The Joy of Meeting Women of Substance
So, last Wednesday
night I find myself in a crowded sitting room with twenty or so Women of Substance
who are just finishing off a delicious three course buffet meal made by Kate C.
who has invited me to meet this group and talk about writing in general and my novel
Becoming Alice in particular.
These evenings are
hosted by Kate as a part of her long-term project raising funds for the scanner
appeal for Bishop Auckland Hospital.
The
gathering here this evening tonight is impressive - smart women mostly in their
50s and 60s - experts in the domestic arts, I imagine. Many of them - like Kate - are
involved in charities and projects in the town, raising money and supporting
the community.
I
meet a member of the WI committee which raises funds for women’s charities. Some
women here volunteer for the Kynren Project which produces mind-blowing
spectacular outdoor performances i the town regularly through the year. Some talk of
volunteering in the unique Gallery of Mining art in the Market Place. Others volunteer
in the new spectacular viewing tower in one corner of the marketplace. Some of
them volunteer as guides in Auckland Castle Project, now being developed into a
very significant historical location, fired by the desire to reinvigorate the
town of Bishop Auckland and the wider region. I meet a
retired bank manager and justice of the peace who has very interesting stories to tell. There
are so many interesting stories here.
Writing
from life
But I’m
here tonight to tell of my own fictional stories especially the story of Becoming Alice. This is the first of three
novels in a Lifespan trilogy stretching from 1941 to the year 2000. Not
coincidentally the timespan of this trilogy is my own lifespan and also
arguably the lifespan of many of the women here.
First Thoughts
Earlier in
the week, discussing with Kate my themes for her fundraising supper, I mentioned
my theory that all of my 30 or so novels are anchored to the reality of my own
experience.
Kate said, ‘Oh
I can see that you will have many stories to tell from your life.’ This made me put
forward my theory that the novels cannot simply be a series of self-referring
anecdotes. Far from it.
The Novels
Let’s look
at locations. Many of my novels, including Becoming Alice, do feature aspects of my home region in terms of history
and a sense of place. Some of my novels - including Becoming Alice - feature London
through the decades. Then other of my novels are set in Russia, or partly in
America, or in contemporary France, or in Civil War Spain or in World War 2 Singapore.
In the span of the 20th century
many of us have become much more fundamentally citizens of the world and our
stories - published and unpublished - reflect this.
It’s
true that I have spent time in these locations and can anchor narratives in
specific places and times. However while my novels spring out of experiences in
my life, the complex process of creation (cooking?) means that the novels
cannot be said to be autobiographical.
A Writer's Skills
In
addition to her literary skills, any writer must use her skills of observation,
her unique insight into her own experience, her own perceptions, her senses her
own imagination – all grounded in her own intricate memory. In the case of
historical novelists and science-fiction novelists underlying all these aspects
has to be the ability to research, to dive into that time and that place, using
as far as possible original materials - all these things are raw material for a
novel.
The Process
In
this writer’s case it takes more than a year or so all these elements are transformed, complete with story inspiration and an ensemble characters who gradually move to centre stage. This is the process by which an 80,000
word novel is written. The process ensures that this novel is unique in itself
and substantively different to all the other novels I have written
The Inspiration
So,
talking to Kate made me think harder than usual about the
difference between personal anecdote
and an original creative story. That night I
spun up a very usual useful analogy to share these ideas with this group of
Women of Substance whose keynote is possibly domestic excellence.
The Cooking Analogy
There is a ripple
of astonished laughter in the group when I explain, in an aside, that I am not domesticated
and don’t cook. This, as I go on to explain, is perhaps compensated for by having
a daughter who is a witty writer, gifted cook and journalist and something of a domestic
goddess, although modest with it.
Back To
The Writing Of Novels.
It is worth thinking
about the nature of cooking and recipes. An apple pie for instance. We start
with a list of quite separate ingredients
either in our heads or in our cookbook: apples, flour, fat, eggs, salt-and-pepper
and herbs. Each of these is a separate element. But fat is not an apple-pie, flour
is not an apple pie et cetera et cetera. Across in fiction my experiences, perceptions,
senses et cetera are equally separate elements. They are are not stories; they
are fragments of a life.
Making An Apple Pie
The cook does
elaborate things in a certain order and then mixes the ingredients and puts
them in the oven for a specific amount of time. In this analogy these very
separate ingredients are changed by the chemical process of heat and time into
something qualitatively different from the original elements. So the pie
that emerges is distinctive unique and can suit a whole range of tastes. The
pie is not the person who put the ingredients together and cooked it - it is a separate
thing in itself. The people who eat the pie recognise it for what it is and apply
their own cultural standards to the nature of their enjoyment.
Analogy
For me this all works
quite well when one applies it to the relationship between a writer and her
novel. When the process works well the novel many be read and enjoyed by a
whole range of readers across class, cultures and tastes.
An Ending
During the session there is quite a lot of laughter and close attention.
At the end there are some very insightful questions and comments. And amazing stories. Many of these exceptional woman buy my books and incidentally contribute to Kate’s
scanner fund.
Afterwards
I am presented with beautiful yellow roses - not one but two bunches!
These
Women of Substance do nothing by halves.
LINKS
FOR YOU:
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| A New Publication on its way. Another pie cooking? |
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