British Library archive reveals how AS Byatt planned her intricate novels
A new British Library archive of AS Byatt’s papers shows how the Booker-winning novelist developed her intricate fiction, from early ideas to carefully planned scenes. The collection offers researchers a close view of her creative process and the ambitious, wide-ranging research behind her books.
The archive contains 68 boxes of notebooks, manuscripts, letters, diaries and documents from Byatt’s early life, including handwritten drafts of *Possession*. Her editor Jenny Uglow says Byatt often spent two to four years planning a novel, working through its scenes and relationships before writing them. Byatt, who left academia to write full-time in 1983, continued writing by hand into the 2000s and 2010s.
- British Library acquires 68 boxes of AS Byatt’s papers.
- Handwritten drafts reveal how she planned *Possession*.
- Her diaries show both ambition and self-doubt.
Read the full article at the source →
Originally published by The Guardian as “‘I know I can do anything’: new archive of AS Byatt’s papers looks inside the writer’s extraordinary mind”.