BRONWYN PARRY Q & A

 

What challenges did writing As Darkness Falls bring?

All the challenges of completing a first novel — finding my way and voice as a writer; developing the characters and finding a plot structure that balanced logic, reality and drama for effective pacing; plus writing it while working in a full-time job and studying. The story is quite an emotional one, and at times I found it draining to be immersed in the point of view of the characters and exploring their reactions in intense scenes — especially after a difficult day at work.

I had to undertake a fair amount of research for the novel, from police procedures to the sounds of bird calls — but I enjoy research, so that doesn't really count as a challenge!

The two main characters in As Darkness Falls, Alec and Bella, are senior members of the police force. What research did you undertake to make your characters authentic?

I did undertake a fair amount of research, over the course of writing the book, searching the web, following media reports of police investigations in regional areas, and talking to several police officers and other people. I've also been very fortunate to have met a local police sergeant, who's had a lot of experience in regional NSW, and she very kindly read the manuscript and gave me some great advice and feedback.

Your love of the Australian outback is obvious in As Darkness Falls. Why did you choose to set your novel in the bush?

The book was actually born when I dreamed a short but very vivid and intense scene, which ultimately became the prologue. A key part of that scene was the sense of an isolated community in the bush, and as the idea for the characters and the novel grew, it couldn't be set anywhere else. I'm always fascinated by place, particularly wild, natural places, and the ways in which places shape the people who experience them.

Do you have a procedure or routine as you write?

Although I do draft some scenes out of sequence, I mostly write from beginning through to end, polishing as I go. Unlike some writers who do a 'dirty' draft, I need a solid foundation to build on, and a reasonable idea of where I'm going. I also need a reasonable amount of time ahead of me when I sit down to write; I can't be productive in fifteen minutes here and there, as some writers can. However, I do constantly think about the book –— characters, plot ideas, etc — wherever I am.

What are you working on right now?

I'm working on the loosely-linked sequel to As Darkness Falls which is set in the same town, some months after the events in the first book. The local police sergeant, Kristine Matthews, is working to help the community rebuild itself, when Morgan 'Gil' Gillespie returns — a man the town holds responsible for the death of a teenager, years ago. When the body of a woman is found in his car, they have to negotiate a web of distrust, prejudice, corruption and organised crime to find those responsible.

You won the prestigious 2007 Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award for a romantic suspense manuscript. Has romance writing always been a passion of yours?

I've always read romance, along with many other types of fiction. When I started seriously writing the story ideas that came to me had, at their heart, two people finding the emotional strength to allow themselves to be vulnerable to each other. Love is a complex journey to intimacy in an often difficult world, and I enjoy being able to explore that journey in a way that affirms real love and emotional courage.

How has winning the Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award affected you? What sort of feedback have you received?

Just being a finalist in the Golden Heart was fantastic; winning the Award for best romantic suspense manuscript was a huge honour. The award is held in high regard by the industry in North America, so my several query letters to agents there generated quick invitations to send the manuscript. However, the publicity surrounding the award here in Australia brought the manuscript to the attention of Bernadette Foley at Hachette Livre Australia, and agent Clare Forster at Curtis Brown Australia, and both of them contacted me, expressing interest in reading it. Their enthusiasm for the manuscript has resulted in it now being a beautiful, published book!

You're currently undertaking a PhD, researching online communities of romance readers and writers. Do Australian romance readers differ from those overseas?

Romance readers are a huge and diverse group, both in Australia and overseas. The internet has enabled readers of all types of fiction to interact with each other across the world, and there are vibrant online communities of romance readers who discuss and review books, talk about the genre and the industry, and debate developments and issues in romance fiction, other genres of fiction, and the publishing industry itself. The internet has given Australian readers more information about and access to books that aren't published here – and has also enabled Australian authors, through active web involvement, to have a higher profile in other countries.

What books are you reading at the moment?

At the moment, I'm between books. I've recently read three of Lian Hearn's Otori series and the other two are waiting in my 'To be Read' pile — which is teetering dangerously! I read across a range of genres and styles — other recent books include Gabrielle Lord's Spiking the Girl; Ursula Le Guin's The Left Hand of Darkness (I re-read this at least yearly!); Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner; and a hard-to-get book from Elsie Oxenham's early 20th century Abbey Girls series, found on e-Bay, Queen of the Abbey Girls.