When early stage writers join me for a workshop, I want them to leave with the renewed clarity and self belief they need to Keep. On. Writing. Especially when the writers are mums who performed heroic feats of scheduling Tetris and resolved multiple early morning domestic emergencies, ninja style, just to show up . . […]
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Re-Imagining a Friend’s Childhood
I recently befriended a beguiling six-year-old named Susie Simpson. My all-grown-up friend, Susan Lennox (nee Simpson), introduced us. Susie lives in a tucked away drawer in Susan’s chest of memories. Susie Simpson used to love to sing Christmas carols in July, wear tights with rainbow stripes and hopscotch her way across the street. But since […]
It Takes a Village to Make a Story . . . And Vice Versa
Writing is a solitary activity, and like most writers, I have a strong reclusive instinct. But I also thrill at the unexpected directions a project can take when others contribute their ideas, talent and life experience. So when a local junior school teacher invited me to deliver a workshop on fractured fairy tales, I asked […]
Write this! – An inopportune time to get the hiccups!
Every month, the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators hosts Write This, a challenge to writers: Respond to a prompt in 50 words or less. The top 20 entries appear in an online gallery. This month’s prompt was, “In 50 words or less, portray an inopportune time to get a case of hiccups.” […]