Published on: 18 July 2014


Local author Jay Laurie spent an afternoon talking to Year 9 classes about his first book, Into the Sea, in the Senior Library recently. The book tells the tale of two best mates as they navigate through life’s challenges whilst following their passion for surfing.

Jay, a practicing lawyer, explained his passion for writing and the decision that led him to take two years off to write the book. Teacher Librarian Lia de Sousa said he had the boys’ full attention as he described his own addiction to surfing and how he managed to combine his love of both writing and surfing in the book.

“Like the characters in the book, Jay’s surfing has taken him to many exotic locations around the world,” she said. “Not surprisingly, the boys were eager to learn Jay’s favourite destinations and top surfing breaks. More than a few were impressed to learn that he had surfed the famous breaks in Tahiti.”

Ms de Sousa said the boys were interested to learn about the processes Jay employed in writing his first book and he offered several tips they could use in their own writing.