Award-winning British novelist Claire Fuller has identified a diverse range of books and authors that have influenced her development as both a reader and a writer, tracing a literary journey that spans childhood curiosity, teenage discovery and decades of creative practice.

Speaking about her earliest memories of reading, Fuller recalled regularly travelling to school by coach from her Oxfordshire village when she was five years old. One of her first reading experiences involved repeatedly reading a metal safety notice fixed to the coach seat, an everyday moment that introduced her to written language before she began exploring books more widely.

Among the works that captured her imagination during childhood was Phenomena by John Michell. Fuller said she spent hours reading its accounts of unusual and unexplained events, including stories about spontaneous human combustion, stigmata and other mysterious phenomena. The mixture of fact and folklore encouraged a fascination with the possibility that the world contained extraordinary experiences beyond everyday life.

A significant turning point came during her teenage years while participating in a school production of Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. Cast as Mrs. Ogmore-Pritchard at the age of 14, Fuller said performing Thomas’s lyrical language revealed the emotional power of literature and demonstrated how carefully crafted writing could evoke profound feelings.

Fuller also highlighted Learning to Love You More, created by Miranda July and Harrell Fletcher, as a work that challenged her thinking. Built around a series of creative assignments ranging from simple observational tasks to more demanding public exercises, the project encouraged her to embrace experiences outside her comfort zone. Although some activities initially felt intimidating, Fuller said completing them proved rewarding and influenced her willingness to pursue unfamiliar creative challenges.

The novel that most inspired her to become a writer was Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle. Fuller explained that it was the first book she consciously analysed from the perspective of a writer, paying close attention to Jackson’s construction of the central character, Merricat, and the emotional impact of the novel’s narrative voice.

Her appreciation for American author Denis Johnson developed gradually. After initially feeling unconvinced by Angels, Fuller later read Train Dreams and Jesus’ Son, experiences that transformed her opinion and established Johnson among her favourite authors.

While working on her own fiction, Fuller keeps Richard Ford’s novel Wildlife close at hand. She said she frequently rereads short passages while writing as a reminder of the literary qualities she hopes to achieve in her own work.

Not every favourite book is one she intends to revisit. Fuller praised Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove but acknowledged that its considerable length makes rereading unlikely, given the number of other books she hopes to explore.

In recent years, Fuller has also begun reading literary classics she missed earlier in life. As part of that personal project, she started with Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, describing the experience as thoroughly enjoyable.

Alongside her own writing career, Fuller runs a book club at the Cabinet Rooms in Winchester. Among the group’s selections is Stephen King’s The Stand, which members are reading gradually over the course of a year. Fuller said she continues to look forward to returning to the novel between discussions.

Reflecting on the books that have remained important throughout different stages of her life, Fuller’s selections reveal influences drawn from poetry, literary fiction, psychological suspense, creative experimentation and classic literature. Together, they illustrate how reading experiences accumulated over decades continue to shape both her personal outlook and her approach to writing fiction.

The success of “The Correspondent” has brought renewed attention to a novel that examines loss, memory, disappointment and the possibility of hope, with its author saying the story was shaped by a desire to explore grief through emotional proximity rather than distance.

The novel follows Sybil, a character whose life is deeply affected by the death of her son Gilbert, who died years before the events of the book. The theme of parental loss became more personal for the author during the writing process after the six-year-old son of close friends died.

The experience influenced the emotional direction of the book, as the author said the tragedy created a deeper understanding of the impact of losing a child and the consequences such a loss can have on a family.While writing, she said she felt she could understand the experience “as closely as I could without it being my own”.

When she returned to the manuscript, the reality of her friends’ loss affected the way she viewed every part of the story.She sought permission from the child’s parents to acknowledge him in the book. The family agreed, and she later said the recognition of his existence through the novel had become one of the most meaningful aspects of its reception.

The author’s approach to writing about grief differed from some other writers who have explored similar themes. Another novelist delayed writing a work about the death of a young child until her own son had passed the age at which the fictional child died. In contrast, the author of “The Correspondent” chose to write the loss of a child of the same age as her own son at the time.

She said a discussion with another writer about the idea of writing not only what one knows but also what one fears influenced her thinking. She concluded that fear could be as vivid and emotionally powerful as personal experience.“I could only write that grief accurately by trying to get as close to the thing as I could,” she said.

The novel also reflects the importance of letters and correspondence, a theme connected to the author’s own life. She grew up in Maryland as one of three siblings in a household that was not particularly focused on books, but she developed a long-standing habit of writing letters, especially to writers whose work she admired.

That interest in correspondence influenced the structure and emotional atmosphere of the novel. She formed a friendship with one writer after years of exchanging letters and described physical letters as valuable objects that preserve a connection between people.“I love to receive a letter,” she said. “It’s like an artefact.

I have some letters that are real treasures.”The novel includes imagined letters from two well-known writers. The author said she approached those fictional elements carefully because both writers had been known for responding to readers, and she wanted the imagined correspondence to be consistent with their published work.

Following the book’s success, she has received a large number of letters from readers and now requires assistance in responding to them.Although the novel addresses difficult subjects, she said she wanted the story to contain a sense of renewal rather than ending in despair. She described the book as combining grief and disappointment with themes of forgiveness and hope.She said many novels leave readers with a feeling of bleakness, but she wanted this story to move in a different direction.

The author believes the positive response to the book may partly reflect a wider interest in stories that include optimism alongside hardship. She said themes of redemption can sometimes be viewed as less common in contemporary fiction, but the reaction to the novel suggested that readers continue to value such ideas.“It says something really beautiful to me that so many people were willing to entertain my book,” she said.

The success of “The Correspondent” has allowed her to focus on writing as a full-time career. However, she continues to maintain a structured routine, usually writing for a few hours after her children leave for school.She has also created a dedicated workspace, something she had wanted for years, and described having a private area for writing as an important change.

The author is now working on another novel, this time centred on the process of making a film. Despite the commercial success of her latest book, she said she still finds it difficult to fully accept the change in her professional circumstances.She recalled recently asking her agent whether the new project would succeed, only to be reminded that the response to her previous work had changed expectations.

The story of “The Correspondent” has connected with readers because of its focus on ordinary human experiences: the way people remember those they have lost, the importance of communication and the possibility of moving forward after personal tragedy.

A new book by a veteran international journalist uses the history of Kabul’s Intercontinental Hotel to trace decades of political upheaval in Afghanistan, while highlighting the experiences of ordinary Afghans who lived through successive governments, conflicts and social transformations.

The author argues that Afghanistan’s modern history is marked by repeated cycles of change and uncertainty, yet many Afghans continue to hold on to a belief that no political system is permanent. That sense of resilience, she says, remains one of the defining characteristics of the country despite the challenges facing its people.

“Afghans always used to say: the last to die is hope,” she said during an interview discussing the book. “Afghanistan has possibly lived through every political system the world has tried. The thread through Afghan history is that nothing lasts forever.”

At the centre of the narrative are employees of Kabul’s Intercontinental Hotel, one of the country’s most recognisable landmarks. Through their personal accounts, the book documents how political changes shaped everyday life across generations.

Among those featured are a longtime housekeeper who worked at the hotel from its opening, one of its first female chefs, an engineer responsible for maintaining the property through periods of conflict and instability, and one of the hotel’s pioneering female waiters.

Their experiences provide a perspective on Afghanistan’s recent history that extends beyond political leaders and military campaigns.The author said documenting those stories required the trust and cooperation of Afghans who were willing to speak despite potential risks.

“I have to pay tribute to the Afghans who helped me and spoke to me for the book, because in Afghanistan even sharing stories can have risks,” she said.The journalist began her reporting career as a freelance correspondent in West Africa before joining the BBC and covering conflicts and political developments around the world.

She later became the broadcaster’s chief international correspondent, reporting from some of the most significant geopolitical events of recent decades.Her latest book opens with the collapse of the internationally backed Afghan government in August 2021 and the return of the Taliban to power following the withdrawal of U.S. and allied forces.

The fall of Kabul and the chaotic evacuation that followed form a central part of the narrative.Recalling the scenes at Kabul airport, she described a period marked by fear, confusion and desperation as thousands attempted to leave the country.“There was this fear at the end,” she said.

“People kept talking about Vietnam. In fact, it was a hundred times worse.”She remembered military transport aircraft, helicopters and large crowds carrying only essential belongings as they sought evacuation. Images of Afghans clinging to departing aircraft became some of the most widely circulated photographs of the withdrawal and drew international scrutiny over the manner of the exit.

The events of August 2021 remain among the defining moments of her reporting career and continue to shape international debate over the consequences of two decades of foreign military involvement in Afghanistan.Since regaining power, the Taliban administration has introduced a series of restrictions affecting women and girls.

Secondary education and university access for girls have been suspended, while women have been excluded from many forms of employment and public participation. Additional regulations have imposed strict dress requirements and further limited women’s visibility in public life.The journalist described the situation as one of the most pressing human rights concerns facing Afghanistan today.

“Five years in and it is getting worse. It is a stain on our world,” she said.Despite those restrictions, she said Afghan women continue to demonstrate remarkable resilience and determination in the face of mounting obstacles.She also expressed concern about challenges faced by Afghan women outside the country, particularly those seeking educational opportunities abroad.

While scholarship programmes remain available in some cases, she noted that visa barriers and immigration restrictions have prevented many students from pursuing studies overseas.“There are Afghan women getting scholarships, but there are no visas now to allow Afghan women to come and study in Britain and in many other places,” she said.

According to the author, many Afghans who once held prominent roles in journalism, civil society, education and public service have been forced to rebuild their lives from the beginning after leaving the country.“People who were somebody in Afghanistan — activists, world-class journalists — find themselves having to start again from scratch,” she said.

The displacement of professionals and educated workers has contributed to concerns among international observers about the long-term impact on Afghanistan’s social and economic development.At the same time, the author cautioned against viewing the entire period between 2001 and 2021 solely through the lens of its final outcome.

She argued that the years of international engagement produced significant changes in education, media, civil society and opportunities for women, even if many of those gains are now under pressure.She said debates about whether two decades of foreign involvement achieved meaningful results often overlook the experiences of millions of Afghans whose lives changed during that period.

“People often say: what did 20 years of international engagement achieve? Was it all for nothing?” she said. “I always say it wasn’t for nothing.”Through the story of one hotel and the people who kept it operating across decades of turmoil, the book seeks to document those experiences and preserve the voices of Afghans whose lives intersected with some of the most significant events in the country’s modern history.

The relationship between celebrated authors and the real children who inspired some of literature’s most enduring works is at the center of a new novel that explores the lasting consequences of turning childhood into public mythology.

The novel, The Children, emerged from its author’s reassessment of classic fantasy literature and the lives of the children whose identities became intertwined with famous fictional characters. What began as admiration for works such as Peter Pan and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland evolved into a more critical examination of the power dynamics between adult creators and their youthful muses.

The author describes a growing unease with historical accounts surrounding some of literature’s best-known figures. Photographs of Alice Liddell, the child associated with Lewis Carroll’s Alice stories, came to appear less innocent and more complicated when viewed through the lens of adulthood. The awareness that an adult photographer stood behind the camera transformed the images from treasured literary artifacts into subjects of deeper scrutiny.

A similar reassessment emerged in considering the relationship between playwright and novelist J.M. Barrie and the Llewelyn Davies family, whose children inspired Peter Pan. Barrie first encountered the boys in a London park and later developed a close relationship with the family. Following the deaths of the children’s parents, he became their legal guardian and provided financial support.

While historians continue to debate aspects of that relationship, the progression from stranger to guardian remains a source of fascination and discomfort for many modern readers.The story of Christopher Robin Milne, whose childhood became immortalized through the Winnie-the-Pooh books written by his father, A.A. Milne, presents another example of the complicated legacy of literary fame.

Raised largely by a nanny and later sent to boarding school, Christopher Robin struggled with the public attention generated by his fictional counterpart. In later life, he wrote extensively about the difficulties of growing up attached to a literary identity created before he was old enough to understand its implications.

These stories contributed to the development of The Children, a novel that examines the tension between artistic creation and personal autonomy. The book follows siblings Guinevere and Ennis Sharpe, whose lives have been shaped by their mother’s bestselling fantasy series.

Written into the novels as children, they become inseparable from the fictional world that made their mother famous.Set between their childhood and adulthood, the narrative explores how public mythology can distort private experience. While readers celebrate the siblings as characters in a beloved literary universe, the reality of their upbringing is marked by neglect, emotional distance and unresolved trauma.

The contrast between the fantasy presented to the public and the circumstances behind it becomes a central theme of the story.The fictional series at the heart of the novel functions as both a source of fame and a burden. Guinevere and Ennis inherit not only their mother’s literary legacy but also public expectations about who they should be.

Decades after their parents’ deaths, they remain the only witnesses capable of explaining what truly occurred during their childhood.The siblings respond differently to that inheritance. Guinevere attempts to manage the narrative by attaching her name to a memoir that presents her upbringing as a magical and idyllic experience, reinforcing the image readers have long embraced.

Ennis chooses a more confrontational path, building a successful artistic career through installations that challenge conventional storytelling and question the neat conclusions often found in popular fiction.The fragile balance between their competing versions of the past collapses when Ennis announces a major exhibition titled “Mother.”

His decision to publicly revisit family history forces Guinevere to reconsider the stories she has told herself and others about their childhood. As she revisits long-buried memories, she begins to distinguish between the enchantment their mother created on the page and the realities that existed beyond it.

The novel also reflects broader cultural conversations about childhood fame and the rights of children whose identities become public property. The experiences of Alice Liddell, Christopher Robin Milne and the Llewelyn Davies boys illustrate how literary celebrity can create lasting complications for those who inspire beloved stories.Their lives, however, resist simple interpretation.

Alice Liddell went on to marry, raise a family and receive public recognition, including an honorary degree from Columbia University. Christopher Robin Milne eventually established himself as a writer and bookseller and reached a more nuanced understanding of his literary legacy.

The Llewelyn Davies family experienced a more tragic trajectory. George Llewelyn Davies was killed during military service at the age of 21. Michael Llewelyn Davies died in a drowning accident at 20. Peter Llewelyn Davies, who often expressed discomfort with his association with Peter Pan, died by suicide at the age of 63.

Their experiences highlight the difficulty of drawing direct connections between childhood literary fame and adult outcomes.Rather than offering definitive judgments, The Children examines the blurred boundary between art and life. It raises questions about who owns a story when real people become part of a fictional narrative and what happens when a public image outlives the person who inspired it.

The novel ultimately explores the enduring tension between nostalgia and personal freedom. While readers often long to preserve childhood in memory and literature, those whose younger selves have been immortalized may experience that preservation differently. For them, the challenge is not reclaiming childhood but escaping a version of themselves that the world refuses to forget.

An author has described how reading and storytelling became a source of personal freedom during a childhood marked by bullying, shaping both their relationship with literature and the themes explored in their fiction.

According to the author, childhood experiences often left them feeling constrained and unable to experience the sense of ease and security they sought in everyday life. They said that books provided an alternative space in which they could exercise imagination, process difficult emotions and engage with experiences that felt inaccessible in their immediate surroundings.

The author said reading offered opportunities that extended beyond entertainment. Through stories, they found what they described as freedom, allowing them to explore emotions and perspectives that were difficult to express elsewhere.

Literature became a place where they could confront the effects of bullying and reflect on the fear those experiences created.While acknowledging the negative impact of being bullied, the author said those experiences also prompted them to seek broader intellectual and emotional horizons.

They noted that bullying narrowed aspects of their world by creating fear and limiting confidence, but at the same time encouraged them to pursue new forms of connection and understanding through books and storytelling.

“Being bullied forced me to find ways to make my world bigger,” the author said, describing reading as a means of expanding opportunities for imagination and self-discovery.The experience has continued to influence their professional work.

The author said their writing is informed by the books that provided comfort during challenging periods of their life. They aim to create stories that offer readers a similar sense of support and encouragement, particularly those who may be facing difficulties of their own.

According to the author, an important objective in their fiction is to produce narratives that balance realism with optimism. They said they understand the significance of finding books that connect with readers’ experiences while also providing reassurance and hope. That perspective has become a guiding principle in their approach to storytelling.

The author’s latest novel, described as a contemporary retelling of Little Women, provided an opportunity to explore themes related to family life and motherhood. Through the process of developing the novel, they examined their own ideas about parenting and family relationships, using fiction as a framework for reflection.

They said imagining and fictionalising what motherhood might feel like proved to be a significant creative experience. Writing allowed them to engage with questions and possibilities that had not been available to them in childhood, offering a space to explore different aspects of domestic life through narrative.

The author characterized the process as personally meaningful, explaining that fiction enabled them to revisit forms of imaginative play that had been difficult to access when they were younger. Storytelling, they said, created opportunities to engage with family dynamics and personal relationships in ways that extended beyond their own lived experiences.

According to the author, one of the defining qualities of fiction is its ability to create encounters with different people, perspectives and communities. Through writing, they said they are able to inhabit a variety of worlds and experiences, broadening their understanding of human relationships and social realities.

This capacity for exploration remains central to their understanding of literature. The author suggested that stories serve not only as vehicles for entertainment but also as mechanisms for connection, empathy and discovery. By creating fictional characters and settings, writers are able to investigate experiences that may differ significantly from their own.

The author’s comments highlight the role literature can play in helping individuals navigate difficult circumstances. Reading provided a means of coping with feelings of isolation and fear during childhood, while writing later became a way of transforming those experiences into creative work.

In both cases, stories functioned as a means of expanding possibilities rather than accepting limitations.The relationship between personal experience and creative expression is evident throughout the author’s account.

Experiences of bullying shaped the search for refuge in books, while those same experiences later influenced the desire to write stories that offer encouragement and understanding. The progression from reader to writer reflects an effort to recreate for others the sense of possibility that literature once provided.

The author emphasized that stories have the ability to meet readers at particular moments in their lives. For individuals facing uncertainty, loneliness or adversity, books can provide both recognition and perspective. That belief informs their commitment to producing fiction that is accessible, uplifting and rooted in human connection.

Their latest work continues that approach by examining themes of family, care and belonging through a contemporary adaptation of a well-known literary text. By reimagining elements of Little Women, the author sought to engage with enduring questions about relationships, identity and the meaning of home while also incorporating their own reflections on motherhood.

Throughout the creative process, the author said fiction offered a space where imagination and personal experience could intersect. Through storytelling, they were able to revisit aspects of childhood, explore alternative possibilities and engage with lives beyond their own.

For the author, that process represents one of literature’s most enduring strengths.The author said that reading first provided the freedom they struggled to find elsewhere, while writing later became a means of extending that freedom through stories designed to offer comfort, understanding and hope to others.

Actor Hannah Murray has offered a deeply personal account of psychosis, involuntary psychiatric treatment and the breakdown of her sense of reality in a forthcoming memoir, describing a period in which she believed she possessed supernatural abilities and played a central role in humanity’s salvation.

In an extract from her memoir, The Make-Believe: A Memoir of Magic and Madness, Murray recounts her experiences while undergoing a severe mental health crisis that ultimately led to her being detained under the UK’s Mental Health Act.

The actor, widely known for portraying Gilly in the television series Game of Thrones, describes a state in which ordinary events were interpreted through an elaborate belief system involving magic, destiny and spiritual transformation.

According to the memoir extract, Murray believed she had become a “Ritual Master” and viewed routine interactions within a hospital setting as part of a larger supernatural narrative. Medical staff, patients and family members were assigned symbolic roles within a reality she perceived as fundamentally altered.

She recounts being brought food and drink by a healthcare worker but refusing to eat, believing instead that she no longer required conventional nourishment. During this period, she writes that she considered herself entirely self-sufficient and capable of surviving through spiritual energy rather than physical needs.

As her condition intensified, Murray describes wandering hospital corridors while waiting for what she believed would be the arrival of an important figure connected to her perceived mission. She interpreted events around her through the lens of a complex belief system that blended personal experiences, spirituality, popular culture and fantasy.

One of the most emotionally significant moments in the account involves a phone call from her mother. Murray writes that when she first heard her mother’s distressed voice, she viewed the conversation not as a family member trying to reach her, but as part of a test designed to pull her back into ordinary reality.

She recalls ending the first call before answering again when her mother phoned back. During the second conversation, Murray attempted to reassure her that she was safe and believed she was in a positive place despite the growing concerns of those around her.

The memoir describes how medical professionals informed her that she was being sectioned under the Mental Health Act, a legal process that allows individuals experiencing severe mental illness to be detained and assessed when they may pose risks to themselves or are unable to recognise their condition.

At the time, however, Murray writes that the information had little impact because it did not fit within the reality she believed she was experiencing. References to legal procedures, assessment periods and patient rights appeared disconnected from the worldview that had taken hold during her psychosis.

Instead, she says she remained focused on what she perceived as powerful energies moving through her body and voices that reinforced her convictions. Throughout the episode, Murray believed she possessed extraordinary abilities and unlimited creative powers.

The actor describes pacing hospital corridors while delivering what she considered a profound performance, convinced she was simultaneously a magician, actor, writer and spiritual guide.

She believed she could perform any conceivable action and viewed herself as possessing superhuman capabilities.The memoir further details grandiose beliefs commonly associated with psychotic episodes. Murray writes that she became convinced she had prevented an apocalypse and served as a central figure in humanity’s future.

She interpreted cultural references, films and professional experiences as evidence supporting those conclusions.Among those interpretations was her belief that a 2016 film, The Girl with All the Gifts, contained messages connected to her perceived role in world events.

She viewed the title itself as a reflection of her identity during the episode.Murray also writes that her acting career took on symbolic significance within the delusional framework. Professional collaborations and casting decisions were reimagined as part of a larger cosmic narrative.

She came to believe that her work in television and film had been preparing her for a destiny connected to the survival and transformation of the world.The account illustrates how psychosis can fundamentally alter a person’s perception of reality, leading ordinary experiences to acquire extraordinary meanings.

Mental health specialists often describe psychosis as a condition in which individuals may experience delusions, hallucinations or disordered thinking that make it difficult to distinguish between subjective beliefs and external reality.Murray’s memoir presents those experiences from her own perspective, allowing readers to follow the internal logic that shaped her thinking during the crisis.

Rather than reflecting on the events solely through hindsight, the narrative recreates the certainty with which she held those beliefs at the time.The extract forms part of a broader memoir examining Murray’s experiences with mental illness, recovery and identity.

By documenting her psychotic episode in detail, she offers an account of how severe mental health conditions can affect perception, relationships and decision-making.The book is scheduled for publication by Cornerstone and explores both the onset of Murray’s illness and the process of understanding what happened after the crisis ended.

The actor is also due to discuss the memoir publicly during an event in London alongside Jessie Cave.For Murray, the memoir represents an effort to chronicle a period in which reality itself became unstable, transforming familiar people, places and experiences into elements of a narrative that felt entirely real at the time but was ultimately shaped by psychosis.