When bestselling author Di Morrissey finished high school, she was at a bit of a loose end. Her mother could not afford to send her to university, so to make some money Morrissey fed the sharks at Sydney’s Manly Aquarium. She’d had just one hour’s training in scuba diving before gamely entering the tank, where she had an encounter with an aggressive grey nurse who she dealt with via a firm poke on the snout.
Not surprisingly, she soon noticed quite a few blokes were starting to come and watch at feeding time. Di Morrissey on her property near Wingham, NSW. Credit: James Brickwood Morrissey tells this story to illustrate her attitude to life: just roll up your sleeves and get on with it – or in this case, strip off and get in the water.
Don’t be fooled by the blonde bouffant, impeccable make-up, un-creased linen and strings of West Australian pearls the size of quail eggs that feature in her publicity shots: they capture only one side of her life and personality. The other is much more down to earth and practical. She might not be a candidate for a survival show like Alone , but she knows how to cope in the wild.
Morrissey’s agent Jane Novak recently accompanied her on a trip into the outback to do research for her next novel, which she started work on as soon as her latest, River Song , was done. It will be her 32nd release. “Di can catch a fish, make a fire with two sticks and fix a tyre,” Novak says.
“She is completely competent in the bush, to a degree th.
