How writing a novel compares with writing a journal article

7 September 2020

I have always led a kind of double life, simultaneously working as an academic and as a (creative) writer. However, there are points of cross-over; my interest in narrative fed into pedagogy and my knowledge of surgical education ended up in my latest novel, We Were Never Friends.

We Were Never Friends has just had a very pleasing review in the Australian Book Review‘s (ABR) September edition. I particularly liked the thematic read that Mindy Gill took: “…this work is about courage, why it is difficult to be morally brave, especially when much is at stake.”

The review in ABR also noted that the work was nuanced. As nuance is something that I’ve always tried to bring to my academic writing, this comment made me wonder about the different experiences of writing and publishing in two opposite types of outlets. So, in a very non-literary fashion, here are some dot points about divergences and convergences.

Similarities

• It is thrilling to have something that you are proud of go out into the broader world.
• I write what I like to read (although there are many works I love that I could never write/produce).
• I am most (but not entirely) interested in things that are complex and work at multiple levels.
• I want the work to produce change, not just be read.

Differences

• The fictional muse is slower and more fickle.
• On the odd occasion that they occur, nasty rejections are far worse in literary publishing. Trust me.
• In literature, the editor is firmly on your team. Not always the case in academic publishing.
• I don’t cry when I write academic writing (although I may feel like it).
• When a character or story lodges in your mind, it is almost impossible to get rid of them except by writing: you don’t always feel that you have any choice in the matter.

Which brings me back to the double life: it’s difficult trying to do two things at once, particularly when one of them is compulsive rather than scheduled. However, there are points, such as this blog or recognition of a novel as a non-traditional research output, where the two worlds can cross over. Which is both delightful and unsettling.

And of course the shameless plug: We Were Never Friends is available at all bookstores near you – my locals are the Avenue and Readings; online try Booktopia; for ebooks try Amazon or direct through Brio, the publisher; and the audio book is available through Apple or Audible.