Write On! Editor Madeleine F White interviews author John Marrs

It’s been one of those days. The intended interviewer has had to pull out because of a family crisis and the circle of doom is whirring relentlessly on my laptop. But I’m about to meet a stellar wordsmith with a reputation for being great company, so I’m sure my day’s about to improve. After all, I’ll be getting the low-down on every writer’s dream: hearing how indie author John Marrs became a global bestseller with his work gracing streaming platforms including Netflix!

With just minutes to spare, the whirring stops and John appears on my screen. I immediately notice the packed, mint green bookshelf behind him and congratulate him for having picked the ideal author interview backdrop. It’s so perfect, I wonder whether it’s virtual.

“No, no,” he says, and goes on to tell me how it was a present to himself after a recent house move. Suitably impressed, I use the fact I have mistaken his real world for a virtual one to frame the first question linked to our issue theme, ‘Misunderstandings,’ wondering about any that have happened to him.

Though initially none spring to mind, he suddenly remembers a recent deep fake video he’s discovered doing the rounds featuring him. He shows it to me, saying:

“Initially, I laughed. After all, I’m just an ordinary bod who does the school run and happens to write. It’s scary, but there’s very little you can do about it.”

Doctored from an interview, the video is very realistic. Luckily, there’s nothing in it that might lead to any real misunderstandings but still, it’s a salutary reminder of what our brave new world can birth.

With this social media misadventure in mind, I reference The Passengers, a work of speculative fiction. Released just before the first lockdown, it centres on the dehumanisation of the real world by the digital one, with social media as the key perpetrator.

John tells me how he uses the genre to push developments we’re on the cusp of to their limits. With that very effective deep fake of him etched in my mind’s eye, I wonder whether his ideation of this twisty thriller is a sign of things to come?

“Oh yes, and part of this is due to the total disconnect between our real and digital selves. For example, interacting digitally can make people braver and more thoughtless, with little thought given to any legal repercussions. The challenges of the Metaverse – a digital world in which we can live alternative lives – is that we can’t control what is being said.”

How does John navigate this, ensuring his identities match?

“It’s about stepping away from things. I’m on the social media platforms I’m comfortable with. For example, I don’t do Twitter/X any more. It has become too aggressive, presenting a negative view of the world.”

I wholeheartedly agree with the need to curate the platforms we engage on but use John’s comment to reflect on the darker seam of humanity that runs through his work: a negativity this 50-something family man very much eschews in his real life. As his characters are often flawed – either openly or hidden – I ask whether writing them, and so highlighting the unthinkable, is way of alleviating the darkness of real life we all sometimes feel?

“As a journalist, I’d spent so long writing light and fluffy pieces around celebrities I’d interviewed I wanted to do something that was going to challenge me. Fiction allowed me to explore something deeper. Of course, there’s a light side to life, but it’s the dark side people want to read about. We’re drawn to the darkness of others.”

Intrigued, I want to hear more about how he sees human relationships in the context of technology and ask to what degree have things moved on since he wrote The Passengers and The One (a novel exploring the concept of a DNA test to find the perfect partner)?

There’s that wry laugh again: “I’m no expert. But when I have an idea, I’ll find experts to explain it to me; AI being a case in point. The Family Experiment, for example, follows ten couples as they raise a virtual child from birth to the age of 18, but in a condensed nine-month time period.”

John goes on to explain he believes an AI child is within touching distance and that, in the Metaverse, people will soon be paying subscriptions to raise fake families online; interacting with them through haptic suits. It’s a scary thought; enough to make me wonder whether he plays on this undercurrent of fear as a narrative tool. He smiles: “Some of my books put a negative spin on things; it makes them more interesting.”

While reading John’s work in preparation for this interview, I’d created a narrative around what I thought he was going to say. However, his determination to put the story at the heart of his writing challenges my preconceived ideas and when he says: “I do wonder sometimes whether I’m not a better storyteller than a writer,” I finally get it. Industry expectations and what people have to say about his writing don’t really matter.

I realise his success comes from being determined to tell a good story to the people that matter: his readers. It’s no more complicated than that. He illustrates this point by telling me about a recent reader message from Kazakhstan and delightedly shares how a school in Michigan has replaced Golding’s Lord Of The Flies with The Passengers as a school set text.

This filters into how he approaches literary events. He tells me imposter syndrome caused him to shy away initially but, more recently he thinks his reluctance to participate is because, rather than telling people what he thinks about his work, he wants to let his writing speak for itself.

“I can’t really answer those deeper questions about motivation and the rest. I don’t like to overthink things. I just write. Maybe that’s why I’ve never had writer’s block.”

I take advantage of this opening into his writer’s process to ask about how his stories come to him.

“You have to be open to your subconscious. For example, the first half of Keep It In The Family came to me in a dream.”

This fascinates me: from dream to powerful literary reality. I suppose that’s where the determination comes in. Many of us have ideas but it’s his skill as a writer – the spareness of his prose and power of his characters –  that allows plotlines drawn from his subconscious to reach our pages and screens so successfully.

We move into another aspect of the process. He has a reputation as being someone who dislikes being bored. When I wonder whether this filters into his work, his answer is unequivocal:

“Absolutely. The easy thing would be to keep doing the same thing, keep to a similar plot and differentiate with a slightly  different twist each time.  But I’m not linear; I hop around. I write different scenes at different times. In fact, if you told me I’d have to write 100,000 words from start to finish, I’d feel overwhelmed.”

He tells me that, these days, his readership has come to expect regular reinventions. Despite our light banter, I sense the nerves of steel at the core of him that make this approach possible. John knows exactly who he is.

An example of this determination is how, after 80+ rejections he self-published his first book, The Wronged Sons, in 2014. It’s since been republished by Thomas & Mercer as When You Disappeared.

“I had a book but no one wanted it. By the time I self-published my third, I got picked up.”

He means by the traditional agent/publisher route, which has seen him writing two books a year for two publishing houses: Thomas Mercer for his psychological thrillers and Penguin for his speculative work. When I ask him about how self-publishing is seen by publishers these days, he tells me it’s welcomed. Though profile and a good sales history help.

I ask whether his contacts to newspapers and magazines from his journalism days were of use. His answer loops back to an earlier point: “Yes, but reviews don’t sell books. It comes down to reader choice.”

Knowing our time is coming to an end, I ask my final question: Is there anything John would tell his ‘early writer’ self?

“Don’t waffle! Having re-read my first two books for new projects less is definitely more. I could have cut at least 15,000 words! So read your manuscript, put it in a drawer for a while and then re-read.”

John’s genuine wonder at how writing has opened up his world: “It was all because of an idea I had on an escalator going to work!” has allowed me to touch the simple joy at its core. But it’s the: “You’ve spent so much time and energy writing your book, so get it out there!” which gives a real sense of what’s needed to make it happen.

Connect with John on Instagram: @johnmarrs.author and visit his website: johnmarrsauthor.com

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Issue 24, featuring John Marrs, is out now. You will find it in libraries and other outlets. Alternatively, all current and previous editions can be found on our magazines page here. 

You can hear great new ideas, creative work and writing tips on Write On! Audio. Find us on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Google Podcasts and Spotify. Type Pen to Print into your browser and look for our logo, or find us on Podcasters.Spotify.com.

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