Author Interview: Sarah-Jane Stratford
Sarah-Jane Stratford
I’m excited to be welcoming the wonderful Sarah-Jane Stratford to the blog today. Her novel, Radio Girls was released on 14th June by Allison and Busby. Hi Sarah-Jane. Thank you so much for joining me. Can you tell me a little about your typical writing day and do you have any writing rituals (coffee before you begin, writing in silence etc.)
Hi, I’m so pleased to be here! I’m a member of Paragraph Workspace for Writers in New York. For a monthly fee, we get 24/7 access to a quiet writing space – about 60 carrels, so you just pick an empty desk you like, plug in, and get to work. I have to settle in first – get my tumbler of hot green tea, no matter the weather; read a bit of the newspaper; deal with emails – before my brain can be considered more or less functional. Then it’s on to the second tumbler and work. On a good day, I like to get about 1500 words written before lunch. The members of Paragraph are all pretty terrific and I usually have lunch with one or two friends, where we either talk about writing or the real world for a little while – either way, I’m raring to get back to it. Then I try to get another 1500 words in by evening. Then I collapse. Usually I make it home before that happens, though there is a sofa at Paragraph if need be.
How do you approach the writing process? Do you do much planning and do you edit as you go etc?
First comes research, always. I just love that process of settling down in a library to read and study and wander into a time and place. Then I start to think about the characters in that time and place, and from there, an outline develops. I like to draw up detailed, meticulous plans, knowing full well that about half of them are going to be abandoned once I’m actually in the thick of it. The characters tend to develop their own ideas about what’s going to happen as the story goes on.
It’s never a good idea to edit as you write, but of course I do it all the time. And then I tell myself not to and keep doing it anyway. In the end, it more or less works out, but I know the best route for me is to just write, get that rotten first draft, and then tear the whole thing apart and start over.
Your book is called Radio Girls. Can you tell me about it and how the idea originated?
Radio Girls mixes real people and fictional characters to tell the story of the women behind the scenes in the early years of the BBC.
It all started with Hilda Matheson, the real-life first Director of Talks at the BBC. I came across her name when researching and the more I read about her, the more enthralled I was. I knew I had to bring her story and this world to life. The 1920s and the beginnings of the BBC are such an exciting time – it’s really the invention of a whole new media, and building something from the ground up. I was so thrilled every day, trying to capture that, get inside that world. I realized early on that the book would work better if Hilda wasn’t the protagonist – mostly because I adored her too much to allow her many flaws – but instead created a character, Maisie, who enters the BBC as a young secretary and gradually discovers her potential as she learns the ropes. Essentially, she learns to use her voice, helped by having Hilda as a mentor.
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A Moment With Chris Whitaker: Five Books I Wish I’d Written
I’m happy to be welcoming Chris Whitaker to Novel Kicks today. His debut novel, Tall Oaks was released by twenty7 in April of this year with the paperback edition due to be released in September.
For fans of Twin Peaks and The Truth about the Harry Quebert Affair, this brilliant debut is dark yet hilarious, suspenseful and sad. Everyone has a secret in Tall Oaks . .
When three-year-old Harry goes missing, the whole of America turns its attention to one small town. Everyone is eager to help. Everyone is a suspect.
Desperate mother Jess, whose grief is driving her to extreme measures. Newcomer Jared, with an easy charm and a string of broken hearts in his wake. Photographer Jerry, who’s determined to break away from his controlling mother once and for all. And, investigating them all, a police chief with a hidden obsession of his own . . .
Missing persons, secret identities and dangerous lies abound in a town as idiosyncratic as its inhabitants.
Chris joins us today to chat about the five books he wishes he’d written. Over to you, Chris…
The Body by Stephen King (part of the Different Seasons collection)
Probably better known by the name of the movie it inspired, Stand By Me, The Body is a coming-of-age masterpiece set in the town of Castle Rock, Maine in the summer of 1960. It’s told in the first person and narrated by Gordie Lachance, as he and his three friends set out to find a dead body located 40 miles away. It’s funny, sad and poignant. It was definitely an inspiration when it came to capturing the issues of bullying, friendship, and fitting in, that the teen characters of Manny, Abe, and Furat face in Tall Oaks.
by Author Interview: Lauren Westwood
Lauren Westwood is the author of Finding Home and I’m pleased to be welcoming her to Novel Kicks. Hi Lauren, thank you so much for joining me today. Can you tell me about your debut novel, Finding Home and how the idea originated?
Thank you for having me and Finding Home on your blog today!
The idea for the novel started over six years ago when my partner and I were looking to move out of London when our daughter was born. We both love old houses, and were looking for ‘the right’ house within commuting distance of our workplaces. Unfortunately, our search area kept expanding and pretty soon, we were looking in a huge area that had estate agents scratching their heads. Let’s just say, I encountered many during this process! When we did eventually find ‘the right’ house – three of them, in fact – and put in offers, we ended up getting gazumped by other buyers. It took several years before we finally got lucky. Overall, it was quite an emotional process – sometimes stressful, sometimes exciting – and I sometimes felt like I was living in a novel. Based on my own experiences, I could see how a young, somewhat quirky, romantic like Amy Wood could find the process captivating – and fall in love with a crumbling old house like Rosemont Hall.
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How do you approach the process of writing – do you plan much? Edit as you go?
I normally have the basic idea in my head and also some plot milestones – so I know point A and point B in advance, but not necessarily how I’m going to get there. In general, I try to write the first draft through without going back too much. For me, that makes the ideas flow more freely, and I’m often surprised how a scene ends up. However, I am trying to be a little more disciplined with my next novel, and doing more plotting in advance. It has more of a mystery focus, and that requires more early thought on pacing, clues, and structure.
Can you tell me a little about your typical writing day and do you have any rituals (writing in a particular place, must have a hot drink, write in silence?)
I wish I had a typical day! When I first started writing almost ten years ago, I did a lot of writing in a notebook during my commute. Back then I had more time, and longer quiet moments to write. Nowadays, life is pretty full-on with three children, working as a lawyer, writing, and doing publicity. I rarely have a quiet moment, so I’ve learned to work more efficiently, and with more distractions.
My best writing time is usually mornings. I get up very early, put the coffee maker on, and type away in the kitchen before the children get up and it’s time for work and the school run. When I’m working on something new, I try to do at least 500-1000 words a day. If I have more time, I try to do some editing on something else. My favourite part is ‘getting in the zone’ and putting the words down for the first time. I’m less keen on the editing part!
by Blog Tour: The Magic Touch by Kelly Florentia
I am very pleased to be welcoming author, Kelly Florentia to Novel Kicks today. I’ve reviewed her debut novel, The Magic Touch below but first, I get to chat to Kelly about her novel, her writing process and Eric Bana.
Hi Kelly. Congratulations on the release of your new book, The Magic Touch, Can you tell me a little about it and how the idea originated?
Hi Laura, thanks for your good wishes, and thanks so much for having me on your blog today. The Magic Touch is my debut novel, so it’s an incredibly exciting time for me. It’s a paranormal romance about a 39-year-old divorcee who seems to have slipped into complacency with her partner of five years. Perfectly normal, she thinks, for couples who’ve been together for several years. But then when she stumbles across a flirtatious text message on her boyfriend’s mobile phone from a female colleague, sparks fly. Emma’s sole aim is to get to the bottom of Harry’s secret affair, which she does with the help of friends, her ninety-three-year-old neighbour, and a little intervention from a psychic App, The Magic Touch.
The idea for the story came from my fascination with mobile phone applications. There seems to be an app for everything these days. My phone is bursting with them – from social media apps to photography apps. I even plan my week around a weather app (I’ve got three, by the way). Then I thought, what if there was an app that could predict your future with alarming accuracy, what then? And The Magic Touch was born. I enjoy writing about everyday issues that people can resonate with, to a point. So, I based the novel on a couple who suddenly find, after five years together, that they want different things in life, and I went with it.
Can you tell me about what your typical writing day is like?
On a writing day, I’ll grab a coffee, fire up my computer and start tapping away at my keyboard. Of course, this is punctuated by a thousand tweets, a hundred Facebook posts and constantly checking my email.
How do you approach the process – do you plan much, edit as you go? Any rituals?
I’m a planner. I can’t write the story unless I know what’s going to happen, and I have to be incredibly excited about the ending before I can even begin. I get the first draft down quite quickly and then I start editing. Probably three drafts in total. I don’t have any rituals, I’m quite boring, apart from necking copious cups of coffee, but that’s normal, right?
by A Moment With… Lynne Shelby
I am very pleased to be welcoming Lynne to Novel Kicks today. She talks to me about her writing process….
I never know when I’m going to get an idea for a novel. I love travelling, and very often, when I’m exploring a foreign city I’ve not visited before, I think of a story that could take place in that locale, but it could be a photograph, a piece of music or an overheard conversation that suddenly makes me want to open my laptop and start writing. The idea for my debut novel, ‘French Kissing,’ grew out of a phone conversation I overheard when travelling back from Paris to London with my family on the Eurostar. A young Frenchman sitting across the aisle spent the entire journey calling his English friends on his mobile, telling them that he was coming to London, and suggesting that they meet up. Unfortunately, none of his friends seemed to want to see him, which made me feel very sorry for him – and gave me the scenario for ‘French Kissing,’ in which a Frenchman coming to work in London is made very welcome by his English friend – who happens to be a girl…
When I start writing a story, I know the beginning and the ending, but have only a vague notion of what is going to take place in between. I jot down a few notes, just the outline of the plot, and then begin typing, throwing my hero and heroine together, and seeing what happens as they interact. I already know a lot about my hero and heroine at this point, and I note their age, appearance, etc on index cards, adding more details that as I go along. There does seem to be a moment when the characters I’ve created take over and start telling their own story! Sometimes I realise that the story arc I have planned for them just doesn’t work with the person they have become on the page, and I have to change it. A minor character in ‘French Kissing’ ended up in a romantic sub-plot, although I had no idea that this was going to happen when I first put her in the book – she was just supposed to be my heroine’s confidante.
by Book Club
