5 Questions About Writing With . . . Will Carver

Will Carver is the award-losing writer of 12 novels, a novella and several short stories. His books regularly feature on book-of-the-year lists in the mainstream media and he has been described as ‘The most original writer in Britain.’ Refusing to conform to a specific genre, Will’s latest novel Kill Them With Kindness sees him move away from crime and thriller stories into speculative fiction.

How do you discipline/motivate yourself to write and do you set daily targets?
People will do the thing that they most want to do. If you really want to lose weight, you will think about what you put into your mouth and make sure you exercise more. If you are eating a tub of hummus and a movie bag of Doritos while watching your favourite soap opera and talking about wanting to lose weight, it’s not really the thing you want most.
It’s the same with writing.
If you want to write and it is important for you to do that, you will MAKE the time. You will find any pocket in the day to squeeze out some words. You will dedicate a portion of your time to creative endeavours.
I want to write. Every day. So I make sure that I do.
That said, half of writing is discipline, and when you start out, you need to teach yourself that. You’ll be surprised how quickly you can get a book together by writing just 500 words a day and making sure those 500 words are the best that they can be.

What are the most important qualities required by a writer? Do you have them?
The ability to not speak. I have this. Writers are, inherently, good watchers. We extrapolate a lot of information from viewing people and how they behave, and we take inspiration from that to create our fiction.
Listening is equally important and becomes more so the further through the process you get. You have to listen to your editor and your publisher and your readers. You don’t have all the answers. You have to shut up and work it out. Speak through your writing.
This leads to the greatest tool a writer can have: a thick skin. It’s a hard industry. A lot of the time, you are being told where you are going wrong and that you need to fix it. You can’t let that get you down. You can’t let it put you off. You have to bite your tongue, listen and learn.
The discipline of writing each day is just the start. Once you finish writing that book, it no longer belongs to you, it belongs to everybody else.

How do you market yourself and your books?
Badly. I’m lucky that my publisher takes care of that kind of thing. But I write articles and do interviews or appear on podcasts around publication time. This is mostly organised through my publisher but I do have direct relationships with writers and podcasters who ask me to do things. I do them throughout the year because they’re fun.
I don’t like to keep posting things on my social media because it becomes too much and I like it to be more of a personal thing; it’s a way for me to speak with my readers.
There’s a bit of a disconnect with me when it comes to writing and promoting because I think of myself as an artist not a product. Again, this is something you come to terms with over time and through experience. There are plenty of people who aren’t great writers but do well because they know how to promote themselves and their work. I try to be honest about things, and that isn’t always the best way to promote. If you can do the opposite of what I do, when it comes to self-promotion, you are probably doing something right.

Which writing resources have you found useful, e.g., books, courses, organisations, websites etc.?
Writing is like any skill: If you want to get good at playing the piano, you can read all the theory books you want but the only way you will improve is to sit at the thing and hit those keys. You have to know what feels right and you have to know what feels wrong.
I recommend David Mamet’s On Directing and his other book True and False – neither are books about how to write but they are both concerned with how you portray a story, how you show only what is needed. William Goldman’s Adventures in the Screen Trade books are an incredible insight into storytelling and the intricacies of a creative industry that every writer should read. But nothing teaches you how to write more than sitting down and writing.
And being told that it sucks.
And having to rewrite.
You will get more from reading the writing of those you admire than any How To manual or lesson from a failed-writer-turned-lecturer.
If you want to be a writer, stop doing all those other things that are not the one thing you want to do.

A top tip for other writers?
You can’t throw out a blanket rule because every writer works in a different way. It is important to discover your own techniques. That said, there is one tip I don’t mind giving because I think it is applicable to all writers: Do NOT ask for feedback on your writing from somebody who loves you. It’s not fair on them. They don’t want to tell you that you are awful. They don’t want to tell you what doesn’t work. And that’s, actually, not fair on you. Because you can only learn and get better by finding out these things. Your partner/parent/best friend is not the person to tell you these things. Find someone who won’t mind breaking that news to you. Because this is a huge part of the process. It should not be an emotional thing, but it will be if you choose somebody who loves you unconditionally.
Substack is a great place to put something out there to get feedback. Or join a writing group. See how others work. Get their feedback. Give them feedback. Your mum loves you, she will tell you you’re the best even if you’re not. That feels nice but being a writer rarely feels nice. Get used to it.

About Kill Them With Kindness – published June 2025
A deadly, fast-spreading contagion is wiping out humanity and it’s almost at the UK’s shores. With no solution in sight, the government prepares for mass euthanasia. But in China, Dr. Haruto Ikeda races to release a radical solution: a virus that rewires the brain for kindness. But time is running out and compassion may be humanity’s best weapon or it may be its last mistake.
Kill Them With Kindness is available in paperback, audio and on Kindle.