Psychological thriller puts Bunbury author in the spotlight

A Bunbury author, fascinated by small town WA, is using his take on the gothic horror genre to explores the effects of ongoing colonisation on the landscape and community. Set in the east Pilbara, Joshua Kemp’s new book Jasper Cliff came after researching frontier history in the Battye Library. “I would often read about the horrors of colonisation for other creative projects, and during this process discovered how history can be twisted or altered by unscrupulous writers,” he said. “I’ve always been fascinated by small town WA and parts of the history we don’t know as much about, or maybe don’t want to talk about, in particular frontier history . . . says quite a lot about us as a country and where we are today. “The vote on the Voice last year was, I think, a perfect example that as non-Indigenous Australians, we need to engage with that history a bit more and perhaps strive more understanding. “And in small town WA, a lot of that history is there. A lot of these places were founded on some pretty dark elements of our history.” Kemp said he was also working on a sequel to his first novel Banjarwan, which had a genre to Jasper Cliff with an aim to explore important themes through shaking-up and shocking the reader. “I think the first novel and this one have a lot in common, but with the first novel, I was looking at the idea of unsettlement, and I think it comes back to . . . asking questions,” he said. “You can’t ask important questions about yourself or the country that you live in if you’re comfortable. “The novel really set out to unsettle the reader, but then I think that hopefully will lead to them asking bigger questions about things. “Gothic fiction is largely about fear, and quite often we can be afraid of things that might not necessarily have substance, but then there’s always something underlining that fear.” For his work, Kemp was recognised in the West Australian Premier’s Prize last year as the best emerging writer. “It was kind of a funny experience because I had completely convinced myself I wasn’t going to win and had really just gone up to the event with my family for a bit of an experience,” he said. “I think in the past, the awards have really been more for literary works and poetry as well — I was there with my psychological gothic thriller thinking I’m just going to enjoy the night. “When they called my name out I was kind of very shocked. I took that as a win again for the genre.” He has also received a Ned Kelly Award and the Dorothy Hewett Award for his debut novel. Jasper Cliff will be released on September 3 with an event to celebrate its launch on September 5 at The Literature Centre in Fremantle.