How I write: 'Just start writing and keep going' - Stuff.co.nz

Jane King

Nicola McCloy says she’s happiest reading a book under a tree.

Nicola McCloy grew up in Invercargill but her family roots are firmly planted in the Maniototo in Central Otago. From a young age, she wondered about the lives of the people who had built, worked and lived in the stone cottages and mudbrick homes that dotted the region. Since then, she’s made it her mission to find out – while also investigating the best custard squares, swimming spots and small museums on route.

Which book do you wish you'd written and why?

My next one! The deadline is looming but being stuck in Auckland for four months put the brakes on my research. I’m so looking forward to getting back on the road.

Which writer do you turn to when you have writer's block?

An op-shop copy of The Thoughts of Chairman Fred by Fred Dagg (aka John Clarke) lives on my desk for exactly these moments. His take on writing books is hilarious: ‘I can see how books can be bestsellers compared with pre-war fence strainers and Italian military manuals but not compared with other books.’

Jane King

The Whangmomona Hotel has been providing a warm welcome for travellers and locals since 1911 and features in Nicola McCloy’s 2021 book “Who lived there?”.

Which book had such an impact on you that you bought it for your friends?

Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig. It’s an honest, relatable and hope-filled account of life with depression and anxiety. I’ve given it to friends to help them understand what it’s like to live with mental health issues and also to friends who need a little bit of hope to grab onto.

Jane King

Mitchell's Cottage in Fruitlands, south of Alexandra, is testament to the stonemasonry skills of its builders, brothers Andrew and John Mitchell, from “Who Lived Here?”.

What books have made you cry?

Your Soul is Wintering by Annie Anderson. It’s a beautiful, brave, affecting piece of writing that had me in tears more than once.

Which authors would you want in your book club?

I’m going to go with an all Aotearoa line-up of non-fiction writers (plus one poet), who I love hearing speak, so I can just provide snacks and sit back. Come on over Sarah Gallagher (Scarfie Flats of Dunedin), Stacey Morrison (Kia Kaha), Johanna Knox (The Forager’s Treasury), Grant Smithies (Soundtrack), Ema Tavola (VV:Dua) and unofficial poet laureate, Victor Billot.

Where are you happiest with a book in your hand?

I’ve got a great photo of 9-year-old me hiding in some bushes reading a book in the middle of a New Year’s Eve party. Nothing much has changed – I’m still at my happiest reading a book under a tree.

What book did you read as a child or teen that had a profound effect on you?

Under the Mountain by Maurice Gee. As a kid in Invercargill, Auckland might as well have been another country. I never imagined I’d end up living right where all of its action took place. I’m still too scared to swim in Lake Pupuke because of the Wilberforces!

Stuff

Who Lived There? The Stories Behind Historic New Zealand Buildings.

What's your writing routine?

I’m so not a morning person, so I often write late into the night, but my work day usually revolves around when I can get out for a swim. I spend a huge amount of time doing research, which then has to percolate in my brain before I write anything. Being in the water really helps with this process.

Can you share a piece of good advice you've received about writing?

When I was starting out as an editor, Fiona Kidman, whose work I’ve always loved, told me that, for a writer, being over-edited feels like someone has reached over and done your top button up for you.

What advice do you give to writers starting out?

Try not to get too hooked up in worrying about the right way to write a book. There isn’t one. Just start writing and keep going – the rest will fall into place eventually.

Do you read physical books or digital ones?

I work with digital material a lot when I’m doing research, but for my own reading it’s always a physical book. I think my brain recognises that a paper book isn’t work.

Dudley L Meadows/Stuff

17012022. News. Photo supplied Wylie Cottage, Gisborne Wyliie Cottage was one of the earliest European-style houses to be built in the town that grew to be Gisborne Dudley L Meadows, Tairawhiti Museum

Who Lived There, The Stories Behind Historic New Zealand Buildings, by Nicola McCloy and photographs by Jane King. Penguin Books. RRP $45

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2022-01-25 16:00:00Z
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