The Stella prize-winning novelist Heather Rose, known for chronicling the life of Marina Abramović, has spoken about battling chronic illness and her explosive new novel, Bruny. The book, set on the Tasmanian island of the same name, explores themes of terrorism, political conflict, and the tension between development and nature.
Rose, 55, draws on a life of varied experiences, from working as a goat herder on a Greek island to being a paid companion to an elderly lord in Surrey. Despite these travels, she repeatedly returns to Tasmania in her writing, believing local stories matter. “There are so many stories in your local environment that matter and can be told,” she said.
Bruny imagines an alternative reality where China and Tasmania invest $2bn in a bridge linking Bruny Island to the mainland, only for a terrorist attack to blow it up. Rose noted the novel’s relevance to current geopolitics, including US isolationism and Chinese influence in Australia. “I had no idea that now, in 2019, it would be so very relevant,” she said.
Rose began her writing career at 17 with the Mercury newspaper, later training as a copywriter and co-founding an advertising agency. She teaches part-time at the University of Tasmania and stresses the importance of considering the audience. Her novel The Museum of Modern Love won the Stella prize in 2017 and was the first novel launched at New York’s Museum of Modern Art.
Reflecting on Tasmania’s appeal, Rose said it risks becoming “like a Greek island” with a million tourists a year, urging careful planning for its future. “There’s no doubt that Tasmania is a prized jewel… because of its isolation, because of its natural resources,” she concluded.
