Advice for writers.
Last week I was asked by a publishing company to answer some questions for an author profile page. One of the questions was: what is speculative fiction? Easy to answer, right? Well, I’ve read other people’s explanations of what comprises speculative fiction, and when friends ask me I usually name…
Given the distant realms to which our imaginations journey on screen and in books, is ‘far-fetched’ now a redundant phrase? Someone said to me recently that, for them, the movie Wild Wild West was too far-fetched because of the advanced inventions it featured. For those who don’t recall, Wild Wild…
What does it mean to be a writer living in Australia? It’s Australia Day today! A day when we celebrate everything great about Australia. As a writer, I love living in Australia. So do most Aussie authors. Or do they…? Last year, I asked some acclaimed Aussie authors about their…
I’ve been listening to Adele a lot recently (getting into character for a writing project), and her lyrical songwriting reminded me of school – but not because of any teenage heartbreak. I was sweet sixteen – into poetry, candles and boys – and my school had no writing club (shock,…
With the festive season only days away, I just wanted to remind writers, editors and their colleagues in the publishing industry, to look out for each other this year. We’re a sensitive bunch, we wouldn’t be able to write and edit and rewrite as well as we do without that…
Last week, I was wondering why I had such a methodical approach to reading short story anthologies. Having just read four anthologies back-to-back, I found myself adding up the number of stories I enjoyed, calculating what percentage that was of the whole, and the result reflected my reading enjoyment of…
A friend recently asked me to review a short story anthology. Never having done this before, I didn’t know how to start. So I got pen and paper ready, took notes. Having now read four anthologies back-to-back, I’ve discovered something about the way I read and enjoy them… For some…
