We recently posted about Martel Maxwell's upcoming novel, Scandalous, which is due for release on April 15th (click here for the synopsis!). Trashionista interviewed Martel about her debut novel, her inspirations and some insightful writing tips.Please describe your latest book in 15 words or fewer.
Can I quote Piers Morgan for show-off value? 'A waspish, funny, insightful portrayal of the mad, bad, hilarious world of Planet Showbiz.'
If not, my description - 'A romantic comedy that lifts the lid on London's showbiz scene.'
What inspired you to write Scandalous?
A friend introduced me to my agent with the words 'you should write a bonkbuster.' I wrote three chapters, my agent Diana thought it had legs, I trusted her so wrote the whole book. I started it on a beach in Kenya while on holiday with my mum. There's something about being somewhere hot and beautiful that frees the mind. The first few pages I wrote lovingly in longhand in my pink notebook pretty much stand as the opening scene in Scandalous. My showbiz reporting days on The Sun's Bizarre desk were (and I guess still are) so fresh, so the experiences flowed and I got lost in a world of fantasy and real memories. I've always been a writer - my first job was as The Sun's first graduate but I never thought I'd write a novel. The idea of penning so many words didn't appeal. But the moment I started, I realised it was what I'm meant to do.
Where do you write your books? (ie coffee shop, in bed...)
Everywhere and anywhere. I wake up and think 'where can I picture myself writing today?' If I'm hungry and crave eggs benedict from the Rivington, a restaurant in Greenwich, I toddle off with my laptop and drink five pots of tea and write. Thankfully the staff are lovely and know what I'm doing. When I visit my family in Broughty Ferry, near Dundee, mum pours me a glass of red or makes a pot of tea, puts on the log fire in Winter and I sit in the lounge for hours writing. I'm a bit of a nomad and love to party, so finding somewhere I feel totally relaxed is key - otherwise I'm distracted, thinking about phoning friends to go out or listening to music which I love. I have to have total silence to concentrate fully. I travel between Scotland and London lots by train. So long as it's not too busy, I love tapping away on my laptop for hours, stopping to watch the countryside whiz by. I'm always inspired when I travel somewhere beautiful but that's an annual treat..for now!
What is your favourite chick-lit book?
Does it sound like a cliché to say Jilly Cooper's Riders? Well, it's true so I guess it doesn't matter. I loved everything about it. I read it when I was very young and while I've enjoyed great chick lit books, nothing's surpassed that for sheer naughtiness, cleverness and daring. It's a classic. I only recently found out she penned the first version in 1970 and left it on a bus. Now that's a bad day. It took her over a decade to start it again and so many women are so glad she did. I'd love to go back to it and see what I think of it now. In fact, that's just what I'll do. I don't know if I'm your normal chick lit reader. Yes I'm a fan but I love dark, funny, weird novels that take you out of the banal - Irvine Welsh is a favourite and you definitely couldn't class him as chick lit. I don't like my chick lit too frothy.
Who is your favourite heroine, and why?
I thought about this for a long time. My first instinct was Anne Shirley in Anne of Green Gables. I tried desperately to think of another more grown up heroin so you'd think me sophisticated but I'm sticking with Anne because she meant something to me, affected me most. I read the novel by Lucy Maud Montgomery when I was 12 or 13. Mum had loved it when she was young and was sure I would. She was right. Not only did I learn fabulous new words which impressed my English teacher, I read about a girl with red hair who was a rather naughty but well-meaning. That was me! I identified with her and loved her. She made me see an adventurous soul is a beautiful thing. I like to think my female characters, like Max in Scandalous, are like adult Annes but have never lost their spirit and still have a wild streak.
What part of Scandalous was the most fun to write?
Being Lady Bridget Beames was thrilling. She's the badie in Scandalous and God is she bad. She's not a main character and you just get flashes of her throughout the book but I loved being her because she was so extreme. Dreaming up what utterly horrific thing she'd do next was great fun..because I'd like to think she's extremely far removed from my actual self but I guess we've all got a dark side and exploring that is very interesting. I loved being all the more minor, extreme characters like the kiss and tell girl Shagger Sheri and the Hollywood lothario Kirk Kelner. Being bad can feel very good, maybe because it's so different to real life. While I wrote as each character, I truly was them in my head so I took cocaine and had threesomes - and that's not something I do in real life!! Reliving what it was like to be a showbiz reporter as Max, my main character along with her half-sister Lucy, was fun too. It made me realise I had a hell of a party as a showbiz writer for years. Sorry, that's not one part is it!
Do you have any tips for readers who would like to become published authors?
Finish it. So many people want to write/have started writing/are writing novel or book. The thing that separates you from so many is completing it. You hear these fairytale stories of people writing three chapters and being given an advance that will keep them in Crème de la Mer for life. I fantasised about that happening to me but I'd wager that's pretty rare. Have something you are happy to submit in its entirety and you'll know you've given yourself the best shot possible. It must be a hell of a risk for a publisher to take a chance on you if you've only completed a fraction of your first book with no track record. I was lucky with my agent Diana because she had previously been an editor at a big publishing house for years, so she helped me understand how to make Scandalous read well - simple things like I used the word 'honey' too much, to describe colour, smell, as a term of affection. By trusting her Scandalous was in good shape by the time we sent it out. When writing, believe that what you are putting on the page is good - it's going to make someone laugh or cry or think. It is! Don't rush sending out - make sure you're happy with it and that you grab your reader by the balls in the first three chapters. I think editors make up their minds in the first few pages so make them count.
What are you currently reading?
I have a few friends with books out so I'm dipping in and out of them - it's the least you can do as a friend and I'm very proud of them. Like Venetia who's written non-fiction account of a year she spent in the City called Gross Misconduct - not my normal read but it's great. Fiction? I've just started Charming Man by Marian Keyes. I love her. She touches dark subjects others don't - sometimes with humour and always in a way that endears or touches. Finding out I was on the same label, Michael Joseph at Penguin, as Keyes, was one of the highlights of my career. The same publishing house as Marian Keyes and Jane Green? Are you having a laugh? Thankfully they weren't.
Are you working on anything else at the moment, and if so, can you tell us?
The second book. I'm three-quarters of the way through but going over what I've done to improve it before I carry on. I write a weekly opinion column for The Scottish Sun which I adore, I'm on Sky News regularly as a showbiz commentator and sometimes host events. I'm also working on not partying as much. That's what they call a work in progress!
Thanks, Martel!
To find out more about Martel and Scandalous, head on over to Martel Maxwell's website.
