I’m commonly asked, ‘How much of yourself do you put into your writing? How far are your books based on your actual experiences?’

The answer is twofold:

• All my writing is inspired by experience… For example, ideas for characters and plot points can be based on some tiny stroke of inspiration that came in my daily life – Burning Embers’ opening scene popped into my mind as I gazed out at a moonlight ocean liner, and the two faces of Venice that I explore in The Echoes of Love began life in a realisation I had while visiting the city as a child (see my earlier post on this). And of course I research the settings of my books carefully, so all kinds of experiences I’ve had of locations come to the fore as I write.
• … But my characters and my stories are fictional. No friend or relative reading one of my books would recognise him- or herself in a character – or think that my heroine was me on paper. No part of a story is a retelling of something that happened to me in my life. My romances are born of my imagination.

A basic rule of good writing is ‘Write about what you know’. I know romance. I know exotic locations. I know mystery and intrigue. Thus, I write books based on these things that I know. But for me, that is as far as the rule need extend. Writing about what you know does not mean exposing all that you know.

Any kind of creative – painter, sculptor, architect, writer, dancer, actor and so on – gives a little of him- or herself to the artwork. The creator looks at the work and sees all the influences and the little glimpses of the self. But the crucial word is glimpse. The work is separate, outside of the self, and everyone, whether creating work for the public appreciation or not, is entitled to privacy.

And yet, there are some who advocate exposure. For example, Allen Ginsberg advised, ‘Follow your inner moonlight; don’t hide the madness.’

The truth is that a writer treads a fine line between writing what he or she needs and desires to write, and writing with a mind on how he or she will be judged by the writing. Those who write grisly murder mysteries or highly erotic novels, for example, require a certain courage for when an interviewer asks, ‘How much of yourself do you put into your writing? How far are your books based on your actual experiences?’ – always with the expectation that the author is not wholly imaginative but has lived out the sensational elements of the plot. A faint-hearted writer may be so concerned about judgement that consequently he or she shies away from experience-based writing; but the result is invariably a book that does not feel authentic.

The key, ultimately, is balance. Keeping enough of yourself private that you are comfortable in yourself. But at the same time, having the courage to follow Gustave Flaubert’s wisdom: ‘You must write for yourself, above all. That is your only hope of creating something beautiful.’

What do you think on the subject? How far do you separate an author from his or her story as you read? Would you feel cheated to learn that an author had not experienced personally an incident that was powerfully narrated? Do you accept the strength of imagination? Which parts of a book ought to be grounded in real experience? I would love to hear your thoughts.