Q&A interview James Fox and Lauren Fortune, author and editor of The Boy in the Suit.
Solo Walker and his mum crash funerals for the free food. It’s all fine until they get found out in the worst possible way. A funny story that’s also full of pathos, and which sensitively confronts issues of poverty and mental health, this book caught the judges by surprise. It’s layered, they say, and lets us know exactly what Solo is going through.
The Boy in the Suit is set in the real world and deals with some difficult challenges for its central character. What led you to the story and what appeals to you about real-life settings?
The seed of the idea for The Boy in the Suit originated from several news articles I discovered on the topic of funeral crashing. It is a real-life behaviour with varying motives, and some of the individuals mentioned had been named and shamed. I’ve always been perturbed by public shaming, and I felt quite sympathetic towards them. I wanted to explore what may lead a person towards this behaviour, particularly through a child’s perspective. This is what I love about real-life settings, they’re a space to explore true, contemporary themes that affect the people around us. I hope people might relate to the themes in the book, or may learn something from their reader’s-eye-view on Solo’s world.
How much work had you done on the book before it was acquired by Lauren? What edits did she suggest you make and why?
It’s difficult for me to quantify the work in days or months; I picked up the story in fits and starts throughout a couple of years. Sometimes I wrote non-stop, sometimes I let the file story on my laptop, untouched for weeks. I had written at least two drafts by the time it reached Lauren, both with slightly different tones and content. A few more drafts followed, chaperoned by Lauren’s guidance.
Lauren is a goldmine of helpful edits, but one of the most significant was around adding more settings. The original manuscript was a little claustrophobic by design; Solo existed almost entirely at school and at home in reflection of his limiting circumstances. Lauren suggested adding a sequence where Solo and best friend Chetna leave their comfort zone and explore somewhere new. Hence I wrote the school trip sequence, which let the story and characters breathe. This accommodated way more adventure and autonomy for the characters, which is ultimately what children want to read about!
There’s a balance between humour and grief in the book. How did you go about creating that and maintaining it?
I truly believe that humour has a huge role to play in times of grief. Some of the toughest times in my own life have been punctuated by great one-liners and brilliant ironies, and that was a huge inspiration for the tone of the book. In The Boy in the Suit, the grief comes from Solo and Morag’s reality. Hence, much of the humour comes from Solo’s inner world: his thoughts, fantasies, and observations. Kids are fantastic at spotting the banal hypocrisies of adulthood, those little things we say and do that don’t ring true, and I think that can be really amusing for readers of any age.
What was the hardest scene for you to write (in that it took you the most work)?
I found writing school scenes more difficult than I imagined. I was in primary school in the 1990s, so understandably a lot of procedures and attitudes have changed with a view to keeping schools and students safe. Balancing this realism with the need for engaging action and jeopardy was tricky. I found myself lamenting “Back in my day,” a few times when I needed my character to truant too often, or for a behaviour to go un-noticed by a teacher. Ultimately, it’s most important that the undervalued work of teachers and school staff is reflected fairly while allowing a little extra legroom for stories to flourish too.
What advice would you give to new authors writing stories that show families like Solo and his mother?
My primary advice would be to focus on humanity over circumstance. By that I mean don’t neglect the humour, generosity, kindness, and kinship that society often fails to associate with vulnerable people.
What are the most enjoyable things for writers about working with their editor?
One of the things I enjoy the most are the light-hearted, small comments I find in my edits. It could be a simple “LOL” at a funny line, or an “Aww…” at something touching. These really make my day – it’s like having a real-time reader within the manuscript. They’re like a little dialogue between us, and it really helps to affirm that my words have the tone and meaning I intended.
That aside, an editor’s expertise is invaluable. Reading and re-reading your own work can feel like looking into an infinity mirror. I need someone to break the cycle of self-feedback and bring a fresh perspective. Lauren is beyond excellent at this and she is an expert in knowing what works for children and young people. In a story, Lauren is a marathon pacer, slowing things down when I want to sprint, speeding things up when things feel sluggish. Honestly, I wish I could put Lauren’s name on the front cover along with mine – such is the level of collaboration it took to get this book in readers’ hands.
What did you think when you read the manuscript for The Boy in the Suit? What impressed you most about James’ writing?
The Boy in the Suit blew me away when I first read it on submission. I fell for Solo’s voice on page one of the manuscript and made an offer to publish it fast: this was truly must-have for me and my colleagues at Scholastic as we could see immediately that it would start a lot of important conversations and make a lot of struggling children feel seen. I was so impressed with the compassion and relatability of James’ story but also the astonishingly accomplished way he delivers it: with a pinpoint perfect child’s eye view of a life lived in poverty alongside an erratic but loving mother – there are no villains in this book, just flawed or busy or damaged people making bad choices but trying their best and ultimately, upliftingly, coming good. That ending made me weep – happy tears! And it is *funny* and warm-hearted and daft in places and a joy to read. James is an exceptional talent. Portraying real life so well in all its messy complexity and nuance is a really hard thing to do successfully and he absolutely nails it.
Why are stories like this important?
Publishing books for children that have a dual “window and mirror” effect is very important – kids more fortunate than Solo can look through a window at his life and develop empathy, and kids just like him can see their real-life experiences reflected back at them, his story mirroring their own. It will help them feel seen and understood and less alone.
What were the main aspects of the story that you worked on with him?
The editing process with James was brilliant. I asked for more scenes between Solo and his mum Morag, who form the emotional heart of the book. They crash funerals for the free food (and, for Morag, the adult company) and in the first draft they were rumbled quite early on at the local football hero’s wake in a big explosive way. I suggested that they seemingly get away with it, to make the reader think they had escaped a proper public shaming, with their full infamy only hitting the next day when their antics are written up in the tabloids. There’s an incredible scene where Morag – full of optimism – is starting a new job at a posh boutique in town, but everything is ruined when tabloid photographers turn up there and cause a commotion.
I also asked James to think about writing in a kind, supportive teacher to provide a much-needed safety net at school – and he then expanded the role of Miss Ellis. And I asked for more of Solo’s new friend Chetna, who I loved, again as a supporter and safe harbour for Solo. I suggested switching locations up and sending Solo and Chetna out of the town as part of their mission to track down Morag, to a place like the seaside where Solo and Morag visited on their last holiday, the last time he saw her truly happy. This became such a strong scene in the book, I think – high stakes and adrenaline-fuelled and we got more airtime with Chetna, who is such a ray of light in this story. In brief: my edit focussed on adding in some more drama beats to enable the reader to engage even more with these wonderfully drawn characters.
What advice would you give to authors wanting to write stories set in the kind of world inhabited by Solo and his mum?
All writers should be respectful, non-sensationalist, nuanced and thoughtful when creating characters and worlds in books for children – an experience of, like in the case of Solo, a child living in poverty is never one-size-fits-all and one-note. Draw on your own experiences if relevant, but also speak to teachers and carers who interact with kids from a wide variety of backgrounds regularly. Life for anyone is a mix of light and shade, tough times and more positive ones: the most successful stories showcase this messy complexity with grace and care.
What was your path into the publishing industry?
I was an obsessive magazine-reader as a teenager and wanted to be a pop music or film journalist – Smash Hits or Empire, ideally – and worked on the University of Nottingham’s student newspaper, editing the Night Life section, which for someone who now loves a 9pm bedtime, is absolutely hilarious. My degree was English Language and Literature and I loved the deep dives into plot structure, cultural context and use of language in the books we studied. I found a real passion for talking, nerding-out, about great books. The summer I graduated, I applied to every assistant-level job in publishing I could find and started my career in Rights. I enjoyed that a lot, but I realised editorial – with the in-depth granular work on the story that I craved and the ability to be a book’s first cheerleader – was for me, and I’ve since worked in editorial departments at various houses from the massive to the tiny: with ten happy years now at Scholastic, where I’m Fiction Publisher.
What do you like most about being an editor?
I love puzzles and problem-solving, so that first draft edit, where the bigger picture often needs reimagining and expanding on, is my happy place. But I also love pitching books to the commercial teams, getting everyone excited about an author and their story, and then the energising and satisfying in-house collaborative work which follows: working with Design and Production on the cover, Publicity and Marketing on how we’re going to spread the word, the Sales teams on how we make a book a key title for retailers. I like variety in my day-to-day, talking about books as much as I can and working closely with talented, passionate people and so editorial is the perfect job for me.
with my job!
The Boy in the Suit is published by Scholastic, 978-0702333101, £7.99 pbk
Thank you to James Fox and to Lauren Fortune for answering our questions.
Andrea Reece
30 Winton Avenue, London, N11 2AT
Tel: 0208 889 1292
Mob: 07807 893369
Email: branford.boase@gmail.com
Andrea Reece
Tel: 07807 893369 | Email: branford.boase@gmail.com