Nicola Barker

Nicola Barker's latest novel is Burley Cross Postox Theft (2010), a comic epistolary novel.

From her Q & A with the Observer:

You're a great mimic as a writer and the new book involves you taking on the voices of a whole village. How do you manage that?

I'm partially deaf, so when I meet people or watch people I have to concentrate very hard on the rhythm of their speech. If I don't, nothing makes any sense. My skills at mimicry probably aren't particularly to my credit – I'm just like a short-sighted person who has an excellent sense of smell. Evolution can be generous like that, sometimes.

Your new book, Burley Cross Postbox Theft, is an epistolary novel - are you a great letter writer yourself?

I can honestly say that I am a terrible letter writer. Dull as ditchwater. Can't spell for toffee. But I'm great at decorating envelopes. I've made an art form out of it. If you get a letter from me, it'll be a beautiful piece of crap, basically.

Read the complete Q & A.

The Page 99 Test: Nicola Barker's Darkmans.

--Marshal Zeringue