Everything Girl

There are authors who write in one genre their entire careers, and there are those who like to mix things up a bit. Recently, I had the opportunity to read a book by one of the latter kinds of authors, Lauren Henderson, who writes “tart noire” stories (sexy mysteries, basically), as well as chick-lit, and the non-fiction Jane Austen’s Guide to Dating, and with her most recent novel, Kiss Me Kill Me has broken into the young adult segment of the market. She was kind enough to take the time to answer some questions for me, which means I get the pleasure of sharing them with you.

After reading Lauren’s responses I can’t help but wondering if she talks the way she writes emails, because she’s made it feel like a conversation, and I have to say, I’ve never met anyone who uses dashes as much as I do!

Our conversation lasted so long, however, that we’ve split the interview into two parts. Here’s part one:

Please tell our readers a bit about you, and about your background?

I was born in London, and went first to a school in the countryside/London suburbs (called North London Collegiate) which is the model for Wakefield Hall in the book. Like Wakefield Hall, it was very academic and sheltered, so it was a total shock for me to go to St Paul’s Girls in Central London when I was 16. St Paul’s is the model for St Tabby’s in Kiss Me Kill Me, and it’s so sophisticated that our 6th form induction lecture was mainly taken up with the headmistress telling us firmly not to join model agencies before running it past her first. I was terrified.

There were two supermodels in our year, though one eventually was kicked out of her agency for being too thin - you can imagine how skinny that was! I still remember being able to see every single bone in her arms. There were plenty of divas, fashion obsessions, drugs, sex, clubs and bad behavior. Though I hated my time there, as it was incredibly intimidating, I certainly got a lot of good material for my YA books!

After St Paul’s, I went to Cambridge University to study English Literature, and then I was a music journalist in London before moving to Tuscany to write books. I wrote 7 books in my Sam Jones mystery series, about a badly-behaved girl sculptor who keeps stumbling across dead bodies. Then I moved to New York, and wrote 3 chick-lit novels (feeling like a bit of a change, and also some time off from the dead bodies) and a dating guide, Jane Austen’s Guide To Dating. I followed the rules in my own dating guide, and met my husband in NYC – moved back to London with him and two very fat cats two years ago, and we think we’ve settled in London for good. Obviously, I couldn’t stay away from mysteries forever, as I’m back writing mysteries again with the Scarlett Wakefield YA series!

“I found so much pleasure and comfort and security and excitement in reading stories, I wanted to start telling stories of my own and pass that pleasure on to other people.”

In what ways did your childhood influence you as a writer? As a person?

I was quite a loner, as I didn’t have an easy childhood – my parents fought constantly and made life at home very difficult. I retreated into books, and that’s definitely where my impulse to write comes from. I found so much pleasure and comfort and security and excitement in reading stories, I wanted to start telling stories of my own and pass that pleasure on to other people.

I think having to deal with two very difficult people as my parents certainly made me strong and independent, and it’s no surprise that my mystery heroines, Sam Jones and Scarlett Wakefield, are also very strong and independent – they have quite indestructible, almost super-heroine qualities in the sense that they refuse to acknowledge defeat, which is a quality that I really admire (and have a little bit of myself). My sister would just call it insane stubbornness, but I think ‘indomitable’ sounds better – well, I would, wouldn’t it?

Most writers are also avid readers. What authors most influenced you? What did you read as a child? What are you reading these days? Is there a favorite book or author you want to share with us?

Oh, blimey, I could go on for ever with my favorite authors! When I was a teenager I loved historical stories: Geoffrey Trease, Rosemary Sutcliff, Georgette Heyer. They’re probably very old-fashioned now - they were probably old-fashioned then! – but it was wonderful to escape into a different world and learn about the past while reading a fantastic story. I have a lot of crime writer and chick-lit and literary author friends whose books I love, and edited an anthology called Tart Noir with some of my favorites (warning: some of the stories are very dark and sexy and/or violent, so not suitable for young readers). I share a website, www.tartcity.com, with my friend Stella Duffy, whose books I love. My ultimate heroine is Modesty Blaise, from the books written by Peter O’Donnell – she really is a super-heroine and can cope with every situation life throws at her.

Has writing always been your passion? When did you first realize you’d written something good?

It’s definitely always been my passion – I was trying to write Regency romances from the age of 11. I really hope I never find those old notebooks because I’d be quite embarrassed to read them now. For some reason, I was obsessed with counting how many words I’d written and I would write in a big notebook and count the words in every single line – that sounds so OCD, doesn’t it?

I think the first time I realized I’d written something good was my first good short story, because short stories are easier to control than novels. But I was amazed when my first novel, Dead White Female, was accepted. Absolutely amazed. I think I’d have paid them to publish it.

Many of our readers are also writers, who are curious about the business of writing. Tell us about getting your first book published?

“I also was part of a writers’ group for a couple of years, which I would really recommend to everyone as it really helped develop my writing.”

I entered a competition to find a new female crime writer, and though I didn’t win, one of the judges was a literary agent and asked to read the full m/s of the book (I’d submitted sample chapters). She gave me good notes, but didn’t end up representing me. Still, her notes enabled me to cut the book and sharpen the plot, and I then sent it off to a girl I’d been at university with, who was working as an editor. My book, Dead White Female, was her first purchase – and the first book in my Sam Jones series. She paid me practically nothing, but having a publishing deal enabled me to get an agent, which was a huge step too. Basically, I kept pushing, and I used all the contacts I had. I also was part of a writers’ group for a couple of years, which I would really recommend to everyone as it really helped develop my writing.

Did you keep a diary or journal when you were a kid? How about today? Do you blog?

Never kept a diary. To be honest, I wouldn’t have trusted my mum not to read it. And I would love to blog – I have a MySpace page, www.myspace.com/mslaurenhenderson, and I want to start blogging there, but I’ve been so busy writing Kisses and Lies, the sequel to Kiss Me Kill Me, that by the time I’ve finished writing for the day my brain is wiped and all I can do is lie on the sofa and watch “America’s Next Top Model…”

Writing can be extremely solitary. How does a social life fit in? Tell us about making friends within the publishing industry?

Ooh, I was really lucky starting out, and I didn’t realize it. I began by writing 7 mystery novels, and the crime writing community is very friendly and welcoming. So I was taken under the wing of Val McDermid, a very successful crime writer, from the moment I did my first book signing – she was signing at the same bookshop – and made a lot of crime writer friends who were a great support to me, especially Stella Duffy, one of my best friends (as is her lovely wife Shelley, a playwright).

Then, when I started writing chick-fic – romantic comedy – I met people like Sophie Kinsella, Chris Manby, Jenny Colgan, Lisa Jewell, Sarah Mlynowksi, Mike Gayle, and we ended up forming a group of chick-fic and lad-lit writers who talk and email each other all the time, as a support group (because writing can be really solitary) and also as friends. I feel incredibly lucky to have all these friends, because it does make a huge difference and help to balance out the loneliness of being at home all day writing and not seeing anyone!

Many of our readers struggle with balancing their creative needs and the rest of their lives. How do you do it? Walk us through a typical day in the life of Lauren Henderson?

Get up, drink coffee. Put on sweatpants and nasty old t-shirt. Go to the computer. Write or edit. Often don’t have breakfast or lunch or eat anything till about 2ish, which is a really bad habit – as is forgetting to wash my face or brush my teeth till quite late in the morning! I’m sure the postman thinks I’m some kind of sad shut-in loony. By about 2 I surface, eat something, feeling like my brain’s been wiped, and then go out for a long walk or an exercise session. Sitting around so much in the morning means I really need to do something physical in the afternoon. I’ve done yoga, Pilates, running, trapeze, gymnastics, and pole-dancing classes for years and years. I like to mix up my exercise, but my favorites are trapeze and gymnastics because they’re so exciting. I also like being strong – knowing I can climb a 30ft rope, or hang upside down off a pole, or hang off a bar and swing myself around is very satisfying to me.

In the evenings I’ll hang out with my husband or go out to see friends. I always dress up when I go out, because of spending the day in ratty sweatpants or exercise clothes. I had drinks with the features editor of Cosmopolitan magazine last week – I do a lot of articles for Cosmo in the UK – and she teased me because I was really dressy and made-up and had made such an effort. I pointed out that it’s because I spent all day slobbing around, and she said that it’s the same with all of her freelancers – they all really dress up when they come out for drinks with her.

The interview with Lauren Henderson will continue in the next issue of All Things Girl. Meanwhile, check the blog both for the review of Kiss Me Kill Me, and for a way to get a free copy of it to read yourself, or pass on to a young adult in your life.

Melissa A. Bartell earns her living by writing articles for an SEO marketing firm, and dabbles in essays and fiction on the side. She lives near Dallas, TX with her husband, two dogs, and more computers than anyone really needs. She is the Senior Editor here at All Things Girl. Find out more about her on our About Page. You can find her at her blog as well as other places here and there.

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