Thriller Women

So I wondered: how far would a person go, morally and medically, to conceive? What sacrifices might they be prepared to make, or what rules to break, to have their own healthy biological child? And what might the repercussions be?


TW: Do you think that the Covid-19 pandemic has increased readers' appetites for speculative fiction?

ES: The Waiting Rooms was launched after the first national lockdown and my experience was that people fell into two camps: they either wanted to read every novel they could about plagues and pestilence or they wanted to flee to romance and comedy!

I do think the sheer speed and scale of the pandemic and other frightening world events have made people realise that crises normally reserved for fiction really can happen. So yes, I think the pandemic has attracted a broader audience to speculative fiction, and I also think it has increased the depth of engagement with speculative ideas.


TW: What's your personal view on genetic engineering?

ES: Well, as I say in the book, I’ve been enthralled by the rapid advances in genetics that have enabled us to decipher our biological code, helping us tackle new viruses like Covid-19, as well as preventing incurable diseases such as Huntington’s. But I am equally apprehensive about other applications of this technology, such as making decisions about how our future babies might look and grow, and the widely-differing opinions and values being deployed to guide those.

History shows we are often ill-equipped to understand the longer term consequences of our scientific ambitions or prevent their malevolent manipulation: for example computing or nuclear power. And it is these unintended impacts and ethical pitfalls that I wanted to explore in Off Target.


TW: What was your road to publication?

ES: Long and winding! I clawed my way out of the slushpile after countless rounds of edits and weathering my fair share of rejections. I think the turning point was when I got shortlisted for the Bridport Prize First Novel Award in 2017 for The Waiting Rooms, which gave me the confidence to keep going.
I would encourage all aspiring writers to enter competitions, because it really can help your path to representation. 

The following summer, I got my agent: Harry Illingworth at DHH and then the summer after that I signed with Karen at Orenda Books. And then it really, actually happened: The Waiting Rooms was published in 2020!


TW: You signed a two book deal. Was Off Target harder or easier to write than The Waiting Rooms and what were the joys and challenges?

ES: I wouldn’t say Off Target was any easier to write than The Waiting Rooms. Off Target had less rounds of edits, because I had already got my agent and publisher, but you still have to come up with a compelling idea, you need to put in the work to research it and then you have to craft a gripping plot that makes sense and comes together beautifully at the end!

In both books I loved creating the details of my chosen world. For Off Target, that meant thinking about all the different ways genetics could infiltrate our daily lives, and then working out how those changes might affect the plot and character development. I also love the way some characters just take on an impetus of their own, like Carmel. She just raced off the keyboard and added a level of humour that I hadn’t intended at the start.

My challenge is always not going down research rabbit holes and getting carried away… In this case, putting enough science in about genetics to be credible without overburdening the reader or slowing down the plot.  had to do some fairly ruthless edits!

TW: If you didn't write thrillers which other genre would you like to have a stab at?

ES: Maybe humorous women’s fiction. Or hard-core sci-fi!


TW: What are your two top tips for writers?

Number 1:  Don’t give up. I know it’s a cliché but it’s the most important rule. And to support that, get yourself a writing tribe so you can encourage each other during the highs and lows. As I mentioned earlier, enter competitions: a longlisting or shortlisting really boosts confidence and looks great on a cover letter.

Number 2: Listen to feedback about your writing that you get on the journey, from other writers, from rejections (if you’re lucky enough to get feedback!) but don’t let it sway you from your core idea if that’s what you are passionate about. Remember you are in control of the kind of writer you want to be, and it’s no good pretending to be something you’re not just to follow a trend: it will show.


TW: What's next for you in your career?

ES: Well, I hope a few more book sales in a few more countries! And of course, like most writers, I’d love to see one of the books adapted for screen, and to be a part of that process: that would be a dream come true.

ES: Nomadland by Jessica Bruder. I strongly recommend it.

ES: Whatever Margaret Atwood writes next. (note from eds - us too).


TW: Favourite book of all time?

ES: The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. I loved that book, it really moved me. It goes to the heart of motherhood and humanity, and the writing is exquisite.


TW: Book you never got round to finishing?

ES: Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. And I really need to remedy that.


TW: Bookmarks or fold the page corner over?

ES: Oh, bookmarks, always! It’s a sin to fold a page!

Thanks Eve!

Exclusive extract from the beginning of Off Target:

I’m just taking my last swig when the doorbell rings.

My hand freezes, glass against lip.

Have they come back early?

Wine sours on my tongue as the early-evening sun dances leaf patterns across the room.

Idiot. I swallow. As if Steve would ring his own bell…

Now there’s a knock.

Two knocks.

‘Delivery!’

I lever myself up and squint at the security cam. A guy in a short-sleeved shirt and navy baseball cap is standing in my porch, clutching a small package. I think of those macabre leaflets in the bin, and my stomach tightens. But he looks legit.

Knowing Steve, it’s probably some enhanced wearable. I imagine hurling his new Smart Band against one of the empty squares on the wall.

Then again, it could be for Zurel.

I activate the mic: ‘Just a minute.’

I shuffle down the hall, wiping the mascara smears under my eyes.

I should fetch that box down from the spare room and hang all the photos back up. That would show him. As I turn the latch, the thought makes me smile.

The door slams into my face.

I stagger back, cupping my nose.

The man drops the package and barges past, his shirt straining against his chest, as if it can barely contain him. I glimpse a tattoo, the length of his forearm. He scans the lounge and marches upstairs.