Aly’s Comments (group member since Oct 06, 2009)

Aly’s comments from the Q&A with Aly Monroe group.

This Q&A group ends on 5th November - which is also the official publication date of Washington Shadow.

I'd like to thank you both, Richard and Mark, for engaging with me on this, and for your interesting contributions. I shall leave the remaining time for any questions or comments you - or anyone else - may have for me.

Agatha Christie was, as you say, writing puzzle novels. Character was not her point. I'm sure you have heard the line that she hypnotised readers with about eight threads in her stories. The readers become engrossed in following the individual threads and fail to see the solution. An ingenious sleight of hand. And, as you say, very successful.

But I am going further back, and wider, than Agatha Christie. Psychological truth has always been there in great fiction. It is not new. There are a lot of examples. Think of Macbeth - or Hamlet (one of the first detectives according to some). And I do believe that plot arises from character. As you will be aware, it is not a new thought!

But perhaps you mean that it has become fashionable recently in crime fiction. That is the problem with thinking in terms of genre.

Welcome to the group, Kristine! I shall look forward to reading your comments and questions.

Richard - Perhaps you hadn't realised that Mark is in the USA, - hence his question - so the local independent bookshop solution does not apply - as yet.

Interesting, Mark.I shall certainly bear that in mind!
I don't know what Richard would say to you, but I suspect The Book Depository are the best bet for you - free shipping anywhere in the world, and they have the books on a launch discount.

New line of thought: Writers are often asked how the idea for a book or their characters came to them. Do you think this enhances your enjoyment when reading?

Richard: I had forgotten that you are in the book selling business!
Packaging a writer's work in a particular genre,the choice of book jackets, tag lines and so on, is all to do with the publishers and book sellers, not the writers.
I would also like to point out that most writers of any kind are far from beiong media personalities.
Psychological truth in characters? Surely that has always been essential.

A bit of a gap in replying to your comments - it's been a busy week.

You're absolutely right, Mark. The circumstances of the time and the place provide the environment, but the invented characters and story (which of course are products of that environment!) are what the enjoyment is all about.

As a reader, if the invented characters and story don't work, no amount of historical accuracy can compensate for that.

As a writer, I am interested in how the circumstances to be found in a particular place at a particular time affect individuals and the society they live in, because this is the starting point for my characters and stories.

Your rocking chair sounds wonderful. I'm sure it has a great literary history.

Richard: I agree that the Booker short list is interesting in that almost all of the books are historical - which would have been impossible not too many years ago. I don't feel qualified to draw conclusions about this - I have been busy writing and have as yet not read Hilary Mantel's winning book, Wolf Hall, or indeed any of the other books on the list. It may be that readers' tastes are changing - or that publishers perceive books with a historical setting as more commercial in today's market and therefore publish more of them. I don't know. What do you think?

It's interesting to hear you say that, Richard. I feel the same. My books are novels - not biographies or histories. Each one tells a fictional story of what Cotton experiences in a politically/historically pivotal place and time, which I endeavour to portray as accurately as possible. So obviously, in both books, there is mention of people and events that existed. In the second book, set in Washington, there are quite a few real people mentioned - Donald MacLean, J. Edgar Hoover - even Roald Dahl (though not by name)and others. But they are always off stage, or brefly glimpsed out of the corner of your eye. All the speaking parts are purely fictional. It's something that I did instinctively.It became policy when it was pointed out to me! For me,and the books I am writing, to put words into real people's mouths makes them seem false. The characters feel real when they are completely fictional. They are the true protagonists of the books. And by the way, I'm in favour of pedants! I hope I'm one myself if it means being accurate.

First, I've put Mystery and Thrillers as the category for this Q&A, but the Peter Cotton series is probably better described as historical espionage. The Maze of Cadiz is set in 1944 in Spain, and Washington Shadow is set in 1945, shortly after the end of the war.
You can take a look at my website (www.alymonroe.com)for more information, so I won't go into that here.

I propose to lead this discussion by posing a number of issues for you to respond to - and, of course, I do hope you will pose others yourself. You are all readers and I am interested to hear what you think. It doesn't matter whether you have read The Maze of Cadiz or not. (Washington Shadow is not yet out)The discussion can relate to my novels, but also - I hope - to wider issues.
So let's begin. When writing a novel set in another time,any writer has to decide how to handle the history with the story. For example, how do you handle the characters who really existed with those that are purely fictional? The choices you make determine the nature and feel of the novel.
Any views or questions on this?

Hi Mark - Nice to hear from you. I believe, with Washington Shadow due out in a month's time, that approaches are being made to US publishers. In the meantime, as perhaps you have seen on my updated profile,I see that the Book Depository has free delivery world wide. This makes life a little easier for US buyers. In the meantime, feel free to ask me anything.