Gap Year in Ghost Town Launch
Exciting stuff. We’re having a big launch for Gap Year in Ghost Town – and you’re invited! With the publication of GYIGT due next month, a carnival launch will be held at Readings Kids (315 Lygon St, Carlton) at 6.30 on 17 August. I’m excited that Leanne Hall, author of...
Gap Year in Ghost Town Teaser
Here’s a teaser for my newest book, ‘Gap Year in Ghost Town’, coming in August 2017 from Allen & Unwin. ...
Gap Year in Ghost Town
Gap Year in Ghost Town (Allen & Unwin August 2017) has a cover! Authors, naturally, are always nervous about how their precious work is going to look, but the very clever Craig Phillips has come up with an absolute winner. I love its combination of spookiness and street smarts, and...
Science for Science Fiction Conference
I’m pleased to be part of the Science for Science Fiction conference, which is being held by the Royal Society of Victoria and Aurealis. It’s sure to be of interest to all new, emerging and established Science Fiction writers. Science for Science Fiction brings together some of the best known...
Music to Write By
I like listening to and reading about other writers. I find the process of writing fascinating, and I find the multitude of different approaches empowering. There is no single magical formula for writing. There are a million ways to do it and to do it well. Take the business...
Begin End Begin
A lot of buzz is already out there for this YA anthology from Harper Collins, due for publication in May 2017. It’s great being part of such a phalanx of top YA writers. Knowing them, I’m sure that the collection will be a delight, full of different approaches and...
Our Venice Trip
4th October – first full day in Venice Yesterday (and the day before?) was the long, long trip. Two legs – Melbourne – Dubai, two hour wait, then Dubai Venice. Arrived in Venice at 3 o’clock and met by Georgia, our landlord, who walked us from Piazza Romana where...
World-building 101
If you’ve ever looked at our world with discontent, unhappiness or a feeling of ‘I could do better than that!’ then fantasy writing is for you. In a lifetime of reading Fantasy and half a lifetime writing it, I’ve compiled a number of hints, tips and techniques for novice...
What publishers are looking for. Some of them, anyway.
One of the other hats I wear is as co-publisher of Aurealis, Australia’s longest-running magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. In a recent editorial, I wanted to let the writers out there know what we’re looking for. It turned into a statement of principles, the criteria by which we...
Talking Writing
Once upon a time, the job description for a writer was fairly straightforward: you sat down and wrote. After that, you worked with an editor and revised your work through to publication. Now, the requirements of the job are somewhat different, particularly if you are a writer...