Q. Have you ever been to an island that gave you the idea of an Nims island?

A. Two girls wrote to Wendy Orr and asked them to write a story about them. The answer was no because their life would be too boring. Every now and then she would take a ferry out to an island where her grandparents lived. Wendy Orr was about eight.  She always liked to imagine it as two girls running away from an orphanage to live on the island.

Q. How long did it take you to write Nim’s Island?

A. 18 months and that included editing and sending it to the publisher and editing it more.

Q. Do you think you’ll ever write a second follow on from Nim’s Island, like a sequel or do you think there should just be the special Nim’s Island?

A. Wendy Orr is writing a sequel to Nim’s Island and it’s in the publisher's hand right now!

Q. Are you writing another book ready to be another popular kid’s book apart from Nim’s Island?

A. Yes. Wendy Orr is actually writing three other books called Mokie and Bik, Across the dark sea and Too much stuff!

Q. Are there any other authors that have influenced you to be a writer as a kid or an adult?

A. Rosemary Sutcliffe, who wrote historical fiction.

Q. What was your favourite author when you were a kid?

 A. It was also Rosemary Sutcliffe who was her favourite author when she was a child.

Q. Where did you get the ideas for Fred the iguana, Selkie the sea-lion and the interesting name Nim?

A. Wendy Orr got the name, Nim from another name for coconut but backwards. The other names she chose just because they were cute.

Q. Where did you get the ideas of having those animals in the story like a Sea- Lion and an Iguana?

A. Wendy Orr chose them because she was thinking of ugly animals. Because they were so ugly they were kind of cute, she said.

Q. Have any of your books won an award?

A. The Ark in the Park in 1995. In 1993, Leave it to Me won a short-list.

Q. Have any of your family members encouraged you so much that you’ve become more confident than you already are?

A. Her parents encouraged her heaps and her grandparents. Wendy’s sister always complained about all the plays she wrote because she always got the bad parts and Wendy got the good parts!

Site authors: Tara, Darcy, Finbar and Kris
Copyright 2006© Last Updated:8 May 2006

to Contact Us click Contact Us

Email: nims_islanders_feedback@yahoo.com.au