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My Counterfeit Self

Questions About My Counterfeit Self

by Jane Davis (Goodreads Author)

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Answered Questions (14)

I love the Emily Dickinson line you quote: ‘I’m nobody. Who are you?’ Can you elaborate on that notion of poet and writer as a misfit?
Jane Davis I can only comment on Lucy who, set apart during her illness, both literally and figuratively, became the misfit in her own home. In Lucy’s case, I al…moreI can only comment on Lucy who, set apart during her illness, both literally and figuratively, became the misfit in her own home. In Lucy’s case, I also wanted to give an idea of physical separation, a life lived on the attic floor of her parents’ home, her sense of abandonment, which leads to a fear of abandonment in later life. She calls herself the Out of Sight Out of Mind Child. But there are advantages to being a misfit. Master the art and you learn not to mind standing out. You learn not to mind standing up and being counted, which, of course Lucy becomes very good at. An early reviewer called her ‘fiercely moral’, which I liked very much indeed. (less)
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The romantic love triangle storyline gives us the counterfeit self of the title. Can you describe this notion of the counterfeit self?
Jane Davis Lucy’s parents behave appallingly and in such a way that frees her from any feeling of obligation to live up to their expectations. She moves out of t…moreLucy’s parents behave appallingly and in such a way that frees her from any feeling of obligation to live up to their expectations. She moves out of the family home and decamps to bohemian Soho. In distancing herself from her parents she adopts a new personality that she hides behind, her counterfeit self. Although she insists that she lays herself bare in her poetry, it’s keeping secrets from those who love her most that is her undoing.

The adult Lucy is as much campaigner as she is a poet. For someone who hasn’t read your book, can you describe what it was that led Lucy to campaign for British servicemen, (many of who were conscripted), who were forced to take part in nuclear testing in the 1950s and 60s.

Lucy is my rebel with a cause. When I laid her lifespan over a historical timeline, there was only one choice of what that cause would be. Fear of the Nuclear Bomb was a hangover from her wartime childhood. Talk of a third world war – the war to end all wars – permeated her adolescence. Bring her governess Pamela into the equation, a young woman who was prepared to take a stand, and of course Lucy was hooked. Watching black and white footage of Rod Stewart taking part in the first of the CND rallies and marches from Trafalgar Square to Aldermaston brought it together for me. I had no trouble imagining Lucy Forrester there at the centre of it all. And, of course, if you’ve campaigned for CND your entire adult life, it seems natural that you would take up the cause of the atomic veterans when their plight was highlighted.
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The old way of treating polio, where children were physically incarcerated, must be confronting to some readers, who might not know about it. What has been the response? And how did you go about researching it?
Jane Davis To be honest, I didn’t expect any particular reaction to my portrayal of Lucy’s illness, although I did receive feedback from a nurse who said that, w…moreTo be honest, I didn’t expect any particular reaction to my portrayal of Lucy’s illness, although I did receive feedback from a nurse who said that, with her knowledge of treating children with polio, she really understood Lucy’s motivations. (The same reader also sent me wonderful newspaper clippings about her political activist aunt who had recently died at the age of 93). Another reader has told me that I’ve written her early biography – the part that takes Lucy from polio to political activism. It interesting, the idea that you could inadvertently write someone’s biography, but I suppose if you get your research right, and the sense of the time right, that will eventually happen.

As you’ve mentioned yourself, it was how Lucy dealt with isolation that interested me as much as her illness. For research, I started in the usual way, with a Google search. I also have a marvellous friend, someone I admire tremendously, who had childhood polio and who shared his experience with me and was willing to answer specific questions. Then there was the film of Ian Dury’s life, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, which actually shows much harsher treatment than I portrayed, and made me wonder if I was going far enough.

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Confinement, through illness, in Lucy’s case, (or boarding school in mine) can be a catalyst for a vivid imagination. Is this why you made Lucy a poet (rather than a novelist or musician?). Or was it for other reasons? And was poetry an art form you practice?
Jane Davis I have a confession to make. The idea of writing about the life of a poet came from readers. So many reviews had commented that my prose was like poet…moreI have a confession to make. The idea of writing about the life of a poet came from readers. So many reviews had commented that my prose was like poetry, it gave me confidence that I could convince readers I could see the world the way a poet does. As for the poetry, I decided that the worst possible thing I could do for the book would be to write it myself. Instead, I commissioned a poet to write several pieces. Unfortunately, that arrangement fell through at the eleventh hour. By that time, my copy editor had done his worst and encouraged me to have a stab at it. After all, I knew how Lucy thought. This was fairly daunting. After all, the novel makes some fairly outrageous claims about Lucy’s abilities. It refers to her as Britain’s greatest living poet, for goodness sake! I thought, I’ll only be able to get away with this if I limit myself to writing Lucy’s childhood poems. So that’s what I did. I think they’re just about passable as the work of a ten-year-old. (less)
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I've read My Counterfeit Self as well as An Unknown Woman, and it seemed to me, that how you tell the tale and in what order, is as important the story itself. Do you plan the structure of your story before you write it, or does this evolve during the writing of the first draft?
Jane Davis I allow the characters to take charge. The story always reveals itself to me in the process of writing it, and the purpose of the story may not reveal…moreI allow the characters to take charge. The story always reveals itself to me in the process of writing it, and the purpose of the story may not reveal itself until I’m many drafts in.

In fact, the two novels you mention are quite different in terms of structure. An Unknown Woman sticks to a chronology and makes use of backstory, but I’m a huge fan of the non-linear structure, which I use for My Counterfeit Self.

Sometimes a book demands to be told in a particular order, because in fiction the big reveal must come near the end of the novel but in life the pivotal event tends to have a habit of showing up early. What excites me is cause and effect, how the past impacts on the present. Memories don’t always arrive in chronological order. They show up like photographs or postcards, or sometimes even like unwelcome guests. With a deconstructed timeline, the reader gradually builds a picture of who the angry old lady we meet in the first chapter is, and what made her that way. The story comes together like a mosaic.
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