The Big 4 Interviews – Karen Brooks
Karen currently has six novels to her name and her seventh, Votive, the sequel to Tallow, will come out in May 2011; the third instalment, Illumination, will follow in November… All being well.
She’s also an Associate Professor of Media Studies at Southern Cross University where she lectures on media and popular culture using a psychoanalytical model. Her research is widely published in Australia and overseas. She’s also an award-winning teacher and travels regularly giving keynotes at various conferences and providing in-service training for educational professionals. Karen is also a columnist for The Courier- Mail and appears fairly regularly on Channel 7’s Sunrise and The Morning Show. She was also a member of ABC’s The Einstein Factor’s “Brains’ Trust”. On top of this, she’s a frequent contributor on national, state and local radio. Karen lives on five acres with her three dogs, the two resident (and warring) possum families, six very funny chooks, two horses and lots of beautiful birds, with her wonderful partner, Stephen. She has two gorgeous adult children, Adam and Caragh, who live in Sydney and the USA respectively; they say they miss her, but not as much as she misses them.
Tallow, (the first of your new trilogy, The Curse of the Bond Riders) was released in 2009. The second book, Votive, comes out in 2011. What inspired the series and the setting of Renaissance Venice?
The inspiration for the series came from, of all things, walking into a candle franchise that had just opened in a major shopping centre near where I used to live. I have always burned candles ( scented) and loved the moods and ambience they could evoke, simply through a smell. Entering this shop was sheer sensory overload… It was amazing. It was darkened but inviting and the scents that collected in pockets in various parts of the shop were incredible. I found myself transported. It had me thinking… Anyhow, I made some purchases, and on the way home began to read the pamphlet that the assistant had placed in the bag. It was a rudimentary description of how essences were instilled in candles in ancient times. An idea danced at the edges of my imagination and, by the time I arrived home, a story about a candle maker’s apprentice who was not what he or she seemed, had begun to take shape.
I chose the period because the Renaissance was a time of fresh ideas, when humanism and science were rising and institutionalised religion struggled to keep up. It was a fascinating era because alongside this was an explosion of art, a rebirth of interest in Classicism, and fashions and social relations were incredible. I have always had a love of Italy and its rich history. For some reason, when I thought of Tallow and began to map out my ideas properly, there was only one place to set it – and that was Venice. Only problem was, I’d never been there. So, I began to read everything I could get my hands on and to study the Italian language. Not long after I began, I knew I had my setting. Since writing Tallow, I have been to Venice twice… It is bewitching in every sense – positive and negative and I found that exhilarating.
In 2008, you published Consuming Innocence: Popular Culture and Our Children, a non-fiction text concerning the complicated relationship between today’s kids and this increasingly pervasive culture that influences them. Can you tell us a bit about the book and how you first became interested in this topic?
Gosh.. The book is basically a condensation of five years of intensive research and social commentary around young people and the complex relationship they have with all things pop culture. By popular culture, I mean TV, film, fashion, advertising, toys, corporations, the internet, video games, sexiness and body image. I had been deeply concerned about the sexualisation of kinderculture for a number of years, and the rise of corporate culture in terms of playing an influential role in childhood development. I think I just reached a point where I wanted to consolidate numerous articles, academic research papers and book chapters, as well as social commentary into the one accessible, easy to read place. I deliberately wrote it for a broad audience, pitching it at parents and teachers, as well as older young adults. I discuss everything from the history of childhood (how children have been perceived and treated throughout time – simply fascinating) to deconstructing the role of Barbie and Bratz dolls, why The Simpsons is basically a very conservative text, or why Buffy the Vampire Slayer imparted really important lessons to teens; and, why Disney deserves our scrutiny. I looked at violence in boy (and girl) culture, how much TV is acceptable and at what age, the role of censorship, the role of peers and peer pressure, kids’ magazines, and sexualisation. The more research my research assistant (Lisa Hill, who was terrific) and I did, the more alarmed we became – not just by what we saw and heard (I interviewed hundreds of kids and parents, went into too many shopping centres, fried my brain watching Teletubbies, became hooked on Lizzie Maguire, frustrated by the narrow stereotypes portrayed in Disney films), but by the continuous demonisation of this entertainment and information culture that kids use to help understand their world and which plays a role (smaller than we’re led to believe but nonetheless important) in shaping their identity. I wanted to both inform, entertain, lay some myths and concerns to rest, but also draw attention to areas that really need to be monitored and possibly require parental intervention – or, at the least, awareness.
I have always worked with young people my entire professional life – as a drama teacher, playwright and now, as lecturer at uni and writer. So the interest has always been there and it was terrific to be able to give a cohesive voice to not just my research, but the latest from around the world in all these areas.
Karen, we know you (among many other things!) as a pop culture commentator. What are your own guilty pleasures? Are there any TV shows, celebrities, bands, magazines, or fads that you can’t get enough of? If not, what sort of research do you have to undertake for your media role?
Oh dear – I am about to undermine my credibility completely. OK. I confess, I am a TV tragic. But, before I reveal my guilty pleasures, can I just say, I also read about three books a week – genre books and history or non-fiction mainly. The TV shows I cannot miss are: Midsomer Murders, Dalziel and Pascoe, Dr Who, Desperate Housewives, The Tudors and Masterchef… I tape them if I am out and have been known to take the phone off the hook when Dr Who is on. I also love action and sci-fi movies. There are no particular ‘celebrities’ I follow, though I always appreciate the talents of good actors and writers – artists and musicians, but there are just too many I enjoy to list. I read Time Magazine and New Scientist, and when I am in the supermarket (which isn’t often these days) I do pick up the magazines and read them – my husband keeps telling me it isn’t a library! I also use time in a doctor’s waiting room or at the hairdresser to catch up on women’s magazines. I call it research 🙂 I also love Facebook and I do Twitter. Hey, someone’s got to do it :). Seriously, I try to read and watch as broadly as possible. If I have to offer an opinion on something, I will read as widely as I can and from different perspectives on the topic, or use the product, watch the show/film etc. before commenting. I often pass things to others who are much better qualified than I am to comment on a particular topic if I don’t feel prepared, or if it’s in my sphere of ‘expertise’. I learned early on, there’s no point trying to talk about something you know nothing or even very little about – you don’t contribute anything of worth! I also check out The Guardian and the New York Times – oh, and the Huffington Post. They are excellent for alternative viewpoints. I also like reading blogs – I read lots of blogs. There are some excellent ones out there!
Which of your many characters Burns Brightest in your mind and why?
What a great question. It would have to be Tallow. Can you be in love with a character? I am. Well, with two particularly, but Tallow is THE one. Tallow is a humble, passionate, but incredibly powerful being who is full of self-doubt, but also possessed of a generous heart. She has the capacity to bring out both the best and worst in people – they expose themselves emotionally and psychologically around her and that’s very daunting, particularly when you don’t know what to do with that. Taught to become ordinary, it is so exciting to turn this wonderful person into someone extraordinary. But, in order to do that, you have to forge them in pretty hot fires and you have to allow them to make mistakes – big, costly ones. It’s learning from those that will equip Tallow for what lies ahead. She also has a dark centre which is coming to the fore and she needs to learn to control it or else. I don’t want to give too much away! But Tallow is the kind of person I would want in my life – actually, I am so grateful she is there. In a very real sense, she has helped me through a very difficult time – now it’s my turn 🙂
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