Get ready to learn more about the book Outsider in this discussion with sapphic author Jade du Preez.
Join us for an exclusive peek behind the scenes as we quiz Jade du Preez about Outsider, writing, reading, and more.
This book is part of the Disguised as a Man category in the 2025 IHS Reading Challenge.
Why did you write Outsider?
I was inspired by a documentary called “Shinjuku Boys” from the ’90s in which three hosts share insights on their lives inside and outside of the Club New Marylin nabe bar. Time spent in Tokyo in 2017, including conversations with artists, poets and activists provides further insights into the lives of queer Tokyoites.
Who is your favorite character in the book?
Kyou, the top star of Club Ganymede, is probably favorite, although all four characters were a lot of fun to write. I related to the role shifting involved; the difference between being on the clock and off the clock, and where there can be slippage.
What inspired the idea for Outsider?
I have always been fascinated by Japan and its connection to New Zealand – according to Te Ara online Encyclopedia of New Zealand, “two island nations in the Pacific, both with dramatic scenery and prone to earthquakes.” It’s a topic I’ll continue to explore in writing. For this book, the thread that kept my focus was in seeing through those unresolved connections between characters – those things unspoken.
What part of Outsider was the most fun to write?
Antoinette has some wonderful argumentative dialogue.
How did you come up with the title for your book?
It is a story from four perspectives, a light installation artist, the host of a gender-bending host club, a video-game obsessed businessman and a writer without words. Although Kyou, the host, is the obvious legal outsider, each character is an outsider in a sense.
What is your favorite line from your book?
I can’t pick a favorite, but in terms of the theme, perhaps: “She looked like the photograph that Ana never managed to capture that night in the tunnel, eyes burning with both a masculine vulnerability and feminine fury.”
What is your writing process like?
I recently had a chat with my Master’s supervisor who was very much into allowing a project to flow where the story needs to go – I think plotting too early can inhibit that for me.
If you could spend a day with another popular author, whom would you choose?
I think Ali Smith would be just lovely. In interviews she is so, so intelligent, interesting, curious and hopeful. I could happily listen to her talking about books for many days. And her writing is gorgeous.
What do you do to get inside your character’s heads?
Take a walk with a playlist that makes sense for them in a particular scene or moment.
If you could be mentored by a famous author (living or not), who would it be?
Sarah Waters. She is such a wonderful storyteller and really knows her settings inside out.
Have you ever fallen in love with one of your characters?
I find something to love in all of my characters.
What type of books do you enjoy reading the most?
When I was in Primary School I used to read Willard Price adventure stories, in high school a lot of Patricia Cornwall. Now, I love literary fiction – queer characters are a bonus. I particularly enjoy work that makes the familiar feel enchanting.
Are there any books or authors that inspired you to become a writer?
Jeanette Winterson – I hunted out and read everything she had written at age 17.
