Guest Post: Alison McQueen on Writing

As promised, Alison McQueen is guest blogging here today on a topic I am always curious about--the inspiration for stories and what goes into the writing process.  Born to an Indian mother and an English jazz musician father, Alison McQueen grew up in London. After a convent education, Alison worked in advertising for 25 years before retiring to write full time.  In 2006 she was selected from an impressive long list to join The Writer’s Circle, a group of 8 top writers to be groomed by the UK film industry as the new generation of British screenwriters. She has written seven novels, including Under the Jeweled Sky and The Secret Children, which was inspired by her life. 

So, now I'll turn things over to Ms. McQueen:

Thank you for having me on A Work in Progress. The title of the blog raised a small smile from me as I find myself yet again falling down the rabbit hole, researching the novel I am currently working on. During the research process, one thing invariably leads to another and before I know it I have lost track of what it was I was looking for in the first place. 

My writing room is currently awash with papers, some of which I have pointlessly organized into files, as though that will give me a sense of achievement. There are piles of articles, documents and handwritten scraps on every available surface, many of which will make no sense at all when they eventually surface.

 The research for Under The Jewelled Sky took months. At the British National Archives, I unearthed declassified documents from the 1957 Macmillan government, rubber-stamped Top Secret, which would have caused a great deal of diplomatic embarrassment should they have been leaked at the time.

The story was inspired by memories of my mother’s friends; the women I would eavesdrop on, the hushed voices and grave expressions passed over teacups. Many of them had grown up in India in the days before such things were openly spoken of, but it was all there: domestic violence, unwanted pregnancies, addiction, ruin, and occasional salvation. 

Bad marriages were commonplace, but divorce was unthinkable, and the brittle veneers of fake harmony were part of the everyday landscape. Morals and ethics were knotted up with religious doctrine and stiff upper lip. Respectable people did not wash their laundry in public, nor did they question what went on behind the closed doors of their neighbours’ houses. 

Part of the novel is set in a maharaja’s palace. Although the fictional palace and its location are anonymous, I did have an inside track into life inside an Indian palace. In her twenties, my mother (born in 1928), was hired as the private nurse to the Maharaja of Indore’s mother-in-law. She arrived there from Bombay and was shown to her quarters, an enormous suite in a grand building set across the grounds from the main palace.

A car was sent for her every morning, but she said that she preferred to walk. So off she would go, strolling through the grounds while the car followed along a few yards behind, driving at snail’s pace in case she should change her mind. Her breakfast would be served to her on a solid silver service, with a footman standing by should she want for anything.

From what she has told me, I am not sure that she handled it particularly well. She said that she didn’t want any fuss, which was quite the wrong way to go about things in a palace. There was also an incident when she was caught preparing her own boiled egg, which didn’t go down at all well. The cook was quite overcome with grief, and my mother never ventured to lift a finger again.

Social Media Links

Website & blog:

www.alisonmcqueen.com

Twitter:

@Alison_McQueen

Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alison-McQueen/265035533524734

Instagram:

http://instagram.com/alisonmcqueen

Pinterest:

http://pinterest.com/alisonmcqueen/pins

Many thanks to Alison McQueen.  Be sure to check out her book, Under the Jeweled Sky.

Comments

[Margaret Powling]

Thank you, Danielle, for handing over the blog to Alison, as your guest for today. This book is on its way to me as we speak, so I've just skimmed this so as not to be influenced by anything I read about the book, but I shall return to this and Danielle's review after I have read it. Needless to say, I'm very much looking forward to it.

[LizF]

What an interesting post. Thank you Alison - I am definitely going in search of both this book and The Secret Children now.

[Danielle]

Many thanks to Alison for sharing a bit about her inspiration and writing process. I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did--and I am like you--I like to know as little of the plot going into a story--you'll have to check back and read the post in full when you finish!

[Danielle]

I think you'll like her newest--now, of course I want to read more about India--a place I have read very little about. I am going to look for her other book, too!

[Margaret Powling]

I am very much looking forward to this book, as already mentioned. My late father was in the RAF before and during WW2 and spent 4 years in India (before Partition) in Karachi and other places. He loved his time there and I am so looking forward to reading more about it, even in fiction for there is much fact in good fiction (if that makes sense!)

[Stefanie]

Thanks to Alison for sharing about her writing and the story of her mother. So fascinating!

[Danielle]

Yes, it makes perfect sense and that is what I especially liked about Alison's book. There was lots to learn but it didn't feel like learning during the reading, if that makes sense. And how interesting about your father--he must have had some really interesting stories to share!

[Danielle]

Yes, many thanks to Alison! It's always interesting to hear how a writer works--I find that endlessly fascinating, too!

[Caroline]

Thanks for inviting her. It's always so interesting to hear from authors.

[iliana]

Thank you Danielle and Alison for sharing this! I also love to hear how writers start their stories. Looking forward to reading this one!

[Danielle]

I think you will like it! I love hearing what the inspiration for the story was--and it was very kind of Alison to post here!

[Alison McQueen]

Thank you so much for having me on A Work In Progress. Wishing you all happy reading and sending warm greetings from chilly England.

[Danielle]

It was very kind of you to post here Alison. Many thanks and thanks for writing such a wonderful book! I hope there is another in the works? Hopefully spring is not too far off for either of us!