Interview: Amanda Hodgkinson
Your debut novel, 22 Britannia Road, received great reviews and was highly acclaimed. Were you surprised by its huge success?
I was surprised yes, but at the same time, when I finished writing the novel, I really I believed in its strengths and I hoped a publisher might think so too. Of course so many writers, including me, spend years resigning themselves to rejections so that when things finally happen there's always an element of surprise!
Are there some parallels between the small fishing village in Essex you grew up in and the tiny cottage in Suffolk that is the setting for Spilt Milk?
I grew up in a village on the mouth of the Blackwater estuary and I think the marshes and seawalls of my childhood village were much more akin to Charles Dickens' Great Expectations really. Lots of marsh grasses, sea lavender and thick black mud. My novel Spilt Milk was inspired by rural Suffolk landscapes. Parts of Suffolk and the Essex coast share the same wild kind of beauty that I adore.
What inspired the relationship you created between the two sisters in Spilt Milk?
I am fascinated by sibling relationships. Brothers and sisters can love and hate each other. They suffer jealousies and can betray and attack each other. Siblings can also defend each other against the rest of the world and give undying loyalty. I was interested in writing about two sisters who end up living very different lives and yet maintain a bond between them. Nellie and Vivian are incredibly close growing up. They make a pact to be spinsters and to live together forever in their cottage by the river. Both have desires that go against their promise and they find themselves carrying a secret which will impact on generations to come.
Which character from Spilt Milk do you most identify with?
I don't think I identify with one character more than another but I do feel a great deal for all of them. They all have strengths and weaknesses. Vivian is romantic at heart and yet she ends up helping other women in a very practical way. I felt a great deal of empathy for Birdie who tries to be the perfect wife and mother at the expense of her own dreams and hopes. I think I was most fond of Nellie. She is always surprising and there is simple honesty in her acts even as she makes mistakes. She is like the river she lives beside, solitary and yet full of the elemental powers of life. I love her belief in magic and folk lore. And I have a soft spot for Charles. He is a very quiet man but his love for Birdie is deep and uncomplicated.
Your children are growing up in a very different age to the one you experienced, with many saying that the advance in technology means young people will read less and tablets, computers and TV will take their place. Does this worry you?
It doesn't bother me particularly because I have absolute faith in our enduring need for storytelling. Novels will still be read, no matter what technology delivers them to us. Saying that, I think we still have much to learn about the way we use new and evolving forms of communication and the effects it can have on our identities and ways we see others. But while I feel we should be asking these questions, I don't think we should be afraid of change.
Before finally following your dream of becoming a writer you tried many different career paths, which were you most unsuited to?
I've done so many different jobs. I really enjoyed my time as a riding instructor and I still love horses. I also enjoyed singing in rock bands and my stint as a location finder was fun too. I was however, absolutely hopeless as a sales person selling telephone systems, photocopiers and fax machines. I was in my early twenties and only did the job because it came with a company car and I needed the car to cart our band equipment to gigs.
What advice would you give to those who long to become an established writer but are fearful of giving up their steady job for a venture which may not pay off?
It is really difficult to balance a job, a family, and a desire to write. I took a year out to finish my first novel, 22 Britannia Road. I was full of doubts but in the end it paid off. Any creative endeavour involves a risk of failure but you have to do it anyway. Henri Matisse said 'creativity takes courage,' and I think that's right.
Would you ever consider moving back to England or have you been converted to the French way of life?
I often ask myself that question. There are days when I think I will move back to the UK at some point. I do fantasy UK house buying on the internet sometimes but then again, there are other times when I think I love it here in France and will never leave.
Cheese is a huge part of the French lifestyle, would you say that since moving to the south of France your family indulges in more cheese than previously and what is your favourite?
I do like cheese! And yes, there is a lot of it in France. I am definitely more adventurous with the cheese I eat now. I live near the Pyrenees and have developed a taste for cheeses from the Basque country. They are quite adventurous when it comes to accompaniments over here and wild black cherry jam is a popular choice. A very delicious combination...
If you could start a book club with any author, dead or alive, who would they be?
I'd invite Joyce Carol Oates. She is such a prolific writer and a fascinating woman. I feel sure the book talk would be lively and wide-ranging.
Which role do you prefer - hostess or guest?
I like both but I suppose I'd prefer being a guest because it's more relaxing and you get to talk to people. Being a hostess often means you spend a lot of time saying hello to guests and then later, you spend a lot of time saying goodbye to them, wishing you'd had more time to chat.
What would be your top tips for hosting a successful book club?
The book clubs I have been part of were fantastic because they were a real mix of people and I got to read books I might never have read. There were so many different literary tastes in our group and I think that makes for some really good discussion – the most rewarding book clubs for me are ones where you learn to look at a book from many different angles. It's also really important to make sure everybody gets a chance to speak at a bookclub. The other thing every good bookclub needs is delicious food and drink!
What book is on your bedside table at the moment?
The Bird Artist by Howard Norman.
What would you say makes a great book?
A great book is a book you can read more than once and which improves with each reading. With a great book, you just know you have to have a paper copy of it. Something to hold in your hands and keep on your bookshelf with your other favourites. It is the kind of book you find yourself reluctant to lend to others in case it doesn't come back. The kind of book you take down from the shelf at your local bookstore, flick through its pages and find yourself still standing there much later, reading your way through it.
Would you ever want any of your works to be made into a film or would you feel too protective over the characters you created?
I'd love my books to be made into films. I like the idea of somebody else interpreting my characters – I would love to see how a film director might see the worlds I depict in my novels.
For your chance to win one of five copies of her new book, Spilt Milk, click here
I was surprised yes, but at the same time, when I finished writing the novel, I really I believed in its strengths and I hoped a publisher might think so too. Of course so many writers, including me, spend years resigning themselves to rejections so that when things finally happen there's always an element of surprise!
Are there some parallels between the small fishing village in Essex you grew up in and the tiny cottage in Suffolk that is the setting for Spilt Milk?
I grew up in a village on the mouth of the Blackwater estuary and I think the marshes and seawalls of my childhood village were much more akin to Charles Dickens' Great Expectations really. Lots of marsh grasses, sea lavender and thick black mud. My novel Spilt Milk was inspired by rural Suffolk landscapes. Parts of Suffolk and the Essex coast share the same wild kind of beauty that I adore.
What inspired the relationship you created between the two sisters in Spilt Milk?
I am fascinated by sibling relationships. Brothers and sisters can love and hate each other. They suffer jealousies and can betray and attack each other. Siblings can also defend each other against the rest of the world and give undying loyalty. I was interested in writing about two sisters who end up living very different lives and yet maintain a bond between them. Nellie and Vivian are incredibly close growing up. They make a pact to be spinsters and to live together forever in their cottage by the river. Both have desires that go against their promise and they find themselves carrying a secret which will impact on generations to come.
Which character from Spilt Milk do you most identify with?
I don't think I identify with one character more than another but I do feel a great deal for all of them. They all have strengths and weaknesses. Vivian is romantic at heart and yet she ends up helping other women in a very practical way. I felt a great deal of empathy for Birdie who tries to be the perfect wife and mother at the expense of her own dreams and hopes. I think I was most fond of Nellie. She is always surprising and there is simple honesty in her acts even as she makes mistakes. She is like the river she lives beside, solitary and yet full of the elemental powers of life. I love her belief in magic and folk lore. And I have a soft spot for Charles. He is a very quiet man but his love for Birdie is deep and uncomplicated.
Your children are growing up in a very different age to the one you experienced, with many saying that the advance in technology means young people will read less and tablets, computers and TV will take their place. Does this worry you?
It doesn't bother me particularly because I have absolute faith in our enduring need for storytelling. Novels will still be read, no matter what technology delivers them to us. Saying that, I think we still have much to learn about the way we use new and evolving forms of communication and the effects it can have on our identities and ways we see others. But while I feel we should be asking these questions, I don't think we should be afraid of change.
Before finally following your dream of becoming a writer you tried many different career paths, which were you most unsuited to?
I've done so many different jobs. I really enjoyed my time as a riding instructor and I still love horses. I also enjoyed singing in rock bands and my stint as a location finder was fun too. I was however, absolutely hopeless as a sales person selling telephone systems, photocopiers and fax machines. I was in my early twenties and only did the job because it came with a company car and I needed the car to cart our band equipment to gigs.
What advice would you give to those who long to become an established writer but are fearful of giving up their steady job for a venture which may not pay off?
It is really difficult to balance a job, a family, and a desire to write. I took a year out to finish my first novel, 22 Britannia Road. I was full of doubts but in the end it paid off. Any creative endeavour involves a risk of failure but you have to do it anyway. Henri Matisse said 'creativity takes courage,' and I think that's right.
Would you ever consider moving back to England or have you been converted to the French way of life?
I often ask myself that question. There are days when I think I will move back to the UK at some point. I do fantasy UK house buying on the internet sometimes but then again, there are other times when I think I love it here in France and will never leave.
Cheese is a huge part of the French lifestyle, would you say that since moving to the south of France your family indulges in more cheese than previously and what is your favourite?
I do like cheese! And yes, there is a lot of it in France. I am definitely more adventurous with the cheese I eat now. I live near the Pyrenees and have developed a taste for cheeses from the Basque country. They are quite adventurous when it comes to accompaniments over here and wild black cherry jam is a popular choice. A very delicious combination...
If you could start a book club with any author, dead or alive, who would they be?
I'd invite Joyce Carol Oates. She is such a prolific writer and a fascinating woman. I feel sure the book talk would be lively and wide-ranging.
Which role do you prefer - hostess or guest?
I like both but I suppose I'd prefer being a guest because it's more relaxing and you get to talk to people. Being a hostess often means you spend a lot of time saying hello to guests and then later, you spend a lot of time saying goodbye to them, wishing you'd had more time to chat.
What would be your top tips for hosting a successful book club?
The book clubs I have been part of were fantastic because they were a real mix of people and I got to read books I might never have read. There were so many different literary tastes in our group and I think that makes for some really good discussion – the most rewarding book clubs for me are ones where you learn to look at a book from many different angles. It's also really important to make sure everybody gets a chance to speak at a bookclub. The other thing every good bookclub needs is delicious food and drink!
What book is on your bedside table at the moment?
The Bird Artist by Howard Norman.
What would you say makes a great book?
A great book is a book you can read more than once and which improves with each reading. With a great book, you just know you have to have a paper copy of it. Something to hold in your hands and keep on your bookshelf with your other favourites. It is the kind of book you find yourself reluctant to lend to others in case it doesn't come back. The kind of book you take down from the shelf at your local bookstore, flick through its pages and find yourself still standing there much later, reading your way through it.
Would you ever want any of your works to be made into a film or would you feel too protective over the characters you created?
I'd love my books to be made into films. I like the idea of somebody else interpreting my characters – I would love to see how a film director might see the worlds I depict in my novels.
For your chance to win one of five copies of her new book, Spilt Milk, click here