Jeffrey Archer

A matchless spinner of engrossing tales, Jeffrey Archer is a bestselling British novelist and former politician. His hugely successful body of work includes Kane and Abel, First Among Equals, and the multi-volume Clifton Chronicles.

Archer's new novel is An Eye for an Eye.

My Q&A with the author:

How much work does your title do to take readers into the story?

Titles are very important. They can tempt you to read a book and they can stop you from reading a book. I spend some considerable time thinking about my titles and they rarely come easily. I think Kane and Abel, Only Time Will Tell and Not a Penny More have helped sales, so I will always take the problem of titles very seriously.

What's in a name?

Names are very important, because they set the tone of what the person is like, for example William Warwick is clearly a good and decent person, whereas with Miles Faulkner you cannot be sure and, certainly, Hani Khalil sets the tone even before you read about him.

Sometimes, just first names can give it away: Beth, Jojo and Artemisia all tell their own story, as do Jackie, Christina and Alice. Surnames are equally important and I spend some considerable time making sure a name and place are correct.

Once a year, I offer the chance, for charity, for someone to have their name in a book and that is a challenge in itself, because some want to be baddies and some want to be goodies and some don’t care. I wonder if you can spot who paid £26,000 to be in the next book.

How surprised would your teenage reader self be by your new novel?

I loved all the Just William books and Swallows and Amazons when I was a boy so, frankly, I don’t think I would be surprised.

Do you find it harder to write beginnings or endings? Which do you change more?

I must confess I don’t find the beginnings or the endings at all difficult. It is the middles, when you must hold the readers’ interest, keeping them guessing and wanting to turn the pages. There is only one sin for a writer: boring the reader.

Do you see much of yourself in your characters? Do they have any connection to your personality, or are they a world apart?

Of course, one has a tendency to put characters in that you are familiar with and, certainly, in the case of my wife, Mary, she is Beth in the William Warwick series. Christina is based on a friend, as is Ross, so I advise prospective writers to write about people they know, because they will be able to describe them more easily and will know their characteristics.

What non-literary inspirations have influenced your writing?

I watch a lot of very bad films and television programmes and sometimes only manage twenty minutes.

However, when I watch something wonderful, like The West Wing, Call my Agent or the German film The Lives of Others, I learn from the skill of the writer and the translation of the actor, in the hope it will help my own work.

Visit Jeffrey Archer's website.

--Marshal Zeringue