Sarah Vaughan

Anatomy Of A Scandal writer on the pressure she puts on herself, and the power of the female bond

- With HANNAH STEPHENSON

Last year, bestselling author Sarah Vaughan sought help for a touch of writer's block. Worrying she would not be able to match the success of her third novel, Anatomy Of A Scandal, which became a hit Netflix series starring Sienna Miller, weighed on her mind.

“I had a couple of sessions with a creative coach: she explains. “He talked about things like, ‘Do you worry that you'll never write anything as good as Anatomy?’ I think I have the luxury that I'm not having to write two books a year, or writing a book a year. I had got a bit stuck on the new book,’ she says.

She has now changed her routine, and has been writing her current book by hand.

“I have this burden I put on myself, this expectation everything I write is going to be better. I really worked well as a journalist when I had a deadline. But when you haven't got that and you have 100,000 words to write, it can feel quite daunting, so I started writing by hand.”

The author, whose 2020 novel Little Disasters was adapted for TV and stars Diane Kruger and whose 2022 book, Reputation, is now in development for a screen adaptation, has always written from home. But she is considering venturing to cafes, taking her noise-cancelling headphones and writing.

The former political correspondent, who read English at Oxford, is well versed covering high-profile trials. Her books have delved into privilege, consent and social media bullying among girls, which plays a role in Reputation.