Show Your Working is a regular column exploring how writers get things done. In this instalment, we peek into the writing routine of internationally bestselling author Liane Moriarty. Her latest novel, Here One Moment, is out now.
Images: Supplied.
Here One Moment asks what we would do differently if we knew when we were going to die. How did this novel come about?
I came up with the idea during a long flight delay at Hobart Airport. All the passengers had boarded the plane when the pilot asked for our patience as there was an issue that needed to be resolved. I can’t remember now if it was a mechanical issue or a hold-up with paperwork, I just remember sighing because the flight was already running late. The upshot was that we were stuck on the tarmac, seatbelts buckled, waiting, waiting, waiting for an excruciatingly long time. I was travelling on my own and had no book to read and that’s when this cheerful thought popped into my head: Every person on this plane will one day die. But when? And how? I looked around at my fellow passengers and thought, Will that little girl live until she’s one hundred? Will that young man have his life cut short? What about that beautiful flight attendant? It occurred to me that somewhere in the far-off future the answers to all those questions would be available. I thought, What if that information was available NOW? What if someone walked down the aisle telling every passenger how and when we would die? And what if those predictions came true? When the flight finally took off and passengers applauded with relief, I knew I had a good opening scene for a novel.
Did any books influence the writing process?
I had a stack of non-fiction books and memoirs about death, probability, OCD, palm reading, psychics and Australia in the 50s and 60s. I didn’t read them from start to finish but flicked through to see what caught my eye—and it all helped drive the story.
Describe your writing practice?
My writing habits are random. I don’t have a particularly regimented routine or any special rituals when I sit down to write. I do restrict my internet access and I try to ensure I write at least five hundred words a day. I will often write in three-hour blocks or ‘shifts’. I got into this habit when my children, who are now teens, were very young and I would have a babysitter take care of them for three hours at a time. I found I was more productive in those three precious hours than when I had the luxury of whole days at my disposal back when I was single and child-free!
I don’t have a particularly regimented routine or any special rituals.
What does your workspace look like?
I have a home office, and it’s quite chaotic. There are crumbs in my keyboard and a smelly labrador lying at my feet. I would prefer it to be tidier. I would also prefer it to have an ocean view. (A view of snow-capped mountains would also be very much appreciated.) And a Downton Abbey-style butler, who appeared at the door whenever I rang for him.
What sort of software and hardware do you use to get your work done?
I have a desktop computer with a giant monitor, and I use a very old version of Microsoft Word, which I guess is no longer being ‘supported’ or whatever it is that happens when you don’t update your software. My children are appalled by the state of my technology—it’s somehow embarrassing to them. They say things like, ‘Call yourself a writer?’
There are crumbs in my keyboard and a smelly labrador lying at my feet.
What’s your editing process like?
I edit as I’m writing. And I’m always editing what I wrote the previous day. It’s how I procrastinate.
I don’t show my work to anyone until I’m ready to deliver my manuscript. I normally send it to my sister at the same time as I send it to my editors, but her job is to read it very fast and tell me everything she loves about it. I receive a joint structural edit from my Australian, US and UK editors, and if all three say, ‘This needs to go’ then obviously it needs to go! I enjoy the editing process, even if I initially resist some of the comments.
How do you navigate your various kinds of work?
I say no to most, if not all publicity requests when I’m writing. I find the skill sets required are so different, and it takes me so long to recover from the horror of having my photograph taken.
How do you encourage inspiration to strike?
Exercise, chocolate, driving, setting a timer and promising myself I will write anything at all for twenty minutes—even if it’s rubbish—without stopping or thinking too much.
What’s next for you?
I’m writing a sequel to Big Little Lies.
