Quinton Li is about to realise their first novel, Tell Me How It Ends. The Brimbank resident opens up to Tara Murray on their local connections and how they got into writing and publishing their first novel.
Tell us about your connection to Brimbank?
It’s fair to say that it spans a lifetime. I was born in Sunshine and have lived in the Sydenham-Keilor Downs area since then. The Delahey Community Centre was a second home to me and my siblings as we loved to use the computer lab, and I also went to kindergarten there. I spent my prep to grade six years at Mackellar Primary School, then my high school years at Taylors Lakes Secondary College.
What do you love the most about Brimbank?
I’ve always been proud of the way Brimbank engages with its community and ensures everyone can get involved. We have festivals, libraries, community centres, social justice and health initiatives, and the chance to have a say. It really feels like you can belong in Brimbank.
Tell us about your favourite places in Brimbank?
I’ve already mentioned the Delahey Community Centre so let me bring the focus to Sydenham Library. The staff there are friendly and remember you, and the library has been great at fuelling my reading habits. It’s a place I always feel comfortable going to when I need to meet someone at Watergardens or simply to pass time before I hop on the train for uni.
You are releasing your first novel. Is writing something that you have always been passionate about?
I believe I grew into it after reading every day I could while growing up. Storytelling became important to me and then I learnt I could be the one telling the stories. I didn’t start trying to write seriously until 2017 when I decided I wanted to make something tangible of my own, and I’ve been working away at stories since. This brings me to where I am today, with a novel to share with my communities, and many more in the works to come.
Tell us about your novel?
My novel is titled “Tell Me How It Ends” and touches on themes of self discovery, friendship and diversity. The story follows Iris Galacia, who is a lesbian tarot reader with autism and anxiety, and her new friend Marin Boudreau, an aroace, non-binary thief on a rescue mission. Together they travel across the sea to the kingdom, navigating not only the waters, but justice and platonic relationships. It’s a young adult fantasy novel, and releases April 9 2023.
