Sarah Morgan: Replenishing Creative Energy

I tell them I’m a novelist. If I say I’m a writer people immediately ask me what I write, so these days I start by giving them the detail.

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult. A brilliant book that tackles important issues.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I read it so many times the cover fell off.

My first completed work was the biography of my hamster, which I wrote when I was eight.

A writer, but I didn’t think I could make a living doing that so I trained as a nurse and later had a career in marketing and public relations before leaving to write full time. I don’t regret the path I’ve taken. Everything I’ve done has played a role in my writing. My nursing experience gave me my first writing break because I wrote medical romance before moving on to write other things. My marketing and public relations experience has proved invaluable in recent years because a publisher now expects an author to develop their own platform and take an active part in promotion.

My school aged self would be thrilled that I’m doing what I always wanted to do and that I’ve sold more than 15 million books globally.

I would gift myself On Writing by Stephen King.

I always read before going to bed, but often at other times of the day too if the book I’m reading pulls me in. One of the many good things about writing full time is that I control my day. If I want to go for a long walk or read a book, then I can. Of course I then have to make up the time later!

A book often starts with a ‘what if’ idea, and also with characters. I don’t plan in detail, but my publisher requires that I produce an outline so I do have the bare bones of a story with the major turning points and conflict mapped out before I start. The detail often changes as I write because ideas come to me as the story builds and I gain deeper knowledge of the characters. I try and complete a first draft and resist the temptation to go back over what I’ve done. Once I’ve finished a draft I will keep working on the book until I’m happy.

Four years ago I wrote a book called Sleigh Bells in the Snow which was my first novel after years of writing shorter ‘series’ books for Harlequin. I enjoyed having the longer length to work with and the bigger scope. It changed the direction of my career.

Finish something. Starting a book is easy but sticking with it to the end, working through difficult parts and completing the book is the hard part. And read. Every writer should read. It’s a way of replenishing creative energy.

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. It’s a perfect book.

I read both, but generally more fiction.

It’s essential. It informs, entertains and adds quality to life.

The one I’m reading now; Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult.

I prefer physical books, but I read digital for convenience when I’m travelling so I appreciate both.

Again, the book I’m reading now, Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult. It tackles such an important issue and challenges the way we think about ourselves.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë would definitely be on my reading list. From recent reading as well as those already mentioned, I’d recommend The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen, The Witness by Nora Roberts.

Too many to list. I usually read one or two books a week, sometimes those recommended by friends with similar reading taste, sometimes books I see reviewed that interest me, sometimes books sent to me by my publisher.

Never Give Up.