The Silenced Blog Tour: Q&A with Stephen Lloyd Jones
You know that moment when you open up a first page and you start going yes...yesss...even if someone has just been brutally murdered, I was completely drawn in. It was tense, and you're kind of holding your breath for that whole first chapter. I was also very drawn to Mallory, you wanted to fight alongside her and you were cheering her victories. You also quickly realise that there is something deeper and darker to this attack, its not random, its been planned and someone is coming for Mallory HARD! Buy why?! All these questions start to pop up but instead of answers you were completely taken away into Obe's narrative and you're constantly left wanting more as their stories evolve over the course of the book. His vibe was very different, they were like a ying and yang initially, but I liked his character and the balance it brought. And every character has a secret...dun dun dunnn so it was fun to be able to explore these characters and their darker sides as well.
It was a very descriptive book, which can sometimes annoy me but here it enhanced the reading, you really got a feel of place and situation and the stories behind the character. It felt like a TV drama, and that in my books is a good thing.
This is one of those Sunday afternoon books, where you;d sit down in a comfy armchair, or in a couple of months sat on the beach for an afternoon and get completely engrossed in a book, loosing the world around you for a day and I love when that happens!
As we all know I have a curious mind, so I wanted to get behind the book so I asked Stephen five questions about his writing style and influences and you can check out his responses below:
1) What is your writing style like?
Have to confess, this question completely suckered me. Describing any author's individual style is a difficult task. Turning the focus inward is even more challenging.
I’d like to think my writing is pretty visceral, by which I mean it reaches out to all the senses. When it comes to story, I like to reveal plot slowly, as if I’m unearthing something half-buried. At first you only glimpse a tiny corner, but it intrigues enough to keep you digging. Only much later do you see the whole thing, which might not be at all what you first expected.
Re-reading the above, I’m not sure whether I’ve answered the question . . .
2) What have been your literary influences?
Growing up, it was all Tolkien, H.G Wells, Robert Louis Stevenson, Dean Koontz, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Stephen King. I’m also a big fan of Louis de Bernières, Robert Harris, Joe Hill and Robin Hobb.
More recently, I’ve been dipping into works by the classic Roman historians: Tacitus, Suetonius etc. I’d intended to teach myself Latin and read them as originally written, a grandiose plan that got as far as making coffee and browsing for second-hand textbooks on Ebay. In the end I settled for translations – I absolutely suck at foreign languages, as my progress on Duolingo French attests.
By the way, if you haven’t come across Catullus, you should really check him out. Reading his short poems, usually concerning people he despises or wants to sleep with, is like reaching back two thousand years and connecting with someone’s everyday experience. A quick warning: some of his stuff’s so explicit that English translations weren’t available until relatively recently.
3) Is there a piece of writing advice you'd give your younger self?
Write the story you’d want to read, in a way you’d want to read it. Ignore the stuffy English lecturer who sits on your shoulder and turns up his nose. Don’t censor yourself because of what family or friends might think; only by pleasing yourself will you have a chance at pleasing others. Oh, and stop procrastinating.
4) If you could swap lives with any fictional character for a day who would it be and why?
Bilbo Baggins, mainly for the pipe-weed and second breakfasts.
5) What do you want people to experience when they read one of your books?
When I read, I want to be entertained by a good story, peopled with characters I care deeply about. I want my emotions to be exercised and when it’s over, I want to feel a little sad that I’m saying goodbye. I know those are lofty ambitions for my own work, but at least that’s the goal. With THE SILENCED, particularly, I hope readers will grow as attached to Mallory and Obe as I did. Also, that they’ll enjoy considering the wider consequences of the book’s denouement.
The Silenced is out TOMORROW, grab your copy and don't forget to check out the other stops on the blog tour!
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