Tanc Sade

Freediving can be extremely dangerous. It's got an incredibly high fatality rate outside of competition. But there's never been a fatality in competition. In terms of spear fishing and people who train by themselves, it's the second most dangerous sport in the world after base jumping. If you black out by yourself, you drown.

Ironically, I find it harder to get a foothold in Australia than I do in the U.S. When I was in Australia, I struggled. It can be a bit of a closed shop; it can be hard for a newcomer to break in, whereas in the U.S., it has much more of an open-door policy, and they will give anyone a shot.

I think the most important thing I work on is just my mental approach to every day, my mental approach to the game. How to come in each and every day focused, doing what I want to do, I think that's just the biggest issue.

Writing novels is largely about endurance and patience. I take a lot of breaks, hit walls, and go do something else while I think things through. But I do it every day, and I try to treat it as a job, something that is not dictated by whimsy or muses.