Gary Lonesborough

Lonesborough's debut novel follows a 17 year old boy named Jackson who is on his journey to understanding and accepting his identity and sexuality as he falls in love for the first time.

What inspired you to write this book?

I was inspired to write this book because of the lack of stories like this available to me as a teen. It was hard enough to find a Young Adult book written by an Aboriginal author about an Aboriginal protagonist, let alone a queer Aboriginal protagonist.

Tell us a bit about your writing journey, and how you got where you are today.

I’ve been writing since I was five or six years old. It was always an interest of mine and ultimately I just kept writing until the right story came along. 

What is your writing style in a few words?

I always find it really hard to describe my own writing style. I know I write very matter-of-factly. I like to write in first-person and infuse a lot of my own train of thought into my main character’s internal monologue. I write descriptively but balanced with feelings and emotions, and my writing is really driven by the experience of my main character. 

How do you weave your culture(s) into your book(s)? How do(es) your culture(s) influence your writing?

I think when I’m writing about an Aboriginal character, I need to paint a picture of what life is like for them. For Aboriginal people, culture is a part of our lives, therefore it comes very naturally when I’m painting a picture of my character’s life. It’s very important to me to continue telling stories, because Aboriginal people have been telling stories for thousands of years. 

What advice do you have for aspiring writers & creators from marginalized/underrepresented backgrounds?

Read a lot and keep writing! There is a great rise in #ownvoices storytelling these days, so you should continue writing and improving the way you tell your stories. Allow yourself to be vulnerable in your writing.