Elissa Soave’s third novel, Common Ground, sees her return to a character from her debut Ginger and Me: Germaine Hounslow. She is called upon to act when the allotment she manages is earmarked for a new development by the South Lanarkshire Council. In defending the allotment space she finds herself within a community that she didn’t know she needed. BooksfromScotland chatted to Elissa Soave about her heartwarming tale.

Common Ground
By Elissa Soave
Published by HQ

Hello Elissa, what can you tell our readers about your new novel Common Ground?

Common Ground is about a group of outsiders who each have a plot at the local allotments. Initially, they appear to have nothing in common and very little to do with each other but when the allotments are threatened with closure, they have to work together to stop that from happening. Before long, they discover that the allotments are not just plots of land, but a place to find community and connection. Set in Viewpark and Uddingston again, readers of my earlier novels will meet up with some familiar faces, notably Wendy and Irish Mary, as well as being introduced to a host of new characters who I hope they will find themselves rooting for. It’s my most optimistic novel to date, as it imagines a world where we can all share the same space, working towards the common goal of making that space fruitful for everyone.

This is your third novel now, do you now feel like you’re a dab hand at this writing and publishing game now?

Ha, if only! I still feel like a complete newbie and panic when anyone asks me about my writing process, wondering if I have one yet. I feel that I’m learning as I go, each book teaching me more and giving me a little more experience for the next one. Maybe if you ask me again in ten years’ time . . .

Common Ground is a wonderful tale of local resistance and community. Why are these themes important for you to explore as a writer just now?

I’ve always been interested in how community works, what makes a good community, and how is it that some people find themselves outside the community. These themes were also explored in my first novel, Ginger and Me, where Wendy desperately wanted to be part of a community and struggled to find her way in. Common Ground takes a different approach. It shows how people can come together to create their own community, and how being part of such an endeavour can promote happiness.

I think it’s pertinent to focus on these issues at a time when the idea of ‘community’ itself is under threat from all sides. Public swimming pools are closing, library hours are shrinking, men’s mental health sheds are being axed, pensioners’ clubs are shutting down. You could say this is an economic necessity but I see it as symptomatic of the prevailing ideology that individualism trumps collective wellbeing. And of course, the people most affected by this approach are those who can least afford to lose public services. It’s really a question of what kind of society we want – one in which the privileged have everything and the rest of us make do, or a community-based approach where everyone’s happiness counts.

Are you green-fingered? Does nature influence your creative work?

Green-fingered, no. In fact, some would say quite the opposite. I was lucky to have the advice of my father-in-law on the gardening aspects of Common Ground and we did have some good laughs about my ignorance in this area. For example, there’s a scene where I wanted a very colourful profusion of flowers so I googled flowers in shades of pink, red, purple, etc and added them to the scene. My father-in-law had to point out to me that not all flowers bloom at the same time of year. Ahem.

As to the influence of nature – and without going too Kate Middleton – I do believe in the healing power of nature and the outdoors. So, in the sense that all of an author’s lived experience feeds into our work whether we realize it – or admit to it – or not, then yes, nature does influence me. With the characters in this novel, most of whom are troubled or hurting in some way, I really think that working with the soil and nurturing plants in the fresh air and away from modern distractions, goes a long way to making their lives better.

In a novel with characters who are brought together by circumstance rather than familial connection, how you do decide and create your cast of characters?

What a great question! With Common Ground, I wanted to show that even when we think we are very different to others, at heart, humans share broadly the same experience. For this to work, I needed a whole range of diverse characters. So, the cast includes Kevin, a young man who is severely facially disfigured; Germaine, who has left behind a troubled past for a new start at the allotments; Mohid and Farah, who lead a seemingly perfect life but are hiding the reason for their heartbreak; and Isabel, whose husband, George has been diagnosed with early onset dementia. Outwardly, they are a group of individuals with very little in common, apart from their allotments, but by the end of the story, the group has had to work together towards a shared goal and discover that perhaps there is more uniting them than they think. I hope to leave the reader with a sense that there is joy in community and a place for everyone within that, and that collective wellbeing matters and is worth striving for.

What authors and books have influenced your writing?

James Kelman was, and remains, hugely inspirational to me. When you look around at the books doing well in Scotland today, you can see his influence everywhere – whether this is acknowledged or not. Janice Galloway’s The Trick Is To Keep Breathing made a big impression, as did Rachel Cusk’s The Temporary. This last book may seem surprising as it is set in an English middle class milieu, quite unlike my own novels, but this is the first time I recall reading about a young woman’s interior life (even though she was insufferable), and that was eye-opening to me. More recently, I have been a huge admirer of Anne Donovan’s work, I am in awe of the way she combines the tragic with the comic so effortlessly.

Are there any books from Scotland you’re particularly looking forward to reading this year?

Of course new novels from big names like Ali Smith and Douglas Stuart are reasons to celebrate. Also, if I can cheat a little on this question (because these are not strictly speaking new books), I was very excited to read that Polygon are to reissue seven new editions of the works of Agnes Owens. Owens is often described as one of Scotland’s most overlooked writers and I’m afraid I am guilty as charged. She is a writer I feel I should have read by now and I fully intend to put that right this year.

Common Ground by Elissa Soave is published by HQ, priced £20.00.