A Moment With…Jane Fallon

Jane Fallon’s books include Getting Rid of Matthew, Foursome and Got You Back. Her latest, Skeletons was released by Penguin earlier this year. She’s also a producer whose credits include Teachers and This Life. On day twenty-nine of National Novel Writing Month, she talks to us about supporting characters:

Your supporting characters create your world. They’re your colour and texture. Without them your book will feel two-dimensional and flat. Every character, however small a part they play needs to feel authentic and alive. It’s always a temptation to try to use shorthand to get across a character who is only going to appear a few times in your book. Everyone understands a cliche. But if you do that your reader is going to lose their sense of disbelief. You’ve asked them to immerse themselves into the world you’ve created so it’s important that world never feels cliched or flimsy. Make sure they’re as real as your leads.
Lesser characters can also be like a breath of fresh air – light relief, a pause from the intensity of the main story. They can throw a different light on your main characters. allowing us to see our heroes in a different way. They are what makes us feel we have entered a world that exists whether we’re there or not. Don’t underestimate them.

To find out more about Jane, visit her website: http://www.janefallon.co.uk

by

Laura

I’m Laura. I started Novel Kicks in 2009. I wanted a place to post my writing as well as give other writers like me the opportunity to do the same. There is also a monthly book club, a writing room which features writing prompts, book reviews, competitions, author interviews and guest posts.

I grew up by the sea (my favourite place in the world) and I currently live in Hampshire. I am married to Chris, have a cat named Buddy and I would love to be a writer. I’m trying to write the novel I’ve talked so much about writing if only I could stop pressing delete. I’ve loved writing since creative writing classes in primary school. I have always wanted to see my teacher Miss Sayers again and thank her for the encouragement. When not trying to write the novel or writing snippets of stories on anything I can get my hands on, I love reading, dancing like a loon and singing to myself very badly. My current obsession is Once Upon a Time and I would be happy to live with magic in the enchanted forest surrounded by all those wonderful stories provided that world also included Harry Potter. I love reading chick lit. contemporary fiction and novels with mystery.