Holly Throsby: Goodwood

Holly Throsby is best known as a musician. Since making her debut with the 2004 album On Night, the Sydney-based singer-songwriter has enjoyed a fruitful and varied life in music – she’s released another four solo records (including See!, an album for children), collaborated with Sarah Blasko and Sally Seltmann on Seeker Lover Keeper, been nominated for multiple ARIA Awards and performed in an all-star tribute to Bob Dylan. She’s collaborated and toured with the cream of Australian and international indie music talent.

Alongside her melodic pursuits, though, Throsby has been fostering a quiet love affair with writing – at first with two comic books accompanying her music, and now, with her first novel, Goodwood. The story glimpses a country town – the titular Goodwood – in the grip of twin disappearances. How does mystery play out in a tight-knit community defined by ‘a high density of acquaintanceship’? Who knows its secrets? Somebody must.

Of writing music, Throsby has remarked: ‘I have ideas for a song; a song can start from one word, one image.’ Did she experience the same when writing the book? And what compelled her to frame her novel with questions of concealment, insularity and disappearance? Find out when Holly Throsby joins writer and musician Sian Prior for a chat about Goodwood and the lines connecting song to story.