‘The Journal’ receives exclusive writing advice from Queen’s alum and author, Iain Reid

The Journal sat down to discuss writing, film, and life with the acclaimed Kingston author Iain Reid, ArtSci ’04.    

His book, I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020), was adapted into a Netflix film starring Oscar-winning actress, Jessie Buckley, and directed by Oscar-winning director, Charlie Kaufman. I first watched the film when I was in grade eleven, while experiencing COVID-19 lockdown, a perfect fit for a story about isolation, memory, and regret. Since then, I’ve read the book multiple times and was ecstatic for the opportunity to speak with the creative mind behind such a captivating story.

 I met with Reid at the SENS Cafe downtown to chat about life and nerd out over the same love of The Screening Room, re-reading books, and a passion for writing. Turns out, we both went to the same elementary and high school outside Ottawa, both coming to study History at Queen’s. There was a lot to talk about, and here’s the summarized and shortened transcript of our very exciting interaction.      

Why did you decide to transition into fiction, even though you began by writing nonfiction?

 “I always read more fiction, so that was my interest all along. I felt like, for me, fiction was harder, so when I wrote my first book, which was non-fiction, it felt like more of an accessible entry point. With nonfiction, it’s reality, but you’re reacting to the world. With fiction, you’re making it up and writing about it, so it took a few books to make me confident enough to try publishing a piece of long form fiction but it’s maintained my attention ever since because of its difficulty.”

How do you feel your History degree has contributed to your writing?

“History of Philosophy is about reading, creating arguments, and discussing ideas in seminar classes, critical thinking, and taking a text and generating what an author is trying to say from it. In all types of writing, from journalistic to creative, it involves interpreting, figuring out different possibilities and defending them. You need to be able to do these things so I’m really appreciative of my time studying, because I’ve continued to use that approach to learning. I always encourage people to do [an art’s degree] even if they don’t know for sure where it’s going to lead to.”

What is your favourite book?

 “It’s always changing […] For me, my favourite kind of books are the ones that feel like I’m part of it as a reader. Any book that offers me that for a moment will be my favourite. I know I love a book when I can reread it and take something different away each time. It’s crazy to believe you could take everything you need from a book in one read. We listen to music over and over, we rewatch movies, and I think rereading books demands it more than ever because there’s so much within a book that it’s impossible to get it all in one reading.”

 How did your background as a movie lover help to inform your transition into screen-writing and adaptation?

“It made the whole foray into my work being adapted super exciting. I love movies, but I never anticipated working in that field. I think because I had a background of someone who loved watching movies and going to the theatre, it was so exciting. I not only liked the works of the people I worked with, but everyone I worked with was kind and genuine, and I felt encouraged to keep going.”

 How did you navigate the experience of your first novel being adapted into a Charlie Kaufman film?

 “With I’m Thinking of Ending Things, it was much more of a surprise, and it came from someone who had a track record of making work I admired, so it was easy to feel appreciative and excited. I didn’t want to be too precious about the book. I wanted to trust the vision, and it was easy to do that because I was familiar with [Kaufman’] work and was grateful to be a part of it. It allowed me to then approach Foe’s adaptation as a screenwriter, and I probably wouldn’t have felt comfortable to do that if I hadn’t had that experience [on I’m Thinking of Ending Things] that I loved. It has all felt like a progression and I feel lucky to work with great people.”

 How was it to work with Charlie Kaufman?

 “I appreciate his boldness and I wanted to follow through on the vision he had. I didn’t want to sand something down to make it more palatable for a general audience, but I wanted to follow through with what felt true to him, and I think that’s a good reminder for everyone.”

 What is your favourite movie?

“Under the Skin. The book and the movie are totally different and I really appreciate that. They’re two different forms. It’s a great example of a book and movie that I can turn back to over and over. It’s very rich and interesting. I’d recommend both, start with either one!”

When do you write? Do you follow a strict routine?

“I write every day. It’s not hard. I mean, the work is hard, but it’s not hard to do it, because it’s a job, and you need to work. I chose this. I want to do it. I try to minimize distractions and whittle away each day. My process is slow, but it works for me. I don’t think there’s a right or wrong way to write. Everybody has to find their way that works.”

Do you find writing to be isolating?

 “It’s understandable to feel this way, because writing and reading is something that you do alone, but I also think it’s very helpful [for writing] to be around people and be inspired by other readers, writers, and editors. You should still live a life of involvement with the world. If you’re a writer and you’re going to write about anything interesting, you have to be absorbent and you have to have experience, and all that can be part of the writing experience.”

What are your strategies for writer’s block?

“Go for a long walk. Go play basketball. Try and do something physical to take a break. Doing something physical that’s the opposite of sitting at the desk and thinking is helpful for me. [..] It’s good to do things that are different, and it goes both ways. Some people exercise too much and need to sit quietly and read for a bit. I think it’s important for everybody to be well balanced.”

Do you feel like each of your books carries a piece of you from a specific moment in time?

“All my books are personal, or I wouldn’t be able to spend the time writing them. Because they all are personal and things I think about and want to know more about, it’s helpful to write. I just have to hope while I do it that people will feel drawn to it, relate to it, and find something interesting to think about. It’s all about questions I’m thinking about in my own life.”

Do you have a favourite moment of your writing career?

“Probably the first time an editor offered me any kind of encouragement. That’s true to this day. Anytime I get encouragement from readers, I feel this way.  When I’m writing, I never know if people are going to like this or if people are going to get anything from this. Before I’d written any books, someone sent something I was working on to an editor at a publishing house, and they called me and said we’d never be able to publish your book, but you have some interesting writing here. Even though the point of the call was to say they couldn’t publish it, there was this seed of encouragement when they said, ‘I think the way you write was interesting.’ and that was all I heard. It pushed me to keep going. It’s true of all writing that it’s easy to be discouraged and easy to want to give up, but the moments where people offer encouragement means a lot. Throughout my writing, I’ve used those moments to help when I feel self-doubt towards my own work.”

What is your advice for writers who want to get into writing?

“I’d encourage them to do it. I think there’s a lot of the opposite sentiments, people saying that it’s really hard, but as far as advice, there are actual real opportunities to do this. The biggest thing is to do it your way. Your perspective is vital, because it’s yours. It’s not that person’s, and it’s not mine, it’s yours. And that’s what you can bring. If you try and do what you think you should do or what you think other people would want, you lose that one thing that’s yours, that you can offer that will always be true and that will always make writing unique. To be a writer is maintaining being true to that one thing which is you, and your experience, and your vision.”