Marshall's Family is the story of Richard Marshall (just Marshall to his friends) who flies a plane for EASAMCo Aviation in Africa.
Marshall is a reserved, unassuming man who wants nothing more than an quiet life, but this isn't always possible when you are married to a woman like Fiona. Social standing and other people's opinions are high on Fiona's list of priorities with Marshall and daughter Kate coming lower down on that list. Fiona has her own way of doing things so that others will look up to her and respect her and heaven forbid that either Kate or Marshall should do anything to show her up.
When Kate arrives home from boarding school with her new boyfriend in tow, Marshall is quick to realise that David Wilson won't be accepted by Fiona as he's black. So between them Marshall and Kate decide that it's better not to mention this until Fiona has been sounded out. Things go as expected and Fiona is soon pushing Kate towards an old ex-boyfriend who is far more socially acceptable. It's no wonder then that Marshall is secretly having an affair with Donna, a coloured nurse who he met through his work and that the secret about David isn't the only one he's keeping.
When a group of soldiers show up at the airfield Marshall soon becomes aware that times are changing in Africa and not for the better. He soon finds himself in a very compromising position but his quick thinking means that he's able to wriggle out of a sticky situation, but it's the first of many.
I loved Anson's writing style, it's a clever blend of thriller and adventure with a little touch of a love story thrown in for good measure.The clever combination of the character's background running alongside the story as it happens is superbly done and it's hard to believe that this is a debut novel as I felt the writing was very accomplished. As the story builds I found I was reading faster and faster to reach the end but at the same time I didn't want the story to finish. Some of the descriptions are brutal and somewhat horrific but they are essential to the story and are in no way gratuitous and if anything they are a true reflection of the world we live in today.
This was a truly thrilling read with a high octane ending and I would highly recommend that you give this debut author a try, I honestly don't think that you'll regret it and I'm already looking forward to reading more from Anson Welsh.
I'm delighted that Anson agreed to have a chat with me and you can read below what he had to say.
Can you tell us a little about yourself and your
background?
I was born and
raised in a South Wales mining valley. My father worked for the Health Service
and my mother was a homemaker. We were not terribly well off, though certainly
not poor, but money was always tight.
When I was about
ten years old someone lent me a copy of ‘Biggles and the Cruise of the Condor,’
though hardly great literature, it did have a huge impact on my life. By the
time I had finished the book I had decided that I was going to be a pilot. And
that was that, I never once changed my mind.
I started my
flying training when I was nineteen, and worked full-time as a pilot from the
age of twenty-one until my retirement from airline flying, when I hit the
buffers at sixty-five.
I had a modest but
varied and enjoyable flying career. Though most of it was spent as a short-haul
airline pilot, operating around the UK and Europe, in my younger days I did a
season as a glider tug pilot (unpaid - I needed the flying hours), I also
worked as a Flying Instructor, a photo-survey pilot, a Flying Doctor Service
pilot in Africa for two years, and as a pilot for the oil industry, in the
Malaysian state of Sarawak, for eight years.
I met my wife in
Africa. She was doing Voluntary Service Overseas, working as a nurse in a
children’s hospital. We live in a small market town in Devon, near the moors
and not far from the sea. Our three children are all grown up and leading their
own lives, though we see them regularly.
I still do some
flying, at a flying club in Cornwall, as a part-time instructor. I also own a
share in a quaint little aeroplane that is one year older than myself.
How are you feeling about the upcoming release of your
debut novel, Marshall’s Family?
Well, getting this
far has been a bit of a long haul, but now that its publication is imminent I
am naturally getting rather excited.
What inspired you to write a novel based in
Africa?
Actually, I
originally had the idea about the story when the Cold War was still on, so
Marshall’s Family was going to be set in a Europe that was being invaded by
Russia. The rapprochement between East and West shot that particular fox, but
after a little thought Africa seemed an obvious alternative. Apart from having
lived and worked there I have always maintained an interest in what is
happening on that continent, so it fitted in quite naturally.
How long did it take you to write it?
From a standing
start to the first complete draft probably took about six years, but I had the
idea a long time before I started bashing the keyboard, and it has been through
several re-writes since I first wrote THE END at the bottom of the last
page.
Some parts of your novel are quite graphic but are
required for the story. How did you feel writing this?
There has been,
and still is, a lot of quite unnecessary cruelty in the world. People chop each
other up over trivial differences in skin colour, religion, politics and almost
anything else that can be recognised as a difference. It is the supreme failing
of the human race and is quite likely to eventually lead to its downfall.
Torture, rape, mutilation and murder are everyday occurrences in some parts of
the world, but though we don’t see it, Marshall did, and readers will see it
too, through his horrified eyes, and maybe think about, as I did when I wrote
it, and still do think about, even now.
What was the hardest part of writing Marshall’s
Family?
Keeping my bottom
on the seat and my fingers on the keyboard. There was always something else to
be done…
Marshall’s character is extremely heroic. Did you have
his complete story in your head before you started writing it?
No, is the quick
answer. I actually started with the opening scene and the final scene and not
much in between. However, I did have a very clear picture in my mind about
Marshall’s character: essentially a good man, not naturally courageous but able
to find courage when the need arose. The rest grew organically as the story
progressed.
Did you consider any alternative endings for your
novel?
Yes, I did think
of making the ending happier, and there was originally a much longer closing
scene, involving Fiona, that eventually fell under the ‘delete’ button.
When did you first realise that you wanted to write a
book?
Probably when I
was in my thirties, but I could never find the time. However, I did write some
articles for an aviation magazine that were well received, which gave me hope
that perhaps, when I did have time, I could produce something worth reading.
When I started to spend quite long periods away from home, because of my job, I
decided there would never be a better opportunity. I often had hours before or
after a flying duty with not a lot to do, so I began to write Marshall’s
Family. Most of it was written in hotels dotted around the UK and Europe.
What do you like doing when you’re not writing?
My wife and I love
walking so we often go on longish walks on Dartmoor or along the coast. We have
also been walking in India, Ethiopia and the United States, as well as many
places in Europe. Of course the flying club takes up two or three days a week,
when the weather is suitable for flying little aeroplanes, and I read a lot,
enjoy television dramas, the cinema and the theatre.
Are you a full or part-time writer? How does that
affect your writing?
Well, I am very
much a part-time writer, though I think about writing a lot, particularly when
I’m walking. I would say that I spend more time writing in my head than in
front of a screen. However, I feel that with one completed novel under my belt
I really would like to get on with the next one. I have set myself a deadline,
which I shall probably miss, of having it ready by this time next year. It is
quite well advanced so we shall see…
What do you think makes a good story?
I think well
defined characters are very important, combined with good plot, full of
incident, which builds up to an unexpected ending.
What author’s do you read and why?
I actually read quite
a lot of non-fiction. History mostly, I’ve just finished The Santa Fe Trail, by
David Dary, which I read because I was about to visit Santa Fe. I was
interested to know why such a small town was so important in the early history
of the Southwest United States. I also read quite a lot of popular science,
nothing too heavy my brain can’t cope. I am a huge fan of Graham Greene and
re-read his books from time to time. My aviation literary heroes are Ernest K.
Gann and Antoine de Saint-Exupery, I know chunks of Wind, Sand and Stars by
heart. Right now I am going through an ‘American’ phase, reading A. B. Guthrie
Jr., Cormac McCarthy, Larry McMurtry, Paul Auster and Paulette Giles. The ‘why’
is difficult to answer, but I think it is because the United States is very
different from the UK, where I live, more different than we often realise. The
common language makes us forget that it is a foreign country to us, where the
people have attitudes and lifestyles often quite different to our own. Fiction
helps me to explore the differences.
Do you have any strange writing habits?
Not really, except
that I write at a little round table that once belonged to a Chinese coffee
shop.
I believe you’re currently writing novel number two.
Can you give us any clues as to what we can expect?
Yes, it is set
before, during and after World War II, and concerns a young boy who falls in
love with a German girl who is temporarily living nearby. She returns to
Germany just before war breaks out. The story follows his experiences as a
rear-gunner on B17 bombers raiding Germany, and the terrible life she leads in
her homeland, both as a victim of the state and of the bombing. At the centre
of the plot is a coincidence, involving them both, which profoundly affects her
life.
Is there anything you would like to say to the
readers?
Only, that I hope
you enjoyed, or will enjoy, Marshall’s Family and that a little of it will stay
with you for a while. Thank you.
I'd like to say a very big thank you to Anson Welsh for taking the time to answer my questions and I'd like to take this opportunity to wish him every success with his debut novel.
Anson can be found at the places below
Website
Amazon Profile
Goodreads
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