www.ken-follett.com
Ken Follett, born in Cardiff, Wales, is, by all accounts, a very successful author. After all, his books have sold over 160 million copies! Follett writes thrillers and historical novels. He wrote The Eye of the Needle in 1978, which was turned into a major motion picture, starring Donald Sutherland.
The author broke from the thriller genre when he published a book called The Pillars of the Earth, about a building in the Middle Ages. He followed it up with World Without End and then A Column of Fire, the two sequels to it. From a marketing standpoint, he has found that trilogies work well for him. The Welshman calls this particular trilogy, “Kingsbridge.”
Other books he has penned include Fall of Giants, The Man from St. Petersburg, Edge of Eternity, Lie Down with Lions and The Key to Rebecca. His books have been translated into 30 languages. World Without End was a bestseller in Italy, the U.S., Germany, the UK, France and Spain.
The Process
He said that he usually wakes up with an idea of where he wants to go in the story. He’ll write in his bathrobe, after he makes himself a cup of tea. Other than taking a break to shave or walk the dog, he pretty much writes from 7 am until 5 pm. One of the tricks he employs is he’ll cut out pictures from a magazine that he thinks resemble his characters and hang them on a board. So, while he’s writing, he’ll look at the board to get ideas. He also uses an Excel spreadsheet where he lists all the characters and their traits and age. After work, he enjoys a glass or two of champagne.
He shows his first draft to people, telling them to look for mistakes. The scribe listens to them all the time, he said, but doesn’t always take their advice. But, if they find a certain section boring, he’ll want to know why. Sometimes it will need to “go through the typewriter again.” He said one of the best pieces of writing advice he got was early in his career when his editor told him that, regarding his characters – none of them seemed to have had a past. Follett realized then that he and his readers have to imagine they have a life outside of the story.
As an alternative to writing, he plays bass guitar in a band called Damn Right I Got the Blues. In addition, he plays the balalaika. His son Emanuele also plays in the band. The artist started off in the publishing world as a rock ‘n roll critic. He studied philosophy in college and says that he likes music because it is sensory, as opposed to writing, which is entirely cerebral.
A Master Storyteller
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His stories often deal with the theme of good versus evil. His parents were devout, born-again Christians that didn’t allow him to watch TV while he was growing up. So he embraced books. He insists that writers must have a voracious appetite for reading. This lifelong learner said his most important asset was that he read thousands and thousands of novels in his youth. He learned to read when he was four years old. One of his influences was Jane Austen.
If you are looking for inspiration, keep in mind that his breakthrough book, The Eye of the Needle, was Follett’s 11th novel. The original title was Storm Island. How’s that for perseverance?
His books often feature strong women characters. He employs researchers and subject matter experts (such as history professors) to check his facts. He’ll also peruse diaries and memoirs of everyday people who lived in the era that he is writing about. He gets enjoyment out of doing things like researching failed banks, perhaps because his father was a tax inspector (his mother was a housewife).
Personal Life
Follett was married to Mary Emma Ruth Elson, but they divorced and he married Barbara Daphne Hubbard, a political activist who became a member of British Parliament’s Labor Party. He and his first wife once owned a home in the South of France. Barbara and Ken own two properties in London and a place in Antigua called Bananaquit, named after a local bird (it was up for sale for a cool $25 million two years ago, but I can’t find evidence that it sold). Sixty-eight years old and a lover of Shakespeare, he also acts and has been in some motion pictures where he wrote the storyline.
He says he wants to give the reader the excitement he had when he read James Bond’s Live and Let Die. The main “trick” (if there is one) is to engage the reader. You have to get them emotionally involved, he insists. “We have to accept that there are terrifically attractive rival forms of entertainment.”
About the Author
Frank Felsburg is a writer in Western North Carolina.
