As He Sows, So Shall He Reap

John Connolly always gives his readers full value for money, and not only when they buy his books. His blog offers a rare and fascinating insight into the process of writing, particularly during the creative phase, when Connolly himself isn’t entirely sure of how an unpolished story will turn out. Brave stuff, especially from a best-seller who has nothing to gain from allowing readers a peek behind the curtains. At the moment he’s talking about next year’s The Reapers, to wit:

“Still, at least The Reapers now has a beginning, a middle, and an end that, to be honest, was a little surprising to me. Then again, that’s one of the pleasures of not planning the novels down to the last detail: in the process of writing them themes begin to emerge, so that what might have begun life as an aside in the first chapter becomes, by the end, the basis for the book’s defining moment. Maybe I’m a little more optimistic about the novel than I was earlier in the year. As this draft has proceeded the book, I think, has become more interesting. What began life as a light novel has assumed darker overtones. It will be an odd read, I suspect. I remember a British critic once commenting on Angel and Louis to the effect that she believed I found them funnier than they actually were. In fact, I’ve always been ambivalent about them, and that ambivalence finds its fullest expression in The Reapers. It becomes clear that they, along with Parker, the Fulcis, and Jackie Garner, are damaged individuals, and anyone who enters their sphere of influence believing otherwise is deluded. And so, as the book develops, their banter becomes a kind of denial of reality, a means of distancing themselves from the damage that they inflict upon others.”

The Reapers, due next May and still officially untitled, can be pre-ordered here …