Author Life - Geraldine Oliver

Geraldine Oliver, the author of The Undertaker's Apprentice, released his book in April 2020. We wanted to catch up with the new author and see how life had been treating him since he was published.

What was your first job?

Helping my friend’s mother who nursed the night-shift at Chelsea Private Hospital. I was 15 and terrified of the patients, most of whom had dementia.

How did you come about writing your book? Was that your intention or did you start writing for fun?

I did a bit of freelance book design in my capacity as a graphic designer. About the time my late husband became ill with cancer I woke one morning from a particularly vivid dream with the title “The Undertaker’s Apprentice” in mind. (Don’t ask me why.) So I rang Geoff Walker who then headed Random House NZ and he said “That’s a great idea,” which gave me the confidence to arrange an interview with the local undertaker. As my husband’s cancer treatment gradually consumed our lives, my writing became a wonderful escape. I really enjoyed it. I had a beautiful studio under the pohutukawa trees and I’d sit at my computer and laugh my head off as the characters took off on their own accord and virtually wrote themselves.

What was your life like before you became an author?

Freelancing is always a struggle for money or even to be paid at all! My late husband was a brilliant artist but hopeless at business, so it fell to me to organise our finances if we wanted to eat. Luckily we lived in a huge old rambling house in a ruined garden above a peaceful little cove on the Manukau Harbour. It was Big Sky country. We may have been broke but we were also wonderfully free. I roamed around the beaches and hills and bush, completely at home in the outdoors. Locals rang me up and wanted me to join Landcare, so I became seriously involved in conservation projects which I love and am still involved with. Conservation is also extremely sociable! You get to drink good wine and eat wonderful meals with friends who care about the same kind of issues.

Did you face any struggles before becoming an author? If so, how did you overcome them?

The greatest challenge of my life is a serious, but until recently undiagnosed genetic condition inherited from my Irish ancestors. I suffer from mal-absorption, the irony being that now food is plentiful, I can’t process it normally. Consequently I’ve always been terribly thin. (Doctors thought I was thin and neurotic.) Of course most people say they’d love to have my problem, but actually they wouldn’t. Chronic malnutrition is extremely tough to live with. My nephew Hemi (James) who suffered the same condition committed suicide at the age of 29. At worst I weighed less than 38 kilos. Great fodder for a memoir though! I’ve just completed the M/S of “Something’s Eating My Life” for which I’ve already won 2 national literary awards with cash prizes and currently I’m awaiting the outcome of the Ashton Wylie Charitable Trust Book Award for an unpublished M/S. If I win I’ll be able to afford to paint the house!

Now that you are a published author, how has your life changed, if at all?

I’ve the confidence to enter the Ashton Wylie because my literary assessor, Rae McGregor, says my talent is large! (Thankyou Rae.) The fact I’ve been published encourages me to write more. I love the process of following your creative instincts – firstly at Art School and in my lovely old school darkroom, then on the computer writing. It’s such fun I don’t really care about the rest, though it’s a lovely feeling to be able to give my own published work to friends and family who have always been supportive of my creative endeavours.

Can you please describe a typical day in your life now?

My husband’s a sheepfarmer. He owns two stations which run between the sea coast and the ‘back country,’ with 6,000 to 7,000 stock units on the hills. and crops like sweetcorn, squash and peas on the flats. Naturally he rolls out of bed at daybreak so I get up and walk over the oh-so-imaginatively named “Big Hill.” It’s big all right! I can see up and down the East Coast from Portland Island to Cape Kidnappers and when Rocketlab is sending another satellite into space I can spot it standing at the end of Mahia Peninsula like a silver pencil. After my walk I eat breakfast and decide what’s for dinner. The freezer’s full of our own beef and lamb but you have to remember to take it out to thaw. I usually spend a bit of time in the vegetable garden or tending to my nursery of NZ native plants for re-vegetation projects. Then the rest of my time is my own to do what I like with. (Life wasn’t like this when I was an over-worked, underpaid graphic designer I assure you!) In preparation for my next novel I’m learning the Maori language which is a huge challenge, but I have wonderful local tutors and spend time every Tuesday down at Nuhaka School practising my oral skills. Weekends we often drive over the Wharerata Ranges to Tairawhiti/Gisborne where we have a townhouse and a social life!

What is your most memorable moment of your life as an author?

Well my life as a published author is so brand new I haven’t had time for many experiences, especially during the Covid-19 lockdown. But I loved handing our friend Sebastian a copy of my own book. “Look, ‘The Undertaker’s Apprentice’ by GERALDINE OLIVER!’ he said to his two children, ‘Geraldine’s written a book!’ and Phoenix asked “what’s an undertaker?”And my daughter, who lives and works as a design manager in London emailed saying “LOVE the cover Mum! Well done.” She’s an architect by training and tough to impress, aesthetically speaking!

In a few words, how would you review your experience with Pegasus Publishers?

From the moment I first received an email informing me that Pegasus wanted to publish my M/S until now, it’s been an extremely positive experience. I so wish my sister were still alive to know about it! She loved to tease me, saying “oh still trying for fame are we?”

Why did you choose Pegasus Publishers?

New Zealand is still such a tiny market. Radio New Zealand announced this morning (May 18th 2020) that we’ve just passed the 5 million population mark. I tried two or three local publishers but they were nervous of the Maori content and, I think, too politically correct to touch it. Then I saw online that Pegasus were inviting unpublished M/Ss from New Zealand and Australia and took the chance. How easy it is with modern technology! I emailed my submission and received a positive response within the month. Thanks Pegasus!