Chloe Timms: 'Leave your fear at the door'
BY Discoveries
5th Nov 2024
CBC and Curtis Brown are proud to be partnering with the Women’s Prize Trust and Audible to run Discoveries for a fifth year. This unique writing development prize and programme offers practical support and encouragement to aspiring female novelists of all ages and backgrounds, from across the UK and Ireland. The prize accepts novels in any genre of adult fiction, with entrants invited to submit the first 10,000 words of their novel and a synopsis.
We spoke to author Chloe Timms about her writing process, her podcast Confessions of a Debut Novelist, and what she’ll be looking for as a judge for Discoveries 2025.
Your debut novel The Seawomen is a gothic, dystopic tale set on the patriarchal isle of Eden. The women are told that leaving the island is dangerous, yet protagonist Esta yearns for freedom and the call of the sea. Where did you get your inspiration – did you start with the setting or Esta’s character?
The two almost came together at the same time. I started writing a dystopian short story about a young boy who was raised on folklore and mythology about the sea. I've always loved speculative, dystopian fiction like The Handmaid's Tale and I wanted there to be a strict regime on the island. But I was also inspired by writers like Kirsty Logan, who always writes stunning prose, twisting fairy tales and folklore into something modern and exciting. The story became too big, too expansive and I was advised by one of my MA tutors to start making it into a novel. Esta was pivotal from the start, but I didn't tell the story from her perspective at the beginning. It was all about the secrets that she carried, her resistance to the island’s lore. Once I'd finished my MA, I left the novel for about five months, aware that it wasn't working in its current form. Then I decided to retell the story from Esta’s perspective, and the rest is history!
The sea plays a pivotal role in your debut. Do you have any tips for aspiring authors on how create an evocative atmosphere through setting?
I think the hardest thing about describing familiar environments or settings, is that the first descriptions which come to mind feel like they've been done hundreds of times before. My advice would be make lists of words that you like for different categories. For example, when I was writing The Seawomen I kept lists on my phone of words related to the weather, the coast and the sea. I tried to find unusual words, and words from all the senses. Secondly, it’s good to spend time in places that relate to your novel, if you can. The island in my novel was based on a real place, but one I couldn't visit. So I sought out videos and photos using Instagram hashtags so I felt immersed there. Lastly, if you're someone that can write with noise in the background, look for soundscapes on YouTube or Spotify. You can work alongside the sounds of an echoing church or a lightning storm, for example. I found that massively helpful.
Alongside writing, you also host the podcast Confessions of a Debut Novelist, which looks at debut authors’ different paths to publication. How did you get into podcasting and what is your favourite part about it?
Since starting Confessions of a Debut Novelist, podcasting has taken over my life a little bit – but I absolutely love doing it! I've always been a huge fan of podcasts and I've always wanted to launch one but I never knew what to talk about. When I was a debut novelist, chatting to my debut friends in our 2022 group, it struck me that so many of us had really interesting stories to tell about how we became published and what it was like to have our first book out there. There were lots of American podcasts but I didn't feel like there was anywhere specifically for UK debuts to talk about their experience. It's become more successful than I could have ever imagined and I'm so happy when people tell me they listen, or when new writers say it helped them on their journey to become published. My favourite part is getting to meet so many new writers and have a good natter! Lots of my guests keep in touch and it's a joy to see their success.
Which books do you always recommend to others?
I've got such varied taste when it comes to reading! I have favourite literary writers, thriller writers, romance writers etc. The one novel I recommend everyone read is Tin Man by Sarah Winman. I tend to recommend anything by Julia Armfield, Kirsty Logan, Sophie Mackintosh, Rachelle Atalla and Lucie McKnight Hardy – they're just a few of my favourite writers. But I also adore Douglas Stuart and Paul Murray. I could be here all day recommending books!
We’re delighted to have you onboard as a judge for Discoveries 2025 – do you have any advice for writers getting ready to submit to the prize?
My first piece of advice is to leave your fear at the door. You will probably feel that your work isn't ready or you aren't ready. And I can tell you that every single author I know feels this way. We all want to do one more edit, one last tweak. We all feel nervous about showing our work to the world. But you have nothing to lose by entering the prize. I've spoken to hundreds of debut authors for my podcast and so many of them have got their big break from entering a competition, even if they didn't win. Some got longlisted and felt validation, some got interest from an agent and others had something brilliant to add to their writer’s CV. This could be you next!
What will you be looking for from entrants when reading for Discoveries?
I can't tell you how excited I am to start reading the entries! I'm really hoping that something grabs me from the first sentence or two. I'm looking for a really strong voice, perhaps from a type of character that I've not come across before or someone I feel whose voice is missing from the fiction landscape. Or it could be a really enticing premise, a question I can't wait to be answered, something unusual or arresting that keeps me turning the page. And if these opening words are surrounded by a beautiful turn of phrase or two, then that would be even better.
Chloe Timms is part of the Discoveries 2025 judging panel – she will be joined by chair of judges and founder of the Women's Prize Kate Mosse, acclaimed authors Dreda Say Mitchell and Claire Kohda, Curtis Brown literary agent Jess Molloy and CBC’s founder Anna Davis.
Best of luck preparing your submission to Discoveries 2025. We’re so excited to read your work!
Get your hands on a copy of The Seawomen.
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