Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Where do you get your ideas?

Last week Michael J Malone dropped by to talk about the incident which inspired his latest McBain novel, A Taste for Malice, and it was a fascinating insight into how a single moment, quite a small and unspectacular one, the kind of thing which happens a thousand times a day, seeded itself in his mind and sparked off a train of thought which turned into a compelling crime novel.

And yet, for some reason asking writers where they get their ideas from is seen as terribly clichéd, the last resort of lazy journalists, as if it isn't at the very core of their work. 

I want to know why authors gravitate to certain subjects, I want to see where that spark comes from and why they feel compelled to pursue it to the bitter and blood soaked end. Especially with established authors who keep turning out excellent, original work or those rare writers who produce the kind of high concept books which make you smack your forehead and say 'why didn't I think of that?'

In fairness I completely understand the drive to guard your work during the process - I'm ridiculously superstitious and would never discuss a book while I'm writing it, but once it's done why not let people know about the weird conversation you overheard or the terrifying situation you found yourself at the edge of, with your writer brain already conjuring scenarios?

There's that issue of protecting sources too. Pretentious as that might sound. And it's something I've been thinking about a lot as the interviews and blog posts have started to stack up ahead of me. How much do I want to reveal? How far do I need to protect the people I've spoken to during research? 

Writers don't draw a line in the sand like journalists, there is no 'on the record' or off distinction. We hear things we know we probably shouldn't use, but when the moment arrives, and the storyline demands an action based in fact, suddenly authenticity seems more important than discretion.

The inspiration for Long Way Home partly came from a discussion I heard about a gangmaster and his business practices, and frankly I've got no problem with bringing such disgusting exploitation to light, but the discussions which followed it, as I delved deeper into the world, talking to landlords and tenants and people at the more respectable end of the agency spectrum...those people I wouldn't feel comfortable exposing.

But the truth of the matter is that's where the spark for Book Two came from - popping up unexpectedly in a conversation about something else entirely. The crime involved already interested me but I wouldn't have understood the complexities of it without some insider information and ultimately the book wouldn't have rung true.

It's really important to me that these books are authentic. I want them to reflect the fact that sixty years on from my family landing in England life hasn't got much better for immigrants, indeed in some ways it has actually got worse, with the mainstreaming of ultra rightwing ideology and the relaxation of employment laws. So while the ideas behind individual books come from various sources the original inspiration for this series is my seething sense of injustice.

Is that a good thing to be inspired by? Honestly, I don't know. It's probably not very healthy but the anger keeps me at the keyboard and the research process keeps throwing up new and terrible things to write about, which is actually quite reassuring as I think about taking the series forward.

And to the writers out there I want to say, be generous to your readers, let us see the mechanics behind the magic. We're fascinated by what you do, we want to learn from you if we can, so come on, where do you get your ideas from?

Eva Dolan


Dana King said...

It's common for writers to roll their eyes at the "where do you get your ideas' question. We know we're tripping over ideas all day; the hard part is which ideas can each of us write well?

I got a different perspective while visiting cousins on my way to Bouchercon last week. It was clear one of my cousins--who read quite a bit and has read my e-books--is fascinated by this. her tone of voice when asking implied there must be something about writers--an internal alchemy--that allows us to do what the average person can't.

She's wrong, of course; the only difference is in our willingness and ability to bring these ideas to fruition. She did make me aware of how readers look at this, and I'm going to make an effort to be far more open about where my ideas come from in the future.

John McFetridge said...

Your use of the word authentic is interesting, I think. Not everyone feels authenticity is important.

We were joking about that online yesterday, when people started asking who would win, a high school teacher in a middle-aged male wish fulfillment fantasy show or a lifetime mobster who grew up in the business and took over from his father - well, authenticity isn't an issue.

So, if you're not getting your ideas from life (even someone else's) then there may be more of a question about where you're getting them from.

Jay Stringer said...

Great post.

I think writers are often guilty of not handling the question well.

I include myself. I'll often crack jokes, in my moments of being a genuine comedy genius.*

But it's actually a good question to take seriously, on a couple of levels.

Firstly, for those of us who like to tackle social issues in the text and subtext of our work, there is clearly a lot to be said about where we're drawing that inspiration. What moves us to write the story? Where do we get our news? Every time I reach for a joke on this rather than a serious answer, I miss the chance to talk about issues that i clearly care about. I cared enough to write the book.

Secondly, more often than not these questions come either from a reader who doesn't write, or from someone who is just starting to get to grips with writing. And when I reach for the snark with these people, I'm missing the chance to engage with someone who is, essentially, asking for help. They're curious about our work and our process, and they may be looking for guidance on how they can find their own voice. But what they get so often is a smile, and a roll of the eyes, and a joke answer.

It's a key question. It's an important question. And important questions demand important answers. And maybe that makes us uncomfortable, or lazy. Maybe we on;t want to reveal too much of ourselves. But we should.

(*I might not actually be comedy genius.)

David Cranmer said...

100% agree. And another cliché question I like to ask is when did you start writing? What does your work space look like?

eva dolan said...

Dana - absolutely! in a way we're no different to people who wrangle with ideas but never bring them to the page, because we're forced to discard so many due to technical issues or, sometime i guess, confidence ones. maybe it's more a question of 'why THAT idea?'

John - yeah, once you step out of the crime genre, which is usually going to be rooted in reality, that question is hugely illuminating.

Jay - totally know what you mean. my first instinct is usually to say something flippant or stupid and i think it is about not wanting to reveal too much or seem a bit po-faced. fwiw i've really enjoyed the pieces you wrote about the social issues behind your work and felt they enhanced the reading experience. (damn, i've got serious now. *fart noise*)

David - see, they're great questions. but i am very nosy!

Jay Stringer said...

Fart noise FTW