Q and A

Send your questions to oliver@oliverwriter.com and I’ll answer them here.

How old are you?

Apparently this is one of the most frequent questions asked on Google, lol. I’m currently 38 in human years but my heart is still 15 years old. My birthday is 18th April 1983.

Where did you go to school?

I went to Canley Vale PS and Hoxton Park HS. 

Who were your favourite authors as a kid?

I read everything that Paul Jennings and Morris Gleitzman wrote back then. I also blitzed through Roald Dahl’s books too.

Who are your favourite authors now?

Morris Gleitzman is still up there. I love everything Andy Griffiths does. Jeff Kinnely (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) is pretty cool too. I’m also a big fan of R.A Spratt and Kate and Jol Temple.

What are your favourite books?

The Tomorrow When the War Began Series by John Marsden is still my all time fave. All 7 books were amazing, along with the extra 3 in the Ellie Chroncles.

Hating Alison Ashley by Robin Klein, Misery Guts by Morris Gleitzman and the Just series by Andy Griffiths are books I can read over and over again.

What music do you like listening to?

All time faves: Westlife, John Mayer, Eminem, The Bee Gees, Madonna, Matchbox 20, Maroon 5, One Direction, Lil Wayne

More recently: Drake, John Mayer, Jonas Brothers, Justin Bieber

Favourite movies?

When Harry Met Sally, The Matrix, The Game, Finding Nemo, Wall-E, Serpendity, Fierce Creatures, District 9, Inception, Scott Pilgrim Vs The World, Interstellar, The Dark Knight, Mad Max:Fury Road, The Lego Movie, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Inside Out, Logan, King Kong: Skull Island, Avengers: End Game.

All time fave video games?

I’ve been a lifelong Nintendo fan…I have everything from the NES (the original one, not that mini classic) all the way to the Switch. My favourite consoles are the Gamecube and Wii U (google them up, they are classics haha)

I also have an Xbox for other games that I can’t get on Nintendo consoles…COD, Halo and those cool first person shooters. 

Sonic The Hedgehog games (especially the older ones, I like the new ones too, but they’re not as good haha)

Super Mario Brothers 3, Skies of Arcadia (Nintendo Gamecube/Wii), Pokemon White, Advance Wars Series, Super Smash Brothers, Mario Kart series, Zelda, 

More recently, Minecraft Dungeons, Cyberpunk 2077, Forza Horizon 4, Bravely Default 2, Hollow Knight, Pokemon Go (Level 41 baby!)

Favourite food?

Burgers, pizza, hot chips and ramen.

Favourite sports?

Handball (yes, it’s a sport!), soccer and basketball. But I love watching cricket and the NRL. I also like jogging and ran my first marathon in 2015 and again in 2017.

What teams do you support?

NRL: Wests Tigers, AFL: Greater Western Sydney Giants, EPL: Crystal Palace, A-League: Western Sydney Wanderers, Big Bash League: Sydney Thunder. 

Where do you get all your ideas from?

I feed my imagination with loads of reading. I love reading all sorts of books, so it equips me with all tools I need to write. I also borrow ideas from my friends, kids I teach and just random things I see out on public. Try catching a train and not leaving without some piece of juicy dialogue or seeing a weird guy (don’t talk to these weirdos though hehe).

What was your first book?

Thai-riffic! was my first book, which came out back in 2010!

Where were you born?

Australia mate, I was born in Sydney. Auburn Hospital to be exact.

Where do you live?

I live in Western Sydney haha

Do you ever get writers block?

No, not yet-knock on wood 🙂

Do you have any brothers and sisters?

Yes, I have a younger sister named Anna. 

Got any writing tips?

Yeah, write heaps and write often-it doesn’t matter what you write, if it makes you happy then keep writing…enter comps to gain cred, read heaps of books to get ideas for your own, copy styles that you like so you can grow as a writer, check out Publishers websites because some of them want YOUR stories! And it doesn’t matter how old or young you are-YOUR TIME IS NOW!