2. What is your nickname?
My close family and friends call me Oli or Ol … and many variations of those. To my sister, and only my sister, I’m known as Polly.
3. What is your greatest fear?
Discovering I have a lot of fears. But one big one is letting fear get in the way of experiencing new things, people and ideas.
4. Describe your writing style in 10 words.
Fun sad universal activism jokes love quippy sassy gentle joy.
5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Silly. Passionate. Wordy. Energetic. Emotional.
6. What book character would you be, and why?
Olivia the Pig. Not because of the name thing. Just because I relate to her dramatic tendencies on a deep deep level. When I first read Olivia, I genuinely thought Ian Falconer had based her on me. See. Dramatic! (To be fair to me, I was 6 at the time.)
7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
Maybe 1956. To witness the dawn of television in Australia. That whole era fascinates me, and I would do a lot of department store shopping. That or 1978 to observe my parents in their mid-teens. Just for fun.
8. What would your 10-year-old self say to you now?
Your life is very different to how I imagined it would be. But it is still really awesome! I can’t believe all the cool things you get to do.
9. Who is your greatest influence?
There is no one answer to this question. Life is my greatest influence and so many people (and animals) have touched my life, that it would be impossible to choose just one.
10. What/who made you start writing?
Every writer who’s ever written a book, tv show or movie that I’ve enjoyed. I just love watching stories and character relationships unfold. And I was always thinking, 'I want to do that'. So, eventually I did.
11. What is your favourite word and why?
Effervescent! Because it means both energetic and vivacious, and fizzy sparkly bubbles. So many of my favourite things in one word. And it’s fun to say.
12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
How mean! But The Piper’s Son by Melina Marchetta is a book I come back to every time I need a good laugh, a good cry, a good hug, or a good reminder that life can be extraordinarily cruel but still extraordinarily funny, hopeful and beautiful. I could read that book forever.
Olivia Muscat lives in Naarm/Melbourne with her guide dog, Jemima. When she’s not writing, Olivia teaches children and occasionally performs on stage. Jemima loves sleeping, fetching, the beach and ice cream. This is her first book. For more information, see www.oliviamuscat.com.