Midweek Moment #31
Just as dawn was breaking yesterday morning, I went down to Sculptures by the Sea at Cottesloe Beach. With the ocean as smooth as glass and the previous day's footsteps in the sand having been swept away, the beach was as tranquil as I’d ever seen it....
Words I Needed to Write
I've spent much of this week reading Cardinal Pell's testimony at the Royal Commission. I wasn't going to write about it, but it's taken over my thoughts, and I want to show support for the survivors, who've shown courage and resilience and dignity...
Midweek Moment #30
I chose this photo for Midweek Moment for no reason other than I thought it was pretty. I loved the colour of these mauve flowers from the next-door neighbour's plumbago. I took a few photos in vivo, then cut some to bring inside and snapped a few more:...
Magda Szubanski at the Perth Writers’ Festival
For the first time ever, I was able to spend the whole weekend at the Perth Writers' Festival without worrying about children's music or sport commitments, and without feeling guilty for slipping away on my daughter's birthday—it...
Midweek Moment #29
Despite giving my camera a couple of outings this week, none of the photos I took jumped out at me for a 'Midweek Moment'. So, once again, it was a last-minute job—this time in the garden at about 6:45 yesterday morning. The hot summer has taken its toll and...
Midweek Moment #28
I went out with my camera during the week, but nothing I captured took my fancy for a Midweek Moment. So, this morning before school, I interrupted my son during his violin practice. He seemed annoyed at first, then bemused as to why I'd want to take photos...
Midweek Moment #27
As I was preparing this week's Midweek Moment, it struck me that although we live in a colossal city of concrete and bitumen and over 1.5 million people, we're never far from a walk along the coast, around a lake, by the river, or through the bush. Our...
My Week—Back-to-School and Back-to-Writing
1. It's been back-to-school here, which isn't anywhere near as frantic as it used to be: Only half my children are still at school, I only had one school to get them back to, and they're now old enough to do most of it...
Midweek Moment #26
Monique and I have gone with simplicity this week. My photo is of leaves from a yucca plant in our backyard. We planted half a dozen of these about ten years ago. At the time, they were about knee-high but, unlike most plants in our garden, they have thrived...
Midweek Moment #25
I’ve been without a camera this week, and I feel as if my third eye is missing. But after a few visits to the beach, the photos were looking rather salt-streaked, so I’ve taken it in for a clean. This photo is from my archives—it’s the first photo I ever...
Talking to Teenagers: How I Turned My Relationship With My Daughter Around: Parenting Reflection #2
In a blog post last year, I said I'd write a post about my second daughter and how, through her, I learnt to be a better mother. That was easier said than done, believe me. Once kids reach a certain age, it's difficult to write about them...
Midweek Moment #24
Summer and school holidays mean longer, slower days, so of an evening, I've been taking myself down to the beach and trying out long-shutter speeds on my camera. This, however, has been largely unsuccessful. I lost my thongs to a rogue wave on the first...
On Not Shaming Kids: Parenting Reflection #1
This isn't the post I intended for this week, but the original one has turned into an unwieldy epic and I'm still working on it. Our second daughter finished school last year and will turn eighteen next month. This means both of our girls...
Midweek Moment #23
Summery Midweek Moments from both of us today: I took this photo of a frangipani in our pool. The flower was already struggling in the heat and chlorinated water, but I still liked the photo. Maybe it's the detail: the colour of the petals, the tiny water...
The Story Behind the Story
ON WRITING 'THE SISTERS' SONG' My novel, ‘The Sisters' Song’, has evolved and that’s the only way to describe how it came into being. It’s nothing at all like what I set out to write, and this draft, Final Draft 3.0, is very different to Final Drafts...