Diana Janney describes the inspiration behind her latest novel A Man of Understanding, shortlisted for the People’s Book Prize 2023.

There are very many different approaches to writing fiction. Some authors will not write a novel until they have decided in advance what the hook will be that draws attention to the book. Others write in the belief that if they keep writing, eventually a hook will emerge, even if they have no idea what that hook will be at the outset. And there are those, like me, who believe that the best hook is the one that is created by strong, compelling characters who have something original and thought-provoking to say, who mesmerise and inspire in such a compelling way that the reader does not want them to disappear from their world.