Social worker turned author Shirley Patton: ‘I am grateful for every day’

Recently I read a book by a new Australian author, Shirley Patton, which was reviewed for Starts at 60 by Lorraine Parker. As I lived in Kalgoorlie for a few years, I enjoyed revisiting the setting of Shirley’s novel The Secrets We Keep and appreciated the insight she gave into a number of difficult subjects. (Click on the title to read Lorraine’s review.)

Shirley has kindly shared some thoughts on books, her inspirations, ageing and life with Starts at 60.

Who is Shirley Patton?

I wonder if we might have a different response to that lovely question every decade!

Currently, I am an author living in beautiful wine growing country in northern Tasmania overlooking the Tamar River, with my partner, and a nine-year-old miniature schnauzer called Shimla. I called her Shimla after a town in Himachel Pradesh, in northern India, below the Himalayas, where I visited in 2008, a month after my father died. My debut novel, ‘The Secrets We Keep‘ was written after that trip and is set in the goldmining town of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, on the edge of the Nullarbor Plains, where I grew up. I wonder if perhaps, becoming more reflective after these events, contributed to the setting and the poignancy of some of the story’s themes.

Prior to writing fiction, I worked as a social worker for a decade then obtained a PhD researching in the area of domestic violence, and for another decade taught social workers at the University of Tasmania.

What was your favourite book as a child and why?
‘Snugglepot and Cuddlepie’, when very young – I adored the illustrations of the gum nut babies – still do! Later, I loved ‘Call of the Wild’ and ‘What Katy Did Next’.

What book made the most lasting impression on you?
Oh, so many to choose from – Alexander Solzhenitsyn’s haunting and heartbreaking ‘Gulag Archipelago’; Germaine Greer’s eye-opening ‘The Female Eunuch’; Marion Bradley’s mystical Arthurian tale ‘The Mists of Avalon’; Mary McCarthy’s banned book ‘The Group’ about women’s lives; and Drusilla Modjeska’s beautiful literary novel ‘The Orchard’ because it made me want to write about women’s lives.

Is there a book you think “I wish I had written that”?
More than one! ‘The Orchard’ by Drusilla Modjeska; Eleanor Catton’s 2013 Man Booker winning novel ‘The Luminaries’ and ‘The Mists of Avalon’ by Marion Bradley.

What are you currently reading?
I have just finished reading the recently released debut novels of two author friends from Tasmania – Stephanie Parkyn’s stunning historical novel ‘Into the World’ based on the true story of a French woman who disguised herself as a man and sailed with the French expedition ships; and Esther Campion’s delightful novel, ‘Leaving Ocean Road’.

What are you writing at present?
My next adult novel, set in northern Tasmania in the 1800s, is based on the true story of a scandal amongst the landed gentry. I love the recent spate of books ‘writing women into history’ and I want to write this story from the woman’s perspective.

Are you a planner or do your books form organically?
More organically, although I get a feeling for possible endings. I find if I just keep writing and don’t think ahead too much, it flows more readily. Once I find my main protagonist the rest follows – I am often surprised by what emerges and the characters who appear. In ‘The Secrets We Keep’, the secrets came first then I found the characters who would carry them.

What was your first job?
Gosh, that’s going back a bit! Working in a milk bar in Kalgoorlie – I was 13 and it was school holidays. Part of the pay was free milkshakes! Next was as a nursing assistant at the Kalgoorlie Regional Hospital.

When I’m not writing I’m: reading, socialising with friends, travelling.

What is the most outrageous/bravest/silliest thing you have done in your life?
Oh, I can’t answer the most outrageous thing! But one of the silliest things I did was not listening to my intuition to not go with a group on a 10 kilometre sea kayaking trip the day after I learnt to kayak! I became so seasick I had to be left on a tiny island and was eaten alive by mosquitoes and March flies until they picked me up on the way back and towed me to shore. Embarrassing.

What brings you joy?
Love – feeling it, giving it, being around loving people.

Is there a book you keep re-reading; something that never gets old for you or where you still find nuances?
I rarely re-read a book. The books referred to earlier, ‘The Mists of Avalon’, The Group’ and ‘The Orchard’, are three I have chosen to re-read because the themes they explore remain timeless for me.

Is there a character you really identify with, either in one of your books or indeed another author’s work?

The women, the main characters, in each of the three books above. If you have ever seen the cover of the ‘Mists of Avalon’, with the main character Morgaine, riding the white horse – I can readily imagine that’s me! I would love it if readers felt they resonated with one or more of the women in The Secrets We Keep’.

Are you looking forward to ageing? Why/Why not?
Oh yes, I have come to love each phase of my life, each decade. Of course, there are adjustments, gains and losses but I’m so grateful for the life I have and the opportunities I’ve been given. I am aware it can all change in a heartbeat so I am grateful for every day.

As this is Starts at 60, and you are in fact “one of us”, i.e. over 60, how do you feel about reaching this milestone?
Starts at 60 couldn’t be more apt for me, as becoming a writer and a debut novelist has been part of having reached that milestone. I like to say, ‘you’re never too old to follow your creative dreams’. Whilst I am aware there are restraints to doing so, and I am aware of my privilege, I love to encourage people to follow their dreams.

*****

What an interesting woman! Many thanks, Shirley for sharing with Starts at 60 and good wishes for the success of The Secrets We Keep.