Remembering an author – and friend Writer Kate Saunders was “brilliantly silly”.
Kate Saunders was a novelist whose books include Five Children on the Western Front and The Land of Neverendings. Sadly she died in April last year, a few days after she finished the final edits of her last book, A Drop of Golden Sun.
Alice Swan worked with Saunders as her editor for 16 years. “Kate made me cry with laughter,” Swan told The Week Junior. “Sometimes her jokes would be so naughty I had to edit them out.” Swan also said Saunders was “brilliantly silly”.
This final novel, which is set in 1973, is about an ordinary girl called Jenny who is cast in a major musical film. It follows Jenny and her co-stars as they go to France for filming, and spend a few months in a glamorous castle with famous actors.
Saunders herself was a child actor. “It was a world she understood,” said Swan. “She wanted to share the excitement of being on stage, the drama of it.” Swan also added that the book “feels like a gift, I am really excited to share it.”
As an editor, Swan’s job is different from that of an author. The author has the idea and creates something out of it, then the editor checks the text and makes sure it’s polished and well-written. “It’s all about trust,” said Swan, “because the author must trust that the editor wants to help and can make a difference.” If you want to become an editor one day, Swan advises practising with a friend who writes. “You can be their partner,” she said. “Use the analytical part of your brain and offer to read their writing.” Saunders was Swan’s friend, as much as she was one of her authors. She said, “She taught me what good writing is. I never tire of her writing. Her books are so comforting, so joyful.”