Interview with Andrew Chamberlain, Author, Urban Angel

CW: The back cover was a bit misleading. The book wasn’t just about Alex. It’s also about Daisy and a host of other characters.

 

AC: That’s true.

 

CW: One of the characters, Caleb, is portrayed as a comedy act. I particularly liked the deliverance session he conducted over Daisy, one of the characters - very matter-of-factly. Quite unlike what is portrayed in horror films. Was that intentional?

 

AC: Yes. That’s because I wanted Caleb to be the guy people will learn from. If you’ve watched a few horror movies, the classic being The Omen, the priest is in fear of the evil spirit which is not scriptural. The Bible clearly states that in the name of Jesus we have authority over devils but horror films don’t show that. At the same time, I wanted to get away from the hype of deliverance sessions which is why the image of Caleb in his pyjamas and trilby hat added flavour to the whole thing. One thing I also made clear in Caleb's case was his role as an intercessor. After the deliverance session, Conner asks him if he can do deliverance sessions and Caleb’s reply is a lesson to us all:

 

"Have you learnt to pray so that your very tears fall to the ground? Or have you loved the poor and the weak so much that you have given of yourself beyond your own endurance? Have you done any of these things?"

 

You’ll also notice that Caleb has a few weaknesses, primary of which is that he’s not very good in the morning. Just goes to show that the most spiritual of us have our weaknesses.

 

CW: Let’s talk about Daisy, the ‘troubled’ character.

 

AC: Well, Daisy has been in situations. I wrote Urban Angel around the time I was learning about the dynamics between men and women. The dynamics between Daisy and Connor was a reflection of what I’d seen.

 

CW: You dealt with the situation between Laura and Alex very well. A woman knowing about her husband’s growing attraction to her best friend is not an easy thing to deal with. I certainly wouldn’t have dealt with it the same way!

 

AC: I’m glad you said that it was done sensitively. Being a man, it wasn’t easy getting into the psyche of a woman but I hope I did a good enough job.

 

CW: There’s something I didn’t understand in the book...

 

AC: Yeah?

 

CW: Why did the angel snuff out the boiler in Bridget’s flat? Was that a delaying tactic, God’s way of alerting Marcia to the danger she faced?

 

AC: It was a cause and effect situation. Bridget posts the package which takes the story in a whole new different direction and yes, by snuffing out the boiler, God gives her extra time.

 

CW: What’s the story with Lench, the ‘baddie’

 

AC: Lench is a made up name. I tried to come with a name that was sinister enough. I also wanted him to do the sinister gent’s thing; a gentleman who was the very personification of evil. I quite liked the idea of him being strategic because God is a strategic God. I wanted to merge that with the idea of the devil being strategic as well.

 

CW: So what’s like being a writer?

 

AC: I don’t feel very different in that I see it as a job. I love writing, seeing how characters interact with one another.

 

CW: Which do you prefer; fiction or non-fiction?

 

AC: I prefer fiction because I enjoy writing about characters and plot development.

 

CW: How did the idea for Urban Angel come about?

 

AC: Stephen Donaldson wrote a book about an angel. This gave me an idea; what would Christian fiction book on angels be like?

 

CW: Tell us about the challenges you faced in writing Urban Angel.

 

AC: Could I write a female character? How do I delve into Alex's longing for a man yet keep her dignity? These were my challenges.

 

 

CW: How did you get published?

 

AC: People need to accept that it’s hard to write well. We [writers] need to work hard; reading lots of books, noting dialogue skills…to read Zadie Smith’s books is to understand an aspect of her work.

 

CW: A word for yet-to-be-published writers

 

AC: The issue of perseverance.