Interview of J.C. Hall
by
Nancy Arant Williams (updated)
1. Tell us a little about J. C. Hall, so we can get to know you.
I’m a Canadian author currently writing in the fantasy genre. My first novel, Legends of the Serai, was published by Dragon Moon Press, and my second, Lady of the Lakes, is being re-released by Zumaya Otherworlds, the SF/F Imprint of Zumaya Publications. The House of Caerne, the sequel to Lady of the Lakes, will be released later this year (2007). The Reclining Dragon--the last instalment in the Silver Lakes trilogy, is a work-in-progress. My poems, all fantasy-themed, have been published by various online and print magazines. I also write non-fiction, mainly book and movie reviews as well as travel articles. They can be accessed from my website
I was born in Hong Kong and went to boarding-school in England as a teenager. I lived in England for more than 12 years, attending university in London and later working in the south-east of England. I then emigrated to Canada and lived and worked in beautiful Vancouver for 10 years before marrying and moving to Toronto where I now live with my husband Andy.
2. What inspired you to begin writing?
When I was a child, my dad would have novels lying about the house, anything from Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers to P.G. Wodehouse to Dashiell Hammett and Erle Stanley Gardner. I read my first Agatha Christie when I was eleven. It was Murder in Mesopotamia and I was determined to become an archaeologist. J In the meantime, I read voraciously.
I came upon fantasy much later in life but the works of Patricia A. McKillip, C. J. Cherryh and Judith Tarr delighted me and inspired me to try and write in the same genre. Lois McMaster Bujold is another favourite author. Hmmm...it’s an all-female list, but I guess I do prefer character-driven novels, and like to think that my own novels are strong on characterization.
3. Do you have anyone or that inspires or influences what you write?
I write for myself. I write what I would like to read. Having said that, I must admit to being extraordinarily lucky to have two ‘intelligent readers’ who have the unenviable task of wading through my early-draft manuscripts. They are my cover artist, Sans Talbot, and his girlfriend, Lori Daul, an English major who has an eye on an editing career. They give me incredibly good advice in all aspects of my novel-in-progress, from that all-important ‘hook’ to character development and plot inconsistencies. Lori is always on what she calls ‘melodrama alert’, which is invaluable when my characters get overwrought.
4. How many hours a day do you usually write?
I don’t have a time-table as such. I have a day-job which leaves me tired at the end of the day, so I tend to write, on average, only a couple of hours a day, if that. Most of my writing is done in bursts, usually when I have time off from work. The rest of the time, when I’m too tired to write, I edit what I’ve already written. As far as I’m concerned, there can never be too much fine-tuning. As someone paraphrased Edison: Writing is 10% getting that first draft written and 90% re-writing it.
5. Do you have a special place just for writing? If so, would you share it with us.
I write at home, on my lap-top, while lounging on the sofa. For my back's sake, I should really start thinking about getting a desktop and a proper chair with back support.
6. What’s your favorite part of being a writer?
The best time, for me, is when the writing is going well. Then everything else pales into insignificance. There’s just you and the story which is flowing through your fingers and you can’t even be bothered to stop and eat or put the heater on, and when you stop at the end of the day, you read through what you’ve written, and you know there’s not a lot to change (and you wonder why you’re cold and hungry). Being in that kind of creative ‘flow’ is, to me, the best part of being a writer.
7. Do you listen to music when you write? If so, what kind is your favorite?
Most of the time, I don’t listen to music when I write, but occasionally, if the mood moves me, I do put something on. Instrumental music works well for me, as anything with lyrics tends to be distracting, unless it’s in a language other than English. I’m rather partial to Sarah Brightman and Andrea Bocelli.
8. Do you have any hobbies?
I'm am avid scrapbooker, and Andy and I play a mean game of Scrabble. The two of us go to the gym 2-3 times a week as we've started participating in charity road races (mostly 5K but also the occasional 10K). When the weather's nice, we take the mountain bikes out and spend some time on the bike trail near where we live. I work out on a stability ball at home doing Pilates every morning. We’re thinking of picking up badminton again. Keeping fit is important to me and variety seems to work for us.
9. Do you have any favorite writing resources or books you would encourage new writers to read?
Renni Browne and Dave King’s ‘Self-Editing for Fiction Writers’ is essential reading for any aspiring fiction author. Also, my copies of ‘Beginnings, Middles and Ends’ by Nancy Kress and ‘Description’ by Monica Wood (both of the series ‘Elements of Fiction Writing’ by Writers’ Digest Books) are amazingly and rightfully dog-eared.
10. What would you say to beginning writers to encourage them?
I would say, Write what you want to read, especially if it’s not available out there. Then at least you’ll have one satisfied reader. Also, get that first draft out, no matter how unsatisfactory it might seem at first. The important thing is to tell the story. The technical stuff can be learnt as you re-write, and believe me, there’ll be plenty of that. But that first draft has to flow from your heart.