Linda L. Rucker is part of the growing number of authors who are turning to self-publishing as a way of making their books available to a wider audience.
She has published two novels, What the Heart Wants and Dark Ridge as well as a collection of short stories, Words out of Time. Her short stories have also been featured in the anthologies, Forget Me Knots from the Front Porch; Romancing the Soul; the 2005 Riverdale Short Story Annual and in April Rollins’ Coffee Camp Review Magazine.
She spoke about her writing and her concerns as a self-published author.
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I started writing in the eight grade when our English teacher gave us an assignment. We were to write a 1,000 word short story for a contest that was being sponsored by a national scholastic magazine. Our entries would be judged, and the winning entry would be entered into a statewide competition , the winner of that would go on to the national level.
I was happy that I was named the winner of our class competition, elated when I won the state competition and flabbergasted when I won the national competition. Seeing my story, and my name in that little magazine was the catalyst. From that point on I knew I wanted to be a writer. I wanted to be as famous as Margaret Mitchell or Harper Lee.
Who would you say has influenced you the most?
Authors? I'd say Margaret Mitchell and Harper Lee. I am a southerner and I love their voice. And folks from the south are notorious storytellers.
What are your main concerns as a writer?
Not being recognized as such. It's a damn shame that there are so many talented writers out there that will never get the recognition they deserve simply because the major publishing houses hold the power of what the public gets to read.
It's like there is an unwritten law in publishing that if you are not an already well established author or a celebrity, then your books have no merit and are not worthy of publication. And that is just plain stupid. That mindset has deprived all readers of some wonderful stories, by some truly talented writers.
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
My writing is so eclectic. I don't like to be pigeonholed. For instance, Steven King is known as a horror writer, John Grisham writes courtroom dramas, Danielle Steele, romance,and so on. So, when one of them breaks out of that genre, like King has done with his newest novel, Lisey's Story, or Grisham's, The Painted House, fans tend to get upset.
I don't want that. I want my readers to expect the unexpected from my books. I wrote, What the Heart Wants and called it " not your ordinary love story. So, readers know going in that there is no flowers and candy in that book. Dark Ridge is a drama/thriller and other books I'm working on are all in even different genres. I won't be one of those formulaic writers.
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face?
Getting an agent that is worth that 15% they are demanding. One that will understand my writing, my goals and share them with me. But, also one that will go to bat for me against the big guns that hold this business in their hands.
But also, being satisfied with my work. So far I haven't been. I always think I can do better, and I most likely can. Oh, and getting some discipline! I am the most undisciplined writer I know.
How do you deal with these?
Getting an agent is probably the hardest thing to deal with. You know there are thousands of writers and wannabes out there deluging agents mailboxes daily, fighting for attention and representation. It is almost impossible to get one to read past that query letter that a lot of writers, me included, are just no good at. If you can't hook an agent with your query letter, then he/she will never ask for a sample or complete manuscript. But, the only way to win is to persevere, so giving up is just not an option. I am nothing if not stubborn and determined.
And discipline? I have no idea. I try very hard to set aside a certain amount of time daily for my writing, but something always seems to pop up. It's downright disturbing, but what can you do?
How many books have you written so far?
Completed? I have two. Both published. One [was published] by that so called traditional royalty paying publisher that offered no editing, no marketing, no promotional tools whatsoever, and one [Dark Ridge] was published by a vanity or subsidy press. However, that book was edited, fairly well, has some promotion and marketing tools and it is one I am proud of, to a degree, so I try to hawk it whenever I can. Of course, not one to toot my own horn, I have a difficult time with self promotion, which doesn't help when you're trying to sell your book!
Which “traditional royalty paying publisher” was this?
The publisher was Publish America. I was thrilled when they sent me a contract for What the Heart Wants. I had a publisher and I wasn't going to have to fork over a single dime of my royalties to an agent. When my copy of my book arrived, I actually cried; tears of pride and happiness.
After I read the book, I cried again; tears of frustration and humiliation. I was tempted to call them and tell them to pull my book out of publication. You see, from the time I signed the contract until the time I held the finished product in my hands, I had joined dozens of writing groups and took some on-line writing workshops, bought some books on editing and knew about 150% more about style and formatting, grammar, etc. than I did when I wrote the book.
This company took that manuscript; raw, unedited, filled with errors in style, formatting, grammar, and tenses, and written in a pretty passive voice and published it, stuck a $19.95 price tag on it and offered it up for sale.
I was devastated. While the story is unique and original, and like nothing I had read before, it was just not professionally edited and I, at least could see that.
I was so embarrassed by the book that I flat out refused to promote the thing. I didn't want anyone to know that I wrote it.
In the book's defense, as I said, it is a very good story and if you can get past the obvious editing problems, you will really enjoy it. But, for me it was just too embarrassing. To the point that I almost created a pen name for my subsequent books.
Do you write everyday?
I try to write at least a thousand words everyday. It's not always easy, and that's where the disciple comes in. I don't measure my writing in time, but in words.
What is your latest book about?
Dark Ridge is set in the mountains of Eastern Tennessee in the last days of 1948. Two young boys discover a nude, half dead young woman and [they] take her to their home.
Dark Ridge was one of those books that seemingly write itself. It took me six months to write the book and another six to edit it and cut it. When finished, it came in at well over 120,000 words, and knowing all too well that unknown authors were seldom accepted for publication, and especially if their work is over 100,000 words, I had a lot of painful editing and cutting to do before I got it whittled down to 107,000 words. Still long, but I couldn't cut any more and maintain the integrity of the story. So, all in all, it took me the better part of a year and half to finish it.
Where was it published?
Dark Ridge was released in October of 2006. Published by Page Free Publishers, it sadly bears the stigma of a self-published book, but it is one that I am not ashamed of. It can be ordered through Barnes and Nobles, Amazon.com, the Page Free Publishing site and can also be ordered at any book retailer in the country. It is, I believe, also available in the U.K. and Europe, as it is available through Ingram's and Baker and Taylor's.
You are almost apologetic for having self-published your book. Why is this?
Ahhh, because of the stigma. No matter how good the book is, if it is self-published, it will get very little recognition. I'm not apologetic for the book, just the means by which it was published, because unless I go out and drum up support for it, the chances of Dark Ridge becoming a best seller or garnering the attention of one of the major houses are slim to none. Why? Because it is self published.
Now, that's not to say it isn't worthy of recognition, its just that I am not given to self promotion. And, I don't write for the market. I write for myself. Probably a death sentence for an author, but I firmly believe that a writer should write from his/her heart, not the publisher's pocketbook.
My philosophy? A writer should write what he/she wants to read, enjoys reading, and that's just what I do. Probably won't ever get that big contract, or that huge advance and I'll never be on The Tonight Show, but I at least have the satisfaction of looking over at my bookcase and seeing several books that I have either written or contributed to, and for me, that's fine.
But, on the off chance anyone reading this wants to read the book, do go to Amazon.com and order it, or better yet, your local book retailer and order it. If enough book stores order it, and other self published books, then that stigma will be erased. Wouldn't that be lovely?
Which aspects of the work that you put into Dark Ridge did you find most difficult?
The most difficult was the police investigation done by Sheriff Amos Quimby. Not up on police procedural and especially from the forties, it was hard for me to be sure that the techniques I used in the investigations were accurate.
Which did you enjoy most?
The dialog. At the time I wrote Dark Ridge, I lived in the mountains of eastern Tennessee. I spoke daily to the people and delighted in their accents and the colloquialisms. It made writing the dialog all the easier and gave it a more authentic ring .
What sets the book apart from the other things you have written?
Well, its certainly longer, and a lot more complex. I truly came to love the characters, and to even hate a couple of them. The characters were more like friends or family than any of my other characters in any of my other works. The town of Maylorsville and especially Dark Ridge itself felt like home to me, so I was really very comfortable while there, and I think the writing shows the familiarity, at least I hope so.
Dark Ridge is also a dark drama that uses innuendo and subtlety to get the point across instead of in your face realism like the sequel does. The reader knows that Harlan has molested his daughter, but there are no graphic details to slap the reader in the face. In that respect, it is a bit more for general audiences than the sequel to it, or some of my other works.
In what way is it similar?
All of my books and stories are set in the rural south. Dark Ridge is no exception. It also uses love and family as the catalyst for the drama, as do all of my works.
What will your next book be about?
I am currently at work on several different novels. One is a vampire novel with a twist you won't see coming, one a paranormal, not your everyday ghost story, one is the sequel to Dark Ridge. You can read an excerpt of Caney Creek, the sequel to Dark Ridge on my website.
What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer?
Being published, of course. Knowing that someone liked what I wrote enough to actually publish it, and to even pay me for it. But, far more than the money is the knowledge that someone liked what I wrote, me, Linda L Rucker!
How did you get there?
It's been a long row to hoe, as we say down south. A long journey that had dozens of detours and dead ends, and one I'm still making. You see, I'm not 'there' yet. I may never be, but I can tell you one thing, the journey is worth the trip! I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to write. You might not get noticed, you might never be published, but you will have the satisfaction of knowing that you tried. Not everyone can write, but everyone thinks they can, so if you think you can, what have you got to lose? Give it shot.
A response from Shawn Street, a PublishAmerica public relations representative is accessible on OhmyNews International where this article was first published.
Related books:
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Friday, June 1, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
[Interview] Matt Beam
Matt Beam is an author, a teacher and a freelance journalist.
He has taught in various capacities in Toronto, Vancouver, Guatemala, Fiji, Australia and New Zealand and has written for newspapers that include the Toronto Star, the National Post, Toronto Life, and Toro magazine in Canada.
His first young adult novel, Getting to First Base with Danalda Chase, was published in the spring of 2005. His second novel, Can You Spell Revolution? followed in the fall of 2006.
His third novel, Earth to Nathan Blue, will arrive in the spring of 2007, along with the U.S. version of Getting to First Base.
Matt Beam spoke about his writing and his concerns as a writer.
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I started saying I wanted to be a writer when I was 15 years old, but apart from a few short stories in late high school, I didn't do much about it until more than ten years later, in 1998. I was a teacher in New Zealand at the time, and I had to provide a two-page piece of fiction for an assignment.
Instead of picking the story out of a collection, I decided to write my own.
The resulting two-page tale was called "Frankie and Mata," and writing it for those 5 hours felt like heaven to me.
Within 6 months, I was back in Toronto, beginning to type caffeine-inspired, made-up-things on my computer, and within a year I had started Can You Spell Revolution? It is the first novel I wrote, but because of delays and sundry publishing disasters it came out as my second book.
Who would you say has influenced you the most?
That's a hard one. I'd like to say one of my heroes: Kurt Vonnegut, Joseph Heller or Haruki Murakami. They definitely made me want to become a writer.
But the fact is I'm in a completely different genre and I'm not of that generation.
There is no one specifically in young adult fiction that I feel influenced by. Some have mentioned that my voice is similar to Gordon Korman's, which I don't totally see, but feel honored by anyway. That guy is hilarious, and he sells a lot of books.
What are your main concerns as a writer?
My main concerns are plenty, from solvency to sales to recognition to status to fulfillment to ... well I could go on. But it all comes down to one thing: when I'm writing (which is actually editing 75% of the time) I'm generally pretty happy.
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
In many ways -- my first book is about a boy obsessed with baseball, and who is beginning to become obsessed with girls. That was me in grade 7.
None of my characters fully represent a specific person in my life, but they all have shades of people I know.
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face?
Keeping level-headed about my career. One day you feel over the moon, the next you are down in the dumps -- it's hard to manage sometimes.
I'm trying to flatten things out, so that the ride is more like a little kids' roller coaster ride, gentle and smooth, as opposed to something called Hell Raiser or Death Drop.
I just try to keep things in perspective and keep on writing. Like I said, I'm happy when I'm doing just that.
What is Getting to First Base with Danalda Chase about? How long did it take you to write it?
Along with being about a baseball-obsessed boy who's suddenly interested in girls, the novel is actually about change, acceptance, and looking for the right person from the inside out.
It usually takes me about 6 months to write a first draft, and then the real work begins. After about another six months of my own editing, there is all the work one must do with their editors (see below).
The book has two editions. It came out in Canada in spring 2005, and Dutton (Penguin Putnam) will publish it next spring (2007).
Which aspects of the work that you put into the novel did you find most difficult?
Juggling two edits for two different publishers -- one in Canada, one in the U.S. -- was more challenging than I thought it would be.
While the essence of the story is the same in both books, there are many significant differences. My head was spinning a little by the end of it all.
Which did you enjoy most?
The true enjoyment in the experience came when the idea first struck me walking in downtown Toronto, and then when I proceeded to write my first draft.
There's nothing like the excitement of creating a new fictional world.
What sets the novel apart from Can You Spell Revolution?
The main subject matter in Getting to First Base with Danalda Chase is baseball and girls, and it is a more emotionally subtle book.
Can You Spell Revolution? is more direct. It is about trying to radically change things in one's junior high school life and finding out what power and revolution are all about. Check out the review and trailer for Can You Spell Revolution? linked on the website.
Both stories take place in junior high and try to approach serious issues in a lighthearted way.
How did the idea behind Earth to Nathan Blue come to you and how long did it take you to write the novel?
Since I began trading in imagination, I've been curious about young people who have inner imaginative worlds. For the most part, these worlds seem to be distortions of what is going on in their own lives.
Nathan is confused by his parents' separation and is having trouble dealing with it. So to protect himself from this painful reality, he creates an imagined language and world, based loosely on his favorite TV program, Adventureland. His mother becomes the Mothership, his step dad, the Imposter, and his brother, the Twerp.
The first go at Earth To Nathan Blue, like my other first drafts, took around 6 months, but it took much longer to come to a final draft.
By the time the book was picked up by Penguin Canada, Nathan had had several names, I had lived in several apartments, and book had been rewritten several times.
After three novels, was it easier or more difficult to write a fourth? Why do you say this?
It's strange. My first three books were all picked up around the same time, and at that point, I still had no idea what I was getting into. So the 4th book feels like my 2nd, and I feel like I've gone through (am going through) my sophomore slump.
An analogy I've used lately comes from something that happened to me in grade three. I had to have 10 teeth pulled -- 5 one Monday, 5 the next. The first time wasn't so bad as I had no idea what I was in for, but the second time around, I had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, out of the class coat cupboard.
That said, writing, at any stage, is much more enjoyable than getting your teeth yanked.
What will your next book be about?
I am currently working on two books. One for a slightly younger age and one older.
Thematically, the former feels like the 4th and last book in a fraternal series, resembling, without being identical to, the first three, and the latter is my leap into a new phase in my writing, where I am trying to marry my concerns as a adult today with a truly young adult character.
What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer, and, how did you get there?
My most significant achievement was believing in myself.
I just looked around one day and thought, "What am I waiting for?"
Related story:“The book that wouldn’t publish,” Matt Beam, Toronto Star, October 3, 2006.
Related Books:
,
He has taught in various capacities in Toronto, Vancouver, Guatemala, Fiji, Australia and New Zealand and has written for newspapers that include the Toronto Star, the National Post, Toronto Life, and Toro magazine in Canada.
His first young adult novel, Getting to First Base with Danalda Chase, was published in the spring of 2005. His second novel, Can You Spell Revolution? followed in the fall of 2006.
His third novel, Earth to Nathan Blue, will arrive in the spring of 2007, along with the U.S. version of Getting to First Base.
Matt Beam spoke about his writing and his concerns as a writer.
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I started saying I wanted to be a writer when I was 15 years old, but apart from a few short stories in late high school, I didn't do much about it until more than ten years later, in 1998. I was a teacher in New Zealand at the time, and I had to provide a two-page piece of fiction for an assignment.
Instead of picking the story out of a collection, I decided to write my own.
The resulting two-page tale was called "Frankie and Mata," and writing it for those 5 hours felt like heaven to me.
Within 6 months, I was back in Toronto, beginning to type caffeine-inspired, made-up-things on my computer, and within a year I had started Can You Spell Revolution? It is the first novel I wrote, but because of delays and sundry publishing disasters it came out as my second book.
Who would you say has influenced you the most?
That's a hard one. I'd like to say one of my heroes: Kurt Vonnegut, Joseph Heller or Haruki Murakami. They definitely made me want to become a writer.
But the fact is I'm in a completely different genre and I'm not of that generation.
There is no one specifically in young adult fiction that I feel influenced by. Some have mentioned that my voice is similar to Gordon Korman's, which I don't totally see, but feel honored by anyway. That guy is hilarious, and he sells a lot of books.
What are your main concerns as a writer?
My main concerns are plenty, from solvency to sales to recognition to status to fulfillment to ... well I could go on. But it all comes down to one thing: when I'm writing (which is actually editing 75% of the time) I'm generally pretty happy.
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
In many ways -- my first book is about a boy obsessed with baseball, and who is beginning to become obsessed with girls. That was me in grade 7.
None of my characters fully represent a specific person in my life, but they all have shades of people I know.
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face?
Keeping level-headed about my career. One day you feel over the moon, the next you are down in the dumps -- it's hard to manage sometimes.
I'm trying to flatten things out, so that the ride is more like a little kids' roller coaster ride, gentle and smooth, as opposed to something called Hell Raiser or Death Drop.
I just try to keep things in perspective and keep on writing. Like I said, I'm happy when I'm doing just that.
What is Getting to First Base with Danalda Chase about? How long did it take you to write it?
Along with being about a baseball-obsessed boy who's suddenly interested in girls, the novel is actually about change, acceptance, and looking for the right person from the inside out.
It usually takes me about 6 months to write a first draft, and then the real work begins. After about another six months of my own editing, there is all the work one must do with their editors (see below).
The book has two editions. It came out in Canada in spring 2005, and Dutton (Penguin Putnam) will publish it next spring (2007).
Which aspects of the work that you put into the novel did you find most difficult?
Juggling two edits for two different publishers -- one in Canada, one in the U.S. -- was more challenging than I thought it would be.
While the essence of the story is the same in both books, there are many significant differences. My head was spinning a little by the end of it all.
Which did you enjoy most?
The true enjoyment in the experience came when the idea first struck me walking in downtown Toronto, and then when I proceeded to write my first draft.
There's nothing like the excitement of creating a new fictional world.
What sets the novel apart from Can You Spell Revolution?
The main subject matter in Getting to First Base with Danalda Chase is baseball and girls, and it is a more emotionally subtle book.
Can You Spell Revolution? is more direct. It is about trying to radically change things in one's junior high school life and finding out what power and revolution are all about. Check out the review and trailer for Can You Spell Revolution? linked on the website.
Both stories take place in junior high and try to approach serious issues in a lighthearted way.
How did the idea behind Earth to Nathan Blue come to you and how long did it take you to write the novel?
Since I began trading in imagination, I've been curious about young people who have inner imaginative worlds. For the most part, these worlds seem to be distortions of what is going on in their own lives.
Nathan is confused by his parents' separation and is having trouble dealing with it. So to protect himself from this painful reality, he creates an imagined language and world, based loosely on his favorite TV program, Adventureland. His mother becomes the Mothership, his step dad, the Imposter, and his brother, the Twerp.
The first go at Earth To Nathan Blue, like my other first drafts, took around 6 months, but it took much longer to come to a final draft.
By the time the book was picked up by Penguin Canada, Nathan had had several names, I had lived in several apartments, and book had been rewritten several times.
After three novels, was it easier or more difficult to write a fourth? Why do you say this?
It's strange. My first three books were all picked up around the same time, and at that point, I still had no idea what I was getting into. So the 4th book feels like my 2nd, and I feel like I've gone through (am going through) my sophomore slump.
An analogy I've used lately comes from something that happened to me in grade three. I had to have 10 teeth pulled -- 5 one Monday, 5 the next. The first time wasn't so bad as I had no idea what I was in for, but the second time around, I had to be dragged, kicking and screaming, out of the class coat cupboard.
That said, writing, at any stage, is much more enjoyable than getting your teeth yanked.
What will your next book be about?
I am currently working on two books. One for a slightly younger age and one older.
Thematically, the former feels like the 4th and last book in a fraternal series, resembling, without being identical to, the first three, and the latter is my leap into a new phase in my writing, where I am trying to marry my concerns as a adult today with a truly young adult character.
What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer, and, how did you get there?
My most significant achievement was believing in myself.
I just looked around one day and thought, "What am I waiting for?"
Related story:“The book that wouldn’t publish,” Matt Beam, Toronto Star, October 3, 2006.
Related Books:
,
Monday, May 28, 2007
Interview _ Chris d'Lacey
Chris d’Lacey has published over twenty books for children.He describes his first attempt at writing as “a gentle ‘Christmassy’ story” about polar bears which was aimed at adult readers.
He started writing children’s fiction after a friend suggested he enter a competition to write a story for nine-year-olds. The story he wrote for the competition became his first book, A Hole at the Pole -- an environmental tale about a boy who wants to mend the hole in the ozone layer and enlists the services of a polar bear to help him.
His books have been translated widely and one of his novels for children was highly commended for the Carnegie Medal.
Chris d’Lacey spoke about his writing and his concerns as a writer.
What was your first story called and in what way was it ‘Christmassy’?
I was writing about a cuddly polar bear I’d bought my wife as a present! It’s the sort of romantic thing I do. Realizing I knew very little about polar bears, I began to read about them and the book just grew out of my continuing fascination.
It was called White Fire. I refer to it in the dragon books, but it is still to come out of my ‘bottom drawer’.
Is there a connection between A Hole at the Pole and White Fire?
By then, polar bears were a real love for me, and I’ve always been concerned about the environment. It was a natural step.
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
When I was 32.
I’d always had a ‘creative streak’ but it had always been expressed through songwriting. In my early thirties I decided I wanted to try something different and stories seemed the most logical option.
I found it incredibly difficult at first, but stuck at it and eventually, after a few years, I had a short story published in a small press magazine.
Who would you say has influenced you the most?
Hand on heart, no one. My biggest influences were always musical. I had never read very much and still don’t, but when I began writing children’s stories I enjoyed the output of Roald Dahl, Allan Ahlberg and Michael Bond (Paddington Bear) the most.
What are your main concerns as a writer?
Unlike most writers I know, I don’t have an overflowing well of ideas. So I do worry, sometimes, about drying up.
But my biggest worry is that now I’ve become reasonably successful, the writing has become more stressful because it’s now my main source of income.
Ideally, I’d like to recapture the joy I had when I was starting out, and still be paid for it.
Several of your books have this underlying concern with the environment. Why is this?
Just look around you at the changing climate and the decline of species. Those are my concerns.
It amuses me when people say, “We need to protect the planet.” Wrong, the planet will ultimately protect itself.
What we need to protect are the creatures that inhabit it. We’ll be gone long before the planet will.
I do want people to wake up to the idea of what’s happening in the Arctic etc. We watch TV programmes week in week out saying, “Polar bears will be extinct within fifty years” and we all go, “Oh dear.”
At what point do we go, “Hang on, shouldn’t we be trying to do something about this?” Twenty years? Ten years?
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
For many years as a children’s writer I dabbled in all sorts of styles and genres, but the stories that always brought me the most critical acclaim were those based around true domestic events.
I came very close to winning the biggest prize in children’s fiction, the Carnegie Medal, with my first novel Fly, Cherokee, Fly, which was about the time I found an injured pigeon and nursed it back to health.
I often transpose events that have happened to me as a man into the experiences of a fictionalized boy.
I’m presently working on a Young Adult book about bullying, set against the backdrop of my parents’ divorce. That has been cathartic -- but harrowing. It’s a story I’ve always wanted to write. It’s very powerful and needs to come out.
How did the idea behind Fly, Cherokee, Fly come to you?
Cherokee is based on the true story of me finding an injured pigeon on my local park and nursing it back to health. I kept it for fourteen years, as a family pet!
It took me about four months to write the novel. The biggest challenge was research. I knew very little about pigeons or pigeon racing but I wanted my hero to be involved in the sport. In the end, I sidestepped the issue by having the bird not compete in a race, but in the sequel to Cherokee, a book called Pawnee Warrior, I actually visited a professional pigeon loft and learned all about it. That was great fun. Very rewarding.
You are best known for your series of fantasy books about dragons. How did the series start? What would you say inspired you to sit down and start writing the first book in the series?
Fly, Cherokee, Fly was so successful that my publisher wanted me to write another animal rescue drama. This time I chose squirrels, because I’ve always liked them.
The set-up of the squirrel book involved a single parent family in which the mother worked from home. I wanted her to do something artistic, but for a while I couldn’t think what. Then one day I was out at a craft fair and saw a woman making beautiful clay dragons. I thought, “That’s what the woman in my book could do.”
My editor thought the dragons were a great idea and asked me to involve them more in the story! It took a long time to work out how to do it, but it opened up a whole series. I’m currently working on the fourth of them, The Fire Eternal which will be published in September 2007.
Do you write everyday?
I try to. The writing time varies hugely. I try to do 500 words a day. Sometimes it’s more.
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face?
Finishing a book on time! I’m hopeless with deadlines. I like to let my stories evolve at their own pace. Unfortunately, my publisher isn’t always in sync.
I suppose one challenge we all face is trying to develop something new and different. It’s an eternal quest.
How do you deal with these?
Deadlines: I work hard to hit the dates I’ve set for myself, not necessarily those laid down by my publisher, which are often arbitrary anyway. If I really think a book needs more time, say another six months, I’ll discuss it with my editor. After all, what’s a few months if a book can be ‘great’ rather than just ‘okay’?
This raises one of my biggest gripes about publishing: the uneasy relationship between creativity and business. Publishers may love books, but they also want to make money. In an ideal world, they would run to strict business schedules. But inspiration doesn’t come in handy, manageable nine-to-five pockets, it comes in dribs and drabs, in snatches. I don’t like my work being thought of as ‘product’, but sadly, that’s exactly what it is.
How would you rather your work was viewed?
As entertainment, which I think all literature should be. I simply don’t like the attitude that sometimes goes with publishing that a book is simply out there to make money.
What is your latest book about?
It’s called Fire Star and is the third book in my series about dragons.
I’ve never liked the idea of dragons as fire-breathing monsters. In my books, they are the spiritual guardians of the Earth. In Fire Star, the hero, David, is caught up in a mystery to unravel the origins of dragons, which I speculate may have been off-world …
How long did it take you to write it?
Ten months! It was published in the U.K., in hardback, in 2005. The paperback has just been released. The whole series is breaking ground in the USA, Canada, Australia and Japan as well, which is very exciting.
Which aspects of the work that you put into the book did you find most difficult?
Only one: trying to work out the plot. Actually, I’m not sure the book has a real plot because it’s so multi-layered and complex. And it’s told from several different viewpoints. I always tell people that I like my stories to have an ‘X Files’ quality.
In other words, the truth is out there, but you’re not quite sure where.
For me, as long as a book leaves you buzzing with intrigue, or makes you want more, it’s done its job.
Which did you enjoy most?
There is one particular section that goes off at a fantastic tangent. It involves a monk who finds a dragon’s claw. I won’t give away any more than that. I love taking risks with narrative, and this was an enormous leap. I was very proud of this section. It’s one of my favorite pieces of writing.
What sets the book apart from the others you’ve written?
Well, the ‘leap’ as described above. But Fire Star is also a book that explores the nature of human consciousness and the power of thought.
If you’re thinking, “Hang on. How can he be using themes like that in a children’s book?” read it.
In what way is it similar?
It follows the path of the same characters. We always like characters to develop or go on a journey. Some of mine have gone through huge changes during the course of these books.
In all, how many books have you written so far? What would you say unites them? How many of them have been translated into other languages?
I’ve written 23 now. I guess the only thing that unites them is my style. Lots of people write about dragons, but only I do it my way. The same is true of any author. About half have been translated, everything from Thai to Japanese to Italian to, erm, American!
What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer?
Being highly commended for the Carnegie Medal.
How did you get there?
Discipline, self-belief and hard work.
In July 2002, you were awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Leicester for your services to children’s fiction. How did you feel about this?
Surprised, but very flattered.
I tend to play it down a little bit because there are other writers who’ve done far more in the field than I have, but it was very warming to receive the degree from my workplace of, then, 24 years.
A podcast of this article is available on OhmyNews International.
Friday, May 25, 2007
[Interview] Jean Ure, children's author
Jean Ure spent her teenage years writing. She published her debut novel, Dance for Two, when she was sixteen years old and dropped out of school to continue with her writing.
She subsequently worked as a cleaner, a waiter and a nurse. She also worked at the BBC and as a translator for UNESCO in Paris.
Her books include A Proper Little Nooryeff, Sugar and Spice, Boys Beware and Over the Moon.
Jean Ure spoke about her latest novel and concerns as a writer.
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I had my first book published while I was still at school and immediately went rushing into the world declaring that I was an AUTHOR! Unfortunately, I quickly discovered that the proceeds from one book were not enough to live on, and that while I might indeed be AN AUTHOR I needed to earn money just like all those other people who weren’t authors.
Over the next couple of years I hopped like a flea from job to job, rarely staying anywhere longer than a month as they were all so boring. At the same time as hopping like a flea, I was trying to write and sell more books, only nobody seemed to want them, which was rather depressing. In the end I decided that I would go to drama school. I thought it would be fun – which it was. I spent three very happy years there, wrote another book (and had it published) and met my future husband. He became an actor, I become a writer. I have been writing ever since.
We now live in a 300-year old house in South London with our family of 7 dogs and 4 cats.
I knew as young as eight years old that I was going to be a writer.
Who would you say has influenced you the most?
My father probably influenced me the most. He was always enthusiastic and supportive.
What are your main concerns as a writer?
My main concern as a writer is, without doubt, to entertain. I see no point in indulging and amusing myself if no children are going to read what I write. I do want to indulge and amuse myself, but I also want readers to identify with my books, to recognise the concerns of the characters as their concerns, to take heart, gain solace, to laugh, to cry and maybe, along the way, to learn a bit about life.
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
My personal experiences have directly influenced my writing inasmuch as I frequently draw on them for inspiration.
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face? How do you deal with these?
One of the biggest challenges is to write books which are readily accessible to the children of the 21st century, accustomed as they are to the short, sharp soundbite and the quick fix, while at the same time giving them some depth and fully formed characters.
I deal with this challenge by writing in the vernacular, in the first person, which means I can move the story along pretty quickly without the need for long, involved “literary” sentence structures. It also means that I can slip in the odd difficult or surprising word along the way.
What is your latest book about? How long did it take you to write it?
My latest book was Over the Moon, about a very pretty girl called Scarlett who discovers the hard way that “looks aren’t everything”.
It only took me about three months to write, but probably up to a year to plan.
It was published in April 2006 by Harper Collins, in the [United Kingdom] U.K.
Which aspects of the work that you put into the book did you find most difficult? Which did you enjoy most?
I didn’t find any aspects of the book particularly difficult. I always “create” my books in great detail in my head before sitting down to write them, so that any difficulties tend to be solved at an early stage.
I enjoyed all the book! My books have a high level of humour, and it gives me a great sense of satisfaction to choose the exact words and the exact timing, for humour is very largely about pace and precision.
What sets the book apart from the other things you have written?
Nothing really sets this book apart from the others which I have written over the last decade. They are all first person, all somewhat quirky, all character-led, all very firmly set in real life situations.
My next book, on which I am currently working, is about a feisty thirteen-year old, a would-be rock star, who rises triumphantly above the body fascism of some of her schoolmates, who call her Jelly and jeer at her for being a fat freak.
What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer? How did you get there?
My only claim to significant achievement is the knowledge that I have, in a small way, enhanced the lives of several generations of children.
I got there by my talents as a writer, coupled with sheer hard work.
A podcast of this article is available on OhmyNews International.
,,
She subsequently worked as a cleaner, a waiter and a nurse. She also worked at the BBC and as a translator for UNESCO in Paris.
Her books include A Proper Little Nooryeff, Sugar and Spice, Boys Beware and Over the Moon.
Jean Ure spoke about her latest novel and concerns as a writer.
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I had my first book published while I was still at school and immediately went rushing into the world declaring that I was an AUTHOR! Unfortunately, I quickly discovered that the proceeds from one book were not enough to live on, and that while I might indeed be AN AUTHOR I needed to earn money just like all those other people who weren’t authors.
Over the next couple of years I hopped like a flea from job to job, rarely staying anywhere longer than a month as they were all so boring. At the same time as hopping like a flea, I was trying to write and sell more books, only nobody seemed to want them, which was rather depressing. In the end I decided that I would go to drama school. I thought it would be fun – which it was. I spent three very happy years there, wrote another book (and had it published) and met my future husband. He became an actor, I become a writer. I have been writing ever since.
We now live in a 300-year old house in South London with our family of 7 dogs and 4 cats.
I knew as young as eight years old that I was going to be a writer.
Who would you say has influenced you the most?
My father probably influenced me the most. He was always enthusiastic and supportive.
What are your main concerns as a writer?
My main concern as a writer is, without doubt, to entertain. I see no point in indulging and amusing myself if no children are going to read what I write. I do want to indulge and amuse myself, but I also want readers to identify with my books, to recognise the concerns of the characters as their concerns, to take heart, gain solace, to laugh, to cry and maybe, along the way, to learn a bit about life.
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
My personal experiences have directly influenced my writing inasmuch as I frequently draw on them for inspiration.
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face? How do you deal with these?
One of the biggest challenges is to write books which are readily accessible to the children of the 21st century, accustomed as they are to the short, sharp soundbite and the quick fix, while at the same time giving them some depth and fully formed characters.
I deal with this challenge by writing in the vernacular, in the first person, which means I can move the story along pretty quickly without the need for long, involved “literary” sentence structures. It also means that I can slip in the odd difficult or surprising word along the way.
What is your latest book about? How long did it take you to write it?
My latest book was Over the Moon, about a very pretty girl called Scarlett who discovers the hard way that “looks aren’t everything”.
It only took me about three months to write, but probably up to a year to plan.
It was published in April 2006 by Harper Collins, in the [United Kingdom] U.K.
Which aspects of the work that you put into the book did you find most difficult? Which did you enjoy most?
I didn’t find any aspects of the book particularly difficult. I always “create” my books in great detail in my head before sitting down to write them, so that any difficulties tend to be solved at an early stage.
I enjoyed all the book! My books have a high level of humour, and it gives me a great sense of satisfaction to choose the exact words and the exact timing, for humour is very largely about pace and precision.
What sets the book apart from the other things you have written?
Nothing really sets this book apart from the others which I have written over the last decade. They are all first person, all somewhat quirky, all character-led, all very firmly set in real life situations.
My next book, on which I am currently working, is about a feisty thirteen-year old, a would-be rock star, who rises triumphantly above the body fascism of some of her schoolmates, who call her Jelly and jeer at her for being a fat freak.
What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer? How did you get there?
My only claim to significant achievement is the knowledge that I have, in a small way, enhanced the lives of several generations of children.
I got there by my talents as a writer, coupled with sheer hard work.
A podcast of this article is available on OhmyNews International.
,,
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Notes from the Detention Centre
Joanne Bean has been visiting her boyfriend, who is in detention and has been held in a number of immigration detention centers in the United Kingdom.
Since July, she has been documenting what she sees and hears during her visits in e-mails that she sends out to a number of people.
The following narrative is based on Joanne Bean's e-mails and gives an insight into some of the pressures immigration detainees and their families and friends experience.
November 27, 2006
The Independent has published my questions to [Home Secretary] John Reid.
"My partner is in one of your immigration removal centres, and at great risk if returned to Iraq, but you still seem determined to return him to his death. Do you not want British citizens to have foreign partners?" I asked.
And John Reid responded:
"I've always spoken positively about the cultural benefits migrants bring. However, we have to balance that with ensuring people are here legally; part of that is preventing people coming here for one reason and then applying for permission to stay as the spouse of an individual."
This does not console me because late last night Diyako was transferred from Colnbrook to Harmondsworth -- reason unknown. But you may remember me saying that whilst in Campsfield House a fellow detainee tried to stab Diayko. It is known that the same detainee is in Harmondsworth.
Have Immigration Services really got no compassion?
I attended Diyako's bail hearing on November 14.
We represented ourselves as the Refugee Legal Centre have said there is nothing they can do for us.
Another person suggested that the best way would be for Diyako to return to Iraq and then go to Jordan for me to apply for a fiancee visa. The problem I have with this suggestion is that Diyako has a criminal conviction in the U.K. If he was deported I will not be able to bring him back and it is unthinkable and unreasonable for me to go and live in Iraq.
What do they expect us to do? Separate and go our separate ways?
I cannot live like this anymore, living in the constant fear of waking up one day and not being able to see him ever again. It is taking its toll on me. I cannot eat, I cannot sleep and I am suffering from depression, anxiety and panic attacks.
The only consolation that I have is that the judge who heard Diyako's last bail application ruled that if Diyako was not removed from the country in four weeks then any subsequent hearing was likely to be successful.
Now, two weeks before this date Immigration Services has decided to transfer Diyako to Harmondsworth. What does this mean ? That they are going to deport him soon or are just thinking of ways to hide him and then smuggle him out of the country?
I am running out of ideas.
What should we do now ? Why is it so wrong to want to be with someone you love?
November 30, 2006
Did I tell you Diyako was transferred from Colnbrook to Harmondsworth late Sunday night?
He was forced to go against his will.
15 officers went into his room and ordered him to collect his belongings. They told him he was being transferred to Harmondsworth. They escorted him to the reception area where he asked to see the manager.
He told the manager that he was reluctant to go to Harmondsworth because the Jamaicans who had tried to stab him when he was being detained at Campsfield House had also been moved to Harmondsworth.
The manager told him he was not interested in his excuses and that he had to go. Several officers grabbed hold of Diyako’s arms and hands to restrain him.
Diyako asked why they were restraining him. He had done nothing wrong.
He told them he was going to Harmondsworth and that they had to take it on their own back if something happened to him when he got there.
He called me at midnight to say he was in Harmondsworth. He was extremely depressed.
I called him again on Monday evening. He had been made to change rooms and two of the Jamaicans he had clashed with were on the same wing as him! He felt really vulnerable and unsafe.
I tried to call him later on that evening but there was no reply.
At six a.m. he called me and told me what had happened: The prison service had done an inspection on Harmondsworth and a report on it was broadcast on BBC news on Monday evening. Detainees saw an ex-detainee on the programme and listened to what he was saying. Officers at Harmondsworth tried to prevent the detainees from watching the programme and the whole place erupted.
Diyako was very shocked and disturbed by what he saw and was very cold. The sprinkler system had gone off when the fire alarm was raised and the place was waterlogged too.
He told me that everywhere was smashed up.
I told him to be careful and that was the last I heard from him.
I have been calling Harmondsworth and his other friends in Colnbrook continuously to see if they have heard any news from him.
I called Harmondsworth today and got told that he is still being detained at Harmondsworth and that he would be moved to another removal centre later on today. I was told the phones were down and I could still not speak to him.
An officer told me Diyako is O.K.
December 1, 2006
I normally call him at 10 p.m. each night.
On Sunday, I called him at about 10:30 p.m. Another detainee answered and said, “Not here, not here.”
I was worried something had happened to Diyako. I continued to call. At 11:30 another voice answered and again said, " No here. All outside".
I could hear alarms sounding and people shouting. I called Harmondsworth and got through to the switchboard. I got told that the phones and computers were down and that they were waiting for engineers to come and fix them and that I should call back in the morning.
I thought there was some kind of electrical fault and I accepted this.
At six a.m. my Diyako called me and told me that there had been a big riot and everywhere was wrecked. He told me that people had seen the 10 o’clock news and seen an ex detainee, the officers tried to turn it off, so they started going berserk. He said he would call me as soon as he could because he thought no one could stay there.
I started receiving reports of what had happened on the news and I kept trying Harmondsworth throughout Wednesday. No news whatsoever. They said immigration were transferring the detainees and everyone would be out of there by Thursday morning and that I was to call back then.
I called first thing Thursday morning to ask the whereabouts of my partner. I got told that he was okay and that he was still being held at Harmondsworth and to call back at lunchtime. I did so. He was still there.
I called again at 6.30 p.m. and got told that he had been transferred to Colnbrook. I was so relieved, but I still wanted to hear his voice.
At 7 p.m. I finally got his call. He told me he was okay and that he was back in Colnbrook, not to worry he would call me when he got a room etc.
I got to speak to him again at around 10 p.m. Thursday evening. He told me that at Harmondsworth, he and three others had been locked in a room. They were given no food, water, warm blankets or toilet facilities until lunchtime on Thursday. Their last meal had been Tuesday evening!
They were made to sleep on wet and cold beds. Eight people were locked in a two-bed space room. There was no ventilation and they were all extremely scared and disturbed.
Great Britain? What is great about it? If we treated animals like this we would go to prison for it? Where have [our] priorities gone?
Related article: Notes from the Detention Centre, By Joanne Bean, As Told to Ambrose Musiyiwa, World Press Review, November 13, 2006.
,,,,,,
Since July, she has been documenting what she sees and hears during her visits in e-mails that she sends out to a number of people.
The following narrative is based on Joanne Bean's e-mails and gives an insight into some of the pressures immigration detainees and their families and friends experience.
November 27, 2006
The Independent has published my questions to [Home Secretary] John Reid.
"My partner is in one of your immigration removal centres, and at great risk if returned to Iraq, but you still seem determined to return him to his death. Do you not want British citizens to have foreign partners?" I asked.
And John Reid responded:
"I've always spoken positively about the cultural benefits migrants bring. However, we have to balance that with ensuring people are here legally; part of that is preventing people coming here for one reason and then applying for permission to stay as the spouse of an individual."
This does not console me because late last night Diyako was transferred from Colnbrook to Harmondsworth -- reason unknown. But you may remember me saying that whilst in Campsfield House a fellow detainee tried to stab Diayko. It is known that the same detainee is in Harmondsworth.
Have Immigration Services really got no compassion?
I attended Diyako's bail hearing on November 14.
We represented ourselves as the Refugee Legal Centre have said there is nothing they can do for us.
Another person suggested that the best way would be for Diyako to return to Iraq and then go to Jordan for me to apply for a fiancee visa. The problem I have with this suggestion is that Diyako has a criminal conviction in the U.K. If he was deported I will not be able to bring him back and it is unthinkable and unreasonable for me to go and live in Iraq.
What do they expect us to do? Separate and go our separate ways?
I cannot live like this anymore, living in the constant fear of waking up one day and not being able to see him ever again. It is taking its toll on me. I cannot eat, I cannot sleep and I am suffering from depression, anxiety and panic attacks.
The only consolation that I have is that the judge who heard Diyako's last bail application ruled that if Diyako was not removed from the country in four weeks then any subsequent hearing was likely to be successful.
Now, two weeks before this date Immigration Services has decided to transfer Diyako to Harmondsworth. What does this mean ? That they are going to deport him soon or are just thinking of ways to hide him and then smuggle him out of the country?
I am running out of ideas.
What should we do now ? Why is it so wrong to want to be with someone you love?
November 30, 2006
Did I tell you Diyako was transferred from Colnbrook to Harmondsworth late Sunday night?
He was forced to go against his will.
15 officers went into his room and ordered him to collect his belongings. They told him he was being transferred to Harmondsworth. They escorted him to the reception area where he asked to see the manager.
He told the manager that he was reluctant to go to Harmondsworth because the Jamaicans who had tried to stab him when he was being detained at Campsfield House had also been moved to Harmondsworth.
The manager told him he was not interested in his excuses and that he had to go. Several officers grabbed hold of Diyako’s arms and hands to restrain him.
Diyako asked why they were restraining him. He had done nothing wrong.
He told them he was going to Harmondsworth and that they had to take it on their own back if something happened to him when he got there.
He called me at midnight to say he was in Harmondsworth. He was extremely depressed.
I called him again on Monday evening. He had been made to change rooms and two of the Jamaicans he had clashed with were on the same wing as him! He felt really vulnerable and unsafe.
I tried to call him later on that evening but there was no reply.
At six a.m. he called me and told me what had happened: The prison service had done an inspection on Harmondsworth and a report on it was broadcast on BBC news on Monday evening. Detainees saw an ex-detainee on the programme and listened to what he was saying. Officers at Harmondsworth tried to prevent the detainees from watching the programme and the whole place erupted.
Diyako was very shocked and disturbed by what he saw and was very cold. The sprinkler system had gone off when the fire alarm was raised and the place was waterlogged too.
He told me that everywhere was smashed up.
I told him to be careful and that was the last I heard from him.
I have been calling Harmondsworth and his other friends in Colnbrook continuously to see if they have heard any news from him.
I called Harmondsworth today and got told that he is still being detained at Harmondsworth and that he would be moved to another removal centre later on today. I was told the phones were down and I could still not speak to him.
An officer told me Diyako is O.K.
December 1, 2006
I normally call him at 10 p.m. each night.
On Sunday, I called him at about 10:30 p.m. Another detainee answered and said, “Not here, not here.”
I was worried something had happened to Diyako. I continued to call. At 11:30 another voice answered and again said, " No here. All outside".
I could hear alarms sounding and people shouting. I called Harmondsworth and got through to the switchboard. I got told that the phones and computers were down and that they were waiting for engineers to come and fix them and that I should call back in the morning.
I thought there was some kind of electrical fault and I accepted this.
At six a.m. my Diyako called me and told me that there had been a big riot and everywhere was wrecked. He told me that people had seen the 10 o’clock news and seen an ex detainee, the officers tried to turn it off, so they started going berserk. He said he would call me as soon as he could because he thought no one could stay there.
I started receiving reports of what had happened on the news and I kept trying Harmondsworth throughout Wednesday. No news whatsoever. They said immigration were transferring the detainees and everyone would be out of there by Thursday morning and that I was to call back then.
I called first thing Thursday morning to ask the whereabouts of my partner. I got told that he was okay and that he was still being held at Harmondsworth and to call back at lunchtime. I did so. He was still there.
I called again at 6.30 p.m. and got told that he had been transferred to Colnbrook. I was so relieved, but I still wanted to hear his voice.
At 7 p.m. I finally got his call. He told me he was okay and that he was back in Colnbrook, not to worry he would call me when he got a room etc.
I got to speak to him again at around 10 p.m. Thursday evening. He told me that at Harmondsworth, he and three others had been locked in a room. They were given no food, water, warm blankets or toilet facilities until lunchtime on Thursday. Their last meal had been Tuesday evening!
They were made to sleep on wet and cold beds. Eight people were locked in a two-bed space room. There was no ventilation and they were all extremely scared and disturbed.
Great Britain? What is great about it? If we treated animals like this we would go to prison for it? Where have [our] priorities gone?
Related article: Notes from the Detention Centre, By Joanne Bean, As Told to Ambrose Musiyiwa, World Press Review, November 13, 2006.
,,,,,,
Monday, May 21, 2007
[Interview] Lucy Cadwell
Award -winning playwright and novelist Lucy Caldwell is one of the youngest writers to be shortlisted in the EDS Dylan Thomas Prize.
In June 2004, her first short play, The River, previewed at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama. It was subsequently produced at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the Chapter Arts Centre and the Sherman Theatre (both in Cardiff) in the United Kingdom. She has written short stories for BBC Radio 4, Zembla magazine and the V&A Museum.
Her first novel, Where They Were Missed, was published in March 2006 by Penguin (Viking). Four months after publication, the novel was placed on the EDS Dylan Thomas Prize longlist.
In addition to writing, Caldwell works with the Pushkin Trust, a Northern Irish charity that teaches creative writing (dramatic and prose) to primary school children and their teachers. She also works with the Niamh Louise Foundation, a recently established charity seeking to address the problems of teen suicide in the Province.
Lucy Caldwell spoke about her writing and some of the concerns that influence her.
What is your novel about?
The novel is narrated by Saoirse (pronounced Seer-sha), a six-year-old girl growing up in Belfast in the late 1970s with her mother and father and younger sister.
Things are going badly wrong, but she is so little she doesn't quite understand what is happening, and during one heat wave summer, she and her little sister, Daisy, run wild in a fantasy world of their own.
But there is a tragedy, and the family splits apart; the second half of the novel takes place 10 years later, when Saoirse is going on 17, and living with her aunt and uncle in an isolated part of rural Ireland.
She discovers dark secrets in the family past, and decides to go back to Belfast to discover the truth about what happened during that fateful summer, and to lay the ghosts of the past to rest.
How long did it take you to write it?
I started off writing what I thought was a short story for a university publication called the May Anthologies, where lots of writers (including, most famously, Zadie Smith) have been discovered. But I suddenly realised that I'd written 10,000 words and the "story" was showing no signs of stopping!
I finished the first draft at university, and redrafted it during my M.A. in London and Where They Were Missed was published in March of this year by Viking/Penguin. (Incidentally, this month [September] sees the launch of the German translation — Sommer In Belfast - the first foreign-language edition!)
What are your main concerns as a writer?
I am only ever concerned that the writing is "true." I believe that literature — that art — can be not only inspirational but cathartic, and I believe that at times it can even be redemptive. The best writing can change you, or change the way you see the world; I can only hope that one day, perhaps my writing will come near to "making a difference" in however tiny a way.
Specifically concerning Where They Were Missed, I was very conscious that, as a Northern Irish writer, people might expect my book to be "about the Northern Irish Troubles." I was very concerned that the book was not "about" the Troubles at all: I wanted to write a book in which the Troubles were there in the way that the weather is there - they are a backdrop to events, they change people's plans and are a topic of conversation but they are not the focus nor the concern of the book.
Who would you say influenced you the most?
A couple of books that I think influenced Where They Were Missed are Seamus Deane's Reading in the Dark and Patrick McCabe's The Butcher Boy. Elizabeth Bowen and W.B. Yeats are two of my absolute favorite writers, and, in terms of playwrights, Chekhov, Maeterlinck and Brian Friel have been really important.
But I think that most significant of all have been myths and folklore and fairytales - the idea of storytelling, and stories as a repository of cultural memory; the way we use stories to create and enforce and define who we are and where we come from. And of course many of the books I read as a child: Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising series, Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House On The Prairie sequence, Richmal Crompton's Just William books, also Lorna Doone, Moonfleet, all that sort of thing.
Which aspects of the work that you put into the book did you find most difficult?
I found the bereavement and funeral passages of the novel difficult to write because they were so very sad. People often come up to me saying that those parts of the book had them crying their eyes out, and they ask me, "Why did you do it?" and my response is always, "I don't know — I just wrote the story, I wish it hadn't had to happen like that either ..."
Which did you enjoy most?
The best times were when the story and the characters took over - when I couldn't type fast enough to keep up, and it felt as if I was just the conduit: rather than writing the book, I was merely the means by which it was written. Those moments were rare, but utterly magical.
What would you say sets the novel apart from other things you have written?
I wrote it in my early 20s, before I'd ever read much Joyce, or Flaubert, or Dostoyevsky, or many of the other writers who are so important to me today. And because it is the first "proper" thing I ever wrote, I think it has a rawness and energy and innocence that I'll never be able to capture again.
But then again, in a funny sort of way every single thing that you write feels as if it's the first thing you've ever written ...
In what way is it similar to other things you have written?
When I was growing up I couldn't wait to get away from Belfast. Once I left, I thought I'd never go back, and I was surprised — and not a little resentful — to find myself writing about Belfast.
But I am increasingly conscious of writing in an Irish, and a Northern Irish tradition — which, when you consider the great writers who have come from this part of the world, is something which makes me feel incredibly honored and humble — and now I am exceedingly proud to be Northern Irish.
And although this is a horrible generalization, I suppose that all of my writing, at some level, is "about" Northern Ireland, or at least shares a concern about what it means to be Northern Irish.
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
Everyone always assumes that my writing, especially Where They Were Missed, is strongly autobiographical. But it isn't at all!
I had a very happy childhood, and my poor mother is horrified by the number of people who've covertly wondered if she has an alcohol problem...
In his essay, "The Art of Fiction," Henry James writes of an English female novelist who was much praised for the "accurate" depiction she'd given of French Protestant boys, and asked how long it had taken her to do the research. She replied that once, in Paris, she had been walking up a staircase when she had glimpsed some youths eating around a table with their minister. And from that moment, she had created the whole world of her novel. "The glimpse made a picture," James writes, "and it lasted only a moment, but that moment was experience."
I think that this explanation sums up perfectly what it is to write fiction: that although not everything I write about "happened," all of it is in some sense "true".
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face?
As a writer of both novels and plays, my biggest challenge is always staying in control of whichever form I'm working in. If I've been writing a lot of prose, for example, I'll find myself giving characters in a play huge, eloquent, beautifully-written speeches which are absolutely dead on stage - because, of course, in a play it isn't what a character is saying that matters, it's what they're doing, or in other words, why they're saying it.
Similarly, if I've been spending a lot of time on a play, my prose tends to get a bit too dialogue-heavy.
How do you deal with this?
I find that I can only work in one medium at a time; I can't spend the morning on my novel and the afternoon on a play, for example. While I was writing my play, "Leaves," I immersed myself in theater, reading only plays, and I didn't touch a single novel for the whole two months it took to write it!
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I have always wanted to be a writer - literally for as long as I can remember. My mum has kept in the attic all my early endeavors - piles of jotters filled with stories that I "wrote" and illustrated when I could barely even hold a pen...
Every fortnight I used to get a wonderful magazine called Storyteller, which included a cassette tape to go along with the words. I used to listen to it until I knew my favorite stories by heart, then sit behind the sofa and recite them, pretending to be a radio! But I date my "serious" literary ambition from an English class in school when I was 13. We were studying the Ulster writer Jennifer Johnson's How Many Miles to Babylon? and for homework we had to write an extra chapter. I got really carried away — I read lots of W.B. Yeats, who is quoted in the book, and spent ages working on my alternative ending, and by the time I'd finished, I had decided that all I ever wanted to do was write.
What will you be exploring in your next book?
My second novel is very different: it is set in modern-day Bahrain, in the 10 days leading up to Easter Sunday, and it is about a young minister's wife who loses her faith. I suppose the "themes" - might include faith and identity, and the search for something to believe in, and how to believe in it.
In June 2004, her first short play, The River, previewed at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama. It was subsequently produced at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the Chapter Arts Centre and the Sherman Theatre (both in Cardiff) in the United Kingdom. She has written short stories for BBC Radio 4, Zembla magazine and the V&A Museum.
Her first novel, Where They Were Missed, was published in March 2006 by Penguin (Viking). Four months after publication, the novel was placed on the EDS Dylan Thomas Prize longlist.
In addition to writing, Caldwell works with the Pushkin Trust, a Northern Irish charity that teaches creative writing (dramatic and prose) to primary school children and their teachers. She also works with the Niamh Louise Foundation, a recently established charity seeking to address the problems of teen suicide in the Province.
Lucy Caldwell spoke about her writing and some of the concerns that influence her.
What is your novel about?
The novel is narrated by Saoirse (pronounced Seer-sha), a six-year-old girl growing up in Belfast in the late 1970s with her mother and father and younger sister.
Things are going badly wrong, but she is so little she doesn't quite understand what is happening, and during one heat wave summer, she and her little sister, Daisy, run wild in a fantasy world of their own.
But there is a tragedy, and the family splits apart; the second half of the novel takes place 10 years later, when Saoirse is going on 17, and living with her aunt and uncle in an isolated part of rural Ireland.
She discovers dark secrets in the family past, and decides to go back to Belfast to discover the truth about what happened during that fateful summer, and to lay the ghosts of the past to rest.
How long did it take you to write it?
I started off writing what I thought was a short story for a university publication called the May Anthologies, where lots of writers (including, most famously, Zadie Smith) have been discovered. But I suddenly realised that I'd written 10,000 words and the "story" was showing no signs of stopping!
I finished the first draft at university, and redrafted it during my M.A. in London and Where They Were Missed was published in March of this year by Viking/Penguin. (Incidentally, this month [September] sees the launch of the German translation — Sommer In Belfast - the first foreign-language edition!)
What are your main concerns as a writer?
I am only ever concerned that the writing is "true." I believe that literature — that art — can be not only inspirational but cathartic, and I believe that at times it can even be redemptive. The best writing can change you, or change the way you see the world; I can only hope that one day, perhaps my writing will come near to "making a difference" in however tiny a way.
Specifically concerning Where They Were Missed, I was very conscious that, as a Northern Irish writer, people might expect my book to be "about the Northern Irish Troubles." I was very concerned that the book was not "about" the Troubles at all: I wanted to write a book in which the Troubles were there in the way that the weather is there - they are a backdrop to events, they change people's plans and are a topic of conversation but they are not the focus nor the concern of the book.
Who would you say influenced you the most?
A couple of books that I think influenced Where They Were Missed are Seamus Deane's Reading in the Dark and Patrick McCabe's The Butcher Boy. Elizabeth Bowen and W.B. Yeats are two of my absolute favorite writers, and, in terms of playwrights, Chekhov, Maeterlinck and Brian Friel have been really important.
But I think that most significant of all have been myths and folklore and fairytales - the idea of storytelling, and stories as a repository of cultural memory; the way we use stories to create and enforce and define who we are and where we come from. And of course many of the books I read as a child: Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising series, Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House On The Prairie sequence, Richmal Crompton's Just William books, also Lorna Doone, Moonfleet, all that sort of thing.
Which aspects of the work that you put into the book did you find most difficult?
I found the bereavement and funeral passages of the novel difficult to write because they were so very sad. People often come up to me saying that those parts of the book had them crying their eyes out, and they ask me, "Why did you do it?" and my response is always, "I don't know — I just wrote the story, I wish it hadn't had to happen like that either ..."
Which did you enjoy most?
The best times were when the story and the characters took over - when I couldn't type fast enough to keep up, and it felt as if I was just the conduit: rather than writing the book, I was merely the means by which it was written. Those moments were rare, but utterly magical.
What would you say sets the novel apart from other things you have written?
I wrote it in my early 20s, before I'd ever read much Joyce, or Flaubert, or Dostoyevsky, or many of the other writers who are so important to me today. And because it is the first "proper" thing I ever wrote, I think it has a rawness and energy and innocence that I'll never be able to capture again.
But then again, in a funny sort of way every single thing that you write feels as if it's the first thing you've ever written ...
In what way is it similar to other things you have written?
When I was growing up I couldn't wait to get away from Belfast. Once I left, I thought I'd never go back, and I was surprised — and not a little resentful — to find myself writing about Belfast.
But I am increasingly conscious of writing in an Irish, and a Northern Irish tradition — which, when you consider the great writers who have come from this part of the world, is something which makes me feel incredibly honored and humble — and now I am exceedingly proud to be Northern Irish.
And although this is a horrible generalization, I suppose that all of my writing, at some level, is "about" Northern Ireland, or at least shares a concern about what it means to be Northern Irish.
How have your personal experiences influenced the direction of your writing?
Everyone always assumes that my writing, especially Where They Were Missed, is strongly autobiographical. But it isn't at all!
I had a very happy childhood, and my poor mother is horrified by the number of people who've covertly wondered if she has an alcohol problem...
In his essay, "The Art of Fiction," Henry James writes of an English female novelist who was much praised for the "accurate" depiction she'd given of French Protestant boys, and asked how long it had taken her to do the research. She replied that once, in Paris, she had been walking up a staircase when she had glimpsed some youths eating around a table with their minister. And from that moment, she had created the whole world of her novel. "The glimpse made a picture," James writes, "and it lasted only a moment, but that moment was experience."
I think that this explanation sums up perfectly what it is to write fiction: that although not everything I write about "happened," all of it is in some sense "true".
What would you say are the biggest challenges that you face?
As a writer of both novels and plays, my biggest challenge is always staying in control of whichever form I'm working in. If I've been writing a lot of prose, for example, I'll find myself giving characters in a play huge, eloquent, beautifully-written speeches which are absolutely dead on stage - because, of course, in a play it isn't what a character is saying that matters, it's what they're doing, or in other words, why they're saying it.
Similarly, if I've been spending a lot of time on a play, my prose tends to get a bit too dialogue-heavy.
How do you deal with this?
I find that I can only work in one medium at a time; I can't spend the morning on my novel and the afternoon on a play, for example. While I was writing my play, "Leaves," I immersed myself in theater, reading only plays, and I didn't touch a single novel for the whole two months it took to write it!
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
I have always wanted to be a writer - literally for as long as I can remember. My mum has kept in the attic all my early endeavors - piles of jotters filled with stories that I "wrote" and illustrated when I could barely even hold a pen...
Every fortnight I used to get a wonderful magazine called Storyteller, which included a cassette tape to go along with the words. I used to listen to it until I knew my favorite stories by heart, then sit behind the sofa and recite them, pretending to be a radio! But I date my "serious" literary ambition from an English class in school when I was 13. We were studying the Ulster writer Jennifer Johnson's How Many Miles to Babylon? and for homework we had to write an extra chapter. I got really carried away — I read lots of W.B. Yeats, who is quoted in the book, and spent ages working on my alternative ending, and by the time I'd finished, I had decided that all I ever wanted to do was write.
What will you be exploring in your next book?
My second novel is very different: it is set in modern-day Bahrain, in the 10 days leading up to Easter Sunday, and it is about a young minister's wife who loses her faith. I suppose the "themes" - might include faith and identity, and the search for something to believe in, and how to believe in it.
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Lauri Kubuitsile writes romances novels; crime fiction; books and stories for children and teenagers; and, literary fiction. She was shor...