’ (after all, what hasn’t?) ‘just not in this particular way...
'I'm a very active and social person so I find it especially hard to lock myself away. It makes me feel like an outsider, not having full control over my time.'
I'm a very active and social person so I find it especially hard to lock myself away. It makes me feel like an outsider, not having full control over my time; when I'm going to work, and when I can stop working. It can feel like it's more than a full time job.
'"So?" raised uncomfortable questions. Aren't we always battling against that nasty little question? On bad days it undermines, on good days it underpins. '
"So?" raised uncomfortable questions. Aren't we always battling against that nasty little question? On bad days it undermines, on good days it underpins. And here it was, so bold and uncompromising, footnoting my trusting poem.
'Rejection is familiar to every writer. It was already familiar to me when I first sent out my book proposal, as it is to so many other freelance journalists who pitch ideas.'
Rejection is familiar to every writer. It was already familiar to me when I first sent out my book proposal, as it is to so many other freelance journalists who pitch ideas to editors. Sometimes you can learn something from rejection, sometimes you can’t.
'Bruce Chatwin turned down the Thomas Cook Travel Book of the Year award, and its cheque, because, he averred, ‘I’m not a travel writer’. '
One cannot deny the existence of a genre hierarchy among writers. Bruce Chatwin turned down the Thomas Cook Travel Book of the Year award, and its cheque, because, he averred, ‘I’m not a travel writer’. The genre was beneath him.
'My early plays were all set in London. It was what I knew. London fascinated me. Who were these city dwellers? '
My early plays were all set in London. It was what I knew. London fascinated me. Who were these city dwellers? What was their life story? My first play, about two outsiders connected by the same woman, was set on Holloway Road.
'In my twenties I would never abandon a book I had started, from a mixture of stubbornness and courtesy to the author, however little I was enjoying it. '
In my twenties I would never abandon a book I had started, from a mixture of stubbornness and courtesy to the author, however little I was enjoying it. Now, I am more mindful of time nipping at my heels, if I am not engaged by page fifty.
'Once or twice in my writing life a piece of writing has come to me fully formed, spilling onto the page almost faster than I can write.'
Once or twice in my writing life a piece of writing has come to me fully formed, spilling onto the page almost faster than I can write, and needing very little editing. Those times were exhilarating and otherworldly, but I can count them on one hand.
'‘What is it?’ asked Ron, my editor. ‘It’s a manuscript written on a computer,’ his colleague told him. ‘I’ve just been sent it from America.’ '
‘What is it?’ asked Ron, my editor. ‘It’s a manuscript written on a computer,’ his colleague told him. ‘I’ve just been sent it from America.’ Ron took the manuscript and leafed through a few pages. ‘This is going to put us out of a job,’ he said.
'I felt like I was taking charge of my destiny. Several novels down the line, the idea of autonomy feels naive. '
I felt like I was taking charge of my destiny. Several novels down the line, the idea of autonomy feels naive. In reflecting on how writing changes the writer, I realise I’ve drifted into how being published changes the writer: a Freudian slip.
'Mrs Drue Heinz, the benefactor who bought Hawthornden Castle, thought of everything when she designed their residential fellowships. '
This is a place that’s perfect for writing, because it’s been designed purely for that purpose. Mrs Drue Heinz, the benefactor who bought Hawthornden Castle decades ago, thought of everything when she and her trustees designed their fellowships.
'Writing is a search to find a pattern in the messy, contradictory details of the non-writing life — yours, mine, everybody’s. '
Writing is a search to find a pattern in the messy, contradictory details of the non-writing life — yours, mine, everybody’s. You can only sit in your cork–lined room if you’ve lived a bit: we must write from experience after all, not ideas.
'Had some literary giant gatecrashed? No; it was the footballer Rio Ferdinand, who had presumably wandered in by accident. He signed my book.'
Had some literary giant gatecrashed? No; it was the footballer Rio Ferdinand, who had presumably wandered in by accident. He signed my book. It was only much later that I realised this was the wrong way round. We got the diary piece, though.
'Keats describes his exact bodily position as he is writing, with his back to the fire, one foot on the rug and the other dangling over it. '
Keats describes his position as he is writing, with his back to the fire, one foot on the rug and the other dangling over it. He considered it would be a great delight to know the exact bodily position in which Shakespeare began ‘To be or not to be’.
'The business side of things – knowing how to file your taxes, claim back your expenses, or manage your income – is more important than you think. '
The business side of things – knowing how to file your taxes, claim back your expenses, or manage your income – is more important than you think. Writing is a craft and an art, but being a writer is a job. The worker needs to eat.
'If there’s one thing more luxurious than being paid to write, it’s being paid to talk about your writing. '
Literary festivals are the cherries on the cake of writing. You are almost always paid to attend, and if there’s one thing more luxurious than being paid to write, it’s being paid to talk about your writing. You are, in effect, being paid to go on a little holiday.
'Deadlines in the theatre, in my experience, are more negotiable. But they are vital. Nothing concentrates the mind like the hangman’s noose. '
Deadlines in the theatre, in my experience, are more negotiable. But they are vital. Their effect is best summed up by that old dictum: Nothing concentrates the mind like the hangman’s noose. It makes the writer write.
'I’m well aware that in my efforts to be ‘the world’s amanuensis’ I can only convey a tiny fraction of nature’s wonders. '
In my efforts to be ‘the world’s amanuensis’ I can only convey a tiny fraction of nature’s wonders. My books are as much records of failing to catch the world’s whispered essays as they are transcriptions of the incredible things they say.
'Richard Ford inspires me. When I read him, I want to be a better father, a better man and a much, much better writer. '
Richard Ford inspires me. When I read him, I want to be a better father, a better man and a much, much better writer. I will never be as good a writer as Richard Ford’s books make me want to be. ‘Fear and hope are alike underneath,’...is above my desk.
'Eventually, you’ll forgive the person who thought it would be character building to bang you up in a convent school run by dysfunctional nuns. '
Eventually, you’ll forgive the person who thought it would be character building to bang you up in a convent school run mainly by dysfunctional nuns. Here you will be forced to take elocution lessons to rid you of your rather peculiar accent.
'I book-end my talk with a spacey slide show set to Elton John’s ‘Rocket Man’ and David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’. A man in the audience has a rock guitar and offers to play live. '
I intend to book-end my talk with a spacey slides show set to Elton John’s ‘Rocket Man’ and David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’ but my version of PowerPoint is incompatible with the Festival’s. A man in the audience has a rock guitar and offers to play live.
'Ghost-writing books and columns for celebrities; booking guests onto TV chat shows won’t help you become a first-class screenwriter or novelist.'
Ghost-writing books and columns for celebrities; booking guests onto TV chat shows. There’s nothing wrong with those gigs – and the bills must be paid – but they won’t help you develop the skills to become a first-class screenwriter or novelist.
'Sometimes writer’s block and unrealised projects amount to the same thing. Research takes over, the idea dwarfs the actuality. '
Sometimes writer’s block and unrealised projects amount to the same thing. The research takes over, the idea dwarfs the actuality, and, ultimately, nothing gets written. In certain cases, procrastination poses as progress. This is one of those cases.
'Years passed and I did not write the novel. During this time my contact with the agent became more sporadic and – from my point of view – more fraught. '
Years passed and I did not write the novel. During this time my contact with the agent became more sporadic and – from my point of view – more fraught. I had anxiety dreams about him. Sometimes he didn’t reply to my emails.
'This re-sensitizing to nature has had a profound effect on me. On a recent trip to China I realized, something was terribly wrong. I had not seen a single insect.'
This re-sensitizing to nature has had a profound effect on me. On a recent trip to China I realized, after a week or so, something was terribly wrong. I had not seen a single insect in days. Not an ant, not a cockroach... We started to look for them.
'I wouldn’t like to work in a coffee-shop, as many do, with the raucous spurting of the espresso machine, and the need to part with another £2.50 every four hours.'
There are exceptions to the somewhere-else rule... I wouldn’t like to work in a coffee-shop, as many do, with the raucous spurting of the espresso machine, the ambient chatter, and the need to part with another £2.50 every four hours.
'Freya Stark travelled widely in Luristan, Palestine, Lebanon, Iran, Syria and Iraq, and was the first Western woman to journey through Yemen. '
Freya Stark travelled widely in Luristan, Palestine, Lebanon, Iran, Syria and Iraq, and was the first Western woman to journey through that part of the Arabian peninsula which is now Yemen. But a hundred years ago? She showed me how it was done.
'These poems are never conventionally published: they skittle through the air into the hearts of whoever’s present, as gifts.'
These poems are never conventionally published: they skittle through the air into the hearts of whoever’s present, as gifts, ways of marking a moment that never comes again. They are poems of witness, poems that usher us over a threshold.
'The new editor gave us a long list of do’s and don’ts... I still don’t know why semicolons offend the sensitivities of saga readers.'
The new editor gave us a long list of do’s and don’ts. No swearing, it upsets the audience. No graphic violence, ditto. No semi-colons. That last came as a particular shock. I still don’t know why semicolons offend the sensitivities of saga readers.
'A friend gave me a very elegant ladies writing desk. But it was designed for a time when ladies sat down with a crisp sheet of writing paper. '
A friend once gave me a very elegant ladies writing desk. It is made from walnut with curved legs and lots of useful little compartments. But it was designed for a time when ladies sat down with a crisp sheet of writing paper and little else.
'My friend the anarchist poet said he had no sympathy for anyone who used a computer. You plant the dragon seed, you reap the dragon harvest. '
I was told the problem was A, and then B, and finally C. It turned out to be none of the above. My friend the anarchist poet said he had no sympathy for anyone who used a computer. You plant the dragon seed, you reap the dragon harvest.
'I take to the stage at book festivals around the country, doing around twenty to thirty chairing gigs a year. I’ve looked Derren Brown in the eye.'
I take to the stage at book festivals around the country, doing around twenty to thirty chairing gigs a year. I’ve looked Derren Brown in the eye, facing down predictions from friends that he would hypnotise me into talking gibberish.
'I write with the idealistic ambition to change the world. I see my work as little pieces of activism.'
I write with the idealistic ambition to change the world. I see my work as little pieces of activism, whether it’s raising awareness of issues, or getting people to think differently. Often you don’t know how you feel about a situation until you write it.
'You made me a bed on the floor by the radiator, and let me sleep off my feverish homesickness. '
You made me a bed on the floor by the radiator, and let me sleep off my feverish homesickness. I wrote to you later and thanked you for making boarding school bearable. You replied telling me you had at last managed to escape your husband.
'It is now easier, more convenient, to refer to the fictional world I have created in that novel than my real life memories. '
Whenever I need to refresh my memory it is now easier, more convenient, to refer to the fictional world I have created in that novel than to summon up my real life memories. As you’ll have noticed, I’ve come full circle.
'I decided to throw myself into doing as much promotion of the book as I could. It was something I could exercise control over.'
I decided to throw myself into doing as much promotion of the book as I could. It was partially distraction, I suppose. But I also felt it was something I could exercise a degree of control over. I took it into my own hands.
'Having recently flirted with online dating, rejection is something I could write a book about. However, I will turn my attention to literary critical rejection.'
Having recently flirted with the online dating scene, rejection is something I could probably write a book about. It’s certainly got me thinking through potential plot lines. For the this article, however, I will turn my attention to literary critical rejection.
'You were a writer at nineteen and you’re a writer now. You write because you have something to say,'
You were a writer at nineteen and you’re a writer now. There are several books published with your name on the spine and there’s a feature film of one of your novels too. You write because you have something to say,
'I only have books that are useful or inspirational to the writing process, and my own published works are here. '
I have prints of white flowers by Georgia O’Keefe, and Hannah McVicar; a set of wooden angel wings from one of my closest friends. I only have books that are useful or inspirational to the writing process, and my own published works are here.
'Poets are said to do their best work in their early years. Young poets aren’t always the best judge of what’s good, though. '
Poets are said to do their best work in their early years (Thom Gunn wrote Fighting Terms as a student, and how old was Helen Mort when she began?) Young poets aren’t always the best judge of what’s good, though. Editorial skills come later.
'Writing requires commitment, concentration, conviction and occasional boredom. It’s best for me to be in a solitary environment,'
Writing requires commitment, concentration, conviction and occasional boredom. It’s a combination of those that propels the creative process. In order to have all of these when I settle down to write, it’s best for me to be in a solitary environment.
'Reading a novel for pleasure, in the daytime, has in the past felt as decadent as a solo trip to the cinema whilst my children are at school.'
Reading a novel for pleasure, in the daytime, has in the past felt as decadent as a solo trip to the cinema whilst my children are at school: something I have often longed to do, but never dared. How can I read, when there is work to be finished?
'For any writer of poetry, prose, essays for your course, reading aloud highlights stumbling blocks of all kinds. '
For any writer of poetry, prose, essays for your course, reading aloud highlights stumbling blocks of all kinds. My sense of the ebb and flow of a poem is always clarified because I distract myself in the physical act of standing and speaking.
'I’m a hoarder of ideas. I never throw anything out. No narrative rumination, no half-baked character detail or high-concept pitch. '
I’m a hoarder of ideas. I never throw anything out. No narrative rumination, no half-baked character detail or high-concept pitch. I’ve got physical notes, folders, scripts and more, stuffed in boxes and drawers that I can’t even locate.
'As well as learning about history it was good for our reflexes because we had to be on the ball and duck or else you could get killed.'
As well as learning about history it was good for our reflexes because we had to be on the ball and duck or else you could get killed or just knocked out like Vivienne Pryce-Jones who took a direct hit between the eyes from a German Fokker.
'‘You’re on New Blood,’ Sam said. ‘Val McDermid chooses four debuts she really likes. It’s exciting.’ ‘Great!’ I said.'
I could literally hear my knees knocking. ‘You’re on New Blood,’ Sam said. ‘Val McDermid chooses four debuts she really likes. It’s exciting, a really big deal.’ ‘Great!’ I said.
'What I need is not a room, but a bed of my own, without husband, children, Beatrix Potter, Pingu; outwith the noise of my housemates' trumpet practice.'
What I need is not a room, but a bed of my own, without husband, children, Beatrix Potter, Pingu; outwith the noise of my housemates' trumpet practice, violin scales, kitchen songs. When he wanted to meditate, St Cuthbert retreated to a cell...
'What I often do is I bombard myself. 'Collision' is a word that has always been important to my writing. What happens when I smash things together? '
What I often do is I bombard myself. 'Collision' is a word that has always been important to my writing. What happens when I smash two or more things together? Right now, I'm a bit obsessed with octopuses.
'In Tennessee Williams we meet contradictory, faulty, self-destructive, or self-deluding characters, full of dreams and yearning. What a great cocktail for a drama. '
In Tennessee Williams, we meet contradictory, faulty, self-destructive, or self-deluding characters, full of dreams and yearning. What a great cocktail for a drama! Maggie the Cat appals us in many ways, but we can't help liking her vigour and wit.
'I avoid like the plague fiction on any current project. I think that would be fatal, in that I might subconsciously plagiarise an incident or character...'
I avoid like the plague fiction on any current project. I think that would be fatal, in that I might subconsciously plagiarise an incident or character. Or even worse, think that they had done it so well I didn't dare dip my writing toes in the same water.
'The creation of a temporary workstation is one of the few parts of the process that I tend to romanticise. It's ritualistic for me; I want scenic spots and good vibrations. '
The creation of a temporary workstation is one of the few parts of the process that I tend to romanticise. It's ritualistic for me; I want scenic spots and good vibrations. A great coffee shop is made yet better by it being the setting for a writing session.
'To write at all, but especially for the screen, is to court rejection. The ratio of scripts commissioned, to scripts produced, is mortifyingly small.'
To write at all, but especially for the screen, is to court rejection. The huge sums of money needed to propel any project out of development hell and into production, mean the ratio of scripts commissioned, to scripts produced, is mortifyingly small.
'I have lots of ideas for stories and novels, with whole plots and casts of characters. But until I find the tune, I can't even get started. '
I have lots of ideas for stories and novels — good ideas, I think — with whole plots and casts of characters. But until I find the tune, I can't even get started. The 'tune' is the particular voice and tone of the narrative.
'The countryside is now the setting for my evolving relationship with my daughter as she grows. I watch her physically change in an ever-changing landscape. '
The countryside is now the setting for my evolving relationship with my daughter as she grows. I watch her physically change in an ever-changing landscape. I consider the mental shift that has taken place in order to return to Suffolk in my middle age.
'Business class flights out to Dubai, five-star hotel accommodation and three meals a day plus snacks... My God, I thought, are all lit fests like this?'
Business class flights out to Dubai, five-star hotel accommodation and three meals a day, plus snacks — all paid for. A greenroom where wine was served 24 hours a day. Chauffeur-driven cars... My God, I thought, are all literary festivals like this?
'We sat speechless in the echoing hall, each with our Princess Matic portable manual typewriter, a huge, orange plastic binder file and our bag of coloured key-caps. '
We sat speechless in the echoing hall, each with our Princess Matic portable manual typewriter, a huge, orange plastic binder file and our bag of coloured key-caps. As satisfying as Lego, these hid the letters from sight but each matched up to a finger.
'When I adapt a novel into an audio drama, I like to honour what the author has written. It's a privilege to walk in the shoes of another writer.'
When I adapt a novel into an audio drama, I like to honour what the author has written because it's such a privilege to walk in the shoes of another writer's creation. Who am I to say what needs to be changed?
'I'm secretly disappointed if the deadline is far off. If I sign a contract to deliver a book in two years' time, part of me thinks the whole thing will never happen.'
Sometimes I'm secretly disappointed if the deadline is far off. If I sign a contract to deliver a book in two years' time, part of me thinks the whole thing will never happen and I defer the work until the deadline looms.
'I was inspired to adapt a novel for radio because of a well-known cookery programme; a chef happened to be in the city where the novel was based.'
I was inspired to adapt a novel for radio because of a well-known cookery programme; a chef happened to be in the city where the novel was based, and mentioned the book in passing. Another was inspired by magpies in the park.
'I make toast. I remember I finished a jar of marmalade yesterday and have forgotten to get more I come back with marmalade and realise I forgot to plunge the cafetiere. '
I try to focus back on work while I make some toast. I remember I finished a jar of marmalade yesterday and have forgotten to get more from the outside store. I come back with the marmalade and realise I forgot to plunge the cafetiere.
'I represented Queen Mary University on University Challenge. It's not every day you get to team up with the lead singer of Iron Maiden, Bruce Dickinson.'
I represented Queen Mary University on University Challenge. It's not every day you get to team up with the lead singer of Iron Maiden, Bruce Dickinson; a TV presenter, Adrian Chiles; and Taiwanese chef. Ching He Huang.
'The writer needs mechanisms to maintain enthusiasm and minimise worry so that he can take full advantage of moments that afford the freedom to create.'
The writer needs mechanisms to maintain enthusiasm and minimise worry so that he can take full advantage of those moments that afford the freedom to create. This can also change the writer, requiring mental resources.
'I've used my nightie in workshops with serious-minded business people, in schools with cynical sixth-formers, in warehouses with fork-lift truck operatives. '
I've used my nightie in workshops with serious-minded business people, in schools with cynical sixth-formers, in warehouses with fork-lift truck operatives wearing high-vis vests, in hostels with former offenders. I've woven stories around it so often.
'At 8.5 pence per loan, sometimes the annual sum from the public lending rights can be more than writers receive in the first place.'
Those who borrow my novels and stories from libraries; your activities do not go unnoticed. At 8.5 pence per loan, sometimes the annual sum from the public lending rights can be more than writers receive for their work in the first place.
'Nowadays I rarely venture into central London. I'm drawn instead to Hampstead Heath. It's the nearest thing to the countryside.'
Nowadays I rarely venture into central London. I'm drawn instead to Hampstead Heath. It's the nearest thing to the countryside this city can offer. From the top of Parliament Hill, I look down on the great Babylon, the cityscape obscured by mist.
'All the poet needed, it seemed, was a well-proportioned townhouse on a sunny piazza, a couple of thousand calf-bound books and some fabulous friends...'
All the poet needed, it seemed, was a well-proportioned townhouse on a sunny piazza, a couple of thousand calf-bound books and some fabulous, if not heroic friends, and poetry would just happen.
'I've learned the hard way that the best thing to do is wait, until one idea out-shouts the others, and the clamour dies down. '
I've learned the hard way that the best thing to do is wait, until one idea out-shouts the others, and the clamour dies down. Trying to write myself out of a hole gets me deeper into one in more cases than it doesn't.
'I'll resort to tea, but anything stronger would make things much worse. The likes of John Berryman or Dylan Thomas couldn't cope without alcohol. '
I'll resort to tea, but anything stronger would make things much worse. The likes of John Berryman or Dylan Thomas couldn't cope without alcohol. For others, it's been sex or the occult, and Sylvia Plath found inspiration in the proximity of death.
'I don't know what it is, but there just seems to be a divide between my creative thinking and all things technical. I believe its the way I'm wired up. '
I don't know what it is, but there just seems to be a divide between my creative thinking and all things technical. I believe its the way I'm wired up. My creative flow has no boundaries and I can meander through without restriction.
'I once sat on a panel with two British Asian male crime writers. There to discuss 'diversity', the three of us looked out over a sea of white faces. '
I once sat on a panel with two British Asian male crime writers. There to discuss 'diversity', the three of us brown-skinned authors looked out over a sea of white faces. We were, in fact, the only non-Caucasians in the entire festival.
'Writers, especially women, manage to write in all sorts of places. At the corner of the kitchen table while they knead the bread, in damp dugouts with shells raining down...'
Writers, especially women, manage to write in all sorts of places. At the corner of the kitchen table while they knead the bread, in damp dugouts with shells raining down on their heads, in grim bedsits at the end of a long working day...
'It took years, decades, for him — while he morphed into me — to grasp that his project was fiction and there was no pattern to follow. '
It took years, decades, for him — while he morphed into me — to grasp that his project was fiction and there was no pattern to follow. If a novel, it would deserve that name. I was never tempted, for example, to foreground one or more of my 'people'.
'Yes, I am talentless, you're right. An utterly unconvincing stab at magic realism, dreadful. And yes, I'm ugly too.'
Yes, I am talentless, you're right. An utterly unconvincing stab at magic realism, dreadful. And yes, I'm ugly too; I agree. You were right to throw the novel in the bin, it is trash. That one star review is valid.
'I've lately begun to employ exercise books of the type I used as a child; copybooks of eighty or so pages, in which I can reflect on the idea I'm developing, '
I've lately begun to employ exercise books of the type I used as a child; copybooks of eighty or so pages, in which I can reflect on the idea that I'm currently developing, think through the methods I might use, and make notes that can be expanded.
'Email services offer automated replies, as if we are too lazy, too sybaritic, too thoughtless, to write 'thank you' ourselves.'
Email services offer automated replies, as if we are too lazy, too sybaritic, too thoughtless, to write 'thank you' ourselves. Computers are taking over our sensibilities, our style. My writing style reflects the way I think about the world.
'We make a fire at dusk and dance around it in wild leaps to stave off the sharp chill of early frost. I can smell the smoke from the birchwood. '
We make a fire at dusk and dance around it in wild leaps to stave off the sharp chill of early frost. I can smell the smoke from the birchwood. And as night falls, I see that our fire is the only light in this immense primeval darkness.
'The thing I recall about the Mark Billingham and Val McDermid event is the sheer pleasure experienced by the audience. They were gripped. '
The thing I recall about the Mark Billingham and Val McDermid event is the sheer pleasure experienced by the audience. They were gripped throughout. Fascinated by the insight being shared into how the books that they loved were created.
'My thoughts associate freely as I swim among the ducks, coots and moorhens with their chicks. The solution inevitably bubbles up from some recess of my brain.'
My thoughts associate freely as I swim among the ducks, coots and moorhens with their chicks. The solution inevitably bubbles up from some recess of my brain. Home to breakfast and I'm at my desk by half past nine.
'The idea of being a writer is essentially a fabrication, and never is that more obvious than just after publication day'
The idea of being a writer is essentially a fabrication, an illusion born of romantic ideas about inspiration and creativity, and never is that more obvious than just after publication day, when a new writer goes on a tour of the bookshops.
'I travelled the county, then the country, then the world. Swimming got me into writing; an anonymous report on the triumphs of one 'P. Mason' in the local paper...'
I travelled the county, then the country, then the world. I met all kinds of people. I met girls. I shook hands with now disgraced royals. And swimming got me into writing; an anonymous report on the triumphs of one 'P. Mason' in the local paper...
'The creative part of my brain, that had written countless scripts, configured myriad plots, conjured hundreds of characters, had simply seized up. '
The creative part of my brain, the part that had written countless scripts, configured myriad plots, conjured hundreds of characters, had simply seized up. It felt like a gear stick stuck in neutral, and I was powerless to move it.
'Regardless of when I went to bed, I was awake by five a.m., exhausted, and with the feeling I'd lost a violent fight. '
Regardless of when I went to bed, I was awake by five a.m., exhausted, and with the feeling I'd lost a violent fight. I had an amazing life, but there were considerable periods when the world felt hollow, and I could feel very little for it.
'In the Hay green room, I once met Carlos Fuentes. I admired him so much that I took a selfie with him; only the second time I have ever done such a crass thing.'
In the Hay green room, I once met Carlos Fuentes. I admired him so much that I took a selfie with him; only the second time I have ever done such a crass thing. In terms of the actual event, if asked, I would say: prepare, prepare, prepare.
'Interactivity has been a disaster for writers. Famously susceptible to procrastination, writers are avid for distraction. '
Interactivity, I would argue, has been a disaster for writers. Famously susceptible to procrastination, writers are avid for distraction, which the new technologies all too readily provide. The itch for stimulation is far too easily scratched with social media.
'I think back to a house we were renting twenty-five years ago. I had a very small room with a narrow desk in front of the window. '
I think back to a house we were renting twenty-five years ago. I had a very small room with a narrow desk in front of the window. When I looked up, I saw the road outside; people walking up the hill, and beyond them the hillside seething with trees.
'I was a picture editor for ten years. It made me feel busy and confident, which isn't something that comes easily as a writer. '
I was a picture editor for ten years. It made me feel busy and confident, which isn't something that comes easily as a writer. And it made me feel like I was good at working. All of this is invaluable, especially when you sit down to actually write.
'A machine assessed my three chapters in two and a half hours, and sent best wishes for placing my work with another machine elsewhere. '
A couple of years ago a machine assessed my three chapters in two and a half hours, and sent me a heartfelt middle finger, with best wishes for placing my work with another machine elsewhere.
'The city has become a very different place. There's no hanging about with a coffee and earwigging.'
Now we are in lockdown and the city has become a very different place. There's no hanging about with a coffee and earwigging, no note-taking of angry phone calls on the bus, no sneaking off for crafty matinees at the Duke of York's cinema.
'Overwhelmed by the pressure to write, I had ceased to do many of the things that I enjoyed. With hindsight, it all seems so clear.'
Overwhelmed by the pressure to write, I had ceased to do many of the things that I enjoyed. I did not read for pleasure, or take long meandering walks, or let lonely strangers tell me their life stories. With benefit of hindsight it all seems so clear.
'Her multitudinousness spawns my passive respect for numbers, speed, spectacle, calculation; all of which barely disguises the non-event. '
Her multitudinousness spawns my passive respect for numbers, speed, spectacle, calculation; all of which barely disguises the non-event. I attend with others, but spend as much time watching a screen as the performance.
'Publishers call it editing. Writers call it killing your darlings. As if you're drowning kittens, or choosing which of your children to leave at the orphanage. '
Publishers call it editing. Writers call it killing your darlings. As if you're drowning a litter of kittens, or choosing which of your children to leave at the door of the orphanage. Surely that's a bit of an exaggeration? Not by much...
'All of my favourite writers are Dylan Thomas. I say this because his writing is so varied. There are so many of him..'
All of my favourite writers are Dylan Thomas. I say this because his writing is so varied. There are so many of him. I love his comic prose; the incredible sonic and formal ambition and achievement of his poems.
'Writing, and especially fiction, can become obsessive. A dimension no one else can reach. It can become antisocial and addictive.'
Writing, and especially fiction, can become obsessive. A dimension no one else can reach. It can become as antisocial and addictive as online gaming, pornography or drugs. Keeping us awake until the small hours.
'The freelance life is, in many ways, compatible with motherhood. I dropped bits of teaching, but mainly just said 'no' to unpaid work'
The freelance life is, in many ways, compatible with motherhood. I dropped bits of teaching, but mainly just said 'no' to unpaid work and my income barely changed. Breastfeeding allowed me lots of reading time; naps are blurb-length.
'Mark Cocker insisted that the secret to nature writing was patient, close observation; staying very still and watching very minutely.'
Mark Cocker insisted that the secret to nature writing was patient, close observation. Staying very still and watching very minutely, and then describing in great exactitude what you have seen. To that end, he set us exercises.
'Rejection is what happens as a creative; you just have to find ways to survive it. Of course, you can learn from it...'
Rejection is what happens as a creative; you just have to find ways to survive it. Of course, you can learn from it — rewrite, submit elsewhere, nothing's wasted etc. What I'm talking about is surviving the feelings.
'A reader might be in the mood for happily ever after. I might be in the mood for a killing spree. Technology allowed me to write both.'
A reader might be in the mood for happily ever after. I might be in the mood for a killing spree. Technology allowed me to write both, and others. And, as a result, it allowed a different reading experience, eleven times.
'Had I started anything freely — a poem or a description, a riff of dialogue or rough journal entries — my block may have dispersed.'
Had I started anything freely — a poem or a description, a riff of dialogue or rough journal entries — my block may have dispersed. But duty made me stick at the thesis and not diversify. I didn't know then what kind of writer I was.
'The sight of the plastic table and scratchy seats had a rather Pavlovian effect on me. I'd pull out my notebook and start scribbling without even thinking about it. '
The sight of the plastic table and scratchy seats had a rather Pavlovian effect on me. I'd pull out my notebook and start scribbling without even thinking about it. When I ran out of steam, I'd watch the semi-derelict factories of the Bradford suburbs pass.
'I was offered a Royal Literary Fund fellowship at my local university. It was a gift. I loved my teaching but I was burning out and needed some time away. '
I was offered a Royal Literary Fund fellowship at my local university. It was a gift. I loved my teaching but I was burning out and needed some time away. I'd have so much more time for writing. And yet I felt guilty that I had abandoned my pupils.
'They all had Things. Some of them sang. Some of them danced. Some of them wore funny clothes and sang and danced. I hadn't got a memo about doing anything.'
They all had Things. Some of them sang. Some of them danced. Some of them wore funny clothes and sang and danced. I hadn't got a memo about doing anything like that. Didn't you just do readings at festivals? Or get asked questions?
'What is my purpose? If my purpose is to write, then how does what I am doing in the present moment, serve that purpose? '
What is my purpose? If my purpose is to write, then how does what I am doing in the present moment, serve that purpose? What is the purpose of this piece of writing? How does each scene, each sentence, each word, serve that purpose?
'On the first of September I sat down at my desk and two female characters arrived. They were called Antonia and Jane. "Write about us!" they shouted. '
On the first of September I sat down at my desk and two female characters arrived. They were called Antonia and Jane. "Write about us!" they shouted. The screenplay finished itself ten days later... and was bought by Miramax in New York.
'I'm suspicious of writing straight to screen. The words seem flat, floating off into an insubstantial medium. '
I'm suspicious of writing straight to screen. The words seem flat, floating off into an insubstantial medium. I don't like the ersatz respectability a computer lends to sentences, like crude mood music in a movie scene. It's too easy to be tricked.
'Perhaps I turn to nature not for inspiration for writing, but for escape from it? A kind of mindfulness in action.'
Perhaps I turn to nature not for inspiration for writing, but for escape from it? Nature undoubtedly restores me, and feeds me, and often helps me find a kind of meaning in the world. A kind of mindfulness in action.
'There is no typical day. It's various. It changes and evolves and is likely to keep doing so. This is what I love about writing.'
There is no typical day. It's various. It changes and evolves and is likely to keep doing so. This is what I love about writing; the variety, the unpredictability. It's also, of course, what I hate.
'My secondary modern was a fantastically mixed school, with pupils from all over the world and of every religion; my school photograph is testament to that.'
My secondary modern was a fantastically mixed school, with pupils from all over the world and of every religion; my school photograph is testament to that. That was the best education I received, so it wasn't all bad.
'I read every Arthur C. Clarke book the Zodiac Bookshop had to offer. Science at school was dull, but what I learned in Clarke novels kept me interested. '
I read every Arthur C. Clarke book the Zodiac Bookshop had to offer. Science at school was dull, but what I learned in Clarke novels kept me interested. Laser beams would be invisible in space without dust to scatter their rays into your eyes...
'At the last minute, a prison officer warns me that if my questions elicit further evidence, the prisoner will be tried again.'
At the last minute, a prison officer warns me that if my questions elicit further evidence, the prisoner will be tried again. Sweat trickles down my back as I lock eyes with him. I can almost hear the crew behind me hold their breath.
'With every piece I read, the reasons for rejection did not just stare me in the face, they jumped up and down and waved their knickers in the air.'
With every piece I read, the reasons for rejection did not just stare me in the face, they jumped up and down, waved their knickers in the air, and had my toes curling with embarrassment. How could I have missed the obvious?
'The final process of writing is performance. In redrafting, there are still variants you are weighing up; reading the poem at a poetry event forces you to make final decisions.'
The final process of writing is performance. In redrafting, there are still variants you are weighing up, and reading the poem at a poetry event forces you to make those final decisions. Some of these are made at the microphone, and some are surprising.
'When your father tells you how he ran home from the cinema in the Blitz, to discover his house had been bombed, make him tell you how he felt. '
When your father tells you how he ran home from the cinema in the Blitz, to discover his house had been bombed, make him tell you how he felt. Right now, you think there is always tomorrow, but stories can die too, if they're never told.
'If your manuscript doesn't reach the commissioning editor when you said it would, he or she will read one of two things into that: A. I am now rushing to get this finished; B. I am not.'
If your manuscript doesn't reach the commissioning editor when you said it would, he or she will read one of two things into that fact: A. I am now rushing to get this finished, so it won't be as good as if it hadn't been rushed; B. I am not rushing.
'They needed three additional scenes, featuring these two actors. Oh, and by the way, everyone's already on set, and they'll start shooting this new material in two hours.'
They needed three additional scenes, featuring these two actors. Oh, and by the way, everyone's already on set, and they'll start shooting this new material in two hours: Go! It was the best, or certainly least stressful work I ever did for them.
'Ruth spotted my love of writing poems. In my final year at primary school I wrote an adventure story and it ended up being our school play.'
Ruth had a necklace made of Liquorice Allsorts. She spotted my love of writing poems and put them on the wall of our classroom. In my final year at primary school I wrote an adventure story and it ended up being our school play. My first play.
'No matter what I'm doing, I start the day with a bath. This enables me to indulge in my first episode of leisurely reading. '
No matter what I'm doing, I start the day with a bath. This enables me to indulge in my first episode of leisurely reading. If I'm working on a short story collection, I ensure I devour at least one such from an anthology.
'First there were folders of paper, then square floppy discs, then round CDs, extra disc drives, and now tiny memory sticks that are easily lost. '
Disconcertingly, 'memory' frequently changes shape. First there were folders of paper, then square floppy discs, then round CDs, extra disc drives, and now tiny memory sticks that are easily lost. Will I be forced to rent online storage?
'I see the City as a fascinating combination of a historical archive and a contemporary drama.'
I see the City as a fascinating combination of a historical archive and a contemporary drama. If you go to a street corner, intending to write about the past, the present will invariably interject in some unforeseen way.
'It is quite a bizarre concept that the person who is the only reason that the audience turns up, doesn't get paid. '
It is quite a bizarre concept that the person who is the only reason that the audience turns up, doesn't get paid. While those responsible for the venue and the lighting and the catering and so forth rightly expect reasonable remuneration.
'I make a nest. I commandeer one corner of the sofa, surround myself with cushions and blankets, set up my laptop and a little table with my tea set.'
I make a nest. I commandeer one corner of the sofa, surround myself with cushions and blankets, set up my laptop and a little table with my tea set and any essentials; lights and candles, switch on some ambient white noise, and I'm ready.
'Something about each of these ideas was compelling enough to force me to scrutinise and start the creative process; but for some reason I stopped. '
Something about each of these ideas was compelling enough to force me to scrutinise and wonder and start the creative process; but for some reason I stopped. And there are those I completed, knowing I everything I needed to say, was said.
'Once I've selected one of the poems clamouring for attention as a sacrificial victim, I'll send it off to one of the opportunities, and mark the date.'
Once I've selected one of the poems clamouring for attention as a sacrificial victim, I'll send it off to one of the opportunities, and mark the date by which I expect to hear back... Which might be never.
'Tolstoy liked to go out with a scythe and work with the peasants. I'm not a nineteenth century Russian landowner, but I find manual labour a distraction.'
Tolstoy liked to go out with a scythe and work with the peasants in the fields. I'm not a nineteenth century Russian landowner, but I certainly find manual labour a more beneficial distraction than, say, googling the news every fifteen minutes.
'The first Iris Murdoch novel I ever read, aged about fourteen, was The Flight from the Enchanter. It was like a magnesium flame. '
The first Iris Murdoch novel I ever read, aged about fourteen, was The Flight from the Enchanter. It was like a magnesium flame in the darkness. The bohemian, rackety world she depicted enraptured me; still more, her writing.
'There are huge gaps in our knowledge of the witch hunts. This is mainly due to illiteracy; in 1600 only ten percent of women could sign their name. '
There are huge gaps in our knowledge of the witch hunts. This is mainly due to illiteracy; in 1600, for instance, only ten percent of women could sign their name. But also to records lost, discarded, or destroyed over time.
'I'm suspicious if the idea of a work-life, or writing life, balance is conscripted into a goal-driven agenda that has Wellness at its centre.'
That we should yearn for points of stillness within a madly spinning world is very understandable, very human. I'm only suspicious if the idea of a work-life, or writing life, balance is conscripted into a goal-driven agenda that has Wellness at its centre.
'Nature liberated Mary Kingsley from the bondage of self, and she prolonged her liberation by writing about it. '
Nature liberated Mary Kingsley from the bondage of self, and she prolonged her liberation by writing about it. She felt authentic in Africa.
'The story of Barbara Pym's rediscovery by the literary world, sixteen years after being dropped by her publisher must give heart to all writers.'
Rosamond Lehmann, Elizabeth Taylor and Barbara Pym have been a source of strength. The story of Barbara Pym's rediscovery by the literary world, sixteen years after being dropped by her publisher is one that must give heart to all writers.
'What issues from my pen is like a kind of linear stalagmite; the essential sediment of its sentences built up, at least in part, from the slow drip, drip of advice.'
What issues from my pen is like a kind of linear stalagmite; the essential sediment of its sentences built up, at least in part, from the slow drip, drip of advice from teachers, editors, reviewers, friends, and family.
'I wasn't always a serial killer. It took twenty years of hard cuts, brutal edits and fatal backspaces before my particular psychosis was fully formed. '
I wasn't always a serial killer. It took twenty years of hard cuts, brutal edits and fatal backspaces before my particular psychosis was fully formed. Nowadays, my poorer darlings are killed off before too much time is invested, or words written.
'I splashed out on an Apple PowerBook Duo 210. A very early laptop with four whole megabytes of RAM. And that's when my brain started changing. '
I splashed out on an Apple PowerBook Duo 210. A very early laptop with four whole megabytes of RAM. And that's when my brain started changing. The infinite possibilities of the computer excited me. I dreamt of rooms, opening into rooms...
'My last novel was set in a hotel on an island off the coast of Tuscany, and for the year that I was working on it I lived in a kind of virtual Italy. '
My last novel was set in a hotel on an island off the coast of Tuscany, and for the year that I was working on it I lived in a kind of virtual Italy. I sought out delicatessens, amassed recipe books and drew up multi-course Italian menus.
'I suppose I'm what's known these days as an 'influencer', and while that term has shallow connotations, I take the responsibility both seriously and sedentarily. '
I suppose I'm what's known these days as an 'influencer', and while that term has shallow connotations, I take the responsibility both seriously and sedentarily. I read for two hours most days; under the duvet, stretched out on the sofa, on the train.
'A non-fiction book tends to be sold before it's written. Whether its your first book, or your fiftieth, the deadline will have been in the contract from the beginning. '
A non-fiction book tends to be sold before it's written. Whether its your first book, or your fiftieth, the deadline will have been in the contract from the beginning. As far as I'm concerned, I'm undertaking a craft, and I go about it in a professional way.
'I was writing anti-poems, non-poems, un-poems. I was working so hard at writing them. A poet who's not writing poems is an ailing creature, '
I was writing anti-poems, non-poems, un-poems. I was working so hard at writing them. It's a terrible thing: a poet who's not writing poems is an ailing creature, wailing through the night. A catastrophe for everyone around them.
'What happens if you can't get there? What happens if the cafe is shut, or there's a thunderstorm? Or, you're not able to leave the house? '
What happens if you can't get there? What happens if the cafe is shut, or there's a thunderstorm? Or, you're not able to leave the house? Does that mean you throw up your hands dramatically, and declare 'I shall never write again!'
'Every now and then someone gets in touch to say how much a piece of my writing has meant to them. It's satisfying to know that mind can touch mind.'
Every now and then someone gets in touch to say how much a piece of my writing has meant to them. It's satisfying to know that links can be forged through carefully wrought sentences, so that mind can touch mind.
'When I read my own drafts, I print them out so that I have pages to turn, and can tap into the thousand times I have opened the pages of a book I didn't write.'
When I read my own drafts, I print them out so that I have pages to turn, and can tap into the thousand times I have opened the pages of a book I didn't write. I borrow that mindset of expectation. The more you read the better you write.
'I spend my time writing and researching outsiders for biographies, but it took me a while to realise that I was an outsider myself.'
I spend my time writing and researching outsiders for biographies, but it took me a while to realise that I was an outsider myself — which may explain why the stories I work with feel so much like home.
'Six French poets got together with six English-speaking poets, and translated each other's poems. The French poets were operating with a very different aesthetic'
Six French-speaking poets got together with six English-speaking poets, and translated each other's poems. What became clear was that some of the French poets were operating with a very different aesthetic than the English-speaking poets.
'To say that I was estranged from my father implies that I'd known him well at some point, and that one of us broke off contact. In reality, I never knew him at all. '
To say that I was estranged from my father implies that I'd known him well at some point, and that one of us broke off contact. But that's not the case. In reality, I never knew him at all. My parents divorced while I was in nappies.
'You wanted so badly to be good at it, and you were worried that you'd find out that you were not.'
You wanted so badly to be good at it, and you were worried that you'd find out that you were not. Worried that you would find out you were not up to it, or only liked the idea of being a writer, and not the reality.
'If we'd planned a girls' trip to London or a night out, my sister would ask me who I'd killed off this time, and I would let her know which of my characters had taken the fall.'
If we'd planned a girls' trip to London or a night out, my sister would ask me who I'd killed off this time, and I would let her know which of my characters had taken the fall, so that I could throw caution to the wind and forget they even existed.
'To become a better writer, do you actually need to be less of a writer; a writer for less of the time? Or is this cheating too? Performing at being alive.'
To become a better writer, do you actually need to be less of a writer; a writer for less of the time? Or is this cheating too? Performing at being alive for research purposes, rather than really being alive.
'Rarely, a poem will appear as if from nowhere. I first remember it happening in a Devon orchard, staring at the trees and feeling them simply turn into words.'
Rarely, a poem will appear as if from nowhere. That really is a treasurable moment. I first remember it happening in a Devon orchard, staring at the trees and feeling them simply turn into words. It was a real poem, perhaps my earliest real poem.
'My imaginary children: a short little book I knocked off in six months, into which I poured all my anguish and gratitude for never having had offspring.'
My imaginary children: a short little book I knocked off in six months, into which I poured all my anguish and gratitude for never having had offspring, and fantasised about what sons or daughters I might have had. Being a novelist is such a blessing.
'In addition to the experience of writing an individual book, the career of a writer as a whole is something of a rollercoaster. '
In addition to the experience of writing an individual book, the career of a writer as a whole is something of a rollercoaster. One book may sell unexpectedly well, only to be followed by another title that inexplicably fades without trace.
'New York City was clearly where I ought to be, not stuck on a farm in rural Buckinghamshire! I should be strutting up Fifth Avenue.'
New York City was clearly where I ought to be, not stuck on a farm in rural Buckinghamshire! No, I should be strutting up Fifth Avenue, drinking cocktails in rooftop bars, and listening to jazz with the beautiful people at Elaine's.
'A friend stepped in to say that she would care for Boy 1, for one day a week, alongside her other three children; in return, we would feed her and the family on Sundays. '
A friend stepped in to say that she would care for Boy 1, for one day a week, alongside her other three children; in return, we would feed her and the family on Sundays. What a gift! Now I had one whole day a week to write, guaranteed.
'People you haven't spoken to in years will expect free copies of your book, while others, close to you, won't read it at all.'
People you haven't spoken to in years will expect free copies of your book, while others, close to you, won't read it at all, or will offer "constructive" criticism when it's clearly too late to change anything.
'I've been accused of getting facts wrong when I haven't, or leaving things out when I haven't. There must be something about a woman on stage....'
I've been accused of getting facts wrong when I haven't, or leaving things out when I haven't. Even in an audience that is ninety-six percent women, it will be a man who raises his hand. There must be something about a woman on stage...
'Georges Perec wrote an entire book without using the letter 'e' — La Disparition, translated by Gilbert Adair as A Void — but that wasn't my game.'
No matter how hard I jabbed, the letter 'e' would not appear on the screen. The French novelist Georges Perec wrote an entire book without using the letter 'e' — La Disparition, translated by Gilbert Adair as A Void — but that wasn't my game.
'Norman MacCaig notably built up quite a body of poems about the animals and birds you are likely to encounter in an urban city like Edinburgh.'
Norman MacCaig notably built up quite a body of poems about the animals and birds you are likely to encounter in an urban city like Edinburgh, and his poems showed me that you don't have to be a naturalist to respond to nature.
'I've always had vivid dreams. Frequently, though, they don't make for interesting writing. They remain locked in their own internal logic.'
I've always had vivid dreams. Frequently, though, they don't make for interesting writing. They remain locked in their own internal logic that doesn't always translate. It's like trying to relate a funny incident to someone who wasn't there.
'It is not the original idea that is important, so much as the subsequent sifting process. Is this really a good idea? '
It is not the original idea that is important, so much as the subsequent sifting process. Is this really a good idea? How exactly would it work? And, most importantly of all, has somebody else already had this idea?
'The unwritten play becomes so tantalisingly wonderful, surprising, profound: — why spoil its hypothetical brilliance by encasing it in specific words? '
The unwritten play becomes so tantalisingly wonderful, surprising, profound: — why spoil its hypothetical brilliance by encasing it in specific words? Deadlines are the best motivation ever devised to shift the play from inspiration to first draft.
'Is this how you know that a particular genre of writing is not for you? You consort with it for a while, and then rush of early enthusiasm falters.'
Is this how you know that a particular genre of writing is not for you? You consort with it for a while, and appear to be getting on rather well. The words flow, and you seem to have so much to say. And then rush of early enthusiasm falters.
'For every play performed, script broadcast or book published, there comes another, very public, rejection: the bad review.'
For every play performed, script broadcast or book published, there comes another, very public, rejection: the bad review. A good one can give you a warm feeling for half an hour, but a bad review — that can mess things up for ages.
'That lengthy exile from the world of words not only halted my novel, it made the terrible thing itself so much harder to bear.'
I know there are far worse things than writer's block; a knowledge reinforced by the same terrible events that were causing mine. But that lengthy exile from the world of words not only halted my novel, it made the terrible thing itself so much harder to bear.
'I tried, really I did. I meditated in a prayer circle, attended a book reading, ate an expensive organic breakfast and forced myself to smile. '
I tried, really I did. I meditated in a prayer circle, attended a book reading, ate an expensive organic breakfast and forced myself to smile. But the smugness of the crowd grated. They were all so pleased with themselves.
'When I was on the judging panel for the Man Booker Prize, we had to read around a hundred and twenty novels in three months. '
When I was on the judging panel for the Man Booker Prize, we had to read around a hundred and twenty novels in three months. Enforced concentration made the brain's critical mechanism whirr at an adrenaline-fuelled pace.
'Through journalism, I gravitated to a sort of literary community. A community is supposed to be wholesome thing, but this one was based in the smoky and raucous pubs of Soho. '
Through journalism, I gravitated to a sort of literary community. A community is supposed to be wholesome thing, but this one was based in the smoky and raucous pubs of Soho. All around us were well-known writers.
'The inside of my head; that's where I do my writing, and I really recommend it. It's rent-free, you can decorate it any way you choose and take it anywhere.'
The inside of my head; that's where I do my writing, and I really recommend it. It's rent-free, you can decorate it any way you choose and you can take it anywhere. For me, writing is an internal activity. Hammering the words on a keyboard is secondary.
'For the past few years, I've taken to scheduling 'Recovery Days' into my calendar before and after events in the outside world.'
For the past few years, I've taken to scheduling 'Recovery Days' into my calendar before and after events in the outside world that are generally draining for me. I've had to do this because otherwise I get quite close to collapse.
'What I love about fan-fiction is that the writers, unbound by the demands of publishers and marketing teams, can be wildly experimental.'
What I love about fan-fiction is that the writers, unbound by the demands of publishers and marketing teams, can be wildly experimental and unconventional. I learn a lot.
'Only when you have put an assemblage of words together that you can actually clearly see what those assumptions are.'
As a writer you stand to one side of your assumptions, simply because it is only when you have put an assemblage of words together that you can actually clearly see what those assumptions are.
'There is nothing I love more than learning about a new genre, taking it apart and working out how it works. '
There is nothing I love more than learning about a new genre, taking it apart and working out how it works. Whether it's the dramatic monologue or a First Experience picture book, propaganda or a rom-com.
'Even as I read these words, a portion of my own brain is mulling over some problem connected with the novel I am currently writing. '
Even as I read these words, a portion of my own brain is mulling over some problem connected with the novel I am currently writing. When I take the dog for a walk on the beach I can sometimes almost see words scrolling down in the back of my mind.
'I respect Steinbeck, but think he missed a trick in Of Mice And Men. Lenny is brain-damaged, but Lenny is not the only vulnerable character. Curley's wife deserves more detail.'
I respect Steinbeck, but think he missed a trick in Of Mice And Men. Lenny is brain-damaged, but Lenny is not the only vulnerable character. Curley's wife deserves more detail, more compassionate insight. I would develop her character.
'Occasionally acceptance comes first time, but more usually when a published piece appears, it will have a string of rejections trailing visibly behind it like a comet's tail. '
Occasionally acceptance comes first time, but more usually when a published piece appears, it will have a string of rejections trailing visibly behind it like a comet's tail. Students need to learn that this is simply part of the process of getting published.
'It is time to activate the most important software in my battery: Mac Freedom. A service I pay for to deny myself access to a service I also pay for.'
It is time to activate the most important software in my battery: Mac Freedom. The height of decadence, it's a service I pay for to deny myself access to a service I also pay for. It completely shuts off the internet except for Spotify.
'Everyone knows about Hitler and the Nazis, even primary school children. But why Stalin is such a mystery I'm at a loss to explain.'
Everyone knows about Hitler and the Nazis, even primary school children — and quite right too. But why Stalin is such a mystery — not least because he arguably rivals Hitler in wickedness — I'm at a loss to explain.
'As a physics student at university, I learnt things in mathematical terms. But have been trying to understand things in words and images. '
As a physics student at university, I learnt things in mathematical terms. But I'm quite a visual person, and ever since have been trying to understand the things I was taught, in words and images. In a sense, therefore, I write for myself.
'We're all supposed to be so mature about feedback, aren't we? Some of us can fake a gracious response, but don't be fooled. '
We're all supposed to be so mature about feedback, aren't we? Some of us can fake a gracious response, but don't be fooled. Writers, like anyone else, hate to be criticised.
'For bollards, rumble strips and sleeping policemen; ghost islands, green men, Belisha beacons. For zebra crossings and lollipop ladies.'
For bollards, rumble strips and sleeping policemen; ghost islands, green men, Belisha beacons. For zebra crossings and lollipop ladies. For traffic lights, streetlights, floodlights, neon. For lit windows in tenements.
'Experimenting at the margins by placing two disparate genres side by side creates a tension. '
Experimenting at the margins by placing two disparate genres side by side creates a tension. Whether visual art is juxtaposed with writing or haiku with prose, whichever genre comes second can be used to cast a different light upon the first.
'With each personal new item I posted I felt less invested in the thing, less myself, less attached, more the automaton.'
With each personal new item I posted I felt less invested in the thing, less myself, less attached, more the automaton.
'What I realise now is that it's a war of attrition. If you want to get anywhere in the book world, you have to keep chipping away at the edifice.'
What I realise now is that it's a war of attrition. If you want to get anywhere in the book world, you have to keep chipping away at the edifice, working away at your craft, tapping along on the laptop. And the rejections never end.
'The kind of fluidity I aspire to is exemplified by Ted Hughes, who could write a masterly short story such as 'The Rain Horse', but also rhymed light verse for children...'
The kind of fluidity I aspire to is exemplified by Ted Hughes, who could write a masterly short story such as 'The Rain Horse', but also rhymed light verse for children, lyrical season songs, confessional Birthday Letters, a film poem...
'Think I need a fag, but sadly no longer smoke. Have a belated post-lunch coffee, sit down at the computer; doorbell goes. '
Think I need a fag, but sadly no longer smoke. Have a belated post-lunch coffee, sit down at the computer; doorbell goes. Take in two large boxes. Sit down at the computer, turn off phone, close office door, take a deep breath.
'I think of writing now, not in terms of addiction — although this can be tempting sometimes — but rather in terms of sexuality. '
I think of writing now, not in terms of addiction — although this can be tempting sometimes — but rather in terms of sexuality. As a child you fumble in its direction, then one day, suddenly, you go 'Oh'.
'My first year at Latitude it was baking with sunshine and I ended up having a drink under a tree with John Cooper Clarke.'
My first year at Latitude it was baking with sunshine and I ended up having a drink under a tree with John Cooper Clarke, who heard one of my gloomy poems and called me 'Sylvia'.
'I do think critics are absurd about crime and sci-fi. They tend to get discombobulated by it, and over-praise genre titles that somehow break through.'
I do think critics are absurd about crime and sci-fi. They tend to get discombobulated by it, and over-praise genre titles that somehow break through, without realising that lots of work still stuck in genre ghettos is much better written.
'It could be argued that this human drive for narrative has constituents similar to appetite and, say, sleep. '
It could be argued that this human drive for narrative has constituents similar to appetite and, say, sleep. I can't prove this scientifically, but imagining a world without literature is like imagining Cumbria without fells or lakes.
'I like to keep a meticulous, joylessly Presbyterian record of my daily toil, and I've had to accept that, for me, three to four hours of actual work is a normal daily score. '
I like to keep a meticulous, joylessly Presbyterian record of my daily toil, and I've had to accept that, for me, three to four hours of actual work is a normal daily score. When I was in my twenties, I'd aim for a regulation seven or eight hours...
'I may have a science degree but I'm not a scientist. Equally, I know far too much science to be an ordinary member of the public. '
There's a double whammy. I may have a science degree but I'm not a scientist. Equally, I know far too much science to be an ordinary member of the public. I sit outside both communities.
'I had to pinch myself to believe I was really speaking to audiences in the Emirates, where the new Vice Chancellor of NYU Abu Dhabi, made Hinterland the cornerstone of her inaugural address. '
I had to pinch myself to believe I was really speaking to audiences in the Emirates, where the new Vice Chancellor of NYU Abu Dhabi, made Hinterland the cornerstone of her inaugural address.
'Quite often I've dropped the project altogether and gone onto something else, in a different medium. Turning my back on the rejected thing.'
Quite often I've dropped the project altogether and gone onto something else, in a different medium. Turning my back on the rejected thing, pretending that I never meant to invest that much in it. But would it be better to stick with the project?
'I'd love to rewrite Barnaby Rudge. Principally, to do justice to the most interesting and unusual character in the book — Hugh, hostler and principle rioter.'
I'd love to rewrite Barnaby Rudge. Principally, to do justice to the most interesting and unusual character in the book — Hugh, hostler and principle rioter, is crude, earthy, sexy, torn between a basic decency and anarchy for anarchy's sake.
'My father was a mining engineer, and although our house looked out onto fields, not colliery wheels, I've enjoyed writing about industry.'
Increasingly, I see how the landscape shaped me. My father was a mining engineer, and although our house looked out onto fields, not colliery wheels, I've enjoyed writing about industry.
'Although you can imagine the Saffron Hill rookery that Oliver Twist was spirited away to by the Artful Dodger, the place itself is now luxury apartments.'
Although you can imagine the Saffron Hill rookery that Oliver Twist was spirited away to by the Artful Dodger to meet Fagin, the place itself is now home to luxury apartments, and shops. Dickens' poor no longer live in the city centre.
'When I switched from adult fiction to YA, I was suddenly and acutely more aware of my readers than I had been before.'
When I switched from adult fiction to YA, I was suddenly and acutely more aware of my readers than I had been before. Even at the planning and note-taking stage for my first teenage novel, I caught myself wondering: what do people your age want?
'Don't worry about computers, quiet offices, special chairs. Your two most crucial writing tools are a ukulele and an old day bed.'
The gaps between are just as important as the time you spend writing. Don't worry about computers, quiet offices, special chairs. Those are ephemera. Your two most crucial writing tools are a ukulele and an old day bed.
'Out of the blue, my husband phoned me at work to advise me that publisher had called, and wanted to meet me for a chat.'
Out of the blue, my husband phoned me at work to advise me that a publisher had called; having read my manuscript, they liked what they had seen, and wanted to meet me for a chat. To say I was surprised is really an understatement.
'Dorothea Brande's Becoming A Writer is premised on the idea that the writer is essentially two people: the artist child and the adult critic.'
Dorothea Brande's Becoming A Writer is premised on the technique of automatic writing and the idea that the writer is essentially two people: the artist child and the adult critic. If either is allowed the upper hand, trouble will follow.
'I thought I was writing history, a novel for teenagers that told the story of British involvement in the Spanish Civil War; my editor called it a 'political romance'.'
I thought I was writing history, a novel for teenagers that told the story of British involvement in the Spanish Civil War — not something much covered at school — but my editor surprised me by calling it a 'political romance'.
'As a writer, you're only in control of how good the work is. None of this means I don't feel it, if something is rejected. '
As a writer, you're only in control of how good the work is. None of this means I don't feel it, if something is rejected. I know how it's going to feel now and I map out a plan. Sometimes I use visualisation to help.
'It's all very well having an idea for a novel, or a topic for a non-fiction book, but it's folly to think the ability to write leaks out of the atmosphere.'
Reading provides an immersion in the craft. It's all very well having an idea for a novel, or a topic for a non-fiction book, but it's folly to think the ability to write leaks out of the atmosphere.
'Let's see, what else is in here? Of course, the Mr Trubshaw stories! Various people still occasionally ask me, whatever happened to Mr Trubshaw? '
Let's see, what else is in here? Of course, the Mr Trubshaw stories! Various people still occasionally ask me, whatever happened to Mr Trubshaw? A baby who chairs meetings of the other characters, his toys.
'As writers, we are all anthropologists, observing the natives and commenting on their customs. As writers, we can tap into that feeling of being an outsider.'
As writers, we are all anthropologists, observing the natives and commenting on their customs. As writers, we can tap into that feeling of being an outsider in order to document the human soul.
'Ultimately, life-writing needs to move outside the self if it is to find a place in the world; beyond the experience of catharsis for the writer.'
Ultimately, life-writing needs to move outside the self if it is to find a place in the world; beyond the experience of catharsis for the writer, the stories must resonate with readers, who recognise them as their own.
'Now when I write, it is sporadically, erratically. I've largely reverted to nature; rambling detours through overgrown thickets.'
Now when I write, it is sporadically, erratically. I've largely reverted to nature. Now that it is no longer possible to take the short, efficient route down our well-weeded pathways, I embark upon rambling detours through overgrown thickets.
'I wake my partner, Dave, with coffee. He's a writer too, but he's not a morning person. Despite this fundamental difference between us, we're co-writers.'
I wake my partner, Dave, with coffee. He's a writer too, but he's not a morning person. Despite this fundamental difference between us, we're co-writers of a fantasy crime trilogy. The second instalment is due to the publisher in twenty days.
'The disaster of Mum's dementia was aggravated by the death of a beloved dog, and a love affair that soured. Being placed as a Royal Literary Fund Fellow was a joy.'
The disaster of Mum's dementia was aggravated by the death of a beloved dog, and a love affair that soured. Being placed as a Royal Literary Fund Fellow was a joy, but overall, there was simply too much going wrong.
'Get cracking on the mechanics, with discovering what writing can do. Life itself will take care of your subject.'
I would advise my younger self to get cracking on the mechanics, with discovering what writing can do. Life itself — I would tell her — will take care of your subject, what matters are the tools of your trade.
'Not that we writers have all the answers, but I believe we have a responsibility to ask some of the questions.'
Not that we writers have all the answers, but I believe we have a responsibility to ask some of the questions; a duty to enable and encourage the reader to reflect, and to consider the personal, social and political framework within which they operate.
'I'm British West Indian, and so much of what I was writing about had rarely been published or produced at that time. or produced.'
It was particularly difficult for me to get published, as I was writing about the world around me. I'm British West Indian, and so much of what I was writing about had rarely been published or produced at that time in Britain.
'You'd be affronted if you knew that a fifty-two year old woman was reading what you'd written, and you'd be amazed to know that that woman was a published writer.'
You'd be affronted if you knew that a fifty-two year old woman was reading what you'd written, and you'd be amazed to know that that woman was a published writer with more than a passing association with you.
'I will live at your place in a vacuum of expectation. The one important thing your place should not contain, is you, '
Neither will your choice of tea nor the type of milk you drink, nor the To-Do list chalked on the door, trigger in me any thoughts. I will live at your place in a vacuum of expectation. The one important thing your place should not contain, is you,
'I viewed myself as split in two, and yet this duality became my career, as I started translating German plays for British theatre.'
I viewed myself as split in two, and yet this duality became my career, as I started translating German plays for British theatre not long after the Berlin wall came down. Here, being the outsider gave me untold advantages.
'One of the most startlingly inept sequences in thrillerdom's history — Richard Hannay is on the run in Scotland and takes refuge in an isolated house, which turns out to be the baddies' HQ. '
My personal favourite — one of the most startlingly inept sequences in thrillerdom's history — when Richard Hannay is on the run in Scotland and he takes refuge in an isolated house, which turns out to be the baddies' HQ.
'Niall Griffiths' advice was to turn it all around. He burst open the hole I'd dug for myself; suddenly, magically, there was light. '
Niall Griffiths' advice was to turn it all around. He burst open the hole I'd dug for myself; suddenly, magically, there was light. Or there was once I'd got back home after having stopped to vomit in almost every lay-by on the length of the A470...
'The first thirty percent of the story usually takes up about seventy percent of the time I will spend on the first draft in total. '
The first thirty percent of the story usually takes up about seventy percent of the time I will spend on the first draft in total. Once I hit the middle of the story, things begin to take on their own life. The last seventy percent is like coasting downhill.
'My growing collection of shanties became a sort of palimpsest, through which I discovered a world of courage and daring.'
My growing collection of shanties became a sort of palimpsest, through which I discovered a world of courage and daring, where life was lived from second to second; whose equivalent I had never experienced, except in childbirth.
'A soundtrack switches on and off, relentlessly searching for words to describe my sensations, storing up ideas.'
A soundtrack switches on and off, relentlessly searching for words to describe my sensations. This inner monologue accompanies me throughout my daily life, storing up ideas for me to draw on when I'm working on a book.
'It's the unrealistic expectation — if not outright fantasy — that we can write a dazzling first draft which keeps us inert.'
Our 'not up to much' has within it the seed of something useful, and a rewrite can lead to something not bad... It's the unrealistic expectation — if not outright fantasy — that we can write a dazzling first draft which keeps us inert.
'The only bits of marketing that do work for me, are the ones which don't directly involve me; point-of-sale materials, window displays, that kind of thing.'
The only bits of marketing that do work for me, are the ones which don't directly involve me; point-of-sale materials, window displays, that kind of thing. I have an anti-talent for personal appearances.
'I try to experience a novel as an ordinary reader and give it the fullest chance to exert its power by reading right to the end. '
I try to experience a novel as an ordinary reader and give it the fullest chance to exert its power by reading right to the end. I want to see how leads play out, and how the author resolves artistic problems as they arise.
'The message was, that the project was going no further but the work I'd put in was much appreciated. The hundreds of lost hours I'd spent on this really stung.'
The message was, that the project was going no further but the work I'd put in was much appreciated. I'm still writing on spec, so I knew this was a possibility, but the hundreds of lost hours I'd spent on this really stung.
'The reality of my writing life isn't to do so much with the material places where I write, but the space inside my head. '
The reality of my writing life isn't to do so much with the material places where I write, but the space inside my head. I don't really need a perfect setting. It's taken me years to realise.
'I probably read a novel a week. I'm always on the lookout for anything that might fuel the fire of my work in progress'
I probably read a novel a week and never go to sleep without turning a few pages first. I'm always on the lookout for anything that might fuel the fire of my work in progress.
'Millenials are consuming literature in different ways. Sales of e-books have hit a plateau but audiobooks are becoming ever more popular.'
Millenials are consuming literature but they are doing so in different ways. Sales of e-books have hit a plateau but audiobooks are becoming ever more popular, as people listen while undertaking other activities, such as driving or exercising.
'As a struggling novice poet in Belfast in the dark days of the 1970s, I'd have been pleased to learn about the peace process... '
As a struggling novice poet in Belfast in the dark days of the 1970s, I'd have been pleased to learn about the peace process... But what would I have made of news that I'd moved from poetry to non-fiction?
'The natural world became a place for the growing urban middle classes to escape. Into this new psychological landscape came the Brontes.'
The natural world became a place for the growing urban middle classes to find peace, escape, and relaxation. Into this new psychological landscape came the Brontës. Emily Brontë had an intense, complicated relationship with these moors.
'I was a mini-me Melvyn Bragg, with a broadcasting bailiwick and books of my own. Scottish Television's housetrained house poet.'
I was a mini-me Melvyn Bragg, with a broadcasting bailiwick and books of my own. A bohemian with a PA and a pension plan. Busy being a beatnik on expenses. Scottish Television's housetrained house poet.
'Writing is a bit like dreaming, or day-dreaming. You write to clarify something inside your head.'
Writing is a bit like dreaming, or day-dreaming. You write to clarify something inside your head. But the dream is a delicate thread that can snap at any time and leave you lost and bewildered.
'If you don't care about what you write passionately, how will you endure it, and why on earth should your readers be bothered?'
You and your readers are going to be spending irretrievable time and irreplaceable energy on what you write. If you don't care about it passionately, how will you endure it, and why on earth should your readers be bothered?
'The deadline for this piece was Christmas Eve, but that was also the deadline for buying presents for the family. '
The deadline for this piece was Christmas Eve, but that was also the deadline for buying presents for the family. So — while making hurried purchases through multiple windows on my computer — I also wrote the following...
'I am typing with two thumbs in the early morning; still in bed, half immersed in a hypnagogic state. As a mother of two, lie-ins no longer exist. '
I am typing with two thumbs in the early morning; still in bed, half immersed in a hypnagogic state. As a mother of two, lie-ins no longer exist. Right now, I can hear my deadline running towards me, in the form of my three year old child.
'A friend at Caltech asks, are you a dilettante? You are not. You are very focussed, just not on PhD research.'
A friend at Caltech asks, are you a dilettante? It stings, and you keep thinking: am I? Well, I can tell you; you are not. You are very focussed, very single minded, just not on PhD research.
'A writer in London has the ever-present possibility of going out of the door and into a space shared with millions; a grand, random work of performance art'
A writer in London has the ever-present possibility of going out of the door and into a space shared with millions; entering a grand, random work of performance art, at any hour of the day or night, any stage of the work.
'He was a publisher of the old school. Full of himself, and expense account beanos. He was dressed for his part in a three-piece, loudly checked suit.'
He was a publisher of the old school. Full of of himself, and expense account beanos. He was dressed for his part in a three-piece, loudly checked suit; a fob watch in his waistcoat, and in his jacket's breast pocket an enormous spotted handkerchief.
'My dreams are often literary, occasionally disturbingly so, like that vivid encounter I had with R. S. Thomas before I woke to hear he'd died.'
My dreams are often literary, occasionally disturbingly so, like that vivid encounter I had with R. S. Thomas before I woke to hear he'd died. I had a rather pleasanter dream about Samuel Palmer; it provoked some 'dream-envy' on Facebook.
'What if Sir hates it? What if he's disgusted by the bloodletting, the stakings and beheadings? Not only did you not hate the thing, you loved it. '
What if Sir hates it? What if he's disgusted by the bloodletting, the stakings and beheadings? Not only did you not hate the thing, you loved it. Remember, Jim, how you devoted the next two English lessons to reading my gory novella to the class?
'As you sit at your desk in Bristol Poly tapping away at that Amstrad, break off for a moment to tell me how you do it. Where do your creativity, your self-belief, come from? '
As you sit at your desk in Bristol Poly tapping away at that Amstrad, break off for a moment to tell me how you do it. Where do your creativity, your self-belief, your enthusiasm, your vitality come from, and where have they gone?
'Being an author is a little like stepping into a boxing ring; a few brief moments of adoration before the next round of punches.'
I've now had twelve books published and am writing my thirteenth. Being an author is a little like stepping into a boxing ring; a few brief moments of adoration and celebration before the next round of punches.
'All of these embryonic works have titles and plots, and characters; some of them openings, and some of them, endings. I think of each drop file as a stock cube. '
All of these embryonic works have titles and plots, and characters; some of them openings, and some of them, endings. I think of each drop file as a stock cube. All I need do is boil a kettle and pour it in.
'Loneliness is the follower of bereavement and isolation; the sequel to so many sad life events. But solitude is a fresh place.'
Loneliness is the follower of bereavement and isolation; the sequel to so many sad life events. An imposition, creeping up with its cunning net. But solitude is a fresh place, chosen to create new work and connections to life outside.
'In Nabokov, events melt into one another in a way I find dreamlike, and Nabokov, like Graham Greene, did record his dreams.'
Martin Amis once observed that Nabokov was very good at getting characters from A to B. In Nabokov, events melt into one another in a way I find dreamlike, and Nabokov, like Graham Greene, did record his dreams.
'We need to imagine intensely, to identify strongly with the people whom we're writing about, however uncomfortable or difficult that might be. We need to be insiders. '
We need to imagine intensely, to identify strongly with the people whom we're writing about, however uncomfortable or difficult that might be. To live the minutiae and texture of their lives. We need to be insiders.
'I've had fun, experimenting more than I've let on. My account of Robbie Williams on tour round Europe is part travel book, part tour book, part biography.'
I've worked in travel, biography, memoir, humour and crime. Within those genres I've had fun, experimenting more than I've let on. My account of Robbie Williams on tour round Europe is part travel book, part tour book, part biography.
'I found myself imagining a family down our street, snuggling up with my story; reading, and laughing and enjoying it together.'
I found myself imagining a family down our street, snuggling up with my story; reading, and laughing and enjoying it together. And I found that I loved writing. I loved the rewrites.
'A few weeks later, after some furious polishing, I did send David S. Garnett a story. He didn't buy it, but he did send me an encouraging letter.'
A few weeks later, after some furious polishing, I did send David S. Garnett a story. He didn't buy it, but he did send me an encouraging letter, which included some advice I still have to consider to this day: don't try to cram in so much.
'Journalist Ida Tarbell almost single-handedly took down the world's most powerful and corrupt company, John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil.'
Journalist Ida Tarbell almost single-handedly took down the world's most powerful and corrupt company, John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil. Rockefeller was a billionaire and pillar of the establishment. Tarbell was the outsider.
'I suspect there are very few of you who've read everything I've written. Not least because I write across quite different forms.'
I suspect there are very few of you who've read everything I've written. Not least because I write across quite different forms. If you've read my poems you might not be drawn to my political fantasy novels, and vice versa.
'Harper Lee warned that writers need a thick hide, but even elephants and rhinos feel pain.'
Harper Lee warned that writers need a thick hide, but even elephants and rhinos feel pain. No matter how hard boiled you think you are, that brief email or fat envelope in the post can always induce new and exquisite agony.
'Helen Dunmore was an established writer, but she revealed how she wasn't happy about the stories she was writing. I hadn't heard a writer talk about failure before. '
Helen Dunmore was an established writer, but she revealed how she wasn't happy about the stories she was writing. I hadn't heard a writer talk about failure before. She seemed to describe it as an integral part of the journey.
'What Agatha Christie knew deep down, is that not only is the writer an outsider, but that the act of telling a story requires that outsider-ness.'
What Agatha Christie knew deep down, is that not only is the writer an outsider, but that the act of telling a story requires that outsider-ness to be part of the narration. The classic detective story tends to rely upon the central detective being outside.
'In modern times, completing your great work is merely the first stop on the journey.'
In modern times, completing your great work is merely the first stop on the journey. As well as agents and editors, you have to negotiate authors' pages on Amazon, build relationships on Good Reads and feed social media accounts.
'London is of course, a literary city, a city of writers... A few of those writers lived in my neighbourhood. All have walked the same streets I have. '
London is of course, a literary city, a city of writers... A few of those writers lived in my neighbourhood. All have walked the same streets I have. We've drunk in at least one or two of the same pubs. Crossed and ridden on the same river.
'When Inspiration does turn up, like a dodgy guest at a party, there's no guarantee it will appreciate the nature of the event. '
When Inspiration does turn up, like a dodgy guest at a party, there's no guarantee it will appreciate the nature of the event. A bottle of whisky and a sympathy card is welcome at a wake; a pair of bunny ears and a strippergram, possibly not.
'I find it hard too, but decided early on that if I was serious about my career I must cope with editors and publishers who turn down my work and proposals.'
I find it hard too, but decided early on that if I was serious about my career I must cope with editors and publishers who turn down my work and proposals, and who frequently do not even do the courtesy of replying.
'I find my escape from words in photography, art galleries and museums, and music. By building or perceiving shapes that do not owe their existence to language'
I find my escape from words in photography, art galleries and museums, and music. By building or perceiving shapes that do not owe their existence to language, something happens.
'I was convinced it was an exceedingly difficult thing to change direction as a writer, almost like a cricketer deciding he wanted to be a footballer. '
I was convinced it was an exceedingly difficult thing to change direction as a writer, almost like a cricketer deciding he wanted to be a footballer. But the leap wasn't as difficult as I imagined.
'The gulf between the synopsis and the novel is ineffable, bridgeable only by the writing of the book. '
The gulf between the synopsis and the novel is ineffable, bridgeable only by the writing of the book. In the two years or more that follow, the synopsis appears sometimes vital handrail and sometimes obstructive impediment.
'As an adult, I've formed the habit of taking seasonal notes almost every day. It feels like reaching out a hand to touch the outside world.'
As an adult, I've formed the habit of taking seasonal notes almost every day. It feels like reaching out a hand to touch the outside world and gain the state of self-forgetfulness needed to write.
'I've written books that deal with post-traumatic stress, with mental health issues, with homelessness and missing persons, suicide and survival guilt, death and grief.'
I've written books that deal with post-traumatic stress, with mental health issues, with homelessness and missing persons, suicide and survival guilt, death and grief; and writing about these things has made me feel very differently about them.
'Ian McEwan seemed cheered that the delivery boy on his cold doorstep — dressed all working class and salt of the earth against the cold — knew who he was.'
Ian McEwan seemed cheered that the delivery boy on his cold doorstep — dressed all working class and salt of the earth against the cold — knew who he was. I asked his advice for an aspiring author...
'The Brandon Estate community mural is huge. On the wall are images of the Chartists, kite-flyers, the Empire Windrush ship arriving from the Caribbean...'
The Brandon Estate community mural is huge. On the wall are images of the Chartists, kite-flyers, the Empire Windrush ship arriving from the Caribbean, bee-keepers in white suits, and children scrambling over a woolly mammoth.
'Does any writer, in fact, work well to a background of distraction? His son's violin practice drove Philip Pullman to the shed at the bottom of the garden.'
Does any writer, in fact, work well to a background of distraction? His son's violin practice drove Philip Pullman to the shed at the bottom of the garden; Virginia Woolf insisted her shed be free of any adornment.
'I frequently think that if I'd had any sense I'd have given up all other forms of writing and concentrated on writing for children.'
I frequently think that if I'd had any sense I'd have given up all other forms of writing and concentrated on writing for children. Actually, publishers don't really like genre fluid writers like me, though no one says so.
'By the time I was working on my fourth novel, The Thousand Lights Hotel, I was thirty-six and my son was one. Writing was my happy place.'
By the time I was working on my fourth novel, The Thousand Lights Hotel, I was thirty-six and my son was one. Writing was my happy place amidst the turbulence of new motherhood; a place of both control and liberation.
'What should a writer do when someone says no? With poems sent to magazines, that's life. It's unlikely to have anything to do with the quality of your work. '
What should a writer do when someone says no? With poems sent to magazines, that's life. It's unlikely to have anything to do with the quality of your work. It may simply be the wrong tone, the wrong length or even the wrong shape.
'Ophelia's story is so unjust and so slight, that I would give her more of a backbone and her story more heft, and Gertrude's seems full of undeveloped potential.'
Ophelia's story is so unjust and so slight, that I would give her more of a backbone and her story more heft, and Gertrude's seems full of undeveloped potential. I wouldn't presume to change the outcome of this tragedy.
'One reader will give your book a one-star rating because Amazon didn't deliver it on time.'
There will be reviews. Some will be excoriating, some will be wonderful, some will be mind-blowingly annoying. One reader will give your book a one-star rating because Amazon didn't deliver it on time.