Ask the Author: Tim Robson
Answered Questions (2)
Tim Robson
Franco's Fiesta is set in 1970 during the latter part of General Franco's regime. During the last ten years I used to frequently go on holiday to a small village outside Valencia. What was interesting to me was how a normal, western democratic country could have been so recently a one party authoritarian state. I wanted to know more.
I'd also been kicking around an idea for a story that involved characters based on Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in the later stages of their (first) marriage. I wanted to explore the dynamics of a warring celebrity couple who's relationship was clearly disintegrating.
So - I combined the ideas and wrote the story of the making of a film and put it in Franco's Spain. That way I could combined my love of the country - the smells, sights, food - with my love of movie making and the nature of celebrity.
I'd also been kicking around an idea for a story that involved characters based on Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in the later stages of their (first) marriage. I wanted to explore the dynamics of a warring celebrity couple who's relationship was clearly disintegrating.
So - I combined the ideas and wrote the story of the making of a film and put it in Franco's Spain. That way I could combined my love of the country - the smells, sights, food - with my love of movie making and the nature of celebrity.
Tim Robson
I was quite driven to write Franco's Fiesta. Although the idea and some of the opening chapters were written long ago, the main body of the book was written across 2013.
I gave myself the target of finishing the book by the end of the year and this, along with the passion I felt for the story, helped drive out most instances of writer's block.
I believe that to beat writer's block, the answer is simple; write! This is not as trite as it sounds. Just forcing yourself to write tends to produce two things:
1) It gets you in the habit. Although what you might write may be flat or seemingly useless, I find that sometimes you find a nugget in what you write, a germ of an idea to be explored later or maybe, a killer phrase. Secondly, you can succeed by showing yourself what doesn't work! Next time you will write the scene, chapter, paragraph from another angle.
2) I have found that when I have little inspiration, just forcing myself to write with no expectations often, not always, gets the creative juices flowing. It may take a little while but once you are in the zone, good things come.
I might also add that where, how and when you write also affect your ability to overcome writer's block. So, as an example, for Franco's Fiesta, I deliberately wrote the initial drafts by hand in a Moleskin notebook away from home. Sometimes, staring at a blank laptop screen in your home, does you no good! The pressure combined with the familiarity of the location can work against you. I wrote in bars, on trains; whenever I had a spare moment. This added a level of time restraint (I had somewhere to go, I only had ten minutes etc) and this tended to focus the mind.
I hope this helps. My main advice is, just write!
For further discussion on the writer process, visit my website - www.timrobson.eu
I gave myself the target of finishing the book by the end of the year and this, along with the passion I felt for the story, helped drive out most instances of writer's block.
I believe that to beat writer's block, the answer is simple; write! This is not as trite as it sounds. Just forcing yourself to write tends to produce two things:
1) It gets you in the habit. Although what you might write may be flat or seemingly useless, I find that sometimes you find a nugget in what you write, a germ of an idea to be explored later or maybe, a killer phrase. Secondly, you can succeed by showing yourself what doesn't work! Next time you will write the scene, chapter, paragraph from another angle.
2) I have found that when I have little inspiration, just forcing myself to write with no expectations often, not always, gets the creative juices flowing. It may take a little while but once you are in the zone, good things come.
I might also add that where, how and when you write also affect your ability to overcome writer's block. So, as an example, for Franco's Fiesta, I deliberately wrote the initial drafts by hand in a Moleskin notebook away from home. Sometimes, staring at a blank laptop screen in your home, does you no good! The pressure combined with the familiarity of the location can work against you. I wrote in bars, on trains; whenever I had a spare moment. This added a level of time restraint (I had somewhere to go, I only had ten minutes etc) and this tended to focus the mind.
I hope this helps. My main advice is, just write!
For further discussion on the writer process, visit my website - www.timrobson.eu
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