Jenn Ashworth at the MAC
Following my interview with Jenn Ashworth a couple of weeks ago, I was looking forward to going to the MAC to hear her talk about her new book, ‘A Cold Light’. Things didn’t start well for me though. I walked up to the reception to ask where I needed to go, unscrewing the lid from my fizzy water as I did so. Before the unfortunate guy had time to answer, a fountain of sparking elderflower water erupted from the bottle and drench myself and everyone nearby in carbonated water and sweeteners. After requesting a cleanup in reception into his walkie-talkie, I was directed to the hexagon theatre where the events was taking place, I managed to get there on time and sat down, so it looked like things were starting to pick up at least.
I tried to sit on the end so no one would recognise me from my bottle spraying incident, but I sat in the front row because I was feeling keen. Jenn kicked things of by reading to us from ‘A Cold Light’, her latest novel about three teenage girls living the darker side of life, caught up in an adult world they can’t cope wtih, where jealousy, arguments and psychological trauma begin to engulf them. Jenn read aloud a bit where a body is unexpectedly uncovered live on TV. ‘A Cold Light’ has been described as a psychological thriller, and although this may over-summarise it a little, I definitely don’t think it’s too far off the mark. What I think is most striking about Jenn’s writing, is her ability to elicit humour from events so dark. We laugh aloud, then stop and think, ‘Hang on, did I really just laugh at something that horrific?!’. To create layered emotions such as these from readers is something that I think takes great skill.
After this introduction, Jenn spoke to Gregory Leadbetter, a lecturer in English at Birmingham City University. She tells us that she doesn’t think about her style of writing too much as it comes from her characters, not from herself. Her main concern when writing ‘A Cold Light’ was that the adult voice of Lola would be different to her adolescent voice, but would still be recognisable. Honing little details to characters such as this is something that makes ‘A Cold Light’ so unique – the creation of atmosphere and unbearable tensions sets it apart from other books about teenage rebellion. Jenn tells us about how one of her first ever attempts at writing saw a bunch of field mice being massacred by a combine harvester. After hearing this information, I think it was a bit clearer to the audience where her novels get their sinister edge.
Next we hear another extract from the book read out loud, a scene that Jenn says ‘flew upwards into my mind like a dream’. I won’t give away to you what happens but it is one of the most captivating and atmospheric bits of writing I have heard in a long time. I think this section in particular demonstrates how the novel isn’t just about a group of troubled teenage girls, it is about how stories shape and damage us, a prophecy both tormenting and profound, as Jenn explains how we accept conclusions about ourselves and are ‘poisoned’ by these when we become adults. Jenn describes herself as a realist, rather than a pessimist or an optimist, and although she set out to write a happy ending with ‘A Cold Light’, she can’t deny the fact she’s always been interested in the more shadowy details of life.
When asked if she is ever truly satisfied with her writing, Jenn quotes Paul Valery, who once said that ‘Poems are never finished, only abandoned’. Although it’s hard to believe ‘A Cold Light’ could capture feelings and places any more accurately, it was an interesting quote and definitely gave us something to think about as we went out into the sunshine. Jenn says her aim as an author is to change people, even if it is just a tiny bit, and I think she achieved that this evening. I went home and changed my clothes, because they were saturated with elderflower water, but I’ll definitely be looking forward to Jenn’s next book with excitement. The evening was a definite success because there is no way anyone in the audience could have sat through those extract readings and not wanted to rush out and buy the book afterwards. If you too want to rush out and buy it, ‘A Cold Light’ is out now.
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