Cairo by Chris Womersley Q&A: 23 March, 2017

Hi Cory. Thanks for thinking I'm clever! The truth is that I'm a terrible plotter and often it's a matter of retro-fitting scenes and chapters to accord with the rising action of the narrative. I usually have a loose idea of the arc of the narrative but make the specifics up as I go along. Which is a shame because I suspect it would be much easier to plot in advance...

Thanks, Sarah. The plain truth of that is that I was exactly Tom Button's age in 1986 (I'm almost an old man), so research was a matter of recalling certain things. I was also aware that the novel is one man's recollecion of events through slightly rose-coloured glasses, so accuracy is always patchy. As for the details fo the theft, a lot of the research was in reading media accounts of the weeks in which the painting was missing to ensure the timelines and so on were as accurate as possible and the theft was as plausible as possible. Plus I listened to a lot of nostalgic songs from my teenaged years. New Order, Nick Cave, Beasts of Bourbon...

Hi Eoin. So pleased you enjoyed Cairo. Thanks so much. I think the Weeping Woman at NGV is probably the legit version, but you never know....
As for writing crime fiction. Hmm. My work always starts with characters and wondering what would put them under the greatest stress. The stakes need to be high. You don't have to start at the beginning - rather, write the scene that is probably lurking in your head somewhere and work out from there. That way you can try capture the voice of the work. Good luck!

Cheers Chris!

Hi Jemma. There are threads common to all my novels, I think, but it's true they tend to veer all over the place. Basially, one of the pleasures of being a novelist is in finding something in which to be interested and following my nose until a story emerges, Spanish Flu, art forgery, witchcraft. That said, there's often a long period of reading and pondering before I'm almost forced to stop procrastinating and get down to writing. There's often a lengthy period of trying to figure out what *kind* of book I want to write stylistically - in terms of mood and feel and tone. With Cairo, I knew I wanted to write a sort of romantic coming-of-age style piece and that, in turn, dictated the period and then the story followed on from that.

I've never really worried too much about the ways in which the books are classified, to be honest but you're right in saying they can be loaded. I think that often the best books are hybrid creatures anyway. As a writer I'm something of a magpie and willing to borrow anything from anywhere if I feel it might work for the book in question.

Yes, I have a few readers in France and, particularly with Bereft, the French were astounded that Australians fought in WWI! For many of them, Australia is quite a mysterious country. The French, as you know, take literature pretty seriously and it's certainly great to have a readership there.

As for advice. It's always tricky and depends on the person. Read a lot and widely is always the first thing. Keep a notebook. Jot down words or conversations or incidents that interest you. Stories are everywhere when you refine your antenna. Rather than seeking to emulate writers you admire, try and figure out what they evoke in you that you, in turn, might try to evoke in a reader - whether it's fear or compassion or sorrow. I love a lot of different writers and have had crushes on writers from Marguerite Duras to Anthony Powell.

No worries. Hope to see you soon!