The 'What If?' Approach

 

“If you don't have a unique voice, then you're not really a writer.” – Kate Atkinson

 

Born in York, England on Dec. 20, 1951 Atkinson is three-time winner of one of Britain’s most prestigious awards – the Whitbread Book of the Year prize.  The author of 13 novels, two plays and a short story collection, she said her favorite approach to writing is to start with the “What If” factor and advance from there..

 

“Alternate history fascinates me,” she said, “(just) as it fascinates all novelists, because 'What if?' is the big thing.”   Honored by Queen Elizabeth for “Services to Literature,” she is noted for works filled with “wit, wisdom and subtle characterization,” and for works with “surprising twists and plot turns.”  

 

While all of her books have earned acclaim, she is best known for her stand-alone novels Behind The Scenes at the Museum and Life After Life and her series featuring private investigator Jackson Brodie, adapted into a BBC series called Case Histories.   Her latest in that series is this year’s Death at the Sign of the Rook.  

 

“I usually start writing a novel that I then abandon,” she said.  “When I say abandon, I don't think any writer ever abandons anything that they regard as even a half-good sentence.  So you recycle.  I mean, I can hang on to a sentence for several years and then put it into a book that's completely different from the one it started in.”