I should start by saying that I’ve never taken a single creative class or read a single creative writing book. Make sure you sign up for one of our creative writing courses to come along to what will doubtless be an inspiring evening, and all the other live writing classes and sessions with award-winning and bestselling authors from every genre. We’re also tremendously excited for Yann to join us for a live Q&A with members of The Novelry. In this blog post, Yann recounts how he fell in love with words and his journey to becoming a bestselling novelist. His third book, Life of Pi, scooped a plethora of awards including the coveted Man Booker Prize, the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, the Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction, and the Boeke Prize. Talking of doing a story justice, I’ll let Yann take it from here.Yann Martel is the author of eight published works, including novels, short stories and collected letters – several of which have been New York Times bestsellers. Was the fish or the boat moving? And what does gable mean?! (See, even award-winning authors aren’t immune to mistakes!) Why stick with what you’ve got when you need words that do your experiences and stories justice? It was actually through translation that Yann discovered ambiguities in his own work in English. Learning other languages even encourages you to push your own language further. Writing gives you the freedom to explore this spirit. Life of Pi is the direct result of backpacking around India and experiencing the multi-faceted culture, made accessible through language. The fact that he wrote The High Mountains of Portugal 30 years later was no coincidence. Portugal was the first country Yann travelled to alone and his first experience of splashing around the fish bowl. You know the feeling of being on the outside looking in? That’s what it feels like when you visit somewhere and don’t understand a word anyone’s saying, isn’t it? Whereas if a common language can be spoken, you can see through to the culture much more clearly. At one point he was living in a Spanish speaking country, going to school in English and speaking French at home! It’s no wonder then, that Yann’s appreciation for language and culture has fuelled his literary career. He moved to Portugal at 2 weeks old, then to Alaska, then to British Columbia, then to… (you get the gist). So how has his own story influenced those he writes? Yann lived in many different countries growing up and has carried on travelling the world throughout his life, which has opened his eyes and, perhaps even more importantly for an author, his imagination. What makes a good story? Yann Martel asks his readers this very question through his best-known novel Life of Pi, but would also encourage you to think about it when interpreting the world around you.

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