My father was a voracious reader, and introduced me to writers like Guy de Maupassant and Ernest Hemingway. I was particularly struck with Maupassant, whose short stories are masterpieces of character and detail. His classic tale of snobbery and manipulation, Boule de Suif, is my favourite. Set during the Franco-Prussian War, it tells the tale of a French prostitute who…
Tag: novels
‘What happens when everything you have is not enough?’ I first penned The Butterfly Collector in 2007 in a couple of hardback notebooks. It started, as most of my novels do, with a single idea – in this case, a couple meeting for the first time in the kitchen at a party. Peter Calliet is a property developer who has all…
Novelists often complain that reading their earlier work leaves them with a distinct feeling of unease. The passage of time between one piece of work and another inevitably leads the author to a different place – greater maturity and depth of insight, perhaps, or simply an earnest desire to improve upon his previous attempt. Writing a novel requires a considerable…
I’ve often wondered where my fascination with the darker side of life comes from. My writing tends to reflect this taste and leads me into areas other writers might choose to leave alone. Although I’ve drawn on autobiographical material in the past, the old advice to write about what you know has never really appealed to me. As a writer,…
I’m currently reading The Confidence Game by Maria Konnikova, which looks at why we are so easily taken in by the scheming of others. The book cites major frauds and audacious imposters as examples, and explains why we as gullible victims make their work so much easier for them. As a novelist, I’ve always been interested in deception as a theme.…
Starting a new screenplay can be a daunting prospect. You’ve had the idea in your head long enough, now’s the time to transfer it to paper. But what about the groundwork – the fleshing out of the bare bones before you begin? I used to think that writing an outline was a waste of energy. Why sit and write a…
Novelists can usually be divided into two camps: those that enjoy research, and those that loathe it. I belong to the former, and spend hours trawling through books and articles for subject-related matter. But how much detail should end up in a novel is open to debate. Too much and you risk the reader’s irritation. Yes, some readers enjoy textbook…
The Words of Wisdom Interview – a series of interviews with writers and artists, to discover their methods, dreams and inspiration.
No.5 – Dan Pollock
Dan Pollock was born in New York City to a family of writers and grew up in Laguna Beach, California. A former syndicate editor with the Los Angeles Times, Dan is the author of four thriller novels in addition to Maroc-Lair of the Fox, Duel of Assassins, Orinoco and The Running Boy – and a specially commissioned “logistics” thriller, Precipice. I am delighted that Dan took time out of his busy schedule to give this interview.