Wizard of words turns her pen to crime

SHE PAINTS a revealing picture of her TV role... “The moment the clock starts ticking down I start to feel that adrenalin,” admits Susie.

“I’ve never been bored. In a word, it’s joyful.”

Susie, 59, is talking about her role in Dictionary Corner on Channel 4’s Countdown – where she has been the resident wordsmith for more than 30 years.

The lexicographer, whose “word of the day” attracts thousands on social media, insists dictionaries bring her “drama and magic”.

So it should come as no surprise that she has turned her talents to writing. Her debut novel Guilty By Definition is set amid the spires of Oxford. Think Agatha Christie meets Countdown, with twists, turns and clues to be deciphered as the story unfolds.

And Susie says she sees plenty of parallels between being a word detective and a real detective.

She explains: “We are always looking for clues and digging for evidence – looking for the footprints that lead you to the answer.

“I’ve always loved that parallel and I thought that if I set my book in a world I love and know, then maybe it won’t be as daunting as it feels like now.

“A lot of it is autobiographical but I had to resist putting everything about myself in and making the main character Martha sufficiently different. I’m a worrier and I don’t think Martha is.

“I wonder if subconsciously I was deliberately making Martha the person I would like to be. She doesn’t anticipate the worst. I’m going to be more Martha!”

Despite writing many non-fiction books, she is fretting about how her novel will be received.

“They say write about what you know and Oxford is a city that I love,” says Susie.

“But also I wanted to disrupt the stereotype that it’s very privileged and entirely constructed of these dreamy spires. It’s so much more.

“It has its share of deprived areas and a darker underbelly as well.

“It’s not all Inspector Morse – although Colin Dexter did bring out the dark side sometimes.”