But I would also suggest that more elaborate literary styles have a far greater chance of transporting the reader, if the reader has patience. The quality of the writing is closer to poetry. To my eye, it is why the stories of Machen, Blackwood, James (both of them), Lovecraft, Onions, Poe, Jackson, Shelley, Aickman, Campbell, King, Simmons, Barker, Sarah Waters and so many others in the field will endure for longer and resonate more profoundly down the ages. At least for a while, though who knows what will endure if, against all the odds, civilisation survives for a few more centuries. Our relationship with language, and use of it, is always changing. There is no better demonstration of this than the modern novel and the way that it is written. Nor should we forget how many people favour the story-driven approach to fiction that relies upon simpler language and more tension to drive the story and reader forward.

To my eye, I’ve always attempted to combine the two approaches – the story-driven fiction that I love, and the literary styles that I adore. Many of my favourite novels marry the two approaches. It’s never been an either/or argument for me, or for many other writers. You can do both. Eventually, I’d like to think the two aims will come together seamlessly in my own work. My enduring goal: the books will be strange but they will be readable and compelling stories driven by dramatic tension.

I digress. The Vessel is an attempt to tighten the relationship between the screen and page, the screenplay and novel, and I wanted the story to feel both cinematic and literary. I’ve never written anything like this before. I’d hope the book could be finished by a reader in one or two sittings. And I can only hope a reader will be drawn into the situation and will continue reading until the critical mass of the third act, when all hope seems lost for Jess and Izzy. Even though I give the reader a lot less to go on than I usually do in a novel, I can only hope I did my bit well enough. Same deal with the Derelictions, I don’t want the reader to be conscious that they are reading an experiment (this is why story notes should go at the back) but to enter the story and accept it quickly. I don’t want much, do I?