Interview with Michael Botur

I've been joining a lot of facebook groups and that is where I 'met' Michael. He has a lot of writing under his belt, it is just a little intimidating.

Tell us about your latest novel or project:

‘Moneyland’ is a young adult novel I’ll be publishing before the end of the year, primarily online. The blurb:

It's 2037. Eden Strong, agrees to spend a year inside a biodome experiment with 11 popular kids from her high school, plus Adam Turing, an embarrassing nerd loser.Eden and her friends are each paid one million dollars cash up front to stay inside the biodome for a year. Who wouldn't say yes?

It begins well, but the trouble is robot scientists built the biodome over an abandoned suburb. Here there are no supermarkets, no electricity, no food or drink when the snacks run out. There is no panic button when the group descends into anarchy and Adam's crew of outcasts violently establish a new pecking order. No bank for Eden to keep her million safe from her enemies - or her friends.

I raised $3000 to pay to get the book out. Follow this link to read all about it on Boosted. That money pays for my editing time, photography, cover design, models for the photo shoot for the cover, Kindle, ebook, Scrivener software for composing the ebook, print copies and promo costs.

What got you started writing?

I’m pretty good at lots of intellectual and arty and creative stuff. When I was 12, I got my arse whupped in a short story competition at my intermediate school. The lesson I took away was ‘You are not born a good writer – you need to work hard and be resourceful to become distinguished as a writer.’ So, when I was 20, I started taking creative writing papers at university. I was average-to-bottom in my class. I can be quite a jealous and competitive person at times, so I went all-out, determined to become a better writer than any of my writer friends.

What challenges did you face when you first started writing?

Not having original ideas, or not knowing what to do with original ideas when they came to me. It takes sooooo long and it’s soooo hard getting used to the writing process. You don’t just sit down in front of a keyboard and bang out the perfect 2000 words you want to achieve. There is so much wastage, so many false starts. So, my main challenge: having to go through hundreds of hours of crap writing to identify what material of mine was worthy.

Do you ever get the opportunity to travel for your writing? Either to market or to research.

Some of the ‘Moneyland’ Boosted crowdfunding money will pay for me to be in Christchurch as I write my next novel, which is about Christchurch. I was born and raised there. That city is my turangawaewae.

Who in your life is your greatest cheerleader or support in your writing?

Hannah May Lee, a friend who is an artist who dabbles in a few media – zines, painting and illustration and writing. Hannah has good taste and tells me when I’ve written something strong or not.

What is it like writing in New Zealand that would be different if you lived anywhere else?

We don’t have literary agents these days. Honestly, we don’t. Maybe we used to in the 1990s, but not any more.

Where do you get your ideas? Is there anything about New Zealand that has inspired you to write?

I write about characters marginalised by NZ’s conservative streak. Unfortunately in NZ society, we have some ghastly conservative tendencies in which we are unfairly cruel to people who get in trouble with the law, use drugs or get pushed to the edge of society. All of the predominant cultures in NZ put a lot of shame on people while we aren’t very good at forgiveness. It’s the milieu of shame and marginalisation where I set my stories. All of my characters are involved in shameful acts and trying to battle their way back to a respected position.

Society can be cruel to people who don't fit into the mould.

Who is your favourite New Zealand author and why?

Hands down, it’s Alan Duff. He wrote in a particular style (stream of consciousness first person) inspired by Hubert Selby Junior. As far as I know, nobody else was doing that when Alan did. Also, he’s a self-taught man. He used to fit kitchens, and he spent time in prison. He comes from an underprivileged position and he fought his way to the top AND remained a nice, approachable person. And of course because his stories are so powerful and so important.

I grew up in Rotorua and often went to the street where many of Alan's books are set. I met hi once. A very interesting person.

What advice would you give for other writers in New Zealand?

If you want to write really well, you have to go through a tertiary level creative writing course. There are no shortcuts.

Do you get to network or meet up with other New Zealand authors?

Yes, I run WriteUpNorth.co.nz which is the website promoting writers in my area of Northland. And I’m deeply involved with performance poetry.

What was the first thing you did after your first book was published?

My first collection, ‘Hot Bible!’ was bought just by a few friends. It felt good just for a little bit before I moved onto the next challenge.

Do you read your book reviews? How do you handle the good and the bad ones?

Yes, I’m obsessed with reviews. I can’t leave them alone. The people around me don’t read my work much, so for me it’s the only way I know whether my fiction writing is being well-received or not.

It seems like everything has Easter Eggs (surprise reference to your other work) do you have

any Easter Eggs in your books?

Yup, I reference my other stories all the time, but not very overtly.

Do you have any writing rituals?

I have to set aside 2-3 hours to write, because it takes that long to descend into the recesses of your brain where the creative ore is. You can emerge sharply and suddenly, but you can’t descend suddenly.

Do you have any book you have written that won’t ever see the light of day and why?

Yup, my first novel, ‘Go To Hell’, a literary horror about a young woman running away from her big city anxiety who ends up in a surreal hellish underworld – I thought it was amazing, but nobody else likes it. It might take a lot of work to get that one publishable.

Often writers get to approach some serious subjects. Which serious subject are you most proud to have written about or was the hardest to write about?

I wrote a story about a quartet of male strippers who aren’t very successful, so they become children’s entertainers instead. It’s Magic Mike meets The Wiggles. The story, ‘That Tingling Sensation,’ will be in my forthcoming 2018 short story collection ‘True?’.

That sounds like a must read. Well, thank you for sharing some of your story with us and good