Tuesday, 20 December 2011
More publication news
Monday, 19 December 2011
End of Year Round-ups
I'm incredibly happy that Before I Go to Sleep has been mentioned in lots of the 'books for Christmas' and 'books of the year' lists that invariably pop up around this time of year. In particular, it's been featured in The Independent, the Sunday Express, The Sunday Times, The Observer and Amazon's lists.
What's also particularly nice for me is when writers choose it as a recommended read. Howard Blum has chosen the book in this list, and Lee Child has given it a fantastic mention in the Wall Street Journal.
Truly I am honoured and delighted!
Now, to get back to Christmas shopping...
What's also particularly nice for me is when writers choose it as a recommended read. Howard Blum has chosen the book in this list, and Lee Child has given it a fantastic mention in the Wall Street Journal.
Truly I am honoured and delighted!
Now, to get back to Christmas shopping...
Wednesday, 7 December 2011
Birmingham Big City Read
I'll be in Birmingham today (December 7th) to help launch an exciting project! Before I Go to Sleep has been chosen as the Birmingham Big City Read!
From now until February 2012, Birmingham Libraries are setting free 1,000 copies of the book for people to read, review and pass on to a friend.
Take a look here on "Reading Groups for Everyone" - where readers, reading groups and book clubs can be part of the project by posting their reviews of the book. They've put together lots of information, which will hopefully inspire you to get reading and to get reviewing.
Tuesday, 6 December 2011
Some photos
Actually it was much less painful than I might have imagined, thanks mostly to the great team who were filming me. I used to hate having my photo taken, and liked being on 'video' (does anyone still call it that?) even less. So this is a photo I never dreamt I'd see...
And then here's me in Hampstead Waterstones with Decca Aitkenhead. We did an interview together in front of a small audience of Grazia readers, for their book club. It was a huge amount of fun.
So that's (some of) what I've been up to...
Tuesday, 29 November 2011
An interesting comment
So, someone has just posted this comment on the blog. Anonymously, of course. I'm really intrigued by this point of view.
"Anonymous said...
"Anonymous said...
The content of the book is sexist, homophobic, ableist and racist.
To you and whoever is like you goes the following.
YOU'RE SWINE!!! I WISH YOU'D DIE!!!
ANY REPLY TO THIS COMMENT WILL BE SYSTEMATICALLY DELETED AND IGNORED."
To you and whoever is like you goes the following.
YOU'RE SWINE!!! I WISH YOU'D DIE!!!
ANY REPLY TO THIS COMMENT WILL BE SYSTEMATICALLY DELETED AND IGNORED."
Friday, 25 November 2011
Crossing Border and Polari
So, it's been a busy time lately. Things are gearing up for the UK publication of Before I Go to Sleep (or #B4IGTS, as we've christened it for the purposes of Twitter. BIGTS looked a little bit too much like BIGOTS for comfort, and "B4" has a nice, hip, urban feel, doesn't it? It almost feels like it could be a Prince song, now...) which is set for January 5th, 2012. I've not had to do that much, to be honest, but I know Transworld have been very busy - making sure that the book looks stunning (it will!) and everything is set for release. I can't say too much (anything, in fact), but there are exciting things on the horizon.
What else? I did an event for Grazia in Hampstead, at the Waterstones there. I really enjoyed it, and got to meet, and be interviewed by, Decca Aitkenhead, who was fantastic. It was a lovely audience, too, and we got to chatting about the book, about my writing tips (which seemed to boil down to 'Write badly if necessary, every day') and how I'd come to the concept of Before I Go to Sleep. Afterwards, in the pub, I learned all about TOWIE, which I hadn't realised existed...
Then, last weekend, I was at Crossing Border in Den Haag (Saturday) and Antwerp (Sunday). Such a great festival - a really eclectic mix of music, and it was lovely that the authors were sharing the same stage as the musicians, rather than being in a different venue, as seems to happen at some festivals that purport to mix music and literature. It was a busy time for me, but thoroughly enjoyable. Amongst others, I caught Gavin Friday's set, and also Low Anthem, and I particularly enjoyed sitting at the back of the bus that took us all from Holland to Belgium with the musicians, listening to them talking about snare sounds and drugs.
Listening to people talk about drugs. How rock and roll am I?
Anyway, no sooner was I back from Crossing Border than it was time for Polari. I was particularly looking forward to this as it was the fourth birthday, and also the announcement of the winner of the Polari Prize. Another great evening, with a fantastic, enthusiastic crowd, and I was blown away by the other writers and performers, in particular Neil Alexander's poetry and Karen Mcleod who read a hilarious story about falling in, and then out of, love with Julie Andrews.
What else? I did an event for Grazia in Hampstead, at the Waterstones there. I really enjoyed it, and got to meet, and be interviewed by, Decca Aitkenhead, who was fantastic. It was a lovely audience, too, and we got to chatting about the book, about my writing tips (which seemed to boil down to 'Write badly if necessary, every day') and how I'd come to the concept of Before I Go to Sleep. Afterwards, in the pub, I learned all about TOWIE, which I hadn't realised existed...
Then, last weekend, I was at Crossing Border in Den Haag (Saturday) and Antwerp (Sunday). Such a great festival - a really eclectic mix of music, and it was lovely that the authors were sharing the same stage as the musicians, rather than being in a different venue, as seems to happen at some festivals that purport to mix music and literature. It was a busy time for me, but thoroughly enjoyable. Amongst others, I caught Gavin Friday's set, and also Low Anthem, and I particularly enjoyed sitting at the back of the bus that took us all from Holland to Belgium with the musicians, listening to them talking about snare sounds and drugs.
Listening to people talk about drugs. How rock and roll am I?
Anyway, no sooner was I back from Crossing Border than it was time for Polari. I was particularly looking forward to this as it was the fourth birthday, and also the announcement of the winner of the Polari Prize. Another great evening, with a fantastic, enthusiastic crowd, and I was blown away by the other writers and performers, in particular Neil Alexander's poetry and Karen Mcleod who read a hilarious story about falling in, and then out of, love with Julie Andrews.
Sunday, 20 November 2011
Book, anyone?
So now it's off to Antwerp, for Crossing Border part 2. I'll be onstage at 20.45...
More soon.
Thursday, 17 November 2011
The Mystery of the Missing Twenty Novels
The author is writing his blog when the phone rings. He doesn't mind the interruption - plus it's an international number - so he answers it.
'Hello?'
'Mr Watson?' A woman's voice. American. He doesn't recognise it.
'Yes?'
The caller introduces herself. It's a journalist, the one who interviewed him over the phone a few days ago. She explains she just wants to check a few facts.
Fact checking. He's heard of this. In an increasingly litigious country it's become ubiquitous. He imagines she's written her piece and now, before it goes to the printers, she wants to make sure there's nothing in it that might cause him to want to sue her. Not that he'd do that anyway, he thinks, but she has to do what she has to do.
'OK,' he says.
She clears her throat; clearly she has a list. 'Right. You're thirty-nine?'
'I'm forty,' he says.
'You were born in London?'
'I was born in the West Midlands. I live in London.'
'OK. You wrote Before I Go to Sleep after going part time in your job?'
'I did.'
'You worked for the National Health Service?'
'Yes,' he says. 'Technically I still do. But yes, that's right.'
'Good. You didn't realise the book was a thriller at first?'
'I suppose not,' he says. 'I just wrote the book I wanted to write and it wasn't until someone else read it and pointed it out to me that I realised that I'd written a thriller.'
'OK. And it's the first novel you've had published.'
'Yes.'
'But you've written all your life?'
He thinks back to the original interview. He remembers telling her how he used to smuggle books under the bedclothes, along with a torch, and he can't remember a time when he didn't want to write them. He'd explained how he'd dabbled in science fiction and fantasy as a child and even tried poetry as a teenager, 'Though thinly disguised as song lyrics,' he'd said. 'I wanted to be a rock star.' He remembers telling her he'd started novels in the past, but Before I Go to Sleep was the first he'd finished and been totally happy with.
He smiles, and says, 'Yes. Yes I have.'
'Any you told me you'd started novels before, but in the past you've always given up?'
'Yes...'
'So, how many novels have you written before?'
'Well,' he says. 'A few. But none that I've finished. Or none that I've been happy with, at least. Certainly none that I'd show anybody else. So Before I Go to Sleep is my first novel.'
'But how many have you started, before this one?'
He begins to get nervous. 'Well, I can't really put a number to it. With some I got a fair way in, but with others I didn't write much more than the title and a few hundred words, or maybe a couple of thousand. You can't really call those novels...'
'So, how many, would you say? Five?'
'No, probably more than that...'
'OK. Ten?'
'No, I'd say maybe more. But don't forget that with most of them I didn't get any further than--'
'Fifty?'
'No. Less'
'Twenty?'
He can hear she's getting exasperated. He doesn't want that - he'd really enjoyed talking to her during the interview and she'd liked his book and said some flattering things. He wants her to be happy. He wants to give her what she needs.
'OK,' he says. 'Twenty. About twenty.'
She asks a few more questions, then they talk for a while. She says she'll write the piece up, and it'll go in the newspaper soon. They say goodbye, and a few days later it's there. The interview, in the Wall Street Journal. And in it, the journalist has written that the author has started 'roughly' twenty other novels before the one he got published. In black and white it looks a little bit too concrete, as if Before I Go to Sleep is his twenty-first novel, and he has twenty manuscripts mouldering in a bottom drawer somewhere. He wishes he'd resisted the urge to give her a number. Perhaps he should just have said 'A few', and made sure she understood that most of them were only a few lines here and there, or a character sketch, or even just a title, and it's misleading to refer to them as novels.
But it doesn't matter, he thinks. And it doesn't, really, except that now other journalists have read that interview, and they've quoted it, and quietly dropped the word 'roughly'. And he doesn't want to sound like he's complaining, because it's lovely that people are even interested in what he's written before, and the interview was in The Wall St Journal, for goodness sake, and it was great, and the journalist was amazing and made the interview experience an absolute joy. But everywhere he goes people are asking if Before I Go to Sleep is his twenty-first novel. And it isn't. It's his first, and all the other writing he's done was just him serving his apprenticeship, and he wishes there was a way he could make that clear.
So he decides to write about it in his blog.
'Hello?'
'Mr Watson?' A woman's voice. American. He doesn't recognise it.
'Yes?'
The caller introduces herself. It's a journalist, the one who interviewed him over the phone a few days ago. She explains she just wants to check a few facts.
Fact checking. He's heard of this. In an increasingly litigious country it's become ubiquitous. He imagines she's written her piece and now, before it goes to the printers, she wants to make sure there's nothing in it that might cause him to want to sue her. Not that he'd do that anyway, he thinks, but she has to do what she has to do.
'OK,' he says.
She clears her throat; clearly she has a list. 'Right. You're thirty-nine?'
'I'm forty,' he says.
'You were born in London?'
'I was born in the West Midlands. I live in London.'
'OK. You wrote Before I Go to Sleep after going part time in your job?'
'I did.'
'You worked for the National Health Service?'
'Yes,' he says. 'Technically I still do. But yes, that's right.'
'Good. You didn't realise the book was a thriller at first?'
'I suppose not,' he says. 'I just wrote the book I wanted to write and it wasn't until someone else read it and pointed it out to me that I realised that I'd written a thriller.'
'OK. And it's the first novel you've had published.'
'Yes.'
'But you've written all your life?'
He thinks back to the original interview. He remembers telling her how he used to smuggle books under the bedclothes, along with a torch, and he can't remember a time when he didn't want to write them. He'd explained how he'd dabbled in science fiction and fantasy as a child and even tried poetry as a teenager, 'Though thinly disguised as song lyrics,' he'd said. 'I wanted to be a rock star.' He remembers telling her he'd started novels in the past, but Before I Go to Sleep was the first he'd finished and been totally happy with.
He smiles, and says, 'Yes. Yes I have.'
'Any you told me you'd started novels before, but in the past you've always given up?'
'Yes...'
'So, how many novels have you written before?'
'Well,' he says. 'A few. But none that I've finished. Or none that I've been happy with, at least. Certainly none that I'd show anybody else. So Before I Go to Sleep is my first novel.'
'But how many have you started, before this one?'
He begins to get nervous. 'Well, I can't really put a number to it. With some I got a fair way in, but with others I didn't write much more than the title and a few hundred words, or maybe a couple of thousand. You can't really call those novels...'
'So, how many, would you say? Five?'
'No, probably more than that...'
'OK. Ten?'
'No, I'd say maybe more. But don't forget that with most of them I didn't get any further than--'
'Fifty?'
'No. Less'
'Twenty?'
He can hear she's getting exasperated. He doesn't want that - he'd really enjoyed talking to her during the interview and she'd liked his book and said some flattering things. He wants her to be happy. He wants to give her what she needs.
'OK,' he says. 'Twenty. About twenty.'
She asks a few more questions, then they talk for a while. She says she'll write the piece up, and it'll go in the newspaper soon. They say goodbye, and a few days later it's there. The interview, in the Wall Street Journal. And in it, the journalist has written that the author has started 'roughly' twenty other novels before the one he got published. In black and white it looks a little bit too concrete, as if Before I Go to Sleep is his twenty-first novel, and he has twenty manuscripts mouldering in a bottom drawer somewhere. He wishes he'd resisted the urge to give her a number. Perhaps he should just have said 'A few', and made sure she understood that most of them were only a few lines here and there, or a character sketch, or even just a title, and it's misleading to refer to them as novels.
But it doesn't matter, he thinks. And it doesn't, really, except that now other journalists have read that interview, and they've quoted it, and quietly dropped the word 'roughly'. And he doesn't want to sound like he's complaining, because it's lovely that people are even interested in what he's written before, and the interview was in The Wall St Journal, for goodness sake, and it was great, and the journalist was amazing and made the interview experience an absolute joy. But everywhere he goes people are asking if Before I Go to Sleep is his twenty-first novel. And it isn't. It's his first, and all the other writing he's done was just him serving his apprenticeship, and he wishes there was a way he could make that clear.
So he decides to write about it in his blog.
Wednesday, 9 November 2011
Last week - Dangerous Women, Throwing Muses, National Book Awards
Well, what a week! On Tuesday I had a fantastic time helping my wonderful agent launch the book she's co-written, Dangerous Women: The Guide to Modern Life. It's a really brilliant book, full of great advice to help people live as well as they dare (and, really, who would want to live any other way?). My contribution towards launching the book was mostly in assisting in the drinking of champagne, eating of canapés (and the most delicious chocolate cake) and chatting to wonderful and fascinating people, but I think I carried out my end of the bargain fully (at least, the sore head I had on Wednesday would suggest I did).
I recovered enough, though, to go and see Throwing Muses. This was a personal highlight for me - I've been a fan of the band since their 1989 album, Hunkpapa - and have followed singer/songwriter/guitarist Kristin Hersh's career (both musical, and literary) ever since. The Muses never really broke up, but they ran out of money (Hersh has never been one to compromise in order to fit into the music industry's idea of what might sell records, and her thoughts on sustainability of music in the current climate make interesting reading) and so recording and touring have been intermittent. This was the first time I've seen them, therefore, since 2003, and it was a fantastic show, a world away from XFactor (which, this year, I have totally avoided and feel all the better for doing so). Anyone interested could do worse than look here, where they will also find information about Hersh's other band (and the only band I love more than Throwing Muses), 50FootWave. Incidentally, by clicking that last link, you can download everything 50FootWave have ever recorded, for free, and with their blessing. I told you Hersh's thoughts on sustainability were interesting...Then, on Friday, it was the Galaxy National Book Awards. Before I Go to Sleep had been nominated for three (best debut, along with Stephen Kelman's Pigeon English and A.D. Miller's Snowdrops, both of which were Booker Shortlisted, best Audiobook, and best Crime and Thriller Novel, alongside Martina Cole, Ian Rankin, Val McDermid, Robert Harris and C J Sansom). I wasn't really sure what to expect and was delighted to have even been shortlisted with such amazing writers and fantastic novels. It was a lavish ceremony and I got the chance to catch up with some people, and to say hello to some new people (in particular it was great to meet Emma Donoghue, whose novel, Room, I loved, but there were lots of other people I met too), and to my very great surprise and delight Before I Go to Sleep won the best Crime/Thriller Novel!
That's how surreal a night it was...
So that's that! Quite a week! It's really been amazing to see how well the book has gone down - when I wrote it I hoped I might find a publisher, but I never dreamt I'd be looking at photos like these - and it's truly wonderful that people are enjoying the book. Thank you.
Monday, 31 October 2011
Monday, 24 October 2011
Tuesday, 18 October 2011
The Korean Jacket
This is what Before I Go to Sleep will look like in Korea! I took delivery today, and think it looks splendid. What do you think?
Sunday, 16 October 2011
The Daggers!
Here you can see me, clutching the award, and shaking hands with Peter James (who is the new chair of the Crime Writer's Association and had himself just been awarded the People's Bestseller Dagger), and in the photo below I'm being filmed discussing the book itself. It was a great night and I'm so thrilled to have won the award!
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
Voewood and Australia
Well, September was quite a hectic month (which is why I haven't been keeping on top of this blog, I suppose). I shall try and summarise here... It all kicked off at the end of August with The Voewood Festival...
I don't think anyone was really sure what to expect with the inaugural Voewood Festival. It had been billed as the 'literary garden party of the year', and it promised a truly stunning array of writers, poets, artists and musicians, plus the magnificent Voewood House. I arrived on the Friday evening to find preparations in full swing and the house itself chock-full of fascinating people, some of whom I'd met before but most of whom I hadn't. We were all keeping our fingers crossed that the sun would shine on the festival (August bank holiday sunshine being far from guaranteed) and as it happens it did - we woke on the Saturday to a glorious day. The festival itself was incredible - high points for me were Diana Athill, Luke Haines and DBC Pierre's Masterclass on 'how to write a book without dying'. I got to deliver a Guardian Masterclass of my own and was uncharacteristically nervous as not only was there a Radio 4 journalist sitting in the audience, but my mother and mother-in-law were also sitting there taking notes. Still, I deconstructed Before I Go to Sleep and tried to give some pointers for the aspiring writers in the audience, and I hope it was useful, or entertaining at least.
I also discussed thriller fiction with the wonderful Rowan Pelling and equally wonderful Sophie Hannah. Sophie has been such a great supporter of Before I Go to Sleep - I think she was one of the first people to read the book and her (genuine, I have to say) enthusiasm for it has been incredible - and it's been a true pleasure and honour to get to know her a little this year (we've now done four events together, I think, though at one of them we didn't actually meet. So make it three...). I was also lucky enough to catch Beth Orton's blissfully relaxing set, though I missed both Adam Ant and David McAlmont as I had to scoot off to pack for...
Australia!
I was lucky enough to be invited to both the Melbourne and Brisbane Writer's Festivals, so I spent the first three weeks of September (actually more like two and a half weeks, once one factors in the inevitable jetlag) in Australia. I'd been to Brisbane before, though that was years ago and on a holiday, but Melbourne was totally new to me and, I have to say, seemed wonderful. I did a couple of events (one of which was with Jennifer Mills whose book, "Gone" I highly recommend), a couple of interviews and signed a few books, and also got to meet the team at Text (who publish Before I Go to Sleep in Australia and New Zealand). On my afternoon off I explored some of the city and found a cow up a tree. Not a real cow, obviously, but the picture's below...
From Melbourne I went to Brisbane, staying first in a 'Writer's Retreat' (where I probably ate far too much and exercised far too little, hence the 'extra mass' pictured right) before the festival itself began. The Brisbane Writer's Festival was another amazing event, with yet another stellar line-up and I was incredibly impressed not only at the variety and calibre of authors who were speaking over the few days, but also how well organised the whole things was. Everyone was in the right place at the right time and it all went very smoothly. I taught another class, this time on the subject of "preparing for publishing success" (my first piece of advice raised a few smiles - the most important thing to do, I said, if you want to get a novel published, is to write a really really good book. Believe it or not, people sometimes do forget that bit...) and I did some panel events with, amongst others, Max Barry, Christopher Currie, Kate Morton, and Nick Earls (who read a very funny story about Tim Tams which I couldn't possibly repeat, either here or anywhere else). I also met the brilliant Anna Funder, whose non-fiction book, Stasiland, kept me captivated for much of the trip.
From there it was onto Sydney for the final leg of the trip. This was mostly holiday, so I looked around the city, including the Opera House of course, and relaxed. I did an event in a library, and then the final event of the trip was in Shearers Bookstore, where again I was bowled over by everyone's enthusiasm for Before I Go to Sleep. I signed a few copies and then had the pleasure of seeing my name immortalised on the Shearer's sign (see below). It was an amazing, if all too brief, trip, and then it was time to get the plane home...
Monday, 12 September 2011
Just to set the record straight...
I recently read this comment regarding Before I Go to Sleep....
For example, I'm currently reading "Before I Go To Sleep" by S J Watson - the book is definitely a page turner and has an exciting and original story, BUT - this book is set in London, England. The characters are English yet the main character, Christine (who has lost over 20 years of her memories, I may add, so isn't influenced by US TV etc) constantly uses very American words and phrases that us Brits never use such as "peanut butter and jelly sandwich", "cell phone" , "candy" , "panties" , "closet" amongst many others. It just really irritates me that better research wasn't carried out and it wasn't edited well enough as other than this I would give this book 5 stars easily.
And the worst thing is - the author is English!
It's not the first comment I've received with the same complaint, so I thought I'd just clarify things for those that are upset or disappointed by the vocabulary in the book. There are two English language versions of Before I Go to Sleep - one which is available in the UK, Australia and New Zealand, and one which is available in the US and Canada.
In one version the book has diapers, sidewalks, closets, peanut butter and jelly and cell phones etc., and in the other it has nappies, pavements, wardrobes, and mobile phones. I can't remember what replaces peanut butter and jelly, I'm afraid, but it's probably something involving jam. Otherwise the versions are exactly the same - there are no differences in plot, character or anything else.
The decision to make these changes was taken in conjunction with my US editor. My understanding is that it happens frequently in order to make books more understandable to a US audience - whether it is necessary or right to do that isn't something I want to comment on, other than to say I have been asked whether I think these changes "compromise my writing" and the answer is : no, I don't. The changes result from a trade-off between authenticity and readability for US and Canadian audiences - and I hope we have the balance right.
For example, I'm currently reading "Before I Go To Sleep" by S J Watson - the book is definitely a page turner and has an exciting and original story, BUT - this book is set in London, England. The characters are English yet the main character, Christine (who has lost over 20 years of her memories, I may add, so isn't influenced by US TV etc) constantly uses very American words and phrases that us Brits never use such as "peanut butter and jelly sandwich", "cell phone" , "candy" , "panties" , "closet" amongst many others. It just really irritates me that better research wasn't carried out and it wasn't edited well enough as other than this I would give this book 5 stars easily.
And the worst thing is - the author is English!
It's not the first comment I've received with the same complaint, so I thought I'd just clarify things for those that are upset or disappointed by the vocabulary in the book. There are two English language versions of Before I Go to Sleep - one which is available in the UK, Australia and New Zealand, and one which is available in the US and Canada.
In one version the book has diapers, sidewalks, closets, peanut butter and jelly and cell phones etc., and in the other it has nappies, pavements, wardrobes, and mobile phones. I can't remember what replaces peanut butter and jelly, I'm afraid, but it's probably something involving jam. Otherwise the versions are exactly the same - there are no differences in plot, character or anything else.
The decision to make these changes was taken in conjunction with my US editor. My understanding is that it happens frequently in order to make books more understandable to a US audience - whether it is necessary or right to do that isn't something I want to comment on, other than to say I have been asked whether I think these changes "compromise my writing" and the answer is : no, I don't. The changes result from a trade-off between authenticity and readability for US and Canadian audiences - and I hope we have the balance right.
Thursday, 25 August 2011
GERMAN PUBLICATION DATE!
BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP is out in Germany today! It's called ICH. DARF. NICHT. SCHLAFEN!
Thursday, 4 August 2011
NEW EVENTS!
Lots more new events have been announced, including the inaugural Voewood Festival in Norfolk, UK, and the Brisbane Writers Festival.
Details here!
Details here!
Friday, 22 July 2011
New York Times and a quick update
Wow! Before I Go to Sleep has hit number seven on The New York Times bestseller list! It's also gone up to seven in The Globe and Mail's list in Canada and is back at number nine in The Sunday Times here in the UK. It's also doing really well in France, and the Netherlands, which is wonderful. To say this is a dream come true is the most massive understatement imaginable! I'm so happy and so grateful to everyone who has bought and supported and recommended the book. Thank you.
I spent yesterday on the road with the wonderful and utterly delightful Tess Gerritsen. We did a couple of events together, in Bolton and then in Nottingham, and it was truly an honour for me to be sharing the stage with her. It was also fantastic to meet some of the people who have bought and enjoyed my book - as well as those who have decided to take a chance on it, so thank you to all those who came to say hello or to get their book signed.
Today, it's off to Harrogate for the crime writing festival. I can't wait!
I spent yesterday on the road with the wonderful and utterly delightful Tess Gerritsen. We did a couple of events together, in Bolton and then in Nottingham, and it was truly an honour for me to be sharing the stage with her. It was also fantastic to meet some of the people who have bought and enjoyed my book - as well as those who have decided to take a chance on it, so thank you to all those who came to say hello or to get their book signed.
Today, it's off to Harrogate for the crime writing festival. I can't wait!
Wednesday, 20 July 2011
UK events....
After a teaser in Cambridge last night, my UK events kick off tomorrow! I'm very excited, my bag is packed (overpacked, some might say - I took less for 10 days in the US) and I'm all set to go. Tomorrow I get to meet Tess Gerritsen again (I met her very briefly last year, when she was '50 pages' into Before I Go to Sleep and told me she was 'really having fun with it' which was of course a wonderful thing to hear) and do a couple of events with her (in BOLTON and then NOTTINGHAM). Then on Friday I'm off up to HARROGATE for the Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, where, on Saturday, I will be appearing on the 'New Blood' panel. Full details on my website, here.
Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Tuesday, 5 July 2011
The Greek Jacket!
Before I Go to Sleep has been published in Greece, where it'd called "Amnesia" and looks like this. I think it's another splendid image - I've said it before but I'm delighted with all the jackets that the book has around the world. I'm pretty happy with the way my name looks in Greek, too. At least I presume that's my name...
Monday, 4 July 2011
The North American Tour - Part 2
A friend had sent me a message during my talk at the ALA conference. "I love the caricature of you in the Sunday Times" it said. I knew nothing of any caricature, and so slightly perturbed, I asked if I could see it, and a few days later I was sent this. I think it's pretty good, really - they've captured my likeness well, though I would never wear a Hawaiian shirt...
Anyway, back to the tour. The day after the event at the ALA conference didn't get off to a great start. It was a travel day, mostly, but I'd had some radio interviews arranged for the morning before the flight. Slightly worse for wear (having sampled some of the delights that New Orleans' nightlife has to offer the previous evening) and armed with a sheet of paper filled with phone numbers, I sat down to make the first call.
I couldn't get through. There was an odd beeping sound on the other end of the line. Panicked, I held out the receiver to the person who was delivering my breakfast (I normally don't order room service, but when you have a call to make at 6.45am and then no break until your flight at 2 needs must). 'What does this mean?' I said. She looked at me blankly. 'This sound! What does it mean?' She listened and then very politely, said it meant the line was busy.
I called Donna, the brilliant PR person who'd been given the unenviable task of shepherding this Englishman on his first 'phone' tour. 'Which number did you call?' she said. 'The first one.' There was a pause, then she said, 'You were supposed to call that one an hour ago...'
It turns out my sheet was in Eastern Time and I wasn't. 'Don't worry,' said Donna, aware that I was about to burst into tears. I explained that I was English, and we're not used to having more than one time zone in the same country, and even though I knew that that was the case in the US it'd never crossed my mind that I might have to correct the time myself. She laughed. 'This happens,' she said. 'It's fine.'
And it was. She rescheduled the interviews I'd missed through being stupid and asleep, and the rest of the calls went without a hitch (more or less...). And then I flew to...
Miami
I've never been to Miami before, and I wasn't really sure what to expect. The hotel was lovely, though (good job, as I was to spend most of my time sitting in it, on the phone to radio presenters around the country) and the city itself felt very welcoming. On the first night went to Books and Books, which is a great store in Coral Gables, where I read some of Before I Go to Sleep and answered some questions from the audience. Then it was a day of interviews before another very enjoyable event in Murder on the Beach in Delray Beach. This time I didn't read from the book, but instead talked about some of the ideas in it. Once again I was struck by how interested and engaged everyone seemed, and I had a great time. 
Then it was off to South Beach, where I had a few more radio interviews to do before spending a couple of days relaxing before the flight home.
It was a great tour, all in all. Busy, but exciting, and it was wonderful to meet people who'd read the book or were interested in doing so. I hope to meet many more over the next few months!
Saturday, 2 July 2011
The North American Tour - Part 1
I'm just back from my first ever book tour! I'd hoped to blog while 'on the road' - and had even taken my computer to do so - but sadly it was not to be. I've been warned that being on a tour is a little like being in a surreal bubble, but hadn't really understood what that meant. I even intended to write while I was out there, thinking working might keep me grounded, but that also was not to be. I've been going from hotel to bookstore to event to hotel to plane, and around that I've tried to fit in doing my laundry and also seeing something of the wonderful cities I've been staying in. Even when I've had a moment it's felt as though my head has just not been in the right place for anything at all creative. I'll try and recall some highlights, though.
Toronto
I've always wanted to go to Canada. I have family there, and know a few people who are from or have lived there. So I was particularly excited to be kicking off the promotion of Before I Go to Sleep in that city. After a long flight (during which I watched the film of 'Never Let Me Go' and was mightily impressed) it was straight into a lunch and interview with the National Post (read the results here). I even liked the photo of me they managed to take - you'd never guess I was just off a plane from Heathrow (would you?). An hour or so to explore the city before a long dinner with the HarperCollins team, many of whom I'd been contacting on Twitter and all of whom were wonderful and engaging company. The following day I did my event a the Harbourfront - my first public reading! I think it went okay - I had some wonderful support and advice from my fellow speakers - Andrew Pyper and Robert Rotenberg and friends and family were in the audience. Then it was time to leave Toronto...
Houston
I didn't know anything about Houston. What I discovered on landing is that it is vast. Huge. And there is literally NO way of getting round it without transport. It's hot, too, so I spent my time there scurrying from one air conditioned place to another. I saw a lot of the city (from the inside of a car, admittedly) during an afternoon of stock signing, and still can't get over how big it is. My event, held at Murder by the Book, was well attended, though, and the audience were engaging and asked interesting questions. Such a great shop, too, with amazingly friendly and welcoming staff. I always love the passion I see in people that work in bookstores (I was going to write 'independent bookstores' there, but I saw it in those working in the chains as well) - it's fantastic to spend time with people that really care about books.
From Houston it was on to...
New Orleans
Unlike Houston, I did have an idea of what New Orleans was like. I wasn't prepared for the heat, but visually it did match up to my expectations pretty well. I'd been instructed to head straight to Cafe du Monde for beignets, so that's what I did, and I wasn't disappointed, though I think I prefer UK doughnuts and/or the deep fried churro's one gets in Spain. Beignets seemed to be a kind of cross between the two.
I really enjoyed my event at the American Library Association conference. The conference centre was vast (so big that it had been used to house families made homeless by hurricane Katrina) - so big in fact that I 'popped' to the restroom before my event and almost got totally lost. I was on a panel discussing Mystery and Horror in the library. I spoke a little about how the book came to be written, and some of the ideas behind it, and I think people were interested (though am rather ashamed to admit I ran over time by a factor of about 100 per cent - I have no watch at the moment so just wasn't aware of how long I'd been speaking). It was really nice to meet some of the people who'd enjoyed the book afterwards as well, or just heard of it, and in particular I met one really nice woman who confessed that she was my first 'super fan' and asked, ever so politely, if she could have her photo taken with me. That was very nice, though I hope the photo came out well (I so rarely like photos of myself...).
From there it was down to a signing at the HarperCollins stand and I met a whole load more people, all of whom were charming (well, most, but let's not spoil things by dwelling on rude people) and off to another signing in a bookstore (less well attended, but I understand that every author on tour has to have at least one event with only a handful of attendees). A wonderful meal in Mister B's followed and then the next day it was on to Florida, which I'll save for part 2...
Toronto
I've always wanted to go to Canada. I have family there, and know a few people who are from or have lived there. So I was particularly excited to be kicking off the promotion of Before I Go to Sleep in that city. After a long flight (during which I watched the film of 'Never Let Me Go' and was mightily impressed) it was straight into a lunch and interview with the National Post (read the results here). I even liked the photo of me they managed to take - you'd never guess I was just off a plane from Heathrow (would you?). An hour or so to explore the city before a long dinner with the HarperCollins team, many of whom I'd been contacting on Twitter and all of whom were wonderful and engaging company. The following day I did my event a the Harbourfront - my first public reading! I think it went okay - I had some wonderful support and advice from my fellow speakers - Andrew Pyper and Robert Rotenberg and friends and family were in the audience. Then it was time to leave Toronto...Houston
I didn't know anything about Houston. What I discovered on landing is that it is vast. Huge. And there is literally NO way of getting round it without transport. It's hot, too, so I spent my time there scurrying from one air conditioned place to another. I saw a lot of the city (from the inside of a car, admittedly) during an afternoon of stock signing, and still can't get over how big it is. My event, held at Murder by the Book, was well attended, though, and the audience were engaging and asked interesting questions. Such a great shop, too, with amazingly friendly and welcoming staff. I always love the passion I see in people that work in bookstores (I was going to write 'independent bookstores' there, but I saw it in those working in the chains as well) - it's fantastic to spend time with people that really care about books.From Houston it was on to...
New Orleans
Unlike Houston, I did have an idea of what New Orleans was like. I wasn't prepared for the heat, but visually it did match up to my expectations pretty well. I'd been instructed to head straight to Cafe du Monde for beignets, so that's what I did, and I wasn't disappointed, though I think I prefer UK doughnuts and/or the deep fried churro's one gets in Spain. Beignets seemed to be a kind of cross between the two.
From there it was down to a signing at the HarperCollins stand and I met a whole load more people, all of whom were charming (well, most, but let's not spoil things by dwelling on rude people) and off to another signing in a bookstore (less well attended, but I understand that every author on tour has to have at least one event with only a handful of attendees). A wonderful meal in Mister B's followed and then the next day it was on to Florida, which I'll save for part 2...
Monday, 27 June 2011
The US Tour...
So. I spent the day talking about and signing copies of Before I Go to Sleep. I've had two glasses of wine, and I'm sitting in my hotel in New Orleans. Through the window I have a great view of the Mississippi. I can see paddle steamers on the water, the lights of the city shimmer. I know I ought to blog about the tour so far, and hopefully soon I'll be writing about my experiences, but for now there're more beignets to eat and there's a hot, steamy city to explore, so I'm heading out...
Friday, 17 June 2011
Thursday, 16 June 2011
Life in a Day
Tuesday was publication day for the US and Canadian editions of Before I Go to Sleep. I was tremendously excited, just as I was on the day it came out in the UK. It was a little tough, though - I wanted to be able to go and look at it sitting on a shelf in a bookstore but had to content myself with looking at its Amazon page. Not quite the same - but I will be over the other side of The Atlantic next week (Toronto - Houston - New Orleans - Miami - Ft Lauderdale) so I'm certainly not complaining and I'll get to see it then.
I was also lucky enough to be invited to the premiere of Life In a Day on Tuesday evening - the YouTube collaboration with Scott Free (who are making the film of Before I Go to Sleep). Over 450 hours of footage that was shot on July 24th last year has been edited down by film maker Kevin McDonald to create what I thought was a really fantastic film. By turns funny, sad, moving, trivial, profound, the film took a snapshot of what it means to be human in the early 21st Century. I recommend it highly.
I was also lucky enough to be invited to the premiere of Life In a Day on Tuesday evening - the YouTube collaboration with Scott Free (who are making the film of Before I Go to Sleep). Over 450 hours of footage that was shot on July 24th last year has been edited down by film maker Kevin McDonald to create what I thought was a really fantastic film. By turns funny, sad, moving, trivial, profound, the film took a snapshot of what it means to be human in the early 21st Century. I recommend it highly.
Tuesday, 14 June 2011
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Bulgarian publication
Before I Go to Sleep is published in Bulgaria tomorrow. This is the jacket design - I think it's lovely!
Thursday, 26 May 2011
The Spanish Trailer
The book's also out in Spain (where it's called "No ConfÃes En Nadie" in Spanish and "Desconfia de Tothom" in Catalan). I've also found a trailer that my Spanish publisher has put together - take a look here. Great, isn't it?
Dutch publication
Before I Go to Sleep is published in The Netherlands today, where it is called Voor ik ga slapen. You can watch the trailer here, and this is the jacket. I love it - I think it's very striking without any text. What do you think?
Tuesday, 17 May 2011
BESTSELLER!
I'm incredibly excited to share the news! We've just heard that Before I Go to Sleep is a bestseller! Official figures place it at number 7 in this week's list!
Sunday, 15 May 2011
A real-life case of amnesia.
I'm occasionally asked how medically authentic Before I Go to Sleep is. I was very careful during the writing of it to make it as true as possible to real cases of amnesia - but, I thought, that my one concession was that my character is able to retain memories for a day, which are then wiped.
This was necessary for me to tell the story from her point of view, but I didn't think it was possible. My understanding of amnesia (or anterograde amnesia, at least) is that people can find themselves unable to code short-term memory as long-term memory, and these people would lose their memories every few minutes (as in the film 'Memento'). They wouldn't retain a whole day's worth of memory, only to lose it overnight.
But, as we were sending the book out to editors, I came across a story in a national newspaper. A woman reported exactly the same symptoms as my character - symptoms I thought I'd invented - and, chillingly, she was exactly the same age. Reading her story was odd for me - I felt in some way vindicated, but by far the bigger emotion was a profound sadness. During the writing of the book I had come closer to understanding just how terrible it must be to lose our memory, to have no sense of who we are, but I had consoled myself that, unlike my character, people who really suffer with anterograde amnesia must have only a limited understanding of what has happened, and is happening, to them. Scant comfort, but some comfort nonetheless. It was chilling to discover that someone really did have to live through the fictional situation that I had created for my character.
You can read the story here.
This was necessary for me to tell the story from her point of view, but I didn't think it was possible. My understanding of amnesia (or anterograde amnesia, at least) is that people can find themselves unable to code short-term memory as long-term memory, and these people would lose their memories every few minutes (as in the film 'Memento'). They wouldn't retain a whole day's worth of memory, only to lose it overnight.
But, as we were sending the book out to editors, I came across a story in a national newspaper. A woman reported exactly the same symptoms as my character - symptoms I thought I'd invented - and, chillingly, she was exactly the same age. Reading her story was odd for me - I felt in some way vindicated, but by far the bigger emotion was a profound sadness. During the writing of the book I had come closer to understanding just how terrible it must be to lose our memory, to have no sense of who we are, but I had consoled myself that, unlike my character, people who really suffer with anterograde amnesia must have only a limited understanding of what has happened, and is happening, to them. Scant comfort, but some comfort nonetheless. It was chilling to discover that someone really did have to live through the fictional situation that I had created for my character.
You can read the story here.
Friday, 13 May 2011
Simon Mayo's show, 50 First Dates, Sufjan Stevens.
What a bizarre - yet great - week! On Monday I went to BBC R2 to 'appear' on Simon Mayo's drivetime show. It was a lovely experience - he and his colleagues had read the book and liked it. It felt like a nice little chat, and I almost forgot about the microphones and headphones and banks of computers between us! I was particularly chuffed that he played Tom Tom Club's 'Wordy Rappinghood' half way through the interview, too. I've always loved that song.
I enjoyed the webchat, too. It was nice to be asked some really perceptive questions. A few people did mention the film 50 First Dates, though, and I answered their point as well as I could (considering I was typing as fast as I could, on an unfamiliar keyboard, with a not-quite-healed finger!). The truth is I didn't watch that film until well after I'd finished the book - in fact it wasn't until commenters on various websites started to compare Before I Go to Sleep with 50 First Dates (commenters who hadn't read the book, I hasten to add) that I rented it and watched it.
I can see the similarities. The basic premise of the protagonist's condition, the fact that she keeps a journal. But the similarities end there, I think. 50 First Dates is a romantic comedy. Before I Go to Sleep is about love, on one level, but it's not romantic, and it's not a comedy. In 50 First Dates the family of the amnesiac pretend that nothing has happened, that her injury never occurred - they can do this because her amnesia began recently and so everyone and everything around her appears more or less unchanged, as it was on the day of her accident. To my mind my novel looks at what might happen to Drew Barrymore's character in 20 or 30 years time, when she looks different, when the people around her look different, when her world had changed immeasurably and her family can no longer fool her into believing that nothing is wrong by ironing the newspaper and resetting the calendar. I think they're very different pieces of work, and interestingly no one (to my knowledge) who has read my book has compared it to 50 First Dates.
Last night I took a trip to the South Bank to see Sufjan Stevens perform live. What a show! I wasn't sure what to expect, having until now only a peripheral interest in his music, but he was amazing. Musically perfect - his dense, textured songs translated brilliantly to the live setting - but for me it was visually that the show really stood out. He, his band and their equipment were all plastered in neon strips that fluoresced under the ultra-violet lights so that, at times, it felt like we were all sitting inside a video game, he performed songs wearing, variously, swan's wings, a sort of bacofoil headdress and a costume that might have been rejected from the Notting Hill Carnival for being too flamboyant. It might sound OTT but it all worked perfectly, and it was a glorious, joyous, exuberant show that I thoroughly recommend.
I enjoyed the webchat, too. It was nice to be asked some really perceptive questions. A few people did mention the film 50 First Dates, though, and I answered their point as well as I could (considering I was typing as fast as I could, on an unfamiliar keyboard, with a not-quite-healed finger!). The truth is I didn't watch that film until well after I'd finished the book - in fact it wasn't until commenters on various websites started to compare Before I Go to Sleep with 50 First Dates (commenters who hadn't read the book, I hasten to add) that I rented it and watched it.
I can see the similarities. The basic premise of the protagonist's condition, the fact that she keeps a journal. But the similarities end there, I think. 50 First Dates is a romantic comedy. Before I Go to Sleep is about love, on one level, but it's not romantic, and it's not a comedy. In 50 First Dates the family of the amnesiac pretend that nothing has happened, that her injury never occurred - they can do this because her amnesia began recently and so everyone and everything around her appears more or less unchanged, as it was on the day of her accident. To my mind my novel looks at what might happen to Drew Barrymore's character in 20 or 30 years time, when she looks different, when the people around her look different, when her world had changed immeasurably and her family can no longer fool her into believing that nothing is wrong by ironing the newspaper and resetting the calendar. I think they're very different pieces of work, and interestingly no one (to my knowledge) who has read my book has compared it to 50 First Dates.
Last night I took a trip to the South Bank to see Sufjan Stevens perform live. What a show! I wasn't sure what to expect, having until now only a peripheral interest in his music, but he was amazing. Musically perfect - his dense, textured songs translated brilliantly to the live setting - but for me it was visually that the show really stood out. He, his band and their equipment were all plastered in neon strips that fluoresced under the ultra-violet lights so that, at times, it felt like we were all sitting inside a video game, he performed songs wearing, variously, swan's wings, a sort of bacofoil headdress and a costume that might have been rejected from the Notting Hill Carnival for being too flamboyant. It might sound OTT but it all worked perfectly, and it was a glorious, joyous, exuberant show that I thoroughly recommend.
Saturday, 7 May 2011
More publication days!
Life's pretty busy right now, but by way of a quick update - Before I Go to Sleep is now available in Australia and New Zealand (since Monday 2nd May) and, since Thursday, in France.
Plus don't forget I'm appearing on Simon Mayo's drivetime show on Monday (May 9th) at 6pm on BBC Radio 2. It's his bookclub, and I'll be discussing the book, then answering questions in a webchat.
I'll try and blog about this next week!
Details on my website here.
Plus don't forget I'm appearing on Simon Mayo's drivetime show on Monday (May 9th) at 6pm on BBC Radio 2. It's his bookclub, and I'll be discussing the book, then answering questions in a webchat.
I'll try and blog about this next week!
Details on my website here.
Thursday, 28 April 2011
PUBLICATION DAY!
It's publication day, in the UK at least! Before I Go to Sleep is available, in the shops! It's an amazing feeling, and really does feel like a dream I've had my whole life has come true. I have a launch party tonight, and I'm very happy...
Very busy, too! Hence it's been a while since I've updated here. By way of a quick round-up, there have been a few reviews and articles in the press over here in the UK, and I've done a couple of radio interviews, too. One will be broadcast tomorrow, at 10pm (GMT) on BBC R2 (The Arts Show). Tune in (or listen on BBC iPlayer, if you're based in the UK). Details here.
We also learned that Before I Go to Sleep has been chosen by Simon Mayo as his book club book of the month for May. Terrifically exciting! Details here.
I also did an interview for BBC Radio WM (West Midlands, where I'm from). Surreal experience, sitting in a small booth just off Oxford Street in London, chatting to a DJ in the West Midlands. Made even more surreal by the fact that I thought it was a prerecord interview so strolled into the booth, sat down, took my coat off, found my phone and switched it off, all in a very leisurely fashion, only to hear a slightly anxious woman in the headphones. I popped them on and said, 'Yeah, hi, I'm just getting settled....' to which she replied, 'We're going live in about 10 seconds...'
A moment later I was on the air, live, chatting to a DJ. In a way I think it worked out for the best - at least I didn't have time to get nervous!
For details of all these things, look at my (brand new!) website, here.
Very busy, too! Hence it's been a while since I've updated here. By way of a quick round-up, there have been a few reviews and articles in the press over here in the UK, and I've done a couple of radio interviews, too. One will be broadcast tomorrow, at 10pm (GMT) on BBC R2 (The Arts Show). Tune in (or listen on BBC iPlayer, if you're based in the UK). Details here.
We also learned that Before I Go to Sleep has been chosen by Simon Mayo as his book club book of the month for May. Terrifically exciting! Details here.
I also did an interview for BBC Radio WM (West Midlands, where I'm from). Surreal experience, sitting in a small booth just off Oxford Street in London, chatting to a DJ in the West Midlands. Made even more surreal by the fact that I thought it was a prerecord interview so strolled into the booth, sat down, took my coat off, found my phone and switched it off, all in a very leisurely fashion, only to hear a slightly anxious woman in the headphones. I popped them on and said, 'Yeah, hi, I'm just getting settled....' to which she replied, 'We're going live in about 10 seconds...'
A moment later I was on the air, live, chatting to a DJ. In a way I think it worked out for the best - at least I didn't have time to get nervous!
For details of all these things, look at my (brand new!) website, here.
Thursday, 21 April 2011
A package arrives
A package arrived yesterday from my agency. The promotional material for Before I Go to Sleep in Spain! It'll be called No Confies En Nadie, which I believe roughly translates as 'Trust No-one' or 'You Don't Trust Anyone'. Nice title!
And the book will look beautiful in Spain. Kind of a hybrid of the US cover with the Australian typeface on the title. I like it!
Wednesday, 20 April 2011
A trip to the printers
This journey has been an exhilarating ride, with lots of high points, but yesterday was definitely one of the highest. I went to the printers, and witnessed first hand how my words went from my computer screen all the way to a printed and bound hardback book. It was incredible to see all those huge, huge machines, printing, collating, binding, trimming, glueing, sorting, packing, sealing. Absolutely wonderful.
Unfortunately I couldn't take photos in the factory itself (which covers 30 acres, would you believe?!) but here's one of me signing copies of Before I Go to Sleep. I signed quite a few. About 1300, in fact...
They were then stickered and packaged, and even now are on their way to their next destination (i.e the shops!) from where they'll (hopefully) end up in the hands of readers, which is what it's all about of course. I saw the gold edged version, too, that Goldsboro books are going to be selling. They're really special. It's all incredible exciting, and to say it's a dream come true for me must be one of the biggest understatements imaginable!
Unfortunately I couldn't take photos in the factory itself (which covers 30 acres, would you believe?!) but here's one of me signing copies of Before I Go to Sleep. I signed quite a few. About 1300, in fact...
They were then stickered and packaged, and even now are on their way to their next destination (i.e the shops!) from where they'll (hopefully) end up in the hands of readers, which is what it's all about of course. I saw the gold edged version, too, that Goldsboro books are going to be selling. They're really special. It's all incredible exciting, and to say it's a dream come true for me must be one of the biggest understatements imaginable!
Monday, 18 April 2011
Radio 4, and Amazon 'Rising Stars'
Friday, 15 April 2011
A speech, a broken finger, a launch party
So last week I went to the 2011 Advancing Healthcare awards. I'd been invited to give a little speech and tell my story, and was lucky enough to also enjoy a fabulous lunch and meet lots of wonderful people from the health service. These were Allied Health Professionals and Clinical Scientists - a much undervalued group. These are the therapists and technicians and scientists who are in fact vital members of any healthcare team, and it was nice for them to get some recognition. I felt rather humbled in their presence, if I'm honest, but here I am...
From there I went home and listened to some of the audiobook of Before I Go to Sleep. It's been read by Susannah Harker, and she's done a brilliant job. Hearing my words come to life was such a bizarre and wonderful experience.
Unfortunately, however, I'd chosen to listen in the bath as I prepared to go out for the evening. As I stood up to dry myself the door buzzer went and, stupidly, I ran down the stairs. Or that was the plan; in fact my legs disappeared from under me on the top step and I slid to the bottom. My first sensation was relief. I was alive and, had I slid the other way, I might easily have broken my neck. My second, though was pain, emanating from all over, but focussed mostly on my finger. 'I wonder if it's broken?' I thought, but on touching it and feeling a rather odd clicking sensation I wondered no more. My evening out was cancelled and I spent it instead in A&E (where I received a wonderful service and found myself thanking once again the staff of the NHS). When I got home I practiced shaking people's hands (impossible), writing longhand (possible, but painful and with illegible results) and signing my name (possible, not too painful, but it looks like a toddler who's been let loose with the felt-tips). With a launch party to attend, a novel to work on and books to sign - what bad timing!
Then, on Monday, Before I Go to Sleep was officially launched! (For the first time at least - we're having another launch party for the UK edition on the day of publication itself). We had a party at the offices of my agent, Clare Conville, in London's West End. London Book Fair was in full swing by then, and all my foreign editors and publishers were invited. It was great to meet them all over a glass of wine, as well as all the scouts and sub-agents, not to mention my colleagues from Faber, who have worked so hard and been so supportive of me and the book over the last year. Clare gave a speech, I gave a speech, I had a fantastic time, and the book was well and truly launched. Here are some photos...
The trailer was playing on all of the computers in the office...
The books were on display...
Here I am, chatting to Jake...
... and to Amy.
The fire brigade were called as the party wound down. Luckily nothing too drastic - one of the guests had locked themselves in the bathroom...
So now we're off. Before I Go to Sleep is launched, and within a few days will be in the shops (in the UK and Australia at least - the US will have to wait until June). I'm tremendously excited, broken finger or no!
On the radio...
I'm going to be on Radio 2! The Arts Show, discussing Before I Go to Sleep with Claudia Winkleman. Friday 29th April, at 10 pm. Details here.
Wednesday, 6 April 2011
The French Jacket
This is how Before I Go to Sleep will look in France. Beautiful, isn't it? I took delivery of two copies yesterday, which was an exciting moment, and it looks even better in real life...
Now we have six jackets, I wonder which is everyone's favourite?
Friday, 1 April 2011
On reviews...
I must admit this week I read the story of Jacqueline Howlett's online meltdown (over a bad review of her book) with mixed feelings. (You can read about it, and handling reviews in general, here. For those who want the source material, it's here, but be warned, it's not pretty). It was kind of funny, and yes, it showed spectacularly bad judgement on her part. It went viral with the speed that only these things can, and an awful lot more people now know about her book than would have done had she not attempted to mount a reasoned defence of her work (albeit it one that quickly degenerated into mudslinging). Whether they'll want to buy it is another question (along with "Is it really true that any publicity is good publicity?").
But I actually feel a little sorry for Howlett. I understand why she responded to those reviews. Before I Go to Sleep is out there, now. Not released yet, but there are advanced reader copies doing the rounds. It's public property. People are having an opinion, and some of those people are posting their opinion on their blogs and on review sites.
And I'm reading them. I can't help it. It's my baby. I conceived it, raised it, nurtured it, sent it to school with a lunch box, helped it to do its homework and stood by with tissues when it was dumped by its first girlfriend (OK OK I've taken the childrearing metaphor too far...) But now it's off, on its own. Not my property any more. I'm anxious to know what people think.
Mostly I've been happy. Mostly I've been absolutely delighted in fact. But there have been a few people who haven't been quite so gushing. Some have just said 'It's not really my cup of tea', and they're easy to cope with. That's fair enough. (In fact I like to think of a line of Emo Phillips about playing to middle-class audiences in Edinburgh - he said he enjoyed it because if they don't enjoy his show they blame themselves for making a poor entertainment choice. 'If I'm rubbish, never mind,' he said. 'You'll do better next time.')
But there are those who identify what they see as flaws and weaknesses. And yes, the temptation as an author is to respond. To say, Actually, I did that deliberately. Or to say Well, no one else thinks that scene doesn't work, so you're very much on your own there. Or to point out that such-and-such a character would say that, or do this, or whatever, and you should know, because you invented them.
Before the internet these rights-of-reply weren't available, or weren't so easy at least. I imagine that if Jacqueline Howlett had had to find a pen and some paper, or load a ribbon into her typewriter, and then compose a response before finding the correct address and an envelope and stamp, she'd have cooled down enough by the end of it to not post her letter at all. But now we can read a review and within two minutes we've typed and posted, publicly no less, our ire. And, has been proven again this week, it would be a mistake. At best you look petty and insecure, at worst it makes the book look as though it doesn't work unless the author is on standby to explain what he or she meant at any given point. Howlett has been rounded on by hordes of readers, all keen to shoot her down (and to be fair, they probably have a point - her final comments towards her reviewer were childish and offensive). I imagine she's feeling pretty rotten right now though, in a sort of Oh-no-what-on-earth-did-I-do-last-night-kind-of-way (unless she really does have such enormous self belief in her writing that she continues to feel her response was justified). Surely she didn't ask for this.
So, I guess the take home message from this is that it's probably better to keep our mouth shut. Just because the right of reply is there, that doesn't mean we should use it. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and the internet means that everyone can now share theirs with the world. But, just because we can, that doesn't mean we should answer back. We want people to judge the work, not the author, and it has to speak for itself, no matter how tempting it might be to intervene. Wading into a public forum, and directly challenging a reviewer (who is, after all, entitled to their opinion) immediately removes the distance between the work and the author, and put the focus on the latter.
In any case, how can we expect to please everyone, all the time, and for everyone to get every little subtlety in our writing? We can't, and when people don't get it, don't like it, or both, we have to take it on the chin.
Or maybe not read reviews at all?
But I actually feel a little sorry for Howlett. I understand why she responded to those reviews. Before I Go to Sleep is out there, now. Not released yet, but there are advanced reader copies doing the rounds. It's public property. People are having an opinion, and some of those people are posting their opinion on their blogs and on review sites.
And I'm reading them. I can't help it. It's my baby. I conceived it, raised it, nurtured it, sent it to school with a lunch box, helped it to do its homework and stood by with tissues when it was dumped by its first girlfriend (OK OK I've taken the childrearing metaphor too far...) But now it's off, on its own. Not my property any more. I'm anxious to know what people think.
Mostly I've been happy. Mostly I've been absolutely delighted in fact. But there have been a few people who haven't been quite so gushing. Some have just said 'It's not really my cup of tea', and they're easy to cope with. That's fair enough. (In fact I like to think of a line of Emo Phillips about playing to middle-class audiences in Edinburgh - he said he enjoyed it because if they don't enjoy his show they blame themselves for making a poor entertainment choice. 'If I'm rubbish, never mind,' he said. 'You'll do better next time.')
But there are those who identify what they see as flaws and weaknesses. And yes, the temptation as an author is to respond. To say, Actually, I did that deliberately. Or to say Well, no one else thinks that scene doesn't work, so you're very much on your own there. Or to point out that such-and-such a character would say that, or do this, or whatever, and you should know, because you invented them.
Before the internet these rights-of-reply weren't available, or weren't so easy at least. I imagine that if Jacqueline Howlett had had to find a pen and some paper, or load a ribbon into her typewriter, and then compose a response before finding the correct address and an envelope and stamp, she'd have cooled down enough by the end of it to not post her letter at all. But now we can read a review and within two minutes we've typed and posted, publicly no less, our ire. And, has been proven again this week, it would be a mistake. At best you look petty and insecure, at worst it makes the book look as though it doesn't work unless the author is on standby to explain what he or she meant at any given point. Howlett has been rounded on by hordes of readers, all keen to shoot her down (and to be fair, they probably have a point - her final comments towards her reviewer were childish and offensive). I imagine she's feeling pretty rotten right now though, in a sort of Oh-no-what-on-earth-did-I-do-last-night-kind-of-way (unless she really does have such enormous self belief in her writing that she continues to feel her response was justified). Surely she didn't ask for this.
So, I guess the take home message from this is that it's probably better to keep our mouth shut. Just because the right of reply is there, that doesn't mean we should use it. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and the internet means that everyone can now share theirs with the world. But, just because we can, that doesn't mean we should answer back. We want people to judge the work, not the author, and it has to speak for itself, no matter how tempting it might be to intervene. Wading into a public forum, and directly challenging a reviewer (who is, after all, entitled to their opinion) immediately removes the distance between the work and the author, and put the focus on the latter.
In any case, how can we expect to please everyone, all the time, and for everyone to get every little subtlety in our writing? We can't, and when people don't get it, don't like it, or both, we have to take it on the chin.
Or maybe not read reviews at all?
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