What will you be looking for in the competition line up?
Something that makes me want to stay up late into the night reading. You know that amazing feeling when you’re into something and you can’t wait to read on? This doesn’t necessarily mean an action-packed opening or tons of mystery; it can be done using really interesting characters or a brilliant voice.
Any advice for the first page?
Please no huge dumps of back story. It makes me turn off straight away. Drop me right in. I want to care about what’s happening right now and be desperate to read on. I don’t want to feel like there’s loads of catching up to do.
Top three tips for the first chapter.
Get into the story fast.
Edit till you can edit no more.
Have someone read for typos.
Any advice to debut authors out there? What advice would you give to those who are submitting to agents and competitions?
Keep going! It takes time. Not just months, but sometimes years. If you really want to be a professional writer, you’ve just got to keep going. Be the last one in the room.
Also, write! Sounds obvious, but I’m constantly meeting people who want to be published but they never spend any time writing.
Your debut novel, Nightingale Point, was longlisted for The Women’s Prize in 2020, which must have been a wonderful experience for you. Can you tell us a little bit about that experience?
It was hugely exciting and very strange. I don’t really believe in imposter syndrome, but walking into Coutts, where they hold the Women’s Prize party, and seeing my name up on a giant screen next to Hilary Mantel’s and Maggie O’Farrell’s did make me laugh. You can’t help but feel like you’ve wandered into the wrong room.
What was the inspiration behind These Streets, which was published this year and looks at the line between home and homelessness, community and ultimately human resilience?
I wanted to tell a story about an average relatable family who ‘on paper’ would never end up homeless. I wanted readers to relate to the family and see how homelessness isn’t something which happens ‘over there’ to others, but a very real problem that could become anyone’s reality. I also wanted to show a family going through something terrible but holding onto hope and each other.
Tell us a little bit about your writer’s journey, whether you did any courses and how long it took you to write Nightingale Point, and also please tell us a little bit about how you came to be represented by Eve.
I did an evening class with the amazing Elise Valmorbida at Central Saint Martins, but mostly I just wrote. Every evening after work, every weekend, every spare minute where I could have been doing something much more fun like watching The Real Housewives.
Then I searched for an agent. I knew Eve was the right person because she had so much enthusiasm for the work and also because she spoke about me having a career and not just selling a book.
Nightingale Point took eight years from start (as a very long short story) to publication. The journey wasn’t straight forward at all.
We always try to have a writer to judge the competition as well as an agent (or two). How do you think your view on the entries will compare to Eve’s and Ludo’s?
This is something I am also curious about. As agents, Eve and Ludo are used to reading in a different way from me. I simply read what I enjoy! I also know I have ‘reading habits’, where I stick to certain genres and authors whereas Eve and Ludo are probably a lot more open than me. I’m excited to read things I normally wouldn’t.
Tell us a little bit about your writing day and your perfect writing environment.
I keep ‘office hours’ as it’s my full-time job. I’m a big fan of silence, tea and my internet blocker.
What are you reading at the moment?
A wonderful mix of eye-opening fanfiction on sites like AO3 and the odd piece of literary fiction, The Pachinko Parlour by Elisa Shua Dusapin was my absolute favourite this year. I also love a good romance, Helen Hoang and Jen Frederick being my current favourites.