Ask the Author: Roy Hunt
Answered Questions (17)
Roy Hunt
I just read the blog piece now, Lissa, that you are referring to. Yes, this is a very interesting viewpoint from Lee Martinez for an author and by extension, the reader. Overall, he's right. Getting it across on paper, that's a different matter. I think, God, I think, that I might just have attempted this in my second novel, 'Fr Winter: a threatening Geneses'.
And how about this to muddy the waters? Not only is the character's subconscious at work, but it is mixed with that of the author/creator and the reader reading the book. Every time we read, I believe, especially if we engage with the characters, this is stirring something in our own subconscious. It's beautiful and alluring in its complexity; its what makes us human.
One way of expressing this on paper in a book, might be for the hero to do something unusual and another character to remark 'Why on earth did you do that?' And have the main character struggle to explain why he/she acted in this way. I have created a main character in my second book, a priest, with psychic power; so there is a good deal going on at a hidden level. I hope I get this across.
Here's another take on Martinez's viewpoint, I believe (only me, I have no proof or any reading I've ever come across to back it up), that the memories and experiences of our forebears, in other words what we call our subconscious, lies inside us, carried on our DNA, our genes. To put it simply, a fear of spiders might be caused because you have a subconscious memory from an ancestor who fell into a pit of spiders.
For us to be here, we must go all the way back to when time began, isn't that awesome? I began to understand the complexity of our subconscious and to consider what we carry inside us after reading Richard Dawkins 'River out of Eden'. So yes, I believe in the 'What you don't think you think' thesis :)
And how about this to muddy the waters? Not only is the character's subconscious at work, but it is mixed with that of the author/creator and the reader reading the book. Every time we read, I believe, especially if we engage with the characters, this is stirring something in our own subconscious. It's beautiful and alluring in its complexity; its what makes us human.
One way of expressing this on paper in a book, might be for the hero to do something unusual and another character to remark 'Why on earth did you do that?' And have the main character struggle to explain why he/she acted in this way. I have created a main character in my second book, a priest, with psychic power; so there is a good deal going on at a hidden level. I hope I get this across.
Here's another take on Martinez's viewpoint, I believe (only me, I have no proof or any reading I've ever come across to back it up), that the memories and experiences of our forebears, in other words what we call our subconscious, lies inside us, carried on our DNA, our genes. To put it simply, a fear of spiders might be caused because you have a subconscious memory from an ancestor who fell into a pit of spiders.
For us to be here, we must go all the way back to when time began, isn't that awesome? I began to understand the complexity of our subconscious and to consider what we carry inside us after reading Richard Dawkins 'River out of Eden'. So yes, I believe in the 'What you don't think you think' thesis :)
Roy Hunt
Hi Lissa,
I'm writing my third novel; so far it is only in longhand, but the second is finished and I'm presently checking the edits from my proofreader (and copy editor, I don't deserve her:) ) Glenda Cimino.
As regards fresh characters, I found myself in an interesting situation. I am attempting to join all three books into a loose trilogy. There are plenty of fresh characters, but one thing remains constant, the lake, Lough Ree. My third book has the son of the main character from the second book in it, and there is a tie in to the first due to the nature of the disaster that happened on the lake, due to his office being set up because of it.
I find I love memory in books, connections that tie people, situations and places into a nostalgic, historical bind. This helps me keep going and makes the writing genuinely more interesting for me, and I hope, eventually, for the reader.
As regards how many books in my head as I write the next one, well, I have a long list. But they are different idea and even genres. I was thinking of a stand alone book along the lines of 'The Bridges of Madison County', and I am also contemplating something along the lines of a contemporary view on Auf Wiedersehen Pet, because I worked in construction and I have this idea of a few guys getting together and having similar adventures in contemporary Europe. But, I have set my previous three books in or near Athlone and Lough Ree and I might just try and continue this. So it would appear that for as long as I'm able, I seem to have ideas for my next book.
I'm writing my third novel; so far it is only in longhand, but the second is finished and I'm presently checking the edits from my proofreader (and copy editor, I don't deserve her:) ) Glenda Cimino.
As regards fresh characters, I found myself in an interesting situation. I am attempting to join all three books into a loose trilogy. There are plenty of fresh characters, but one thing remains constant, the lake, Lough Ree. My third book has the son of the main character from the second book in it, and there is a tie in to the first due to the nature of the disaster that happened on the lake, due to his office being set up because of it.
I find I love memory in books, connections that tie people, situations and places into a nostalgic, historical bind. This helps me keep going and makes the writing genuinely more interesting for me, and I hope, eventually, for the reader.
As regards how many books in my head as I write the next one, well, I have a long list. But they are different idea and even genres. I was thinking of a stand alone book along the lines of 'The Bridges of Madison County', and I am also contemplating something along the lines of a contemporary view on Auf Wiedersehen Pet, because I worked in construction and I have this idea of a few guys getting together and having similar adventures in contemporary Europe. But, I have set my previous three books in or near Athlone and Lough Ree and I might just try and continue this. So it would appear that for as long as I'm able, I seem to have ideas for my next book.
Roy Hunt
For the one presently being edited, Jeremy Rifkin's "The Bio-tech century", 1997). Working title, 'Fr Winter: a threatening genesis.' I was completely mesmerised and fascinated by Rifkin's book. I can't remember when I enjoyed reading anything so much. I absorbed every page like I was in a trance. I was like a child in wonderland. And the incredible thing is, a lot of what he wrote has come to pass, and worse, even what I have written in 'Fr Winter' is being caught up on. For example, creating artificial stem cells so they won't have to use real biological embryos, which is a major ethical issue (and so it should be). And from stem cells, any cell can be grown with the proper manipulation and direction.That's one example, another is the manipulation of our DNA. I was listening to a mainstream scientist on our national television station last week (RTE; I'm in Ireland), speaking about the 'gen-rich' and 'the others'. How manipulation of stem cells will allow us to have certain traits built into our unborn children. But only those with a lot of money will be able to afford it. So a separate race could conceivably be created which eventually would have as much in common with us as we presently have with the ape. My second book is about that struggle, between science and religion. If I don't get it our by next year, at the latest, science fact will have overtaken science fiction.
Roy Hunt
Hi Lissa Oliver, apologies for only answering your question now. I'm not a skilled multitasker and often get stuck on one particular project to the expense of others. A question and subject for another day.
I love this question, it sets the synapses of my brain firing up!!
The thing is, it depends how you read. You can sit beside a driver your whole life and never learn to drive, you can read books your whole life and still miss the wiring underneath: the plot, the Point of View (POV), the research, the grammar, the edits.
Here's a confession. Until I started writing myself, I never knew how much I was taking for granted and how little I knew of the craft of writing. One example, I still often can't figure out in my head whether effect or affect is the correct usage. I know writers who have no problem with this; I know it's me, like a 'dead cell' as my father used to say about his problem remembering names (although he had a phenomenal memory with phone numbers that were important to him). So I often resort to 'impact', or change the sentence. But here's the thing: at least now I'm aware of the problem, whereas before, I didn't even know that I didn't know. Despite the fact that I must have come across that word thousands of times in good books over the years.
A few years ago I started a small notebook for this problem. My problem words are 'being' or 'been' (have that under control now, thanks to my notebook idea) 'was' or 'were' and the biggest one: 'affect' or 'effect'. I now write sentences from books that use these words into my notebook, and I make a note of the book and page number.
So yes, you're right, reading as many good books as possible is the best way to go. It's essential. To write, you should want to read anyway. But, if you're a writer, or you want to write, slow down and read with focus. Its amazing when you do how many mistakes (small typos) you'll find even in mainstream, traditionally published books (Those that have been proofed at great expense). But also study the areas you are weak on and see how the professionals do it.
As regards grammar, one quick note to those who get a headache just thinking about it. Get 'Eats, shoots@ leaves' by Lynne Truss and 'the accidental apostrophe' by Caroline Taggart. Nothing beats a little humour to get you going.
Thank you for the question, Lissa.
I love this question, it sets the synapses of my brain firing up!!
The thing is, it depends how you read. You can sit beside a driver your whole life and never learn to drive, you can read books your whole life and still miss the wiring underneath: the plot, the Point of View (POV), the research, the grammar, the edits.
Here's a confession. Until I started writing myself, I never knew how much I was taking for granted and how little I knew of the craft of writing. One example, I still often can't figure out in my head whether effect or affect is the correct usage. I know writers who have no problem with this; I know it's me, like a 'dead cell' as my father used to say about his problem remembering names (although he had a phenomenal memory with phone numbers that were important to him). So I often resort to 'impact', or change the sentence. But here's the thing: at least now I'm aware of the problem, whereas before, I didn't even know that I didn't know. Despite the fact that I must have come across that word thousands of times in good books over the years.
A few years ago I started a small notebook for this problem. My problem words are 'being' or 'been' (have that under control now, thanks to my notebook idea) 'was' or 'were' and the biggest one: 'affect' or 'effect'. I now write sentences from books that use these words into my notebook, and I make a note of the book and page number.
So yes, you're right, reading as many good books as possible is the best way to go. It's essential. To write, you should want to read anyway. But, if you're a writer, or you want to write, slow down and read with focus. Its amazing when you do how many mistakes (small typos) you'll find even in mainstream, traditionally published books (Those that have been proofed at great expense). But also study the areas you are weak on and see how the professionals do it.
As regards grammar, one quick note to those who get a headache just thinking about it. Get 'Eats, shoots@ leaves' by Lynne Truss and 'the accidental apostrophe' by Caroline Taggart. Nothing beats a little humour to get you going.
Thank you for the question, Lissa.
Roy Hunt
Hello Lissa,
Thank you for the question, and I'll tell you why; it brought back a very fond memory to me. Some years ago, I was working on a road gang in Dublin city centre. I was driving a small truck. One morning, it bucketed down rain. We ran in doors of pubs, shops and cafes'. I found myself in a small breakfast type café. The windows were all steamed up; I ordered breakfast and bought a morning paper. After I finished breakfast, I watched the world go by outside for maybe a half hour, maybe more. I drank my coffee, ordered more and read the paper from cover to cover. Still it rained but gradually cleared. I didn't want to leave that café; the atmosphere of the place just got me in its grip, I was really, completely, in the moment in that place for that precious half hour or more.
So yes, try and be in the moment, you can't beat it for therapy.
Thank you for the question, and I'll tell you why; it brought back a very fond memory to me. Some years ago, I was working on a road gang in Dublin city centre. I was driving a small truck. One morning, it bucketed down rain. We ran in doors of pubs, shops and cafes'. I found myself in a small breakfast type café. The windows were all steamed up; I ordered breakfast and bought a morning paper. After I finished breakfast, I watched the world go by outside for maybe a half hour, maybe more. I drank my coffee, ordered more and read the paper from cover to cover. Still it rained but gradually cleared. I didn't want to leave that café; the atmosphere of the place just got me in its grip, I was really, completely, in the moment in that place for that precious half hour or more.
So yes, try and be in the moment, you can't beat it for therapy.
Roy Hunt
Hi Gabriel,
I can't recall actually using that exact sentence, but I can't disagree with the basic premise. One of the big regrets I have is that, over the years, as I worked on sites and spent time on the road, I didn't give more attention (and take notes) of the people and stories I met and heard. I always wanted to write and did feel a little 'outside' everything I did. It must come with the territory; I don't think I could do much about it. I don't know if other writers experienced this or not.
Here's one example: I worked on a demolition site in Dublin in the 1980s. This guy went round every morning at 9:30. He took orders from all the guys on the site (about 10, maybe more) for breakfast. Ham rolls, orange juice, biscuits, papers, cigarettes, you name it. They all gave him money, including me, to get what we wanted. I noticed he never wrote anything down, so one day, when he brought me back a paper, a ham roll and orange juice and then gave me back my correct change as usual, I said to him 'How come you don't write anything down?' His reply was 'I can't read or write, son.' I was about 20 at the time, he was older. Imagine the brain that guy had. I knew guys that couldn't do that for one person, even if they wrote it down. I wish I could remember more, like his name or where he was from. So yes, I often felt on the outside looking in, I only wish I had taken notes while I was doing all that 'looking in'.
I can't recall actually using that exact sentence, but I can't disagree with the basic premise. One of the big regrets I have is that, over the years, as I worked on sites and spent time on the road, I didn't give more attention (and take notes) of the people and stories I met and heard. I always wanted to write and did feel a little 'outside' everything I did. It must come with the territory; I don't think I could do much about it. I don't know if other writers experienced this or not.
Here's one example: I worked on a demolition site in Dublin in the 1980s. This guy went round every morning at 9:30. He took orders from all the guys on the site (about 10, maybe more) for breakfast. Ham rolls, orange juice, biscuits, papers, cigarettes, you name it. They all gave him money, including me, to get what we wanted. I noticed he never wrote anything down, so one day, when he brought me back a paper, a ham roll and orange juice and then gave me back my correct change as usual, I said to him 'How come you don't write anything down?' His reply was 'I can't read or write, son.' I was about 20 at the time, he was older. Imagine the brain that guy had. I knew guys that couldn't do that for one person, even if they wrote it down. I wish I could remember more, like his name or where he was from. So yes, I often felt on the outside looking in, I only wish I had taken notes while I was doing all that 'looking in'.
Roy Hunt
Very hard to switch off. When I was younger I kept a journal. Now, nearing sixty, I feel guilty if I'm not absorbing all new experiences for a possible story idea. Last year, I was in Benalmadena; my first time to be there, but now I have an idea for a story set there or nearby. I never really switch off; don't really think that's such a good thing.
Roy Hunt
Hi Gabriel,
short answer, yes, there is. But I think I cut it back from the original drafts. If you look at the bibliography in the back of the book (kindle edition; print edition due out this winter, in time for Christmas hopefully), you can see all the resources I consulted. I started with general reading in encyclopaedias, before moving on to, for example, Dr Mae-Wan Ho's Genetic Engineering: dream or nightmare. It's a fascinating, but intimidating subject area. I loved Dr Mae-Wan Ho's book and also those by Richard Dawkins.
short answer, yes, there is. But I think I cut it back from the original drafts. If you look at the bibliography in the back of the book (kindle edition; print edition due out this winter, in time for Christmas hopefully), you can see all the resources I consulted. I started with general reading in encyclopaedias, before moving on to, for example, Dr Mae-Wan Ho's Genetic Engineering: dream or nightmare. It's a fascinating, but intimidating subject area. I loved Dr Mae-Wan Ho's book and also those by Richard Dawkins.
Roy Hunt
Do honest research first. Depending on what you write, of course. The Irish writer Maeve Binchy freely admitted the most research she ever had to do was go into a restaurant and order a meal so that she could write about it. (And she bought her first Mercedes with cash from her handbag, no joking; she made a fortune, I believe). Then no matter what your humour just try and do at least 1,000 a day. Like jogging, once you start, don't stop.
Roy Hunt
Short answer, yes. For my second novel, I really worked hard on research. I did for the first as well, but anyway. I remember reading that the author Ken Follett did massive extensive research and planned and blocked out every single chapter before starting to write. I thought 'that's for me' and I tried, but I couldn't do it. I kept going back to check this fact and that and it was stopping me from getting going properly. So, I tried a different plan which I use still. I imagined it was an exam. Three hours, no books, 2,000 words. Just keep dredging up from your memory as much as you could. So that's what I do after I have completed my research. So I've discovered, to get back to your question, that the story often goes off on tangents, that the characters have idea's of their own and the chapter can end in a way I hadn't anticipated. It's amazing. Writing is such an adventure and character is so important. Because its all about human nature.
Roy Hunt
Hi Lissa, First draft always by hand. I tried the keyboard, but I get too carried away and try to type to fast. Also, I'm not touch type trained, so I have to keep looking at the keyboard when I should be watching the screen. A bit like a learner driver looking down at his/her feet to see where the pedals are. And you know where that will lead! So sometimes I forget to look up for ages and something has gone wrong, like the keyboard got stuck on num lock or I've typed all caps. So first draft in longhand, always. I need that pain to keep me focused. Years ago, we had a stationary shop and a girl from across the road did some typing for me. She was a civil service trained touch typist; it was awesome to watch her. She never had to look at the keyboard. her speed was incredible. Tragically, she died in a car accident.
Roy Hunt
Good question, Gabriel; with the way you phrase it, it's hard to answer, I think the same feeling I got when I read Jaws, all those years ago now. A story that draws you in, maybe over a long snowy weekend. The whole story of Mutation takes place over one week. Hopefully you might come away thinking, 'Wow! imagine if that did happen and I got caught up it in?'
Roy Hunt
I'm currently working on a story that begins in North Korea and ends in Ireland. The isolation of the roads, the geographic harshness, the cold dark winters of the place fascinate me. Would love to there some day for research.
Roy Hunt
This was a major problem for me. I often say, writing the first book was like attending 'novel writers training college', The title and cover changes were not clever marketing, just me floundering around and trying to come up with a decent title, that, as you so correctly say, encapsulates the novel. In short, I found it extremely difficult. I went from Transmutation to Dark Waters and finally settled on Mutation (I'm still trying to update it in Goodreads; apologies to Goodreads and their lovely readers). I also gave up trying my hand at doing the cover myself and paid to have it professionally designed.
Roy Hunt
I know what you mean, Lissa. I love reading how other authors work. No, Lissa, I don't have your skills and discipline, I'm afraid. I try (oh so hard) to do all the research first. I managed it to a large extent in my second book. My education (late in life, an adult distance student) helps me here. I have an mlitt so I'm used to research. But the one I'm working on now, I stopped researching half way through and just started writing in longhand onto a yellow legal pad. And then I will go back once I have a clearer idea exactly where this particular story is going. I'm definitely not an edit-as-you-go person. Imagine a building site with the blocks, timber, plumbing strewn all over the site. I have to go back (once all the stuff is delivered) and try and sort it all out. The writer Jackie Collins gave me this idea. She said she sat down and just let the characters go their way. And it's amazing, it does work. Another writer described it as driving in fog, only when you go a few feet forward, will the next stage come into view. It takes a major force of will for me to sit down each day and write 1,000 words.
Roy Hunt
It's weird! I just always wanted to write. I'm not even sure why. I always felt I was never part on anything and didn't really want to be drawn in, like I was on the outside, looking in. We moved house a lot so I kept loosing/changing friends, so I guess I turned to books. I loved reading. I kept a journal for a few years, but then stopped reading and writing for almost twenty years. I'm so glad now to have this as a part of my life as I age. So, yes, in a way Mutation was a 'now or never moment'.
Roy Hunt
Lissa, I'd love it if that we me! I'd write a follow-up straight away. I even left the door open in the first one in case I might do a follow up. My second is going to the ed's and I'm thinking of trying to join the third with a trail back through the first two.
As a reader, there were books I was sad to finish. I think the secret is to create a character that readers will love as opposed to issues. Michael Crichton for instance (I writer I greatly admired) focused in my opinion, too much on issues (Climate, genetics, nano technology) and not enough on character.
As a reader, there were books I was sad to finish. I think the secret is to create a character that readers will love as opposed to issues. Michael Crichton for instance (I writer I greatly admired) focused in my opinion, too much on issues (Climate, genetics, nano technology) and not enough on character.
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