Jennie Godfrey: Write From the Heart
In this interview, author Jennie Godfrey discusses the life-changing decision to dedicate time to writing that led to her debut novel, The List of Suspicious Things.
Jennie Godfrey was raised in West Yorkshire in a mill-working family and her debut novel, The List of Suspicious Things, was inspired by her childhood there in the 1970s. In 2020, Jennie gave up her corporate career to build a life around books. She is now a writer and part-time bookseller who lives, and writes, in the Somerset countryside. Follow her on Instagram.
In this interview, Jennie discusses the life-changing decision to dedicate time to writing that led to her debut novel, The List of Suspicious Things, her advice for other writers, and more.
Name: Jennie Godfrey
Book title: The List of Suspicious Things
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Release date: December 30, 2025
Genre/category: Mystery
Elevator pitch: The List of Suspicious Things is a tender and moving coming of age story about family, friendship and community. Sometimes the strongest connections are found in the most unlikely of places.
What prompted you to write this book?
If you had asked me what I wanted to be when I was 7 or 8 years old, I would have proudly said “an authoress.” I was so bookish as a child that my mum once took me to the doctors, as she was worried I was reading too much and not sleeping enough (the doctor was unsurprisingly unconcerned), therefore it is safe to say I always wanted to write. Life got in the way however, and though I studied English at university, I went on to get a “proper” job in the corporate world, building a career in HR, meaning that the only writing I did for a number of years was intensely dull board reports. I remained a voracious reader, however, and I always had more than one book on the go and knew the booksellers in my town by name. Cut to 2019, and a mid-life crisis led me to leave the corporate world. I decided I would take a year off and during that year I would write a book while I was deciding what to do next. It turns out that writing is what I am doing next, as I never went back. The List of Suspicious Things appeared in my mind one day, title and all, while I was walking the dog, and I have never looked back.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
From idea to publication was five years, though from idea to book deal was only two and a half years. At the time it felt like forever, but now it feels as though it all happened very quickly. Very little changed about the core of the book. The plot, title, and main characters all remained intact, and in fact the main change was just adding more to it (I am a chronic underwriter, having been trained by my corporate career into saying everything in as few words as possible).
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
There were too many to name! I am a very curious person, and I made it my business to understand the publishing industry as well as I could before publication, and publishing is complicated! I had a very naive conception of how books got from writer to reader, and realizing how much work goes into the process, and how many stages and people are involved was illuminating. It made me appreciate everyone's hard work, every step of the way!
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
My biggest surprise was realizing I could do it! At the start, I just could not conceive how I could translate this wonderful idea onto the page, and I had to just trust that the answers would come as I went through the process. To my delight, they did. I also appreciated my agent and editor so much as they helped me refine the novel and make it better. I had always seen writing as solitary, and of course it was at first, but actually the finished product is a real team effort.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
The thing I want most is for people to feel. This is a book about human connection and community, and people tell me they laughed and cried, and loved the characters as though they were real people, it makes my heart sing.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
Write from the heart.
Before I wrote The List of Suspicious Things, I tried to write a psychological thriller, because that's what everyone was reading, and I thought it might sell. But when I read the first 20,000 words back, I realized that while there was a plot and some characters, they were all flat on the page. There was no life to it, no heart. I knew then that I needed to write something I cared about deeply and I abandoned that first attempt then and there. When I had the idea for The List of Suspicious Things I realized that there were no agents with “coming of age set in Yorkshire in the 1970s” on their wish lists, but I wrote it anyway, and I am so glad I did. It changed my life.
