How did you become a writer Jaqui?

This is a question I’m often asked so I thought I’d share my story as many people I work with have never written a book before and, of course, there was a time when I hadn’t either.

Once upon a time . . .

Only kidding.

Before I became a writer I was a reader. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t read. I’ve always had books in my life and still have some of the earliest books I was given and re-read hundreds of times. Beatrix Potter and the Peter Rabbit stories are top my list, as are the Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh books, Charles M. Schulz’s Charlie Brown and Snoopy, Dr Seuss and more.

I didn’t only read stories. My parents subscribed to Time Life books and National Geographic. I clearly remember whole bookshelves filled with the distinctive yellow spine of National Geographic magazines. I read all of these and then, later, cut them up for school projects.

Toughness test

My first clear memory of writing something distinctive was for the Headmaster of my Intermediate school, Mr Bonnevie, (https://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/96723054/former-pn-school-principal-remembered-for-hitchhiking-and-mori-language-skills) an enlightened educator if there ever was one. He selected one student from each class for ‘additional’ challenges or ‘toughness tests’ as he called them. Several of these tests were writing a story. Two I clearly remember were ‘A car of the future’ and ‘A day in the life of a dust particle.’

The first one was easy as I had the help of three older brothers. The latter story about the dust particle had me stumped so I asked my father for help. He suggested I think about a dust particle landing on one of our dogs and take it from there. So I did.

Creative writing like that wasn’t really my thing and still isn’t. I’m way better with facts.

Throughout school and university I wrote lots of assignments and then a Masters Thesis on NZ-Russian relations. Yep…you read that right. I was and remain fascinated by Russia and completed my Masters in Russian Politics.

After two years working for a political party in NZ I was offered the role of a research associate for a project on the history of Australian entrepreneurship, commissioned by the Australian Stock Exchange overseen by the CIS. That research job ended up with me co-writing a 300-page book Champions of Enterprise, Australian Entrepreneurship 1788-1990. It’s now out of print and way overdue for an update . . . next year, maybe.

Writing on hold

I then set up a business publishing company and didn’t write anything for over 20 years, although I was working with authors all the time and was deeply involved in crafting the key themes, contents and publishing the books.

Reinvention post 2009

Like many others in business the GFC and rapid changes in the publishing industry required me to regroup and craft a new pathway. Well, for me it was rediscovering writing.

Since that time I’ve written 19 business histories and stories for ASX-listed companies, private family businesses, private companies and entrepreneurs. Some of these I’ve also published, but I focus on the writing. Part of the writing process is, of course, the research and over the same 10-year period I’ve interviewed over 900 business executives and leaders, entrepreneurs, political representatives, various Prime Ministers, a few Sheiks, some Lords and Dames, long-time assistants, factory workers, clerical staff, secretaries and my own parents.

When I first ‘went back’ to writing I wasn’t sure if I could still do it, so started out quite tentatively. It was the FEAR FACTOR that many consultants, business owners and directors have. Will what I write be any good? What will my peers think? What will the client think?

As it turns out writing is a bit like picking up a musical instrument after years of not playing it. You'll be a bit rusty, need to kick your brain into gear about reading music, but as soon as you do it comes back pretty quickly. I soon regained my confidence.

Now I still research and write as well as mentor other business owners, consultants and entrepreneurs through the whole process of developing, writing and publishing their own book through The Book Adviser.

I love the process of writing . . . of taking what I’ve put into my head, synthesising it all (somehow) and putting that down on the screen. While I sometimes find it hard to get that first sentence or paragraph down, once I’ve done this the rest flows.

And I still love reading. When I am not writing I am reading. There’s nothing better than reading great writing and two of my favourite authors are Umberto Eco and Christopher Hitchens.

So, wherever you are at in your writing journey just remember that mine started with writing ‘A day in the life of a dust particle’.