Jonathan Coe

The author of What a Carve Up! and The Rotters' Club still wonders why his eight-year-old self wrote spy stories instead of playing outside on his bike
'I've just discovered Spider Solitaire' Photograph: Geoff Wilkinson/ Rex Features

What was your favourite book as a child?

The Jennings books by Anthony Buckeridge. I still like them, actually. The real essence of comedy is in there, along with a lovely generosity of spirit. They're set in a posh prep school for boys. It was nothing like my primary school but that didn't bother me at all when I read them. In fact I never noticed it. They made me want to be in that school in the same way that watching Porridge made me want to go to prison.


No, not many. My Dad read Harold Robbins and Arthur Hailey, and my Mum read Agatha Christie and Miss Read. Like many households, we had a complete set of Dickens which was never opened. When I was a teenager I had my own bookshelf but it was full of TV spin-off books - Monty Python, The Goodies, Spike Milligan and so on. Apart from the Dickens I don't remember there being any serious literature in the house at all, ever.

Was there someone who got you interested in reading or writing?

Yes, my grandfather. He introduced me to Sherlock Holmes (who I loved) and PG Wodehouse (who I didn't). He had eclectic tastes and would take a punt on a novel when he was down at the local library. I remember him getting out JL Carr's How Steeple Sinderby Wanderers Won the FA Cup, and lending it to me. It was the first real conversation I'd ever had about a modern novel.

What made you want to write when you were starting out?

You'd have to put my eight-year-old self on the couch to work that one out. I began by imitating the comics I was reading and writing spy stories (under the influence of James Bond and - of all things - Jason King, that camp TV show), but I'm baffled even now by why I chose to sit inside doing that when I could have been outside playing football or riding my bike. It's very odd behaviour, almost pathological.

What makes you want to write now?

Force of habit, financial necessity and lack of talent in other areas.

What preparation do you do before writing?

Nothing special. Get dressed, have breakfast, clean my teeth, that sort of thing.

Do you have a daily routine when you are writing?

No, I'm very undisciplined. I stare at the computer until I get bored, which takes about five minutes. Then, if I'm feeling energetic, I'll get up and make a cup of coffee, or, if I'm feeling lazy, I'll start randomly messing around on the internet or playing card games on screen. I've just discovered Spider Solitaire and can sense a whole new world of distraction opening up for me.


I love it. How do I survive being surrounded by other people the rest of the time? That's the more difficult question.

What was the best piece of advice given to you?

Many years ago Beryl Bainbridge told me that I shouldn't be reviewing fiction for the newspapers because she felt there was something wrong about passing public judgment on your fellow writers' work. I ignored her for about five years and then realised I agreed with her. So now I keep my opinions to myself (and reviews, after all, are just opinions) unless I am wildly enthusiastic about something and think I can give it a helping hand.

What advice would you give to new writers?

None - it would be presumptuous, wouldn't it? Every writer is different and writes for their own different reasons. Most writers, young and old, are very self-contained people who don't need advice from me or anyone else.

Is there a secret to writing?


What are you working on now?

I'm doing a musical collaboration for the stage with Sean O'Hagan of the High Llamas. And a new novel. I'm trying to make this one funny because my last one was very gloomy and that seemed to disappoint some of my readers. I don't like disappointing people, if I can help it.

· The Rain Before it Falls by Jonathan Coe is published in paperback by Penguin.