Interview with Dave Appleby
Author of Bally and Bro
I'm an ex-teacher living on the south coast of the UK and writing novels.
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Is it a thriller or erotica or what?
- Since it is set in the world of inline pornography there is inevitably some strong sexual content. There are elements of thriller, too. But the focus of the book is on the relationship between the two main characters, narrator Bally and his 'bestie' Bro. Readers have told me that by the end of the book they are really rooting for Bally, one reviewer said he was "shouting at the page". That made me proud.
What was your inspiration for this book?
- It started as an alternative Christmas short story for my writing group and as soon as I started writing it I knew I had two fully-formed characters.
Which authors do you admire? How have they influenced your writing style?
- I love writers who are a bit experimental, like J G Ballard and William Burroughs and Jorge Luis Borges and (just to prove they don't all have surnames beginning with B) Brett Easton Ellis.
Can you tell us a little about the locations in your book?
- I live in the inner city and Bally has been born and bred there so he basically doesn't know anything else. It's surprising how much of our language is still based around a pastoral life style (needle in a haystack, aftermath, old as the trees etc).
What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
- Read widely, in genre and out of it. And keep writing everyday. Don't wait to be inspired.
Could you talk a little about your writing process?
- I write and then I rewrite obsessively.
Which character has had the greatest impact on readers?
- Everyone loves Bally but, for my money, Bro is the more interesting character. He's very complex and full of motivations that even he doesn't quite understand. I had to ask myself: would Bro really do what he does? And yes, he would, but the answer(s) to that question revealed to me depths in Bro that I hadn't at first appreciated.
If the book were to be adapted for TV or film, who would you see in the lead role? Who did you have in your mind’s eye ?
- I deliberately minimised physical descriptions so that any young, slender male could play Bally. But I hope he has a body double!
How have readers responded ?
- Exactly as I hoped they would. At the end they are really invested in Bally's fate.
Where next? What are you working on now?
- A picaresque fantasy (but without any magic) novel set in a world resembling Spain in 1590.
