“I write because I love books and have a story to tell”

“I write because I love books and have a story to tell”

Michael Robotham

Best-selling author Michael Robotham was an investigative journalist before becoming a crime writer, but it was his experience working with clinical and forensic psychologists in this role that gave him insight into his future writing genre. Robotham’s first thriller, The Suspect, sold 1 million copies worldwide and his novel The Secrets She Keeps was recently aired as a series on television. He remains the only Aussie to win the UK’s prestigious Gold Dagger Award twice. His latest book, When You Are Mine, has just been released.

Q What was your first job?

I was so sports-mad as a teenager, playing cricket and golf that I didn’t have time for part-time jobs, which means my first ever paid gig was as a cadet journalist, working for The Sun in Sydney. I had just turned 18 when I secured a coveted cadetship on the afternoon newspaper, starting my career alongside other cadets such as Geraldine Brooks, who went on to become a brilliant foreign correspondent and Pulitzer prize-winning novelist.

When did you know you were a novelist and able to make a good living that way?