Ask the Author: Niels Saunders
Answered Questions (7)
Niels Saunders
Good question! To find out you'll have to read my first book, Mervyn vs. Dennis. The main character keeps seeing people walking around town with pineapples under their arms. Much to the bemusement of his friends and family, he thinks they're all part of some sinister cult. The truth is even more surprising than he dared imagine.
Niels Saunders
The central idea came out of a daydream--what if someone got a job by accident by pretending to be racist? I loved that situation and saw so much comedy mileage in it. Despite having a vague outline, I was fascinated where the story would lead. What consequences would there be? My characters kept surprising me throughout and grew beyond their purely comic origins. I had a great time writing it and hope you enjoy reading it too.
Niels Saunders
I've been so busy promoting my latest novel Mervyn vs. Dennis that I haven't had much time to write at all. Nevertheless, I've been doing a ruthless edit of my first novel The Octopus Teaser (now retitled Grand Theft Octo). I'm aiming to trim it by half, from 140,000 to 70,000 words. Wish me luck! I think with enough pruning, it could be really great. I'm also planning the next book in my Empire series and working on a fairytale for adults about a sapient monkey in ancient Japan. I'm quite a busy man!
Niels Saunders
I've always been a bit of an escapist. There's nothing better than disappearing into another world for a few hours. I enjoy getting to know my characters. It's like having new people enter your life, for better and worse. When I was young I used to draw but I always got got frustrated that the pictures I created never matched the ones in my head. With writing, though, it often turns out better. It's much more satisfying.
Niels Saunders
I'm never short of ideas, just time. I find myself inspired by all sorts of things, from pop culture to high art. I'm just as likely to get an idea from watching some dreary reality TV show as I am from visiting the National Gallery. It's important to observe and allow your mind to wander. I think most writers are daydreamers but it can be hard to have a reflective moment when your mobile phone is always nearby.
Niels Saunders
I only suffer from writer's block when I've taken the story in the wrong direction. For me, writer's block is an overwhelming sense of pointlessness. I used to misdiagnose it as self-doubt but I've lately become better at recognising it. What I have to do is rewind what I've written and try to pinpoint the moment where something went wrong. It's normally because I've forced a character to do something they don't want to do. Sometimes it's not clear what the solution is so I experiment or take a break and mull over the story and my character's motivations until I figure it out.
Niels Saunders
Listen to your characters. Allow them to make their own decisions. You might have something exciting planned for them but you should always give them room to choose their own path. I can guarantee it'll be more exciting than whatever you had planned, no matter how much it might change the direction of your story. Often your own characters will have better ideas than you.
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