A Debut Author’s Story: How Science Facts Inspired a Thriller by Eve Smith

Eve Smith’s debut novel, The Waiting Rooms, is set twenty years after an antibiotic crisis. A nurse hunts for her elderly birth mother, in a world where no one over seventy gets access to new drugs. 

I had the idea for my speculative thriller, The Waiting Rooms, after reading some frightening facts about antibiotic resistance. We don’t really hear much about this issue, which is why Mariangela Simao from the World Health Organisation calls it “the silent pandemic”.

But the startling reality is that 750,000 people die from antibiotic-resistant infections each year, which is a higher mortality rate than malaria.

WHO estimates that this could grow to ten million deaths a year by 2050 if no action is taken: that’s more deaths than cancer. 

These facts became the foundation of my pre-crisis chapters. I did a lot of research. Believe me, the slide towards an antibiotic crisis is real. As bacteria and viruses develop greater resistance to drugs, the higher the probability that multiple pandemics will arise, possibly at the same time. What happens next: the size and scope of the crisis, the diseases that flourish, and the choices society and governments make, only time will tell.

That is where I flexed my writing muscles. Those details were mine. 

The premise of The Waiting Rooms is that no one over seventy is allowed antibiotics, in a last ditch attempt to keep resistance at bay. When I started this novel, four years ago, such an abhorrent law seemed unthinkable. Alas, after the heart-breaking stories about hospital equipment shortages and ICU beds during the coronavirus pandemic, my premise now feels hauntingly real. 

During my research, I discovered that, in a normal year, the highest number of antibiotic prescriptions go to the young and to the old. In the UK, the over-75’s account for a quarter of all antibiotic prescriptions. The over-65’s account for a third. And I thought, what would happen, if society had to choose? 

Even when we are not coping with a global pandemic, social care systems and health services are under stress. And the global population is ageing: needs are only going to increase. Put all this together and you have the perfect storm.

So, how easy was it to attract interest in such a story from agents and publishers?

Well, there were no shortcuts, I can assure you, and, like thousands of other aspiring writers, I had to slog my way out of that slush pile!

I never went on a formal writing course; the ambition to write came after I joined a creative writing group. I started going to literary festivals and attending workshops where I listened to authors speak about their writing and the process of getting published. I picked up some excellent writing tips as well as meeting other writers and publishing professionals. I also worked with an industry mentor through the Cornerstones agency, who was immensely helpful, and provided encouragement when I needed it. Writing is a lonely business, and having someone who knows the industry batting for you really helps.

I entered writing competitions, not just for novels, but also flash fiction. I’d really recommend this. Not only have you nothing to lose, but it’s a real morale booster if you get placed and great for your submission letter. To my delight, The Waiting Rooms was shortlisted for The Bridport Prize First Novel Award. I had already attracted some agent interest by this stage, but no firm commitments. Each time I got feedback, I listened and made changes. And it was that next edit that got me my first meeting with my agent: Harry Illingworth at DHH.

I signed with Harry, did a couple more rounds of edits on the MS and then he sent it out to publishers. This was a very nail-biting time, and it’s where an agent really comes into their own. You get access to editors you would not reach un-agented, and, even with publishers that do take direct submissions, you jump the queue. This stage is tough: even after all your efforts and persistence, two out of three manuscripts don’t make it. But I was fortunate enough to catch the eye of Karen Sullivan at Orenda Books, and I signed with her last summer in a two-book deal. Two more rounds of edits and we were almost there.

Friends sometimes ask me, how many edits I have done of The Waiting Rooms. And the honest answer is, I don’t know, but it’s a lot! I always listen to feedback. I may not implement changes in the way people suggest, but if there’s something that’s sticking, I need to address it, whilst staying true to my original idea. That graft and attention to detail is what makes your MS shine. 

So now I have reached the halcyon stage where my e-book has just launched and the paperback is due out in July. I have to keep pinching myself: it’s real! By the time most writers get to this stage, rejections have already toughened their skins to crocodilian levels. I’d say mine more resembles the tender epidermis of the African spiny mouse: a bit on the thin side but wounds can regenerate in a matter of days, and leave no scars. (True: check it out.) A talent I hope I won’t be drawing on too much as we head into review season…

—

Eve Smith writes speculative fiction, mainly about the things that scare her. In this world of questionable facts, stats and news, she believes storytelling is more important than ever to engage people in real life issues. Her debut novel The Waiting Rooms was shortlisted for the Bridport Prize First Novel Award. Her flash fiction has been shortlisted for the Bath Flash Fiction Award and highly commended for The Brighton Prize. Eve’s previous job as COO of an environmental charity took her to research projects across Asia, Africa and the Americas, and she has an ongoing passion for wild creatures, wild science and far-flung places. A Modern Languages graduate from Oxford, she returned to Oxfordshire fifteen years ago to set up home with her husband. 

To find out more about Eve and her writing, go to her website https://www.evesmithauthor.com/ or you can follow her @evecsmith.

THE WAITING ROOMS

Swinging from South Africa to England: one woman’s hunt for her birth mother in an all-too-believable near future in which an antibiotic crisis has decimated the population. A prescient, thrilling debut.

________________

Decades of spiralling drug resistance have unleashed a global antibiotic crisis. Ordinary infections are untreatable, and a scratch from a pet can kill. A sacrifice is required to keep the majority safe: no one over seventy is allowed new antibiotics. The elderly are sent to hospitals nicknamed ‘The Waiting Rooms’ … hospitals where no one ever gets well.

Twenty years after the crisis takes hold, Kate begins a search for her birth mother, armed only with her name and her age. As Kate unearths disturbing facts about her mother’s past, she puts her family in danger and risks losing everything. Because Kate is not the only secret that her mother is hiding. Someone else is looking for her, too.

Sweeping from an all-too-real modern Britain to a pre-crisis South Africa, The Waiting Rooms is epic in scope, richly populated with unforgettable characters, and a tense, haunting vision of a future that is only a few mutations away.

BUY THE BOOK

 

 

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: Contemporary Women Writers, On Writing