Interview: Ray Robinson

Ray Robinson is an award-winning writer and glutton for punishment. This is his third interview on my blog, one for each novel he has published. His first, Electricity, was shortlisted for the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. The follow-up, The Man Without, is, I think, the best novel about transvestism ever written and a bit of a lost classic. His latest is Forgetting Zoe which I reviewed last month. It is a haunting tale of a kidnap victim and the relationship she has with her captor.

Read through to the end for a chance to win a signed copy of Forgetting Zoe. You lucky bastards.

SP: Poncey writery questions out of the way first. Just how did you get into the American voice you needed to narrate this book? 

RR: The novel demanded to be written in US English, not only because it’s set in America but because it’s so dialogue-heavy. The problem became apparent as soon as I wrote my first piece of dialogue in south-western American and then switched to writing the prose and exposition in British English; the contrast was so jarring, and felt artificial, and I realised that if I started littering my British English with American words then the affect was going to be ridiculous. I actually found writing in US English very difficult. It’s not just a case of exchanging certain words – pavement to sidewalk, for example, or trainer to sneaker – but at times it felt like writing in another language, and I really struggled with the different uses of ‘have’ and ‘got’. In my head the narrator’s voice was that of the actor Hal Holbrook (it would be a dream come true for him to do the audiobook). When I finished the book I asked some American friends to help me edit the language and hopefully, with their combined efforts, I cracked it. I know Brits can be a bit snobby about US English (as if the English language was pure in some way, and not the mongrel it really is), but I love US English, and adore American literature, and the weird thing is, British English now looks wrong to me, especially that rogue ‘u’ in colour. OMG, I’ve been sullied, dude.

SP: Some unpleasant things happen in Forgetting Zoe but we don't get to witness all of them. How did you decide which details to leave in and which to leave out?

RR: One of the main reasons I wanted to write the book (other than to explore Stockholm Syndrome itself) is because when kidnap victims are interviewed they rarely disclose any information about their relationship with their captor, and this is the kind of information we are all interested in deep down, and I’m not talking about the sexual stuff, I’m talking about their shared emotional lives. Forgetting Zoe is therefore a mixture of fact, fiction and speculation. But how to write about Thurman and Zoe’s relationship without being explicit was the real challenge. Events are far more disturbing if they are hinted at, and come alive within the reader’s imagination, anyway. So yes, there are some gaps in the story, but a writer should never tell a reader what to think, and I want the reader to fill in these gaps for themselves, as disturbing as the completed picture may be. It also mirrors the way in which Zoe herself struggles to remember the girl she used to be, like there are two versions of her, rewritten by Thurman but full of gaps she desperately tries to fill.

SP: The sense of place (wanky phrase but there you have it) is particularly strong in both the Arizona and Newfoundland settings. Did you visit the locations?

RR: I’ve never been to Arizona or Canada. I really wanted to go, but I was so skint while writing the book I simply couldn’t afford to. I was pretty confident in my research, though, and that I could create the illusion of these places – but Unnr Island and Coyote Plains don’t really exist, anyway. I tried to view these two landscapes as separate characters, in that they reflect the mental landscape of the protagonists, from the windswept island of Unnr (which is actually based on my memories of Orkney, where I’ve spent a lot of time), to the cauterized, unforgiving landscape of the Arizona desert. Both are, in their way, dangerous and claustrophobic landscapes, which again reflect Zoe’s inner life. My experience of the desert has been limited to time spent in the Middle East and Western Australia, but writing about this specific desert was very difficult because I had to learn all of the local words for the flora and fauna and geography, which in Arizona tend to be Mexican. But I loved the research (thank God for the t’internet) and read loads of books set in those areas, and watched tons of westerns.

SP: You aren't frightened of tackling tricky subjects and all three of your novels could be descrived as hard-hitting in different ways. Do you secretly hanker to write a comedy or some piece of light fluff to keep yourself from the dark side?

RR: Are you having a fucking laugh?

SP: We were lucky enough to have you as a guest at the Firestation Book Swap. Please say something nice about it to encourage more people to come along.

RR: I had a blast at the Book Swap night. I’m not particularly comfortable with the whole reading thing, anyway, nor do I like talking about my work that much, so it made a refreshing change to be asked questions unrelated to literature. I felt bad, though, because I brought a book to swap that I didn’t actually like, which was a bit mean of me. If you haven’t been then I’d recommend you pop along; I’d never been to Windsor before, either, and was surprised how easy it was to get to, and how pretty the place is. I got there early and wandered around the castle and sank a few jars in the quaint little pubs. There should be more non-literary literary events like this; if you’re interested in a writer then don’t ask them about their work. It was a top night.

SP: What is it that you see in that boring book Underworld by Don DeLillo that I am clearly missing?

RR: I knew you’d bring this up. I think DeLillo is very much a writer’s writer. Now how’s that for wanky? He’s a stunt writer, and Underworld is a Scheherazade of a novel, epic in scale and vision. His plotting is meticulous. His writing is both precisionist and lyrical in a way that takes your breath away. He’s technically one of the best writers I’ve come across. Underworld is a true epic. I’ve reread it probably far too many times than is healthy but I always find new things in there that surprise and inspire me. But I guess DeLillo is literary marmite.

SP: Care to recommend any other books that aren't as shit as Underworld?

RR: OK, my top five fave books that I’ve read in the past year, are: 

Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson; 

Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell; 

Delicate Edible Birds: And Other Stories by Lauren Groff; 

Red Dog, Red Dog by Patrick Lane; 

Sheepshagger by Niall Griffiths. 

All of which filled me with both jealousy and admiration, especially Red Dog, Red Dog and Delicate Edible Birds.

SP: And what's next big boy?

RR: I’m almost six months into my couch-surfing tour. So far this has taken me to London, Derby, Norwich, Leeds, Masham (ooh, Masham!), and Copenhagen. But now begins my international leg: Sofia, New York, Boston, Seattle, Perth, Adelaide and Chennai. (Rent is for losers.) After a relentless, miserable 2009, I decided not to renew the lease on my flat, sold most of my belongings - which was totally liberating - and began a tour of the friends I feel I’ve neglected over the past few years. So far, so good. Though it’s bloody tiring. I feel like a temporary cast member in all of these friends’ domestic soap operas. I’ve realised I’m a bit of a social chameleon, and that I don’t like children jumping on my head at 5:30 in the morning. I freak people out by making ‘my bed’, whatever that happens to be, and by having such a well-organised suitcase. OCD likes to travel. And I’ve realised that you see another side to people when you live with them for a little while. I’m also writing quite a lot, and am part way through my new novel, Nettlebed. I’ve gone back to Yorkshire with this one, and it was a real struggle not to write in US English, but it feels so nice to be able to write the words ‘owt’ and ‘nowt’ again. I’ll leave you with my favourite Yorkshire saying: ‘Never do owt for nowt, but if you do do owt for nowt, then allus do it for thissen.’ Dude.

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To celebrate publication of Forgetting Zoe, as well as Ray's hat-trick of appearances at Me And My Big Mouth, and also just the fact that it is a remarkable book I am giving away 5 copies to my lovely readers.

And if that doesn't impress you I should point out that they are signed first editions.

To get your hands on one of these wonderful items all you have to do is leave a comment beneath this blog post. But make sure you include the word please. No reason why we can't be polite in the online world, is there? I will pick the winners at random by the end of Wednesday. Simple as that.

Oh, but there is a catch. Only a small one, mind. You have to make it the next book you read and you must promise to review it wherever you can online - Amazon, Facebook, your own blog, anywhere and everywhere you can.

Spread the love and spread the word.

Comments

[Stephanie]

Oooh pick me! Please! With a cupcake on top x

[Col]

Me please, and Masham is one of our favourite places - two brands of ale, galleries and a sweetshop!

[Kevin Duffy]

Read The Man Without,it was ace...worried though that Ray's couch surfing will leave him little time to jog along the canal bank. Please could you put me in the pot for Forgetting Zoe.

Cheers

Kevin

[Annabel (gaskella)]

Yes please! I loved both his other books (thanks to you for introducing me to them), and can't wait for this one. I've only read one of his other picks - Winter's Bone, but it was marvellous

[Ned Barry]

Good to read a defence of DeLillo.

I generally consider myself a fan of DeLillo. However, following the interview, I made a list of his stuff I’d read, it came out as follows:

BAD DELILLO:
Americana – couldn’t get past 200 pages
The Names – tedious
White Noise – the most over-praised, least credible book I’ve ever read
The Body Artist – didn’t get it at all
The Falling Man – just awful

GENIUS DELILLO:
Libra – read three times, better each time
The prologue to Underworld – perhaps the best novella of the last x number of decades. Read Underworld itself when it first came out and loved it. Having re-read the prologue about a dozen times, I recently reattempted the whole book. I couldn’t even finish it.

So, while I agree with Ray to some extent (DeLillo can write a sentence better than just about anyone else), I’m not sure about this ‘writers’ writer’ business. Does that mean technically brilliant, lyrical, disarming sentences excuse poor characters and plot (and, god, his mannered dialogue)?

Still, one great novel and a novella that I’d put among the finest things ever written isn’t bad going. The question is: given his talent, why is so much DeLillo so bad?

Scott, did you hate even the prologue? And have you tried Libra?

[Elliott]

Yes please can I have one of the books please thank you bye

[Marie]

Please add me to the list, though not sure what your rules are regarding friends of yours winning stuff. Probably isn't fair. Maybe if I cosy up to the publishers and point out how much I loved Electricity and how fab Ray was on the bookswap they'll let me have one for free. Or I could BUY it. But in the meantime... please...

Also, he is not wrong about Underworld, though my favourite de Lillo is Libra.

[Caroline]

I would very much love to have the very talented Mr Robinson on my blog... and after several rewrites of that sentence I've decided to keep it open. Please. x

[Sian]

Yes please, a book would be lovely and I promise to spread the word :)

[Dawn W]

I'd love a copy of the book to read and review please. Thank you very much. - and loved the interview.

[Caroline H]

Please could you add me to the list? More than happy to review the pants off it afterwards!

Also, thank you :)

[Liz]

Me please

[David Belbin]

Please send me a book and I promise to review it on my about to be relaunched blog!

[Craig Thwaites]

Pretty Please. Great reviews so far Ray, well done.

[Kathy]

Yes please, a copy of the book would be lovely. I'd be very pleased to review it all over the interweb. Pleeeease! Thank you.

[nigel bird]

Masham and Copenhagen? It's a topsy turvy world.
A friend of mine went couch surfing in the States for over a year; when he came back he decided to live on a boat as he was so used to being all at sea.
Stockholm Syndrome sounds interesting - I do like characters who suffer from something, just to add another dimension to a plot. Good luck with it. If I'm lucky, I'll give the book space at my blog, but will only give an honest opinion.

[Mandi Robinson]

I have a copy which I am reading but would love one of the signed copies please, PLEASE,pls

[green ink]

Would love to win a copy and review it - please, bitte, s'il vous plait. :)

[Judy De Vaul]

Pretty please with sugar on top? I would love a copy to read and review. Anna would be so impressed that I had a signed copy before she did!!

[Charles Tigby]

Ray is a monkey in cats clothing!

[Megan]

Please, please, please. I'd so love to read this book. And your interview was brilliant, especially the whole US English/ English thing, which I've been grappling with lately in my own writing, and perhaps see now that the only way to go is all the way.
So thank you too,
Megan

[Jane]

Yes, please:)

[Jennifer Worick]

Do I get points for being the post that geographically comes the farthest? I'm in Seattle, dude, and I love me some US English by a born and bred Brit who's dark and moody and hilarious like Ray. And I promise to spread the Gospel according to Ray.

[Scott McGougan]

Please pick me please Chimp - I remember sitting in your bedroom in Bedale with you playing Jimi Hendrix and the cult on your acoustic guitar - you were bohemian even then!! and I'd really love to read your new book. I only recently discovered you again and I'd love to read your book - particularly given it's excellent reviews.

[dan]

please please please let me get what i want this time!

[Howard Carr]

What can i say about Ray? Well he loves tomatoes,he's chomped on mine several times. I have an abusively signed copy of Electricity, which i love and i'd like to have a more politely signed copy of Forgetting Zoe. So would you please send me one. I would buy my own but i'm seriosly skint havng spent to much money on oil paint. To paraphrase Ray "i'm doin summat for nowt but i'm doin it for missen"

[Tracy Allison]

Forgetting Zoe, well...let's not be Forgetting Tracy!
Please be getting out your fave biro for me, you know you want to....Mwwwwahhh!!!!!

[helen shirley castles]

well yes, i also have the book, but yes please/ please , i would like to win a first addition masterpiece of forgetting zoe,and why would i like one.
because im your aunty and very proud of your achievements. xxxx

[Tom Vowler]

Great interview. Looking forward to reading this one. And will review it on my blog. Please, Mr P.

[Scott Pack]

Winners all picked and notified now.

Thanks for such a great response.

[nadene]

And this is why we're so proud of him! Such a versatile range.