This post was originally published at Novelicious.com and is now at WritingTipsOasis.com. WritingTipsOasis.com acquired Novelicious.com in June 2022.
Today's interview is with Sophie Hart. Her novel The Naughty Girls Book Club has just been released and you can read our review here.
Can you tell us a little about your average writing day?
I work part-time, so on those three days I get very little writing done. I tend to use them as a chance to have a break, as on the other days it’s pretty much non-stop! If I’m in the house, I’m never too far from my laptop. It goes on when I get up in the morning and stays on until I go to bed. I’m not very good at only writing between set hours, and on my days off the main focus of my day is writing. It’s a very indulgent way of working! Occasionally I’ll drag myself away from the computer to put some clothes in the washing machine, or do some tidying up if the house is looking a state, but I quite enjoy getting wrapped up in my writing and find it hard to leave that world.
When you are writing, do you use any famous people or people you know as inspiration?
I haven’t used actual people I know, but I’ve used the situations they’ve been in. In The Naughty Girls Book Club, Sue struggles to adjust to her retirement, and I know friends of my parents – and even my own grandparents – who’ve found it tough. Similarly, Rebecca is a newlywed whose sex life has gone off the boil since she got married, and I have friends who’ve experienced that too!
What is your favourite Women’s Fiction book of all time and why?
I love a bit of comedy, like Sophie Kinsella’s Shopaholic series, and also characters that speak to every woman. Bridget Jones’ Diary was amazing in that sense. When I first read it, I leant it to a couple of my friends – we were all very different in age, looks, personality, even nationality – but we all absolutely felt that we were Bridget. I’d forgotten just how good a character she was until I caught the film on repeat a few weeks ago. I’m very excited for the third book, but it has so much to live up to!
What is your writing process? Do you plan first or dive in? How many drafts do you do?
I’m not a big planner. With Naughty Girls, I had the main characters and the outline of the story, and it sort of structured itself as it hung around the regular book club meetings. All I needed to do was fill in the characters’ journeys in between, but that was the extent of the planning. I think it takes the fun out of it if you know everything beforehand; I like to be surprised and see what happens along the way.
What was your journey to being a published author?
I’d wanted to write for a long time, and spent a few years sporadically submitting things to agents when I felt brave enough. Eventually I did get an agent, and things happened very quickly after that. The Naughty Girls Book Club came together in a matter of months.
What do you think is the biggest myth about being a novelist?
There are two – that it’s easy, and that it’s well paid! People think you just swan around in your dressing gown (although I am in my dressing gown as I write this..!), that you only work when it suits you, and that you’ll be rewarded with JK Rowling-style millions. But it’s a hard slog, and you have deadlines to meet, which means writing even when you don’t feel like it. And when it’s a sunny bank holiday and all your friends are at the pub, for you it’s just another day and the work doesn’t stop! Having said that, I’d far rather do this for a living than anything else. Being able to create new worlds and bring them to readers is incredible!
What advice can you give to our readers who want to write a novel of their own?
Do it! Don’t think it’s going to be easy – it is for a few very lucky people, but the reason you hear about them is because they’re the exception. Also, don’t feel that you have to start at the beginning, with the perfect first sentence of the first chapter. Scribble down any ideas you have for scenes – even if it’s the end scene. Then polish that up, work around it, keep adding scenes when you find out more about the characters and eventually you’ll have a book!
What are you working on at the moment?
I’m currently working on a new book, but it’s in the very early stages at the moment. I’ve also written a short story for The Perfect Escape, which is an ebook only collection of short stories by fantastic Avon authors such as Miranda Dickinson, Anna-Lou Weatherley and Laura Ziepe. The best thing is, it’s completely free!