The better part of a year of lockdowns and social distancing measures have taken a toll – as parents juggle children who need schooling, younger employees work from cramped flats, and many deal with a sense of interminable monotony.
However, as people farewelled after-work socialising and long commutes, time freed up for projects and interests which in “normal” times might live at the bottom of to-do lists.
Our new series hopes to celebrate some of these hidden-at-home stories from our community of wealth managers and private bankers.
Today we hear from James Horniman, a partner and portfolio manager at James Hambro & Partners, who published his first novel in November.
James Horniman, novelist and JH&P partner
Tell us a bit about the project you took up in lockdown
I started writing the book, Fatal Farewells, some years ago after a fascinating two-week jury service. The idea for the book came from never-seen-before insights into the legal world – especially the professionalism of the judges and the workings of the court behind the scenes.
At the time I had two young children and I found time to write early in the morning whilst my wife took a break at the weekends. I chose a very formulaic style which meant I could put the ‘pen’ down for fairly long periods without losing the plot.
What skills from your ‘day job’ have you brought to this project?
The book focuses on two stories. The first studies a young girl who gets involved in criminality without her knowledge and the second on a fund manager who has grown dangerously bored at work.
The former brings the girl to London and eventually to stand trial for murder. The latter gets forced into jury service for her trial. The activities of the fund manager were able to be developed because of my knowledge of the industry but I stress that this is a work of creative fiction, so a huge amount of artistic licence has been used.
Some of the challenges of growth and regulation do feature in a very broad sense. Some of the book’s characters have been created from personal traits I have witnessed in my career.
Fatal Farewells, available on Amazon and described as a 'gripping thriller'
What are your future goals in terms the book and your writing?
The sole driver for the project can be captured in an image of my children holding a copy of my book long after I have gone.
The book touches on the issue of moral values many times and I suppose I have always been interested in the moral hierarchy of professions – is it better to be a nurse or doctor rather than an accountant? Do lawyers serve society more than fund managers?
I don’t think this is because I have any regrets in terms of my own career just that, as life unfolds, a curious relativity is bound to be the result of someone’s experience.
There is a sequel being put together. The plan is written but I struggle to find time during lockdown with work and children at home. The same plan exists for this one, with a style which allows me to leave it for long periods. I am in no rush for number two – the first has taken eight years.
When retirement finally comes, I will focus upon writing much more. The ability to make things up still sits at the centre of my character. The deepest concern I have for my children is that life, technology and pressure remove the ability to ‘make believe’ – children need to be children for as long as possible, perhaps never really growing up.
As a child one of my favourite authors was Tom Holt. In his first book he encapsulates what I mean perfectly. A man sadly runs over a badger and upon inspecting the car says to himself ‘Damn!’ The badger replies ‘How do you think I feel?’
How has the pandemic period affected your work/life balance overall?
The lockdown has had very little effect on the provision of our service and how the partnership operates. Technology clearly is at the vanguard of this.
The largest effect the pandemic has made is on the social interaction of staff and clients alike. Seems obvious when you write it but it is a subject often overlooked. We have been using technology to contact clients as usual but nothing will ever replace a face to face meeting.
From a staff perspective we have been trying to engage people as much as possible with work and non-work activities. Book clubs, pizza making videos, cocktail nights and a healthily rivalrous house competition have all helped.
Whether you or someone on your team has taken up an interesting hobby, raised some money for charity, or met a personal milestone – please get in touch with us: anewlove@paminsight.com
