I was flattered to learn that Jane Silcott had chosen to pass me the cyber-baton in the Next Big Thing. Jane’s work was recommended to me by two mutual friends whose writing I admire very much, Ramona Dearing and Eric Brown. Ramona’s collection of stories, So Beautiful, was published by the Porcupine’s Quill, and Eric’s novel, Almost Criminal was released this spring by Dundurn. Jane’s own collection of personal essays, Everything Rustles, takes its title from Sophocles… but that’s all I’m going to tell you. To find out more, you can read her own Next Big Thing blog here.
Before we even start, I’m going to confess I’ve done it wrong. I don’t have a Next Big Thing yet; my Last Big Thing was too recent. For that reason (and because other people have cheated and done it too), I’m going to talk about my Last Big Thing, which was in March.
So how it works is I answer the questions I’ve been sent, and then I tag a few other writers and send them the questions. And I’ll tell you who they are because they are people I have specially chosen, so of course they are awesome. And when they’ve got around to it, you can go and check out their answers to the question too, if you feel so inclined.
Ten Interview Questions for the Next Big Thing
1. What is the working title of your book?
My first novel came out in March 2013 and it’s called Maxine. Maxine is the name of the main character. It’s a name I’ve always liked. My school friend Karen had a sister called Maxine. You don’t hear of many young Maxines around today but I find it a good, sturdy name with a dash of intrigue.
2. Where did the idea come from for the book?
I never wanted to write a novel. What a crazy idea. I never wanted to write anything long. I wrote a story and then it was a longer story and then a bit longer again. You can guess the rest.
I remember being at the playground with my friend Diane, watching our kids. My son disappeared for a while, and I didn’t think anything of it. But he kept not reappearing in the midst of all the other kids running around. It’s hard to keep track of kids in a playground, all that colour and movement, so you don’t think about it much, you think Oh, he’ll turn up. Which he did, but it took just that bit too long. It made me think: what if he hadn’t shown up within fifteen minutes, twenty minutes, an hour, three hours? What would have happened then? That’s the opening section of the novel.
3. What genre does your book fall under?
As I keep saying when people tell me they can hear my voice when they read the book, it is a work of fiction.
But I like it that they can hear me. I hope it means the novel doesn’t sound just like everything else.
4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
I’m hopeless with movies. Audrey Tatou, if her English were good enough to make her sound like someone who grew up in St. John’s, which is unlikely. And Krystin Pellerin would make a great Gail. I think of Gail as big tall and big-boned, but Krystin is an excellent actor: I’m sure she could pull it off.
5. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
An often comic novel about fear, death, a thirtysomething woman and the boy across the road.
6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
It was published by Breakwater Books, no agent.
7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
Wayyy too long. A number of years. But I was doing other things most of the time.
8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
I wouldn’t presume to compare my book to Wayne Johnston’s The Story of Bobby O’Malley but that is a very beautiful book and I am especially in awe of the way he makes it so funny and so sad. I love the way Lisa Moore makes sentences. I love the humour in John Metcalf’s writing, and Terry Pratchett’s, and my husband Larry Mathews’.
9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?
My writing group, the Burning Rock. I’m naturally bossy but at heart I’m a follower, not a very independent thinker. I like to be part of the chain of command but not at the top of it. When they were all doing creative writing courses, I joined one. When they were writing short stories, I tried writing stories too. Then they took to novels. A girl’s gotta keep up.
10. What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
Hmm. Well I think it’s pretty funny in places. And other people have said that too, people who weren’t family and whom I didn’t pay. It’s about fear, and we’re all afraid of something. It’s about what it’s like to have really good friends, about how that relationship works. And about other relationships, with people you’d never have chosen as friends but who end up in your life all the same.
Include the link to who tagged you and this explanation for the people you have tagged.
Jane Silcott is thoughtful and articulate about the moments that make meaning in life. Elisabeth de Mariaffi is smart and sassy; Marjorie Doyle’s hilarious and trenchant, and Sam Martin is one intriguing dude.