Ask the Author: Simon Edge
Answered Questions (8)
Simon Edge
Top of my pile is The Shape of Water by Andrea Camilleri, the first Inspector Montalbano novel. Also sitting waiting to be read – and I'm impatient to start on them – are Elizabeth Is Missing by Emma Healey, and Robert Harris' Archangel. And I recently picked up a copy of The Time Traveler's Wife – I seem to be in a small minority never having read it, so I'll be rectifying that omission.
Simon Edge
My next novel is an attempt to debunk some of the supposed mysteries of the universe. Does that qualify? Don't worry, it's a comedy.
Simon Edge
I start off by never using that expression, because that inflates it into something bigger than it is. I was a newspaper feature writer for 15 years, churning out 1,400 words of copy on a fresh subject every day, and I would have been laughed out of a job if I ever used the term writer's block. As a novelist, it just means you're just stuck, or you're not in the mood to write. It happens. Do any of the things you would do if you were stuck with any other kind of problem: give it a rest for a while, sleep on it, approach it from a different angle, come back when you're feeling fresher.
Simon Edge
Following your own schedule and pursuing your own interests.
Simon Edge
In my experience, it's way harder than you think it's going to be. You need to be good at so many things – line-by-line writing, creating character, story-telling, dialogue – and while most of us may have a natural aptitude for one or two of those elements, very few people can pull the whole package off. Find out where your shortcomings are and work on them. To do that, it may help to find a community of fellow writers at a similar stage to you who can give you moral support and constructive criticism. My biggest step forward came when I did a week-long residential course at the Arvon Foundation, where for the first time I mixed with other would-be writers. I should have done it much sooner.
Simon Edge
I am about to start work with my editor to prepare my second novel for publication in 2018, and I am in the middle of historical research for a third novel, set in the late 18th century.
Simon Edge
I like trying to weave real events from history into fictional retellings. I enjoy the challenge of finding fresh and creative ways of doing that. Initial inspiration often tends to come from background reading.
Simon Edge
It owes its genesis to my then agent, who noticed that Gerard Manley Hopkins, the Victorian poet, was intruding unbidden into another piece of writing. He suggested I get him out of my system by giving him a project of his own.
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more