Public availability
My novel WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS was published in March 2020 by Brio Books and sold throughout bookstores and online stores. It was launched on March 11th at Readings, St Kilda, with a public reading. I also broadcast a reading for 3CR radio program “published or not” on the 12th of March, and gave a public reading at Paperchain Canberra, hosted by Zoya Patel on the 13th of March. My work was featured in the online 2020 Feminist Writers Festival. An audiobook was made and released by Audible in 2020.
Peer review
WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS was selected for publication by a publisher peer review process. Excerpts of reviews are attached:
“This was an uncomfortable manuscript to read. The character of Kyla Tyler is sometimes so unpleasant as to seem almost cartoonish, some sort of half-human goblin child who appears on the scene specifically to make Lotti’s life miserable. Her malice and vulgarity are compellingly drawn, and the manuscript tries hard to give her just enough moments of vulnerability to make her a person rather than a caricature. The manuscript also succeeds in the character of young Lotti, an excellent portrayal of that period in early adolescence where your emotions are high all the time and you’re just feeling too much about everything with no way of controlling it. Her desperate efforts to gain the attention and approval of her more popular friend Larissa (who is clearly just using her), her paranoia about Kyla and her complicated feelings for her family are so very raw.” Annette Barlow Allen & Unwin
“Apologies for being slow to come back to you on We Were Never Friends. This is a powerful and disturbing novel - almost visceral in its intensity - it certainly takes the reader into quite a dark place, I think. She's a strong writer, and while I can see the talent she has, I'm not going to make an offer for it. I think I just found this particular ms a little too dark. I know this is quite personal, but it's just not quite my cup of tea, as I like an element of lightness, humour, redemption and hope in a novel – sorry, I know that sounds horribly simplistic, but that's what I'm often looking for. And I think I found this one a bit too bleak.” Katherine Milne, Harpers Collins
“I’ve just finished Margaret’s manuscript and wanted to get my thoughts down asap — forgive me if this comes across as a bit unformed. In short, I agree with all of what you say below. The title is terrific for starters. Just brilliant. More importantly, I think it’s a really accomplished novel with great characterisation, powerful themes and a solid structure — the unfolding of Kyla’s chronicle of abuse and the reckless build-up to Frank hitting Lotti are genuinely suspenseful and very well done. Kyla is unforgettable; so too Lotti’s mother and father. There are moments of delicious black comedy but also tremendous sadness. It’s insightful and painful at the same time. It reminded me on occasion of Emily Bitto’s The Strays and even Maria Hyland’s How the Light Gets In: both very successful books in their own right.” Rod Morrison Brio Books (eventual publisher)
Research statement
Background My research concerns identity and culture and the relationships between them, particularly in medical education (see Watling et al 2021, Bearman et al 2021). This novel, set partially in the world of surgical training, interrogates key questions of how class, gender and power can be used to avoid responsibility. Contribution WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS takes these deep concepts and weaves them into an accessible narrative format. Through its key protagonist, a disempowered child resists the identity of victim placed upon her: she is agentic, manipulative and malicious. At the same time, the adults elide their ethical obligations in order to serve their own needs. This study of contemporary Australia highlights complex questions of moral bravery in the day-to-day suburban living. Significance: placed on Readings 2020 list of novels to be excited about, reviews of WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS highlight its contribution. Mandy Gill in the Australian Book Review writes: "... In many ways, this work is about courage, why it is difficult to be morally brave, especially when much is at stake. …We Were Never Friends is a work of ambiguity and nuance..." Kerryn Goldsworthy in The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald notes: "...This intelligent, subtle novel is a complex study of family dynamics, class divides, adolescent pecking orders, and the murky moral landscapes of artistic practice and inspiration.”
References
Watling, C. J., Ajjawi, R., & Bearman, M. (2020). Approaching culture in medical education: three perspectives. Medical education, 54(4), 289-295.
Bearman, M., Mahoney, P., Tai, J., Castanelli, D., & Watling, C. (2021). Invoking culture in medical education research: A critical review and metaphor analysis. Medical education.