Q. What was your inspiration for the book?
A. Well, I love the beach and I love Queenslander houses, so that was my setting sorted out. Also there are so few books set in QLD and I wanted to make it somewhere that people could relate to (most people who come to QLD for a holiday go to the beach). And there is the magic of a holiday - when you are there the 'real' world seems so far away and in that little bubble you believe all your problems can be solved.
Q. Why a fictional town rather than a real place?
A. I did contemplate this for a while, but in the end I needed to be able to control the setting to suit the story. I did mention as many 'real' places as I could to help people to relate to the settings that the characters are from.
Q. So, then is Sunset Point based on a real town?
A. Not really....not one town in particular. There are elements of a few small towns in it (not necessarily beachside towns) and also memories of towns from my childhood (back when Noosa and Mooloolaba were much smaller).
Q. Continuing in that vein is Sunset Point Beach and the house itself based on a real beach or real house?
A. Once again, not really. The beach is a combination of about three of my favourite beaches and the house a combination of several Queenslander houses I have been in (including a beach house that used to be in Maroochydore a really long time ago).
A. Well, I love the beach and I love Queenslander houses, so that was my setting sorted out. Also there are so few books set in QLD and I wanted to make it somewhere that people could relate to (most people who come to QLD for a holiday go to the beach). And there is the magic of a holiday - when you are there the 'real' world seems so far away and in that little bubble you believe all your problems can be solved.
Q. Why a fictional town rather than a real place?
A. I did contemplate this for a while, but in the end I needed to be able to control the setting to suit the story. I did mention as many 'real' places as I could to help people to relate to the settings that the characters are from.
Q. So, then is Sunset Point based on a real town?
A. Not really....not one town in particular. There are elements of a few small towns in it (not necessarily beachside towns) and also memories of towns from my childhood (back when Noosa and Mooloolaba were much smaller).
Q. Continuing in that vein is Sunset Point Beach and the house itself based on a real beach or real house?
A. Once again, not really. The beach is a combination of about three of my favourite beaches and the house a combination of several Queenslander houses I have been in (including a beach house that used to be in Maroochydore a really long time ago).
Q. What about the characters - are they based on real people?
A. That's always a tricky quesiton! Honestly, no there isn't any character totally based on a real person, but there are elements of different people in certain characters as well as elements of myself. Although there are a couple of cameo appearances of 'real' people for very minor characters (and yes they have recognised themselves!).
Q. Why did you choose to set the stories mainly in the 1990s?
A. In all honesty, when I first had the idea for this book, the 1990s weren't that long ago! But even as time went on (and the book still wasn't finished), I didn't feel any need to change the years they were set. I actually enjoyed writing a stories that didn't need to mention the internet or Facebook. I also thought it gave a good time lapse for when the characters come together in the Epilogue.
Q. Was it hard to remember things to set the stories so many years ago?
A. Is it just me or does it seem like the 90s weren't that long ago? No, it honestly wasn't hard at all. I have very good memories of those years and didn't have to think to hard to remember events, movies, songs etc.
A. That's always a tricky quesiton! Honestly, no there isn't any character totally based on a real person, but there are elements of different people in certain characters as well as elements of myself. Although there are a couple of cameo appearances of 'real' people for very minor characters (and yes they have recognised themselves!).
Q. Why did you choose to set the stories mainly in the 1990s?
A. In all honesty, when I first had the idea for this book, the 1990s weren't that long ago! But even as time went on (and the book still wasn't finished), I didn't feel any need to change the years they were set. I actually enjoyed writing a stories that didn't need to mention the internet or Facebook. I also thought it gave a good time lapse for when the characters come together in the Epilogue.
Q. Was it hard to remember things to set the stories so many years ago?
A. Is it just me or does it seem like the 90s weren't that long ago? No, it honestly wasn't hard at all. I have very good memories of those years and didn't have to think to hard to remember events, movies, songs etc.
