I’m speaking with Sue Williams, the author of Welcome to the Outback and it is a shock when she tells me that one in four Australians never venture beyond their own city. After spending five months living tough in Australia’s backyard, Sue is hopeful that her novel, which is an enjoyable tale of her adventures, will encourage others to take the leap and see the outback for themselves.
Having previously written and published Women of the Outback in 2008, Sue realised that while she had spoken to residents about their love of the outback, she had never taken the opportunity to understand it herself. All at once, the motivation for Welcome to the Outback was born. A happy resident in a Sydney apartment, Sue is used to the city life and a trip to the country was destined to be a challenge. Motivation to carry on was shaky at times, particularly when Sue found herself faced with the prospect of riding in a seven-day cattle drive having never ridden a horse before.
Despite having to overcome the terrors of huge racehorses, boxing fights and the insipid red dust that seems to cling to you, there were many times when the outback won Sue over and showed her the beauty of the country life.
“It’s so lovely to be sitting there on a horse, looking at the landscapes and doing the same thing that Australians have been doing for hundreds of years,” she said, slowing her words as she combed through the memories. “It was such a privilege.”
The novel itself has a similarly conversational tone while still revealing a wealth of information about Australia, the locals and the culture of the outback. Everyone in this country is an Australian, but according to Sue there is a difference between the city dwellers and those living in the middle.
“People in the country are warm and welcoming while people in the city can be quite cool and unwelcoming,” she divulged. “They have quite a different life out there – they have more time and they seem to get more pleasure out of simple things. Life can be very, very difficult for them, but they just kind of cope and get on with it. That’s a lesson for city people I think. We often just whine about the most stupid things, whereas these people are living in almost frontier country and overcoming the odds… it’s quite inspiring watching them, really.”
There is a lot to love about Welcome to the Outback – chiefly its honesty. Sue doesn’t sit tight on any stories of her own embarrassments or trip-ups amongst locals and it is this that makes the read so enjoyable. Travelling to the middle of nowhere without easy access to services, fresh food or reliable Internet connections can be daunting. With Welcome to the Outback however, Sue proves that there is a culture out there that is immediately welcoming to just about anyone.
As a vegetarian and someone who doesn’t drink caffeine, an extended trip to the outback where “real pride is invested in steak” was always going to pose some difficulties.
“My publishers knew that I was the least likely person to go into the outback, so of course they suggested it… the joke was always on me!”
In a landscape where the most common meal is a hunk of steak with a cool beer, Sue found herself in many awkward situations.
“Thankfully,” she said, “the people out there all seemed to share the same cookbook from the Country Women’s Association. I had the same vegetarian lasagna so many times but it was nice the first time, the second time and third time. The people were very generous to cater to me really.”
After all, many of the residents would go out of business if everyone in the outback were vegetarian. Luckily Sue managed to survive on generous servings of porridge, vegetables, cheese and her own peppermint teabags.
There are so many great details and conversations tucked away inside this book. From the grey nomads – retirees and elderly Australians trundling around in caravans – to the young men trooping out to mining jobs, this book is filled with life. There are people in the outback who have never set foot in a city and never want to. They stick by their land through all the hardships of flood, fire, drought and economic downturn because it is their home and they love it.
“For one person I met, the outback is anywhere the handshake is a little stronger and the smile a little longer,” she commented. “It’s true really. You know you’re in the Outback when you are driving along and you see another driver drive towards you and you wave, and then they wave back.”
Apparently there is something intrinsically nicer about people in the outback. Perhaps it’s the stories around the campfires or the heavier reliance on animals or the slow, steady stream of travelers passing through. Welcome to the Outback is a book that understands the heart of Australia and isn’t afraid to share it.
