I still love climbing trees.
2. What is your nickname?
China
3. What is your greatest fear?
Mice
4. Describe your writing style in ten words.
Dense. Lyrical. Evocative. I never feel forced to write.
5. Tell us five positive words that describe you as a writer.
Curious. Imaginative. Adventurous. In love.
6. What book character would you be, and why?
I’d be Wendy from Peter Pan because she flies to Neverland with Peter and who wouldn’t want to do that?
7. If you could time travel, what year would you go to and why?
I’d go back to caveman times. I’d want to be nomadic and living in harmony with the earth.
8. What would your ten-year-old self say to you now?
I told you you’d be a writer.
9. Who is your greatest influence?
My mum
10. What/who made you start writing?
It’s innate. I can’t remember not writing.
11. What is your favourite word and why?
Dusk. It’s the moment the ocean turns to glass and the world becomes still.
12. If you could only read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Blueback by Tim Winton
Sophie Hardcastle is an Australian author and artist based in Sydney. Sophie's memoir, Running Like China, was published in 2015 and her debut novel, Breathing Under Water, was recently released by Hachette Australia. Visit Sophie's website for more information about her books, art and other projects.