The Writers and Readers festival season is upon us! As I have a new book out – Sea Change - I will be taking part in several Festivals. The first is at Mapua which is a lovely festival. I’ve been there before and have always enjoyed this one, at the community library close to the... Continue Reading →
A wonderful (to me) thing happened recently. My early novel, Catching The Current, was published in the Faroe Islands in a Faroese translation. Such an event must surely be rare as the population is small and most speak Danish and English ahead of their native language which is a relation of Icelandic. Soon after the... Continue Reading →
Part of the deal when you have a new book out, is responding to a flurry of interviews. Lise, the publicist for Bateman, my publisher, is a tiger at arranging these so I’ve been busy answering radio, print and blog requests. Some writers dislike this part of the process of selling books, but I enjoy... Continue Reading →
A special launch of Jenny's latest book Sea Change is happening on Sunday 6th April from 3pm at St Peter's Hall in Paekakariki. Tilly Lloyd from Unity Books will launch it. Louise Russell of Bateman Books will say a few words. There'll be refreshments, music, a reading by Jenny Pattrick and you can buy books... Continue Reading →
I am fully immersed in Theatre Production 101 at the moment. My first professional adult play – Hope- is playing at Circa Theatre to full houses so far, with three and a half weeks to go. It was both nerve wracking and exciting to see on opening night, all those people who’d paid good money... Continue Reading →
The new novel is off to the printer so my publisher tells me. Hooray! The long meticulous slog of proofreading is over, the cover image is chosen and looks fabulous, the blurb on the back cover approved and the sketch-maps finalised. Now my head is free to read other people’s novels. Irish novelist Sebastian Barry... Continue Reading →
I’m wondering about a sequel to Harbouring. Sequels are fun because your characters – or some of them – are already alive in your mind. And with so much interest – and controversy – these days in our early colonial history, it seems important to explore ideas around that time. What were the big issues... Continue Reading →
By Publication Date, the next novel should be at least half written. That is a mantra that most writers will expect of themselves. I know many writers who have more than one thing on the go. Not me. But in the past I have tried to keep to that pattern. When you send a finished... Continue Reading →
The Harbouring adaptation has hit a roadblock. My sister is ill and needs help. Certain things are not negotiable and looking after family or friends are - in my book – more important. So here I am in my sister’s house caring for her and trying to write at an uncomfortable table, peering at the... Continue Reading →
I’m about to embark on a difficult task - cutting my novel Harbouring down from eighty-five thousand words to twenty-four thousand, while still keeping the story driving forward sensibly and the words lively and interesting. More or less reducing the whole by three quarters. ‘Throw away your darlings’ as we are encouraged to do in... Continue Reading →
Jenny Pattrick 