Author Anna George appeared on the program to discuss her third and latest novel, ‘Tipping’. Subjects discussed include:

- The fictional (but unnervingly realistic) setting of Carmichael Grammar – how such a place can be a breeding ground for misogyny and assorted related behaviour leading to cases of sexting.

- How parents might be becoming more informed (for good or ill) about the lives of their teenagers, through social media and technology.

- The teenage twin brother characters of Jai and Oscar, how their personalities diverge from one another and can also mirror their parents and contemporary society’s, along with what it means to raise teenage boys. The challenges it presents and the importance of doing it right.

- The research – the work of (fictional, but again, very realistic) Dr. Vic Cato and the strategies she implements to address this behaviour – the research that Anna completed, and how effective it is being used or not used within real-life school environments (i.e. Harvard).

- Writing from the perspectives of the Jess and Liv, the two mothers from the rival factions, how Anna resonated with both and conveyed that to the reader.

- Writing from Duncan’s perspective, the decision to include his perspective in the novel and what challenges or difficulties that presented in the writing.

- Unconscious bias and techniques to alter this – how change, very much like that depicted in ‘Tipping’ can and has happened in real-life industries and institutions, complete with case studies.

- Hope, the feeling of hope imbued within ‘Tipping’ – and how there can be hope for societal change now and even more in the future.

Huge thanks to Anna for chatting with me about ‘Tipping’. You can purchase it and her other novels from Penguin Random House, here:

https://www.penguin.com.au/books/tipping-9781760897789