The Shock of the Fall, which was acquired by HarperCollins after an eleven-way auction, explores mental illness, grief and growing up through the experiences of Matthew, a young man still affected by a traumatic childhood caravan holiday. Matthew has a genuinely memorable and original narrative voice, balancing empathy, dark comedy, naivety and a sharp insight, enabling the novel to address issues around mental health stereotypes and service cuts without becoming dogmatic or losing its lightness of touch. The Shock of the Fall, is published this week, and has seen its author described as 'one to watch' by The Guardian. When I reviewed the book in April, I also spoke to its author about his experience of working in the health service, the inspirations behind his characters, and his plans for the future. :
You seem to identify strongly with your main character, a schizophrenic who sees his symptoms worsen in his late teens. Is there a real life inspiration for Matthew?
I should set out from the start that I don't like the word schizophrenic. I feel a responsibility to point that out, not least because it is a term used in the novel. In a letter to his cousin Matthew Homes uses it to describe himself. “Not making excuses, but I am a schizophrenic.” It's a throw-away line for Matthew, but one that I agonized over. I resolved to go with it because it was right for the character. Myself, I say: a person with schizophrenia. It's a subtle distinction, but I think an important one. I read recently that the Associated Press no longer sanctions the term Illegal Immigrant. Quite right too. They are not illegal; they're people who are doing something illegally. Now to answer your question: No. There isn't. There are real life inspirations for almost every other character in the novel. But Matthew is all of his own.
Although Matthew is responsible for one violent outburst, you focus much more on his sense of isolation & withdrawing into his own world - was there a conscious effort to address stereotypes about schizophrenia and violence?
The single act of violence that you refer to occurs in a chapter entitled Prodrome – an early symptom that a disease is developing. I clearly link the violence with the illness, so I shan't congratulate myself for my good work in challenging that particular association.
Most people with schizophrenia never commit violence.
There. I've said it here instead.
With the success of films such as The Silver Linings Playbook, do you think the way we perceive mental health is changing?
GQ magazine said that my novel is “a must for fans of The Silver Linings Playbook”. I very much enjoyed that film but I do wonder what the two have in common beyond a lead character who is mentally unwell.
Perhaps it's a “must for fans of mental illness”.
Beats me.
What I do know is that I have sat in meetings with patients, where even the doctors / nurses have been afraid to use terms like psychosis or schizophrenia or personality disorder on account of how derogatory they sound. I think this is a failing on the part of the professionals, but notwithstanding, it suggests we've still a very long way to go.
Within the novel, there are references to issues such as cuts to services and drug company presence in hospitals, but The Shock of the Fall doesn't feel like a campaigning book - was it important to you to focus on the personal over the political?
The cuts to services reflect the time that the novel is set. We all know that these cuts are happening in the NHS and it would have been unrealistic to ignore that. But I'm pleased it doesn't feel like a campaigning book, because it certainly isn't intended as one.
It's Matthew's story. In writing it I thought only about him. When I placed him on the psychiatric ward, I imagined it through his eyes and went from there.
I do tend to share his views though. He's persuasive, no? (I'm now on a one-nurse mission to remove drug company paraphernalia from any wards I work on.)
The type switches between fonts from chapter to chapter, as your narrator moves from a pc to a typewriter - is that something you intended to do from the start of writing the novel, or did the idea come later?
It is central to the novel that Matthew is physically writing out his story, that this process takes time, and that his life is continuing to move forwards as he writes about it. It was becoming claustrophobic – and a bit limiting to the narrative – to keep Matt working on the computer at the Day Centre. It didn't suit his character either. Clearly he was going to bolt at some point. Nanny Noo's typewriter was a Eureka moment, though at the time it felt a lot more like relief. From there – I think – the novel really starts to take its shape.
It gave me lots of freedom.
But no – very little in this story was planned from the beginning. For example, I had no idea how it was going to end until I was actually writing the last page. That came as a relief too. It was a horribly stressful way of writing. If I ever write another novel I'll at least try to storyboard it first.
(I already know that's a lie.)
Which current writer do you most enjoy reading?
I've just read Snapper by Brian Kimberling, which I enjoyed immensely. And I've been sent (a perk of my new profession) the second Philipp Meyer novel, The Son, which I am fully expecting to be blown away by. I'm reading more poetry too. Partly because it's all I have time for at the moment. Luke Kennard is extraordinary.
But to answer your question, I don't really know who I most enjoy. I'm a huge admirer of Ian McEwan, I think partly because I discovered him when I was still a teenager. His earlier (“Ian McAbre”) works resonated with me in a way that seldom happens now. These days I mostly spend my reading time de-constructing paragraphs to work out what is good / bad about them and what I can learn from it. It's not an altogether disagreeable pursuit, but I don't suppose I'll ever again read a book as a reader.
Do you listen to any music when you write?
Complete silence. I'd love to be able to listen to music, or at the very least sit in a café and enjoy some ambient sound. But no. I need total silence.
What are you working on next?
Fatherhood.
No comments:
Post a Comment