Please introduce yourself, who are you and what do you do?
Hello. I am Briar Kit Esme, the author of The Twenty-Five Deeds of Hanson Drake.
I also offer writing and editing services to companies, universities, media agencies and publishers—from the Orient to the Occident…and pretty much everywhere else in-between. I have worked for some great organisations and people, and have written on a range of subjects that I would never have encountered in the world of fiction alone.
What first inspired you to start writing?
I can't remember a time when I didn't want to write. Even walking to school as a little kid, I would think up intricate stories involving the people I saw on the street and the places I passed.
If you could work with any author, who would it be and why?
As an editor, I have already worked with and for a lot of authors. If I could time travel, I'd like to spend a morning with Shakespeare to see how he worked and if he really did write the works that are credited to him today; and an afternoon with Evelyn Waugh on a day when he was in the middle of writing Brideshead Revisited to see if he sweated over every word or if the narrative flowed effortlessly.
Where is your happy place?
I'm happy pretty much anywhere, especially if I have got something to write on. Sitting down in front of my Mac and firing up Scrivener is always a joy. For a single happy location that other people can find on a map or visit, I'd have to say Studland Beach in Dorset. Studland has firm sand that stretches for about two miles and is just as beautiful on a cold winter morning as it is on a hot summer afternoon. I've even paddled along Studland on New Year's Day, and I used a fictionalised form of Studland as the beach that Hanson Drake runs along each morning.
What do you find most rewarding about writing?
The chance to connect with readers and to make a difference to their lives.
And the most challenging?
Tearing myself away from my chair after a sixteen-hour writing session.
What is your favourite song lyric?
Probably David Bowie's Kooks because the lyrics—although whimsically simple—celebrate individuality. Who could want more than that?
What are you working on at the moment?
A complex novel called Arcadia Abandoned which is set in two main time periods: during the First World War and during the 1980s. It should be released in 2014.
Tell us about your latest work and how we can find out more.
The Twenty-Five Deeds of Hanson Drake is a tale about a man who is drifting through life with £500 million in the bank and nothing of any importance to occupy his time. When a newspaper prints a derisive article about him, Hanson Drake determines to change is life. But what does a man with £500 million in the bank do? Fate plays a hand in leading Hanson to become a volunteer at a country house estate, and he promises himself to do at least one good deed every day leading up to Christmas. In helping others, Hanson finally finds that he does have a role to play in life.
Although set during Advent, the novel is not a festive work as such. A Christmas Carol and It's A Wonderful Life are also set at Christmas, but neither of them are about Christmas itself…the timing is just used as a way of tapping into readers' sentiments for the season. HANSON DRAKE sits side-by-side with those works.
It is the kind of novel that grabs you by the heart and then stays with you for the rest of your life.
The Twenty-Five Deeds of Hanson Drake is available from Amazon
Thanks, for the interview, Michael. A pleasure talking with you.
ReplyDeleteNo problem!
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