Some Thoughts on Suicide and Death and Grief
With that heading, this post probably doesn't require a CW, but if you're not in a place to read about this topic right now, close the tab and don't scroll down. This post hasn't captured everything I want to say, perhaps because it's too soon, but it's a start. A few...
We’re Not Out of the Woods Yet
I first published this post on Facebook, where it was shared over 100 times, so I thought I'd re-jig it and share it here, too. ~ My husband is Head of Respiratory Medicine at Joondalup Health Campus. In March, Joondalup hospital (along with every other hospital in...
Goodbye to a Decade
I originally shared this post on Facebook, but I think it's worth sharing here on my blog, too. ~ It’s a new year and a new decade. (I won’t be a purist and mention that decades start at 1 and end at 10, because I accept we’re about to enter the 2020’s.) Ten years...
International Women’s Day 2019
I wrote these words in honour of International Women's Day. It's a passionate piece for which I make no apologies, because everything I've written here has been drawn from my experiences since girlhood. This is why we need International Women's Day, and why it's...
Win a Manuscript Assessment and Raise Money for Authors For Farmers
AUTHORS FOR FARMERS is an initiative started by the wonderful Australian author Josephine Moon, who's been working hard behind the scenes, banding together fellow authors from around the country to fundraise for drought-affected farmers. All...
Mildura Writers Festival and the Tina Kane Emergent Writer Award
I returned home around midnight on Sunday after spending four wonderful days at the Mildura Writers Festival. I should clarify that while I've returned physically to Perth, my mind, and heart, are still in Mildura. The festival was one of the most special weekends of...
Novel #2: An Update.
Alternatively titled: How a Pantser Became a Plotter* I'm being a bit naughty today and playing hookey from my work-in-progress. I've worked pretty solidly on it for three weeks, and I'm a bit tired, so I've decided to write other things instead today. Which is...
My Writing Goals In 2017
I've been quiet on the blog lately and I apologise. My excuse is that in this part of the world, it's school holidays, and I've wound everything right back so I don't spend all day in the attic and neglect my family. School returns next week so I'm gearing up for...
On the Eve of Fifty
I'm about to turn fifty. Half a century, a milestone. An age I once thought of as ancient. Until this birthday, I've not worried about my age, not ever. The number of years I'd been alive had never made me feel old. When I was a child, I'd felt differently,...
My Month
It's been a while since I've written an update here, hence this post covers a month rather than a week. Thank goodness for Midweek Moments, which have kept this blog ticking over whilst I've been otherwise occupied. I have a reason for my absence: Over...
A Plug for the Booklength Project Group
I was just going to reblog a post I wrote on 'Coping With Negative Feedback On Your Writing' for the Booklength Project Group (BLPG), but then I thought I might as well give a plug for the group, which I convene. We meet at Mattie's House, part of the Federation...
My Week: Story and Sculptures
I've interrupted the novel rewrite to show you this: That's how many pages I have left to edit. It's a thin stack, isn't it? Only 25 pages thick. Twenty-five. That. Is. All. I'm a slow writer, and it's given me a boost to see how close I am—now I'm striving to...
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 throughout. I've...
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 didn't fall...
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 themselves. 2....