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Retired Eden abalone diver Dennis McTaggart’s new book might be just the trick.
Teddy and his band of abalone poachers are back in Cold Gold II, a collection of ten short stories that follows on from the success of Dennis’ 2013 debut book.
With stories set in Pambula and Disaster Bay, Cold Gold II has a distinctive local feel about it, and Dennis hopes it will be received just as well as its predecessor.
“I can’t believe how well people took to [the first book],” he said.
“I’m 64 and women my age or older come up and say, ‘I’ve read your book’.
“At first, I was surprised and I’d say, ‘Oh, there’s a bit of swearing in it’, but they’d say, ‘That’s alright, that’s how men talk’.
“I was even sent a photo by someone who was reading it on a beach in Mexico.”
Now retired, Dennis started his working life as a bricklayer’s labourer, before becoming a deckhand in Mallacoota in 1967.
A year later, he made the move to Eden to take advantage of the cheap abalone licences, which he says were “basically being given away” for $2 each.
After a career that included being in charge of underwater work during the construction of the Eden wood chip mill, he moved to Tasmania, where he had a near-fatal accident and spent nine days in a decompression chamber after suffering the bends during a deep-sea dive.
Dennis says he now takes advantage of every day, and is loving life as a writer.
“It’s a great feeling being an author; everyone thinks you’re smart,” he laughed.
“A couple of winters ago it was really wet and terrible, so I started writing and now I can’t stop.
“In some months’ time, I’ll be back up here with Cold Gold 3.
“It’s like a disease; it’s taken on its own life.
“I’m a bit like Chopper Read – barely literate – but I’ve got a really supportive team around me.
“I’ve been in or under the water ever since I was a kid so I’ve got all the stories; they just help me put it into words that people can understand it."
Cold Gold II is available now in bookstores and newsagents from Mallacoota to Bega, and as an eBook online (search ‘Cold Gold II eBook on Google’).