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Liz Kettle

Liz Kettle was born and bred in South West London. She moved to South Yorkshire in 1990, and still lives there with her partner and two sons. She is the author of Broken Biscuits (2006).

Liz Kettle’s Broken Biscuits is an extraordinary debut novel – quirky, unexpected and dramatic, that takes you hilariously into the world of the mad. Extremely funny, grim and yet ultimately uplifting, this is a gem of a novel. Here Liz let’s us into her mind with some of our quick fire questions.

Will the printed word endure?
:(

Which newspaper do you read?
Second hand Guardians when Paul brings them home. Also the Metro when I'm on the bus. Occasionally I buy a weekend paper if there are any good free DVDs.

Who/What is your biggest influence?
The telly. No, no, I am not being obnoxiously dummed-down for the sake of it. It really is. Especially the soaps.

What books are you reading at the moment?
I'm reading The Road to Wigan Pier by George Orwell (fantastic on facts and being accurate) and just starting Untold Stories by Alan Bennett (fantastic on details and being sadly funny). I've just finished Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, and I bloody loved the structure. I also spent most of the summer plodding my way through Wilkie Collins's No Name, hoping I would love the structure, but it was a drawn out torture which I won't repeat (I really liked Woman In White when I read it about 20 years ago).

What books did you read as a child?
The Guinness Book of Records, Little Grey Rabbit, The Tidy Hen, Beauty and the Beast, Polly and the Wolf, Blue Peter annuals, Jackie magazines.

Which literary character would you most like to meet?
Ignatius J Reilly from A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole, but only if he is wearing his hunting cap and has his cutlass on him.

Which authors do you most admire?
Anne Tyler, Lynn Barber, Toni Morrison and Stephen King in his hey-day.

Where/When do you do most of your writing?
Oh god, this is a round the houses one. I used to get up very early in the morning (about 4.30) and write whilst everyone else was asleep. However, this not surprisingly screwed up my sleep, so now I have to find other times when there's no-one about. I tend to be more alert in the morning, and conk out in the afternoon.

I like the kitchen table - as long as the washing up is done - or I've just invested in a Roald Dahl stylee shed in the garden. But it is very cold in there at the moment, so I'm resorting to the kitchen again.