How do you learn when you have neither the time nor the possibility to return to literature studies or take creative writing courses? Perhaps by listening to writers talk about their journeys and reveal their writing rituals and secrets. It is obviously not a question here of ready-made recipes (beware of them like the plague), but rather of the transmission of knowledge and the sharing of their experience.
If you are like me looking for advice and tips, and the genre is less important to you than the method and know-how, I invite you to discover these few interviews. These words were precious to me, I hope they will be precious to you too.
BERNARD WERBER
WRITING SECRETS FROM A STORYTELLER
I discovered Bernard Weber through reading Thanatonautes: exciting stories telling the incredible adventure of a character, explorer of death. His universe quickly fascinated me and I read many of his works until I moved on. Bernard Weber is above all a storyteller; the writer cultivates suspense and favors narrative structure over style, which he wishes to be as accessible as possible. As far as I'm concerned, I'm not really from this school; in fact, I think for my part that we can combine the two. Nevertheless, the author is a master in his genre and makes millions of people dream thanks to his books.
The video that I suggest you watch is an interview divided into four parts, recorded by Les artisans de la fiction. If the notions of writing workshops and creative writing interest you, I invite you to subscribe to this channel, you will find many other interviews, each more interesting than the last and, of course, lots of other writing secrets.
Find the rest of this video on the Artisans de la fiction YouTube channel
PIERRE BORDAGE
WRITING SECRETS OF A HUMANIST
Pierre Borage is a French science fiction writer, author of forty books and holder of several literary prizes. Humanist, driven by spirituality, he draws much inspiration from mythologies around the world. I invite you to listen to this interview and enter the universe of an inspiring writer. Pierre Borage exhibits part of his life there, but also his relationship to ghostwriting services, the origins of his inspiration and his way of working. He also discusses his relationship to science fiction and his role in the genre.
An interview led by Natacha Vas-Dyers, French essayist and lecturer, specialist in anticipation and science fiction.
ALAIN DAMASIO
WRITING SECRETS OF AN ACTIVIST AUTHOR
With only three published novels and several short stories, Alain Damacio has become the pope of French SF. Personally, I could listen to it for hours; his commitment and his passion transpire through each of his interventions. There are many interviews with him on the internet, I chose the one recorded for France Culture as part of the excellent program La Method scientifique presented by Nicolas Martin. The author discusses his latest book Les forties and develops his relationship to the world and to technology. More than simple writing secrets, he reveals his appetite for words, syntax and sounds. A poet as well as a writer.
MICHEL HOUELLEBECQ
WRITING SECRETS OF A LOST MAN
I don't go from Alain Damacio to Michel Houellebecq out of provocation – the two authors are opposed in their ideas as well as in their writing – yet I like listening to one as much as the other. You don't need to share all of someone's positions to be interested. I started reading Michel Houellebecq when I was nineteen with Elementary Particles; in my opinion, a bridge between science fiction and so-called white literature – the debate is open! I know that his style and his opinions are often controversial, but Michel Houellebecq will forever leave his mark on literature. Even though he refused all interviews when Serotonin was released, his last novel, there is a plethora of his interventions on the internet; however, I preferred to select a rather old one (2005): an interview conducted by Laure Adler which puts the man of today into perspective.
AMELIE NOTHOMB
WRITING SECRETS OF A CRAZY PERSON
I have not read any books by Amelie Northam, she is nonetheless an important figure in the French literary landscape. This interview is part of the France Culture masterclasses (I encourage you to follow others); a series of interviews carried out in public, in which the artists talk about their journeys and reveal their secrets. In it, the lady in the hat reveals “the how and why” of her writing. Funny and fascinating.
PHILIPE CURVAL
WRITING SECRETS FROM AN OLD-TIMER!
As with Pierre Borage, I discovered Philippe Curial when I was trying hard to unearth the writing tips and secrets of great authors; mainly French. The writer is also a legendary figure in French-speaking SF. He published his first novel in 1960 and his first short stories in the 1950s; he is also one of the first French authors (all genres combined) to use word processing to write (he talks about it in the video). In this interview conducted at his home for Acts on the occasion of the publication at the end of 2017 of his collection of short stories We are alone in the universe (editions La Volte). Philippe Curial discusses his relationship with his characters and his stories, his beginnings, and humbly tells us about the birth of the golden age of French science fiction, of which he was obviously a part. Valuable experience sharing if you are interested in this genre.
LAURENT GAUDE
WRITING SECRETS FROM A WISE MAN
I have read only one work by Laurent Gaudi: La Porte des enters; besides the atypical format of the book, I was immediately attracted by the story of this father braving the borders of our world to find his missing son. The writer – as much a novelist as a poet and playwright – expresses himself here in a conference given in 2011 in a high school on the theme Why write? A fascinating interview full of anecdotes, advice and benevolence.
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