Q&A with C.J. Carter-Stephenson discussion

I have heard it said that writing a story is like having a baby and whilst I have never given birth myself - and indeed never will - I can certainly see where the analogy comes from. For does the writing process not begin with the fertilisation of the imagination by an initial idea, which grows into the outline of a story in much the same way as an embryo grows into a baby? Once the story is fully developed, it emerges onto the page, before being sent out into the world to make its mark. The various stages of this process can be a little painful, but seeing the end-result makes it all worthwhile, which is why I decided long ago to have a very big literary family. If you want to find out more about my writing philosophy and/or methodology, feel free to ask me about them here.