Ruth Gilligan
is an Irish novelist, journalist and academic. A graduate of Cambridge, Yale, UEA
and Exeter, she now works as a Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University
of Birmingham. She has published four novels to date, and has had a number of
short stories featured in international publications. She also contributes
regular literary reviews to the TLS, Guardian, Irish Independent and LA
Review of Books. Nine Folds Make a Paper Swan is published by Tin House and is her American debut.
1 - How did your first book change your life? How
does your most recent work compare to your previous? How
does it feel different?
My first novel came
out when I was just eighteen. It was all a bit of a blur – I hadn’t written the
book for publication, I just did it as part of a school project – so when it was
actually released (and then made number one on the bestsellers’ list) the whole
thing was sort of surreal.
It was a very
commercial book, based almost entirely on personal experience, as were the next
two. But I then took a break and realized I wanted to write something completely
different. I did a Creative Writing MA and PhD and then finally I wrote Nine Folds Make a Paper Swan which is a
historical novel inspired by the Jewish community in Ireland. It is totally different from my previous
stuff, and involved almost five years of research, but because of that I feel a
lot more invested in it. I put everything into that book!
2 - How did you come to fiction first, as opposed to, say, poetry or
non-fiction?
I wrote some dodgy
poetry in my youth, but I think the novel form was always what I read so that
was just naturally what I wanted to emulate. I have colleagues (and students)
who seem to be able to turn their hand at all the forms, but I don’t think I’d
be very good at anything other than the novel. I guess I’m naturally
long-winded.
3 - How long does it take to start any particular writing project? Does your writing
initially come quickly, or is it a slow process? Do first drafts appear looking
close to their final shape, or does your work come out of copious
notes?
I make a lot of
notes and do a lot of research, but I also reach a point when I know the best
thing is just to take the plunge and write a first draft and then worry about actually making it
good. I get so bogged down by all the various ideas or possibilities running
around my mind that it’s just easier to figure stuff out once its down on the
page.
4 - Where does a work of fiction usually begin for you? Are you an
author of short pieces that end up combining into a larger project, or are you
working on a "book" from the very beginning?
Again, I think I
know that at this point, novels are my thing – short fiction is so much harder!
But my books (or at least, the last one and the one I’m working on now) usually
come from something very small – a newspaper article or an overheard snippet or
a vague curiosity. It will be weeks later and I will realize I’ve been thinking
about it the whole time and that’s when I know I’m onto something. It won’t let
me go.
5 - Are public readings part of or counter to your creative
process? Are you the sort of writer who enjoys doing readings?
I haven’t done too
many yet, to be honest. But yes, I really enjoy them. I used to do a lot of
acting so the notion of performing in front of an audience doesn’t faze me too much.
And it’s so lovely to hear from people who have really engaged with your book.
It turns the whole thing into a conversation.
6 - Do you have any theoretical concerns behind your writing?
What kinds of questions are you trying to answer with your work? What
do you even think the current questions are?
My work lately has
been a lot to do with otherness; with minority groups and outsiders and discrimination.
But of course, even writing about these groups presents a massive amount of
ethical questions. So I’m interested in how writers answer these questions; how
we get comfortable with the idea of writing our way into someone else’s world.
In many ways, the language of empathy and the language of appropriation are
kind of similar, so I’m concerned with how best to wrangle with that.
7 – What do you see the current role of the writer being in larger
culture? Does s/he even have one? What do you think the role of the writer
should be?
I think the writer
is enjoying a pretty prominent role in larger culture at the moment. I really
noticed it this year that whenever someone died, or when Trump was elected,
various papers would run a series of opinion pieces they had solicited from
authors. I think that’s great – I mean, who else scrutinizes contemporary
culture so closely and then writes about it so beautifully?
That said, I don’t
like the idea that the writer has to
be politically engaged at all times; that there is a certain burden or
responsibility that comes with the job. That seems like a bad way to encourage
art.
8 - Do you find the process of working with an outside editor difficult
or essential (or both)?
SO essential! On a
micro level, having someone prod at your purple prose or your dodgy metaphors
is so important. On a macro level, it’s often so hard to see the wood from the
trees, so any external guidance is really welcome. Also with Nine Folds I was writing it as my PhD so
I used to meet with my supervisor ever six weeks, so I was kind of spoiled with
constant input. Writing the new one has been much harder without that.
9 - What is the best piece of advice you've heard (not necessarily given
to you directly)?
When I was a child,
my father used to be forever uttering the words ‘take your time, no rush’. And
guess what? It turns out I am as impatient now as I was then! But publishing –
and creativity in general – requires eternal patience. Every day I struggle to
have just a little more of it.
10 - How easy has it been for you to move between genres (short stories
to novels to essays)? What do you see as the appeal?
My big move has been
between the so-called ‘chick-lit’ genre, and literary/historical fiction. It
came about mainly because my own reading tastes changed, and I realized that I
preferred books that took me completely out of my own familiar world. But the
shift has been difficult, especially because once you’ve been pigeon-holed in a
certain way it’s very hard to escape that. On the other hand, I think there’s
also a risk of over-emphasizing these distinctions. At the end of the day, all
good novels share the same qualities – sympathetic characters; a compelling
story. I think once I realized that I found things a lot easier.
11 - What kind of writing routine do you tend to keep, or do you even
have one? How does a typical day (for you) begin?
At the start of
every new semester (I work as a full-time Creative Writing lecturer), I always
say I will get more writing done during the week, but it never happens. The
students always take priority and it seems impossible to carve out the
necessary time/headspace. So in the holidays I have a totally different
routine. I start at about 9, do a bit of writing then head to the gym, eat
brunch, then pick it up again. I think I have long, mildly productive days
rather than short, super-productive windows. I suspect the latter would suit me
better. Maybe I will shake it up a bit soon…
12 - When your writing gets stalled, where do you turn or
return for (for lack of a better word) inspiration?
I keep a copy of
Colum McCann’s Let the Great World Spin
on my desk. It is my favourite novel of all time, and kind of my writing Bible.
It never fails to inspire.
13 - What fragrance reminds you of home?
Tea.
14 - David W. McFadden once said that books come from books, but are
there any other forms that influence your work, whether nature,
music, science or visual art?
I think music, a
bit. But no, I must confess for me it’s mostly books upon books upon books.
15 - What other writers or writings are important for your work,
or simply your life outside of your work?
I’ve mentioned
McCann already, but he really is a huge influence. His whole belief in
storytelling and writing beyond the self has become sort of integral to my
whole ethos. Inspired by these beliefs, he also founded a storytelling organization
called Narrative 4, which I now do some work for too. It brings together
diverse teens from around the world to try and foster empathy through sharing
stories. It’s amazing.
16 - What would you like to do that you haven't yet done?
Write a perfect
novel! I would also like to live in the States again for a bit, or maybe
Australia. Even though I haven’t lived in Ireland for ten years now, I still
have itchy feet to go somewhere a bit further afield…
17 - If you could pick any other occupation to attempt, what would it
be? Or, alternately, what do you think you would have ended up doing had you
not been a writer?
I guess I do have
another occupation, in that I work as a full-time lecturer, although even that
feels like just another aspect of my writerly existence. I suppose if the novels
hadn’t worked out I would very likely just be a more traditional English Literature
academic. I like universities far too much to imagine myself beyond them at
this point…
18 - What made you write, as opposed to doing something else?
I guess in my case
it all kind of got off to an early start – even before I’d really given any
serious thought to writing as a potential career. That’s not to say there haven’t
been times that it didn’t look like it was all going to fall apart – especially
when I was trying to change direction – but by that point it was too late. I
knew writing was what I had to do.
19 - What was the last great book you read? What was the last great
film?
I know everyone has
been saying it, but The Underground Railroad really is amazing. It feels particularly timely too, given
everything that’s been going on in the news recently in terms of race relations
in the US. It makes you realize how it’s all just the latest chapter in a
longer, supremely bleaker narrative.
The last great film
is harder – I don’t watch a lot of movies – but 45 Years definitely made me weep.
20 - What are you currently working on?
My fifth novel, The
Butchers, which is set in 1996 during the BSE crisis in the UK/Ireland.
It’s very different again, and also I know nothing
about farms, but my research is slowly amassing and my characters are slowly
coming to life. I can’t stop thinking about them, which is always a good sign.
