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A plane falls out of the sky. A
woman is murdered. Four people all have something to hide.
Jim is
a retired police officer, and worried father. His beloved daughter has
disappeared and he knows something is wrong.
Tom has
woken up to discover that his wife was on the plane and must break the news to
their only son.
Cecilia
had packed up and left her family. Now she has survived a tragedy, and sees no
way out.
Freya
is struggling to cope with the loss of her father. But as she delves into his
past, she may not like what she finds.
‘Before the plane crash, after the plane crash, such a short
amount of time for the world to turn on its head… ‘
The things they never tell you…by Emma Kavanagh
There
are things you know as a wannabe author, there are things that everyone tells
you. That it’s hard. That it’s really damn hard. Not the work (although there
are days when the plotting makes me want to drive my own head into a brick
wall), but merely getting to a point where you are justifiably allowed to
describe yourself as an author. Now, I’ll admit, I’ve never been entirely sure
exactly when that point is. I think for me it was when people stopped looking
at me with sympathy mixed with impatience when I dared to use the terrifying
word “author”. They threaten you with the horrors that is the publishing
industry (they’re lovely - don’t believe a word of it!). They tell you that
publishing is dead (it’s not!).
Now,
I’m going to tell you some of the things people often fail to mention.
• It’s a game of two
halves - either your inbox will be bouncing with emails pinging it at a
terrifying speed or you will hear nothing. NOTHING! I mean, in fairness, this
will depend on where you are in the process. Mid-writing with nothing due for
release? Yeah, you may begin to wonder if people have forgotten about you until
your lovely agent or editor get in touch for a quick check in, “just in case
you’ve gone quietly mad”. Yes. Yes, I have. Ooh, also, if there’s a book fair
on, no-one will be calling you or mailing you. They probably haven’t slept in a
week. Give them a break!
• It does get easier.
Except when it doesn’t - the writing gets easier. Sometimes. You learn what
will become a problem later on, what will be edited out, how you need to pace
things, what is important for your characters. And then your characters have a
royal fit and suddenly it’s just as tough as the first
time you did it.
• You will always doubt
your ability to write just one more book - at least I do. That blank screen
remains terrifying. When you get lost in your own plot, when a thread just
doesn’t turn out as you think it will, you will be afraid that this is it, that
the muse has departed and you’re on your own. Ignore it. You can do it.
• Sometimes people will
want to take your photograph - What??? I mean, WHAT??? Why??? I’m an author. I
got into this gig because I get to hide behind my computer and work in my jim
jams. But no! One day, you will discover that a photographer wants to come to
your house (also known as the small children/cheerio zoo) and do a photoshoot.
And you will cry. And wonder whether your pyjamas are photogenic enough.
• People will
occasionally get weird - I have been called a celebrity (whilst picking toast
crumbs out of my 3 year old’s hair). I have been asked if I’m disappointed I
haven’t done better (that was a good day for my self-esteem). I have been asked
to sign a copy of my book by writing down a specific line of text and then
drawing a picture (?!). Oh, and could you write a poem in there too? No. No, I
could not.
It’s
a weird business. And I must admit, when people ask me what I do, I still tend
to say ‘author’ in much the same way one might say ‘drugs mule’. But I wouldn’t
change it for the world. I’m still not writing that poem though.
Emma Kavanagh is a former police and military psychologist, and
author of After We Fall: A Novel (Sourcebooks).
Twitter: @EmmaLK
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