Aaron Lamb, author of 5 novels, chats through his new book, Cults, Coffee and Close Encounters, and top tips on finding the time to write.
What inspired the idea for your latest book?
The crazy people in the pandemic hoarding loo roll. I was so fascinated with that story and going into a supermarket to see it wasn’t just a few strange people it was everywhere. It kinda blew my mind. So, I thought, what might people do if aliens landed. Usually, aliens are a plot device, they kinda take control and there’s lots of fighting. I wanted to explore humans and what we would do to each other. For example, hoarding loo roll in the face of a crisis!
Which of your characters do you relate to the most and why?
This is the most personal book I’ve written. Both Janice and Fury are parts of me. Janice is the history geek with massive issues of impostor syndrome and Fury is the part of me that tries to let go of the past and just can’t quite fully do it. It’s a really vulnerable book with these characters telling a personal story of how you work through the absurdity of being a human.
What’s your daily writing routine?
Drop the kids off at school and head to my local coffee shop, the Patch Store, and write as much as I can before work starts. It’s amazing 15 to 20 mins a day, every day can really chip away at the colossal task that is writing a novel. I’m officially time-poor these days. Two kids, work, school, sports, homework etc etc, so getting that little window into my writing world has been a game changer.
20 years ago while working at the Odeon cinema, I’d write parts of my story down on the back of cinema tickets or receipt role, again just getting the story out of you helps so much. I’ve never been able to sit down with all my stuff and write for hours and hours. That is the dream, but it hasn’t happened yet!
Aaron Lamb 