How did you become a writer?
It sounds like a cliché but it is what I’ve always wanted to do. Obviously after graduating I had to do quite a few other jobs to meet the rent, but I’ve been writing stories since I could hold a pen and probably began writing my first novel quite soon after university. My early attempts were naturally terrible and then I also started having children, by which time I was working as a freelance journalist, so I had very little time. After the birth of my second child though I realised I was going to have to take it seriously if anything was going to come from it, so I enrolled on a creative writing MA, which was brilliant not just for my process, but also for my confidence. I completed my first novel on that course and sent it off afterwards and was lucky enough to get a deal. A writer’s life though is never straight forward – I thought it would be plain sailing once I was published, but it is so far from that. I’ve changed agents and publishers since then, have had times where I thought I’d never be published again, and amazing highs. It’s taught me not to take anything about writing for granted and also to keep on working hard because if you want a long career it takes a huge amount of graft.
Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).
Like I said, my creative writing MA was very influential because it taught me to take myself seriously as a writer and to treat it like a job (even when you can’t afford to make it your full-time job). It also taught me huge amounts about editing, which is a totally fundamental part of the writing process. I write about 3 drafts before I even show anything to my agent and then I’d expect to work on 1 or 2 with her and a further 2 or 3 with my publisher. And I’m constantly influenced by other writers – in fact I’d go as far to say that if you don’t read a lot you’re probably not going to become a writer. The writers I return to again and again are Daphne du Maurier, Iris Murdoch, Carol Shields, Patricia Highsmith, Zadie Smith, Maggie O’Farrell and Tana French. They all make me want to do better!
When and where do you write?
Because I started my career with three young children (I’d had a third baby by the time my first book came out), I’m not at all precious about how or where I write. I have much more time now as my children are older and all in full time education, and I don’t have to have another job either, but I’m really grateful for that early grounding. I try to write for a couple of hours most weekdays and I’m most likely to be found at my kitchen table or sitting on my sofa, despite having built myself a writing cabin at the bottom of the garden.
What are you working on now?
I’ve just finished my fifth book and am at the stage where I’m going through edits with my publisher. It’s actually a bit of a departure for me because it’s set in the early 1900s, although it does still retain thriller roots. My great grandfather survived the sinking of The Titanic and I’ve wanted to write a book around this for a long time, although it’s been hard for me to find a way in to the story. It’s one of those books I’ve started so many times, but this year it came together.
Have you ever suffered from writer’s block?
No, I haven’t and I think there are two reasons for this. Firstly, like I said, I spent the first decade of my writing life very time poor, which meant any time I did have felt like a bit of a gift. But also, when I’m writing my first draft I know it’s going to be terrible and I’ll never show it to anyone, which gives me a real freedom to just get words down on the page. And then, once you have that draft, you have at least the bones of something to work with, so again it gives you a structure.
What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?
Always cut the first twenty pages. A writer friend said it to me when I was first trying to get a deal and it’s so true. The best stories, in whatever genre, ask questions and create suspense, but as writers we want to explain things. If you do this too early however your book is in danger of feeling boring. I guess it’s another way of saying show don’t tell, but it’s such good advice and in fact can be applied throughout your book. When I’m editing I’m always asking myself do I really need this sentence or do I really need to let the reader know this yet.
What’s your advice to new writers?
Start thinking of writing as a business. Know the market and be savvy. You can have moments of being a tortured artist, but if you want to be published, ultimately you have to remember that you are creating a product which your publisher will want and need to make money on. Also, most importantly, read constantly and write as much as you can. As I’ve said editing is one of the most important parts of writing, but you can’t start drafting until you’ve got those words on the page. Give yourself the gift of putting down bad words, because that’s where the good words eventually come from.
Araminta Hall is the author of four novels, Everything & Nothing, Dot, Our Kind of Cruelty and Imperfect Women. Our Kind of Cruelty is being adapted for film and Imperfect Women was recently optioned by Elisabeth Moss' new production company, Love & Squalor Pictures. She lives by the sea in Brighton, UK, with her husband and three children.
