Jeffrey talks about The Clifton Chronicles Series

Jeffrey Archer on The Clifton Chronicles Series

I’ve enjoyed writing The Clifton Chronicles and I’d like to thank all those readers who’ve stayed with the whole series and let me know by tweet or by Facebook post or through my blog how they feel.

Keep those opinions coming. They help and I’m grateful and I hope you’ll continue to read The Clifton Chronicles.

When I was 70 years old, I needed something to focus on, something to drive me and I realized if I set the task of writing a series of books called The Clifton Chronicles, the story of Harry Clifton and the woman he falls in love with, Emma Barrington and his best friend Giles Barrington, I would be working flat out for at least five years. So that was the original purpose.

I selected a young man born in Bristol called Harry Clifton because I’m a West Countryman. I come from Western Super-Mare and I settled on the docks because my grandfather had worked on the docks and it just struck me I should use the knowledge I have.

So I chose Harry Clifton and that was the start of the whole thing.

Three people, Harry, Giles and Giles’ sister Emma who Harry falls in love with and marries.

And you’ll take their life from 1920 through to this century and see life in this country through their eyes and have an ever – running story through all of the books.

A lot of people ask me where are you going, what’s going to happen in the next book?

I’m got a clue and I hope that’s what makes people want to read the next book.

In fact, when I got to the denounment on the third book, my editor rang up and said, yes, but what’s going to happen? I said, I don’t know yet. It’s almost best not to know.

So the reader doesn’t know and you don’t know and you’ve got a year of course to work it out and get it right. But that’s the fun.