Marita’s Comments (group member since Nov 02, 2011)

Marita’s comments from the Q&A with Marita A. Hansen group.

June wrote: "You are really good!"

Thank you, June.

Thanks. No, not for a cover. When I've done enough black and white pictures I will use them in a youtube video. I also want to use the drawings as references for the YA graphic novel version of Behind the Hood. Though, the drawings will be all in colour for that.

Here's a drawing that I did of Maia from Behind the Hood:

Dialogue:


Please note: Not all New Zealanders speak the same. Dialogue can be regional and also relates to socio-economic backgrounds. This is why some characters may use the words below while others use a clearer pronunciation. The main example is when Nike uses wuz, but his wife says was. Jess is Samoan, whereas Nike is a South Auckland Maori).

Bro – Brother or friend.
Cos – Because.
Coupla – Couple of.
Cuppa - Cup of tea.
Cuz – Cousin.
Dammit – Damn it.
Didja - Did you.
Diff – Difference.
‘em – them.
When the g is taken off the ending of –ing words(gerunds) it still means the same thing. It is done to show pronunciation in dialogue.
Ja and Ya both mean - You. (The ja version is used after a word that ends in d).
Lil and li’l both mean – Little.
Mate – Friend.
Mista – Mister.
Nuthin’- Nothing.
Outta – Out of.
Prob’ly – Probably.
Sumpthin’- The way something is said by some people in New Zealand.
Wanna - Want to.
Whatcha and What’chu are both – What are you?
Wuz – Was.

Sayings

Eyes bugged out – When someone is surprised their eyes go big.
Five finger discount – To steal.
Getup – What someone is wearing. This word in my book was also put together with the Rocky Horror Show. The Rocky Horror Show is both a famous play and film. Used in my book it just means Tama thinks Leila looks strange in the black veil.
Gig – Performance, usually a band performing. But, in the context Maia uses it, it means presentation.
Gunja and weed – Marijuana.
Pint-sized – Small.
To pop a cherry – To take someone’s virginity. I will not explain any more sexual terms. Google the Urban Dictionary to find out any saying that you do not understand. This online dictionary has a lot of slang.
Tui-ed – Tui is a brand of beer that is famous in New Zealand. When Tama says he was Tui-ed out of his mind it means he was extremely drunk.
Wrapped – Rapt / Extremely happy. (Wrapped is not an error. The saying stems back from the 1990s and is peculiar to New Zealand and Australia, though not everyone uses it. Its use depends on particular people and where and whom they grew up with.)


Other Meanings

Maori:

Maori – The indigenous people of New Zealand.
Marae – The land where a Maori meeting house is.
Moko – A Maori tattoo that is usually on the face. Tama deviates from the norm by putting his moko-like design on the head. This is not common.
Whanau – Family.

Other:

Junkie – Drug addict.
P – Meth (a type of drug).
When Tama uses the word pig or pigs he is referring to the police.
Ranch-slider – A sliding glass door.

Angela wrote: "We have to include Lake Wakatipu (Queenstown) in this discussion. "

That is one gorgeous photo.

Angela wrote: "Behind the Hood will be controversial in New Zealand because of the topic."

Yup, I don't think I'll be able to avoid it.

Book two, Behind the Pain will open up the reader to more cultures that are predominant in New Zealand, especially the intermarriages between Croatian (Dali) and Maori. My family has Maori and Croatians, so I wanted to show more of this. The Ratas are a mix of Maori and Croatian, which isn't noticeable in the first book as they were secondary characters, but it comes to the fore with their grandparents being introduced and the conflict between their father and Croatian grandmother (she has her own chapters) is intense. If you know what a Baba (Croatian grandmother) is like, they don't EVER give in, and will fight something all the way when it comes to protecting their family. Sort of like the Italians.

Although the Ratas' father is on the cover for this book, he isn't the villain in Behind the Pain. Chaz from the end of book 1 is. I will pop the cover up here when it's finished.

Angela wrote: "Up North is great.Hokianga Harbour is jaw droppingly gorgeous. The picture below does not do it justice, which tells you how beautiful the place is.

"

The Hokianga is one of the most breath-taking places I've seen. When I fist drove over the ridge I stopped in the middle of the road I was so stunned by it. My husband told me to move the car to the side, lol. The view I saw was the tan-coloured sand dunes/islands, the gorgeous beach/ocean, and the hills overlooking it all.

Ian wrote: "One of my characters is based on my brother. The character is a pretentious wine snob. I wonder if he'll spot himself - he's reading it now."

I don't want relatives or close friends reading my book. But, I couldn't stop my brother 'n law, who went and bought it anyway. Luckily he isn't mad and said if he wrote a book he'd use the same person who inspired Janice too.

Ian wrote: "I tried not to make my MC too much like me, but I seem to have failed. Everyone who knows me and has read the book says 'That's you'. Thankfully no one, friends or not, has told me they hate the ch..."

I think we all put a bit of ourselves into a character or two. Maia's grinning when she's in trouble is something I do. And a few conversations and narrative thoughts came from me or some people I know. Jess's thoughts about not wanting to bug Nike's mother about Sally's leg problems(oedema and infections due to being overweight) are basically my thoughts, because in reality the person I based this on gets bombarded by everyone else, so I didn't want to add to it, because I knew it got her down majorly.

Angie wrote: "I'm in NZ and I'm expecting to hear only positive stuff about your book, Marita. I think you were brave to write the book, but it works! I'll support you all the way!"

Thanks, Angie :)

Angie wrote: "Don't forget the South Island. I love the fact that I can take my dogs for a walk along the edge of Lake Waihola and not see a single person. I adore going out for afternoon tea and getting a great..."

I've been to Queenstown and it was lovely down there too, and then there's Lake Wanaka below.

You're right, people do take things far too seriously. I have an author friend on Facebook who was spat at for a character. For me, I'm a little worried about how my book will go down in my home country. I suppose I'm a little insulated with being in Singapore, as all the Kiwis and Aussies here want to help because it's a slice (although not a nice one) of home. Just when I get back to NZ I think I'm going to get some flack. Alan Duff had controversy over Once Were Warriors, which is the same genre as my book.

Often an author writes about horrible characters that have polar opposite views to themselves. In Behind the Hood there are a number of characters' thoughts (narrative)that I totally disagree with, but as a writer of reality I have still put them down. If you're an author, my question is, have you ever worried about people linking your characters to you? Because NO way would I want anyone linking me to my character Tama, lol. I haven't been approached by anyone because of this, as my book is very un PC, but has anyone else had any situations where a reader has gotten mad at you for writing certain things?

Debbie wrote: "I seem to be about the only one stomping around in here so I had better add some detail! Debbie, 53, teacher, balletomane and frustrated globe-trotter! Waiting to win lotto......."

Lol, you have to wait behind my husband as he's waiting to win lotto too :)

Those are both beautiful, Debbie. Your mother is very talented.

Here's a painting that I did of a Haka. It's the New Zealand Defence Force in Afghanistan (TGCRIB).

Here's a photo of the large Dalmatian Cultural society painting that I mentioned in the above post. It's the size of a queen-sized bed, and is made up of 4 canvas works that details 150 years of the Dalmatian (from the coast of Croatia) people in New Zealand. It displays iconic images in a chronological order from when the first Dalmatian person came over on the ship depicted. Next is the gum-digger (of which my great uncle was one), then the winemaker (many a Dali (nickname) have cellars in their houses like my father), and then the stonemasons (as my grandfather was). In the second panel the iconic images depicted show a fruit grower, fishermen, a Fish&Chip shop owner and a traditional Dali barbecue. In the third panel (the one that gave me a back-ache, sending me to the physio) has the famous farewell of the Yugoslav ship the Radnik(Croatians/Dalis were known as Yugoslavs before the civil war), then the Kolo (a traditional Croatian dance that basically means a ring), and the first Dali soccer team in Auckland (my father is the goalie). In the final panel I have painted a tug of war at the annual Dali picnic, the Dalmatian Orchestra, the children's kolo (my daughter is seen here) and lastly bowls, a very popular sport for older Dali men.

The medium is acrylic paint, which was applied in thin layers. This was unveiled by New Zealand's current Prime Minister John Key on the 150th year anniversary. (Location: 10 New North Road, Eden Terrace, Auckland, New Zealand).

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That's another thing that I love about New Zealand: The stunning blue skies that I haven't seen elsewhere. Other people have mentioned it too, and while I was doing my art history degree the bright skies was an important theme in New Zealand paintings.

That's another I like about New Zealand: The skies. It's also shown in New Zealand artwork that depict landscapes. It's a stunning blue, and people have commented about it a lot. I haven't see sky as bright blue as New Zealand and I've travelled quite a lot.