Ask the Author: A.J. MacKenzie
Answered Questions (5)
A.J. MacKenzie
Being able to do what you love and are passionate about. Being able to create, to tell stories, to bring people, places, entire worlds into life. Being your own boss. Creating a different world and getting to know it in depth and detail. Having an excuse to just sit and think, without someone telling you to get back to work. And for non-fiction writers moving into fiction, like ourselves, the greatest joy of all is being able to just make things up (whilst of course being historically accurate) , and not have to provide footnotes!
A.J. MacKenzie
Write. Write a lot, often. Write something every day if you can, even if it is only a few dozen words. It doesn’t matter what it is; you can describe a scene you see, or an imaginary conversation, or anything at all that comes into your head. Writing is like a muscle; the more you exercise it, the stronger it gets. Also, listen to your writing. Play it aloud in your head, or read it aloud if you can, and listen to the cadence and rhythm. If something sounds wrong to you, then it probably is wrong. Rhythm is so important in writing.
A.J. MacKenzie
The sequel to The Body on the Doorstep. It is called The Body in the Ice, and will feature the same two central characters, Mrs Chaytor and the Reverend Hardcastle. We can’t tell you too much about it yet, only that it begins on Christmas Day in the midst of one of the coldest winters in of the past 300 years. Then there is the third in the series, which has the working title The Body in the Boat. We can’t tell you much about that one either, because we haven’t started writing it yet!
A.J. MacKenzie
That’s such a hard question to answer! Inspiration comes from all sorts of places. A landscape or location like Romney Marsh can sometimes be a starting place. We write historical fiction, so things we read about in historical sources will often suggest plot hooks or scenes. We’re both mildly addicted to maps, and places and names on old maps will suggest other possibilities.
Original sources from the period: letters, diaries, newpapers, journals, accounts, and costume can all inspire either characters or scenes. A recent evening spent in a local very small music venue sparked the creation of a complex scene for the 3rd of the Romney Marsh books. Then there is a whole range of other things: people we meet, buildings we see, pieces of music we hear; the list is endless. Somehow, through some sort of mental alchemy, all these influences then boil themselves down into a story.
Original sources from the period: letters, diaries, newpapers, journals, accounts, and costume can all inspire either characters or scenes. A recent evening spent in a local very small music venue sparked the creation of a complex scene for the 3rd of the Romney Marsh books. Then there is a whole range of other things: people we meet, buildings we see, pieces of music we hear; the list is endless. Somehow, through some sort of mental alchemy, all these influences then boil themselves down into a story.
A.J. MacKenzie
We think the idea probably came from the landscape itself. If you don’t know Romney Marsh, it is a very atmospheric place, flat and wide open and swept by wind and weather, very different from the Wealden hills to the west. It’s sometimes called ‘the Fifth Continent’ because of its distinctiveness. It is also very near to France, perfect for a historical novel about smuggling and espionage. The landscape and location shape much of the action in The Body on the Doorstep.
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