Creative TALKS: An interview with YA fiction author, Emily Barr by Oliver Vince

Emily Barr is the author of four books for young adults and thirteen books for adults. Recently, she has been writing YA fiction for her publisher, Penguin, and is looking to publish her fifth novel for young adults next year.

I spoke to Emily Barr over email about her creative process and her new book, Things to Do Before the End of the World.

When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?

I think I always wanted to be a writer: as soon as I could read and write I did little else. I can vividly remember lying in bed as a child listening to the clattering of the typewriter as my dad, then a university lecturer, wrote his books about his subject. It meant that I always had writing a book as an achievable thing in my head, even though as I got older, I realized that it wasn’t a straightforward career path. But I still wanted to do it and although I’ve had other jobs, I’ve never really wanted to do anything else.

You have travelled a lot in your career, but what’s the most inspiring place you’ve visited?

Svalbard, in the Arctic. I first went there at a time when my life was at a turning point, with a book in my head and no real idea what I was doing. I went on my own for a week and spent that time walking around in a huge snowy landscape knowing that there were more polar bears than people around and trying to sleep when it never got dark. It was a magical place. I’ve since been back three times: to see the polar night, then to a literary festival and then again on my honeymoon.

You first made the switch to YA when writing The One Memory of Flora Banks, in 2017. Since then, you’ve gone on to write four more books for young adults. Why have you chosen to keep writing for this category?

I love writing YA: I vividly remember what it was like to be a teenager and am fascinated by the place between childhood and adulthood, when you have agency that a child doesn’t, but without the responsibilities of an adult. I’ve always loved coming of age stories and love writing them. Also, I’m lucky enough to be published by Penguin, and have a fantastic relationship with my editor Ruth, so as long as they’ll let me keep writing them, I’m not going anywhere.

You’ve said that you usually wake up early in the morning to write. Why do you do this?

The world tends to come at you with distractions during the day: early in the morning, before anyone else in the house is up, before people start going to work, is a wonderful time to find a bit of stillness and focus. There’s no point being up at half past five if you’re going to mess around on the internet or tidy the kitchen. It’s my perfect time to get my head down and get on with it.

How do you deal with writer’s block?

I just write my way through it. Go for a walk, listen to some music, write any old thing in a notebook, and sooner or later it starts working again. I also find deadlines are a great way of dealing with it: if you have to submit a draft next week because otherwise you won’t get paid it can be quite motivating.

What's the most rewarding thing about writing YA fiction?

Meeting the readers. Whether they’re friends of my children or people who come to author events, meeting young adult readers is absolutely wonderful. When they’ve read your book and it means something to them, it really is the best feeling in the world.

Where do your ideas for novels usually come from?

Anywhere. It could be a snippet of news, an overheard conversation, a dream, a passing thought, an idle conversation. It can be anywhere. Something will stick in my head, and then after a while I’ll start writing.

What’s your schedule like as a writer?

Variable, as I have three children, one at university, one at 6th form and one about to do GCSEs. So, it depends on what they’re up to a bit, and what other work I have. Currently, I’m teaching an online course for the Faber Academy, so I need to make sure everything fits together.

However, my normal schedule is, if I’m writing a first draft, to write about 3,000 words a day without worrying about it being polished, and if I’m editing, I’ll edit a chunk each day. I try to divide the work up and give myself a target and then just shut the world out and do it.

Have you ever written a character that you’ve had trouble getting out of your head?

All the time! Flora Banks was a big one — she kept making her way into subsequent novels, and I kept on having to go back and edit out her voice.

What’s the best part about writing a book?

Starting, and also finishing. The blank page is exciting — anything could happen! — and the last bit, where it all comes together, is exhilarating. Having said that, the part where a box of books arrives, and they’ve got your name on is unbeatable.

What advice do you have for a student who wants to write a novel?

Keep writing. Just write a bit every day, even if you think it’s going badly. I’m a big believer in the bad first draft, because when you’ve got that down, however sketchy it is, then your book exists and everything you do to it from then onwards is going to make it better. If you write a thousand words every day, you’ll have a draft in 70 days which is no time at all, really. And at that point you have a platform.

You’ve said that climate change was one of your main concerns while writing Things to Do Before the End of the World. Do you plan on writing more about this subject in the future?

Yes, definitely — it’s something that’s so present and so urgent that it’s hard not to write about it. I’ll write about it obliquely, as in Things to Do, rather than head on, because I feel that gives more space to exploring different tangents.

In Things to Do Before the End of The World, the world is ending due to a lack of breathable air. How did you come up with this concept?

It was initially going to be an asteroid strike, but my editor suggested that making it something caused by humans would be interesting and relevant to reality. I realized she was right and came up with a concept that I think felt fairly plausible, sadly.

What’s your plan for the next five years (without giving anything away)?

I’ll be writing and reading. I’ve got a lot more books to write, a lot of ideas on the go. My next YA book, Ghosted, is out in 2022, and I have various projects at various stages. Beyond that, Evie Green has been busy too, but I can’t say any more about that at the moment!

For more information on Emily Barr, and her work, you can visit her website at: https://www.emilybarr.com/. For updates on her work, you can also check out her Twitter page @emily_barr.

Interview by Oliver Vince

Edited by Marshall Moore