y separately published work icon Writers in Conversation periodical issue   interview  
Issue Details: First known date: 2014... vol. 1 no. 2 August 2014 of Writers in Conversation est. 2014 Writers in Conversation
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Contents

* Contents derived from the 2014 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
‘They All Begin with an Idea’ : A Conversation with Andrea Goldsmith, Gillian Dooley (interviewer), single work interview

Andrea Goldsmith has published seven novels, most recently The Memory Trap (2013) and Reunion (2009). I had not met her before I visited her home in an inner suburb of Melbourne to record this interview, but I had read her 2002 novel The Prosperous Thief with great admiration, and we had recently corresponded by email over our shared appreciation of Iris Murdoch. She had written a very kind review of my 2003 publication of interviews with Iris Murdoch, From a Tiny Corner in the House of Fiction, so it seemed fitting that I interview her for Writers in Conversation. I sent her some questions a few weeks before we met, and these provided a loose framework for our discussion.

'Goldsmith lives in the roomy modern town house she shared for many years with her late partner, the poet Dorothy Porter, who died five years ago, although she is clearly still very much a presence in Goldsmith’s life. We sat in a comfortable room at the back of the house, looking out on a pleasant courtyard garden. Her dog Lotte, an affectionate, well-behaved poodle, shared the sofa during much of our conversation. Contented canine snufflings often appear on the recording, though I couldn’t find a way to notate them in the transcript.

'We recorded the interview and then kept talking about life, the universe and everything for more than an hour over tea and lemon tart. When it was time to go, Andrea offered to walk me to the railway station, and as we left, to our shared delight, it began to rain for the first time in many weeks. She lent me an umbrella, but preferred to walk in the rain. An enduring image from that day is the petite author skipping down the street, greeting her neighbours in unselfconscious ecstasy at the breaking of the drought.' (Introduction)

Christos Tsiolkas and the Ghosts of Our Past, Heather Taylor Johnson (interviewer), single work interview
'With the arrival of his first novel in 1995, Loaded, Christos Tsiolkas became a voice for a new generation of Australians. The book’s main character, Ari – later made into the flesh by actor Alex Dimitriades in the film adaptation Head On – represented a young, gay Greek Australian man, angered by classism and racism to the point of self-destruction, and confused with his place in the world that surrounds him. This character would be reborn in many other men in Tsiolkas’ books, as would these themes become the crux of his work. His other novels include The Jesus Man (1999), Dead Europe (2005; winner of The Age Book of the Year), The Slap (2008; winner of the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award, longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and adapted into an award winning mini-series) and his latest book Barracuda (2013). He is a multi-talented writer with an autobiography and book of essays to add to his collection, as well as ‘playwright’ and ‘screenwriter’ to add to his list of titles. Often referred to by literary critics as our most controversial writer, Christos Tsiolkas lays bare what it means to be Australian, and in this interview I revisit what for me is his most controversial book, Dead Europe.' (Introduction)
Launch of Writers in Conversation 2014, Diana Glenn , single work essay

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Last amended 24 Jun 2015 12:59:04
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