Spotlight On Writers
Rex Fausett
- Where do you originate from?
I was born in Morrinsville, New Zealand but have lived in Auckland since 1989.
- What do you cherish most about the place you call home?
I passed through Morrinsville recently and barely recognised the town. It doesn’t look like it did when we rode our bikes along every street back in the fifties, but today, when I recall the town, it settles in my head as the 1953 version and, ideally, nothing has changed. I still have one friend there I’ve known since childhood, but many have passed on or moved, mainly passing on. My parents are buried there. To be honest, I think I no longer come from that town, but I cherish the older version of it.
- What ignites your creativity?
I wrote my first story when I was around ten. A tale of adventure and excitement that took up half a page. I remember being annoyed that the story wasn’t longer, but I couldn’t think what to add to it, what I’d left out. Today I have no problems with ideas, but I have trouble deciding which among those ideas should be pursued. When I review an old idea written in a dozen lines on a Word document, I know I will never get to that story, but deleting that document is like killing a child. I played in rock bands through the sixties, seventies, and eighties and there are plenty of good stories about those years. I’m also a member of Romance Writers New Zealand, whose members can regularly ignite inspiration.
- Do you have a favorite word and could you incorporate it into a poetic phrase?
I’ve always liked Faerie because a Faerie Tale raises dark possibilities beyond a Fairy Tale.
I did once write a poem using the word. Okay, I was much younger.
I wish I knew the Faerie Queen
I’d take her down to Twickers
I’d sit her down upon my knee
And fiddle with her knickers.
- What is your pet peeve?
As I’ve aged my peeves have changed and I can now tolerate many things that I couldn’t in the past. On the other hand, I have new peeves, often generated by politics. I’m personally peeved that I’ve never written a story that has the potential to ignite the world, just as I’ve never been able to plot the ultimate love story, the one that will be auctioned to fierce competition and make me independently wealthy so that in future I can dictate stories to a devoted handmaiden in my Paris apartment.
- How would you describe the essence of Rex Fausett?
Mmm, difficult. My peeves above say I’m still a dreamer and I hope that never changes. A quote I read today from Welcome To The Hyunam-Dong Bookshop might also be pertinent: ‘I’ve been pretending to be an adult when I’m not.‘
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