Q&A: Ten for The TEN with Fiona Gibson
Legendary magazine editor turned author
“I love to write. I’m obsessed with it. I’d write in some capacity even if I was never paid for it, just for myself.”
Magazine nerds, today’s interview will thrill you to the core, and that’s because this week’s Ten for The TEN is with legendary magazine editor turned novelist, Fiona Gibson.
Young me was in awe of Fiona’s career (and old me, frankly, still is) because she was such a presence in the world of publishing and one of those names that everyone in the biz knows.
She’s the former editor of the now defunct more! magazine and presided over the inception of its greatest success, Position of the Fortnight. (I’ll let Fiona explain that one to the uninitiated in her own words).
She also worked on many other iconic titles of the yore including Jackie and Just Seventeen, which I was also fortunate enough to write for when the offices were in Carnaby Street.
Fiona was an innovator and a brilliant writer, so it was no surprise to anyone that she became a published author back in 2003, with her debut, Babyface. She describes herself below as ‘annoyingly industrious’ but I’d say she was an inspiration to anyone who isn’t part of an establishment but dreams big and then works hard to make those dreams come true.
She now has more than 20 - count ‘em! - novels under her belt, with her most recent The Woman Who Ran Away, hitting the shelves earlier this year.
While I usually stick religiously to the ten question rule, I didn’t want to edit down Fiona’s answers (because honestly, she did a great job of doing that herself), so this is a bumper edition (although sadly, there’s no cover mount).
Below, Fiona talks about how she got her start in publishing, where she draws inspiration from, her next novel and why she likes to write in bed!
Hi Fiona, thank you so much for talking to The TEN!
Can you tell me a little about your background and your hugely successful career in magazines?
I was obsessed with magazines as soon as I was old enough to graduate from Beezer comic to Jackie. An only child, I lived in a tiny West Yorkshire village where there wasn’t even a shop. Fashion, make-up, pop stars, boys - Jackie was a portal into a far more thrilling world. Miss Selfridge! Donny Osmond! Instructions on how to paint a groovy mural on your bedroom wall! It all boggled my tiny brain.
As an annoyingly industrious teenager, I started sending off cartoons to DC Thomson in Dundee, who published Jackie as well as a raft of comics. My cartoons were bought for a fiver a pop and I was lucky enough to land a job at DC Thomson, straight from school at 17.
Maggie, then editor of Jackie, scooped me out of the ‘general fiction’ department (where new recruits were assigned to read the unsolicited short stories that poured in daily), and took me under her wing.
My first job on Jackie was to write the horoscopes, which I made up, as I knew nothing about astrology. No one seemed to mind. From there I went to Just Seventeen in London, then onto more! magazine. It was my first editor’s role and I loved it.
On more! I came up with the idea for a new feature called Position of the Fortnight, which my boss said would last ‘about two issues.’ It went on for about five years, became infamous and remains my career highlight.
I still write magazine features and a year ago I started my weekly Substack, which I love. It reminds me of those magazine days and the freedom and fun we had then, to write about whatever we wanted.
You write romantic comedy novels about families, kids, teenagers, and relationships. Why does this subject matter inspire you?
I started writing my first novel when my daughter was a baby and my twin sons were toddlers, so I was swimming madly in this soup of family life. There seemed to be such a wealth of funny material there - about being flung into this mad mum world. Even on a bad day I’d think, ‘At least I can write about this!’
Now my kids are all grown and I write about wider subjects - relationships, friendships, wider family dynamics and growing older as a woman. But relatable everyday life, with all its joys and hassles and funny and messy bits, is always at the core of my books.
At what point did you think, ‘I want to write a novel’ and how long did it take to write the first, Babyface, which was published in 2003.
In my twenties I’d written tons of short stories for women’s magazines. I’d always thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be amazing to be an author?’ But I’d never figured out what to write about and thought I probably wasn’t brainy or well-read enough. I hadn’t been to university. Only the University of Jackie Magazine. But then we moved from London to Scotland, and this huge new life experience - becoming a parent - gave me the subject I needed.
Plus, I was up all night with a baby anyway, so why not have a bash at writing a book? Here was something that was just for me. It was a way of grabbing something for myself. I ploughed on with it, writing at night and snatching more time when my daughter was napping during the day. That first book probably took around a year to write.
If you have an agent can you tell us how you found them and what that relationship means to you?
Just before we left London, an agent who’d enjoyed my column in Red magazine got in touch out of the blue. ‘Have you written any fiction?’ she asked. When I’d written those first few chapters, I sent them to her and she liked them. After I’d finished the book, she got me a book deal with Hodder for two novels.
The phone call came when I was at toddler group with my daughter. I had to run out into the street, in our little town of Biggar, and could hardly believe what she was telling me. I was going to be a published author! Now I had to write that second book.
If you have one, can you describe your typical daily writing routine?
Writing is my full time job. I’ve usually started by nine - I work mostly at home in our flat in Glasgow, but I also enjoy writing in cafes and local library, just to shake myself up. I’d like to say I have a beautiful desk but since Covid times I’ve fallen into this awful dysfunctional habit of writing in bed.
At one point during lockdown all of our adult kids had moved back home, and with cafes and libraries closed, I had nowhere to go. I actually considered writing in the car with a huge padded jacket on. Or sitting on the damn roof. Admittedly, Covid was quite a long time ago now so can I keep on trotting out that excuse?
During the day, I’ll venture out for walks and perhaps a run, and by about five-ish I’m all spent, and cook dinner. But when I’m under the cosh, deadline wise, Jimmy, my husband, will cook. He cooked for weeks on end when I was super busy this spring, with two book deadlines clashing. When I’m really busy I’ll write late into the night.
Once time, I worked all through the night and then the next night too, like a student on a deadline. The difference was, I was in my fifties and the dog couldn’t understand why he was being walked by a manic boggle-eyed woman at 4.30 am.
Do you have any specific rituals or habits that help you get into a creative mindset before writing?
I dip into books that inspire me. I love Us by David Nicholls - it’s an all time favourite. But I try not to take on other authors’ voices, which can happen - like picking up on somebody’s accent. I might dip in and have quick two minute read, then put the book away. It sort of loosens me up to write. I also drink gallons of coffee.
I read that you’d go to a hotel to finish your books, do you still do that, and why?
Not any more, although it was hugely helpful when our home was very busy with kids, and then adult kids coming back to live with us for a spell. Having that space and solitude really helped. I don’t really fancy it now - that aloneness. I did get quite lonely. Also, I don’t really feel I can justify it now. But I have to say, going on a writing retreat would be heavenly.
You've said that you write two novels a year. How easy – or challenging - is that process? Are you editing one, writing another, and percolating the one after that at the same time?
I’ve had a good few years of writing one novel a year, with lots of magazine and newspaper journalism too. But I’ve just upped the pace to two books a year again as I have a new publisher, Boldwood, and they like to publish quite frequently.
It’s a bit of juggling act as a book will come back for edits when I’m in the thick of writing the next one. I just have to switch over to whatever is most urgent, and it’s surprising enjoyable working that way.
If I’m not under pressure, I can ‘wallow’ in writing - taking too long, fiddling and fretting and rewriting unnecessarily. Upping the pace sharpens me up. And if I’ve been immersed in writing, having the previous book bounce back to be edited is a refreshing change - like seeing an old friend!
As for the next book, I don’t really think about it until a book is finished, as my brain doesn’t have the capacity. I’ll send a book off and think, right what’s next? Then I can focus on a new idea. That’s a great stage - the ideas part - but I love it all.
You’ve got more than 20 books under your belt, which is incredible. How do you keep up the momentum?
I’ve had 20 adult novels published (including three under my pen name Ellen Berry). I’ve also written four middle grade (for 9-12) children’s novels. The simple answer is that I love to write. I’m obsessed with it. I’d write in some capacity even if I was never paid for it, just for myself. Even though my head is always a bit mashed every time I finish a novel - I really am emotionally wrung out sometimes! - give it a few days and I’m itching to get started again.
Even on holidays I’m making notes and mulling over ideas. I can’t imagine doing anything else, and although it can be hard work, cranking out huge amounts of words when I’m running close to deadline, it never feels like real work. It’s always enjoyable, if stressful sometimes! I kind of thrive on the adrenaline.
Your latest novel, The Woman Who Ran Away from Everything, was published in March. Can you tell us what it’s about - and do you ever go to book shops and stand there gazing at your work? Or is that too weird!
It’s lovely to see my books out in the wild. And yes, I do make a trip to see them when they’re first published. My latest, The Woman Who Ran Away From Everything, started with the title - it’s only the second time that’s happened with my books (the other one was Mummy Said the F-word).
The title just came into my head and felt right. I pictured a frustrated, put-upon woman suddenly snapping under the weight of domestic responsibility - and scrambling out of the bathroom window and running away. I loved that idea and the story grew from there.
Time for a Just Seventeen-style question! What is your writing snack of choice?
I’m a salty-snacky person rather than a sweet fan. Give me crisps, Pringles, crackers and strong cheese and I’m happy. My daughter makes us chia puddings because she is of the chia pudding generation and I actually love them. And I’m a fan of crunchy peanut butter on toast.
Okay, now we’ve got the important details out the way, can you tell us about your next novel?
’Tis the Damn Season is out in September. I’d been dying to write a story about three women who are sick of being landed with all the Christmas prep, and want to run away from it all. You know how men pretend they can’t wrap presents and that the Sellotape ‘attacks’ them? And relatives arrive and sit there at your festive table, going on about knife crime and saying, ‘Is this turkey a bit dry?’ Who doesn’t yearn to run away from all of that? It was a delight to write. It poured out of me - I wrote the first draft in two months which is my fastest ever.
And finally, as a fellow Substacker, I know there are a good handful of us former magazine journalists on here; what are your thoughts about the fact that people say that print is dead. Do you see a world in which magazines can thrive because it's so hard to explain just how important magazines were to us back in the day?
I still adore magazines - at least the idea of them. The glossy monthlies aren’t what they were, but I think there will always be room for beautifully produced niche print magazines.
I buy art/craft magazine Uppercase, which is quarterly and Canadian, as I love to draw and paint. In her Studio is another treat, featuring women artists in their creative environments. I loved Flow, which is Dutch, but sadly they’ve stopped their English edition.
These independent magazines don’t have the huge circulations of, say, Vogue or Cosmo back in the day, but they are beautiful and keepable, like books really.
There’s a wonderful indie magazine shop in Glasgow called Print Culture. I can’t go in there without buying a fresh new magazine - the kind with high quality matt paper that smells delicious.
When some authors finish a book they buy a handbag or new outfit. Last time I went into Print Culture and spent £100 on magazines.
Follow Fiona in all ways possible!
Instagram fiona_gib
facebook.com/fionagibsonauthor/
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Thank you so much Lisa! It was such fun to answer your excellent questions xx