Michel Bussi, the author with 12 million books sold, meets high school students from Puy-en-Velay

Since the start of the school year, second year 2 students at the Ponot Charles-et-Adrien-Dupuy high school have been studying the work of Michel Bussi in French class with their teacher, Marie Vinatier. Divided into small groups, the high school students all worked on a different book and created a Cluedo-style game board to highlight the characters and plot of each story.
Work that they had the chance to present to the Norman author on Thursday during a meeting at the Puy-en-Velay library. With their words and their adolescent panache, the young people also asked him a whole series of questions. And the writer answered all their questions without exception…

His journey

Michel Bussi is from Normandy. He always loved inventing and writing adventures. “When I was little, I escaped by reading books and comics. And I liked creating a continuation of the stories I read. Then, I shared them with friends. » Driven by the desire to tell stories, he finished his studies and became a university professor. And the dream of writing a book in his life still follows him. “I wanted to know if I could interest people with my stories. » And it was at the age of 40 that Michel Bussi found success with Nymphéas noirs. Since then, he has made his living from his pen.

His way of working

Known for his thrillers, the Norman first creates intrigues in territories he knows. But subsequently, the desire came to him “to write about elsewhere”. The author travels and his stories with him. French Polynesia, Réunion, Antilles… “I loved traveling in my readings, I wanted to offer it to my readers. » The writer does not take inspiration from news items to invent his detective novels, he spends several months thinking about his intrigues. “When I start writing, I already know the ending. But I may change the culprit halfway through the story to take the reader to the end. If he finds it after 30 pages, you won't have a long career! » Michel Bussi devotes around 60 hours per week to his job. But, he really never stops. “Even when you take a break, you continue to think about your story. Your brain is always awake. »

L’inspiration

Unlike many established novelists, the author broke through late, at the age of 40. He therefore has no problems of inspiration for the next adventures he wants to tell. “From the age of 15 to 40, I never stopped inventing stories. I wanted to write a saga for teenagers, detective novels, science fiction… My problem focuses more on choosing the idea that I want to tell when I launch a new novel project. »

Screen adaptations

Several of his works have been adapted for television. On France 2 as on M6, Michel Bussi was not always seduced. “I really liked Maman is wrong on number 2, but Plane without her, on number 6, a little less. I can't say much about each adaptation, I have to let it happen. But I didn't always recognize the original work. »
When he can, the writer tries to go on set. But that's not necessarily what he prefers. “Everyone is busy, it’s a real anthill. We look, we observe, but we don't always understand what's happening! And I find it incredibly long! »

Handle criticism

Like any public figure, Michel Bussi faces criticism. Positive and negative. And it's not always easy to manage. “It may be a banality, but you can't please everyone. Even if you write the world's greatest masterpiece, there will always be critics. So, it's not a big deal. If I see one positive review out of five, I'm glad I wrote for that person who liked my story. »

Income

With around 12 million copies sold, Michel Bussi is part of the very closed circle of the most widely read French authors. “A few hundred live there and the others are forced to work on the side. Being a writer is not the royal road to being rich! »
When you purchase a book, not everything goes directly to the author. Cost of paper, transport, share of the publisher and the bookseller… The author receives royalties on the turnover of sales. This ranges from 8 to 15% according to the native of Louviers (Eure). “On a book sold for €20, you receive €2 on average. It's not much. But if you sell 10,000, 100,000 or 1 million books, do the math,” concludes the writer, completely transparent with the Ponot high school students, delighted to have been able to exchange with Michel Bussi.

Nathan Marliac