The Girl Who Walked on Air (18 page)

I’d like to say a massive thank you to the people who helped make Louie a showstopper. To my agent Jodie Hodges, who read early drafts, said ‘MORE DRAMA!’ then took me for afternoon tea. To all at Faber who’ve supported me as a writer, but in particular to my editor Rebecca Lee, whose wisdom and kind words have been invaluable. And to James Rose and Anna Swan for their copy-editing skills. Also to my publicist Hannah Love, who persuaded me to leave Somerset now and again. And to Julian de Narvaez for designing such a beautiful cover and using my dog Bagel as the model.

Thank you to the bloggers, reviewers, booksellers and librarians, who allow books to find readers. And to my writing pals on Twitter and at Author Allsorts who’ve offered encouragement and advice.

None of this would be possible without the love and support of friends and family. To my besties Becky Howat and Karl Watson – just because. To the Carrolls for great dinners and bubbly. Also to my parents for putting up with the moaning – sorry about that. It can’t be easy living with a writer, which is why my biggest thanks of all goes to Owen, who deserves a medal.

The first draft took ten very strict bum-on-seat months. I’m not the fastest writer by nature, so I had to be disciplined, which meant less Twitter, more writing.

One foggy night, Louie is found abandoned. That’s how it happens in the story, and actually creating her was quite similar. She just appeared out of my brain fog.

Once I started reading about circuses, I just
had
to write about one. The Victorians had strong stomachs for danger. Unlike nowadays, acrobats performed without safety harnesses. The fact they might fall – and many did – added to the ‘sensation’ of the show. For a writer, nineteenth-century female characters can be tricky. The rich ones tended to live quite restricted lives. Circuses, though, were viewed as ‘outside’ of respectable society, which gave Louie and me more freedom; a circus girl would travel, work, face hardships. She’d also encounter more danger – all are great story ingredients!

Not yet. But I’ve got double-jointed elbows that bend backwards, and I do a great imitation of a squeaky toy.

I confess I haven’t been to Niagara Falls. When I spoke to people who had, they mentioned the noise. Apparently, you can hear the Falls all over town. I also read books, pored over pictures, looked on Google Earth, watched films. It’s an awesome place – no wonder so many daredevils performed there (with mixed results).

It’s true that Charles Blondin was the first person to walk Niagara Falls on 30 June 1859. Many tightrope walkers were inspired by him. It’s also true that he toured the UK, performing at the Crystal Palace in 1861, with his young daughter, Adele, in a wheelbarrow. The audience were horrified and Blondin was made to vow never to attempt the trick again. The SS
Marathon
did actually exist, as did Maria Spelterini, who was the first woman to cross Niagara on 8 July 1876. Over a two-week period, she repeated the feat many times, then mysteriously disappeared. Louie’s mother is based on her. It’s also true that ‘do-gooders’ put pressure on circuses not to use child performers. In 1879 the Dangerous Performances Act banned performers under the age of fourteen. My story is set just before that time.

We had a bonkers Boxer dog called Kizzy. She was always up for a bit of mischief, which is just how a dog should be. We were inseparable.

Probably Gabriel. I can’t imagine how anyone would trust a tightrope!

I got the story-writing bug at a very early age, though I had a big gap of about twenty years where I didn’t write anything. Yet I’d daydream about being a writer one day. Finally, it’s happened. I still have to pinch myself!

First of all, I drink tea and read. Then I walk my dogs. After that, I’ll settle down to write, usually by about 10 a.m. I make notes and do rough plans in notebooks, but write straight on to my laptop. On a first draft, I’ll aim for a minimum of a thousand words a day. There are other parts to being a writer, too, like answering emails, doing edits, promo work, writing blogs, etc. And Twitter, which does count, doesn’t it?

With
Frost Hollow Hall
it was my closest friends and family because I didn’t have a book deal then. This time round it’s been my agent and my editor. Everyone else will get to read it when it’s a lovely printed book, which is far nicer than squinting at a computer screen.

Absolutely. I read constantly. A successful children’s writer once described reading as ‘nourishment’, which I think sums it up nicely.

All the Moomin stories. Anything with a horse in it – I had shelves and shelves of pony books. My absolute favourites were the Jinny at Finmory series by Patricia Leitch. A few years ago, I bought them again off Ebay. They’re still wonderful stories.

Three-dimensional characters, strong settings, plot twists – a bit of snow doesn’t hurt either.

Hmm . . . I still feel like a new writer myself, so I’d say practise lots. You won’t always get it right, but that’s part of the process.

Read. Walk my dogs. Hang out with friends and family. Go shopping with my mum. Eat – I’m lucky that my husband is a brilliant cook.

It’s about woods, fairies, heart transplants and how two very different girls face traumatic events in their lives. Part of the story is told by Alice and is modern-day; the other is told by Flo and is set in the weeks following the end of World War One.

Emma Carroll is a secondary school English teacher. She has also worked as a news reporter, an avocado picker and the person who punches holes into filofax paper. She recently graduated with distinction from Bath Spa University’s MA in Writing For Young People.

The Girl Who Walked on Air
is Emma’s second novel. She lives in the Somerset hills with her husband and two terriers.

Frost Hollow Hall