Read a Q&A with Emma Viskic | Those Who Perish

Emma Viskic’s critically acclaimed Caleb Zelic novels have been published worldwide. The series has won numerous prizes, including a Ned Kelly Award and an unprecedented five Davitt Awards. Her debut novel, Resurrection Bay, was shortlisted for the UK’s prestigious Gold Dagger and New Blood Awards, and a Barry Award in the US. Emma was formerly a classical clarinet player whose musical career ranged from performing with José Carreras and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, to playing at an engagement party that ended in a brawl.

Today, to celebrate the recent release of her new Caleb Zelic novel Those Who Perish, Emma Viskic is on the blog to answer a few of our questions. Read on …

Emma Viskic

Please tell us about your book, Those Who Perish!

EV: After some rough years, things are finally going well for deaf private investigator Caleb Zelic – not only has he reconciled with his beloved ex-wife, but he’s about to become a father. Even his commitment to accepting safe cases is keeping him entertained as he investigates the ‘kidnapping’ of his hometown’s cherished footy mascot, Ned the Numbat. But Caleb’s new-found happiness is threatened when he receives an anonymous message that his estranged brother, Anton, is in danger. A man has been shot and Anton might be next. Caleb reluctantly leaves his pregnant wife’s side and tracks Ant to a remote island. When the sniper starts terrorising the isolated community, the brothers have to rely on each other to survive.

This is your fourth crime novel featuring PI Caleb Zelic. Did you ever envision that the series would grow in the way that it has?

EV: I set out to write a short series where the characters grew and evolved. The kind of books that can be read as standalones, but where you go on an emotional journey with the characters if you read them in order. Having said that, I didn’t think I’d get the first book published, let alone all four. Not just because it’s notoriously difficult to get published, but because the books are a little tricky to define. They’re (hopefully!) page turners but also character-driven and deal with a lot social issues. Plus, they’re pretty sweary. I feel incredibly lucky to have had the support of my publishers and readers. It’s not often you get the freedom to write exactly what you want to.

What is your favourite thing about Caleb and why?

EV: One of the unexpected joys has been Caleb’s deafness. Not only does it add tension to fight scenes and trips down dark alleyways, but it’s really strengthened his character. Although Caleb uses Auslan (Australian sign language) he lipreads most of the time, which means he’s extremely observant. He notices things I wouldn’t have thought to include with a hearing character: a hesitation in people’s speech or a misplaced emphasis, the perfume someone’s wearing. How the other characters respond to Caleb’s deafness can also reveal a lot. Not just whether they’re accepting or aggressive, but how they choose to communicate with him. Lipreading might seem like a cool trick, but my own disastrous experiences trying to learn it proved to me just how exhausting and difficult it is. In contrast, Auslan is a very expressive and freeing language; Caleb’s only truly relaxed when he’s using it. So the people who love him, sign with him.

Caleb has previously been a bit of a loner, being estranged from his family. What made you realise that you wanted to write about his family in this book?

EV: To a certain extent all the books have been about Caleb trying to find his place in the world. At the beginning, he’s almost wilfully isolated. Because of his upbringing, he’s at odds with himself, not comfortable in either the Deaf or hearing communities, and he’s done a good job of pushing loved-ones away. As he’s grown and changed it felt right that the final book would be about his family. The possibly final book … Although I’m moving on to other projects for now, I quite like the idea of revisiting Caleb in the future to see how he’s getting on.

What’s your approach to maintaining suspense in your crime writing?

EV: Tension is as much about contrast as it is about danger, so after an intense chapter I’ll slip in a lighter moment, and vice versa. That push-pull of fast and slow, funny and poignant keeps readers guessing and (hopefully!) engaged. Apart from that, I always keep in mind that if I’ve thought of a plot twist, readers probably will have too. I often ditch my first few ideas for that reason and can be pretty brutal with the delete button.

Can you tell us a little bit about your journey towards becoming a writer?

EV: I was a huge reader as a kid, but money was tight and we lived a long way from the library, so whenever I ran out of reading material, I wrote it. Lots of short stories and plays in primary school, then novellas and half-finished books in high school. All of them mimicked whatever I was reading at the time, so if anyone ever wants to blackmail me, there are boxes full of bad Jane Austen and John le Carré rip-offs in a box somewhere they can use.

Despite all those stories, it didn’t really occur to me that I could become an author when I was growing up. Published writers all seemed to be erudite men from the US or UK and I was a working class kid with rampant ADHD and terrible spelling. I detoured into a career as a musician and loved it, but felt a constant pull towards writing. So I finally sat down and made my first serious attempt at writing a book when I was around thirty. It was a terrible, formless mess but it lit a fire insides me. For the first time, I was writing about the world around me instead of mimicking other books. Soon afterwards, I began what was to become my debut novel, Resurrection Bay.

What do you love about writing crime fiction?

EV: Writing is my way of understanding the world, and there’s nothing like crime fiction to delve into people’s motivations and the lies we tell ourselves. It probably also helps that I grew up in Frankston, on the outskirts of Melbourne. It was a great place to grow up, with lots of bushland, swamps and building sites to explore, but it also had one of the highest crime and unemployment rates in Victoria. And, incredibly, it’s been the haunt of two separate serial killers. I don’t remember being scared about the murders when I was a kid but they obviously seeped into my subconscious. I didn’t realise until I was much older that other people didn’t automatically check for dead bodies when they walked passed vacant lots.

What is the last book you read and loved?

EV: The Torrent by Dinuka McKenzie, a great debut crime novel with a fresh take on the police procedural. I was lucky enough to mentor Dinuka through an early draft of The Torrent a couple of years ago and am thrilled to see her getting the recognition she deserves.

What do you hope readers will discover in Those Who Perish?

EV: I hope that new readers will discover a character they want to spend time with, and that those who’ve been with Caleb from the beginning will feel satisfied with where his journey ends. Beyond that, it would be nice to think that some readers might discover something new about themselves or the world.

And finally, what’s up next for you?

EV: Something a little different! I’m writing a crime novel inspired by some family history. I can’t say much about it yet but I’m really enjoying getting to know my new protagonist and learning some truly epic Croatian swearing.

Thanks Emma!

—Those Who Perish by Emma Viskic (Echo Publishing) is out now. Limited signed copies are available only while stocks last!

Those Who Perish

Limited Signed Copies Available!

by Emma Viskic

Deaf PI Caleb Zelic has always been an outsider, estranged from family and friends. But when he receives a message that his brother, Anton, is in danger, Caleb sees it as a chance at redemption.

He tracks Anton down to a small, wind-punished island, where secrets run deep and resentments deeper. When a sniper starts terrorising the isolated community, the brothers must rely on each other like never before. But trust comes at a deadly price …

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