The Nile's Deep Dive Author Interview: Whitney Fitzsimmons

Let’s start at the beginning with a little bit about you, Whitney. Where did you grow up? What were some of your favourite books as a child and teen? How would you describe yourself as a young person?

I grew up in the Seattle area in the Pacific North West and then moved to Australia when I was 14. The very first book I loved was Maurice Sendak's Where The Wild Things Are. I also loved The Night Kitchen by Sendak. Then James and The Giant Peach by Roald Dahl - I wanted to fly around the world in a giant peach - I thought it was so cool! I also loved Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I started riding horses when I was 5 years old so I grew up also reading the Black Stallion books. Then when I got older I loved Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys. I was hooked on mysteries from that point on. I love the puzzle aspect of those types of stories.

When did the writer in you make themselves known? Was there any inciting incident? A book or a film that excited the desire to be a writer? Or was it some impactful experience, like being dropped on your head, that sent you running to the page?

I thought I would always be an actor and was doing my undergrad degree in Theatre and Performance (think Fame School) training to be a professional actor. I was at the library one night with my classmates - we were doing essays and stuff. I went off on my own and stumbled a cross this book called "So You Want to be a Writer" and a strange tingling sensation overcame me because for the first time I thought "Yes I do want to be a writer. I really do." But at the time we had people in the course who had done creative writing degrees and were seen as "the writers" in the course. I didn't feel I could put my hand up to do that or that it would be welcome. But I also lacked the confidence for quite some time. But I did check that book out and held onto it for ages. I also hid it from my classmates because I didn't want them to know. It was funny like it was some big secret!

I am asking you these questions because you have a new book, The Rising. What’s it all about? Can you give me your best elevator pitch (don’t worry, it’s not a very fast elevator)?

Here's what The Rising is about! In a town scarred by floodwaters, the past refuses to stay buried. When a catastrophic flood rips through the rural town of Birradurra, a shocking cold case is discovered. Unearthed from the mud are the skeletal remains of a baby. Shaken by this and haunted by her traumatic past, journalist Bec Carter is consumed with getting justice for the victim. But when her friend Harry Adams who vowed to help with the investigation vanishes in violent circumstances, authorities look to Bec for answers. Now the prime suspect in Harry’s disappearance, Bec must fight to clear her name and uncover the facts before another flood hits.

Where did this book come from? I mean, your mind, obviously, but can you give me some idea of the genesis of the work? Did anything external trigger your imagination, for example?

I was working on another novel which wasn't really gelling and I was listening to a podcast about crime writing and the idea literally fell into my head from the sky - that's what it felt like. It came form somewhere else and I could see the town Birradurra, I could see the beginning, a bit in the middle and then the end. It was a strange but exciting feeling. I just knew the story would work.

Describe an average day when you’re in the middle of writing a book? Where do you write? What do you write with? Do you need silence, or do you like to have heavy metal music playing, like Stephen King? Do you ever get out of your pyjamas?

Yes I make it out of my pyjamas! But where I write really depends. I write a lot from my couch. But I also love to write in busy noisy cafes and bars. Noise doesn't bother me because after years of writing to deadlines in newsrooms where there is always a lot of ambient noise because there are TV monitors on or police monitors on or radio programs on etc you just get used to the noise and to be honest I find it gives me energy.

At this stage of a new book’s life - it’s published, or about to be - the author (you) are already out and about promoting it - filling out annoying questionnaires like this one - but what you really want to be doing is getting back to writing your next book, or at least planning it, or thinking about it, so my question is, why? What is wrong with you? Is writing a compulsion? Discuss.

My debut crime fiction novel The Rising was published on 28 July - so not that long ago! I'm still very much in the promotion and marketing phase but in the background I am always thinking about my next novel. I tend to ruminate on an idea and then sit down at the laptop and write. I had the same process as a journalist when I worked in newsrooms. In terms of why do I write fiction? Because I love telling stories and creating characters that do kooky and surprising things! But I also love writing stories that hook readers and give them a thrill and keep them up late at night because they cant stop turning the page!

I love learning what writers have been reading. What’s the best contemporary book you’ve read lately? Name three books you always recommend. And do you read books as part of your research? Did any stand out or surprise you? And lastly, books on writing, writers, the writing life - do you have a go to?

I always recommend Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth - it's incredible! I love A.T. Prewett's The Picasso Ransom - it's such a great debut novel! And of course I recommend my book The Rising! (: I'm currently reading Jaclyn Moriarty's Time Travel for Beginners and I really like it. I'm also a big fan of Douglas Adams particularly Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency - it's so BRILLIANT! But I also am unashamedly commercial in my taste and recently read the collab of James Patterson and Viola Davis - Judge Stone - it was fabulous and of course Viola is an EGOT - there is nothing that woman can't do she's the bomb! On writing I am definitely going to read Harlan Coben's new book on how he writes, Plot Twist: A Memoir of a Writing Life.

I once asked Peter Carey for writing advice and he said, ‘Don’t take advice from anyone.’ Ignoring this advice I ask you, is there something you’ve learned about the writing life that would benefit someone just starting out? What is it?

I find the "word count" obsession interesting. It's almost turned writing into something like a chore. Like when people say "ugh I haven't been to the gym" etc or "ugh I haven't met my word count" etc. I think people should just relax and stay away from gamifying the writing process. The thing I've learned is that there is no one way to write a novel. Every author needs to find their own process and approaches that work for them. I also think that a writing process isn't a static thing - meaning that what works for one novel may not work for the next.

Imagine you’re a bookseller and you’re hand-selling your new book to a customer. What three books would you compare it to to make that sale?

The Rising is for fans of Jane Harper's The Dry, Chris Hammer's Scrublands and Harlan Coben's Tell No One. It's for anyone who enjoys fast paced mysteries with a strong sense of place and lots of twists and turns.

Thank you so much for answering our questions, Whitney.