I'm very lucky to have been asked to take part in the blog tour for Barbara Henderson's new novel, The Boy, the Witch & the Queen of Scots. Below you can find out more about Barbara's writing process on this fantastic new novel! FROM FIRST FLICKER TO FINISHED BOOK – MY WRITING PROCESS The Boy, the Witch and the Queen of Scots is finally out this week, and I am delighted with the final product! It seems like an age ago that I was wondering to myself: Is there actually a children’s novel about Mary Queen of Scots? As a Drama teacher working in a primary school, I knew that many classroom teachers cover the topic in upper primary, certainly in Scotland where I live. But was there a suitable book to read alongside such a topic? More to the point – was there a historical adventure story for children? Historical adventure seems to me my go-to genre as a writer… My initial search came up with some books – mainly non-fiction, and YA, but nothing fictional in the Middle Grade slot I naturally seem to occupy with my own stories. So, it couldn’t hurt to think about it some more. Time to hit the road! I began by visiting Mary’s residence in Scotland, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, and worked my way along a variety of locations including Linlithgow Palace, Stirling Castle etc. In parallel to this, I immersed myself in reading about the queen best known for her tragic fate. Reading around the topic without a specific agenda can really help to distil a story. I tried to remain open-minded. Now, the first thing I needed was a young protagonist. Middle Grade heroes and heroines are generally 11 or 12 years old. At that age, Mary lived at the French Court, immersed in French culture and language, and with little discernible design of returning to the land of her birth. All my knowledge was based on Scotland. All right – Mary was not going to be my main character. Then who? I decided to focus on the early part of Mary’s reign – her later lengthy imprisonment and eventual execution, while dramatic enough to hook any reader, was a little too depressing for a children’s book (and, let’s face it, me!). And then I came across a reference to the Huntly revolt – a northern Earl sought to manipulate Mary into a counter-reformation and failed. Here was possible villain! More reading threw up reported plots to kidnap Mary and forcibly marry her to his own son, and accusations of witchcraft against his wife. Ohhhhh, perfect villain material! I now had a historical backdrop, a conflict and a villain. But I was still on the lookout for a young protagonist, ideally someone invisible, like a servant. Someone who could be present without being mentioned in historical records. Another research snippet sparked an idea – apparently, Mary Queen of Scots was inordinately fond of falconry and adored hunting with her merlins in particular. What if the Earl gifted her some birds on her arrival? What if he sent a young falconer boy to accompany them, and what if that boy was ordered to remain at court and spy on the Queen for his master? Perfect. Only one problem, I knew nothing about falconry. Time to address that too! Research really is so much fun! At that time, I had enough material to get started and began to write: the fog-shrouded arrival of Mary’s ships in the Port of Leith, Alexander’s errand, the impossibility of his situation. I do not plan like other authors do. It’s important to ensure that I myself remain interested in the story – after all, I am telling it to myself first - and there needs to be an element of surprise. That surprise came in the form of Lizzie, a young seamstress employed at court. My friend and fellow Time Tunneller Ally Sherrick had alerted me to an online lecture on embroidery at Mary Queen of Scots’ court. Until that day, I had no idea that embroidery in a professional sense was the domain of men – and the defiant young Lizzie with dreams of smashing that particular glass ceiling came into my head fully formed. She is the perfect sidekick for my falconer boy Alexander – loyal, interesting, sparky and with a character arc of her own too. It’s always the same: whenever I reach the halfway stage with a manuscript, I have a wobble – and I have written enough now to see the signs. I worry that the story is no good, that no one will want to read it, and that those who do will hate it. I also worry that I may not be able to bring it to a satisfying end. This is the stage when I really must write a synopsis. It’s best not to overthink this. A page or so will sum up the whole book, and often it becomes glaringly obvious what needs to happen in the remainder of the story. Sometimes a synopsis also flags up things in the manuscript which need to go. Once done, I set the file aside for a few days before self-editing until I am happy. Finally, and still before I show the manuscript to anther living soul, I shut the door and read the whole thing aloud to myself. Yes, every word, and yes, aloud! You would not believe the number of clunky phrases and lazy repetitions which jump out at you once you do this. It’s my secret weapon. And then the real work begins: editing with a publisher, finding a title, creating teaching resources, promoting pre- and post-publication, generating event content and a million other things beside. One thing is certain about my writing process. No one day is the same. And to be honest, that’s the way I like it!
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