Thank You, 2015
Here's a summary of my 2015—it was a good one ... THE NOVEL As most of you know, my novel, Ida's Children, was shortlisted for the 2015 TAG Hungerford Award. It didn't win, so I sent it off to an agent, who gave me loads...
An Early Xmas Gift to Myself: Time to Write
For the past few months, I've only been able to snatch brief spells of writing time due to Year Twelve exams, school camps, graduations, speech days, and general running about for the end of the school year. There was...
My Week: A Camp, A Concert, & An End Of An Era
I haven't done this for a while, so here's a wee update: 1. Son #1 arrived home yesterday after a twelve-day camp. I know I sound like a soppy mother, but the sight of him in a beanie, sunburnt and unwashed, and smiling at me from the other side of the road ranks...
My Non-Writing Week
1. I haven't written any new words or edited any old ones in my novel for a couple of weeks. The kids are on school holidays, except for my Year 12 daughter who is sitting her mock exams. There have been concerts, camps, birthdays, and I...
My Week: Wildflowers and Writing
1. I had a lovely time out and about last Sunday on a wildflower walk around Forrestdale Lake. Being spring, the wildflowers were out, looking colourful and inviting. I just wish I could remember their names—my memory isn't what it used to be,...
My Week—Errands and Exams
1. I'll skim over the progress of my novel, because it's going slowly and there's not much to report. However, I do have plans to devote myself to it this weekend ... 2. I have two doctor friends who've also written novels (both...
My Week—Kids, Writing, and Nothing Much to Complain About
1. This week has felt messy, mainly because of kids' illnesses, all minor, but it's meant trips to school in the middle of the day to collect them. Having them at home always interrupts my creative flow, even when they're well, but...
Photos of Winter
Winter arrived in Perth last week, and for some reason bad weather never fails to stimulate my writing. I think it's a combination of the sounds—rain on a tin roof, wind rushing through the trees—and sights—grey skies, water...
Humps and Troughs
I thought I'd squeeze a blog post in before the end of the financial year—so here's an update: The Novel: Unfortunately, I don't have much to report on this front, except that I'm stuck. So stuck, I'm considering seeking help. When I wrote the previous blog post,...
Storyboarding and More …
I know I said I was taking a break from blogging, but I thought I'd give you an update on what I've been up to over the past week. The Novel As you know from my last blog post, I'm rewriting Ida's Children. I'm not thinking...
A Break from Blogging
This is a quick post to let you know I'll be taking a break from blogging in order to concentrate on my novel. The thing is, an agent has kindly sent me some feedback. By 'kindly', I mean 'bluntly', and by 'some' feedback, I mean 'loads',...
Final Draft 2.0 and Carving Out Time to Write
It's been school holidays for the past couple of weeks, and up until the last couple of days, the weather has been cold, wet and gloomy—and perfect for writing! I took the opportunity to immerse myself in an unscheduled home writing retreat, during...
How Liz Gilbert Won Me Over
Firstly, let me confess: Confession #1: I hated 'Eat, Pray, Love'. It irritated me from the outset, but I persevered until chapter eight (of the 128 chapters in the book) when I closed the covers once and for all, and I have not looked...
Dr Bob Brown at the Perth Writers’ Festival
Dr Bob Brown and I go back a long way—not that he knows that. Not that he even knows who I am. Growing up in Tasmania as I did, I've admired and respected Dr Brown—or Bob as he introduces himself—since the early '80s—as a man, as a politician, as a...
The Sun Sets on the Holidays
Tonight, the school holidays draw to a close. No more long days in our bathers. No more serene afternoons with a book. No more evening walks and swims under a reddening sky. It's back to the daily grind of uniforms and books, and lunches and bags, and music lessons...