Author Interview: Emily Perkins - Lioness /  by Time Out Bookstore

 

Hollie spoke to author Emily Perkins about her latest novel Lioness.

What are you currently reading?

Ephemeron, poetry by Fiona Benson – her precision and heat give me goosebumps. And The Inseparables, a posthumously published novel by Simone de Beauvoir. I love her mind, and I love a short book.

Tell us the process of choosing the cover, as it relates closely to a scene in the book. 

Greg Heinimann, the brilliant designer at Bloomsbury, came up with the image – it felt instantly right, for the sense it conveys of a woman who seems poised but is on fire from the inside.

What was your thought about setting the book in New Zealand, as opposed to somewhere else? 

I wanted to look at class privilege in New Zealand, and to write about rich people without getting into the limitless level of wealth that might be found in a bigger country. And I really loved writing the different locations.

Have you ever thought about DJing a Lioness themed party? 

Excellent idea! I did have a vibes playlist as I was drafting, but not all of it is danceable – I’d have to do a new one to properly create a Zone.

You’ve said there were many drafts of Lioness and that you started writing it in 2015. What was it that made you want to keep returning to the story? 

It kept feeling relevant, and I never got tired of thinking about it, or thinking through it: the novel is partly about change, and I wanted to see if writing it would change me too.

What author or book is a recent discovery for you? 

I was gripped by the sombre, ominous mood conjured up by Katie Kitamura in her novel Intimacies, and can’t wait to read her other work.

What is your favorite snack to enjoy while writing?

 Almonds and apples and black coffee – if work’s going well the food disappears from the plate without my noticing. If it’s not I can be found in front of the open fridge door, staring blankly.

 

Author Interview: Claire Baylis - Dice /  by Time Out Bookstore

 

Hollie spoke to author Claire Baylis about her debut novel Dice. A compelling courtroom drama, Dice is an incredibly timely exploration of how sexual violence is viewed in our society.

Tell us about yourself.

I grew up in England, moved to Wellington and was a law lecturer for 12 years before we moved to Rotorua for 'just a couple of years'. Twenty years later I still live here with my partner and 18yo daughter - the youngest of my 3 children. I've wanted to write a book since I was 6, so Dice is the culmination of a 50 year intention.

Where did the idea for Dice come from?

Having been a mum of teenagers for the last 13 years, I'm aware of the issues they have to negotiate. At the same time, I was doing jury research, interviewing real jurors and analysing how they had made their decisions. I became fascinated by the courtroom process, the dynamics of the jury room and how some jurors were making false assumptions about what real sexual assaults would look like. It all felt like important material for a novel.

What research was involved in the writing of Dice?

Lots! Dice was part of my PhD in Creative Writing from the IIML, so I simultaneously wrote a non-fiction paper about jury decision-making in sexual violence trials. I read a lot of survivor memoirs and academic research as well as analysing all the court documents and juror transcripts from the NZ cases in the Trans-Tasman Jury Study. While the novel is fiction, this research definitely informed it.

What was the intention behind having the story told through the eyes of the different members of the jury? 

Listening to real jurors' voices, I became very aware of how different people responded to the court process and how differently trials impacted people's lives. I wanted to portray the idea of the jury as a microcosm of society, and explore how the baggage we all bring - our life experiences and beliefs - might affect deliberations.

What is one thing you would like readers to take away from Dice?

Readers tell me how compelling they find Dice and I definitely wanted to write a story with a strong narrative drive, but I love it the most when people say they are left with so many questions - about the justice system, about consent, about social media misuse and how we change society. I would love it if book clubs, parents of teens, young people and readers generally leant in to those questions and continued to think and talk about them.

What do you think the biggest misconception is about being a juror?

Some people feel like jury service is a waste of their time - either because they don't think they can offer anything (which can be very untrue, like Chantae in Dice) or because they think they are too busy. Jury service can be a profound experience and most people do approach it with a great deal of care and commitment.

 What is your favourite snack to enjoy while writing?

If I'm in the flow I get hyper-focused and forget to eat, but when it's tricky, popping through to the kitchen for whatever is on hand is definitely one of my favourite distractions - nuts, mandarins, hummus, even chocolate drops supposedly bought for baking!

What is your desert island book?

AGGGH so hard to choose ONE - do I go for an early influencers like Pat Barker, Michael Ondaatje, Kirsty Gunn, John Berger, Christos Tsiolkas or a book that would keep me thinking about creativity like Charlotte Wood's The Luminous Solution, or poetry by Anahera Gildea, Tusiata Avia or Claudine Rankine, or books I desperately want to reread (but there are always too many amazing new books) like My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout and Intimacies by Katie Kitamura? (See how I totally avoided the question there?)


 

95bFM's Loose Reads: Audition by Pip Adam /  by Time Out Bookstore

Jenna called into the studio today to review the brand new novel by award-winning, Pip Adam - one the most inventive and exciting writers in Aotearoa.

In Audition, we meet three giants on spaceship. From here, the least you know about this book, the better. However, Adam stays true to form by pushing the boundaries of her narrative worlds to bring a strong social message to readers.

Listen to Jenna & Rachel chat below!

95bFM's Loose Reads: I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home by Lorrie Moore /  by Time Out Bookstore

This morning, Suri reviewed the highly anticipated novel by Lorrie Moore. I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home is a tender and playful little novel about the hauntings of ghosts of the past - imaginary and literal.

Exploring the philosophies of love and joy and how people cope with grief, this is strange, clever and
highly recommended.

Listen to Suri’s review with Annabel below.

RNZ's Nine to Noon: In Memoriam by Alice Winn /  by Time Out Bookstore

“I stood on the most God-forsaken patch of earth I hope ever exists and I thought: I wonder how Elly is.”

Alice Winn’s In Memoriam demonstrates both the despair of war and the distraction of love as we meet two young men in love, Ellwood and Gaunt as they leave their boarding school to sit at the front lines of World War I.

Listen to Jenna’s review with Kathryn below.

95bFM's Loose Reads: Tangi by Witi Ihimaera /  by Time Out Bookstore

Tama leaves behind his life in Wellington, of Te Ao Pākeha to head home to Waituhi after the sudden death of his father. As the oldest son, it’s expected that he will return to take over the family farm.

Tangi was the winner of the 1973 New Zealand Book Awards and for its 50 year anniversary, this new edition
has been re-edited to celebrate. This piece by Emma Hislop (Kāi Tahu) explains more about Witi’s process of rewriting.

This incredibly moving novel has more than stood the test of time and is the perfect read for Matariki.

95bFM's Loose Reads: Big Swiss by Jen Beagin /  by Time Out Bookstore

Big Swiss has quickly become a staff favourite at Time Out, nicely fitting alongside titles such as My Year of Rest and Relaxation and The First Bad Man.

Greta transcribes the therapy sessions of sex coach, Om, and becomes enamoured with a patient whom she calls Big Swiss. When she hears Big Swiss’ voice in the dog park, she introduces herself as Rebekah - leading to a very intense infatuation between the two.

Told with the darkest of humour - Big Swiss explores moral boundaries, trauma relationships.

95bFM's Loose Reads: Everything is Beautiful and Everything Hurts by Josie Shapiro /  by Time Out Bookstore

This week, Jenna reviews Josie Shapiro’s Everything is Beautiful and Everything Hurts, which is the inaugural winner of the Allen & Unwin Commercial Fiction Prize.

Mickey Bloom is an underdog - small, dyslexic and bullied, she finds solace in running. However, this also comes at a cost. Set in Auckland, Everything is Beautiful explores big dreams and what happens if they’re not realised. Highly recommended.

95bFM's Loose Reads: The Strangers by Katherena Vermette /  by Time Out Bookstore

This week, Jenna previews the session she’s chairing at the Auckland Writer’s Festival this week.

Katherena Vermette is an award winning Red River Métis author, from Manitoba, Winnipeg. Her second novel The Strangers, follows Phoenix Stranger, a character from her first novel The Break, to continue her story alongside the story of her family and how she got to where she is now.

You can listen to Jenna, Rachel & Stella’s chat about the book below!

Katherena Vermette: It’s in the Bones is at 2.30pm on Friday.