Today is the first of the four-part interview with author Josie Jaffrey, across which we'll talk writing, her Silverse, her Seekers series, and her latest release. Today is all about writing.
When did you start writing?
I’ve always written stories, but I didn’t start getting serious about it until 2014. Before then, I’d daydream for a while and maybe get down twenty pages of a story before putting it aside and getting back to real life. It wasn’t until I wrote A Bargain in Silver that I finally managed to finish a book. I think it’s that way for a lot of authors: finishing the first one is always like pulling teeth, but once you have that under your belt, it gets so much easier.
How do you motivate yourself on days when you don’t want to write?
Honestly, I don’t. For me, it’s often the worst thing I can do. If I don’t want to write, there’s probably a reason for that, and I need to give myself time to work out what that reason is. Maybe a particular plot arc just isn’t working and needs to be changed, or maybe the last section of dialogue I wrote is something that character would simply never say. Or maybe something’s happened in my personal life that has sapped my energy. Either way, if I really don’t want to write, then it’s probably a sign that there’s a problem I need to deal with first.
If I have no choice because a deadline is looming (and I set myself many in order to motivate myself to get things done, despite the fact that I often miss them), then I can usually bribe myself back to the computer with chocolate, but writing like that hurts. It’s a painful process and I don’t like doing it because I think it shows in my writing. So if there’s any wiggle room in my schedule, and even when there isn’t, I’ll step back for a day or two and let the story work itself out in my head for a bit. I’m a firm believer in giving yourself space for creativity. The best ideas are born in idle thought.
What advice would you offer a new writer?
Everyone works and creates differently, so there are very few all-purpose writing tips that are helpful. I cringe every time I see an author say ‘write every day’ or ‘write this many words a week’, because those rigid rules aren’t universal. I don’t write every day. I never have done. There are some weeks when I write nothing at all, because I know my brain needs a rest. I often alternate, having four days in a row where I do nothing but read, absorbing lots of inspiration, then spend the next four days writing tens of thousands of words. I’m not consistent, and I never will be. It just doesn’t work for me.
That said, there is one piece of writing advice that really is universal: if you want to be an author, you have to read. Read widely, read thoughtfully, and read a lot. There is nothing more important for developing your craft than reading other authors with a critical eye (How did they manage that POV change? How did they balance the backstory to prevent it becoming an infodump? What is it about the way this novel is paced that makes it so exciting?). Reading is key.
Are there any books you would read over and over again?
I have a whole stack of them! They’re all romances to lesser or greater degrees and I have them in paperback so I can read them in the bath (the Kindle steams up). My favourites are Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse books, Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum books and anything by Gail Carriger.
If you could invite three authors to a dinner party, who would it be?
I’d invite three of my real-life author friends, because then we could all relax and enjoy the evening! I’m weirdly anti-social and anxious for someone who comes across as outgoing.
Return tomorrow to find out more about the author's Silverse.
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