Author Interview: Maria Papas

Maria Papas, author of Skimming Stones took some time out to have a chat with Beauty and Lace.

Get to know Maria in this interview.

We love the cover art for your book, what can you tell us about it?

I love the cover too. The artist is Nada Backovic, and I truly think she did a superb job. To me, the cover speaks strongly to the main character—Grace—who is a nurse but grew up comforted by painting and drawing.

Twice in the novel Grace paints an abstract picture, but one of these occasions, in particular, is crucial to the formation of her character. I can’t tell you too much about it, but Grace is young at the time, she and her sister face much danger, and later, in response, she paints the lake.

Having said this… art, textile and crafts are threaded all throughout the novel.

Where did your inspiration for your lead character, Grace, come from?

Grace came from a few places. When I begin writing, I tend to start with something from my own childhood. I’ve been told I was ‘lost’ for a small time in Rhodes when I was three, so one of the first scenes I wrote was an exploration of a child lost by water. I drew also from my sibling relationships. I am the eldest of three sisters and Grace is very much like how I was with my siblings—protective, a bit bossy, the leader, but also quite out of sorts when she has no control.

Grace also comes from a part of my life when I spent a lot of time in a paediatric oncology ward caring for my child. During this time, I noticed the concern healthy siblings had. I noticed these siblings becoming obsessive with their handwashing and cleanliness. I noticed a few jealousies, the natural ‘why are they getting all the attention?’ and, finally, I noticed their unique yet conflicting maturity. Particularly poignant were the reactions of the siblings who lived in regional centres far from the hospital and were only able to visit every so often. For me, Grace is a rendering of every sibling I ever met who watched their brother or sister endure hospital.

Finally, in the hospital, there was one question I often asked: ‘What made you become a nurse?’

Mostly there were three answers: ‘I was sick as a child and spent a lot of time in hospital….’ ‘My brother/sister/mother/someone I loved was sick and spent a lot of time in hospital…’ or ‘My mother/grandmother/father was a nurse and they inspired me…’

In this way, Grace’s occupation as a nurse, is me honouring these responses and exploring the life choices we make, why we make them, and the very caring role that nurses play in our community.

Who would Skimming Stones appeal to?

Skimming Stones will appeal to anyone who loves immersing themselves in characters’ lives. It will appeal to readers who enjoy a strong female lead (the type who makes mistakes, but who reflects and genuinely attempts to grow from them). It will appeal to people who read not just for entertainment, but also because they like thinking about the way society perceives things.

This is a novel that is honest in its account of how illness and trauma affect families, but it is still a novel that brings hope. I like to think Skimming Stones is for anyone, not just people who have experienced cancer in their families, but also people who have experienced other illnesses, life threatening situations, traumas and griefs. It is a novel that teaches readers not so much to ‘overcome’ the major shocks to their lives, but rather, more subtly, to learn how to ‘recognise’ them and what to do with this ‘recognition’.

Finally, this is a novel for anyone who loves to read about siblings, families, medicine, or who, like me, has ever been in hospital, on the receiving end of kindness and compassion, and wondered, ‘What made you become a nurse?’.

You have a PhD, how has this helped you as a writer?

Firstly, it kept me accountable. I had deadlines, and the PhD taught me not to wait for ‘inspiration’ but rather to show up, work, meet targets and be productive.

Secondly, even though I say the PhD taught me not to wait for inspiration, it did inspire me. It was lovely to have so many writers around. I loved hearing what other people were working on. Writing can be lonely, and the PhD was a great way to bring people together, make connections and grow ideas.

Finally, the PhD taught me how to research. I don’t think I would have known how to finish this novel without the careful research I did into the ways in which people with lived experiences actually tell their stories of trauma or illness.

What can you tell us about the Hungerford Award?

The award is named after T.A.G Hungerford and is given biennially to a previously unpublished Western Australian writer for a book-length manuscript.

The winner receives a monetary prize and a publishing contract with Fremantle Press, which is wonderful, because this combination has helped launch many writing careers. I’m sitting here so grateful to be a recipient of such an award.

What is it like to be an author in WA?

I don’t know any different!! I have heard that we all write about the beach or farms or landscape of some description or another, and I guess anecdotally it’s probably accurate, but what I notice most is the support we give to each other. I think writers in WA are very supportive of each other.

Who is your favourite author?

As a child, my favourite book was Heidi by Johanna Spyri. My mother grew up in Greece Greece, and I used to imagine that Heidi’s country life was not that different to my mother’s village upbringing. Aside from this, I have no one favourite author, but there are always some books I hold close when writing.

For Skimming Stones, these were Don DeLillo’s The Body Artist, Eimear McBride’s A Girl is a Half-formed Thing, Joan Didion’s Year of Magical Thinking and Jon McGregor’s If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things, all of which taught me that there is a very fragmented way in which grief or trauma is often experienced.

What are you currently reading?

I’m in research mode now for hopefully my next book. I’m still keeping with the motifs of textiles—my maternal grandmother was very proficient with her textile work, and this is something I want to explore further, so I am reading books to help me access what I imagine might have been her world.

I read a lot, but the books that are on high rotation right now are the research ones: Kassia St Clair’s The Golden Thread and Clare Hunter’s Threads of Life, both of which detail the history of fabric, as well as Yasmin Khan’s Ripe Figs which is a cookbook and travel memoir of Greece, Turkey and Cyprus.

Where can our readers follow you?

You can follow me on Instagram or Twitter

I also have a website, ‘coming soon’. Look out for it at www.mariapapas.com. I promise to finish it and have it running soon.

What is next for Maria Papas?

I am currently enjoying all that publication of my first book entails. I am journaling and researching my new book, and I’m open to seeing where that takes me.

Skimming Stones is available in all good bookstores and online in November 2021.