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Tigerlily
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 Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:35 pm Post subject: |
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| Capella wrote: |
Funnily enough FOL started life as a screeenplay... it was only wheni realsied that, being set in Italy and thus in Italian, it wasn't very commercial, that I took the decision to write it as a book.
Will it ever be a movie? I don't know. Hollywood is a strange place. |
Being a fan of European cinema, I think it'd be interesting to see it directed by an Italian director and subtitled where necessary. Anyway, it made a great film in my head as I was reading it! I could picture each character clearly.
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annecater
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:37 pm Post subject: |
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| Glynis wrote: | | Capella wrote: |
Funnily enough FOL started life as a screeenplay... it was only wheni realsied that, being set in Italy and thus in Italian, it wasn't very commercial, that I took the decision to write it as a book.
Will it ever be a movie? I don't know. Hollywood is a strange place. |
Being a fan of European cinema, I think it'd be interesting to see it directed by an Italian director and subtitled where necessary. Anyway, it made a great film in my head as I was reading it! I could picture each character clearly.
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Me too! I imagined Bruno as the 'Bruno' from the series Fame in the 80s!!
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:38 pm Post subject: |
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| Tigger wrote: | | The character Bruno, was he based on or inspired by someone you know? |
No one specific. Obviously the book is based on Cyrano de Bergerac, but I never really liked the characters in Cyrano as much as the predicament - Cyrano seems such a depressive, and Roxanne is so wet... So I wanted to make Bruno someone who I would admire. I suppose I would quite like to be like him... not eloquent or extrovert but passionate and talented... mind you, I would have liked to have Tommaso's success with women too, so perhaps they're both wish fulfilment fantasies.... |
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:43 pm Post subject: |
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| heathera wrote: | Hi Anthony and thanks for joining us this evening.
IDo you believe that food has the impact on people that we see in this book? Or is there a certain amount of poetic license?! I loved all the food descriptions throughout the novel!
Does food feature as highly in your other novel / work in progress? |
Well, yes, there's obviously a little bit of magical (un)realism....
One of the reasons I love writing about food is that it immediately puts you in an area that's full of myth and magic - it's the stuff of fairy tales, of magic porridge pots and enchanted apples, and then there are all teh themes that surround it: succour, family, trust, nurturing....
Last edited by Capella on Fri Jul 18, 2008 6:23 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:48 pm Post subject: |
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| heathera wrote: |
Does food feature as highly in your other novel / work in progress? |
Sort of. My second novel, The Wedding Officer, is set in naples during the 1940-45 war and is the story of a represed young British officer and his relationship with his Neapolitan cook. My next, The Various Flavours of Coffee, is about a young man in 1900 who gets mixed up in the coffee business, and falls in love with a coffee merchant's suffragette daughter. So food is a theme, as is love - and sex, pleasure, the conflict between duty and sensuality.
Coffee comes out in November in the UK and August in the US. Available from all good bookshops, blah blah. |
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heathera
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:49 pm Post subject: |
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| Capella wrote: | | heathera wrote: | Hi Anthony and thanks for joining us this evening.
IDo you believe that food has the impact on people that we see in this book? Or is there a certain amount of poetic license?! I loved all the food descriptions throughout the novel!
Does food feature as highly in your other novel / work in progress? |
Well, yes, there's obviously a little bit of magical realism....
One of the reasons I love writing about food is that it immediately puts you in an area that's full of myth and magic - it's the stuff of fairy tales, of magic porridge pots and enchanted apples, and then there are all teh themes that surround it: succour, family, trust, nurturing.... |
That's true, I hadn't really thought about it from that perspective. Food is obviously a means to stay alive, but is so integral in society, family etc. I'd not really considered the magical elements before, but I'm sure my 3 year old would be able to tell me all about it!
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:49 pm Post subject: |
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| sirg1006 wrote: | When did you decide you wanted to become a writer? What did you think you'd want to be when you were little?
D  |
Very sadly, I always wanted to be a writer. Eventually - after about 30 years - I decided I'd better prove I actually was. |
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heathera
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:51 pm Post subject: |
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| Capella wrote: | | heathera wrote: |
Does food feature as highly in your other novel / work in progress? |
Sort of. My second novel, The Wedding Officer, is set in naples during the 1940-45 war and is the story of a represed young British officer and his relationship with his Neapolitan cook. My next, The Various Flavours of Coffee, is about a young man in 1900 who gets mixed up in the coffee business, and falls in love with a coffee merchant's suffragette daughter. So food is a theme, as is love - and sex, pleasure, the conflict between duty and sensuality.
Coffee comes out in November in the UK and August in the US. Available from all good bookshops, blah blah. |
I keep looking out for The Wedding Officer and definitely want to read it at some point. Your new novel sounds really interesting. I have a particular interest in the suffragette movement, plus enjoying coffee and relationships so sounds like a winner to me! Good luck for when that's released here.
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annecater
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:53 pm Post subject: |
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I really enjoyed The Wedding Officer aswell, but I think FOL is my favourite, but that is down to Bruno!
I've managed to get a proof copy of Various Flavours of Coffee and intend to read it this month - it looks another great read.
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:53 pm Post subject: |
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| annecater wrote: | I'm glad you finally got logged in Anthony - welcome!
When you do signings, is the majority of people there female? |
Absolutely, they mostly are. But I don't know why. I rather resent the way everyone assumes that romantic comedies are women's books. But then, I have three older sisters, so grew up reading what they were reading - I am still a big fan of Jilly Cooper. Maybe my teastes are unusual.
I have big arguments with my publishers about not putting 'girlie' covers on. I lost with The Wedding Officer, which they positioned as a straight romance. |
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Tigerlily
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:56 pm Post subject: |
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One last question from me...
...I was intrigued by the descriptions of Roman cuisine that Bruno was passionate about. Have you tried some of the dishes yourself?
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:57 pm Post subject: |
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| annecater wrote: |
The Jamie Oliver connection sounds fun, did you meet him - and,did he cook for you? |
We've usually been on shoots together - so when the shot is over, everyone dives in and grabs whatever he's been cooking.
He's a charming man, exactly the same off camera as he is on - and a very talented chef. He makes it look easy!
Part of my love of simple, regional Italan food definitely comes from having worked with him. I owe him a great deal. |
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annecater
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:58 pm Post subject: |
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I do know men that have read and enjoyed FOL - but they will admit that they probably only read it on recommendation and would maybe not have chosen it by themselves.
It's a shame that books are catergorised so much - I love getting proof books with plain covers - however I try not to judge or assume a book by it's cover, it can be pretty hard not to.
I agree that the cover of The Wedding Officer is very 'girly' in comparison to FOL.
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annecater
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 6:59 pm Post subject: |
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| Capella wrote: | | annecater wrote: |
The Jamie Oliver connection sounds fun, did you meet him - and,did he cook for you? |
We've usually been on shoots together - so when the shot is over, everyone dives in and grabs whatever he's been cooking.
He's a charming man, exactly the same off camera as he is on - and a very talented chef. He makes it look easy!
Part of my love of simple, regional Italan food definitely comes from having worked with him. I owe him a great deal. |
How fantastic - he's great, I have all of his books, I'm glad to hear that he really is what he seems.
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:01 pm Post subject: |
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[quote="annecater"]Do you read many novels yourself? Who are your favourite authors?
quote]
I read less than I used to, partly because I can't read while writing - it's too distracting - and partly because I read around the period or subject I'm researching. But I've always loved warm, light, feelgood stories - teh sort of books you want to curl up with and re-read when you've got flu. That's actually an indirect reference to Brother of the More Famous Jack, by Barbara Trapido, one of my favourite books of all time. I'm currently re-reading The Pursuit of Love, by Nancy Mitford. Why? Because it's raining.... |
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Tigerlily
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:05 pm Post subject: |
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Yeah, I know men who've read and enjoyed romantic comedies but felt they needed to explain that they wouldn't normally go for a 'girlie' book, even ones written by male authors. Almost as if they feel guilty for enjoying the story.
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:06 pm Post subject: |
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| annecater wrote: |
I've managed to get a proof copy of Various Flavours of Coffee and intend to read it this month - it looks another great read. |
I really enjoyed writing it - but it's a rather different book from Food of Love: playful and sensual, but less farcical in its plotting. It takes place over twenty years of a man's life, detailing his love affair with one woman, so it has a very different structure. I'm still at the stage of being quite nervous about whether people will fall in love with it the way so many people seemed to with The Food of Love. |
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heathera
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:06 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for all your answers this evening Anthony, I've really enjoyed reading everyone's comments / questions and your replies. I'm now off to eat my dinner that I've been making (from scratch not a packet meal lol) whilst reading all this!
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Capella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:09 pm Post subject: |
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| Glynis wrote: | One last question from me...
...I was intrigued by the descriptions of Roman cuisine that Bruno was passionate about. Have you tried some of the dishes yourself? |
You bet! When I was writing it I went and refreshed my memory of all those wonderful Roman restaurants. I'm lucky enough to have a sideline writing about foreign food for the Sunday Times - if you go to Times Online and do a search, it'll come up with restaurant eviews and recommendations for places like Rome, Venice, Florence and Naples. |
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annecater
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| Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:10 pm Post subject: |
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| Capella wrote: | | Glynis wrote: | One last question from me...
...I was intrigued by the descriptions of Roman cuisine that Bruno was passionate about. Have you tried some of the dishes yourself? |
You bet! When I was writing it I went and refreshed my memory of all those wonderful Roman restaurants. I'm lucky enough to have a sideline writing about foreign food for the Sunday Times - if you go to Times Online and do a search, it'll come up with restaurant eviews and recommendations for places like Rome, Venice, Florence and Naples. |
It sounds like the perfect job to me!
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