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Black Rock White City by Alec Patric: 3 Feb, 2017

Black Rock White City is a novel about the damages of war, the limits of choice, and the hope of love. It’s the story of Australia’s suburbs and the attempts of two Serbian refugees— Jovan and Suzana—as they try to reclaim the hopes of a life left behind.

It was awarded the 2016 Miles Franklin Literary Award.

Alec Patric will join us for a Q&A on Friday, 3 February between 10 and 11am. Please leave any questions you have below. (And discuss the book at your leisure!)

Want to buy Black Rock White City? Receive 10% off when purchasing it from Readings at State Library Victoria. To receive the discount online, enter the promo code BOOKCLUB in the promo code box during online checkout. To receive the discount at our State Library bookshop, simply mention the Thursday night book club at the counter.

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Hi Alec, what was your approach when pitching this book to your publisher?

Hi Indra,

My approach had failed with every publisher (something a writer can do in Australia in only as little as six months of submissions) and I was talking on the phone with my publisher about another project entirely, when I started talking about the relationships in BRWC and the manuscript was only then read. Some books just don't sound appealing no matter how you pitch them but the story itself can win you over. I think that happened with this novel with reviewers, judges and general readers. Sometimes all you can hope is for someone to give you a go despite what they think they want to read and don't want to read.

Hi Alec, was it anything specific about the relationships that piqued your publisher's interest?Jovan and Suzana's relationship is conveyed with such tenderness and fragility...what do you think is the key to writing relationships that tug hard on the heartstrings of your reader?

Hi Hannah,

I think for my publisher it was a way to see the novel as more than just a book about refugees from the Bosnian war (which can sound so dire) and feel there might be a story that connects on a more fundamental level. I can't speak for my publisher of course, but I was just happy that someone was willing to read the manuscript. And the key to create emotionally involving characters is your own emotional involvement with them. So with Jovian and Suzana I found aspects of myself and my wife, aspects of my father and mother, aspects of friends and family, and an author gets just as involved with the plight of the characters as any reader, and more so. There are parts of the BRWC that make me era time them and there are also lots of laughs and everything in between. Glad you enjoyed the novel Hannah.

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