An Interview with Jody Cooksley

Jody Cooksley is a novelist, communications consultant, creative writing tutor, and lifelong writer. She studied literature at Oxford Brookes University and has a masters in Victorian poetry. Her debut novel, The Glass House, was a fictional account of the life of nineteenth-century photographer Julia Margaret Cameron.

The Small Museum, her third novel, won the 2023 Caledonia Novel Award. The Surgeon’s House, published in February this year, is a sequel. Jody loves dark stories and is drawn to the strange and gothic, stories that are chilling but that also stretch the edges of the imagination. She is originally from Norwich and now lives in Surrey.

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What inspired you to start writing this book?

The beauty and solitude of the Surrey Hills where I live. Surrey is a county of stark differences in wealth and social groups, and I also wanted to explore that dynamic, the conflict of interests.

Describe your dream book cover.

A deep green woodland scene, painted like the cover of an old book of fairytales, with shadows and hints of darkness between the trees.

What books are you reading (for research or comfort) as you continue the writing process?

I read voraciously and across a wide range of genres: historic, contemporary, international. I enjoy poetry and short stories as well as novels. This month I’ve read Susan Choi’s Flashlight, Helen Oyeymi’s What is Not Yours is Not Yours, Fatima Bhutto’s The Shadow of the Crescent Moon, and Katy Hays’ The Cloisters. The latter was my favourite and is most like the books I write, which are always darkly Gothic.

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

I trained as a journalist and worked in the field for some years, which was excellent training in writing to tight deadlines. I am still brutal with creating deadlines for myself and sticking to them. I’ve also worked in PR, communications, and management consultancy. Currently, I work part time in communications whilst writing creatively and tutoring creative writing. I am a writing workaholic; as soon as I finish a book, I begin the process of scoping out the next, and I’m always thinking about the next two books after the one I’m working on. I’m always restless, don’t need much sleep, and as well as writing projects, I always have something else on the go, like embroidery, craft, or even jigsaw puzzles as I need to occupy my hands!

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

I wrote creatively from a very young age. When I was eight or nine, I used to create my own local newspapers and short story books. I realised I wanted to be a novelist when I read Sheridan Le Fanu’s classic Victorian Gothic, Uncle Silas, and immediately wanted to write books that were as unsettling and stayed with readers long after the last page. Reviews of The Small Museum and The Surgeon’s House tell me that I have achieved that!

Where is your favorite place to write?

I’m lucky enough to have my own writing room at home, a small room filled with things to inspire me, from Victorian objects to notes from my readers and of course, plenty of books.

What advice would you give your past self at the start of your writing journey?

Just write! I agonised for too many years over whether my ideas were worth putting on paper, and now I feel a little like I’m making up for lost time. I have so many stories that need writing.

What’s one thing you hope sticks with readers after they finish your book?

I hope they realise that my stories are always hopeful and redemptive, even through the darkness.

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