I am delighted to announce that Angus Donald is the next author in the series.
As you may be aware I asked authors on my facebook page if they would like to appear in a series of *interviews*. I wanted to connect with other writers, find out what they write about, why they write, their thoughts about the writing process, their drives, and learn a little more about them.
Please find the full interview below (also linked to my twitter, tumblr, facebook, Goodreads, and google + account).
Please do share with your circle of book friends and leave me a like/comment - thank you.
Tell us about your first novel? When did you start writing and why?
My first novel was Outlaw, published by Sphere (an imprint of Little, Brown) in 2009. It was the first in an eight-book series with Robin Hood as one of the central characters. I wanted to write a book set in the Middle Ages and I was casting about for a suitable hero. I considered Richard the Lionheart for a while, but Robin Hood kept jumping out from the pages of whatever history book I was reading. So I picked him. However, I wanted to do something a bit different: I felt that Robin had been done so many times in books, TV and film that a fresh angle was required. I started to read the original ballads and a different character to the Errol Flynn persona began to emerge. The original Robin Hood is brutal, ruthless and not at all concerned with helping the poor financially. He is a trickster thief who thumbed his nose at authority. In one of the earliest ballads (Robin Hood and the Monk, c1450), his men kill a monk in revenge for informing on Robin to the sheriff. A small boy witnesses the murder of the monk, so Little John and Much the miller’s son kill the lad, too, to shut him up. I began to realise that Robin Hood and his men behaved much like modern gangsters – and I lightbulb went off over my head. I pitched the first book with the strap line: “Meet the Godfather of Sherwood”, and within a month or so I had a two-book deal with Sphere.
How many books have your written for the Outlaw Chronicles?
I’m just finishing up the eighth and final book, which is called The Death of Robin Hood and will be published in August 2016. Robin Hood has aged and mellowed a bit from his brutal, gangster-ish beginnings in Sherwood. He now has children and is the Earl of Locksley. But he still has plenty of bite.
Was it always going to be an 8 book series?
I didn’t really know how long it was going to be. I thought it might be a trilogy, then five books. But eight feels about right. And I am quite glad to have finished it. I’ve written one a year for eight years and I’m looking forward to writing something different. I may well come back to the series one day. I have four more Robin and Alan novels in my head that one day, although not very soon, I would like to write.
Ok, so what are you working on now?
As I say, I’m just wrapping up The Death of Robin Hood. I’ve written it, done the second draft and the copy edit, and I’m just writing the Historical Note. But I will be done with Robin Hood in a few days time and I’m now focussing on a fantasy trilogy with the working title of Lord of the Islands. It’s set in an imaginary but very Asian world, around the 18th century and concerns the struggle for the throne of the King of Singarasem, the Lord of the Islands. The elevator pitch would be Game of Thrones in Asia. And it contains a mash-up of all my favourite Asian tropes. It stars a Balinese warrior king, an icy Russian princess, a ruthless Indian merchant/spy, plus assorted slave traders, magic-wielding priests, Samurai warriors, kung fu monks, Malay pirates, mercenaries, opium-smokers . . . It’s is great fun to write but I haven’t got a publisher for the series yet. But it is early days. I’ve only written a few chapters.
Any future projects you'd are to tell us about?
I hope to get Lord of the Islands off the ground this year. And I have another big writing project, too, but that is top secret for the moment.
At what point in your writing career did you *secure* a literary agent?
I got an agent quite easily, within a week of sending out a few finished chapters and a proposal letter to various agencies. I got my first two-book deal a month later. I think I had a pretty easy ride. I know some people – brilliant writers – who really struggled to get an agent. It’s very much due to luck, I would say.
How long have you known them - describe your relationship?
I have a very good relationship with my agent. We have lunch a couple of times a year and communicate by email at least once a month. I doesn’t hold my hand when it comes to the actual writing (and I don’t want him to) but think he does a very good job when it comes to getting me deals. I see that as his job, to get me money.
Are you attending any future writing festivals or conventions?
Yes, I’ll be at History in the Court in June, which is an event arranged by Goldsboro Books in Cecil Court, London. A bunch of historical novelists will be, there meeting readers and signing books. I’m also going to be at the Historical Novel Society conference in Oxford in September, probably doing a panel or a talk or something, I haven’t sorted out the details yet. I should probably do more of this sort of thing but it is quite time-consuming.
Going back to your Outlaw Chronicles, who is your favourite character?
Apart for the main characters, I really like Hanno. He is a murderous Bavarian man-at-arms, shaven head, wickedly dangerous and brutally direct. He appears in King’s Man and Warlord (books 3 and 4 of the Outlaw Chronicles). He teaches Alan Dale, the true hero of the series, how to fight and how to move stealthily in darkness.
Like me, you adore the Robin Hood legend, but when did the fascination start?
I wouldn’t say I adored the Robin Hood legend. I enjoyed the stories as a child and I loved the 1938 Errol Flynn film but my books are less about Robin Hood and more about the history of the time. I’ll admit that I adore history, and I find the medieval period particularly fascinating. In truth, Robin Hood is not the hero of my books. The hero and narrator is Alan Dale, Robin’s sworn man. Because the books are written in the first person (Alan Dale as an old man recalling his youthful adventures), when Alan is sent off on a mission by his lord to, say, Germany or Normandy, sometimes Robin Hood disappears from the story for large chunks of the book. The books are, in fact, about the politics and warfare of the age, and about the relationship between Alan and Robin. For example, my most recently published book The King’s Assassin (out in hardback in June 2015, out in paperback June 2016), deals with the English baron’s rebellion in the run-up to Magna Carta, with my fictional heroes Robin and Alan playing their parts to bring King John to the table at Runnymede.
I will always try to visit the actual places (historical) at the same time of year. I think it's very important to do that. Not always possible, of course, but have you visited any of the places linked to Robin Hood?
I’ve been to Nottingham and Sherwood Forest, of course. And I’ve been to the Loxley Valley near Sheffield twice, where Robin’s fictional castle is. (It’s a real Norman motte and bailey castle in the village of High Bradfield, which used to be called Kirkton.) But as the books take place in a lot of different countries sometimes my finances don’t permit me to go there. However, I did go to Israel, Cyprus and Sicily for Holy Warrior, which is about the Third Crusade. And I’ve been to Normandy several times, Bavaria and Paris, too, for the parts of the stories that take place there. To be honest, after the first book, not much of the action takes place in England.
Do you believe that there was a historical figure that truly was Robin Hood? Or has it all just been fiction?
I think it’s all fiction, I’m afraid. There might once have been a man called Robert or Rob or Robin who lived outside the law and had a certain notoriety. But I doubt we would recognise him as the Robin Hood we know and love. He is an entirely created hero, but none the worse for that.
Where can readers find your books?
Most big bookshops have a few paperback copies of my books on the fiction shelves. Sometimes they have the latest hardback for a few weeks after publication. And Asda usually has the paperback for a couple of weeks after publication, too. But the bookshops almost never have all of my books in stock – although you can always ask at the till and they will order books for you. Your best bet is Amazon or other online retailers. I know a lot of people in the industry complain about Amazon and their business tactics but I find that they deliver my books to people all over the world, cheaply, quickly and efficiently, so I don’t have a problem with them at all.
Which authors have enthralled you?
I used to be a big Bernard Cornwell fan. I loved the Sharpe books and his Arthurian trilogy, but I’ve gone off him a bit since then. I got bored with the Uthred series after the fourth book. The plots all seemed to be exactly the same. To be honest I don’t read very much historical fiction these days. Since I started writing it, I have lost my enjoyment of it as a fan. It’s a bit of a busman’s holiday. Although, I do still re-read George Macdonald Fraser’s novels for the umpteenth time. But he is in a class of his own. I have also been reading a quite a bit of fantasy, recently: Joe Abercrombie and Mark Lawrence, to name but two. I also like Lee Child. But the reading I do these days is mostly history books, for research purposes.
What writer or book would you say has had the biggest influence on your work?
It would have to be Bernard Cornwell. I think his Arthurian trilogy, The Warlord Chronicles, is by far his finest work and I have read and re-read them half a dozen times. I may have unconsciously copied his style in the Outlaw Chronicles.
So what book are you currently reading?
I’m reading McAuslan in the Rough by George Macdonald Fraser. I love his Flashman books, but this lightly fictionalised stories about his time as a young officer in the Gordon Highlanders is magical and very funny. I’d love to be able to write as well as him.
Where do you read mostly?
I mostly read on the bed in the afternoons, which can be a problem because I often fall asleep. But, in my sixth decade, I have come to really appreciate the naps. If I have to do some serious, must-stay-awake reading, I sit at my office desk to do it.
How many books do you read a month, would you say?
Ten, maybe. Depends on whether I’m writing flat-out to finish a book before the deadline. If that is the case, maybe only two or three.
Where do you do your writing?
I have a small office above the garage. It’s uninsulated and so very cold in winter and boiling in summer. But it is my own space in a house with a wife, an au pair and two energetic small children. It’s my man cave and I can’t imagine writing anywhere else.
How many hours a day do you write?
Actual writing or just faffing about on the computer during writing hours? I get to my desk by about 8am and work till 1pm. I make lunch for myself and the au pair, then I read in the afternoon (or nap!) till about 4pm, when I return to the office and do another couple of hours work. How much of that time is actual writing? Probably about four hours. The rest is Facebook, Twitter and other time-wasting internet stuff.
Do you have an assistant?
No, I couldn’t really afford one.
Do you agree with the statement: write about what you know?
No. If that were true people would only write those painful first novels about their difficult childhood, growing up in Surrey/Skegness with boring upper/lower/middle class parents. How they didn’t make it into the chess club. Or were picked last at football. Why nobody understood them. I say write about what you don’t know. I knew almost nothing about the Middle Ages when I decided to write about them. Then I stared to do my research – because that is the fun part of writing, finding out stuff you didn’t know, that you hope will delight and interest your readers. I would however say only write about something that you have come to know thoroughly.
What challenges do you face when writing? Are you easily distracted?
Hell, yes. I have to turn off my email otherwise I’d never get anything done. And it takes me ages to buckle down to writing (Facebook, Twitter etc). But when I am in the zone and writing, I find it hard to stop. Even to have a pee or get another cup of coffee. I really like being in that trance-like, almost spiritual state when all that exists is you and your words on the page.
What has surprised you most about writing?
I’m constantly surprised by what my mind throws up when I am writing. It’s a cliche to say that your characters begin to speak for themselves, but they do. And when the words are flowing, it really feels like some other person is channeling words through your fingertips and the keyboard and on to the screen. I can see why the Ancient Greeks believed in the Muses, external beings who gave you inspiration to create.
What are the best and worst things about being a writer?
The best thing is being your own boss. I decide what I’m going to write, then I write it. And the job is a real pleasure: I think that’s the secret of life, to love what you do. I spent many years working for other people, doing stuff I didn’t enjoy just to get a pay packet, so I feel really privileged to be allowed to do this for a living. The worst thing about being a writer is the financial uncertainty. Even successful authors get paid a lot less than they used to, and the average salary for an author, according to a 2015 survey, is £11,000 per year. I know that if I don’t continue to get publishing deals, in a couple of years this delightful lifestyle will end and I’ll be back in the rat race.
What is the most exciting experience you've had as a result of writing?
I think it must be seeing massive posters of my first book Outlaw at the railway station and on the Tube. I felt like I’d arrived.
How do you market your books?
The publisher does some marketing, sending out press releases to newspapers and stuff like that, and I try to promote them myself on Twitter and Facebook. But I don’t do nearly enough to push the books and I feel constantly guilty about that. Mostly, I just hope kind people will tell their friends they’ve enjoyed one of my novels and word is spread like that.
What do you like doing when you aren't writing?
I have two small children (son Robin, 4 and daughter Emma, 7) and so I don’t do much beyond writing and other work-related stuff (research, editing, tax, etc) and family life. But I like walking in the countryside and I occasionally go to the pub.
Do you watch TV? If so, what programmes?
Who doesn’t watch TV? I like historical drama, to which we Brits seem addicted. Although I thought War & Peacewas boring; and although I watched one episode of The Last Kingdom, I couldn’t be arsed to watch any more of them. Recently, I watched series 1 & 2 of Peaky Blinders, which was brilliant. I like Poldark, Downton Abbey,Strictly – all the mainstream weekend fodder. I like a bit of Scandi Noir, too. And Netflix has widened my horizons: I binge-watched Sense8 last year and Orange is the New Black. And I’m also a big fan of US sitcoms: love Friends, even watching an episode for the millionth time, and I like The Big Bang Theory, too.
Your favourite films?
No1 is The Godfather, obviously. I like Daniel Craig’s James Bond movies, too. I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy. But thought The Hobbit wasn’t great. Actually, I felt it was taking the piss, a bit. Milking a cash cow. I don’t go to the cinema much these days, it’s too expensive and I find the seats a bit uncomfortable. Also I usually eat too much foyer crap and feel slightly ill afterwards. I prefer to get the DVD six months later or watch in on TV in due course.
Do you own an e-reader?
I can read books on my iPad. But I don’t. It’s too heavy to hold in one hand when I’m lying on my back in bed. I prefer paper books, for all sort of reasons. I’m glad that they are still with us, and I think they always will be.
What's your favourite season and why?
Spring’s my favourite. It is full of the promise of a long happy summer and it comes after the dreary slog of winter.
Have events in your own life made their way into your stories?
My few months as a war correspondent in Afghanistan was very useful for describing the sensation of facing combat in the books. I was at the battle of Tora Bora and terrified quite a lot of the time but also incredibly exhilarated after I came away from the battlefield unhurt. I saw quite a lot of death, blood and body parts too. And I have used every youthful punch-up I ever had (very few) and, as I spent a year and a half being more-or-less a tramp in Europe, I sometimes make use of the memories of sleeping rough and being very cold and hungry, although that was quite a long time ago and memories fade.
Lastly, what advice can you give to other writers?
Don’t write novels, write for TV. That’s where the money is.
Don’t give up the day job if you have a mortgage or rent to pay.
Don’t expect to get rich.
Don’t give up on your dreams. It can be the greatest job in the world.
Thank you for agreeing to feature as an author in this series.
To connect with Angus please visit his website:
http://www.angus-donald.com
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