Andy Martin - Reacher Said Nothing

Lee Child

New York

2019

Hi LeeHow would you feel about a ‘making of’ story about your next book?Thinking about some of the questions that get bowled at you at public events, I reckon most of them concern the process of creation. (Apart from actual marriage proposals.) I was thinking that a genesis-and-what-happened-next type approach could be of wide interest as regards one of your books. i.e. a sort of work-in-progress approach.Obviously you would have to be up for it, which is why I ask now, so you can blow the idea out of the water entirely if you want.There are about 10 different ways of doing it, could be more or less systematic and focused, depending. But I guess the minimum is –depending on how it was done – I would need feedback from you on what you are actually getting up to as the story rolls along.I’m not sure this has been done before – a kind of literary criticism but in the moment, in real time, rather than picking it up afterwards. How This Book Was Written, but actually trying to capture the very moment of creation. I think it could be exciting, but as I say, you would have to really be in the mood for it. You have to admit, it would be different – so instead of the old cutting yourself off in a log cabin approach (or the urban equivalent), you would have someone (i.e. me) looking over your shoulder as you are typing the words. Not exactly Boswell to your Johnson but something along those lines. Or Ishmael to your Captain Ahab. (Keith Richards to your Mick Jagger?)Kind of crazy I know and you might say ‘yes, and TOTAL BLOODY NON-STARTER TOO!’ On the other hand, you might feel that it could be a different angle on the whole Jack Reacher adventure. And it would definitely save you having to answer a lot of those questions!all the best, Andy

Very interesting idea. Much to discuss. Detailed answer Tuesday from New York. Lee

great!beginning: where did that idea come from? (one of the great mysteries)end: getting it out there, reviews etcwriting Reacher could be as strong a narrative as the Reacher adventure (possibly with fewer actual punch-ups, but you never know)

AndyI’m totally up for this, but we better figure out the how/where/when, because the process is about to start.Tomorrow I start on the concentrated launch promo for Personal, and then early next week I’ll start writing the 2015 book. So really coverage should start now, to show how writing and promoting are inevitably combined.So far I have no title, no real plot idea, but I have the opening pages in mind. I hope to get them down soon, and see what emerges after that.

Are you going to be in New York or what? I love the ‘no title no plot’ thing – this is like the genesis moment. Void and without form.

Yes, in NYC now, doing media etc, then on the road in Savannah, Georgia, Ireland and the UK between September 11th and 20th.

OK if I am going to do this SERIOUSLY (obviously a must), I’d better get right over there and talk it over asap. On the other hand I don’t want to get in the way if you are right in the middle of big media hoopla. On yet another hand, big media hoopla is a good part of the story. We start not at the beginning of this one, but at the end of the previous one … Basically, I don’t want you to start writing before I get there! Sounds as though you’re already writing it in your head. I feel I’ve got to be perched on your shoulder like some kind of pirate’s parrot for the first line … obviously could catch up with you readily here but I reckon I need to start looking for flights … how soon, from your point of view, could I pop up in NYC for purpose of prelim conversation? Am cancelling dinner with the PM of course.

Get here any time, sooner the better … but seriously, Monday or Tuesday next week wouldn’t be too late.

Sorted. In NYC Sunday. See you Monday? Say where and when and I’ll be there.

Excellent. Could start (early) on Monday – CBS TV in the morning, a Simon Mayo phoner to the UK in the afternoon, for a flavour of how it goes … plus Monday is 20 years to the day since I bought the paper to write Killing Floor.Let me know how you feel about that and I’ll give you the details.

Ha! so you actually had to go out specifically to buy the paper – wow – the next best thing to cuneiform and clay tablets, right back to the very beginning. Sounds perfect. If you don’t mind me being a fly on the wall it would be great to tag along on the publicity train for a while. I was having lunch with Bronwen Maddox the other day – I bought her a copy of The Enemy! – and she was saying how she had known loads of guys who were dreaming (in vain of course) of doing exactly what you did (the re-naissance thing). So the funny thing is although this is a unique one-off kind of phenom, at the same time there is definitely a universal factor here.