-
Sulari Gentill’s A Few Right Thinking Men
I grew up on a literary diet that had a healthy portion of crime fiction in it and these days if I see one crime novel that sparks my interest then the entire process of hunting down the whole series one by one begins. This is also one reason why I am so glad that the first book in Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series never fully grabbed me in the same way – I would still be trying to get through all of them decades later.
-
The Unconvential Guide to Freelance Journalism: Part 2 – setting up the business
So in Part 1 I explained why I wanted to answer the question of becoming a freelance journalist but also clarify exactly how difficult it can be to work as a freelance journalist. In this part I am going to tell you what, in Australia at least, you need in order to become a freelance journalist and to set up a business. Business type And the first thing you need to know is that yes, you are starting a business. And that you can be all by yourself as a sole trader, work with a couple of others in a partnership arrangement or set up a company with yourself working…
-
The Unconvential Guide to Freelance Journalism: Part 1- demystifying the entire thing
A couple of weeks ago, a former university friend of mine (she was doing her BA, I was doing my MA) got in touch with me and asked me to meet her for coffee. I said “Sure!” And we did and she asked me a question: “How do I get into freelancing?” This was someone who has a job at a pretty top end publication but for whom it is a bit too stressful and not quite working out to be what she wants to write about. So I understand why she was asking me the question. I understand why she was considering the freelancing option. But I had to…
-
Jane Rawson's A Wrong Turn At The Office Of Unmade Lists
Marisa Wikramanayake reviews Jane Rawson's A Wrong Turn At The Office Of Unmade Lists for the Australian Women Writers Challenge 2014.
-
Capering criminally with the challenge: what I read for Australian Women Writers 2013
In 2013, I joined the Australian Women Writers blog and project as the non-fiction contributing editor. This meant I also ended up taking the challenge of at least reading if not reviewing various books by female Australian authors. I read, I reviewed, I interviewed. Here's the round up of the books, the authors and the fun.
-
How to write a book: Part 1: Introduction
Three years is a long time. Three years ago, I was asked to run an online group on how to write books. The posts ended up here. A lot has changed in three years. It’s time to re-issue the posts with updated information. So for the next few weeks, every Wednesday (or for some of you, Tuesday night) there will be a post to do with writing a book, answering a specific question in your email and posted on this blog. What’s your part in this? Well, you are welcome to sit back and read the posts but you can also participate. You don’t need to be writing a book,…
-
How to tell if you are a writer
You have at least three library memberships and at least three different piles of books that are overdue and need to be returned. You get excited at the idea of getting a higher borrowing limit at the library than usual. You have a thing bordering on an obsession bordering on a fetish for pens. And your-kind-of-pretty notebooks. You may or may not have amassed a collection of these without quite knowing what you will fill them with it. You are a member of an online fandom. At least one. You write fanfiction for it. And delight in the response of others along the lines of how good you are…
-
So who won the Australia Day Book Giveaway?
Who won the haul? That’s what you want to know right? What haul? This haul! Which I have to say is a pretty amazing haul. But what I found amazing were your comments. Thank you guys. It was really interesting to see what your favourite poems were and the reasons why as well. So while my cat ponders which one of you is lucky enough to win (or is distasteful enough that she doesn’t swallow the piece of paper your name is written on), let’s see some of your poetry favourites. KathArine (who does spell her name like that) kicks us off with Robert Frost: “Nature’s first green is gold,…
-
AWW 2013: Marj McRae's Not A Man
“The hero is an eunuch.” said the author Marj McRae. “Wait, what?” was my reaction. She emailed me the link, I downloaded Not A Man in e-book form and dove in. An eunuch – I expected there to be a few descriptions of not so very nice things – violence and rape. I mean, it’s a young boy being castrated. And frankly, I was stunned by the level of research and detail. I now know a lot of very interesting things about castration and about Oxford. That’s right, Oxford. As in Oxford University. You see, Shuki, is not content with the fate of other eunuchs – lovable as along as…
-
How to write a novel … or at least one way of doing so
After taking another look at the novel AND learning about the T.A.G Hungerford Award being open for 2010 entries, I decided to rethink everything I have been doing with it. My last published book was a poetry anthology. I do know how to edit a novel because I can tell you what doesn’t fit, what needs to get cut and so on. I know about style, characterisation and plot. What I don’t know about writing a novel is this: how you go about the process so that it gets done. Especially if, like me, you’re doing it without a writing group or some kind of organised cheering/nagging squad or a…
