Author Interview - John Pendleton

What is your writing process like?

I come up with a basic idea for a plot and some main characters, write the opening scene and then plan the end. What's in the middle tends to progress organically.

How do you come up with ideas for stories and characters?

Usually something that has happened in my life gives me a basic idea for a story. My characters are often an amalgam of various people I have encountered, although some are totally products of my imagination.

What do the words “writer’s block” mean to you?

Sometimes I find my plots becoming too complicated. My solution is to "sleep on" the problem. I often find the answer when I wake up in the early hours of the mornng.

What is the most challenging part of your writing process?

I enjoy developing plots, characters and ideas. What I find most challenging is knowing how much description to include of characters' personal appearances and their surroundings.

How long have you been writing, or when did you start?

I stared writing stories as a young child and when I left school I became a journalist and later a public relations oficer and newspaper editor. When I semi-retired I had a craving to write something more imaginative, so I started writing novels.

What advice would you give writers working on their first book?

Enjoy the experience of writing for its own sake. Don't become disheartened by rejections from agents and/or publishers.

How many books have you written, and which is your favorite?

I have written four novels, "Ill Winds", "All For Blood", "Hector's Revenge" and "The Men in the Marsh". My favourite is the latest, "The Men in the Marsh", because I have allowed myself to give free rein to some of my views on the world. My family's favourite is "Hector's Revenge", which they think is a really touching mystery romance.

What inspired the idea for your book?

In October 1984 I attended the UK Conservative Party's Conference at the Grand Hotel, Brighton. I left the hotel just a few minutes before an IRA bomb exploded in a bid to assassinate Primte Minister Margaret Thatcher and members of her Cabinet. This gave me the idea for the start of my novel and its subsequent plot;.

What do you need in your writing space to help you stay focused?

Strangely, I like to write on my laptop while sitting on a comfortable sofa in our living room with the television on. The competition from the TV makes me concentrate and stops my mind from wandering.

John Pendleton

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