Ask a question
I’m going to start this section with a caveat…and here it is. At the moment, I’m able to answer pretty much everyone who writes to me (give or take a couple of weeks’ delay) but I’m not sure how long that’s going to last. I love getting e-mails from all around the world, usually saying how much you’ve enjoyed the books, and I know it means a lot to people to get a reply. Some of you write with quite specific questions which I don’t always have the time to answer (well, I’ve got to get on with the next novel!) so I’ve decided to put a few of the more typical questions in a Q&A-type page which will help me keep on top of your e-mails but will also (hopefully) answer those queries that come up more than once.
What made you start writing?
I spent a couple of years in South Africa in the early 90s working as an architect and whilst the political changes that were sweeping through the country were exciting and interesting, I felt that the emotional changes were far more compelling…and so I started writing a sort of diary at night (and on the weekends), just jotting down thoughts and things. When I returned to London to finish my training, I kept going back to the diary as a way of keeping that very special period of my life alive. One day (and this bit’s absolutely true), I came across a Time Out article – How To Write A Bestseller – and read it, cover to cover, three times over…and then some. I turned the diary into a novel, found an amazing agent and then promptly went off to America to teach architecture. To cut quite a long story short, I came back after three years, fed up to the teeth with teaching, and decided to give it another go…and that’s pretty much what happened. We sold Sundowners, my first novel, in 2004 and I haven’t looked back (or built another building) since then.
Is writing very different from architecture?
Not really, but only in the sense that it took me seven years to become an architect and thirty-odd to become a writer. All writers are readers before they become writers, or so someone famously said…and it’s true. I’m not sure the same is true about architects (all architects live in houses before they build them?) but I can tell you that the training you go through as an architect is useful for lots of things, not just buildings…it’s a bit of a cliché, but it’s true. Start at the beginning, with the foundations, and slowly build in the detail. It worked when I began Sundowners and it’s still working now. Or at least that’s what I hope.
Where do you live?
At the moment I live between Johannesburg, London and Accra – each very different but somehow, in some obscure way, they all ‘work’ together for me.
Can I buy your books in the US?
At the moment, only Saffron Skies is available in the US, although I’m told you can get all the books on amazon.ca (the Canadian site). We’re hoping that will change, though!
Will you read my work?
Sadly, the answer’s “no”. As much as I’d like to help aspiring writers out, there are only so many hours in the day and most of those are taken up by my own books, unfortunately! I always recommend The Creative Writing Course by Julia Bell and Paul Magrs, which is excellent, and the Literary Consultancy is a fantastic resource for writers who’ve already started.
Are your characters based on people you know?
I’d be lying if I said an outright “no” – but I’ve never written knowingly or directly about anyone. Most characters are an amalgamation of different people – a bit of someone here, a bit of someone else there…a patchwork, if you like. Of course, sometimes I’ll meet someone – or talk to a friend – who’ll spark my interest in a place or a situation, but by the time you’ve finished the first chapter, the characters have taken on a life of their own, no matter where they started out.
Have any of your books been made into films?
No, but I’m ever hopeful! I’ve got a long bucket list of leading men I’d like to chat to…