Literally Reruns – A Charming Couple by Des Kelly

Leila has chosen a piece by an author who has been with us from the beginning and actually before that in the site where we all met. This is what she said:

This piece is tagged under historical fiction. Here, Des Kelly scrupulously recreates London of the 1920’s in an amazingly fresh voice that neither stumbles nor loses its vitality at any time. Although it is impossible for the author or reader to know how it was nearly a century ago, well, damn it, A Charming Couple just  feels right, which is plenty good for me

Q: Please describe (if any) how much research went into this project?

Q: I admire the use of short declarative sentences. Some people feel obliged to do the past in florid prose. The story had a rhythm to it, upbeat, was this the result of a conscious effort on your part?

Leila Allison

***

A Charming Couple

Q: Please describe (if any) how much research went into this project?

I did no real research. The story presented itself and as I wrote it unrolled. I’d have to point to the fact that I’ve read greatly over the years and possibly absorbed something of the character of the piece in this way. The story is set in the twenties and concerns events that were considered illegal during the period. So called Lavender marriages were possibly common place as it allowed the men and women involved to conduct affairs without facing up to any of the threats of the time. I imagine, reading people like DH Lawrence, F Scott Fitzgerald, Virginia Woolf and others helped. Also watching Agatha Christie period pieces gives the sense of what people were like, how they thought and possibly behaved.

Q: I admire the use of short declarative sentences. Some people feel obliged to do the past in florid prose. The story had a rhythm to it, upbeat, was this the result of a conscious effort on your part?

In terms of the rhythm of the piece, I think I was trying out a process. I’d read a book called The Reader by Bernhard Schlick and another by a writer whose name I’ve unfortunately forgotten. Both use short clipped sentences to get their point across. I’m perfectly capable of writing florid prose, but this time I was trying for something different. I do have a background of writing poetry and the sense of rhythm comes from that standpoint. Also, I have found that often when I write it finds its own pace and rhythm. This is about all I can tell you.

I had forgotten there was a killing in the story. I think I was aiming for a television/cinema deal. Often my stories have a sense of being seen from outside the frame.