Ten questions with Heather Darwent
Heather Darwent’s “deviously plotted” (Publisher’s Weekly) debut is perfect for lovers of dark academia, dangerous friendships and Donna Tartt’s The Secret History (one of my all-time favorite novels!).
1. Please tell us about your debut novel.
My debut novel is called The Things We Do To Our Friends, and it’s about a girl called Clare who moves to Edinburgh to study at university, seeing it as a fresh start and a chance to reinvent herself. There she meets an enigmatic group of rich, charismatic students, and she’s immediately keen to befriend them. However, not all is as it seems, and Clare is drawn into their unusual business. As things get darker and darker, she tries to extricate herself, but this will be difficult, because they know what she did...
2. I’ve read that only 4% of the people who start a novel, finish writing it. Why do you think you beat the odds?
That’s an interesting stat! I’m not sure I could say why I beat the odds as such but what I would say is it’s a marathon not a sprint, so it does take a long time and not all of it is necessarily enjoyable. I didn’t enjoy writing all of the scenes. Some were hard, and some were a joy, and sometimes it’s an absolute slog. There were plenty of times where I wanted to give up because I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to tie all the threads together. I found once I got to the end things were so much easier – taking it apart and reworking it was really satisfying.
3. Was your debut novel the first book you wrote? (Any prior efforts hiding on your hard drive?)
It was the first long form piece I’d written, but it took a lot of redrafting – more redrafts than I can count!
4. What helped you become a better writer? Any books or resources you found helpful?
I did some courses with Curtis Brown Creative and they were really helpful and gave me some much-needed confidence. In terms of craft books, my favourite is Stephen King’s On Writing. I’ve read it a few times and I love the mix of memoir and craft.
5. What was your process like getting an agent?
I actually met my agent through an online pitching event which was really good. DHH Literary were running these Zoom pitching sessions, and I got selected for one. I then got around ten minutes to pitch my book to Emily Glenister who was a newly promoted agent. I really liked this approach as it’s quite different to querying via email and allowed me to get a sense of what she was looking for. Afterwards, she requested my full manuscript, and she offered representation shortly afterwards.
6. How did you celebrate when you learned your book would be published?
I didn’t do anything particularly exciting. I think I sat on the sofa and drank some champagne. It was all quite a lot to take in at the time!
7. What was the most exciting moment involving the publication of your debut novel? (The moment you first saw the cover? The call when you learned when it was being published? When you cashed your advance check?)
Honestly, I think it might be before that – getting an agent. Before that not many people had read the book, and they were mainly family members, so I didn’t have good steer on whether it had a market, but my agent was so enthusiastic and that was possibly the most exciting call. Getting the deal was also a really exciting moment too. Maybe those two are joint tied!
8. What’s your best advice for someone who wants to be published?
Two pieces I think:
1. Read lots in different genres
2. Think about how you’re going to use social media so it a) doesn’t take over your life and b) doesn’t make you miserable… easier said than done I’ve found!
9. What are you currently reading? Or, what's one of the best novels you've read lately?
I’m reading Hell Bent – the sequel to Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo which I’m loving. Apart from that, I’ve been lucky enough to read lots of books that come out this year.Some of my favourites include Grave Expectations by Alice Bell – really fun cosy crime but make it millennial [Editor’s note: Grave Expectations isn’t out in the US until September but it looks like you can pre-order] and Tell Me How This Ends by Jo Leevers which is really uplifting and funny. [Editor’s note: this book will be released in the US in May but is available for pre-order.] I’m looking forward to the next read on my list – Dazzling by Chikọdili Emelumadu.
10. What are you working on now? Any projects coming out soon?
I’m working on something else in the same genre, but that’s all I can say at the moment!