Interview: Simon Lendrum talks about The Burn Card

Aucklander Simon Lendrum's first novel, The Slow Roll, was plucked from the slush pile and published to critical acclaim, including winning the NZ Booklovers Fiction Award. The follow-up, The Burn Card, is out now. Simon talks to NZ Booklovers.

Tell us a little about your novel.

The Burn Card is the sequel to my debut novel, The Slow Roll, chronicling the ongoing accidental detective, O’Malley, and his (smarter?) girlfriend Claire. O’Malley is a poker player with a chequered past, living in Auckland, with a reputation for solving crimes that the police can’t, or won’t, pursue.

O’Malley is approached by Eddie, a fellow poker player whose nephew died in mysterious circumstances, the police drawing a blank and moving on. While O’Malley tries to bring peace to Eddie and his family, a rigged poker game draws him into a far more deadly game with some aggrieved drug dealers determined to punish those who cheated them, insisting O’Malley assist them. 

What inspired you to write this book?

Well, it’s number two in a series, so it was more compulsion than inspiration! Having created the characters in the Slow Roll, I wanted to see where life would take them next. Hopefully, there are some readers who feel the same.

What research was involved?

I’ll confess to being a fairly light researcher. It’s fiction, and I subscribe to Lee Child’s approach to research. If it’s plausible, and keeps the reader in the story, that works for me.

What was your routine or process when writing this book?

I have a day job, and live in a villa that requires constant attention, so writing is a weekend sport, but one that has many competing priorities. When I’m writing, it needs to be the first thing I do in the day. I need to trick my brain into thinking it’s capable of focus. Some days I win, others not so much.

If a soundtrack were made to accompany this book, name a song or two you would include.

O’Malley’s got an eclectic taste but he’s definitely a fan of Stax records, so anything from their archive will work. But the book is present day, so a smattering of hip hop and rap might also better accompany some of the antagonists.

If your book were made into a movie, who would you like to see playing the lead characters?

I have no idea! I think the best film interpretations of books add a layer of craft that elevates the words further; casting is a craft, and I’d love to see what a filmmaker would bring to my stories.

What did you enjoy the most about writing this novel?

I’m a ‘pantser’ rather than a planner. As a result, what occurs is as much a surprise to me as it is to the reader. So when new characters emerge it’s an opportunity to have fun. I definitely enjoyed writing some new characters in this chapter of O’Malley’s life. The more degenerate, the better.

What did you do to celebrate finishing this book?

In most things in life I’m guilty of feeling relief, rather than celebration, when I complete something – and writing is no different. Particularly with an organic approach to plots, it’s an overwhelming sense of relief when I break the 70,000-word barrier and can see how the book will resolve itself. Until then, it’s always a little tense. Ultimately, I only consider a book complete when I see it on the shelf. So I’ll plan a little celebration for then. It will probably be internal, so my poker face might not give it away.

What is the favourite book you have read so far this year and why?

I’ve read so many good books this year. If I had to single one out, it would be Vine Street by Dominic Nolan, which I have now read three times. It’s a sprawling, three-decade story of gritty crime in pre-war Soho. Brilliantly written, tightly plotted, the sort of book I’d like to write when I grow up.

What’s next on the agenda for you?

Number 3. I find it very difficult to write while a book is in its limbo state between manuscript and publication. So I’ve been focusing on decorating while I let the first strands of a plot roll around in my head. Now I need to get it out on paper.

Upstart Press