EVE SMITH

MEET THE FORMER EXEC OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL CHARITY BEHIND DYSTOPIA THE WAITING ROOMS

Tell us about your protagonist. What’s her story?

Kate works in a hospital where no one ever gets well. Decades of spiralling resistance have unleashed an antibiotic crisis, and the over-seventies aren’t allowed new drugs. As Kate searches for her birth mother, she unearths disturbing facts about her mother’s past: Kate isn’t the only secret she’s hiding.

Did anything in particular spark the idea?

Reading terrifying facts about antibiotic resistance. The WHO calls it “the silent pandemic”, because although over 700,000 people die from antibiotic-resistant infections each year, we don’t hear much about it. I thought, “If antibiotics stopped working and new drugs were restricted, what would happen if society had to choose who gets them?”

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

Don’t give up. It may sound hackneyed, but it’s true. Despite getting many rejections early on, I believed the idea for The Waiting Rooms was strong enough – I just had to learn how to write it more effectively. I made loads of changes along the journey to getting representation. Surrounding yourself with supportive friends is vital to maintaining that resilience.

What are you working on now?

Another speculative thriller, this time delving into the realm of genetics. IB

The Waiting Rooms is published on 9 July by Orenda Books.