Originally published on booksbywomen.org on 16 February 2021
How did your childhood impact the writer you’ve become?
I was a dreamy child, and very often with my head in the clouds or my nose in a book. Novels and stories offered a doorway into exciting new worlds, and as long as a story had an intriguing main character and a fascinating setting my interest was hooked. When I began to write it seemed natural that my own stories would be character-driven, and my favourite novels still tend to be those in which the main character’s desires – and flaws – are the driving force of the plot.
When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?
There was never a lightbulb moment about wanting to be a writer, though I did start writing early in life. The urge to write my own stories seemed like a natural corollary to my love of reading, and at the age of ten I wrote down my first ‘novel’ in a spiral-bound notebook. It was about a boy growing up in a crowded city, who was desperate to escape the urban chaos and seek a better life in the wide-open spaces of the prairies and mountains.
How has writing changed you as a person?
One of the many joys of writing fiction is the way it affects how I see the world. Much of the time I find myself in ‘observation mode’, absorbing the sights and sounds of a particular setting, or picking up on the speech patterns and mannerisms of the people around me. The challenge of creating interesting characters has certainly given me a greater appreciation for the complexities of human psychology.
Can you tell us a bit about your novel THE DOUBLE and what inspired you to write it?
The Double is a mystery/suspense novel about a prize-winning neuroscientist and Cambridge don named Vidor Kiraly, who is sent to an isolated psychiatric clinic in the Swiss Alps, following a violent attack on a stranger at an awards ceremony. When the clinic’s director, Dr Gessen, begins to suspect his reluctant patient is not who he appears to be, a cat-and-mouse game ensues as he attempts to discover he truth. The stakes are raised when one of the patients at the clinic goes missing, and Gessen has reason to doubt Vidor’s self-proclaimed innocence.
I’ve always been fascinated by stories about twins, doubles, or doppelgängers. Stevenson’s Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, to give one example, is a long-time favourite, and I’ve always wanted to write a story of my own with a similar theme. The idea that we might have a double somewhere in the world disturbs our notion that every individual is wholly unique. But it’s a notion rich with possibilities for exploring the different ways that ‘doubleness’ might manifest, such as assumed identity, fugue states, or split personality.
What would be your 6 word memoir?
Seeking far horizons, real and imagined.
What is the best writing advice you’ve ever had, and the worst?
Best: Make writing a daily habit; don’t wait for inspiration to strike.
Worst: Write what you know. (I can’t think of anything more limiting!)
What is your writing process like? Are you a pantser or a plotter?
A bit of both. Before I put pen to paper, I spend a good bit of time getting to know the main characters and mulling over their story. Then I make a list of the key scenes needed to move the plot forward. Once I have a good idea of the first scene, the climax, and the ending, that’s usually enough for me to dive in. After I’ve written a rough first draft, I go back and tinker with the structure to fine-tune the story’s rhythm and pacing.
Do you need a special place to write?
Not so much a special place, as a time. I can write almost anywhere (as long as it’s quiet), but I’m only able to write early in the morning, before the rest of the world is awake. There’s something about that fuzzy time between waking and sleeping that allows me to access my writing brain without distractions.
Are you part of a writing community or a writing group?
I wrote and edited my debut novel, The Shadow Bird, while part of a writing group, and the support and feedback were immensely helpful and inspiring. Every writer needs feedback from at least one beta reader before sending their work out. I’m currently part of an informal writing community of other recently and soon-to-be published authors. Finding my ‘tribe’ has been very gratifying, especially during the pandemic/lockdowns when nearly all contact is online.
What is your experience with social media as a writer? Do you find it distracts you or does it provide inspiration?
Having joined social media only recently, I was a bit leery at first and worried indeed about the potential for distraction. But so far, I’ve managed to keep the guardrails up and distractions to a minimum. It’s a useful format for connecting with other writers, authors and readers and so far, I enjoy being part of the conversation (…though with limits!).
Who are your favorite authors?
So difficult to choose! But the authors I return to again and again for compelling stories and stellar writing include Margaret Atwood, Kate Atkinson, Elizabeth Strout, Emily St. John Mandel, Kazuo Ishiguro, Alice Munro. When I need a masterclass in suspense writing, Daphne du Maurier and Wilkie Collins never disappoint.
What are you reading currently?
As the pandemic lingers on (and on…), I’ve found comfort in re-reading the classics (Edith Wharton, Charlotte Brontë, EM Forster) along with other old favourites. I’ve just re-read Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life and A God in Ruins. Recent releases I’ve enjoyed include Lost Children Archive and Leave the World Behind. I’ve just started Avni Doshi’s evocative debut, Burnt Sugar, and am anxiously awaiting Kazuo Ishiguro’s newest novel, Klara and the Sun.