Lunch with friends and a gossip today...well a girl has to get inspiration for her new books from somewhere!
Ok so that's not strictly true. I don't use the nuggets of gossip or pieces of information that is gathered about friends' lives in such a direct way but I guess I do glean things from them.
Every piece of gossip that is dissected over the pub table is analysed - not just for my own reaction but for the reaction of others to it and it is that which I tend to use in my books.
For me, the greatest turn-off in a book is when a character seems cardboard, when they don't react in a way that is natural to them. And by that I don't mean react to the situation in the same way that I might but rather react in the exact way that he or she should, with his or her own personality traits, background and history.
So listening to friends coo and gasp, interject and explain is a fascinating experience for me and one which cannot fail to provide a deeper understanding into the psychology of human nature.
Or at least that's what I am telling myself as this week, very little editing is being done and a whole lots of socialising is taking place instead.
But hey its research isn't it? And anyway who's round is it now?
:) Happy reading!
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