By Hazel Lekkas
A cardinal rule of writing is to write about what you know. What does Heidi James, long-time resident of the west’s oldest bayside suburb, know about growing up in snowy mountains? And what does James know about an obsessive collector of things against a backdrop of whimsical wonder? Further still, what does her choice of illustrator all the way from Ukraine have anything to do with James who resides in fair ol’ Williamstown?
Let’s start James’s backstory from the snowy peaks of British Colombia, Canada. Her parents operated a ski lodge, ski school and ski shop, so for James, snow was her playground as a young child. Unlike most little Westies, James’ experience of tumbling in grass and kicking a footy on a green oval was foreign. Grass was unfamiliar. Grass? Imagine that. Imagine though, what life would be like for a child who has only ever known chilled white landscapes.
In James’s debut title released mid-2023, A Winter’s Kiss, she took what she knew of her childhood, and penned a tale that sweeps snowflakes at your feet, flips you over, and turns your cheeks rosy. James has a way of connecting readers, young and old, with a world of wintry wonder – a polar opposite of the industrial landscapes, and mostly flat, grassy suburbia of the west, along with our unpredictable weather devoid of snow.
In James’s new release, The Collector, a splash from the seaside enters a page or two of a young collector’s mystical story, but again, there is nothing that resembles life of James’s maritime suburb. What the story does reveal is her strong connection to family.
Williamstown is where James has raised her four children and made lasting memories with them. A lesson learned in her second book about the importance of being present with loved ones and allowing materialism to fade resonates with us all.
And what of her connection to Naya Lazareva, who illustrated both books, in distant Ukraine? James’s first collaboration with Lazareva was one mixed with worry and anticipation. Whilst Lazareva fled to Germany, pregnant and fearful, under the threat of Russia’s invasion, James waited apprehensively in Williamstown.
Over months, Lazareva honoured James’s wish for her story to be brought to life in colour.
The charm and innocence of A Winter’s Kiss brought light in the darkness that swept Lazareva’s war-torn homeland. James’s patience, concern and hopefulness, all endearing qualities, are reflected in the pages of her first book. Lazareva’s art imitated James’s life.
Ah-ha! James does write about what she knows (and feels), after all. Her authorship may be far removed from the smell of a sea breeze, the history of Victoria’s first port, and nautical tales you would expect of a bayside resident but within her words she weaves in childhood memories, the adoration of childhood wonder and the tenacity of the human spirit in adversity, all universal familiarities, although experienced differently in comparison to most of us Westies.
