Helen Dunmore
Helen Dunmore
Helen Dunmoreis a British poet, novelist and children's writer. Educated at the University of York, she now lives in Bristol. Dunmore is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Some of her children's books are now included in reading schemes for use in schools...
ProfessionPoet
Date of Birth12 December 1952
writing years research
I enjoy research; in fact research is so engaging that it would be easy to go on for years, and never write the novel at all.
writing historical pleasure
However, the difficulties and pleasures of the writing itself are similar for a novel with a historical setting and a novel with a contemporary setting, as far as I'm concerned.
writing ears weight
Writing poetry makes you intensely conscious of how words sound, both aloud and inside the head of the reader. You learn the weight of words and how they sound to the ear.
writing alive dull
The language has got to be fully alive - I can't bear dull, flaccid writing myself and I don't see why any reader should put up with it.
nice writing feelings
Reread, rewrite, reread, rewrite. If it still doesn't work, throw it away. It's a nice feeling, and you don't want to be cluttered with the corpses of poems and stories which have everything in them except the life they need.
writing want stills
Finish the day's writing when you still want to continue.
writing long-walks pieces
A problem with a piece of writing often clarifies itself if you go for a long walk.
rhythm search voice
You have to search for the voice of each character: the things that he or she could or could not have said, the distinctive rhythm of the voice.
chapters happening headed light poem shining stage
Many chapters are headed by poem quotations. These epigraphs are another way of shining light on what is happening at this stage of the novel.
books children enjoying looking pretend
Children will not pretend to be enjoying books, and they will not read books because they have been told that these books are good. They are looking for delight.
early huge influence start
I could start with Mandelstam, who was a huge influence on my early writing.
began came fiction quite short stories
Fiction came quite a while later. I began with short stories and fiction for children.
hear poet poetry russian understanding
I'm a poet and I've read a lot of Russian poetry and can hear It's sounds. Russian poetry is so important to an understanding of the culture.
discipline finding-yourself next
Once one habit peels away the others follow it. You have to hold on, or the next thing you'll find yourself parading down the street in your nightdress. Habit is everything.