Peter Lancett

BOOKS GO SOCIAL - INTERVIEW

Peter Lancett

Tell us something unexpected about yourself?
 I translate ancient Greek and classical Latin texts for fun and I deliver talks and lectures and speak at conferences to people interested in spirituality, Ceremonial High Magic, and the hidden history of the world.

 

What type of books do you write?

Fiction aimed at adults. Typically my work tends to be disturbing and provocative. Difficult to attach labels, but thriller or horror could be applied, particularly to

THE RAVENMOCKER. Having said that,  the central and binding theme of my four-novel series THE STORY, is the immortality of deep and true and abiding love. But there's a lot of sex in there too.

 

What inspired you to write?

A childhood and adolescence spent reading reading reading and watching television and movies. Unconsciously learning story-structure and story telling technique and wanting to create stories myself. And of course, the desperate urge not to be tied to a routine job for the whole of my adult life. Mission accomplished!

 

What makes your writing stand out from the crowd?

Immediacy. A technique of bringing the reader into the story rather than have the reader participate as a mere voyeur watching events as though through a window or on a screen. Vivid participation of the reader through literary economy then, and a judicious use of unusual though relevant descriptive metaphors and analogies. Literary economy and giving the reader an easy page-turning read while achieving all this are critical to a satisfying outcome.

What is the hardest part of writing - for you?
I can't properly answer that because I don't find any of it hard. It's what I love to do and when I'm writing, that's a luxurious indulgence for me. A bit like someone who likes movies going to watch movies, or someone who loves chocolates delving into a box of finest Swiss or Belgian confections. Imagine asking a movie lover "what is the hardest part of watching a movie - for you?" and you'll see where I'm coming from.

 

Where do you like to write? What is your routine?
I don't really have a routine. I write anywhere and everywhere, the benefit of mobile technology. Laptops have been a blessing - but not tablets or any keyboard-less technology. Coffee shops, pubs, trains, planes - I write in these and other places. But mostly at home with the Labradors sitting close by. I particularly like writing, sat in a low seat in a corner of the shadowy converted loft at home though. Not so much a routine, but I do write at least a thousand words a day as a minimum. Usually a good deal more than that though.

What do you do when you are not writing - do you have a day job?

Writing is my day job. When I'm not writing, I like to dabble here and there with ancient Greek and Latin translation, as I mentioned before, and I spend a lot of time in meditation, studying various works on spirituality and the true nature of reality, the interconnectedness of everything. Finding the spiritual balance within and accessing altered states of consciousness through meditation and through "Shamanic" journeying are the cornerstones of my life though.

 

Do you work with an outline or just write?

THE RAVENMOCKER was written to an outline because Teresa and I adapted it from an existing feature-length movie script we'd written. But typically I prefer not to have an outline, and THE STORY, for example, almost flowed as a stream of consciousness. For me a story is a free spirit and I love watching it run on a wild and empty beach. I have what seems to be an unusual capacity to hold the threads of a story's past in my head - even when I'm working on more than one project simultaneously - and my characters and the plot are never inconsistent. And that's the key to working without an outline - consistency. Don't leave things hanging.

 

How important is marketing and social media for you?
Critical. The SINE QUA NON. Sure, I'd write even if no-one else was ever going to read what I'd written - but I do write with the hope of finding an audience. The audience gives a story its life, really. The exchange of energy between the story and the reader is something a writer gets to experience, especially if readers get in touch and ask questions - something that I encourage.

What advice would you have for other writers?
Stop! Don't do it! I don't want the competition! Ha ha, only joking. Really, I'd say that a writer needs to learn the skills of an actor. Become your characters - even the ones who are unlikeable, the bit-role players, all of them. Develop individual characteristics for them. Bring them to life. It's difficult to do that if you do it from arm's length. And in the end, trust yourself. If you're happy with the result, screw what anyone else says - all the world's a critic. And most of your non-writing critics would struggle to write their own names. Be your own critic - because yours is the only criticism that counts.

 

What's your next step?

It's all go. I have a four-novel series, THE STORY set for release throughout 2016, and we are planning to write two sequels to THE RAVENMOCKER. I'm also preparing adult novelisations of my award winning DARK MAN series of illustrated books, and I'm on standby to write a couple of documentary films for a multi award-winning American documentary film company. No rest for the wicked and I wouldn't have it any other way.
                                                                                        Peter Lancett, 31st December 2015