#002: Holly Bourne — How to Write Stories Readers Will Love

Apr 9, 2022

42:04

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Episode notes

There is something about Holly. If you look through the online reviews you’ll see comments like _‘there were times I felt Holly had climbed into my head’ and ‘I cried so much reading this_’. Her writing has the gift to connect to the reader – we explore this in the interview from her first book written on a 45 min commute, to overcoming imposter syndrome, why she thinks a writer should spend only 33% of their time writing and how writing fiction is the act of destroying the perfect idea you have in your head. Holly also talks us through her ideation process, how she uses psychology to get into her characters’ heads and her approach to marketing her work.

Holly Bourne has written 12 books over 7 years. She started her writing career as a news journalist, but after working with young people, was inspired to write teen fiction and won awards for her best-selling, award-winning ‘Spinster Club’ series. When she turned thirty, Holly wrote her first adult novel, How Do You Like Me Now about the intensified pressures on women once they hit that landmark. Her latest book Pretending has garnered praise from book reviewers, bloggers and authors Marian Keyes, and Dolly Alderton. Four of her books have now been optioned for film and TV.

Alongside her writing, Holly has a keen interest in women’s rights and is an advocate for reducing the stigma of mental health problems. She is an ambassador for Women's Aid and their Love Respect campaign, educating young people about healthy relationships.

SHOW NOTES

[02:18] Holly talks about her writing process and her coping mechanisms during lockdown

[04:23] How to be kind to yourself while writing in lockdown

[06:20] Having a hobby and doing other things apart from writing

[09:49] Holly’s journey from having a full-time job to becoming an author, and how she wrote her first book while commuting to work.

[13:18] How to overcome your imposter syndrome

[17:08] Why you should only spend 33% of your time writing

[18:37] Why the first draft is just like digging up a fossil

[20:02] How psychology helps in Holly’s writing

[22:36] How writing fiction is the act of destroying a perfect idea in your head

[24:43] Holly’s writing process, the need to have the first line, and doing extensive research before the actual writing

[29:56] On being authentic with yourself and asking the hard questions

[34:55] Holly talks about marketing her writing and doing promotions

QUOTES BY HOLLY

“Writing fiction is the act of destroying a perfect idea in your head…lots of people in this room have had that moment where they have this idea for a story or a character or a poem, screenplay, and they're so excited, and the temptation is to just leave it at that as this perfect unformed... once you start writing, it will never live up to the hype in your head. And then you might get a different idea or you might get bored of it, or you start having plot problems or characters...So it’s accepting the fact that you're going to completely ruin the best idea you ever had. But if you were that excited to begin with—if you were just buzzing when that idea land is, you've got to know that in the translation from head to work, there'll be enough of that. There will. You won't ever be able to get a hundred per cent, there'll be enough, and you cannot mend the blank page.”

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Holly Bourne

Twitter: @holly_bourneYA

Instagram: @hollybourneya

Facebook: Holly.BourneYA

The Science of Storytelling by Will Storr

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