Crime Writing and Flawed Heroes: In Conversation with Michael Trant

I first met author Michael Trant through Twitter in the years before it became a bin fire and changed its name, when a group of us were waking up to write at 5 am. I don’t think any of us are actually at our desk that early in the morning these days, but we still support one another, whether that be commiserating on the latest disappointment, celebrating a new release or simply encouraging each other to continue turning up to the page. This often includes Michael posting pics from his tractor as his day job includes working on farms in Western Australia’s mid-west.

With Michael, what you see is what you get. Down to earth and genuine, he’s one of the good guys. And he also knows how to weave together a fast-paced page-turner that will have you reading “just one more chapter” before you turn the lights out.

I hope you enjoy the following conversation and, if you haven’t already, do yourself a favour and check out his Gabe Ahern Trilogy: Wild Dogs, No Trace and Blood and Gold.

Writing

How/when did you discover that writing was something you wanted to do/loved doing?

I’d always liked it at school as a kid, but it was when I started blogging to raise awareness around some of the issues we were facing on our farms that I rediscovered my enjoyment of it, which led to giving novel writing a go.

Where do you write?

Mostly at home, in the office, though occasionally I’ll take the laptop into the tractor cab at work if needed, and if the task allows.

What keeps you writing?

Not sure, it’s nice to see your work being enjoyed by readers, but even before I was published it was just something I enjoyed doing. Book advances are nice too.

Do you prefer writing a first draft, or developing and editing subsequent drafts?

I much prefer editing the second and third drafts. First drafts are like pulling teeth for me sometimes, since I don’t really plot too much so never know what’s going to happen.

What do you do when you don’t feel like writing, or the words aren’t coming easily?

I’ve gotten better at writing scenes I know will get cut, but I also know that scene will lead me to something new. And now that I’ve written two books to fairly short deadlines that started with extremely messy first drafts, I can tell myself I’ve been here before and got through it, so I can do it again.

Gabe Ahern: Wild Dogs, No Trace, Blood and Gold

Which came first for you: character, setting, plot or something else?

Probably the very basic plot and setting – an older, fairly cantankerous, morally grey bushie was going to run into a younger Muslim man out in the WA bush and they were going to have a clash of cultures, with the bushie sacrificing himself to save the day at the end, thus completing his redemption arc. The characters pretty much wrote themselves as I needed them.

What was your writing process once you got your initial idea? (and was it a similar process for each of the novels or did this vary)?

Just made it up as I went, with one scene leading to the next. There was no plotting aside from a few broad ideas. Characters got created as needed, with the villain Chase appearing as a simple interaction between two bushies before I decided someone needs to be chasing them through the scrub. So why not the roo shooter we just met? Stuff like that happens a lot in my first draft, and was exactly how I wrote No Trace and Blood and Gold as well, albeit with the pressure of looming deadlines. Not as much fun.

What was the time frame between a) the initial idea and a complete draft and b) finishing your manuscript and seeing the published book on bookshop shelves?

About eighteen months to write Wild Dogs, when and as I felt like it, with a big break in the middle when I got stuck and worked on something else for ages. The finished manuscript was subbed to an agent; she held it for eight months before informing me she had quit agenting so wouldn’t be reading it. So I went over it again and subbed to Alex Adsett, who had it on her desk for another ten months before reading it. Then it was a flurry of phone calls, emails and Zoom meetings, and we had a two-book deal signed about six weeks after that in September of 21, and it was on the shelves in Feb 22 – a very fast turnaround, but it was a very polished manuscript. I even had a draft cover before signing the actual contract.

For anyone who hasn’t read any of the Gabe Ahern books, can you introduce us to him?

Gabe is one of those older, gruff, man-of-few-words type of guys that prefers his own company over people, but once you’re in his circle, he’ll do anything if you need help. He doesn’t suffer fools lightly, is pretty set in his ways but open to new ideas as well. A very capable bushman who uses his particular set of skills to get himself out strife. Sam Neil’s character in Hunt for the Wilderpeople is a great comparison.

As a reader, I feel that we get to see deeper and deeper layers to Gabe in each subsequent book – was this deliberate, or did this evolve as you wrote?

With Wild Dogs he was never meant to survive, so I didn’t need too many layers for him, but with No Trace, I definitely wanted to explore how you move on from losing your life partner, and also how blokes deal with that trauma, plus what he went through in Wild Dogs. Action heroes and special forces operators mow down dozens of bad guys and wake up fine the next morning, but Gabe’s a normal fella who wasn’t in the best head space to start with, so that trauma plays into his paranoia on Goldmont [the station in No Trace] and muddies the water a little as to whether anyone is actually out to get him or not. And with Blood and Gold I really wanted to explore his and former partner Valerie’s relationship further, and how he reconciles that with his new one.

How did you ensure you respectfully and authentically represented characters such as Afghan man Amin and those living in the Aboriginal community of Jakob’s River?

My approach is to read up and research what I can as I need it, then write the whole thing first in the knowledge that I will certainly stuff it up somewhere and it will need to be changed. I was fortunate that Raihanaty A Jalil and Bill Bennell were such great sensitivity readers, and together we added a lot of smaller details so that any readers who knows those cultures better than me can hopefully see we put the work in to avoid stereotypes and ensure authenticity. Because as a former farmer I know how annoyed I get when I see things on TV or in books I know aren’t really accurate at all.

I believe you initially imagined Wild Dogs as a standalone novel – how did Gabe Ahern’s story become a series?

Penguin signed my with a two-book deal, which was terrifying because I had absolutely nothing in the drawer that would suit, so when my publisher Bev suggested she’d be interested in another story with Gabe, that was an easy choice to make. Then she wanted one more. So while each story does follow on from the other, none were written with the expectation of the next story ever existing.

How did you research and create a sense of place in your novels, especially for real locations such as Cue?

I spent a few years in the Murchison when I was married and we owned a sheep station out there, so the setting is really easy for me to conjure on the page. I find it’s the little details that sell it – the humming of fence wires, the cicadas, the way the air feels when a storm is brewing, the absolute silence at night. If you’ve never been there, you would know those little details. As for Cue, I’ve driven through a few times and was always impressed by the old buildings there. I looked up a town map, included some real spots nearby like Nallan Lake and Big Bell, and made up others as needed. Hopefully I’ve done it justice – I haven’t been game to drive through there yet though.

Your novels are gripping reads – how do you create the suspense that keeps readers turning the next page?

Wild Dogs I imagined as a movie – there’s four points of view through the book, and in the more hectic scenes I jumped between those views a lot, kind of like a camera would on film. I ask myself if the chapter ended there, would I want to keep reading to see what happens next. Editors are very helpful too. Shanè is great at suggesting good spots to end the chapters.

Where to now for Gabe Ahern?

Not sure. Though it wasn’t intentional, the three books make a nice circle of his story. He’s a mess when we meet him in Wild Dogs, in No Trace he’s worse but on the mend by the end, and with Blood and Gold we see how he became the way he started in Wild Dogs. I’ve a couple more ideas from him, but the problem with Gabe is he has no business getting into the trouble he does. He’s not a cop, he’s not a mercenary or a journo, so why does he keep getting into strife? Plus I had him pictured at late sixties, early seventies in Wild Dogs, which didn’t matter because he was cactus from the start. Now it’s been three years after that in Blood and Gold, so we’ve decided he just looks old. Too much sun, smokes and sipping whiskey.

What’s next for you?

Again, not sure. The books have done well, but not well enough for an immediate new signing for another Gabe story. So I’ve either got to come up with a whole new character, or fish out some of my earlier stuff and see if that’s worth tidying up. But I’m fairly confident there will be something out there eventually. I just won’t know what that is until I finish writing it.

Inspiration and a Few Words

Who inspires or has made a difference in your life and why?

I’m always inspired by anyone who has just soldiered on. Whether it’s losing a partner and raising the kids on their own, battling depression, or just persevering despite setback after setback.

If you could write a letter to your 12-year-old self, what would you say to him?

Keep reading, keep writing, and keep playing the bloody guitar! There was a ten to fifteen year gap where I dove into work and building our little farm empire. I could have spent a bit more time on my hobbies, seeing as one of them actually pays now.

What book has had a lasting impact on you and why?

The Last Wish, by Andrzej Sapkowski. The way he weaves Polish legend with fairy tales, action and humour really drew me into the Witcher Universe. I even stole some of his techniques for Wild Dogs, including the three scenes from the dingo’s point of view.

Any final words for other creatives?

Consume content like it’s oxygen, including advice from other writers, then cherry pick what works best for you. And keep going. Persevere. It may still not happen, but it definitely won’t happen if you give up.