Mslexia

Photo © Jordan Smith

Why did you become a writer?

I never thought of myself as a writer, but I have always written stories. My brother was much younger than me, so I was a bit of a loner as a child and a bit of a tomboy, with a rich fantasy life. At school I was always doodling long complicated comic strips in class, often starring Norse gods. We lived on the outskirts of Barnsley, where I’d go wandering, with imaginary dogs and imaginary friends, beside the old railway, along the canal, the local dump, looking for useful things – my grandfather called it ‘scouting’.

How did you start?

I had a career as a teacher, but I had also been writing for ages in my spare time, just for the fun of it really. Then I finished a novel – a gothic thriller called The Evil Seed – and I was curious to see what people would think of it. So I started sending it off to publishers, but soon realised they were rejecting it without reading it. (I conducted an experiment, sending out blank sheets stapled to the first page of the manuscript and most of them didn’t even notice.)

Then I read the Writers’ Handbook and realised I needed an agent. I couldn’t afford to keep posting out the manuscript, so I decided to pitch the book to them on the phone. But I was so naïve, I phoned them on a Saturday, when I was off work, and the only agent who answered was a man who worked from home and combined it with his psychotherapy business. He placed my first two books, then failed with the next two. I thought he was about to dump me, so I changed agents for my next book, which was Chocolat. The rest is history…

What was your darkest hour?

I was happy as a teacher, so I wasn’t particularly devastated when my books were rejected – I would probably have gone on writing even if I hadn’t been published. My dark hours have been about contracts and agents and nothing to do with the writing itself.

How do you go about writing a novel?

I try to use a synopsis, but I never stick to it. It’s harder without a plan but I need some sense of professional jeopardy to keep me on my toes. I always know what the narrator sounds like and what the main aims are, but I’m never sure quite how I’m going to achieve them.

I usually begin with a character or two and play with the ideas for a few months before I start writing. I often work at several books at a time, six months on one then four months on something else, depending on my mood. And I never show my work to anyone before it’s finished, or at least in a cleanish first draft.

Can you talk us through a typical writing day?

I tend to write in the morning when my daughter’s at school, and I still like to sit at the school desk I had when I was a child, though now I’ve got a little laptop I also settle at various places around the house. Recently I’ve been working in the conservatory, under the fig tree, with a mug of builder’s tea or a diet coke, or both.

Is writing a joy or a torment?

Why write if it’s a torment? Honestly, there are much better-paid torments to put yourself through!

Why write if it’s a torment? Honestly, there are much better-paid torments to put yourself through!

Ian Rankin always says that writing the books is the easy part – it’s the ‘author shit’ that’s so difficult. I find myself adopting a separate persona when I’m touring, and I can’t wait to put her back in her box when I get home.

Looking back, what would you have done differently?

It would have been nice to have had some advice in the early stages; someone to say: ‘There’s no point phoning agents at the weekend,' ‘Don’t type on both sides of the paper,' ‘Don’t single space your manuscripts,' that sort of thing. And I would have liked some media training before Chocolat came out, to prepare for all the interviews.

I am profoundly grateful that success came to me in my thirties rather than in my twenties, because I was better able to cope with it. Still, I wish someone had warned me not to assume that everyone who was nice to me in publishing and the media was my friend. It took me a while to realise that it’s their job to be nice to me.

What are your three top tips for first-time novelists?

The most important thing is to enjoy it. Very few writers become successful, so you have to love what you’re doing. What’s the point otherwise?

If you are very sensitive and think rejection will upset you too much, perhaps you should just stick to writing for pleasure. After all, not everyone who plays tennis wants to be a pro.

If you want to be published, don’t write as therapy. Writing about yourself is a recipe for a dull story. You can put your feelings into the story, by all means, and it might prove therapeutic, but it shouldn’t be your starting point.

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