How to throw off ‘lawyerly shackles’ to write a novel

A lawyer by trade, Dermot Ross’s first novel, Hemingway’s Goblet, published by Mary Egan Publishing (RRP $38), is a fresh look at acclaimed author Ernest Hemingway through the eyes of his fictional character’s links to the legendary figure.

You’ve said you thought it would be “good fun” to write a novel. Was it as fun as you hoped?

It was indeed a lot of fun. Part of the fun lies in the challenge, of doing something new and daunting and which requires effort and rigour. Many a writer will testify that the simple act of writing – I wrote the book in longhand on a series of foolscap pads – is a cathartic and enjoyable experience, notably when the pen flows easily and morning passes with several pages finished. There is little joy in receiving occasionally trenchant but always constructive criticism, but there is fun seeing the book through to publication and launch.

In 2022 you wrote in Newsroom that ‘cancel culture has bypassed Hemingway.’ Is your book an attempt to hold Hemingway accountable?

Because of his outsized reputation of being a brawler, boozer, womaniser and blood sport enthusiast, as well as being a groundbreaking genius of a writer, I decided some humour would be in order. I have sought to exaggerate all of Hemingway’s most toxic characteristics. I certainly didn’t wish to diminish Hemingway’s literary achievements and prowess. I also wanted to emphasise that one can be a great artist and also a bad human being. The literary establishment in the US, which reveres Hemingway’s writing and which has studied his life and works in forensic detail, is willing to overlook his unpleasant personal characteristics. I think that is how it should be.

Which skills and attributes from your legal career were most useful in writing and researching this book?

Studying and practising law gives a number of advantages, including an appreciation of the written word and how it is expressed, discipline and resilience. It also provides a good overview and insight into others’ lives. We lawyers, however, write turgid documents and letters, full of archaic expressions and unnecessarily long or obscure words, and part of the discipline of the novel was to try to ensure my lawyerly shackles did not inhibit the flow of the book or make it unreadable or too complex.

Because the law impinges on every aspect of life, lawyers have an advantage in terms of creatively producing a story. They are able to use their knowledge and experience to develop plot lines and give them a twist or two.

You travelled to key locations – tell us about that experience.

The Hemingway material in the book was concentrated in two cities (Pamplona in Spain in 1925 and Hong Kong in 1941). I realised I had to know those locations well to present them accurately and interestingly. I visited both, including Pamplona during its bull-running festival. Without those visits, my descriptions of actions and events would not have been convincing. And... new ideas arise frequently when visiting new places.