Thank you to Natasha Lester for taking the time to answer my questions. Her book, The French Photographer is out now.

 

Synopsis:

 

Manhattan, Paris, 1942: When Jessica May’s successful modelling career is abruptly cut short, she is assigned to the war in Europe as a photojournalist for Vogue. But when she arrives the army men make her life as difficult as possible. Three friendships change that: journalist Martha Gellhorn encourages Jess to bend the rules, paratrooper Dan Hallworth takes her to places to shoot pictures and write stories that matter, and a little girl, Victorine, who has grown up in a field hospital, shows her love. But success comes at a price.

France, 2005: Australian curator D’Arcy Hallworth arrives at a beautiful chateau to manage a famous collection of photographs. What begins as just another job becomes far more disquieting as D’Arcy uncovers the true identity of the mysterious photographer — and realises that she is connected to D’Arcy’s own mother, Victorine.

Crossing a war-torn Europe from Italy to France, The French Photographer is a story of courage, family and forgiveness, by the bestselling author of The Paris Seamstress and A Kiss from Mr Fitzgerald.

 

 

Q&A

 

 

·       What inspired you to write The French Photographer?

I was inspired to write the book after I stumbled upon the extraordinary story of Lee Miller, as I was researching The Paris Seamstress. Miller was a famous model for Vogue who, after her modelling career was cut suddenly cut short, moved to Paris, became Man Ray’s lover and a well regarded surrealist photographer, and then finally a photojournalist for Vogue during WWII. After the war, she was forgotten, due to a number of reasons: women were encouraged to put their war work behind them and return to the home, and Miller was suffering from depression and didn’t want to relive the things she had seen during the war. Her son didn’t even know, upon Miller’s death, that she had been a famous photojournalist and taken some iconic photographs. After her death, he found her negatives and prints and letters and reports and he resurrected her. Now she is regarded as an icon. There were so many elements to her life that I wanted to examine, so many questions I had, so I decided to write a character based on Lee Miller. The book grew from there.

 

 

 

 

·       Where is your favourite place to write?

I have a beautiful office at home with stunning Florence Broadhurst wallpaper, French doors that open out onto a garden, and lots of lovely natural light. I love working there and find I am most creative in this quiet space that’s designed to be just the way I always wanted my office to be.

 

 

 

 

·       What was the one book that made you fall in love with books?

Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott. I adored the story of the March sisters and I reread it many times. I especially loved Amy, with her artistic temperament and blonde curls and tendency to get into trouble.

 

 

 

 

·       What is your writing Kryptonite?

Thinking time. So much of the writing of my books takes place in quiet moments away from my desk when I’m out running or walking. Without quiet and without time to think, stories can get stuck and tangled. I find they develop so much better if I imagine them out in my head before I write them.

 

 

 

·       What typical items are kept on your writing area?

I like to write with a scented candle burning. At the moment, that’s the Glasshouse Paris candle, as I’m writing about Paris! And lots of cups of tea. I cannot write without tea. There are books everywhere too, of course.

 

 

 

·       If you could tell your younger self anything, what would it be?

I would tell my teenage self that it’s okay to be a bookish nerd because look what can happen to bookish nerds!

 

 

 

·       As a writer, do you believe that language has power?

Absolutely! #metoo has come about because of the powerful words that women finally had the courage to speak. So many revolutions, both good and bad, are driven by words. If only we all used our words in wise and wonderful ways.

 

 

 

·       On average how long do you spend a day writing?

I write during school hours, so from about 9am to 2.30pm. I tend not to write during school holidays, or on weekends as, with three kids, I don’t have the quiet I need. I am very strict with myself in my writing time though – no wifi, no Facebook, limited email checking. I then do all my admin, emails, social media etc at night.

 

 

 

·       How long did if take you to write The French Photographer?

It took a year to write and then another three months or so to go through the editing process. I’m contracted to write a book a year so I can’t afford to have it take any longer!

 

 

·       What advise do you give to aspiring writers?

Don’t give up. It is hard work, there is a lot of rejection, and even after you’re published there will be massive ups and downs. But if you love it – and only if you love it – stick with it. You never know when your hard work will be rewarded with that bit of luck that everyone in writing needs.