Jane Routley's Blog, page 2
December 21, 2016
Good news for M and C
I haven’t seen my homeless friends M and C for a while but, fingers crossed, this is a good thing. A couple of months ago they dropped by the station and told me that after five years on the housing list living in boarding houses and sleeping rough, they’d been placed in social housing. They both hope they’ll be able to get some of their children back. Terrific news! A happy ending at last!
M said – Now I’ll be able to make a cup of tea in my underpants and never have to beg again!
Then he gave me a cheeky grin and asked me for 20 dollars so that they could spend their last homeless night in a motel. I passed the money over feeling foolish but as the weeks roll by and I no longer see them begging at their old haunts, I feel more and more that it was money well spent. So relieved.
Merry Christmas everybody! And may all your homes be warm and cozy or cool and comfy depending on your hemisphere!
M said – Now I’ll be able to make a cup of tea in my underpants and never have to beg again!
Then he gave me a cheeky grin and asked me for 20 dollars so that they could spend their last homeless night in a motel. I passed the money over feeling foolish but as the weeks roll by and I no longer see them begging at their old haunts, I feel more and more that it was money well spent. So relieved.
Merry Christmas everybody! And may all your homes be warm and cozy or cool and comfy depending on your hemisphere!
November 27, 2016
Train Surfers - WTF
School’s out – at least for the final year students and it sure shows.
This week, the train driver and I suspected there were kids riding on the rear coupling of the 12.04. A sticking out leg is kind of a giveaway. When a driver looks in his rear view mirror the train behind should look smooooth.
“For those riding on the back I’m calling the police,” the driver said over the intercom.
I don’t know how they heard him, but the kids jumped off the back. Then rear carriage doors opened and two more kids popped out followed by another and another and another. In the end there must have been a dozen on the platform.
I was thinking about locking myself in the office. 12 teenagers is too much even for a big bold station host like me. But they all jumped over the fence at the other end. I could hear them laughing as they ran away through the park. No doubt it was all about the narrow escape they’d had. I suspect their interpretation of a narrow escape is different from mine.
This week, the train driver and I suspected there were kids riding on the rear coupling of the 12.04. A sticking out leg is kind of a giveaway. When a driver looks in his rear view mirror the train behind should look smooooth.
“For those riding on the back I’m calling the police,” the driver said over the intercom.
I don’t know how they heard him, but the kids jumped off the back. Then rear carriage doors opened and two more kids popped out followed by another and another and another. In the end there must have been a dozen on the platform.
I was thinking about locking myself in the office. 12 teenagers is too much even for a big bold station host like me. But they all jumped over the fence at the other end. I could hear them laughing as they ran away through the park. No doubt it was all about the narrow escape they’d had. I suspect their interpretation of a narrow escape is different from mine.
October 17, 2016
Woo Hoo! I got me some representation
Woo Hoo! I got me some representation
Today I am one very happy Author. I’ve been signed to the John Jarrold Literary Agency in the U.K which I hope will make selling future books so much easier. Hoooray! Woo Hoo! Squee! and other delighted noises.
Here’s John’s Press Release.
PRESS RELEASE – JOHN JARROLD LITERARY AGENCY TO REPRESENT AWARD-WINNING AUSTRALIAN FANTASY AUTHOR JANE ROUTLEY
The John Jarrold Literary Agency now represents Australian fantasy novelist Jane Routley. Jane has won the Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel twice – for Aramaya and Fire Angels. Her story “To Avalon” was nominated for a both an Aurealis and Ditmar Award.
Jane’s new novel, Shadow in the Empire of Light, is Fantasy meets Chick Lit, with a touch of Steampunk. Shine, the heroine of the novel is an orphan without magical gifts in a powerful family of mages. She is stuck in the country managing the family estates with only an eccentric aunt and a telepathic cat for company. The Family are descending on the house for the annual Fertility Festival. While helping one cousin find a compromising letter and rescuing another male cousin from an unwelcome alliance, Shine stumbles on a murderous plot to depose the current Family Matriarch and a smuggling ring that puts her life in danger. Soon she is forced to run for her life through an enchanted forest full of magic and wild cats. It’s the first in a three-book series.
“Jane’s writing has wit and immediacy – and a strong soupcon of darkness,” said John Jarrold. “I enjoyed this novel immensely, was totally involved, and love her characters and setting.”
Contact John Jarrold for further information:
John Jarrold: e-mail: j.jarrold@btinternet.com phone: 01797 227426.
Today I am one very happy Author. I’ve been signed to the John Jarrold Literary Agency in the U.K which I hope will make selling future books so much easier. Hoooray! Woo Hoo! Squee! and other delighted noises.
Here’s John’s Press Release.
PRESS RELEASE – JOHN JARROLD LITERARY AGENCY TO REPRESENT AWARD-WINNING AUSTRALIAN FANTASY AUTHOR JANE ROUTLEY
The John Jarrold Literary Agency now represents Australian fantasy novelist Jane Routley. Jane has won the Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel twice – for Aramaya and Fire Angels. Her story “To Avalon” was nominated for a both an Aurealis and Ditmar Award.
Jane’s new novel, Shadow in the Empire of Light, is Fantasy meets Chick Lit, with a touch of Steampunk. Shine, the heroine of the novel is an orphan without magical gifts in a powerful family of mages. She is stuck in the country managing the family estates with only an eccentric aunt and a telepathic cat for company. The Family are descending on the house for the annual Fertility Festival. While helping one cousin find a compromising letter and rescuing another male cousin from an unwelcome alliance, Shine stumbles on a murderous plot to depose the current Family Matriarch and a smuggling ring that puts her life in danger. Soon she is forced to run for her life through an enchanted forest full of magic and wild cats. It’s the first in a three-book series.
“Jane’s writing has wit and immediacy – and a strong soupcon of darkness,” said John Jarrold. “I enjoyed this novel immensely, was totally involved, and love her characters and setting.”
Contact John Jarrold for further information:
John Jarrold: e-mail: j.jarrold@btinternet.com phone: 01797 227426.
Tattoed Love
Back at work after a holiday. Blah!
But we amuse ourselves as best we can. Yesterday I got talking to one of the regulars, a highly tattooed man with a false leg who attends the nearby physio classes.
He wears tattoo sleeves on his artificial leg so that it matches his real one and I must say it’s a good way of disguising it. Also I find people with only one leg tattooed always look as if they are limping.
While he was telling me you had to be tough to get tatts, a woman on the other side of the waiting room pipped up and said it didn’t hurt all that much. Soon she was telling us how she drew a tatt in texta on her ankle back in the 70’s (“when women didn’t get tatts”) for two weeks just to try it out and see if she could handle the attention. Apparently she could, because she had lots now. The two of them got talking and when the train came they got on together still talking. Have I created a relationship here? Maybe started a true love? Probably not. But it’s nice to dream.
But we amuse ourselves as best we can. Yesterday I got talking to one of the regulars, a highly tattooed man with a false leg who attends the nearby physio classes.
He wears tattoo sleeves on his artificial leg so that it matches his real one and I must say it’s a good way of disguising it. Also I find people with only one leg tattooed always look as if they are limping.
While he was telling me you had to be tough to get tatts, a woman on the other side of the waiting room pipped up and said it didn’t hurt all that much. Soon she was telling us how she drew a tatt in texta on her ankle back in the 70’s (“when women didn’t get tatts”) for two weeks just to try it out and see if she could handle the attention. Apparently she could, because she had lots now. The two of them got talking and when the train came they got on together still talking. Have I created a relationship here? Maybe started a true love? Probably not. But it’s nice to dream.
July 22, 2016
Alison Goodman Interview
Alison Goodman first hit the New York Times Best Seller list with the Eon books. Now she's back with Lady Helen and The Dark Days Club.
From the blurb - "London, April 1812. On the eve of eighteen-year-old Lady Helen Wrexhall’s presentation to the queen, one of her family’s housemaids disappears-and Helen is drawn into the shadows of Regency London. There, she meets Lord Carlston, one of the few who can stop the perpetrators: a cabal of demons infiltrating every level of society. Dare she ask for his help, when his reputation is almost as black as his lingering eyes? And will her intelligence and headstrong curiosity wind up leading them into a death trap?"
If you like the sound of this, read on ...
Tell us about The Dark Days Club.
The Dark Days Club (the Australian title is Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club) is the first book in a supernatural adventure trilogy set in the Regency. I think of it as Georgette Heyer meets the paranormal girl power of Buffy. Each book is set in one of the society seasons during 1812: Book 1 is set in London for The Season; Book 2 is in Brighton during the summer Season; and book 3 is in Bath for the winter Season. The trilogy is also historically accurate with some cameos from historical figures such as Lord Byron and Beau Brummell. However, I have to admit that the demons I have created, called Deceivers, may not be so historically accurate.
What initially inspired you to write it?
The idea for the book came to me while I was on a tram coming home from a writers’ conference. I had been to a session about researching the Regency era, and as I sat looking out of the tram window, I idly asked myself what kind of Regency novel would I like to read now? The answer came in a rush: a mix of everything I loved about Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer together with the excitement and delight of a supernatural adventure. I scrabbled for a pen and paper and by the time I got to my tram stop, I had the outline of The Dark Days Club.
What are you currently working on?
At the moment, I’m waiting for the copy edit of The Dark Days Pact, Book 2 in the series, which is due for release this coming Christmas/New Year. I’m also working on Book 3, and I’ve just completed a novelette from Lord Carlston’s point of view (the main male character in the series), which will be available soon.
How do you start out with your stories? In the middle, beginning or end?
I write from beginning to end, and don’t jump ahead. My books always have an element of suspense to them and I find that I can build that more effectively if I write the book chronologically.
What’s your writing process for your solo books? Do you throw a lot away? Do you write every day? Are you a planner or do you fly by the seat of the pants?
Before I actually start writing, I spend a lot of time working on structure and building a strong through-line of cause and effect. Alongside that, I also spend quite a while researching. In fact, for the Lady Helen series, I researched the Regency era full-time for over eight months before I began writing the first book. So, while I am working out structure and doing my research, I also write the first chapter to develop voice and build a solid launching point for the novel. Once all of these three elements are in place then I am ready to roll. Generally, I write every day, even if life gets in the way and I only have time to fiddle with a few sentences. That way I keep the momentum. Of course, when a deadline is approaching, then I can be at the computer for ten hours!
I remember hearing your talk about your interest in gender relations in the Regency Romance. Did you manage to explore it in The Dark Days club?
Yes, female empowerment and gender relations are two of my passions, and the Regency is a great setting in which to explore these themes. Women were, legally, chattels and were thought to have little intellectual capacity although there were many women at that time whose writings, art and social endeavours countered these misogynistic beliefs. In The Dark Days Club, the character of Helen’s uncle is a man who holds these beliefs, and I have based his attitudes on the writings about women that appeared in major newspapers and journals of the time. They are at once hilarious and absolutely awful.
How do you go with social media? What do you do to increase interest in your work and how much time do you spend on it? Any tips?
I have a website, a Twitter account, an Instagram account and Facebook author page. I’m not constantly on any of these platforms, but I do offer a writing tip of the day on Twitter, and post photos regularly on Instagram. I also post a journal of what’s been happening, book wise, on my website as well as maintaining a calendar of upcoming appearances. I don’t like to post minutiae about my life (I don’t want to bore everyone senseless) so I generally post when I have some news or I have an interesting picture to share. My focus is on writing the books. My tip would be to choose which of the platforms suit you best and post on those rather than try do them all. Also, if possible link the accounts so that posting on one will post on the others as well.
For anyone interested, here are my platforms:
Website: www.darkdaysclub.com
Twitter: @Alison Goodman
Instagram: @alisongoodmanauthor
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/AlisonGoodmanAuthorPage
What 3 artworks (books, music, visual arts, films) have most inspired you?
Only three? Okay, let me try and narrow it down.
Anything by Joss Whedon, but in particular the Buffy TV series and Firefly. Genre blending at its best.
Georgette Heyer’s Regency novels. So much fun.
The art of Francis Bacon, which is seriously disturbing, and the beautiful Regency portraits of Lawrence.
From the blurb - "London, April 1812. On the eve of eighteen-year-old Lady Helen Wrexhall’s presentation to the queen, one of her family’s housemaids disappears-and Helen is drawn into the shadows of Regency London. There, she meets Lord Carlston, one of the few who can stop the perpetrators: a cabal of demons infiltrating every level of society. Dare she ask for his help, when his reputation is almost as black as his lingering eyes? And will her intelligence and headstrong curiosity wind up leading them into a death trap?"
If you like the sound of this, read on ...
Tell us about The Dark Days Club.
The Dark Days Club (the Australian title is Lady Helen and the Dark Days Club) is the first book in a supernatural adventure trilogy set in the Regency. I think of it as Georgette Heyer meets the paranormal girl power of Buffy. Each book is set in one of the society seasons during 1812: Book 1 is set in London for The Season; Book 2 is in Brighton during the summer Season; and book 3 is in Bath for the winter Season. The trilogy is also historically accurate with some cameos from historical figures such as Lord Byron and Beau Brummell. However, I have to admit that the demons I have created, called Deceivers, may not be so historically accurate.
What initially inspired you to write it?
The idea for the book came to me while I was on a tram coming home from a writers’ conference. I had been to a session about researching the Regency era, and as I sat looking out of the tram window, I idly asked myself what kind of Regency novel would I like to read now? The answer came in a rush: a mix of everything I loved about Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer together with the excitement and delight of a supernatural adventure. I scrabbled for a pen and paper and by the time I got to my tram stop, I had the outline of The Dark Days Club.
What are you currently working on?
At the moment, I’m waiting for the copy edit of The Dark Days Pact, Book 2 in the series, which is due for release this coming Christmas/New Year. I’m also working on Book 3, and I’ve just completed a novelette from Lord Carlston’s point of view (the main male character in the series), which will be available soon.
How do you start out with your stories? In the middle, beginning or end?
I write from beginning to end, and don’t jump ahead. My books always have an element of suspense to them and I find that I can build that more effectively if I write the book chronologically.
What’s your writing process for your solo books? Do you throw a lot away? Do you write every day? Are you a planner or do you fly by the seat of the pants?
Before I actually start writing, I spend a lot of time working on structure and building a strong through-line of cause and effect. Alongside that, I also spend quite a while researching. In fact, for the Lady Helen series, I researched the Regency era full-time for over eight months before I began writing the first book. So, while I am working out structure and doing my research, I also write the first chapter to develop voice and build a solid launching point for the novel. Once all of these three elements are in place then I am ready to roll. Generally, I write every day, even if life gets in the way and I only have time to fiddle with a few sentences. That way I keep the momentum. Of course, when a deadline is approaching, then I can be at the computer for ten hours!
I remember hearing your talk about your interest in gender relations in the Regency Romance. Did you manage to explore it in The Dark Days club?
Yes, female empowerment and gender relations are two of my passions, and the Regency is a great setting in which to explore these themes. Women were, legally, chattels and were thought to have little intellectual capacity although there were many women at that time whose writings, art and social endeavours countered these misogynistic beliefs. In The Dark Days Club, the character of Helen’s uncle is a man who holds these beliefs, and I have based his attitudes on the writings about women that appeared in major newspapers and journals of the time. They are at once hilarious and absolutely awful.
How do you go with social media? What do you do to increase interest in your work and how much time do you spend on it? Any tips?
I have a website, a Twitter account, an Instagram account and Facebook author page. I’m not constantly on any of these platforms, but I do offer a writing tip of the day on Twitter, and post photos regularly on Instagram. I also post a journal of what’s been happening, book wise, on my website as well as maintaining a calendar of upcoming appearances. I don’t like to post minutiae about my life (I don’t want to bore everyone senseless) so I generally post when I have some news or I have an interesting picture to share. My focus is on writing the books. My tip would be to choose which of the platforms suit you best and post on those rather than try do them all. Also, if possible link the accounts so that posting on one will post on the others as well.
For anyone interested, here are my platforms:
Website: www.darkdaysclub.com
Twitter: @Alison Goodman
Instagram: @alisongoodmanauthor
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/AlisonGoodmanAuthorPage
What 3 artworks (books, music, visual arts, films) have most inspired you?
Only three? Okay, let me try and narrow it down.
Anything by Joss Whedon, but in particular the Buffy TV series and Firefly. Genre blending at its best.
Georgette Heyer’s Regency novels. So much fun.
The art of Francis Bacon, which is seriously disturbing, and the beautiful Regency portraits of Lawrence.
Three mobile phones
One skill I’ve developed over years of working on the railways is the ability not to scream the words “Are you insane?!!!” the minute they come into my head. This was useful this week, when I saw someone walking down the cutting beside the tracks. There’s not a lot of space in there and while not actually deadly, it’s certainly not “minimizing the risk” as the Occ. Health and Safety folks say. Also it upsets the drivers who are inclined to be jumpy over people walking beside the tracks.
I was surprised to discover the trespasser was a young woman. They usually have too strong a sense of self-preservation for such hi jinks.
“Hang on,” she replied, absent-mindedly poking around in the bushes when I went down and yelled “Hey get off the tracks it’s not safe.”
At length she came up and handed me three mobile phones to hold while she climbed up onto the platform.
“What are you looking for?” I asked, thinking I could help.
“A Pokemon!” said she.
Hence the jaw-dropping moment when I discovered the Pokemon-Go craze. Apparently my station is a Pokemon-Go point of interest.
Oh Joy!
http://fullact.com/pokemon-go-players...
Best wishes to all you Pokemon-Go players. Glad to see you around. But stay safe.
I was surprised to discover the trespasser was a young woman. They usually have too strong a sense of self-preservation for such hi jinks.
“Hang on,” she replied, absent-mindedly poking around in the bushes when I went down and yelled “Hey get off the tracks it’s not safe.”
At length she came up and handed me three mobile phones to hold while she climbed up onto the platform.
“What are you looking for?” I asked, thinking I could help.
“A Pokemon!” said she.
Hence the jaw-dropping moment when I discovered the Pokemon-Go craze. Apparently my station is a Pokemon-Go point of interest.
Oh Joy!
http://fullact.com/pokemon-go-players...
Best wishes to all you Pokemon-Go players. Glad to see you around. But stay safe.
June 26, 2016
Preconceptions- Birds, Buddhist monks and Baby Capsules
When working at the railway station or even just with the public, its important to keep an open mind. Last week I was giving the stink eye to a tough looking group of young men in hoodies and tattoos on platform 2 because I thought they were hanging around waiting to do a drug deal. I mean it’s the Zoo station! There are children here!
I considered it particularly low that one of them had bought a baby capsule with him - clearly to hide his stash. So I felt kind of mean when the train came in bringing a newcomer and one of them started showing the newcomer how the capsule worked. I am so middle class!! The capsule owner showed up later with his partner and toddler-in-pram and confirmed that yes, they had all been hanging around to pass the capsule on “to my cousin whose fiancée has just fallen pregnant.” Just because someone is close to twenty and has tattoos doesn't mean he can't be a responsible family man, Jane.
On the other hand earlier this year a zoo-visiting Buddhist monk surprised me, by indicating I should use my broom to chase out the birds roving round the waiting room. I had expected him to be all “animals are my friends - all life is one” not "get that grubby bird out of the indoor space." Another preconception bites the dust. Maybe I’m better off without either of them.
I considered it particularly low that one of them had bought a baby capsule with him - clearly to hide his stash. So I felt kind of mean when the train came in bringing a newcomer and one of them started showing the newcomer how the capsule worked. I am so middle class!! The capsule owner showed up later with his partner and toddler-in-pram and confirmed that yes, they had all been hanging around to pass the capsule on “to my cousin whose fiancée has just fallen pregnant.” Just because someone is close to twenty and has tattoos doesn't mean he can't be a responsible family man, Jane.
On the other hand earlier this year a zoo-visiting Buddhist monk surprised me, by indicating I should use my broom to chase out the birds roving round the waiting room. I had expected him to be all “animals are my friends - all life is one” not "get that grubby bird out of the indoor space." Another preconception bites the dust. Maybe I’m better off without either of them.
June 20, 2016
Margo Lanagan Interview
Margo Lanagan is the internationally acclaimed multi-award winning Australian author of dark fantasy novels and short stories. Her latest book, Zeroes is a joint work with Scott Westerfeld and Deborah Biancotti
Tell us about Zeroes.
ZEROES is a YA trilogy about six teenagers, each of whom has a different socially based superpower. Which means, the bigger the crowd around the character, the greater their power—and the bigger the mess if they stuff up. And they do stuff up, regularly. Each (short) chapter is told from one of the six points of view. Compared to the average solo Margo Lanagan story it’s pretty helter-skelter, and not so dark—although it seems to be gradually darkening as the series goes on. Maybe I’m having more influence than I think!
How did the three of you manage the creation of a single book together? What was the process?
Each of the three authors wrangles two of the characters. We get together for a few days to plot out each book, then scatter to our respective homes (e.g. Scott is spending most of this year in New York) and write up our chapters. Then comes the fitting of those chapters together, which entails a lot of rewriting, but also kicks the ideas into new dimensions of weird and intense.
What initially inspired you to write about these young superheros? Can you focus on a particular moment?
I wasn’t present at the very beginning—I was a late ring-in. But this is how I’ve heard it went: Scott had had the idea for one of the characters, Scam/Ethan, for a very long time. Ever since he was a teen himself and wishing he was the kind of kid who always knew the right thing to say in any given situation. He’s also got a lot of mates who were involved in writing for film and television, and he’s always been envious that they had a roomful of people to bounce ideas off and share the load.
Deb had just done a workshop at AFTRS (Australian Film Television and Radio School) on writing for TV, and she was pretty interested in the TV Writing Room model too. They got to talking, and wondered if that model could be used to generate a co-authored novel. Scott tossed Scam/Ethan into the mix and they started chewing over the crowd-sourced superpowers idea.
They invited me to join them when they realised that two people did not a Writing Room make. By then they had a few more of the superpowers worked out—but we started out by sitting around in bars dreaming up the rest and wondering how this collaboration might work. A few months in we started writing—a year later we delivered the first book. Now the second is written—due out October in Australia—and we’re putting together Book 3.
What else are you currently working on?
I’ve got three short stories on the boil, which are going to be added to a best-of collection coming out from Allen & Unwin next year.
How do you start out with your stories? In the middle, beginning or end?
I start at the beginning, mostly, but I need to have some idea of where a story’s headed, to keep it moving. Once I reach that end point, sometimes I realise it’s not very climax-y, or, going on what I’ve already written, I can push the action a little bit further and make it more interesting for myself.
Then there are other stories that don’t present themselves so tidily. Some have to be built up all out of order, from little mosaic pieces. Some can only be completed after the first four attempts have cleared some non-functional ideas from my head and I’ve gone desperately searching in the undergrowth for something else that might work. Some have to be fully drafted, put aside for an unpredictable amount of time, and returned to with a different mindset.
What’s your writing process for your solo books? Do you throw a lot away? Do you write every day? Are you a planner or do you fly by the seat of the pants?
I throw a lot away. A lot. With Tender Morsels and Sea Hearts I rewrote heaps after both editorial passes. It felt like a process of excavation, as if each round of questions asked of the novel gave me permission to break up what I’d done and dig deeper to find the real heart, the point of the thing.
I write every day except when I don’t. There are times when it makes sense to write every day. Times like when you’re nailing down a first draft. Or when you’re revising and you know where you’re going. Or when you’re nutting out a complex problem and need to keep going while you’ve got the whole complex structure of the novel uploaded into your brain.
Then there are times when you’re stale and bored with your own voice and it’s best to go out and be in the real world for a while, to exercise and travel and take in other people’s words (and pictures, and music, and actions). Every writer has to work out their own rhythm for themselves. Don’t write every day if it turns writing into a chore.
I’m a very rough planner. For a novel I start with a plan simple enough to keep in my head without writing it down. I throw a bunch of scenes at that until I feel as if something interesting is forming, then I rehearse a bunch of different plans to see how I might bring all the scenes together. And I repeat that pattern, if it could be called anything so coherent, jumping from pantsing (just going for where the energy is) to planning (when things need reining in) until something like a complete story seems to emerge. Then I send it to the editor, and they go “Yay!” in some places and “Wha—?” in others and I plan-and-pants my way through answering their questions.
Your work often seems to be focused on gender relations. Has this always been an interest and were you able to explore it in your early teen romance writing as well?
Not so much an interest as a site of rage and fascination. And God no, there was no proper exploration of gender relations in the teen romances. Only the merest touch of feminism-lite could be seen there, on the way to the happy-ever-after ending.
Probably the gritty-realist YA books I published in the mid-90s (The Best Thing and Touching Earth Lightly, now available as e-books) were me at my most I-will-now-change-the-world confident, although Touching Earth Lightly has an unfortunate plotline where the sexually active girl dies. Since then I think I’ve wised up as to how entrenched the patriarchy really is in our and other societies.
Still, I have hope. Germaine Greer once said “Women have very little idea of how much men hate them.” Well, now, because we have the internet, it’s being made abundantly clear to us, and to some appalled men, how hated we are. And isn’t it always useful when your enemy identifies himself?
How do you go with social media? What do you do to increase interest in your work and how much time do you spend on it? Any tips?
I go with social media as far as I enjoy it. That means at the moment that I’m on Twitter and Facebook. I think we can say I don’t maintain my own blog any more.
Leading up to and crescendo-ing slightly after pub date, I repost any buzz that I catch sight of, and write a lot of guest blog posts and do a lot of interviews. I try not to let either account be totally taken over by publicity.
That’s my tip about using social media—don’t be seen to be “using social media”. Stay human out there; grumble and joke about other stuff in between pointing people to guest blogs and cover reveals. Naked authorial neediness is not a pretty sight.
What 3 artworks (books, music, visual arts, films) have most inspired you?
I don’t think I can narrow it down to 3, so I’m just going to blast you with some visual artists: Louise Bourgeois, Linde Ivimey, Goya, Lucy Culliton, and those mad giant landscapes by William Robinson. Oh, and Scott and Deb seem to think my teenage crush on Mervyn Peake’s Gormenghast trilogy might explain a few things.
Tell us about Zeroes.
ZEROES is a YA trilogy about six teenagers, each of whom has a different socially based superpower. Which means, the bigger the crowd around the character, the greater their power—and the bigger the mess if they stuff up. And they do stuff up, regularly. Each (short) chapter is told from one of the six points of view. Compared to the average solo Margo Lanagan story it’s pretty helter-skelter, and not so dark—although it seems to be gradually darkening as the series goes on. Maybe I’m having more influence than I think!
How did the three of you manage the creation of a single book together? What was the process?
Each of the three authors wrangles two of the characters. We get together for a few days to plot out each book, then scatter to our respective homes (e.g. Scott is spending most of this year in New York) and write up our chapters. Then comes the fitting of those chapters together, which entails a lot of rewriting, but also kicks the ideas into new dimensions of weird and intense.
What initially inspired you to write about these young superheros? Can you focus on a particular moment?
I wasn’t present at the very beginning—I was a late ring-in. But this is how I’ve heard it went: Scott had had the idea for one of the characters, Scam/Ethan, for a very long time. Ever since he was a teen himself and wishing he was the kind of kid who always knew the right thing to say in any given situation. He’s also got a lot of mates who were involved in writing for film and television, and he’s always been envious that they had a roomful of people to bounce ideas off and share the load.
Deb had just done a workshop at AFTRS (Australian Film Television and Radio School) on writing for TV, and she was pretty interested in the TV Writing Room model too. They got to talking, and wondered if that model could be used to generate a co-authored novel. Scott tossed Scam/Ethan into the mix and they started chewing over the crowd-sourced superpowers idea.
They invited me to join them when they realised that two people did not a Writing Room make. By then they had a few more of the superpowers worked out—but we started out by sitting around in bars dreaming up the rest and wondering how this collaboration might work. A few months in we started writing—a year later we delivered the first book. Now the second is written—due out October in Australia—and we’re putting together Book 3.
What else are you currently working on?
I’ve got three short stories on the boil, which are going to be added to a best-of collection coming out from Allen & Unwin next year.
How do you start out with your stories? In the middle, beginning or end?
I start at the beginning, mostly, but I need to have some idea of where a story’s headed, to keep it moving. Once I reach that end point, sometimes I realise it’s not very climax-y, or, going on what I’ve already written, I can push the action a little bit further and make it more interesting for myself.
Then there are other stories that don’t present themselves so tidily. Some have to be built up all out of order, from little mosaic pieces. Some can only be completed after the first four attempts have cleared some non-functional ideas from my head and I’ve gone desperately searching in the undergrowth for something else that might work. Some have to be fully drafted, put aside for an unpredictable amount of time, and returned to with a different mindset.
What’s your writing process for your solo books? Do you throw a lot away? Do you write every day? Are you a planner or do you fly by the seat of the pants?
I throw a lot away. A lot. With Tender Morsels and Sea Hearts I rewrote heaps after both editorial passes. It felt like a process of excavation, as if each round of questions asked of the novel gave me permission to break up what I’d done and dig deeper to find the real heart, the point of the thing.
I write every day except when I don’t. There are times when it makes sense to write every day. Times like when you’re nailing down a first draft. Or when you’re revising and you know where you’re going. Or when you’re nutting out a complex problem and need to keep going while you’ve got the whole complex structure of the novel uploaded into your brain.
Then there are times when you’re stale and bored with your own voice and it’s best to go out and be in the real world for a while, to exercise and travel and take in other people’s words (and pictures, and music, and actions). Every writer has to work out their own rhythm for themselves. Don’t write every day if it turns writing into a chore.
I’m a very rough planner. For a novel I start with a plan simple enough to keep in my head without writing it down. I throw a bunch of scenes at that until I feel as if something interesting is forming, then I rehearse a bunch of different plans to see how I might bring all the scenes together. And I repeat that pattern, if it could be called anything so coherent, jumping from pantsing (just going for where the energy is) to planning (when things need reining in) until something like a complete story seems to emerge. Then I send it to the editor, and they go “Yay!” in some places and “Wha—?” in others and I plan-and-pants my way through answering their questions.
Your work often seems to be focused on gender relations. Has this always been an interest and were you able to explore it in your early teen romance writing as well?
Not so much an interest as a site of rage and fascination. And God no, there was no proper exploration of gender relations in the teen romances. Only the merest touch of feminism-lite could be seen there, on the way to the happy-ever-after ending.
Probably the gritty-realist YA books I published in the mid-90s (The Best Thing and Touching Earth Lightly, now available as e-books) were me at my most I-will-now-change-the-world confident, although Touching Earth Lightly has an unfortunate plotline where the sexually active girl dies. Since then I think I’ve wised up as to how entrenched the patriarchy really is in our and other societies.
Still, I have hope. Germaine Greer once said “Women have very little idea of how much men hate them.” Well, now, because we have the internet, it’s being made abundantly clear to us, and to some appalled men, how hated we are. And isn’t it always useful when your enemy identifies himself?
How do you go with social media? What do you do to increase interest in your work and how much time do you spend on it? Any tips?
I go with social media as far as I enjoy it. That means at the moment that I’m on Twitter and Facebook. I think we can say I don’t maintain my own blog any more.
Leading up to and crescendo-ing slightly after pub date, I repost any buzz that I catch sight of, and write a lot of guest blog posts and do a lot of interviews. I try not to let either account be totally taken over by publicity.
That’s my tip about using social media—don’t be seen to be “using social media”. Stay human out there; grumble and joke about other stuff in between pointing people to guest blogs and cover reveals. Naked authorial neediness is not a pretty sight.
What 3 artworks (books, music, visual arts, films) have most inspired you?
I don’t think I can narrow it down to 3, so I’m just going to blast you with some visual artists: Louise Bourgeois, Linde Ivimey, Goya, Lucy Culliton, and those mad giant landscapes by William Robinson. Oh, and Scott and Deb seem to think my teenage crush on Mervyn Peake’s Gormenghast trilogy might explain a few things.
June 5, 2016
Trial of an ex-Metro employee
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-01...
Bad luck for Metro and the CFA! Glad they finally caught this guy.
Metro has around 3500 employees and in that number there are sure to be a few bad eggs that make you look suspiciously at the rest of the carton. Most of my workmates are lovely highly decent people.
HOWEVER …
My first week at my first station a man rang and asked for X. I’d never heard of X so I asked my station master who took the call. After he hung up he told me that X was no longer working for us. He was in jail having held up 8 service stations!
“Startling” news when you are just fresh out of working in libraries, where assigning the wrong Dewey number is the worst offence you get from other staff.
But I stand by my assertion that my workmates are mostly lovely decent people. 2 in 13 years among 3500 is pretty good odds.
Bad luck for Metro and the CFA! Glad they finally caught this guy.
Metro has around 3500 employees and in that number there are sure to be a few bad eggs that make you look suspiciously at the rest of the carton. Most of my workmates are lovely highly decent people.
HOWEVER …
My first week at my first station a man rang and asked for X. I’d never heard of X so I asked my station master who took the call. After he hung up he told me that X was no longer working for us. He was in jail having held up 8 service stations!
“Startling” news when you are just fresh out of working in libraries, where assigning the wrong Dewey number is the worst offence you get from other staff.
But I stand by my assertion that my workmates are mostly lovely decent people. 2 in 13 years among 3500 is pretty good odds.
May 28, 2016
Adam Browne - interview
If you want to go somewhere you’ve never gone before – try Adam Browne's writing. I’ve plunged through the solar system in glorious adventure with Cyrano De Bergerac in Pyrotechnicon, watched a wonderful animation by Adam Duncan based on one of Adam’s short stories called The Adjustable Cosmos (Hapsburg Emperors in the stars) and now I’m all prepared for the launch of his next book The Tame Animals of Saturn on June the 9th.
Adam, tell us about the Tame Animals of Saturn https://www.facebook.com/events/21435...
It was inspired by the writings by and about Jakob Lorber, a 19th Century Austrian mystic who was given to know the animals and plants of the Solar System. It’s richly illustrated.
I hope to revive interest in him, not as a Christian or a theosophist - he was both - but as a beautiful and tireless fabulist.
What was your initial inspiration for the book?
Thirty years ago, in The Book of Imaginary Beings, I read of Lorber's 'Leveler'. Borges writes with great dry wit of the immeasurable service the Leveller does man. Its pyramidal legs are made by God to stomp out roadways in preparation for the tarmac-layers and so on. It’s only with difficulty that I acknowledge there might be some people who aren’t immediately captivated by things like this. Lorber has stayed with me ever since. The book was a side-project, but it was one I had to do.
You love to explore the odd laneways of speculative fiction. How do you find your way into these laneways?
When I was young, science fiction seemed to be about freedom. There seemed to be few rules - just a playground for ideas. I remember being disappointed when a writer or filmmaker borrowed from elsewhere.2001: a space odyssey was a model of originality, but rather than copy its example, filmmakers copied the film itself. It's still happening now, likely under the guise of homage - but it's antithetical to the whole sf ethos. Anyway - I dunno - I don't see my writing as weird anyway, to be honest. I haven't admitted this before, but I was surprised when people called my stories New Weird or whatever. For me, they were just the stories I wanted to write.
What’s your writing process? Do you throw a lot away? Do you write every day? Are you a planner or do you fly by the seat of the pants?
My stories start at the start. There's some initial idea - with an old one, for instance, called Neverland Blues, it started with the idea that Michael Jackson had fled his problems by turning himself into a spaceship. The story accreted from that. I write from the seat of my pants. And yes, I throw a lot away. Each story has a discards file which is inevitably much bigger than the story itself.
How do you go with social media? What do you do to increase interest in your work and how much time do you spend on it? Any tips?
Yeah social media. It's such an easy way to advertise your work but maybe not so effective. Still, although there must be better ways to do it, the urge to become skilled in marketing remains a velleity.
Facebook is my guilty obsession. At its best it's a wunderkammer, and a way for me to vent excess imagination and gags - also an excellent way to resume or maintain friendships ... but I suspect the reason I find it so seductive is because it's all about me. Almost everything I read on it is in some way related to something I've already said. That's the way it's designed. It's the equivalent of those kids' books where your child's name is inserted into the text. It enables my narcissism.
What artworks (books, music, visual arts, films) have most inspired you?
I've been thinking recently about how 80s art-pop was a sort of gateway drug into the arts. Devo, Talking Heads etc etc. I remember being delighted by a performance art piece that made its way onto Countdown - a pingpong game with people's heads sticking out of the table, players in whimsical dress, a bit of a ceremonial vibe. It wasn't the piece so much as that such stuff was possible... My father took me to all the great art films of the 70s too. 2001, Satyricon, Tarkovski etc etc. There was 2000AD, the British comic antho - then Heavy Metal magazine - and Raw. There was the French comic book artist Moebius. And Fantastic Planet - then the art of Roland Topor, who designed that film - I'm afraid I'm just listing the usual suspects here - in which case I might as well mention PK Dick, whom I discovered when I was 15, on a trip to the Northern Territory: the first story of his I read was 'Nanny'. Such a gem. It's hard to find writers these days who delight me as much as he did. Martin Amis is one, but I have to be careful not to copy his style. Another usual suspect: WS Burroughs - a 'writer of good bits', as Amis called him - for me, the good bit, the inspiring bit amid the dross, was the vignette with the Sailor, in the bar, an astronaut, it felt like, purchasing a drug stored in dull grey tubes of lead, cracking it open, his face melting to absorb it...
And now for the tabloid question. What is your relationship with Bessie Bottomley, Librarian extraordinaire? https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?...
I find Bessie Bottomley to be very adept at satisfying my holds.
The Tame Animals of Saturn is a available from http://www.peggybrightbooks.com/new/
Website http://adambrowne.blogspot.com.au/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ontogeny.rec...
Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Br...
Adam, tell us about the Tame Animals of Saturn https://www.facebook.com/events/21435...
It was inspired by the writings by and about Jakob Lorber, a 19th Century Austrian mystic who was given to know the animals and plants of the Solar System. It’s richly illustrated.
I hope to revive interest in him, not as a Christian or a theosophist - he was both - but as a beautiful and tireless fabulist.
What was your initial inspiration for the book?
Thirty years ago, in The Book of Imaginary Beings, I read of Lorber's 'Leveler'. Borges writes with great dry wit of the immeasurable service the Leveller does man. Its pyramidal legs are made by God to stomp out roadways in preparation for the tarmac-layers and so on. It’s only with difficulty that I acknowledge there might be some people who aren’t immediately captivated by things like this. Lorber has stayed with me ever since. The book was a side-project, but it was one I had to do.
You love to explore the odd laneways of speculative fiction. How do you find your way into these laneways?
When I was young, science fiction seemed to be about freedom. There seemed to be few rules - just a playground for ideas. I remember being disappointed when a writer or filmmaker borrowed from elsewhere.2001: a space odyssey was a model of originality, but rather than copy its example, filmmakers copied the film itself. It's still happening now, likely under the guise of homage - but it's antithetical to the whole sf ethos. Anyway - I dunno - I don't see my writing as weird anyway, to be honest. I haven't admitted this before, but I was surprised when people called my stories New Weird or whatever. For me, they were just the stories I wanted to write.
What’s your writing process? Do you throw a lot away? Do you write every day? Are you a planner or do you fly by the seat of the pants?
My stories start at the start. There's some initial idea - with an old one, for instance, called Neverland Blues, it started with the idea that Michael Jackson had fled his problems by turning himself into a spaceship. The story accreted from that. I write from the seat of my pants. And yes, I throw a lot away. Each story has a discards file which is inevitably much bigger than the story itself.
How do you go with social media? What do you do to increase interest in your work and how much time do you spend on it? Any tips?
Yeah social media. It's such an easy way to advertise your work but maybe not so effective. Still, although there must be better ways to do it, the urge to become skilled in marketing remains a velleity.
Facebook is my guilty obsession. At its best it's a wunderkammer, and a way for me to vent excess imagination and gags - also an excellent way to resume or maintain friendships ... but I suspect the reason I find it so seductive is because it's all about me. Almost everything I read on it is in some way related to something I've already said. That's the way it's designed. It's the equivalent of those kids' books where your child's name is inserted into the text. It enables my narcissism.
What artworks (books, music, visual arts, films) have most inspired you?
I've been thinking recently about how 80s art-pop was a sort of gateway drug into the arts. Devo, Talking Heads etc etc. I remember being delighted by a performance art piece that made its way onto Countdown - a pingpong game with people's heads sticking out of the table, players in whimsical dress, a bit of a ceremonial vibe. It wasn't the piece so much as that such stuff was possible... My father took me to all the great art films of the 70s too. 2001, Satyricon, Tarkovski etc etc. There was 2000AD, the British comic antho - then Heavy Metal magazine - and Raw. There was the French comic book artist Moebius. And Fantastic Planet - then the art of Roland Topor, who designed that film - I'm afraid I'm just listing the usual suspects here - in which case I might as well mention PK Dick, whom I discovered when I was 15, on a trip to the Northern Territory: the first story of his I read was 'Nanny'. Such a gem. It's hard to find writers these days who delight me as much as he did. Martin Amis is one, but I have to be careful not to copy his style. Another usual suspect: WS Burroughs - a 'writer of good bits', as Amis called him - for me, the good bit, the inspiring bit amid the dross, was the vignette with the Sailor, in the bar, an astronaut, it felt like, purchasing a drug stored in dull grey tubes of lead, cracking it open, his face melting to absorb it...
And now for the tabloid question. What is your relationship with Bessie Bottomley, Librarian extraordinaire? https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?...
I find Bessie Bottomley to be very adept at satisfying my holds.
The Tame Animals of Saturn is a available from http://www.peggybrightbooks.com/new/
Website http://adambrowne.blogspot.com.au/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ontogeny.rec...
Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Br...
