From a naval family, Kathryn Evans led a vagrant childhood, changing schools regularly enough to learn it paid to be entertaining. She studied drama at university and has never regretted it, despite abandoning the theatre to become a farmer’s wife. The quest to occupy multiple characters to delight/shock/intrigue/entertain, however, never really went away. Kathryn now belly dances, fences, writes and blogs to fulfil that need. She is represented by Sophie Hicks at Ed Victor Ltd and blogs at V. Kathryn Evans. She occasionally tweets as @mrsbung.
Why do you blog? > I like to talk. I need to talk. Sometimes the need expands into a blog post.
What would be your main blogging advice to a novice blogger? > Only do it if you enjoy it – there’s a huge number of blogs out there. I expect to be a speck on the eye of the fly on the soup bowl of the internet.
What are your favourite blogs? > Notes from the Slushpile is great for hanging out with like-minded writer folks and Meg Rosoff for insightful and funny posts.
What are you reading at the moment? > Mockingjay of The Hunger Games trilogy – am a bit behind the times but loving it.
What is the best novel you’ve ever read? > For a long time it was Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo but I’ve just read A Thousand Splendid Suns which might be a contender.
What is your favourite poem? > I love Wendy Cope but what to choose? I think After the Lunch: the breathy pace of it, the ease of language, the understanding – she’s brilliant.
What is your favourite movie? > The Unbearable Lightness of Being. Or maybe Up. Probably Up. Pixar make great movies.
Can you name a major moral, political or intellectual issue on which you’ve ever changed your mind? > I used to think you should milk business for every penny of tax you could squeeze out of it. I’ve learned the hard way it’s not always that simple.
What philosophical thesis do you think it most important to disseminate? > Socrates – acknowledgement of how little we know and how important it is to be open to new ideas.
Who are your political heroes? > I don’t have any, they all go bad in the end.
If you could effect one major policy change in the governing of your country, what would it be? > Reduce employers NI and pay for it with increased tax on profit. (Not the other way round you idiots!)
If you could choose anyone, from any walk of life, to be Prime Minister, who would you choose? > Not a career politician, that’s for sure. Can we clone Mandela? Is that allowed?
What do you consider to be the main threat to the future peace and security of the world? > Extreme religion in the hands of men.
What would be your most important piece of advice about life? > That some battles aren’t worth it and some are unavoidable. Learn the difference and keep learning it.
Do you think you could ever be married to, or in a long-term relationship with, someone with radically different political views from your own? > I am. We’ve both shifted our views, partly through age and partly through negotiation. I think it’s invigorating. The last election was hard, though.
What do you consider the most important personal quality? > Kindness.
What personal fault do you most dislike? > Dishonesty.
In what circumstances would you be willing to lie? > Ha! I guess to be kind – but who am I to judge that. I couldn’t be brutally honest but I try and find a way to be tactfully honest.
Do you have any prejudices you’re willing to acknowledge? > I have no time for extremists. Is that prejudice?
If you were to relive your life to this point, is there anything you’d do differently? > I wouldn’t stop my husband joining the Navy. That wasn’t my choice to make.
What would you call your autobiography? > In the end, it didn’t matter.
Who would play you in the movie about your life? > Jennifer Saunders.
What do you like doing in your spare time? > Belly dancing, and fencing. They aren’t very compatible – too much skin covered in bruises.
What is your most treasured possession? > A tiny golden rabbit given to me by my husband for my 40th birthday.
If you had to change your first name, what would you change it to? > My first name is actually Vivienne but I’ve always been called Kathryn. It’s a total pain to explain – it would be great to either properly change it or use Vivienne all the time.
What talent would you most like to have? > A gift for plotting.
What would be your ideal choice of alternative profession or job? > Getting paid to write would be perfect.
Who is your favourite comedian or humorist? > Dawn French.
If you could have one (more or less realistic) wish come true, what would you wish for? > I’ve thought about this so much; if my current book ever gets published you’ll see why – I’d wish for money. I know a lot of people who need it. Money can make such a difference to people’s lives. How brilliant would it be to fix those worries for people!
How, if at all, would you change your life were you suddenly to win or inherit an enormously large sum of money? > I hope, not much. I might worry less. This time of year is tough in farming – a lot of money going out and not much coming in. My husband always says if we won the lottery I’d have given it all away in a matter of weeks. I think he’s probably right.
If you could have any three guests, past or present, to dinner who would they be? > I did a post about this on my blog! Notable for my son’s bizarre guest list. Mine was much more mundane: my mother, who died when I was very young, and Jesus. But you ask for three so who else? I’m going to ask Thatcher – let’s see how she fares next to Jesus.
What animal would you most like to be? > It’s a cat or a pig… Hmmm. Cat – you get fur, sleep and adrenaline.
[A list of all the normblog profiles to date, and the links to them, can be found here.]