As a kid, I didn’t like reading books. I preferred comics because they were funny and full of action. All the books I was offered were dull and serious, and not nearly as exciting as the wild and naughty things that happened every single day in my own back yard.
2. What is your nickname?
My friends call me Kate. My sons call me Wahm – said like ‘Muuuum’ but with a ‘w’ at the start and a long, whining sound in the middle.
3. What is your greatest fear?
Getting stuck on a sheer rockface, hundreds of meters above the ground. I have nightmares about it.
4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
Adventure, history and humour wrapped in warm, wonderful words. (Maybe that’s only nine words, but I’m a writer not a mathematician!)
5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Happy, daydreamy, thoughtful, motivated, disciplined.
6. What book character would you be, and why?
Nanny Piggins, because she lives her life with such purpose and joy. She’s creative, energetic, adventurous and assertive. She’s a wonderful role model for girls, women, childcare workers and pigs.
7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
1796. I’d like to sit beside Jane Austen as she wrote her first draft of Pride and Prejudice. I’d like to see how she worked. Did she plan? Did she daydream? Did she write the same sentence 20 times until she got it just right? Did she stop for lots of cups of tea?
8. What would your 10-year-old self say to you now?
Huh! I thought you were going to be a vet.
9. Who is your greatest influence?
My husband and my sons. They’re all smart and funny and really good at playing with words. They’ve sparked many great story ideas.
10. What/who made you start writing?
A fascination with stories. I love the way a good story becomes real. We disappear into the imaginary world and live alongside the characters, or even become one of the characters. I longed to create some of that story magic myself.
11. What is your favourite word and why?
Flabbergasted. It’s old fashioned so not overused, and the sound of it is a great match for the meaning. You cannot say, ‘I’m flabbergasted!’ without truly sounding flabbergasted.
12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Pride and Prejudice. It’s beautifully written, funny and full of fabulous characters. And it has a happy ending. I love a happy ending.
Katrina Nannestad is an award-winning Australian author. Her books include The Girl Who Brought Mischief, The Girl, the Dog and the Writer series, the Olive of Groves series, the Red Dirt Diaries series and the Lottie Perkins series, and most recently, We Are Wolves. Visit her at www.katrinanannestad.com.