I love Aussie YA. I love reading books from authors that live in the same country as me, that know things that people out of Australia might be so confused about. I love how sometimes they can incorporate this into their book and it is fabulous.  

So I decided to created a feature where I interview Australian Young Adult authors about their craft, journey and some interesting facts. I thought it was a fun way of everyone around the world to get to know these authors and maybe make them want to pick up their books. And that is what I am aiming to do, spread the word about #LoveOZYA and get everyone reading it. 

You can check out my previous interviews with authors like Jay Kristoff, Gabrielle Tozer, Sarah Ayoub and last week we had Jessica Shirvington, at Angel Reads. 

Today on my #LoveOZYA Interview series we have Helen Chebatte, author of Bro (Hardie Grant Egmont, 2016). 

Hi Helen, welcome to Angel Reads. First can you introduce yourself to everyone? Tell us a little bit about yourself.

Hi everyone! I’m Helen Chebatte and I’m an author, actor and drama teacher, living in Sydney.

I work professionally in film television and theatre. Some of my credits include roles on All Saints, Crownies, the feature film Cedar Boys and more recently the romantic comedy Alex and Eve.  After many years in the film industry however the writing bug bit me – quite surprisingly! This resulted in the publication of my debut novel, BRO, released early 2016.

What has your writing journey been like? When did you start? Why?

Writing came much later in my life. Growing up I had no interest in writing, acting was my dream and I pursued that diligently. However about ten or twelve years ago, a short time after my father passed away, I wrote as a way of expressing my grief. It wasn’t until I stopped I realised how much I loved it. I started again but this time I wrote creatively. It was so much fun I began to take it more seriously, enrolling in courses, attending festivals and subscribing to writing organisations. I also co-founded a writers group during this time and we’ve been meeting once a month for many years now.

What was the process of getting your first book published?

I’d always liked entering my manuscripts in writing competitions. It was a way of getting feedback on my work. But I got a lot more when I entered my YA novel, BRO into the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Frustrated Writers’ Mentorship Competition. I won! With that came a most eye-opening mentorship. We worked on many aspects of the manuscript, improving it considerably. It wasn’t enough to get me over the line though.

Following the mentorship I had it assessed professionally. This meant more work until eventually it was ready for submission to publishers. Within weeks I had three separate publication offers come through. You can imagine how I felt – I was jumping so high you’d think there was a trampoline under my feet.

I decided to go with Hardie Grant Egmont. They were fantastic! Hilary Rogers knew exactly what BRO was about. She understood multiculturalism and its importance in Australian literature and she was supportive of the character’s language which was very important to me and to the authentication of the story.  

What was your journey as a debut YA author in Australia? What was the hardest thing?

The year between signing a publishing contract and the release date was hardest – in a fun sort of way. The manuscript underwent another thorough sweep. Strengthening the parts that moved the story forward and carving away those that suddenly had no bearing on the narrative was challenging.

Trying to keep focus on the changes and their effect on the rest of the story was an intricate balancing act. I was fortunate to have a great team at Hardie Grant Egmont; their sharp eyes helped me keep the equilibrium.  It’s odd because while some days it was exhausting, it was also very creatively satisfying.

You are an OZYA author, what are some of your favourite Aussie YA books?

So many! I loved reading the YA novels Sea hearts and Tender Morsels, both by Margo Lanagan – I could read them again. Into that Forest by Louis Nowra is also great. I thoroughly enjoyed The Incredible Here and Now by Felicity Castagna as well as Nona and Me by Claire Atkins – both brilliant.

Others that stand out in my mind are Shadow Girl by John Larkin, The Dead I Know by Scott Gardner, The Shiny Guys by Doug Macleod and Friday Brown by Vicki Wakefield.

I have yet to read Bro, but I will have to get on it real soon. You can find Helen on twitter at @helenchebatte, on her website, and you can add her book to your goodreads. 

 
Bro by Helen Chebatte

Pages: 240
Publish date: February 1st 2016
Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont
ISBN: 9781760125509
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon AU – Dymocks 

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Thank you Helen for joining me at Angel Reads and sharing your journey. Have you read Bro? Did you like it? Are you going to read it? 

Come back next week for some more Aussie fun. If you want to know more about the #LoveOZYA movement check out the website for all the details. Also if you have any Australian YA authors that you would like to see me interview, just let me know and I can see what I can do.