Jodie Tes’s Hungerford Inspiration: The unexpected lifespan of cockatoos
Jodie Tes is one of four writers shortlisted for the 2024 City of Fremantle Hungerford Award and in the running to win a $15,000 cash prize from the City of Fremantle, a publishing contract with Fremantle Press and a writing fellowship at the Centre for Stories. This is the second time the Hilton-based author has been shortlisted. Her debut novel Barcarola was in the running back in 2016.
Describe your manuscript in your own words.
Screech is a coming-of-age domestic drama about the village it takes to raise a child. Set in modern-day Fremantle, equal parts tragic and comic, it follows 10-year-old Bonnie and her pet cockatoo, Screech, and her quest to seek answers to questions that no one wants to answer. With a diverse cast of wise and funny characters who try to shield Bonnie from the worst of her world, Screech explores the complex bonds of family, the impact of childhood trauma, the cages we choose to keep ourselves in, and the human and animal need to belong.
What inspired you to write it?
I was on a morning walk, listening to Radio National, when an interview with a hilarious and passionate wildlife ecologist sparked the idea for Screech. She was discussing Australian birds, how some live very long lives, how they care for each other, live as communities, and experience grief and loss – not unlike us humans. I later learned that sulphur-crested cockatoos can live upwards of a hundred years in captivity; there are records of one living to 119. A story came to me about a pet bird that lived alongside two generations of one family, and had the inside scoop on all of them. It was an added bonus that cockatoos can speak, so I could weave subtext and backstory into seemingly benign birdy phrases.
How long have you been working on it?
I’ve been working on Screech, on and off, for four years. Teaching through a pandemic, and later renovating a house in Hilton, derailed my plans to have it finished sooner. I’m now glad it took me four years to write. So many things happened during that time that helped shape the characters and story.
What does it mean to you to make the shortlist of the 2024 City of Fremantle Hungerford Award?
I’m thrilled to have made the shortlist, to know the manuscript I poured my heart into made a good impression on the judges. The Hungerford Award has launched the careers of so many amazing local writers. To be associated with those names by way of a shortlist is encouraging, and very exciting. And then there’s the possibility of being published by Fremantle Press.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I’ve been teaching T.A.G. Hungerford stories in my English classes for years. To be considered for an award that was named in his honour means a lot to me.
About the author
Jodie Tes is a Fremantle-based musician, writer and high school English teacher with degrees in Sociology, Music and Education. In 2016, she was shortlisted for the Hungerford Award for her manuscript, Barcarola. The following year she was accepted to the Eastern Frontier Writers Residency in the US for her manuscript, Wolf. Jodie views her previous works as her writing apprenticeship, manuscripts she might revisit once Screech takes flight. A WAAPA graduate and award-winning singer/songwriter, Jodie has performed nationally and internationally, and appeared live on ABC Radio and Triple J.
Follow Jodie’s Hungerford journey on Facebook: jodie.tesoriero.37 or on Instagram: @jodietes_
The 2024 City of Fremantle Hungerford Award will be announced at the Fremantle Arts Centre on Thursday 24 October at 6.00 pm. The ceremony will be co-hosted by Molly Schmidt, winner of the 2022 City of Hungerford Award for Salt River Road. Tickets are free. RSVP here
Download the City of Fremantle Hungerford Award judges report
