By BRUCE DENNILL
Nick Clelland’s debut novel Good Hope is a pacey, dystopian thriller that asks uncomfortable questions around the precariousness of statehood, the fragility of identity and the conflict between security and freedom. In the story, the Western Cape unilaterally declared independence from South Africa and the Good Hope Territory is now the safest and most prosperous country in the southern hemisphere – but at a price.
Writing a book is a huge commitment. What are the elements that need to be in place if you are going to meet whatever writing goals you set?
I have a switch that flipped, shifting my typically erratic mode of work and energy into a relentless, focused obsession. Much to my frustration, it’s not particularly easy to will into action on demand, but it clicked in to position for this book. For eight months, I did not skip a single day of writing.
Conversely, what are the strangest or most creative procrastination techniques you’ve devised to avoid all that work?
It’s perhaps not exactly a procrastination technique, but I wrote this book while I was Special Advisor to Western Cape Premier Alan Winde during the pandemic. Suffice it to say, the entire world seemed to be conspiring against me: the relentless workload, the pressure, the fear of the unknown. But, on the other hand, it was precisely all of this that helped me on my way. Getting up at 5am every day became my daily therapy – a way to escape the dark reality with a darker dystopia.
Is there a specific author (or writer, journalist) who made you feel, “I want to be an author”? And what was it about them that spurred that feeling (anything from admirable eloquence to an outrageous public persona)?
I still remember being transported into the story of I Am David when it was read to us in class in primary school. 1984 and Lord Of The Flies were high school favourites and since then so many books and stories have affected me: The Unbearable Lightness Of Being, Women In Love, One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Waiting For The Barbarians and The Corrections. I am in awe of all of these writers, but none of them spurred me to write, if I am completely honest. Sure, it may sound poetic to say they did, but what drove me was a purely selfish, possibly narcissistic, desire to birth my idea and the words that came with it.
Do you tend to read the same kind of material (genre- or style-wise) that you prefer to write? If yes, what makes that particular niche so attractive to you? If no, what do you think it is that makes each different area appealing?
No, I have eclectic reading tastes spanning both fiction and non-fiction. It all comes down to why and when. A meaty biography of a troubled life to make mine seem less so. A crime thriller on holiday. A mad, rule-breaking story that tickles my need to be contrarian. A modern classic that reminds me how little I know and how spectacular the greats really are.
Outside of your profession, what role do books play in your life? Are you constantly reading; is your house lined in bookshelves; are books the ideal gift to give or receive, etc?
Like many people, books are a source of comfort and place for me. The bedside book pile’s daily nudge, the newly read books on top of old ones for want of more bookshelf space. The novels I studied at university. The high school poetry book I should’ve returned. They are a reminder of life led but also a reminder of how to live life now.
Who is your favourite literary character?
Holden Caulfield – but probably because of the impact the character made on me as a teenager, back when I read the book.
