A day in the life of Sue Parritt
The day
begins around 7.15 when my husband, an early riser, brings me a cup of
tea in bed and slips back in beside me. I savour each sip; this first
cup somehow superior to all those that follow, ponder between brief
conversation yesterday’s paragraphs awaiting attention. Out of bed no
later than 7.45, lingering, daydreaming or staring into space isn’t an
option for this well-organised writer. Breakfast a brief affair: muesli,
toast, and another cup of tea. Next item on the agenda is the morning
walk along the cliff top. I walk at a reasonable pace for half an hour,
one day one direction, next day other direction. Where tangled trees
give way to coastal shrubs or grassy banks the view is magnificent and
ever-changing. Mirror-smooth or white-capped, I never tire of Port
Philip Bay. Then it’s back home to domestic deeds or a quick trip to the
shops, cursing long queues in the bank and post office, toddlers
running riot in the supermarket, the spiralling cost of household
necessities. Like the late Elisabeth Jolley, I can’t settle to writing
until these chores have been completed.
Mid-morning I
begin the key business of the day, the pursuing of a long-held dream,
reward for long years supplying others’needs. In order to focus my mind,
particularly if writing a first draft, I return to the previous day’s
work, rereading and editing obvious errors. Major edits are generally
postponed for the second and subsequent drafts but as a reminder I
insert directions such as ‘extend para’ or ‘rewrite whole chapter’ into
the text in upper case. When ideas pertinent to a different part of the
narrative surface, I scribble them on paper, adding them later to a file
of notes on the computer. A cataloguer in my former life, I am
meticulous about organising my files in an easily retrievable form.
Atypically, my desk is often a mess with pieces of paper scattered
around, and by the end of the day, numerous empty teacups, plates and
here I confess to a bad habit, crumbs caught in the keyboard!
Writing
is a lonely business and occasionally a phone call or knock at the door
can be a welcome intrusion (as any writer will attest) when staring at a
problem paragraph threatens to cause meltdown or migraine. However, the
longer I spend writing, the more I resent intrusions and am considering
having a studio built in the garden (no phones, no temptation to run
and answer the door) in order to achieve the desired peace and quiet.
Around
five or six, depending on whether I’m on a roll or literally stuck for
words, I save my document to a USB despite the fact I have a Seagate
backup plus drive and venture into the kitchen to prepare the evening
meal. Sometimes, in an attempt to ignore my secondary role, I set the
oven timer for an hour or so and settle back down in front of the
computer. Oh, for a string of servants to perform those boring but
essential domestic tasks!
About the Author:
Sue
Parritt is an Australian writer, originally from England. Her poetry
and short stories have been published in magazines and anthologies in
Australia, Britain and the USA. After graduating BA University of
Queensland 1982 (majors: English Literature, Drama and French), Sue
worked in university libraries until taking early retirement in 2008 to
pursue her long-held dream of becoming a professional writer. Since
then she has written Sannah and the Pilgrim, numerous short stories and poems and‘Feed Thy Enemy’,
a feature film script set in Naples in 1944 and 1974 and based on a
true story (Sue is currently seeking a producer). She recently completed
a second novel Safety Zone and is now writing a sequel to Sannah and the Pilgrim – the working title is Pia and the Skyman.
General Information - Sannah and the Pilgrim by Sue Parritt
ISBN: 978-1-922200-14-3
Genre: Speculative Fiction / Sci-fi / Dystopian
Release Date: 26 April 2014 (Paperback and ebook)
Description:
When
Sannah the Storyteller, a descendant of environmental refugees from
drowned Pacific islands, finds a White stranger on her domestep, she
presumes he’s a political prisoner on the run seeking safe passage to
egalitarian Aotearoa. However, Kaire’s unusual appearance, bizarre
behaviour, and insistence he’s a pilgrim suggest otherwise.
Appalled
by apartheid Australia, Kaire uses his White privileges to procure
vital information for Sannah and her group of activists regarding new
desert prisons that are to be built to house all political prisoners.
The group plans sabotage but needs help, and Kaire is a willing
accomplice. But when Sannah turns Truthteller and threatens to reveal
the country’s true history, even Kaire’s White privilege and advanced
technology cannot save Sannah and her daughter from retribution.
About Sannah and the Pilgrim:
Sannah
and the Pilgrim is a tale of courage, defiance and deceit that asks the
reader, ‘Would you risk death by telling the truth about your country,
or would you play it safe and spend your life as a storyteller?’
Are
you concerned about our governments’ (both past and present) failure to
act on climate change and the detention and inhumane treatment of
refugees? I am, so I have drawn on contemporary conservative attitudes
to present a dystopian view of a future Australia in my speculative
fiction novel Sannah and the Pilgrim. Read it and discover what could
happen to our‘lucky’ country.
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