Essays new chapter for acclaimed writer
Whanganui writer Airini Beautrais has followed up winning New Zealand’s top fiction award with her first work of non-fiction. The Beautiful Afternoon is a collection of essays and was launched in her hometown this week. Beautrais won the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize at the 2021 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards for her collection of short stories, Bug Week, and has previously published four books of poetry. But non-fiction is something she has been wanting to do “for quite a long time”.
“I think some of the thematic stuff in here is quite similar to what I’ve done with short fiction,” she said.
“They’re sort of political and feminist themes and I wanted to explore that through a non-fiction lens as well.
“With fiction, you’re removed but with non-fiction it’s real, you’re talking about your real opinions and your real thoughts and real-life experiences.”
The 17 essays discuss personal growth through a variety of subjects — history, literature, Star Wars, sea hags, beauty products, tarot, swimwear, environmentalism and pole dancing.
The book’s title comes from an essay about going camping in what Beautrais calls “a little meditation on aloneness”. “Travelling alone can be really cool, you meet people . . . [but] sometimes it’s just the opposite, it’s really lonely and depressing and uncomfortable.” She said when people decided to grow and deal with mental health or trauma they often “want to get better really quickly”.
“But it’s a very circuitous path where it goes all over the place and sometimes you make more mistakes and you learn from those.
“It’s really hard work and takes a long time. If you have difficult events in your life or difficult experiences it’s not an overnight recovery.”
Beautrais said while there was a vulnerability in putting this work out in the world, the writing part was helpful.
“There’s a lot of stuff I thought I was opinionated about but then when I sat down to write about it I realised that I actually don’t know what I think. It can be a bit more nuanced than you originally think.
“I hope that people will find some comfort in knowing they’re not alone in certain kinds of experiences.”
Beautrais said the $57,000 cash prize from the Ockham win — the biggest in the country — helped her find the time to write the book alongside parttime work as a teacher.
“I think all artists and creatives would say the same thing. If your work doesn’t generate income on its own, then having money from somewhere like an award or a grant is going to help you to create work,” she said.
“I don’t think I could ever be a full-time writer just because I would drive myself crazy and I kind of need to have other things going on in my life. It’s very much in your head and it’s quite solitary.”
Beautrais enjoyed writing non-fiction and already has ideas for more.
“I’m really interested in community, having grown up in an intentional community [Quakers]. I want to explore that a bit more and think about how I live and how we live.”
Beautrais has published four collections of poetry, including Secret Heart, which won the Jessie Mackay Award for First Book of Poetry at the 2007 Montana New Zealand Book Awards. In 2016 she won the Landfall Essay Prize.