Episode 13: Hannah Kent

Australian author Hannah Kent (left) with Book Ends host, Philippa Moore

And just like that, it's December and the last Book Ends episode for 2013 is (finally) ready for your listening pleasure.

Although this interview took place during a heatwave in September, Hannah Kent's haunting and beautifully written first novel Burial Rites, one of the most talked-about Australian débuts of 2013, is actually perfect winter reading!

In 1829, the last public execution in Iceland took place - a man and a woman were beheaded for a brutal murder committed on a remote farm. As there were no prisons in Iceland at the time, the condemned woman, Agnes Magnúsdóttir, is sent to spend her final months on the farm of district officer Jón Jónsson, under the watch of his wife and their two daughters. Horrified to have a convicted murderer in their midst, the family avoid contact with Agnes and regard her as something of a monster. Only Tóti, the young assistant priest appointed to supervise Agnes’s spiritual wellbeing, tries to understand her. As the months pass, the winter deepens and the hardships of rural life force the household to work side by side, the true story of Agnes's crime unravels and it is revealed to be far more complex than anyone imagined or, more to the point, was willing to believe.

Set against the backdrop of the exquisite Icelandic landscape, which I've actually seen with my own eyes so I can attest to how hauntingly beautiful it is, Burial Rites is a compelling read and a moving meditation on human nature, on truth, survival, freedom and on the painful gulf that often exists between how we are seen by the outside world and how we see ourselves. 

Hannah was born in Adelaide in 1985 and found herself in Iceland at age 18 as an exchange student - not in Reykjavik as she thought, but in a remote fishing village in Iceland's north called Sauðárkrókur...so remote, Hannah couldn't even find it in her atlas! Despite struggling at first to find her place in the close-knit community there, Hannah fell in love with Iceland and has since returned many times. But it was on her very first visit, as a teenager, that she first heard the story of Agnes Magnúsdóttir and was instantly captivated.

Returning to Australia, Hannah completed a BA and in her honours year, she submitted a creative writing project inspired by Agnes's story. Encouraged by this (and now certain this was well and truly a story she wanted to write), she then embarked on a PhD in Creative Writing, for which Burial Rites was her project. She submitted the first draft of Burial Rites to the inaugural Australian Unpublished Manuscript Award in 2011, which it went on to win! Burial Rites has now been published in Australia, the UK and the US and has been shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award.

"Persist. It's really important not to let any feelings of insecurity or disbelief in your own ability paralyse you. Just keep on pushing through and maybe accept that you will always feel this way....but you'll never be objective about your own work and therefore shouldn't listen to yourself! And be disciplined. Write regularly, even when you don't want to. Don't wait until you're inspired because you'll so rarely feel that way. Persistence and the ability to work very hard on something consistently pays out a lot more than talent."

- pearls of wisdom from Hannah Kent in this interview

Highly articulate, funny, modest and generous, Hannah was a delight to interview and this was such an enjoyable hour or so that we spent together in her publisher's office in London. I can't wait to see what she does next.  Thank you so much Hannah for being on the show!

You can listen to the show here:

Guests

Hannah Kent

Australian writer

Publications mentioned

Burial Rites by Hannah Kent (Picador)

Fred and Edie by Jill Dawson (Sceptre)

The Icelandic Sagas (Penguin)

Kill Your Darlings (literary journal of which Hannah is Publishing Director)

You can also read a great interview with Hannah at Bookanista and I'd also recommend reading Hannah's own account of the Burial Rites journey in the April 2013 issue of Kill Your Darlings.

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Music
"Aurora" by Bjork (buy on iTunes) 

An interview with Gemma Burgess, author of Brooklyn Girls

Well, just for something different, I thought I'd do a written interview with an author - it's a little bit faster than getting audio edited...hint hint Tom ;)

I also wanted to help one of my favourite writers, Gemma Burgess, celebrate the UK publication day of her new novel Brooklyn Girls....which is today!

If you enjoy chicklit with a bit of an edge, chances are you've heard of Gemma and her first two fabulous books - The Dating Detox and A Girl Like You. Her latest, Brooklyn Girls, is a bit of a departure from her previous work, mostly because it's in an entirely new genre. Brooklyn Girls is the launch title of a New Adult (somewhere between young adult and chicklit) series about the transition from college/university life to real life, one messy mistake at a time.

In this first book, we follow the story of Pia, who is 22, fresh out of college and living the dream, sharing a house in Brooklyn, NYC, with her four best friends. But then everything goes wrong - she gets fired from her office job, some major romantic rust sets in and her parents are threatening to have her move back in with them if she doesn't sort her life out soon. It's rather inspiring (and hilarious) to see how she does it!

Gemma has said of the series:

"I think that the world is made up of smart funny girls who like to have a good time and want to read about girls like them...some of the publishing industry seems to think we want to read about friendless drips who obsess over labels and cupcakes, and wouldn’t know what to do with an erect penis if it hit them in the face."

Gemma will be appearing on an upcoming episode of Book Ends, so you'll get to hear her voice (and mine for the billionth time!) but here's a nice taster for you!

Philippa Moore: Gemma Burgess, welcome to Book Ends. My first question...what inspired you to write a New Adult series? Is this a relatively new genre?

Gemma Burgess: I didn't even know it was a genre when I thought of the series. I just wanted to write a series about and for girls in their early 20s, as I felt like there wasn't anything out there like that. Then when I talked to Dan Weiss at St Martins Press about it, it turned out he had just coined the phrase New Adult, and he loved the idea. In a way it was serendipitous, in another way, it's inevitable - it was missing in the universe.

PM: Brooklyn Girls is the first in a series about this group of young women, all living together in a house on Union Street. How much of your own experience of being young, fresh out of university, making the transition from college life to real life, have you used?

GB: Hmm. All the emotions are mine - the general feeling of panic, the stress of not being able to get a job, the horror of the realisation that you are at the very, very bottom of a massive mountain called Your Career, that the world is very big and easy to get lost in...but the experiences are all made up.

PM: Which of the girls from Union Street is most like you?

GB: Oh gosh... none of them? All of them? I put a bit of myself into every character - I need to understand the way they think in order to write with empathy. I don't like writing about characters I don't like. It's so draining.

PM: The tagline of the series seems to be "life begins at 22"! What were you doing when you were 22?

GB: I was working as a junior writer in a third-rate marketing company in London, living in a disgusting shared house in the armpit of West London, and extremely, exceptionally, extraordinarily broke. Mind you I could still afford to get drunk every weekend. I just had to take the nightbus home. Generally, I felt a bit lost for the first half of being 22... then things got a lot better.

PM: Do you think it's harder to be in your early twenties now than it was say 10 or 15 years ago?

GB: Honestly? I think everyone thinks it's harder for their generation. It's part of the marvellous solipsism of being 22. And the truth is that it is hard, and previous generations don't remember or worse, don't care, about how hard it is. which makes it harder. The best and worst thing about being in your early 20s is that you think it's never going to end, and the second best and worst thing is that it does.

1988) The music video features as a restaurant employee washing dishes while listening to the Kiss hit single Rock and Roll All Nite, performed by Poison. The manager enters, turns off the radio, and delivers to the employee a scathing reprimand, reminding the employee that he's being paid "to wash dishes, not to listen to that...

PM: I know you love music, most of your characters seem to enjoy it too! What song best sums you up at age 22?

GB: Hah! Oh dude. I don't know. Can I say something cheesy-bad like Nothing But A Good Time by Poison?

PM: Yes, you can!

Now, moving on to your writing as a whole and your books in general....the thing I love most about the central characters in all your books (The Dating Detox, A Girl Like You and Brooklyn Girls) is that they are smart yet vulnerable women, all searching for something and doing their darndest to get it, making mistakes (ok, let's face it, total and unmitigated fuck ups in some cases!) but never descending into a victim mentality. We see them learning, growing, getting wiser and stronger. Resilient is the word, really, and I think this is an important message for young women.

Anyway....I was going somewhere with this....was writing this kind of heroine something you set out to do, or did it happen naturally? Was it a reaction to anything? I'm curious as I think it's something that really sets you apart.

GB: Wow, can you write all my reviews for me?! Thanks! Yes, that was absolutely the reason I started writing in the first place. I wanted to read a book about a girl like me and my friends - you know, normal - and I felt sure that other women felt the same way, so I started writing one. Characters who were kind and smart and funny and hardworking and vulnerable and all that good stuff. A lot of chicklit characters always seem to be to be exactly the same.

PM: Do you think you need to write for an audience, or write for yourself? Or both?

GB: I think if you're only writing for yourself, you should keep a diary. You need to write for an audience - you need to thrill and charm and entertain them. If you're not writing for an audience, why would anyone bother to read it?

PM: So, how did you become a writer? I realise that could be a loaded question.....

GB: Oh... gosh. I don't know. I did a triple major Bachelors degree in Literature and History and Theatre, which was totally useless, and then did a postgrad in journalism, which only made me sure that I did not want to be a journalist. I found out that marketing and PR companies always needed writers, so I applied to about 300 of them in London (no, really, it was something like 278, I kept track) and eventually got a job. Then I found out about advertising copywriting and a little lightbulb went on above my head and I thought 'I WANT THAT!' So then I became a copywriter. Then about seven years later I wrote The Dating Detox in my spare time, got published, and that was that.

PM: What's the best part of doing what you do?

GB: I always, always enjoy writing. Always. Also, I get lovely emails from readers.

PM: What's the worst?

GB: I get a little tired of being alone all the damn time. I miss working in an office and being around people. Also, noticing a typo in a book after it's too late to do anything about it. That shit drives me nuts.

PM: Now for some fun questions....what is your favourite daily ritual/routine?

GB: Morning cuddles in bed with my husband and our baby Errol. Is that lame? It's probably lame.

PM: What is your most treasured possession?

GB: My baby Errol. Again, that's probably lame, but it's true.

PM: If you could meet up for a drink with any character from fiction (including your own), who would it be? Why?

GB: Great question! Bridget Jones. She seems like she'd be a lot of fun.

PM: Another music question - what song would you want played at your funeral?

GB:Dude Looks Like A Lady. Just kidding. That was the first song that came to mind.

PM: What piece of advice would you give to aspiring writers? Is there anything you wish you had known when you first started out?

GB: You can do it. But hurry up. Don't sit on a manuscript for years, don't ask a million people for their opinions, because people are idiots and it'll mess with your head. Just write, edit yourself brutally, and get it out there. Also, read everything you can, not just your genre. The more you read, the better a writer you will be. Lastly, it's not rocket science, it's just writing, so don't psych yourself out. You'll be great.

PM: And so, after writing Brooklyn Girls, do you think life begins at 22? What age did life "begin" for you?

GB: Definitely 22!

Thank you Gemma! I'm so looking forward to doing the "real" interview :)

Brooklyn Girls by Gemma Burgess is out in the UK today. You can find out more about Gemma and her books at her web site. She's also doing a special series on her blog where lots of people are weighing in about what life was like for them at 22. You can join in too!

Book Ends, Episode 8: Pippa Kendrick

Welcome to another episode of Book Ends, the podcast for writers and book lovers.  This episode may be the most delicious yet....it's all about cookbooks and food writing.  If you've ever wanted to write a cookbook you won't want to miss this! In this episode, I am in conversation with cook and food writer Pippa Kendrick, author of The Intolerant Gourmet, which was named as one of The Times Top 40 Cookbooks of The Year in 2012.

After becoming seriously ill in her early twenties with complications from undiagnosed food allergies, passionate food lover Pippa began to look for ways she could adjust to her new way of life without compromising her enjoyment of food and eating.  Always a keen writer, Pippa began a food blog, also called The Intolerant Gourmet, as she explored this new terrain of allergy-friendly cooking and discovered there were many like her, daunted by what seemed to be a bland, unpalatable and unexciting but necessary way to eat.  Pippa's zest and passion changed all that!

Pippa's revolutionary and deservedly popular approach to indulgent, exciting and sumptuous allergy-friendly cooking has won her many fans and resulted in her first cookbook, The Intolerant Gourmet, being published last year.

In this episode, Pippa shares the journey of The Intolerant Gourmet with me, from the proposal and agent-hunting stage, through to production and finally publication.  She also shares her writing (and cooking!) routine.  There are many wonderful nuggets of inspiration in this conversation but I found this one particularly memorable:

"(Book publishing) is such a tough competitive market....if you don't know your own potential  it will be harder for other people to see it.  Do yourself a favour and make yourself as marketable as possible.  Remember they (agents and publishers) won't read your submission twice!"

You can listen to the podcast here:

Many thanks to Pippa for her time in giving the interview, and do go and check out her website for more delicious recipe inspiration, including her favourite, Bakewell Tart!

"A great book tells you something you already knew but that you hadn't said out loud." - Pippa Kendrick, in this interview

Guests

Pippa Kendrick

British cook and food writer

Publications mentioned

The Intolerant Gourmet by Pippa Kendrick (Collins)

Full of Flavour: Create...How To Think Like A Chef by Maria Elia (Kyle Books)

Alice's Cookbook by Alice Hart (Quadrille Publishing)

Ottolenghi: The Cookbook by Sami Tamimi and Yotam Ottolenghi (Ebury Press)

Miss Smilla's Feeling For Snow by Peter Hoeg (Vintage)

Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L James (Arrow)

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Book Ends, Episode 7: Isla Dewar

Isla Dewar

Welcome to another episode of Book Ends, the podcast for writers and book lovers, and the FIRST episode for 2013.  The break has been lovely but now it's time to get back to the writing, and the talking about writing! In this episode, I am in conversation with Scottish novelist, Isla Dewar, author of 16 novels, one of which is one of my most favourite books of all time.

Isla started her working life as a journalist but found she was drawn more to fiction than facts.  Her first novel was published when she was 40 and she's gone on to enjoy a rather prolific career as a novelist and fiction writer.

Isla even wrote the screenplay when one of her books, Women Talking Dirty, was made into a film.  She talks to me about this process, as well as giving her tips for those who want to follow in her footsteps!

You can listen to the podcast here:

Many thanks to Isla for her time in giving the interview.  I hope you find it as illuminating as I did.  I don't know about you, but I feel like a good cup of coffee now :)

"You must master the vices.  You know that if a thing is worth doing it's worth doing well.  If, however, a thing is not worth doing then it's worth doing fabulously, amazingly, with grace, style and panache." - Isla Dewar, from Women Talking Dirty

Guests

Isla Dewar

Scottish writer

Publications mentioned

Izzy's War by Isla Dewar (Ebury Press)

Secrets of a Family Album by Isla Dewar (Headline Review)

The Consequences of Marriage by Isla Dewar (Headline Review)

Women Talking Dirty by Isla Dewar (Headline Review) (and the film of the same name)

Keeping up with Magda by Isla Dewar (Headline Review)

Larry's Party by Carol Shields (Fourth Estate)

Unless by Carol Shields (Fourth Estate)

Girls Night In II (anthology) edited by Jessica Adams, Chris Manby and Fiona Walker (Penguin Books Australia, now out of print)

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Book Ends, Episode 6: Andrea Eames

Welcome to another episode of Book Ends, the podcast for writers and book lovers. I am delighted to welcome Andrea Eames as this week's guest.

Andrea Eames is a Zimbabwean writer now living in the USA who has a most impressive writing CV at only 27 years old.  She has published two novels, The Cry of The Go-Away Bird and The White Shadow, the latter of which was short-listed for this year's prestigious Dylan Thomas Prize.

Narrated by a young boy who struggles to protect his mysterious and gifted younger sister, The White Shadow is a compelling and utterly absorbing read set against the backdrop of the Zimbabwean War of Liberation in the 1970s.

I so enjoyed speaking with Andrea about her work.  She had a lot of inspiring things to say about the writing process, particularly when your work involves somewhat complex and loaded topics.  I was certainly in awe of her very disciplined daily working routine, it's something I can only aspire to!

You can listen to the podcast here:

Many thanks to Andrea for her time in giving the interview.  I'm sure we're going to continue to see amazing things from her!

You can find out more about Andrea, the writing life and her next book at her blog.

Guests

Andrea Eames

Zimbabwean writer

Publications mentioned

The White Shadow by Andrea Eames (Harvill Secker)

The Cry of The Go-Away Bird by Andrea Eames (Harvill Secker)

Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Harper Perennial)

Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Harper Perennial)

Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead (Blue Door)

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Book Ends, Episode 5: Stella Newman

Welcome to another episode of Book Ends, the podcast for writers and book lovers. I am thrilled to welcome Stella Newman as today's guest.

Pear Shaped

Stella's first novel, Pear Shaped, is a tale that will make you laugh, probably make you hungry as it’s filled with delicious descriptions of food (!), but it might also make you wince with recognition too if you’ve ever had your heart broken by someone who, in hindsight, really wasn’t worth it. Described as achingly funny, searingly honest, sharp and sweet….Pear Shaped is very much like the author herself.  And not only is the novel compulsive reading - I read it in one afternoon - but it's also a bit of a foodie's guide to London (and New York too) in disguise.  I blame this book entirely for introducing me to Compost Cookies.

You can listen to the podcast here:

I hope you enjoy listening to our very abridged chat!  Thank you again to Stella for having me around for tea, cookies and eventually wine…and of course my wonderful audio producer Tom for turning our three hour conversation into a far more reasonable forty odd minutes.

If you'd like to know more about Stella and her work she keeps a number of blogs - one of which features her editor's recipe for the best ever brownies.

Guests

Stella Newman

British writer

Publications mentioned

Pear Shaped by Stella Newman (Avon, Harper Collins)

Take Care of Yourself by Sophie Calle (Actes Sud)

Heartburn by Nora Ephron (Virago)

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Book Ends, Episode 4: Nicola Doherty

Welcome to another episode of Book Ends, the podcast for writers and book lovers. I am delighted to welcome Nicola Doherty as today's guest.

Nicola's debut novel The Out of Office Girl hit the shelves in Ireland and the UK this year.  The out of office girl is Alice who, at the beginning of the story, has hit a bit of a slump in terms of both career and relationships.  She isn't getting anywhere in her job in publishing and she's just been dumped via a text message.  But all that changes when her boss is taken ill and Alice gets sent on the work trip of a lifetime to a villa in Sicily to edit the autobiography of Hollywood bad boy Luther Carson. But rather than living the plot of her favourite romantic movie, Alice needs to face some demons and find some confidence and gumption as the deadline for the celebrity book approaches and she battles to emerge with her dignity, and her job, in tact.

Nicola and I talked about the inspiration behind The Out of Office Girl, ghost writing and celebrity books, and the importance of incentive and support when writing a book.  She has lots of tips for first timers!

You can listen to the podcast here:

Many thanks to Nicola for her time in giving the interview, and also to the staff at Fleet River Bakery in London who graciously turned off the background music in their cafe for an hour while I recorded our chat :)

You can find out more about Nicola, the writing life and her next book at her blog.

Guests

Nicola Doherty

Irish writer

Publications mentioned

The Out of Office Girl by Nicola Doherty (Headline)

The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger (Harper Collins)

The Ghost by Robert Harris (Arrow)

Ghosting: A Double Life by Jennie Erdal (Canongate)

Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Bloomsbury)

My Legendary Girlfriend by Mike Gayle (Flame)

Sliding Doors (film) directed by Peter Howitt (Paramount)

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Book Ends, Episode 3: Ivy Alvarez

I am thrilled to welcome internationally renowned poet, and fellow Tasmanian, Ivy Alvarez to this episode of Book Ends.

Ivy is the author of Mortal, a collection of poetry published by Red Morning Press, and of several chapbooks published by The Private Press.  Her second collection is forthcoming from Seren Books.  In addition, she has been published in poetry journals and anthologies all over the world, including Best Australian Poems 2009, and makes regular appearances at international writing festivals.  Ivy has also curated many artistic events involving poetry, art and performance; and edited several anthologies herself.  She is a woman of many vast talents, and I'm also lucky to count her as a close friend.

Today's episode is a unique combination of poetry and conversation as Ivy reads some of her work and shares her thoughts and experiences of her poetry career.  Regardless of which genre you work on, Ivy's advice on getting noticed and getting your work out there applies to us all - "you only need one person to say yes."

You can listen to the podcast here:

I hope you enjoy listening to our conversation and thank you again Ivy for being such a wonderful guest!

Guests

Ivy Alvarez

Filipino-Australian poet

Publications mentioned

Mortal by Ivy Alvarez (Red Morning Press)

A Slice of Cherry Pie edited by Ivy Alvarez (The Private Press)

what's wrong by Ivy Alvarez (The Private Press)

The Monkey's Mask by Dorothy Porter (Serpent's Tail)

To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf (Wordsworth Classics)

The Writers and Artist's Yearbook (A&C Black)

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Book Ends, Episode 2: Lisa Jewell

Lisa Jewell

Welcome to another episode of Book Ends, the podcast for writers and book lovers. I am delighted to welcome Sunday Times best selling author Lisa Jewell as today's guest.

The author of 10 books, Lisa has had a prolific writing career since the late 1990s when redundancy, a bet with a friend, an admiration for Nick Hornby and "a vague flicker of interest" in writing all combined to set her on the path to becoming one of the most popular authors in the UK.

On today's episode Lisa talks about her life as a established writer with a lot of inspiring and useful advice, such as:

• What happens when you run out of ideas?
• How do you learn to write a book without freaking out?
• Minimising access to the Internet for maximum writing efficiency!

You can listen to the podcast here:

I hope you enjoy this episode and thank you again Lisa for such an inspiring conversation!

Guests

Lisa Jewell

British writer

Publications mentioned

Ralph's Party by Lisa Jewell (Penguin)

Vince and Joy by Lisa Jewell (Penguin)

After the Party by Lisa Jewell (Penguin)

Before I Met You by Lisa Jewell (Century, Random House)

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (Penguin)

The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella (Black Swan)

The Writers and Artists Yearbook

Frida (film) directed by Julie Taymor

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon 

Book Ends, Episode 1: Nikki Gemmell

Welcome to the very first episode of Book Ends, the podcast for writers and book lovers. I am delighted to welcome acclaimed Australian writer Nikki Gemmell as my first guest.

Nikki has been one of my heroes for a very long time so I was beyond excited to speak to her about the writing life and her novels The Bride Stripped Bare and With My Body which explore, in her words, "the raw underbelly of the female psyche".  There is such an audacity and honesty in her writing but also a wonderful sensuousness, tenderness and intimacy.  She says that every book she writes is a violent reaction to the previous one - she is currently working on a children's book after two best-selling erotic novels!  Overall I just really appreciated Nikki's message to all of us aspiring writers that discipline and tenacity is what matters - showing up, having a deadline, getting it done and, most importantly, never giving up :)

You can listen to the podcast here:

I hope you enjoy listening to our conversation and thank you again Nikki for being the very first Book Ends guest.

Guests

Nikki Gemmell

Australian writer

Publications mentioned

The Bride Stripped Bare by Nikki Gemmell (Fourth Estate)

With My Body by Nikki Gemmell (Fourth Estate)

Shiver by Nikki Gemmell (Vintage Books/Random House)

A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf (Penguin)

Coming Through Slaughter by Michael Ondaatje (Bloomsbury)

Dancing on Coral by Glenda Adams (Harper Collins)

Credits

Presenter

Philippa Moore

Producer

Tom Schoon