Living the Crime Writer's Dream: Candice Fox at the St Albans Writers' Festival

Living the Crime Writer’s Dream: Candice Fox at the St Albans Writers’ Festival

‘I’ve tried to reimagine Sydney as a sort of noir, dastardly underworld version of itself.’ – Candice Fox

This month one of Australian’s best crime fiction writers will be part of the illustrious line-up at the St Albans Writers’ Festival. Candice Fox’s first novel, Hades, won the Ned Kelly Award for best debut in 2014 from the Australian Crime Writers Association. The sequel, Eden, won the Ned Kelly Award for best crime novel in 2015, making Candice only the second author to win these accolades back-to-back. Her third novel, Fall, was published to critical acclaim.

Fox’s latest novel Never Never is a collaboration with the international bestselling author James Patterson and is currently riding high on the Australian bestseller list. It’s a stunning book set in the Australian outback, and the two writers are already working on a sequel.

The Sydney-born writer spoke to Better Reading about her life as a crime writer and the St Albans Writers’ Festival.

Better Reading: It’s been an incredible few years for you – your first novel Hades winning a Ned Kelly for best debut, the sequel Eden winning the Ned Kelly for best crime novel last year and now a collaboration with James Patterson on Never Never, now in the bestseller list. How does it feel to be living the dream as a crime writer?

Candice Fox: It’s more stressful than you’d think! A lot of that has to do with pressure that I put on myself not to screw this dream life up. Writing full time is more than I could ever have hoped for as a job, and in my family we tend to think in very dramatic ways about luck and fate and karma. I feel as though something this good deserved something really bad in return. I know logically that the world doesn’t work that way, but emotionally it’s a different story. I’m just maintaining my love of writing, and not bowing to the pressure to write when/what my heart’s not in.

BR: We’ve seen some interesting developments in Australian crime fiction in general in recent years, with some great new writers on the scene, including yourself. Do you think Australian crime fiction is more popular than it has ever been?

CF: It could be. I certainly think female crime writers in Australia are getting a better look in.; I think the rise of Scandanavian crime fiction has opened up possibilities for readers looking for stories in exotic locations, where the weight used to be in American and UK based settings.

BR: Can you tell us a little about what you’ll be discussing at the St Albans Writers’ Festival?

CF: I’m always happy to follow a conversation where it goes at writers festivals, but I believe I’m talking about ‘other worlds’ and people familiar with my Bennett/Archer series will know I’ve tried to reimagine Sydney as a sort of noir, dastardly underworld version of itself.

BR: How important do you think writers’ festivals are, and in particular smaller regional festivals, in contributing to the overall literary landscape/culture of a country?

CF: I think it’s important to get in front of fans and actually talk to them, answer their questions individually, if you want their loyalty. So I’m trying to do that as much as I can at the moment. The interaction between writers and readers at festivals has always been an integral part of literary culture. How can you write about people, or be written about, without that relationship?

What other fiction, and crime fiction, authors do you admire?

I’ve always loved Peter Temple. His work was very important in my study of writing dialogue. I’m a big Lee Child fan and love Adrian McKinty’s Sean Duffy series.

To find out more about the St Albans Writer’s Festival from September 16th to 18th click here

To find out more about Candice Fox click here

Synopsis

Detective Harriet Blue needs to get out of town, fast.With her brother under arrest for a series of brutal murders in Sydney, Harry's chief wants the hot-headed detective kept far from the press. So he assigns her a deadly new case - in the middle of the Outback.Deep in the Western Australian desert, three young people have disappeared from the Bandya Mine. And it's Harry's job to track them down.But still reeling from events back home, and with a secretive new partner at her side, Harry's not sure who she can trust anymore.And, in this unforgiving land, she has no idea how close she is to a whole new kind of danger . . .

Candice Fox

Hades, Candice Fox's first novel, won the Ned Kelly Award for best debut in 2014 from the Australian Crime Writers Association. The sequel, Eden, won the Ned Kelly Award for best crime novel in 2015, making Candice only the second author to win these accolades back to back. All her subsequent novels – Fall, Crimson Lake, Redemption Point and Gone by Midnight – have been shortlisted for the Ned Kelly Award.In 2015 Candice began collaborating with James Patterson. Their first novel together, Never Never, set in the vast Australian outback, was a huge bestseller in Australia and went straight to number 1 on the New York Times bestseller list in the US and also to the top of the charts in the UK. Their subsequent novels Fifty Fifty, Liar Liar and Hush Hush have all been massive bestsellers across the world. Their most recent collaboration, The Inn, was released in August 2019.Bankstown born and bred, Candice lives in Sydney.

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