Ian McGuire: On Being Inspired by Other Authors
In this interview, author Ian McGuire discusses the study in trial and error that was the writing process of his new novel, White River Crossing.
Ian McGuire is the author of The North Water, Incredible Bodies, and The Abstainer. He lives in Manchester, England, where he teaches at the University of Manchester’s Centre for New Writing.
In this interview, Ian discusses the study in trial and error that was the writing process of his new novel, White River Crossing, his advice for other writers, and more.
Name: Ian McGuire
Book title: White River Crossing
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Release date: February 24, 2026
Genre/category: Historical fiction; literary fiction
Previous titles: The North Water; Incredible Bodies; The Abstainer
Elevator pitch: A breathtaking and cinematic novel about the lust for gold and its bloody consequences, set in the unforgiving landscape of the sub-Arctic Canadian wilderness.
What prompted you to write this book?
I came across a book called A Journey to the Northern Ocean which was first published in 1795. It was written by an Englishman named Samuel Hearne and it’s his account of walking 500 miles or so from a Hudson’s Bay Company trading post on the shore of Hudson Bay, up through the vast area of arctic tundra known as the Barren Grounds to the northern coastline of what is now Canada. That became the initial inspiration for White River Crossing. Samuel Hearne was actually sent north to look for copper ore but in my novel the protagonists who undertake a similarly extraordinary journey are on a secret mission to find and bring back gold.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
About six years which is a lot longer than I expected. It was a hard novel to write for various reasons, and one big problem was just deciding on the plot—that changed a great deal over the years. There was a lot of trial and error, testing out different options, changing my mind, trying it again in a slightly different way etc. etc. until I finally decided what needed to happen.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
My long-time U.K. editor was let go a year or so before publication, which was a shock and a disappointment. Fortunately, almost all the editorial work had been done by then, so it didn’t change the book too much in the end.
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
As well as struggling to decide on the plot, I also struggled to settle on the best form for the novel. My first complete draft used multiple first-person narrators—so lots of short sections each voiced by a different character. The first readers agreed that although the story was good, the multiple first-person idea really didn’t work. So, I had to go back and change it all. It now employs a rather more conventional third-person approach which I think works well. It took me another 12 months to do the rewrite though
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
I hope they will be entertained, but I also hope they will be prompted to think about some of the novel’s themes, especially the contrasting notions of value and belief that are revealed by the meeting between the British characters and the Indigenous inhabitants of the lands they move through.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
Read a lot and allow yourself to be influenced by the books and writers you really love.
