I’d been travelling for over a week by the time I arrived at the Katharine Susannah Prichard Writer's Centre (KSP), and I’d be travelling again once I left, so arriving in my cabin – Aldridge, felt even more of a gift than I’d imagined. As I unpacked, I gave thanks I had this lovely space, …
Continue reading Writing Residency – Katharine Susannah Prichard Writer’s Centre (KSP)
The sky is singing as I walk along the breakwall. Saltwater droplets hit my face and my hair whips around my head. A group of artists wait in sunlight near the gate. Poets, photographers, artists, musicians. Two writers are perched on what appears to be a giant pencil. It seems a good omen. In the …
I'd have to say that one of the many fun things about the 23rd Scarlet Stiletto awards and winning the Body in the Library prize was rocking up to the bank and seeing the teller's face when I handed over a cheque made out to me from Sisters in Crime. The Sisters, for those of …
Continue reading Scarlet Stilettos, Sisters in Crime and the Body in the Library
The NSW government should know it's in trouble when even The Land is pointing out the stupidity of an 18% cut to Library funding. Cuts to Libraries, especially in rural and remote communities is sheer idiocy. Not only does it diminish important cultural and social hubs, but it's likely to take another job or two …
Continue reading The World is still my Library … so why do Governments want to cut cut cut?
I can’t imagine leaving home without a book. I’ve been travelling overseas recently. A good part of travelling and preparing to travel has always been about the book. Of course there are the novels and travel guides read before leaving, but more important are the books to take on the trip. For me, it’s always …
"I suddenly saw the world from an entirely different perspective," Cate Blanchett said of reading my story "Better Homes and Gardens". Cate Blanchett, along with former Governor General Quentin Bryce, was talking about the stories in the new Hope Anthology published by Simon and Schuster. "It's very easy for us to turn our heads away …
Continue reading Cate Blanchett and Quentin Bryce comment on my story, ‘Better Homes and Gardens’
I'm very happy to have recently won the inaugural Hope Prize. It was run by the Brotherhood of St Laurence who 'aim to create a more just and compassionate world'. The prize was established to encourage writing that transcends stereotypes of 'the poor' and to reflect stories of resilience in the face of poverty and …
Thank you to the Hunter Writers Centre and Newcastle Council for the inaugural Newcastle Short Story Prize. I've been very jealous of the poetry people with their prestigious (not to mention financially rewarding) prize, so it was good to see us short story writers finally get a go. Thanks also to Marion Halligan and Ryan …
So I finally broke my Sydney Writers' Festival hoodoo. I didn't fall off the wharf. I didn't have to push my way through the crowd to vomit in a toilet that wouldn't flush. (Unpleasant for everyone, believe me). I wasn't lying prostrate with migraine when my favourite authors were in town, and most importantly, I …
Continue reading Bad Things Happen to Me at the Sydney Writers’ Festival
Cathwrite 