BEHIND THE HEADLINES

BESTSELLING CRIME AUTHOR JANE CORRY TELLS CRIME MONTHLY WHAT INFLUENCES HER WRITING

What was the inspiration behind your new novel?

Years ago, I met a girl in her late twenties who’d had a stroke. She couldn’t speak, but communicated through singing. That idea stayed with me and I found it coming out in my new book. I coupled that with the idea of being a witness supporter. This is a voluntary post where people show court witnesses where to sit and explain who speaks when, as it can be a scary experience. Finally, I topped it off with a group of teens on their way to play at a gig.

What attracts you most about writing thrillers?

Twists! I love them, but they need to be believable, and they also need to belong to quirky, often unreliable, characters.

Is anything you write based on real life?

Almost everything is triggered by something I’ve seen or heard about. And as a journalist, I’ve interviewed thousands of people, and it’s taught me a lot about character.

How do you come up with your ideas?

It’s magic –ideas just drop into my head at different times, then build up in layers. But I do often get these ideas in places where I can’t write things down, such as swimming in the sea, so I have to remember them when

I get out. Sometimes I do this visually. I’ll picture an inflated image like a huge cartoon, so I don’t forget it. It was a trick that one of my children’s history teachers told us and I’ve never forgotten it. I also send copious notes to myself on the phone and I have a special notebook for each novel.

Has anything inspired your work?

My experience as a writer-inresidence at a prison inspired my genre switch. I used to be a romance writer, but that all changed when I went through the prison gates. I realised I’d found my niche writing about families whose lives were changed by crime.

How easy do you find writing?

It’s like breathing for me. I get very agitated when I can’t write because I have to do something else or because someone interrupts me.

What would your advice be for aspiring writers?

Try writing in different genres and see which one you feel most comfortable in. Always give your a character a problem or there is no story. Consider writing from more than one viewpoint, too. It pushes the plot along and gives different perspectives.

Finally, what do you love most about your job?

I don’t see it as a job, I see it as a way of life. I love the fact I can escape and create a world that other people believe in. It’s a great honour when readers come up and say that they loved a particular character.

‘I LOVE TWISTS, BUT THEY DO NEED TO BE BELIEVEABLE’