Q&A: Stephanie Parkyn

Photo by Mel de Ruyter

Ahead of our event to celebrate The Freedom of Birds, author Stephanie Parkyn answers our Q&A. The Freedom of Birds is an evocative historical novel about two French storytellers and a runaway girl who travel through fairytale lands, Italian theatres, and the battlefields of France in search of a place to belong as Napoleon's Empire falls.

1. How are you and what have you been up to lately?

Actually, I am exhausted! Summer is our busy time up here in the Coromandel, and I have been running a campground shop to keep campers in ice and ice cream and raise funds for our local environment group, and I also help out at an art gallery.

2. If you were working in a bookshop, how would you hand-sell your book to customers? What would you say to convince them to buy and read it?

If you like a tale that will sweep you away, books that are well written, researched AND thoroughly entertaining, and with characters you care about, then please buy my book!

3. What books (or other art/media) influenced you while writing this book, or generally in your life?

The Freedom of Birds is heavily influenced by art, theatre and storytelling - all the arts that help to define our culture. I read some Shakespeare for this novel, The Taming of the Shrew and Romeo and Juliet feature in the story, and I read many of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales as the brothers were collecting stories in the region my characters visit. Also I love to refer to paintings from the periods I am writing about to give more atmosphere to my writing.

4. What good books have you read lately?

I am reading the masterful Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr at the moment and I have also recently enjoyed Rosetta Allan’s Crazy Love, and The Good Wife of Bath by Karen Brooks.

Buy The Freedom of Birds (Allen & Unwin), $37

Come to the launch on 3 Feb at GOOD BOOKS.