My First Time...with Amy Baker

Describe the exact moment you decided to write your book?

It was actually such a cheesy, romantic moment, which just isn’t me AT ALL. I was living in Colombia on top of a mountain when the idea for the book first came to me but it was only when I was leaving, heading back to the city, and then to the UK, via a bumpy motorcycle ride through the jungle that I actually made my decision. The sun was setting, which felt pretty poetic – it was like it wasn’t only setting on my time in South America but also on the period of my life where I didn’t have a clue which direction to point my body in or how to apply myself. In that moment I knew I was capable of doing it, and made the decision to get to work right away.

What’s the one thing you wish you’d known before starting to write your first book?

Oh man, there are so many things I wish I’d known. How bloody long it would take, for one! That no matter what your idea is at the beginning it’s going to grow into something you never could have envisioned. That each draft doesn’t need to be perfect. How important it is to take care of yourself and not to isolate yourself completely from the outside world. I learnt a lot.

What’s your go-to procrastination method?

Youtube. I could watch stupid videos about nothing for days.

What was the biggest tantrum you had while writing it?

I don’t think I ever had a full-blown tantrum but I did a fair amount of crying to my Mum and friends, and a lot of talking to myself in the mirror. In hindsight maybe I should have smashed more stuff up.

Best thing about writing your book?

Creating something that I am super proud of. And the worst?

Being so all-consumed by it that I thought of little else. I’ve been a complete bore for nigh on three years now.

Go-to writing snacks?

Chocolate biscuits. One dunk and they’re gone – which means they don’t count.

The book that changed you?