What does homelessness look like to you? In this episode, author Michelle Prak tells her latest story – thriller novel Barren Cape – through the lens of the housing affordability crisis. Michelle chats to us about the book's inspiration, her own writing beginnings and much more!

00:00 Welcome
03:20 Writing tip: Visit museums for inspiration
06:24 WIN!: Invisible Woman by Katia Lief
08:15 Word of the week: ‘Koan’
11:27 The World of words: Compliment vs complement
13:31 Writer in residence: Michelle Prak
14:33 Overview of the novel Barren Cape
16:20 The explosion of the Aussie crime genre
17:21 Author inspirations
19:32 The little red typewriter
21:39 Balancing writing and life responsibilities
23:25 Exploring themes of homelessness in Barren Cape
27:54 Inspiration behind the setting and characters
31:04 Writing multiple perspectives
33:10 On writing younger characters
36:57 Michelle’s daily writing habits and process
39:16 Upcoming projects 
40:35 Advice for aspiring thriller writers
41:52 Final thoughts

Read the show notes

Connect with Valerie and listeners in the podcast community on Facebook
Visit WritersCentre.com.au | ValerieKhoo.com

What does homelessness look like to you? In this episode, author Michelle Prak tells her latest story &ndash; thriller novel Barren Cape &ndash; through the lens of the housing affordability crisis. Michelle chats to us about the book's inspiration, her own writing beginnings and much more!
00:00 Welcome 03:20 Writing tip: Visit museums for inspiration 06:24 WIN!: Invisible Woman by Katia Lief 08:15 Word of the week: &lsquo;Koan&rsquo; 11:27 The World of words: Compliment vs complement 13:31 Writer in residence: Michelle Prak 14:33 Overview of the novel Barren Cape 16:20 The explosion of the Aussie crime genre 17:21 Author inspirations 19:32 The little red typewriter 21:39 Balancing writing and life responsibilities 23:25 Exploring themes of homelessness in Barren Cape 27:54 Inspiration behind the setting and characters 31:04 Writing multiple perspectives 33:10 On writing younger characters 36:57 Michelle&rsquo;s daily writing habits and process 39:16 Upcoming projects 40:35 Advice for aspiring thriller writers 41:52 Final thoughts
<a href="https://www.writerscentre.com.au/blog/ep-664/">Read the show notes</a>
Connect with Valerie and listeners in <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/2346749828883788/">the podcast community on Facebook</a> Visit <a href="https://www.writerscentre.com.au/">WritersCentre.com.au</a> |&nbsp;<a href="http://valeriekhoo.com/">ValerieKhoo.com</a>

Everything you’ve always wanted to know about succeeding in the world of writing and publishing. Learn practical writing techniques, go behind-the-scenes and discover how real-life authors got their big break. Uncover the creative processes of writers who have made it. Your host is Valerie Khoo – author, journalist, creative and CEO of the Australian Writers’ Centre. 

Everything you&rsquo;ve always wanted to know about succeeding in the world of writing and publishing. Learn practical writing techniques, go behind-the-scenes and discover how real-life authors got their big break. Uncover the creative processes of writers who have made it. Your host is Valerie Khoo &ndash;&nbsp;author, journalist, creative and CEO of the Australian Writers&rsquo; Centre.&nbsp;