S8E5 Kala: Colin Walsh on terrors of the past and a town of dark secrets

“Kala is the Sinatra of the book. You have all these different perspectives on her. My hope was that having these panoramic perspectives would create spaces for the reader to create their own relationship to Kala.”

A town with a series of dark secrets, upended by the reopening of a decades old-wound. When the horrors of the past have scarred and warped their victims over time, how does despair manifest when it all comes back to haunt them?

Kala is the debut novel from Colin Walsh. The book takes us to the Irish village of Kinlough, introducing us to three friends, Helen, Joe and Mush. In the past we see the events of a terrifying summer unfold, and in the present a body is unearthed in the woods and two girls have gone missing. In this episode we explore Colin’s many feats of literary genius that have brought this incredible thriller to life.

In this episode, you will learn:

• Why you can’t always plan your most crucial writing decisions.
• How playing with perspectives can give one character multiple personalities.
• An interesting way of adapting writing style to mimic the distinct personalities that feature in your book.

Find out more about Colin here.

Your host is inkjockey founder Mark Heywood.

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You can view the full transcript here.

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