This interview with Tina
Biswas, author of “Dancing
with the Two-Headed Tigress”, was first published in December 2006.
Where were you born and raised?
I was born in Scarborough in
1978 and lived there until I was about 7.
If you don’t know where Scarborough is, it’s a small seaside town in
North Yorkshire, a very cosy and safe place to live as a child, but not
cosmopolitan at all. Very
English. My family were some of
the only brown faces living there when I was little – I don’t know what it’s
like now though – and I think we were thought of as quite exotic. My dad was a gynaecologist and
obstetrician at the hospital and he must have delivered half the children at my
school! I don’t think memories
start to develop fully until you’re a little bit older, but I think I was happy
growing up there. I do remember a birthday party where I pretended I was a
princess and stood on a chair whilst everyone handed over their gifts to me. And my parents taking me to the beach,
and us sitting in a yellow Renault, with the waves crashing over the car. A nice little life for a kid I think.
What was it that first got you
into writing and when did you start writing?
I went to boarding school when
I was 9, and I used to write letters to my friends in the holidays. I really enjoyed writing them, and my
friends used to reply, ‘Write back quickly, your letter really made me laugh’,
that kind of thing. And I
always enjoyed my creative writing assignments and did well in them. But it wasn’t until university, (where
I read Politics, Philosophy & Economics, not English) that I considered
wanting to be a writer. I suppose
it was then that I decided that I wanted to tell stories for a living!
Which writers have influenced
you the most?
V.S.Naipaul was a huge
influence. “A House for Mr Biswas”
was one of the first modern classics that I read. I first picked it up because it was included in a ‘100 great
books’ list or such like, and it had my surname in it. I read and re-read the book several
times. There was something so
touching and sad and funny about Mr Biswas’s life. The way Naipal writes really made me feel for the man. And then I had a Salman Rushdie binge –
how talented do you have to be to come up with the plot for “Midnight’s
Children”! And the way “The
Satanic Verses” is so brilliantly irreverent and thought-provoking. I’ve also read a lot of Updike -
I admire his cruelty and honesty – and how he can make you engage with a
character’s interior life. And R K
Narayan – being able to write so simply and sparsely is a very rare skill. And his fictional town of Malgudi is so
well-conceived and coloured in.
And there are particular books, too, which just made me think, ‘Please
just let me write something that’s even a tenth as good as that, and I’ll be
happy’. “Catcher in the Rye” is
one. A perennial favourite, I
know, but for a good reason. When
I read it, I was so absorbed in Holden Caulfield’s life and his adolescent
cynicism, I almost became Holden Caulfield. And
“Portnoy’s Complaint”. God, that’s a funny book.
Where do you stand on the
nature v. nurture debate? Were you born a writer, or were there factors in your
environment that enabled you to become a writer?
Well, I think this is essentially
asking ‘Can you be taught to write?’ isn’t it? I think it’s the same as being a musician. You can have music lessons, but some
people show a natural aptitude for music, and more importantly, they’re
musical. You can’t be taught to be
musical, you either are or you’re not.
You can even become a technically very able musician, and not make a
single mistake playing a very demanding piece, but you might still not be able
to capture someone’s soul with the way you play it. Same for writers.
Rachel Hore reviewed my book for The Guardian, and she wrote ‘Biswas
proves to be a natural writer’ - I felt a great sense of relief. I almost felt that I had made the right
decision and was justified in wanting to be a writer. But obviously, it’s much easier to pursue your dreams of
writing, if you have a certain degree of material and financial comfort, and
the time. I worked full-time the
entire way through my first book, and even after its publication, but I have
only myself to support, and the freedom to decide what I want to do with my
spare time. Some people don’t have
that.
I found even the subplots for
"Dancing with the Two-Headed Tigress" to be very involving,
especially that involving the Chatterjees. Where do you get all your ideas
from?
People. Even people you only meet for 5 minutes
and will never see again. Even if
you talk to someone for a few minutes, you can start to get a pretty good idea
of what they’re about. And I’m
always curious about people, however fleeting their appearance in my life. I go home and wonder about them, and
think about what they’re doing, and what’s going on in their hearts and
heads. I also think I had so many
sub-plots, because there were so many stories I wanted to tell, and so many
characters I wanted to write about.
What, for you, is the best
piece of prose that you have ever written?
Pass. I’ve written only one
book so far, and within that there are passages which sometimes I love and
sometimes I don’t love so much...
I simply cannot make my mind up.
How's the second novel coming
along?
I’m trying not to let the fear
take over. There are no
similarities between this and my first book, so I don’t have that safety
blanket – you know, it worked the first time, so it will work again. This is uncharted territory for me in
terms of style, content and tone. It’s going slowly, but it’s still going,
which is the most important thing.
And I’m enjoying what I’ve written, which is a good start. I think about my book every waking
hour, and frequently have bits of dialogue floating round in my head, which
might not be so healthy, but I can’t help it.
What is your writing day like?
I have to get up at 7:30
because I have an akita called Magic, and she needs letting out for a wee. Then, it’s a cup of tea and a little
bit of TV – the noise gets me going.
From then until about 5pm, I’m stuck on the sofa, and the laptop is
stuck on my knees. The TV’s on all
day; I can’t work in silence. I
write or I think about what I’m going to write. I email my friends.
I have a few tea breaks, and play-with-Magic breaks. Lunch is at about 2pm. Then the same
again. At about 5, I go and shower
and get changed for the evening (during the day, I hang out in pyjamas and a
pair of fluffy slipper-boots. My
boyfriend has suggested that I get myself an all-in-one writing romper-suit...)
and return to looking like a normal human being and not a tramp with crazy
hair. I walk the dog, maybe have friends round for dinner, go out for a drink,
or if I’m feeling inspired enough, I write again. I go to sleep at about
midnight, with plotlines trying to keep me awake.
Where would you like to be in
10 years time?
Sitting on my sofa writing
another successful book! Maybe on
a bigger sofa though.
What’s the most exciting thing
about writing for you?
Creating another world. Bringing characters to life. It’s so great, when the reader has a
reaction to someone you’ve written about.
Even if the reader doesn’t like a character I’ve created, that’s fine,
because at least the reader cares enough to dislike them! And I like thinking
that something that I’ve written will have some impact on the reader, whether
that’s by making them laugh, or making them think, or just making them feel
that they’ve read a beautiful sentence.
What’s the most frustrating
thing about writing for you?
Having a great idea and then
not being able to articulate it. It’s extremely annoying having an idea stuck
in your head and not being able to shake it out.
What’s the best piece of
feedback that you’ve had from your audience?
I’ve had lots of lovely
feedback for “Dancing With The Two-Headed Tigress” for which I’m very
grateful. I suppose I’m always
very pleased when people say that they find the writing funny – it’s a nice
feeling knowing that you made someone chuckle.
Do you write for a particular
audience, or is your first priority to satisfy your own creativity?
You wouldn’t think this is true
but it is: the material somehow finds you. I was thinking of writing quite a different book to what I’m
writing now, but completely organically, a different book presented itself to
me and asked to be written.
There’s no audience involved at that stage, simply a story you’re
compelled to tell. Then, when you
start writing, you have to think to yourself, how can I present this story in
the most engaging and interesting light to the reader? And there’s very little point (if your
aim as a writer is to be published and read, as opposed to just for your own
pleasure) in writing something so impenetrable, that no-one can get to grips
with it. But you absolutely have to remain true to yourself: there’s no point
in pleasing your agent, your publisher, the reading public, if you can’t read
your own book and be proud and satisfied.
You have to be your own best and most honest critic.
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