FLEUR MCDONALD, author of the ‘Detective Dave Burrows’ series, has a new series, set in the Australian outback gold mining town of Kalgoorlie. Good Reading caught up with Fleur to find out what sparked the idea for this new crime tale and why she chose Kalgoorlie.
What sparked the idea for The Prospect, the first novel in your new crime series?
I was talking about a new story line with a friend of mine and we were talking about how we get invisible as women, the older we become. Then we got onto grey nomads, and all these people who were traversing this great land for months at a time and I mentioned that would be a great way to hide because no one really takes any notice of the grey nomads (other to get cranky when they don’t drive over 80km/hour!) because, like when women get older, they seem to be invisible. Then when I went to Kalgoorlie and decided that was where I was going to set my next book, I decided to bring them into the forefront of the storyline.
Your story is set in Kalgoorlie, a remote mining town – why did you choose this location and how do you think this setting adds to the atmosphere of the story?
Kalgoorlie and The Great Northern Woodlands is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to. It’s wild and untamed, despite all the tourists that come through and it has a rich history. Gold, two-up, brothels are just a few. Everyone minds their own business until it’s their business. Crime is high, secrets are everywhere and few people trust. Not even their best friend.
Kalgoorlie is also in a pretty rich position for storylines. Firstly, there’s gold mining. Secondly the East/Wester trucks drive by there and the Nullarbor isn’t that far away. Then to the north there’s desert and station country and to the west is farming land. And it’s a city, so really it has everything to make the setting for a good story.
The bush pulsates with character also and become a character within the storyline.
After researching the town of Kalgoorlie, what’s one thing you want readers to understand about the complexities of life there?
It certainly is complex. Without mining, Kalgoorlie wouldn’t exist, but mining also brings in many criminals. Stealing gold is commonplace. Two up is played every Sunday at the two up ring outside of Kal and skimpies are in almost every pub. Laws in Kalgoorlie are different to the rest of Australia!
Zara and Jack are both facing their own challenges in Kalgoorlie. What can you tell us about their characters and their dynamic?
Zara is a journalist and Jack, a detective – there’s so much conflict is in those two words; journalist/detective. Zara is a free spirit, while Jack is conservative and methodical. Their whole relationship is based on opposites and opposites attract. Don’t they?
Over the course of the book, a criminal underground is uncovered (including a smuggling ring) – what inspired you to explore this aspect of rural crime?
Well gold just breeds criminals. There’s so many true stories of criminal exploitation in Kalgoorlie, that I couldn’t not use this as the basis for a novel.
What was the most challenging part of writing this novel?
To begin with, the research, I didn’t know anyone in the police force in Kal, but I had friends up there. Thankfully they were able to introduce me to Detectives in the gold squad and they were happy to answer my questions. I spent many weeks in Kal, in the city itself and the bush so I could write about it authentically and feel the atmosphere, hear the way everyone talks and watch how they live. Not that it was challenging staying up there for great swathes of time, I loved it! What I should point is out is my descriptions of in The Prospect is how I’ve found Kalgoorlie – others may find it different.
You’ve published 24 novels and have an incredibly loyal readership. What do you think has been the key to maintaining such a strong following?
The Prospect is novel 25, which seems amazing to me! And of course the only reason I’m still writing is because readers are still reading. Detective Dave Burrows is a character that seems to resonate with men and women alike, and there’s always lots of discussions around him when I’m doing events, so I guess having characters that people love and can relate to is helpful in keeping readers coming back. But other than that, I’m not really sure, I’m just very grateful people have come along with me all this time. I took a bit of a risk retiring Detective Dave Burrows and I know many people were really disappointed, but I have some goals I’d like to achieve and turning 50 last year made me realise that time is getting less, rather than more, so it was time to take a risk. I hope I can create other characters that people love.
The Prospect is part of a new series. Can you give us any hints about where the series is headed?
Well, I think it’s safe to say that Kalgoorlie is the series. Characters will come and go while Kalgoorlie always stays!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bestselling rural crime author Fleur McDonald has always had a strong affinity with the land and the vast Australian outback. Raised in Orroroo, South Australia, Fleur loves the open roads, red dust and magical sunsets.
With 25 fiction novels and more than 850,000 book sales to her name, Fleur has built a strong following of loyal readers with an insatiable appetite for her craft and characters, most notably Detective Dave Burrows. She spends much of her year behind the wheel, traversing our big country, scouting inspiration and potential storylines for future books, and appearing as a guest speaker at a range of events, including country shows, ladies’ days and writers’ festivals.
A trailblazer in all aspects of her life, Fleur has been a jillaroo farming the land for more than 20 years, founded DVassist to help regional dwellers access crucial support for family and domestic violence, and raised two children with developmental and speech delays, teaching them Makaton sign language to communicate.
These days, in between putting out two books a year, she has her sights set on learning to fly a plane. Fleur lives in Esperance, Western Australia with her two children, Rochelle and Hayden, who come and go as they please and an energetic border collie Shadow.
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