Where are you happiest?

In nature, by the water. I can almost feel my evolutionary history. Every cell in my body comes alive, as if that small slippery thing that first crawled out of the slime is right there inside me, happy to be home.

What is your favourite word?

Puppies.

Which human quality do you most admire?

Kindness. From that, all follows.

Where would you like to have been born?

Exactly where and when I was: in an ordinary Sydney suburb with frangipani trees in the grey fenced yard and neighbours from almost every corner of the world. It was a wonderful place to be a child; not a lot of material ‘stuff’, but lots of books, imagination, and sunlight.

What is your favourite book?

The Norton Anthology of Poetry.

And your favourite literary hero and heroine?

Hero: Aragorn – great guy to go with on a bushwalk.
Heroine: Almondine, in David Wroblewski’s The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. I want that dog.

What, if anything, impedes your writing?

The same things that enable it. Life, in all its aspects. Family and kids. The siren song of sunlight sparkling on water.

How old were you when your first book appeared?

Old. First non-fiction at thirty-eight; first novel at forty-five.

Of which of your books are you fondest?

No, can’t do that. It’s like rating your kids.

In a phrase, how would you characterise your work?

Using intriguing voids in the historical record to imaginatively explore how people are changed by catastrophe.

Who is your favourite author?

I can’t narrow it down to one. Tim Winton. Annie Dillard for her non-fiction. Marilynne Robinson for Gilead and Home, which are almost perfect novels in my opinion. And Jane Austen, of course.

How do you regard publishers?

With gratitude. I’ve been extraordinarily well tended by them.

What do you think of the state of criticism?

It’s becoming more democratic, which is good, I think. It’s harder for one lacerating review to sink a book.

If you had your time over again, would you choose to be a writer?

Yes, though when I was reporting in the Middle East, Africa, and the Balkans, I wished I were a doctor.

What do you think of writers’ festivals?

I love them. They are wonderful places to encounter new work, to learn whether a writer you admire is personable or a right prat, and to meet readers. They all have different personalities. I have a soft spot for Wellington’s, because the selection of authors is eclectic and not driven so much by whether or not someone has a new book out.

Do you feel artists are valued in our society?

I used to think that sport sucked all the air out of the room, but I don’t think that’s so true anymore. I think Australia has come up with some innovative things, such as Public Lending Rights, to value its writers. I would like to see young artists recognised and helped more in their developing years.

What are you working on now?

Something new for me. With my old friend Graham Thorburn, I am adapting my new novel for the screen.

 Geraldine Brooks divides her time between Sydney and Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. She won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction for March (2005), and her new novel Caleb’s Crossing is published this month. Her other books include Year of Wonders (2001) and People of the Book (2008), as well as the non-fiction works Nine Parts of Desire: The Hidden World of Islamic Women (1995) and Foreign Correspondence: A Pen Pal’s Journey from Down Under to All Over (1998).