By BRUCE DENNILL
Lisa Lazarus is the author of The Flight of the Dancer, a portrait of a dancer, her family and her relationships.
When, and under what circumstances, did the idea for your latest book come to you?
I was doing a MA in Creative Writing at Wits and battling with my initial concept for a novel – and then decided to revert to writing about what I knew and was familiar with. As many first time authors, I ended up writing a book based on my own life experiences. For me, the most foundational, conflictual and transformative relationship was with my mother; dead now for 35 years. We were a family of letter writers – back in the day when people still hand wrote letters to one another – and I had in my possession all the letters that anyone ever wrote to my mother. A treasure trove of letters from her grandmother, her mother, the love letters from my father, and all the letters my siblings and I wrote to her. I bought myself a good magnifying glass as some of the writing or was illegible. I hadn’t realised until then that I came from quite a literary family. There is an art to letter writing and it seemed that many members of my family had honed that craft. It turned out that each letter was a precious gem, that evoked the texture of time and heightened emotion of the writer. We are also a family big on emotion and drama and it seemed that I had all the research for writing a book right there at my fingertips
Did it initially feel like something to commit to, or was that something that took time to develop?
Yes to both. Once I had made the decision to write this story, I was committed. Did it take time to develop – definitely. It took me six years to finish this book. I wrote about five or six different drafts. I wrote it as memoir in the first person; fiction in the first person, and finally fiction in third person detached. I included original letters; I cut them out. I cut out half the characters; I dropped 60 pages. One thing I have learned about writing, probably the most important, is that you need loads of grit and determination.
How did you conduct your research or other preparation before writing – was it more experiential or more academic or desk-based?
I read all the letters written to my mother, focusing mostly on my letters to her. I, like my mother, keep copies of every letter written to me; so I was able to piece together a narrative of our relationship through letters. Even though we often lived in the same house, we wrote letters to each other. When I left home, we continued writing. I read old newspapers from the Seventies and Eighties. I read author’s tips on writing and writing routines. I read memoirs and autobiographies. I read many coming of age books
If money was no object, what additional groundwork would you like to have completed?
Money was never an object. I always knew that writing was not going to make me rich. I kept my day job
When considering influence, do you find yourself wanting to write like someone (in terms of their style, tone or use of language), or aiming for a kind of perspective or storytelling approach you admire or enjoy?
Yes, I find myself writing like the author whose book I’m currently reading. This is a good and bad thing. I journal every day and I often journal in the style of the author I am reading – trying it out, getting some practice at different styles, seeing if they work for me – testing them out, as it were. Sometimes when I am finding it hard to write a particular part, I find it better not to read at all, because I’m afraid that I will lose authenticity of my own voice. Finding my own voice has been the hardest obstacle to overcome.
What’s in your to-read pile – and what upcoming book (other than yours!) are you most looking forward to?
I love the beginning of a year because I read up on all the best books of the previous year. My list includes So Late in the Day by Claire Keegan. The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell, August Blue by Deborah Levy, and A Moonless Starless Sky by Alexis Okeowo. I am currently reading Ann Wroe’s Lifescapes: A Biographer’s Search For The Soul. The book that I am most looking forward to is Ivan Vladislavic’s new novel, The Near North.
When writing non-fiction, do you have a specific topic that you find endlessly fascinating? Why does this topic excite you so much?
Yes, I read writer’s memoirs, letters, journals and autobiographies. So far I have only written non-fiction for my work in HR and organisational development. Not creative non-fiction, although writing of any kind improves your craft.