6th November 2023
Listen
Listen
At this year’s annual Liverpool Literary Festival, I had the pleasure of listening to debut author Hattie Williams discuss her book Bitter Sweet. Williams worked in the publishing industry for 12 years, working with some of the biggest authors before becoming one herself this July. Interviewing her was Dr Sophie Oliver, a senior lecturer in the University of Liverpool’s Department of English.
Bitter Sweet is a cutting novel. The story takes place in a world of publishing where Charlie, the protagonist, begins her career as an intern at a publishing house in London. There, she discovers an ‘immediate attraction’ to Richard Aveling, an established author and Charlie’s long-time idol. However, he is married and 30 years her senior…
With a new home, new job and a new romance, she navigates life. But under the surface of this new life are the complexities of power dynamics in relationships, the workplace and personal life. Bitter Sweet is an insight into real emotions like grief, love and hope at a time of development in a young person’s life.
Dr Oliver began questioning Williams on why she chose to set her novel ‘in a world of books’, at the heart of the publishing industry. Williams answered saying she felt an instinct to ‘write about something she knows’. Having been in publishing herself for a long time, the world was familiar and had substance. She went on to say that it was close to her to explore the raw experiences she faced, particularly in a field often portrayed as quaint and sugary.
Drawing on this, Dr Oliver queried why Charlie, the main character, was described as being in her early twenties. Williams, with some thought, put sincerity in her answer that she felt nostalgic of the time. Portraying the young publicity intern as someone who must strike a balance between being a new adult and not being wholly treated as ‘grown up’ connected with a part of Williams needing to be written. Williams continued saying that Charlie’s current stage of life is crucial for illustrating the ‘messiness of mistakes’.
During a portion of the talk, Williams gave a short reading of the first chapter of her book which focused on the first interaction between Charlie and Richard. This gripping introduction prompted Dr Oliver to inquire on the dynamics and relationship between the two main characters.
Williams characterised their connection as one about power dynamics, grief, loss and love. The power shift, Williams revealed, manifests itself through Charlie’s youth and Richard’s experience in publishing. She goes on to say that Charlie’s past also lends Richard more authority because both Charlie and her mother idolised Richard as their favourite writer.
Williams continued, disclosing a new powerful aspect of Bitter Sweet: Grief. When Charlie experiences the loss of her mother at a young age, Williams explains she sees in Charlie a desperate part of her seeking security and stability and stumbling upon this when meeting Richard. Whilst this love and attachment grows, the constraints of their love become apparent: Richard’s seniority over Charlie in age and professional experience, the foundation of their relationship based on filling grief, and Richard’s marital situation. Williams acknowledges that this isn’t the perfect love story but concludes that Bitter Sweet is, by the end, hopeful, relationships end and new ones begin.
After the discussion between Dr Sophie Oliver and Hattie Williams was over, the audience were given a chance for a short Q&A. One audience member enquired what it was like to write a debut novel. Williams began by stating that her inspiration comes from ‘small lives’ and the ‘details of relationships’. She spent roughly 7 weeks, after discovering her desire to write a novel, composing her first draft. In this, her raw emotion was blurted into her writing with the second draft focusing on editing. Williams expressed how writing is ‘such a high’, that it’s more than words on a page, it helped her work through her own life, much like closure.
This response gave rise to Dr Sophie Oliver’s next question on how to balance writing from experience with creating a story from imagination. Williams answered honestly saying she found many similarities between herself and the character of Charlie, she believes an author’s first book is partly or mostly ‘autobiographical’.
I had a fantastic time listening to Hattie Williams’ talk about Bitter Sweet. The insight she gave of the thought put into the characters, story and writing process was inspiring, it is clear the emotion and realism put into only her first book is genuine. I look forward to the release of her next book: Beginning. Middle. End.
To read the rest of our coverage of the Liverpool Literary Festival, please click here:
https://www.liverpoolguildstudentmedia.co.uk/category/on-campus
