Karen: The stories were written with the intention of exploring people's inner selves, especially those aspects of self that lie hidden below the surface of everyday interactions and words. These parts of people are often fiercely guarded, even from ourselves, and often somewhat dark - at least initially, although I feel it becomes less so with exposure.
Maggie: How did the stories come about? Did you write them together, or for separate purposes; over a long period or short period of time?
Karen: Soul Dark Soil was written over the period of a year and a half (1998/99). The stories came from an emotionally raw period in my life, in which I craved something that was purely mine, and into which I escaped. Raising small children, having no privacy, meant that these fictitious people and landscapes provided boundaries otherwise missing.
Maggie: This is your first published book, and your bio notes indicate that you've worked at a number of professions. Have you thought of yourself as a writer for a long time?
Maggie: I wrote poetry as a teenager, and short stories as a young adult, and wanted to study literature once I left school in order to 'be a writer', but also wanted money, luxury, material stuff. Years later, after my children were born, I experienced a shift: moved into the country and away from material values and ambitions. I thought it seemed the ideal time to focus once again on writing, to pick it up. Actually, it became critical for happiness, and fed me through some dark days.
I've always thought of myself as a writer, in the sense of loving words, loving to play with them, build with them, immerse myself in them. Being a voracious reader is also a large part of my life, providing a way into 'other'.
Maggie: How did you come to have the work published by Zaresky Press? Did you specifically seek out a small publisher (and if so, why?)
Karen: I read an article by Joseph Zaresky (publisher/director of Zpress) in Newswrite, the magazine of the NSW Writer's Centre. In it, he discussed his reactions to the move against unsolicited manuscripts amongst mainstream publishing houses, and expressed his intention of 'hanging out the red light' on his own, in order to encourage writing which may not fit the mainstream profile. I was impressed, so sent some stories to him (the earliest stories from 1998.), and not long after that, he rang me and said he wanted to publish my collection of stories. He wanted about 150 pages of manuscript, and it took about a year to write, after which, the editing and production began.
 |
