Two crime writers - Jacqueline Bublitz and Paul Cleave - discuss how they create memorable stories in this highlight of 2021's Word Christchurch festival.

Listen to Jacqueline Bublitz and Paul Cleave in conversation with Jo Malcolm at Word Christchurch 2021

Highlights of the discussion

Jo Malcolm:

I've read that you can write 7000 words a day which seems like an extraordinary number.

Paul Cleave:

Yeah but I've got nothing else to do.

Jo Malcolm:

Are you actually making it up as you go along?

Paul Cleave:

Oh yeah, I don't plot. I wish I could. The only time I've ever plotted a book was I was never able to write it.

So that initial idea - it's normally a character or a big chapter, but never really a concept. I just kind of go for it. I can see the chapter I'm working on and maybe what's going to come after it, maybe one or two chapters ahead, especially in the beginning.

I'm in my office all day long so when I'm there it's whatever happens on the day. It's kind of cool because I'm entertaining myself.

I really don't know what's going to happen and when you get those "A-ha!" moments it's brilliant. I do know a lot of authors who plot and I would say it's probably a 50 50 mix. I've spoken to people who spend six months just making notes and having a pin board in their office and just putting it all up there. They can write it pretty quickly because they can pull it all together. I just have a notebook with whatever's going on but I really have no idea where things are going.

Jo Malcolm:

So, in terms of actually taking your reader along with it you're almost going through that journey yourself?

Paul Cleave:

Absolutely. And then you fix it up with rewrites. Because you don't know what's coming up, you realise you don't have the foundation, so you've got to go back and put those pieces in. It can then be tricky because every little change you make will make a ripple effect that can go right through the book. Sometimes it will get picked up by a copy editor and sometimes it won't get picked up at all, and you'll have a reader who will email and say "Well actually you've said this," and you're like "OMG that's right." So that can be very tricky.

Jo Malcolm:

Paul, your novels are based in Christchurch. How important is that location? It's obviously it's very familiar to you, but you could set them anywhere.

Paul Cleave:…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details