Fruit grower, Mandy Magro has a new novel out. She drops by to talk about life as a fruit grower, weather connundrums and writing.

1. As a fruit grower what is a typical work day comprised of? A typical day on the fruit farm starts at 6am when the temperatures are a little more forgiving. Our busy season is from November through to April when we are running picking crews out on the 400 acre property from daybreak until sunset. In our quiet part of the season, May until October, it’s my hubby that tends to do the fertilising, watering and meticulous care of the tress whilst I settle back in my office and write. Amongst farm duties there is also 4 dogs to be fed, cattle to be tended to, eggs to be collected, my darling delightful daughter to be cared for and then last but not least all the home fires to be kept burning. As they say, a woman’s work is never done.

2. Many growers have been at the vagaries of the weather over the last eighteen months has your business experienced any difficulties? We have been very blessed here in Dimbulah. We don’t really get flooded in our area as we are 400 meters above sea level. We are also protected from cyclones by the surrounding mountains.  It is the fires that we have to contend with. We had an extremely bad one this year that came only meters from our home. It burnt some of the nets that keep the fruit out of the reaches of bats, birds and pigs. It was very scary but I was once again reminded how close a small community is when so many people turned up to help fight the fire. 

3. How much of your writing is influenced by what has happened or is happening in your life? My writing is influenced greatly by what has happened and is happening in my life. Everything from the amazing country people I have been blessed to meet, my everyday life in the country, my experiences out on a cattle station in the middle of Australia and being a fruit farmer have contributed in some way to my stories. I am passionate about Australian country life and also about this glorious country of ours and I am honoured to be able to write about what I love most.  

4. You’re noted for a raunchy sex scene in your debut novel. How important a part do you think sex plays in romance titles? I whole- heartedly believe that sex scenes play a major part in romance novels. What woman could honestly say that she doesn’t beg for the two main characters to eventually retreat to the bedroom and make mad passionate love that leaves them breathless? Or retreat to anywhere for that matter! I feel this is what helps builds the tension throughout the storyline, amongst other things of course. It’s one of the main threads that makes the pages turn as the reader waits for the erotic moment to explode onto the page. I adore writing about this magical part of falling in love and I promise it will be in each and every novel I am blessed to write.

Visit Mandy’s website to learn more about her latest work.

Ah, saturday nights in the bush. A BBQ with friends perhaps, a cosy dinner indoors with a pay TV box office movie or a night writing. Heading into the cooler months its is usually a night writing for me. Except at sowing time. We started last sunday week and although I missed the first two days as I was travelling back from Brisvegas, I soon found myself on relief tractor duty. It’s a bit of a collaborative effort this year with my father and brother also warming the seat. Reduced acreage (due to the floods) meant that there seemed little point putting on another driver. Also with the moisture rising in the paddocks with the cooler weather we are stopping by about 9.30 pm.

I’ve been on relief day duty mostly, except for a six hour stint yesterday and a night - not with the box (TV) – but, in the box, the tractor cabin. It’s amazing the otherwordly feel that the landscape takes on after dark. A good ten kilometres from the main homestead, down the back of our western block with nothing around you except the encroaching darkness and the bright patina of stars and you really do feel like your in the middle of nowhere, especially when you finish up and have to walk back to the truck in the dark.

The countryside feels different. I could hear wild pigs rustling in their nests and the thump of bounding kangaroos who had taken shelter from the wind in some adjoining trees.  The freshly tilled soil was soft as I cut across it to the road and I could smell its dampness. Bush quail fluttered up from the grass near the roadside as I made my way to the truck and I could literally feel the space stretching out in all directions. There is always a feeling of energy coming from the land, but with sunlight blessing the other side of the world,  at night the land feels busier, it seems to me as if there is always alot going on ‘out there’ at night and I’m conscious of getting back to my vehicle quickly and leaving the bush to itself. Some people may say that I’m a scaredy cat, but it’s more being cogniscent of what’s going on around you. The bush comes awake at night and this is ancient land.

From the cabin - daylight

Thanks, Nicole, for inviting me back to your hugely informative and entertaining blog. I love nosing through your photos and reading about all the adventures you have on your property. It’s a great way for this currently city-based country girl to reconnect with rural life. 

The Heart of Passion Have you ever wondered where your passions developed from, whether they were inherited, nurtured, spontaneous, or even adopted from someone else? I’m a passionate foodie, yet my mother is quite indifferent to things cooking and cuisine related. While both my parents like to read, they’re not terribly voracious, whereas I’m a complete bookworm. My brother is sporty. I’m an enthusiastic participant but somehow the genes governing easy athleticism and co-ordination passed me by.

 My love for all things equine, though? Ahh, well, now that’s what is known in the vernacular as a no-brainer. As happened in those days, my father was indentured as an apprentice jockey when he was eleven. It would be impossible to think of an eleven year old today leaving home to work and live with a racehorse trainer but Dad did it, and thrived. I have the most marvellous whale bone whip in my office which Dad won as the winning rider of Tactful Queen in the 1952 Frances Handicap. In fact, as I type this blog post, I realise that it was 60 years to the day that he won that race. But I guess he was only following in the footsteps of his forebears, because my grandfather was also a jockey, and my great-grandfather rode jumps races. 

  With this kind of family history it’s little wonder I was born horse mad. Fortunately I had Dad on hand to help teach me horsemanship. He was no longer a jockey, his career having ended at age twenty one when his apprenticeship finished and he’d grown too big for the job, but there are some things you don’t forget. My teenage years are a blur of horses and horse events. Pony club, trail riding, saddle horses, dressage, eventing, showjumping, hunting – if it involved a horse and riding, I was probably in on it. I even worked for a couple of racehorse trainers riding exercise in my gap year. Though I tried to keep riding after university and when I began my working career, eventually it became impossible. But those horse genes have to be placated somehow, which is why I write rural romance. Not only do I get to weave stories about places that hold special meaning for me, there’s always an opportunity to thread a horse or two through the narrative. In the case of my latest release, Heart of the Valley, horses play a major role in the heroine, Brooke’s, life. She lives and breathes them, not only through her work managing the family’s Hunter Valley racehorse spelling property, but through her passion for showjumping. I had no difficulty imagining how desperately she’d fight to keep all she loves most when she’s suddenly faced with losing it. In her shoes, I’d do the same. That’s what passion is about.

Wouldn’t you think that after all the flood water we contended with earlier in the year and the eight inches of rain received early february that we would have had moisture ready to plant on a few weeks back. Our winter crop program – wheat, barley, chickpeas and faba beans, already substantially reduced thanks to the floods was on hold as we awaited rain and thankfully it came in a couple of storms early last week. While we began planting on Sunday, many of our cultivations were used as holding paddocks for cattle and sheep for a good four months while the floods were on. While this ensured the livestock were reasonably high and dry it left us with stock boggy fields and once everything had begun to dry, incredibly rough paddocks and soil compaction.

Those fields that were dry enough had to have the grizzly’s through them. These discs rip the soil and break up the hard pan caused by the stock. Next the Kelly Chains – at left  (combination discs and harrows) were used to break up any hard clods and level the surface.  

The cultivations we are now planting had moisture a good foot below the surface ten days ago and we’ve been waiting for that elusive 25 mm (1 inch) of rain to top up the soil profile. Good planting conditions involve a full moisture profile, moisture from the soil surface downwards. In the past we’ve used moisture seeking technology which comes in the form of very narrow points (gumbo points) that can penetrate deep into the soil, thereby allowing you to lay the seed directly into moisture. This year however because our acreage is reduced we decided to wait for better conditions. Last weekend we scooped 40 points (10mm), which was followed by another 35 points a day or so later. Having reached our mark it’s all systems go and I’m off to relieve on the Cat Challenger tractor. Bye…

PS. How things change. This is a view from the landcruiser heading through flood water before Christmas.

Historically our district hasn’t been an area for the production of high-yeilding sorghum crops. Disease, weather and a previous preference for higher-yeilding and -once upon a time- better paying winter crops such as wheat and barley, meant that sorghum came a poor second. These days many growers choose to plant sorghum as a rotation/cash-flow alternative. In our own business the sorghum stubble is always fed off to cattle after harvest ensuring the maximum ROI (return-on-investment). Purists shake their heads at livestock on fields however marginal country demands careful management and an ability to get the most out of everything produced. Sorghum seed is in demand overseas, especially in Asian countries where highly-prized racing pigeons command thousands of dollars at sale. Unfortunately the commodity is under-valued and a glut on the market hasn’t assisted prices this season. With floodwater making the sowing of sorghum impossible for us this season I ventured over to visit my neighbours, John and David Oates. On this months bush-video blog they talk sorghum, the recent growing season and why despite the challenges, the bush still provides great career opportunities. Enjoy.

Land of Dreams by Peter Yeldham is this month’s pick for review. Peter is a screenwriter,  author and stage and screen producer of repute, and is generally considered to be Australia’s writer’s writer. His craftsmanship has ownership on some of this country’s most popular novels and screenplays – both film and mini-series. This month’s review is a brief glimpse into Peter’s seventh novel published in 2002. Firstly here is a synopsis of this wartime story of love, courage and the ties that bind.

Sam Delon is a young Frenchman born and raised in Japan. Florence Carter has led a quiet and lonely life in her native Australia. One meeting on a Sydney beach is enough to create a lasting bond between the unlikely pair – and enough to share a secret with the potential to transform Sam’s life.

When Japan attacks Pearl Harbor, Sam becomes an enemy in his own country and exists under the relentless scrutiny of the military police, sustained only by the knowledge he shares with Florence. They risk everything to stay in touch – but as the bombs drop on Darwin and Tokyo, their commitment to each other is pushed to the limit.

 The struggle of foreign nationals in both Australia and Japan is skilfully examined in this work. Sam resides in Japan at the outbreak of war however a two week stay at Manly beach with his dead mother’s sister a few years previously is imprinted in his mind. As his world changes Sam begins corresponding regularly with his Aunt Florrie in Australia only to be branded a traitor for conversing with the enemy when the Japanese attack Pearl Harbour.

In contrast Florrie’s lover in Australia is a German refugee. Carl, a competent lawyer, is cited as a threat to National Security and Florrie quickly learns what ostracism means in a changing world where no-one it seems can be trusted. While she fights coupons, curfews and bigotry, Carl is eventually employed as an Intelligence Officer and sent back to Germany to prove his loyalty. In contrast Sam’s privileged position within the expatriate community – assisted by being an employee of a French bank involved in illegal transactions –  affords him some protection as other foreign nationals are sent to the mountainous Karuizawa region where eventual execution is feared.  The horrific torture methods of the Japanese police, lost love, a kimono-dressing homosexual, distrust and corporate greed are all bought convincingly together in this narrative which explores both the idyllic pre-war days and the shocking impact of war.

 Hi Nicole, thank you so much for having me!

 Morgan’s Law is about to be released and I’m looking forward to its release with equal measures of excitement and nervous biting of nails! I think it’s commonly referred to as BTS…Book Two Syndrome! Morgan’s Law is set in a small rural town somewhere between Emerald and Miles in central QLD. Why the somewhere? Well that’s because that’s roughly where it was when I came up with the plot while travelling in that area last year!

 Where I live is vastly different to these book settings, but share many of the same elements. I’m a small town girl—pure and simple. I don’t like crowds or traffic or public transport (my apologies to any public transport supports out there- but I hyperventilate at the thought of having to switch buses/trains/ferry’s just to get to work!) Nope, give me a peaceful little town where you don’t have to stress about which tollway to avoid, any day! However I might point out Macksville is quite the busy little town now days with not one, but threetraffic lights! Yep we’re an up and coming metropolises! 

We have the best of so many worlds here in Macksville, on the banks of the Nambucca River. We have beaches not far down stream, farm land all around us, and bushland with hidden pockets of rainforest scattered throughout.

 I love the history of the towns in my area, and having researched lately for an upcoming book, I get goose bumps when I realise how special it is to be living in a town where my family has such a long family connection.  I hope you enjoy Morgan’s Law and I look forward to sharing more stories with you in the future.

About Morgan’s Law

Sarah Murphy returns to Australia in desperate need of a change of scenery. When she heads to the country to fulfil her grandmother’s dying wish she has no idea what to expect. As Sarah journeys towards greater insight into both herself and her grandmother’s mysterious past she encounters obstacles in the form of the powerful local Morgan family and discovers a small town struggling to stay alive.

Adding to her distraction are the attentions of a handsome local farmer…  But when she finds herself involved in a rescue plan to save the small town—she quickly learns she has become far more invested than she had intended and continuing to dig into her gran’s past could ultimately hurt the people she’s grown to love. Can she trade her high-flying career in London for a chance at a more simple life and the possibility of true love?

Morgan’s Law takes you on a compelling journey into a young woman’s hopes and dreams…

The finalists for this year’s Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) have been announced (Last week actually). This is like Australia’s version of the Academy Awards for books (at least that’s how one press release pitched it) and it is a great glimpse into who’s doing what and what publishers, booksellers and authors have raised their heads up above the trees. The shortlists were voted for by booksellers and publishers from across the country and the winners will be announced on May 18 as part of the 2012 Sydney Writers’ Festival. Below is an abbreviated listing of some of the categories. A big congrats to local regional bookseller Julie Herbert of Prosound books in Narrabri, northern NSW (Bookseller promotional campaign of the year). Julie told me she’s estatic and we’ve got fingers and toes crossed in anticipation… Congrats to all.

PS. If you try and click on the blue – sorry, they are not links. That’s my quick cut and paste job! Enjoy.

Book of the Year

• Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks (Fourth Estate)
• Past the Shallows by Favel Parrett (Hachette)
• Foal’s Bread by Gillian Mears (A&U)
• Worse Things Happen At Sea by William McInnes & Sarah Watt (Hachette)
• All That I Am by Anna Funder (Penguin)
• The Street Sweeper by Elliot Perlman (Vintage)

Newcomer of the Year (debut writer)

• Life Without Limits by Nick Vujicic (A&U)
• The Little Veggie Patch Co by Fabian Capomolla & Mat Pember (Plum)
• A Private Life by Michael Kirby (A&U)
• Past the Shallows by Favel Parrett (Hachette)
• The Roving Party by Rohan Wilson (A&U)

Literary Fiction Book of the Year

• Past the Shallows by Favel Parrett (Hachette)
• Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks (Fourth Estate)
• Foal’s Bread by Gillian Mears (A&U)
• All That I Am by Anna Funder (Penguin)
• The Street Sweeper by Elliot Perlman (Vintage)

General Fiction Book of the Year

• Lola’s Secret by Monica McInerney (Michael Joseph)
• The Freudian Slip by Marion von Adlerstein (Hachette)
• Scarecrow and the Army of Thieves by Matthew Reilly (Macmillan)
• Sarah Thornhill by Kate Grenville (Text)
• The Wreckage by Michael Robotham (Sphere)

General Nonfiction Book of the Year

• Biggest Estate on Earth by Bill Gammage (A&U)
• Worse Things Happen At Sea by William McInnes & Sarah Watt (Hachette)
• Women’s Stuff by Kaz Cooke (Viking)
• Mawsonby Peter FitzSimons (William Heinemann)
• After Words by Paul Keating (A&U) 

Bookseller Promotional Campaign of the Year

• Narrabri ProSound for Left Neglected
• Avid Reader for National Bookshop Day
• Avid Reader for Salon Series
• Riverbend Books for Event Series
• Robinsons Bookshop for Oldest General Independent Bookshop Promotion
• Readings for 1Q84

Publisher of the Year

• Murdoch Books
• Allen & Unwin
• HarperCollins
• Penguin Group
• Random House

Publisher Promotional Campaign of the Year

• Random House for Passion by Lauren Kate
• Random House for Vintage Classics
• Random House for 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

With mum away this week, David and I headed over to the main homestead last night for a slow-cooked lamb roast with my dad and brother. After years of being the lone sibling on-farm it is strange having another family member back. Scott is having a break from his own business down south and is spending about three weeks out of every five with us. From a work load perspective I’ve love to tell you that I’m less busy but it hasn’t happened. There is just not the need to have crew on the whole time at the moment with Scott back. He’s basically taken one guy’s place.

Bush dinners are always great affairs. We sit around the oak dining table that’s been the scene of many a meal, and argument over the last one hundred and twenty plus years and talk about the days and weeks events. David is a week out from cotton picking and we’re a week out from beginning to sow our winter crop yet it wasn’t all tractors and weather dilemma’s – can you believe it, we need more rain!

Flicking through the latest Elders property catalogue (Turn to the page where the property is located at Quilpie) Dad spied a property for sale near Quilpie in Queensland. It was owned by one of the great pastoral family’s way back when … and is mentioned in Mary Durack’s famous pastoral memoir, ‘Kings In Grass Castles.’ 

What followed was an account of who owned what rural holdings and when and how big they were. Of course we’ve heard some of these yarns before but it sure makes a difference when your own father either knew the people concerned, and/or their descendents and has either brought or sold stock with them or been on their vast holdings.

For once neither David nor Scott had much to say. We all listened spell-bound as the red wine was poured and the anecdotes continued. One of my favourite yarns is about a dog who lost his leg in a rabbit trap and still managed to hobble the twenty miles back to his master who was droving cattle from Brunette Downs to the Hunter Valley in New South Wales.  I have actually heard that story before and I decided to resurrect ‘Tripod’ in Absolution Creek. This morning I admit to waking up tired and with a head ache, and what was meant to be a big writing day has not eventuated. And you know, I don’t mind at all.

A few months ago we put up a new set of cattle yards on one of our properties. Some of you may recall my Ikea for cattle blog. The yards arrived flatpacked on the back of a truck with loading ramp and crush and a few days later they were erected. It was a far cry from the old days of cutting down timber, de-barking logs and then digging four foot holes in the ground to position the uprights. With the heavy work attended to it was either off to the local saw mill to purchase timber or the cutting of lengths to form panels was done on farm.

 So it’s good-bye to old wooden yards when it comes to erecting new ones. What use to be an incredibly labour intensive job is now a matter of unpack, arrange design and erect. Presto! Our most recent set of yards have had about 1,000 head of cattle through them since February and they worked like a charm. The cattle moved easily through them, calves were branded quickly and efficiently and apart from the lack of shade-we selected a dry ridge for placement so the area will dry out quickly following wet weather and we’ll need to plant some trees around the perimeter in the spring-everyone is happy with the end result. 

The ‘boss’ my dad, shown below in the blue shirt gave the yards the thumbs up on the first day. Just as well. It took a good day and a half to position the panels and then a loader was needed to place the crush and loading ramp in place.

Am loving these shots of the cattle being let out after branding …