Hazel Osmond's novel is called Who's Afraid of Mr Wolfe and it was shortlisted in the Romantic Comedy category at the recent Romantic Novelists' Association Awards.
1. Can you tell us a little about your average writing day?
I write short stories, books and still do the odd bit of advertising copywriting, so I’ve usually got something on the go. I tend to drop my daughters at school and then write, with a short break for lunch and a walk, until I go and pick them up again mid afternoon. If I’m doing something that has a tight deadline, I’ll write again in the evening and into the early hours. I’m not an early riser so you’re more likely to find me creeping up the stairs at two in the morning than creeping down them at five. Just in case you think I’m a complete paragon of virtue: I have at least three days a week where unless I have a panic on, I don’t write at all.
2. When you are writing, do you use any celebrities or people you know as inspiration?
I’m not sure I would have got into writing romantic comedies if I hadn’t been inspired by the actor Richard Armitage – I found a fan site dedicated to him, discovered fanfiction and started writing it myself. The male character in ‘Who’s Afraid of Mr Wolfe?’ is based on a number of characters he’s played. With my second book the male lead is a bit like David Tennant, the guy in book three has a hint of Owen Wilson. I need to find the character sexy myself if I want my readers to do the same. But really, by the time I come to write the characters they’ve moved a long way from that initial inspiration – I know them so well I could tell you what items they’d pick off the shelf in the supermarket. I couldn’t do that with Richard Armitage, more’s the pity.
There are a couple of people I know personally who have inspired characters in my books – they’re both life enhancers.
3. What is your favourite Women’s Fiction book of all time and why?
Ooh, that is such a hard question. So hard I’m going to cheat… loved the Jilly Cooper books like Prudence, Emily etc. as I read them when I was a teenager and they set me dreaming. Any of Dorothy Parker’s short stories – funny and heartbreaking. Jane Eyre because she’s plain and he’s far from perfect and The Night Watch by Sarah Waters – such a painful, true look at how love changes
4. What is your writing process?
My writing process is like my life – sometimes well organised, other times seat of the pants stuff. I tend to do a loose plan which is a bit like a safety net for me, but if I veer off it, I’ll let myself go just to see where it takes me. I find if I plan too much, all my enthusiasm goes into the plan and by the time I come to write that chapter, I’m a little bored by it.
I do a first draft which is just ‘head down get it on the page with enthusiasm’, then a second one which ties up all the continuity and timelines and psychological arcs as well as polishing the style. If I have time I’ll then read it out loud, chapter by chapter – it’s something I learned from writing radio ads – repetitions leap out at you and a sentence that’s tricky to say will make the reader stumble too.
Recent Comments