How My Children Inspire My Writing – Samantha King

When I start writing a new book, I begin not with a plot idea, but a feeling – a vivid, compelling emotion that I have either experienced myself, or can imagine my characters experiencing. For me, two of the strongest are fear and yearning: yearning to become or to find something; and, set alongside that, the fear of losing something or someone we love. Fear, love and loss are inextricably linked, aren’t they? The more we love, the more intense our loss – and the greater our fear of if, when and how that moment will strike us.

My first two books are psychological suspense novels, which means that the inspiration for both was principally fear! The terror that arises from imminent danger or unknown threats; that sick feeling you get when you dread or anticipate the pain of loss, certainly of your own life, but also that of a parent, a partner, or – often most painfully of all – a child. The role of a parent is, after all, to keep our children safe and happy, and at my current stage of life that is my primary responsibility – and, consequently, my biggest source of anxiety! 

My husband and I are the parents of two children: a daughter aged 13, and a son of almost 11. Aside from meeting my daily word count, what preoccupies me most is their wellbeing. The big ‘What if?’ that is the fertile starting point for every writer usually arises for me from scenarios relating to my children. I started writing THE CHOICE after having an argument with them one day about whether one was favoured over the other. I asked myself: I would give my life to save my children – but what if I could only save one?

 Whatever I’m writing, it is this initial gut-instinct ‘feeling’ that drives the whole story for me. You could call it the ‘emotional hook’: the underlying theme that I then try to encapsulate in a dramatic plot. Whatever plot twists and turns I create along the way, they all arise out of that first emotional ‘drive to write’. 

In my second book, THE SLEEPOVER, the story came about after my husband dropped off my daughter at school, and an hour later we had a phone call asking where she was … The adrenalin shot of panic and terror that gripped me as we chased to the school, frantically trying to find her (it turned out to be an administrative mix-up and she was in class all along!) crystallised into another question: Who can I trust with my children? That was the genesis of my story about a single mother who drops off her son at his first sleepover, and when she arrives to collect him the following day, she is devastated to find he isn’t there …

The central character of both these novels is the mum, and as Izzy reflects in THE SLEEPOVER: ‘being a mother comes before being a wife’. That powerful connection between parent and child is hugely complex – from both sides: being the grown-up son or daughter experiencing changing relationship dynamics with parents can be equally fraught with emotion. This fascinates me too. Although my first two novels are thrillers, at their heart they are emotional and psychological explorations of human relationships. 

Writing is great therapy, and I draw on my own experiences both as a mother and as a daughter. I had children slightly later in life – my daughter was born when I was 39 years old, and my son two and a half years later. Until then, I had hardly dared dream I would get the chance to be a mum, and it remains the biggest and most powerful, precious part of my life. 

Powerful and precious are another two key words for me in my writing: the all-consuming nature of motherhood gives rise to pain as well as joy. After my daughter was born, I struggled with symptoms akin to postnatal depression. I was gripped by hallucinations of terrible tragedies occurring – distressing at the time, but, as I look back, I realise how much inspiration I drew as a writer from those experiences. 

Whatever we go through in life shapes us, and the privilege of being an author is having the chance to uproot and replant those experiences into a different, fictional, context in order to reflect, explore and learn. For me, writing is not just a creative process, it is a personal journey in which I battle my own demons and invite readers to consider their own. As C.S. Lewis once famously said: ‘We read to know we are not alone.’ For me, the books I want to read say something about life – and, right now, my children are at the very heart of my world. 

For all the highs and lows of parenting, I adore being a mum and I owe my children a huge debt of gratitude for how they inspire me – not just in big themes, but also the finer details: their changing language, behaviour and interests. Without them, I wouldn’t have a clue about social media, or the fear the internet creates for every parent; I would never have written THE CHOICE or THE SLEEPOVER. As my children grow up, the stories will change, but inspiration remains the same: each of my books is, in essence, a love letter to my family.

Samantha King

Samantha King is a former editor and also a qualified psychotherapist. She lives in west London with her husband and two young children, who inspired both her bestselling debut novel THE CHOICE, which was translated into more than 11 languages and critically acclaimed around the world. Her second novel, THE SLEEPOVER, is published by Piatkus and is available now.

Twitter: @SamKingBooks
Facebook: @SamanthaKingBooks

Instagram: samanthakingauthor

THE SLEEPOVER by Samantha King

It was meant to be the best night of her son’s life . . . Was it his last?

Izzy is thrilled when her shy, 12-year-old son is invited for his first sleepover. Nick has spent years being isolated and picked on; he deserves a night of fun and friendship. But Izzy is also nervous: it’s a year to the day since bullies put Nick in hospital. She drops him off at his new best friend’s house with mixed feelings. Arriving to collect him the following morning, her worst fears come true . . . Nick isn’t there.

Who has taken her son? And will she ever get him back?

‘Samantha King’s fearless and terrifying new novel cements her place as one of the most talented and important psychological suspense authors today.’

 – International bestselling author Karen Dionne

 

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: On Writing