Big question leads to crime novel

By Lydia Roberts

What's the worst that could happen?

It's a common enough question that led to award winning author JP (Josh) Pomare writing a "twisty thriller".

Josh and his partner, from Melbourne, were mulling the idea of letting their home to Airbnb guests.

They wondered what was the worst that could happen if they did so and decided it was worth the risk.

​The business has been a success, but the question, of what could possibly go wrong, led to Josh's latest novel, The Last Guests.

Crime writer, JP Pomare "what's the worst that could happen?"

The fictional tale is based on characters Lina and Cain renting out an inherited lake house and what transpires with various guests.

"The novel is about someone installing cameras in Airbnbs and streaming the footage to a global network of voyeurs," Josh says.

"I also wanted to write about special service soldiers and what it's like to return from war."

Josh, from Rotorua in New Zealand, has made crime his genre, with many of his stories set in small towns.
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"I think growing up in rural New Zealand gives you a perspective of life in small towns," he says.

"I think it's harder for a city born, city based writer to write about small town life in an authentic way.

"I also think in NZ we are so spoiled by the beautiful landscapes, and in a way that's likely informed how I approach setting. I want to write about the quiet beauty of places like Maketu, or Tarawera."

Although Josh wrote articles in high school and initially set his sights on becoming a journalist, he eventually fell into writing fiction in his early 20s.

His other works include Call me Evie (for which he won Best First Novel at the Ngaio Marsh Awards), In the Clearing and Tell me Lies.
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The NEWC was thrilled to have Josh present the How to write quick crime (and get away with it) workshop in 2022.

In between writing, Josh hosts a podcast interviewing prominent authors such as Joyce Carol Oates and Dorthe Nors.

"I started [the podcast] because I wanted to ask authors my own questions, and figure out how they did it," Josh says. "It was as simple as that, then after a couple of years and when my debut novel was published I suppose my questions changed, and became more about the authors themselves and their work, as opposed to talking about breaking into the industry.

"I would select interviewees based on whether or not I enjoyed their books."

Josh's advice to aspiring authors is to write what you love to read.

​"You can't go wrong with that," he says. "It's possible to write for a genre without actually enjoying it but it would make it all a great deal harder."

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The 2022 Thunderbolt Prize for Crime Writing is open for submissions between Friday 17 June and Friday 30 September, 2022.

​The competition gains a national recognition and has major prizes in Fiction, Non-Fiction and Poetry categories.

The Prize also has prizes in the Youth, Emerging Author, and Regional  categories.