SIMON SCARROW

‘Dead of Night is the second novel in my series following the cases of Inspector Horst Schenke of the Berlin Kriminalpolizei during the Second World War. Set during the bitter winter at the start of 1940, Schenke is called upon to investigate the death of a doctor and the fate of children sent to an isolated institution. At first the two threads appear unconnected, but when Schenke grasps the link he is pitched into the heart of one of the darkest secrets of the Nazi regime. ‘I’d like to say that I have a routine with respect to writing… but I don’t. I find it hard to break off from the research and it’s only when my editor calls to remind me of the deadline that I go into action. Not something it is wise to emulate. Having moved to Mauritius I am working with a local university to set up a new program. “Creative Writing as a Commercial Activity” starts from the basis that students aspire to make a living from writing rather than just focusing on the literary quality of their work. It’s an aspect that is overlooked in most existing courses. ‘I don’t like to over-plan novels as it robs the writing process of much of the excitement and surprise that I enjoy. The poet Robert Frost once remarked “No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise for the writer, no surprise for the reader.” That’s why my synopsis for a novel is rarely more than half a page long. I know where a book is going to be set. I know who their opponents will be and I know the challenge they must overcome. Everything else is up for grabs and quite often my characters will take things off in a very different direction to the one I anticipated. It’s delightful when that happens and points to the importance of authenticity in writing. Characters must act in a manner that is consistent with their identity and beliefs and the writer must have faith in those characters, even if they don’t do what the writer expects from time to time. ‘One of the mistakes made by aspiring writers is to mimic what seems to be selling well in the bookshops. The danger of this approach is that the market may well have moved on by the time they can complete a manuscript and find an agent. Also, trying to replicate someone else’s success undermines the authenticity of the writer. You have to write what YOU want to read and you have to write it in YOUR voice. Readers can tell if your heart is in your writing, or it isn’t. In the case of the latter, if the writer can’t be bothered to believe in their work, then why should the reader? Believe in your writing and you will become a better writer, and your readers will come to trust your writing and lose themselves in the story that set before them.’