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Author Interview
Does writing energize or exhaust you?
Both and
that’s part of the thrill. I would say that there should always be energy and
that exhaustion should only come about through physical exertion. It shouldn’t
be the kind of exhaustion where doubt sets in and it becomes a slog. Because
you should be excited to sit down and create, to find wonder in what your
characters will do and say next; if it’s a chore you’re better off pressing
delete or throwing the typewriter out of the window, because then what you’re
doing means nothing. I would say writing should be thrilling, even slightly
dangerous, possessing a sense of wonderment, otherwise it’s a waste of your
time and your audience will sense that you’re only doing it by the numbers.
What are common traps for aspiring writers?
To follow
the crowd, to follow the marketplace and write only what they think is selling,
or what is selling. In doing so they forsake their voice, their art, and
unknowingly deprive themselves of creativity. In the first instance the most
common trap is doubt, and it can fester if you don’t attack it. It often comes
just before the project starts or about a quarter of the way through. Also
aspiring writers often start thinking too much about the machinations of
publishing, marketing, whether people will buy their book, all before the
writing has been completed. That’s dangerous. Worry about your manuscript
first, finish it to your satisfaction, and be proud of what you have
accomplished.
Do you try more to be original or to deliver
to readers what they want?
I try to be
as original as I can but it’s important to think about what the reader wants
once you have decided upon your themes and the genre at hand. Originality is
key but of course drama does recycle certain strands, plotlines, and
machinations within narrative over and over again. Readers will expect
something different but also seek the familiar and the key ingredient is
authenticity. A reader can smell an author that doesn’t believe in their craft
a mile off, and that’s poison to your objective as a writer.
Do you think someone could be a writer if they
don’t feel emotions strongly?
You’d have
to have strong emotions to even attempt to do what we do. Whether you’re
curating history, writing about relationships, or telling a story, you’ve come
to the dance because something compelled you to reach beyond the ordinary.
That’s why if you’re a machine writing after your advance has come through on a
job that’s purely that, a job, then you’re uninspired, the work is no longer
vital, and you feel strangely unemotional. The excitement is what makes you
want to become a writer, it bothers you when you’re not thinking about it, or
the potential of a new idea.
If you could tell your younger writing self
anything, what would it be?
To
read more, to write more, and to not take criticism so much to heart. I lost
many valuable years as a writer because of self-hatred and putting myself down.
Writing is work, it’s a craft, and it’s a mental gymnasium, and if you get
sloppy, inattentive, and lose passion, then you only get what you’ve asked for.
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