The Rosie Black Chronicles Book 1 Genesis Interview

The Rosie Black Chronicles Book 1: Genesis

Rosie Black is on the run to save her family and uncover the truth.

Five hundred years into the future, the world is a different place. The Melt has sunk most of the coastal cities and Newperth is divided into the haves, the "Centrals"; the have-nots, the 'Bankers'; and the fringe dwellers, the 'Ferals'.

Rosie Black is a Banker. When Rosie finds an unusual box, she has no idea of the grave consequences of her discovery. A mysterious organisation wants it - and they'll kill to get it. Forced to rely on two strangers, Rosie is on the run. But who can she trust? Pip, the too attractive Feral, or the secretive man he calls boss?

From Earth to Mars, Rosie must learn the secrets of the box. Before it's too late.

Lara Morgan is a first-generation Australian of Croatian and Bermudian descent. She wrote her first book when she was seven - a plagiarised version of The Magic Faraway Tree - and has been writing on and off ever since. She has worked in community arts and at a community newspaper but now spends most of her time writing. Awakening, Book One of her adult trilogy, The Twins of Saranthium, was released in 2008 by Pan Macmillan. Book Two in the series, Betrayal was released in March 2010. www.lara-morgan.com

The Rosie Black Chronicles Book 1: Genesis
Walker Books
Author: Lara Morgan
ISBN: 9781921529399
RRP: $24.95
www.rosieblack.com

Interview with Lara Morgan on 'The Rosie Black Chronicles'

How did you come up with the idea of The Rosie Black Chronicles?

Lara Morgan: After writing the second book in my adult fantasy series I really wanted to do something totally different. For some time I've had a lot of concerns about and interest in climate change and I've always been fascinated with trying to predict what kind of society we will be living in in the future - the technological side as well as the cultural side - so I thought I would write a young adult novel set in the future and specifically a future Earth that has battled through some harsh effects of climate change. And I wanted to see this world through the eyes of a teenage girl and tell the story of what it is like for her in that future world. It was originally going to be a stand alone novel but once I'd 'met' Rosie and developed the story of the battle between her and the shadowy Helios and her relationship with that feral boy Pip, I found I couldn't tell it all in one book so it expanded into a series.


Is the character, Rosie Black based on anyone you know?

Lara Morgan: I never base any character on anyone in particular. Rosie is probably a composite of many people, including myself, but it's never a conscious decision. I find my characters sort of turn up once I start thinking about a story - almost as if they already exist and have just knocked on the door of my mind and introduced themselves and I get to know them as I write about their life. Of course I was also a teenage girl once so that really helps!


How did you go about writing five hundred years into the future?

Lara Morgan: I did a lot of research. I read heaps of books and articles about climate change predictions, space exploration and lots of fascinating stuff about what kind of world we could be according to different scientists and thinkers then imagined what might come from all of that. I tried to create a world that might grow from all those issues we are seeing now like rising sea levels, climate refugees and the way our society is adapting and changing with new technologies and I also tried to keep to the laws of physics - as much as I understand about them - especially when it came to the space travel and colony on Mars that features in the book.


How much of your inspiration comes from real life and real people?

Lara Morgan: I think every writer is inspired by the real world but the way those experiences are transmuted in our minds is such a personal thing - the twists and turns our brains make of the every day. So much of what inspires me comes very much from what I see happening in the world around me, the way our world and society is going as a whole, and certain things people might write or say. The very first kernel of the idea for Rosie Black's world came from reading Tim Flannery's book The Weather Makers, but that was kind of unusual to have something so specific inspire me. Usually it tends to be more a cumulative effect. I like to write about the relationships between people and how they cope with terrible consequences, how it changes them, and I'm inspired by lots of different things from favourite books, movies, tv shows, documentaries and so on and by watching and listening and thinking about things and them my imagination takes over and all kinds of strange and unusual ideas sprout from my mind and it all gets chaotic until I start getting things down.


What advice do you have for aspiring writers or artists?

Lara Morgan: Finish what you've started. It's really important to keep writing a story or novel right to the end, regardless of how mind bogglingly bad you might think it is because you can always fix it in the editing stage. It really is true that all writing is re-writing. My first drafts are always a mess with plot holes, chapters that make no sense when compared with later ones, characters that change names and the inevitable clichés that come out when you're writing quickly. The trick is to pretend you can't see any of it and keep on going to the end, then you can turn around, cry a little bit at how bad it is, and fix it. And this is my second bit of advice: no one but you should see your first draft. Ever. And I mean no one. Do not even show it to your best friend because they will only pretend it's good - they don't really understand a word of it and are too terrified to tell you in case you start bawling or maybe go on a wounded writer rampage, tear out your hair and take to chainsawing innocent furniture. So resist the urge and wait until you've done two or three drafts, your friend will be grateful and your story will be better.