Written by contributor Jeanette Zhukov
We’ve had the pleasure of speaking with Mary Torjussen about her newest book, The Closer You Get. In the interview, the popular thriller author discusses the portrayal of complex relationships in her work, her writing process, and what inspires her creativity. Torjussen’s latest psychological suspense novel, The Closer You Get, comes out April 21st.
Hello Mary, thank you for taking the time to chat with us about your newest novel, The Closer You Get. First off, could you tell us a little about yourself?
Hello and thank you so much for inviting me to chat! I live in England on a peninsula called The Wirral, which is across the River Mersey from Liverpool. I taught Information Technology to teenagers for decades and loved it, but also enjoyed writing in the evenings. When there was the chance of voluntary redundancy, I decided to take the chance to write full time. I gave myself a year to write a novel and get it published; luckily, I managed to do this with Gone Without a Trace. I loved teaching, but that change in direction was the best decision I ever made.
If you could describe your novel in five words, what would they be?
Love. Secrets. Jealousy. Manipulation. Twists!
What was your inspiration for writing The Closer You Get?
A friend told me about a woman we both knew who was having an affair with a married man. He had just left his wife and moved in with her, but the relationship faltered and he returned home. It made me think about what would happen if both people were married: would you ever trust someone enough to be the first person to leave home?
What is your process for writing thrillers? Do you begin already knowing how it will all end?
I tend to know the beginning and the end right from the start. The opening scenes and the denouement always stay the same. I then decide on a time frame and work out what each character is doing within that time. The thing I always have to keep in mind is: what is the main character’s biggest fear? What stands in the way of them achieving what they want? I like to throw every kind of problem at them: emotional, financial, psychological and physical to take them right to the edge of reason!
Thinking about the scenes where Ruby is alone in her flat, do you ever get similarly spooked while writing your own novels?
I do! It’s odd what frightens us; I think men and women can be very different in that way. I’m not frightened by things that are v unlikely to happen to me, though I think after the Coronavirus has passed I will read those end-of-the-world stories in a completely different light.
My home is my sanctuary and the thought of something happening there is terrifying. I love to write about tiny subtle changes that the main character notices, but which anyone else might brush off. In particular, I like to write about things that she couldn’t go to the police about. I think it would be incredibly frustrating if you were trying to tell a friend that something odd was going on and they just brushed it off and told you that you were nuts!
The novel depicts complex and even toxic relationships. Were there any difficulties writing those relationships?
When you’re writing suspense, the main characters in particular are not at their best. They are stressed, frightened, worried and likely to make bad decisions. Because they are so self-absorbed (by necessity at this crisis point) they often can’t recognise the difference between someone who’s good for them and someone who’s really not. And Ruby lived with a toxic mother and a weak father; the chances of her finding a strong, good man when she was young and still enmeshed in her family were very low. Instead she was attracted by Tom’s charm and apparent willingness to please, and didn’t recognise his need to control.
You’ve created strong, sympathetic, and relatable female characters. What do you hope female readers will get out of your novel?
Thank you. I hope women will recognise behaviours in themselves and their friends and think about whether those behaviours are healthy or not. I think one of the things I noticed when I was writing about Ruby was just how poor all of her relationships were, even though on the surface she has a very ordinary life. Now she’s finally able to see the reality of her friendships and relationships and realises she really needs to lay down some boundaries and keep away from some people altogether!
Are there any specific thriller novels or authors that have inspired your own writing and creativity? If so, who or what are they?
There are certain books that have always stayed in the back of my mind since reading them years ago. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier is a major inspiration, where the second wife lives in the shadow of the dead first wife. The atmosphere in that novel is terrific. A lesser known book is The Ivy Tree by Mary Stewart, a very underrated writer. It’s a story about impersonation and family secrets. Of course Agatha Christie has been a major influence; she really is the queen of plots! A favourite is The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. I read this when I was ten (I used to read my mum’s library books) and it was my first introduction to the concepts of the unreliable narrator, twists and red herrings. It had a profound impact on me and it’s no surprise that I love to use those devices in my writing now.
What book, movie, or television show are you currently watching or reading?
I’m reading The Scapegoat by Daphne du Maurier – again from my mum’s bookshelf! Like The Ivy Tree, it’s a story about impersonation, set in France in the 1950s. Just like Rebecca, the atmosphere is fabulous and I find I’m holding my breath with each chapter that I read. It’s interesting reading this now as a writer and seeing just how Daphne du Maurier makes the novel so suspenseful. She’s such a clever writer.
Lately I’ve been binge-watching The Crown on Netflix. I’m not a huge royalist but found it so interesting in terms of the recent history of my country. In fact, I got so involved in it that when I saw on the news that Harry and Meghan were moving to Canada, I thought that it was an advertisement for series 4!
What can readers expect next from you?
I’m writing another psychological suspense that looks at step sisters and whether the ties that bind us might be the ties that strangle us.
