Emerging Writers Series: Sharlene Allsopp
“The villain isn’t who you think it is. It isn’t people; it’s ideas. It’s stories told wrong, or at least not told fully in all their kaleidoscope of layers, angles, and truths. The Great Undoing celebrates the power of storytelling but also interrogates its use for evil and oppression.”
Around here at Aniko Press, there’s nothing we love more than seeing contributors to the print publication reach new writing success. Sharlene Allsopp’s short story, ‘Blurring the Borders’, was printed in Aniko Press’ inaugural issue no less and it’s a delight to now celebrate the publication of her debut novel, The Great Undoing (2024).
If you haven’t already, you can read Emily’s full review of Sharlene’s book right here, and then join me as we chat all about Sharlene’s creative journey, the power of First Nations storytelling, and how there’s so much more writing to come from her in the not too distant future!
Tell us a bit more about yourself and your background. How did you get started as a writer, and when did you decide you wanted to pursue this seriously?
My first ever publications were between 14-16 years of age when I would write to the editor of The Northern Star in Lismore. He published 5 or 6 of my letters, always around issues of social justice or at least perceived injustices as I saw them.
Over the years, life got in the way, and writing became something private or shared only with close friends until I was at a crossroads and decided to go back to university. During the completion of my Bachelor's degree, I re-discovered my love of writing, and after winning some fellowships and residencies, here we are.
Your debut novel, The Great Undoing (Ultimo Press, 2024), was released earlier this year and is an incredibly innovative take on truth-telling and reclaiming parts of history, all wrapped up in an apocalypse-thriller narrative. Can you share a bit more with us about the inception of this idea and how the work came to life?
Interestingly, my first paid publication was in ‘Unsung’, Aniko Press’ inaugural journal.
That piece, ‘Blurring the Borders’ was the beginning of what became The Great Undoing. Back then, it was a very unformed novella/memoir-ish idea.
It wasn’t until I stumbled upon Ernest Scott’s book — ’A Short History of Australia’ — and I was confronted with the power of certain genres and storytellers that I began to understand what I wanted to do with the book. It became a love story to my family, my Country, literature, poetry, songs, and all good love stories have villains or obstacles to overcome.
In The Great Undoing, Scarlet Friday has to navigate truth-telling on a personal, national, and international scale, and the villain isn’t who you think it is. It isn’t people; it’s ideas. It’s stories told wrong, or at least not told fully in all their kaleidoscope of layers, angles, and truths. The Great Undoing celebrates the power of storytelling but also interrogates its use for evil and oppression.
You were awarded a 2020/2021 fellowship with The Wheeler Centre’s Next Chapter program. How important have opportunities like this been for you on your writing journey?
The Next Chapter was critical in the production of The Great Undoing. As an emerging author with almost no publishing history it was the big flashing sign that this book might have promise. It might be interesting. It might be commercially viable. Without that faith from the judges and the Wheeler Centre staff who knows what would have happened?
The financial and professional support that came along with the opportunity meant that I could focus on finishing it, confident that when it was ready, I had a clear path to get it in front of publishers.
The Wheeler Centre was integral in the process of developing my self-belief and the practical work of getting the publishing deal done. Even after that they have continued to support me and answer questions, generally functioning as another part of my career scaffolding.
And as a follow-on, do you have any advice or tips for others who might be interested in applying for these kinds of fellowships but uncertain if they’re for them?
Every year I put together a document of relevant competitions and submission opportunities and work through them. If you win certain opportunities, the real win is the network of people you meet along the way that become your best resource.
And I mean that genuinely – not as a resource to use up and move on, but people to connect with, get to know, ask questions, go to for advice, especially on the trustworthiness of certain actors, and the atmosphere and vibe of publishers, etc. What suits one writer may not suit you at all.
Something I’ve been having more conversations about with different friends and colleagues in the literary community is the role - and immense importance - of diverse editors in bringing works to life, especially for First Nations writing. As a subeditor with Jacaranda, I’d love to hear any thoughts you have on this and what publishers and press’ can do to include, mentor and support more diverse editors into their ranks?
I think you’d have to be wearing a blindfold and earplugs to miss First Nations work right now. As a tutor in the Indigenous Tutoring and Retention program at UQ, I spend time with First Nations students, usually in creative writing and literature, and the talent and work ethic are incredible.
I have also had the joy of working with Grace Lucas-Pennington at the State Library of QLD’s Black&write! program, and the work they do to train diverse editors is changing the landscape. At Jacaranda, we received incredible submissions from a vast array of writers, so the diversity is a natural state of play.
But I do struggle to answer this question because there is always a tricky relationship between art and economic pressures. I just can’t see why any publishing house wouldn’t be running with their hair on fire to source, cultivate, and encourage diverse editors. Just look at the incredible work that is being published and dominating prize lists. My hope is that these works don’t just dominate prize lists but actually form a canon that changes the way we see ourselves and the type of stories that we naturally seek out.
My number one tip is to seek out Indigenous Futurism genres — Mykaela Saunders is one writer/editor to start with.
Who have been some of the biggest influences on your writing? Tell us a bit about who’s on your bookshelves we should be reading.
My bedside book pile is dominated by reading for my MPhil (Masters in Creative Writing) right now—Ellen van Neerven’s Personal Score, Judy Atkinson’s Trauma Trails, and a re-read of Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower. She is still the Queen of seamless world-building. Her book Kindred, Claire G. Coleman’s canon, and Tara June Winch’s The Yield are some of my biggest influences.
My most anticipated reads for the rest of 2024 are Mel Saward’s Love Unleashed, Shankari Chandran’s Safe Haven, Cher Tan’s Peripathetic, and fellow Next Chapter Khin Myint’s Fragile Creatures.
Lastly, what’s next for you? Are you working on anything at the moment that you could share with us? Are there any events or readings coming up that readers can attend and support you?
I’m currently studying for my Masters in Creative Writing at UQ, so that will help form book number two, and I have book number three partially written with a strong understanding of what I am doing.
My big news is that I get to live in northern France for a few months this year. I'll spend a month in Paris, a month in Champagne, a couple of weeks in the Loire, and a week here and there in England, maybe Switzerland, and Belgium. I’m immersing myself in the locations where my great grandfather served in WWI.
Sharlene Allsopp was born on unceded Bundjalung Country into the Olive mob. She works as a tutor at the University of QLD and helped establish Open Haven, a charitable entity that empowers survivors of family and domestic abuse. She has been published in the Growing Up Indigenous in Australia anthology on BlackWords, Griffith Review, Portside Review, and Aniko Press, among others. As a Next Chapter recipient with The Wheeler Centre, she completed her debut novel, The Great Undoing, available now with Ultimo Press. She lives in Meanjin/Brisbane with her family and her naughty puppy named Morty.
