MEET THE AUTHOR
Chenée Marrapodi is an author and journalist who has danced ballet and jazz her whole life, loving the stories that can be created through movement. Today we’re pleased to be talking to Chenée about her debut novel One Wrong Turn.
The publisher provided Alphabet Soup with a review copy of One Wrong Turn.
From the publisher:
Amelia is a ballerina on the rise — she’s talented, dedicated and set to star in the lead role of the annual production. But when Valentina arrives from Italy and joins the ballet academy, the competition gets fierce. Can Amelia outshine Valentina and keep her place in the spotlight?
At your book launch, you mentioned going to ballet classes in Australia and in Italy. Do you have a memorable ballet performance you were in when you were young?
My first ballet performance was definitely a standout. I was a sheep and two farmers had to shear our wool on stage!
It’s funny to look back at now, but at the time I was so disappointed because in the previous year’s concert the girls got to be fairies.
What is your all-time favourite ballet production? ( … Would it be Cinderella?)
Cinderella is definitely one of my favourite ballet productions, which is one of the reasons it features in One Wrong Turn. There’s something special about seeing a familiar story brought to life on stage. I find it easier to get lost in the beauty of the dance because I already know the narrative so well.
I particularly love WA Ballet’s production of Cinderella, which is described by Amelia in my novel. Amelia talks about getting to ride on Cinderella’s coach as a young child, which is something that kids actually get to do in WA Ballet’s performance. It’s really special to watch!
In particular, I love watching the Step Sisters. They are hilarious and always steal the show. I once saw one of the sisters do tap dancing on her toes in pointe shoes. I still don’t know how she managed to do it!
Did you need to do any research while you were writing One Wrong Turn? Or did your experiences growing up cover everything you needed to get your story down?
Most of the story was inspired by my own experiences in dance classes. Some of Miss Lily’s funny corrections were things I’d heard my own teachers say over the years. Given I was never training for a career in ballet, I did chat to a couple of professional dancers to make sure the amount of training my characters were doing was realistic.
Valentina’s Italian family and traditions were also inspired by my own experiences. I’m Italo-Australian and grew up with big family meals and traditions like sauce and sausage making days. Valentina’s house is actually based on my Nonna’s and features some of the quirky pictures that used to hang on her walls.
I also lived in Italy for a while and danced at a small school while I was over there. Like Valentina, I couldn’t translate my teacher’s corrections while I was dancing. I found it too hard to remember choreography, listen to music and translate corrections in a foreign language at the same time. It took my teacher a whole year to figure out my secret!
Despite being fluent in Italian, I got one of my good friends in Italy to double check the Italian phrases in the novel. I don’t speak the language as much as I used to and I’m a little bit rusty. The last thing I wanted was an error forever printed in my book!
What’s the worst writing tip you’ve ever been given?
“Edit the story as you go.”
It might work for some people, but it doesn’t work for me. If I edit as I go, I get too fixated on trying to make every sentence perfect. It makes the whole task feel too overwhelming and I never make it to the end. Instead, I find it better to write a messy and fast first draft. I don’t reread my work until I make it all the way to the end of the story. It’s much easier to edit a messy page than a blank one.
Can you tell us a little about what you’re working on next?
I’m really excited to be working on a sequel to One Wrong Turn. It’s great fun being back at the ballet academy. You can expect the same characters, with a couple of new additions. There’ll also be lots of dancing (including a different style), fun, friendship, a tiny bit of romance and some very big challenges for everyone to overcome.
One Wrong Turn is out now! Ask for it at your favourite local bookshop or local library.
AWESOME EXTRAS
Read a sample chapter of the book.
Watch/listen to Chenée Marrapodi reading the first chapter of her book. [Youtube]
Download the Teachers’ Notes for One Wrong Turn.
Download these cool activity sheets to keep you on your toes.
Visit Chenée Marrapodi’s website for more about her and her books.
alphabetsoup.net.au 