The days are growing shorter. The nights creep in, stealing more than their fair share of my hours, and summer is fading fast. I find this alarming. Not that I don't like autumn - I do. I love its muted colours, its smell of damp earth, and all the kids going back to school instead of clogging up my favourite bakery. But autumn heralds the dreaded D word. Deadline.
It is approaching at a frightening speed. Guilt has taken up permanent residence in my lap and if I skive off for the day to yomp over Dartmoor or amble across a beach to watch the cormorants' amazing feats of underwater breath-control, I suffer for it the next day. Not long ago I heard a successful crime writer say, 'I don't agonise over it. I just write.'
So that is my new motto. Just write.
10 comments:
I bet sometimes 'just write' is bloody hard to do
Hi Karen,
You are soooo right!
Hi Kate, fantastic to meet you at the Appledore Book Festival ]Im the daft one who asked you whether you had read 'Sashenka'...I didnt get to say how your 'Russian Concubine' gave me many almost sleepless nights as I found it really difficult to put down..you are SO right about most male writers too, had YOU written 'Sashenka' I probably would have HAD to put it down at the stage where she thought she was going to lose her children, a man can never actually 'feel' that bond so desperately, although I may be wrong about that, gay men are very sensitive..I musnt go on, you have another book to write...GET ON WITH IT PLEASE !!!!...In anticipation...Mari Buckingham.
Hi Mari,
I really enjoyed meeting you and all the book-lovers at the Appledore Book Festival. It was a great crowd, oozing enthusiasm and curiosity about everything to do with writing. As I said when we chatted, I think 'Sashenka' is an impressive book with a huge amount of knowledge and research going into it. He is a real expert on everything Russian. My only complaint was that the heroine did not always ring true as a female - and I put that down to the fact that the story was written by a man. But it is a very successful book.
Okay, back to my own book. Deadline looming. But Appledore was great fun and I enjoyed chatting. Keep reading!
Hi Kate,
I just wanted to drop by and say how much I love your new motto. Every writer needs to remember it!
Kate,
This is my first comment on your website. I'm a fan from the US who has been voraciously devouring your latest 'The Girl from Junchow'. Best yet!!! Feel like reading all over again to fully explore the layered, palimset sequel. 'Successful crime writer'? - I would be interested to hear of your influences and reading material? Not only pure research.
Peace,
R
Hi Meghan
Good to hear from you. I've just had a long telephone call with my agent today about the fact that I am now over my deadline date. Her comment was 'Well, just write faster.' If only!!
Hi Richard,
Peace indeed, especially with your President over there winning the Nobel Peace Prize today. An award for his intentions rather than his results, methinks.
Hey, thanks for the generous words but you ask tough questions. All of us are influenced throughout our lives, often without realising when or by whom. We distill what we experience and add our individual spice to it, then call it our own.
I would say I was definitely influenced by Thomas Hardy - he created stories in which pain sculpts the human condition, in which environment is so vivid it is a physical presence within the book, and his women were magnificently flawed. I try to reproduce all of that in my novels.
More up-to-date influences are the Canadian author, Margaret Atwood, a fiercely intelligent woman,and William Gibson who could give a masterclass on the use of surprise.
So what are your influences?
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