N: I actually started off doing a law degree and then went into marketing as a career. I only decided to take up a short creative writing course because my work offered us the chance to do an extra-curricular thing \u2013 and I was just hooked. I remembered how much I loved writing as a child, and now I just can\u2019t imagine my life without it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
JW: It\u2019s really strange how life can work out like that! Your debut novel, Kololo Hill, is coming out in February 2021 with Picador \u2013 where did it begin? Did you start with a particular character, or maybe a concept?<\/strong> <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n N: I grew up reading lots of fiction about other places and times, but I found that although there was fiction about the British-Asian experience and the Indian experience, there was nothing about people like my family. I also knew a bit about the expulsion of Asians from Uganda by Idi Amin in the 1970\u2019s \u2013 I was always astounded that people could be sent out of their country in just three months. Those two things were really interesting to me, and that\u2019s really what sparked my story. I wanted to explore different viewpoints, because people like my family aren\u2019t necessarily that well represented in fiction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n JW: How did you discover Jericho Writers? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a0N: I found out about both the Festival of Writing and the\u00a0Self-Edit\u00a0Your Novel\u00a0course<\/a>\u00a0back when Jericho Writers was called the Writers\u2019 Workshop, and\u00a0I used\u00a0both\u00a0in my early stages of writing. I had heard\u00a0really good\u00a0things about the\u00a0Self-Edit\u00a0course \u2013 all of which turned out to be\u00a0absolutely right. Not only did I meet Debi\u00a0Alper\u00a0and Emma\u00a0Darwin\u00a0but I also met a\u00a0really great\u00a0writing friend, Daniel Aubrey, who continues to beta read for me. There are so many\u00a0great things\u00a0that come out of the Self-Edit course and I just love it. I\u2019ve recommended it to so many people since.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Off the back of that, I decided to go to the Festival of Writing. That was such an incredible, intense day with lots of workshops \u2013 I also did the agent one-to-ones. There were three competitions that year \u2013 I came runner up in \u2018Best Opening Chapter\u2019 and was longlisted for \u2018Pitch Perfect\u2019. I\u2019ve used those on my submission letters since and they\u2019re really well-recognised! <\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019ve had loads to do with Jericho Writers and you\u2018ve been a really key part of my journey. <\/p>\n\n\n\n JW: Do you have any tips for writers working on their first draft? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n N: I really feel that a lot of writing is psychological. We spend so much of our time having doubts (which are natural), and you have to push those aside. In an early draft, it really is \u2018just keep writing.\u2018. I\u2019ve been thinking a lot about psychology through my day job in marketing, and the idea of the rational and emotional sides of the brain. When you\u2019re writing, you want to ignore the rational side (which is telling you it\u2019s awful) and access the emotional side. I know there are some writers who will write the first paragraph and edit it straight away, but I find it easiest to write a draft without looking back at all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n Keep on going past the next few drafts and accept that to get a novel finished it can sometimes be boring. It\u2019s just keeping going that\u2019s really important. You also have to have space away from your draft, because you\u2019re far too close to it when you\u2019ve just read over it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n JW: Can you tell us about your journey to finding an agent? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n N: I did lots of research \u2013 I even made an Excel spreadsheet because I knew I was going to contact quite a few agents and would need to keep track of it all. I also went to events where agents were talking and read blogs so I could get a sense of what agents were like. I made a shortlist and starting by submitting to about 10-12 agents. I was lucky because some of the agents had been on competitions I\u2019d been listed in, including the Festival of Writing, who had said they wanted to read more when it was ready. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I had a lot of rejections, but quite a few manuscript requests, which was brilliant. I ended up with two great agents offering to represent me and I was really spoilt for choice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n JW: I also wanted to ask about your gorgeous book cover \u2013 what do you think of it? I noticed that it\u2019s modern Batik print \u2013 was that an idea that came from you? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n N: I love it so much! It wasn\u2019t the first version \u2013 the designer had come up with a few concepts based on fabrics and she wanted them to be related to the story. If you look closely on the cover you notice that as well as the Batik print, which is common to Uganda and India, there\u2019s also an imprint of an Indian passport. There are so many little details working together which you might only see on a second look. I was blown away because I love looking at covers but I never considered how much thought and conscious choice goes into it. \u2018Kololo Hill\u2019 by Neema Shah. Picador, February 2021<\/p>\n\n\n\n JW: How are the challenges you\u2019re facing as a published author now different to challenges you might have faced in the past? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n N: When I first started out, I didn\u2019t know any writers at all. Doing the courses definitely helped, as I\u2019ve kept in touch with quite a few people I met there. Twitter was also great for finding other writers, particularly ones to beta read for. There\u2019s a massive writing community there, and the #bookstagram community is also huge. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I do think the publishing industry is getting much better for underrepresented writers (I\u2019m an example of that), but I did have few experiences that I was quite taken aback by. There\u2019s still a way to go, but it is better than it was even five years ago. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I also find there is a slight lack of transparency about what it\u2019s like to be an author. Advances are all different and the way you\u2019re treated in terms of marketing can be very different. Picador are brilliant and they\u2019ve been really transparent with me, but from my understanding that\u2019s not always the case. So, I think finding communities or people going through similar experiences is such a big help, and that\u2019s a piece of advice I would give whatever stage you\u2019re at with your writing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At the one-to-ones with Jericho Writers, I got really detailed feedback on my opening chapters and my covering letter \u2013 that kind of thing can be quite hard to come by and looking for those resources can be really helpful. JW: How do you organise your time between writing and generating free content for your online platforms (blog<\/a> and YouTube channel<\/a>) and having a day job in marketing? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n N: The funny thing is that I wrote \u2018Kololo Hill\u2019 on my commute, on my smartphone! So, just making use of what would otherwise be dead time really helps. I\u2019m lucky enough to have a good work\/life balance as my job is quite flexible. That said, it\u2019s only now that I\u2019m promoting \u2018Kololo Hill\u2019 and starting book two and<\/em> working a day job that it\u2019s starting to feel like a bit much, so I am trying to get better at organising myself. It\u2019s so important to save energy for your creativity \u2013 just being creative takes a lot out of you! I try to write early in the mornings before other things get in the way. \u201cThere is a slight lack of transparency about what it\u2019s like to be an author\u2026 Finding communities or people going through similar experiences is a big help, and that\u2019s a piece of advice I would give whatever stage you\u2019re at with your writing.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n N: One of my favourite books is \u2018Small Island\u2019 by Andrea Levy (based on the Windrush generation, which definitely inspired me). My other favourite books aren\u2019t necessarily the kind of thing that I write about but are things I\u2019d love to write more of \u2013 \u2018Fingersmith\u2018 by Sarah Waters is amazing \u2013 it has an amazing twist and I\u2019d love to write a book with a proper twist because it\u2019s so hard to do. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For \u2018Kololo Hill\u2019 I used a lot of blogs, online photography and a couple of TV shows. I also went on a research trip to Uganda. In terms of first-person experience there wasn\u2019t that much available in writing though. That\u2019s another reason why it was important to me to make sure that story was told, even if in fiction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n JW: Are you reading anything good right now? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n N: I\u2019ve been getting into audiobooks, and I\u2019m listening to \u2018Elevator Pitch\u2019 by Linwood Barclay. I\u2019m reading a proof I was given of \u2018The Smallest Man\u2019 by Frances Quinn, which comes out in January, and I also just finished \u2018If I Can\u2019t Have You\u2019 by Charlotte Levin, which is a really good debut from 2020. <\/p>\n\n\n\n JW: Hi Jenny. What drew you to Neema\u2019s work, and in what ways was it a strong submission? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n JS: Where do I start?!\u202f Her manuscript had a strong opening. The action was firmly rooted in a terrific sense of place and time \u2013 a place and a time that I knew a little about from TV as a child but had never really understood. Seeing the 1972 expulsion through the lives of one particular family and their friends was such a brilliant lens through which to show a massive political and social upheaval.\u202fThat coupled with distinctive, flawed characters whose story I felt compelled to follow, and whose lives continued in my imagination long after the last full stop, made for an impressive submission. I do love a novel that illuminates a life or lives in a way that does away with preconceptions or conventions. I love to be surprised by characters and by the turn of events in a story. \u2018Kololo Hill\u2019 does this beautifully. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As an agent, Jenny is always keen to find new voices in 7+, Middle Grade and Young Adult writing. Jenny also represents authors writing for adults. She is on the look-out for writers of\u202fliterary fiction, commercial and literary women\u2019s fiction, well-written thrillers and psychological suspense, historical fiction (the whole gamut \u2013 including alternate histories), memoir and narrative non-fiction. She welcomes originality, depth, and the ability to move and surprise in submissions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re interested in submitting your own work to Jenny or other agents, AgentMatch is a great tool to refine your search and develop your perfect shortlist. Find out more here<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you can\u2019t wait until 18 February to read some of Neema\u2019s work, take a look at her website here<\/a> for more insightful writing tips. <\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Untitled](\"https:\/\/jerichowriters.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Untitled-design-24.png\")
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JW: You mentioned that you\u2019re a big fan of books on the writing process. Are there any other books, perhaps works of fiction, that particularly shaped your writing? <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nFrom Jenny Savill, Neema\u2019s Agent (Andrew Nurnberg Associates)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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