ASK A LITERARY CONSULTANT
Pressing concerns
Helen Corner-Bryant highlights some of the questions put to her on a panel at the London Book Fair
Helen Corner-Bryant
I was lucky enough to participate in a virtual seminar at this year’s London Book Fair, titled Playing with Prose: Form, Character, Setting. My co-panellist was award-winning writer, Michael Arditti, who wears various hats as a playwright, journalist, and theatre critic. The seminar was hosted by TV and radio broadcaster Dan Simpson, who runs the Writer’s Routine podcast.
Michael revealed that he writes instinctively, without a predefined plan or structure; instead, he starts with an idea and builds on the characters to see where the story takes him. Of course, many successful writers use a similar method. We then discussed how a writer’s inner sense of structure influences the story, and can prevent the writing from veering too far off-piste. If you’re a writer who doesn’t have that inner radar, though, there are ways to look at your work diagnostically once the book’s been written. Ultimately, while you can’t teach talent, you can equip an author with tools to strengthen their work.