Welcome to Jared A. Carnie for this week’s Author Interview.
Jared A. Carnie has written ever since he was little. His writing has appeared in various zines, journals and anthologies. He won a Northern Writers Award in 2015 and his debut novel, Waves, came out in September 2016 (https://goo.gl/FBpdhS)
What are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on a new novel, which I think will be called Oranges. It’s about a young child who half runs away from home, half gets kidnapped. It’s very different in terms of language to Waves, so it’s taking me quite a bit of time. It’s written from a different sort of perspective which means each sentence has to be put together in a certain way. With Waves, it was more about the flow of the sentences. Oranges is a different kind of challenge.
What has inspired your most recent novel/writing?
Waves was inspired by two things. Firstly, the Outer Hebrides. I lived there for a couple of years and it was utterly, unimaginably beautiful. It’s also very odd and totally unique. I knew I wanted to write something that captured all the different elements of the islands.
Secondly, I noticed that everybody in my life was going through some sort of mid-life crisis, whether they were middle-aged or not. Kids who were having to think about going to university were freaking out about it, people who had come out of university were worried about choosing a career, people in relationships were worried about whether they were in the right relationships, people not in relationships were worried about never finding relationships. Everybody seemed to be thinking that whatever their circumstances now were, they would be that way forever, and as a result were suffering a kind of existential crisis. I wanted to write something about a relatively young person going through something similar. I hoped that people would either be able to relate, or think ‘he’s only young – why is he worrying so much?’ and then hopefully be able to recognise moments in their own life where they might be acting in similar ways and decide to do something about it.
How much do you think fiction intertwines with real life?
For me, fiction overlaps quite heavily with real life. Not necessarily in terms of plot, but in terms of locations, dialogue and the general feel of a piece of writing. I tend to prefer both reading and writing first-person novels. It gives me something to cling to right away. I immediately feel engaged with a human perspective on something.
Could you give five tips on how to tackle dialogue and descriptive passages?
I think the only tip I can give in terms of dialogue and description is to read your work out loud – to someone else if possible. There will be moments in your descriptions where you think you’ve hit upon something really profound and poetic, and it won’t be until you read it out loud that you realise that it’s a bit off the mark and perhaps actually comes across a little bit try-hard. I think this can work for dialogue too. If it sounds unnatural coming out of your mouth, it probably comes across as a bit forced on the page too. Of course, there are limits. You might not be able to perfectly deliver the words of your evil 40 foot space monster – but even trying to deliver the dialogue will probably give you a sense of whether it sounds like natural speech or not.
How would you describe your writing process?
I don’t have a set routine. I tend to listen to music. I have a desk in my house where I tend to sit with my laptop if I’m aiming to get a lot of writing done, but I also carry notebooks around with me to scribble down any ideas as they come.
What helps you to write/what gets in the way?
Reading things that inspire me is often the best way to get me writing. If I’m reading something particularly brilliant, it’ll make me think ‘I wish I could do that – I should really get to work.’
What are the pros & cons to indie publishing?
I discovered Urbane, who published Waves, after they put out one of my favourite novels of the decade – Billy and the Devil by Dean Lilleyman. I spoke to Matthew, the head honcho, and liked what he had to say. He said he didn’t believe in putting books in boxes – he wasn’t going to force me to change the ending of Waves to make it more conventional and cheesy. Characters weren’t going to have to fall in love for the book to make it out there. I think that’s the main advantage of indie publishing – the willingness to take risks and be creative. The indie publishers will take a punt on different ideas, then the big publishers wait to see which sell and then swoop in and try to normalise them.
The question you wished I’d asked you.
What’s it like now that you’re the biggest-selling author in the world?
How can readers find you and learn more about your writing?
You can find most of what I’ve got going on at www.jaredacarnie.com. I’m also on twitter at @jacarnie.
