Some people might say that the best part of writing a book is typing the words THE END. Or that the most satisfying part is setting out on the journey and writing that first sentence. But for me, there is one stand out moment of pure joy
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Every autumn my guardian Pauline Conolly takes me to Mount Tomah Botanical Gardens so we can gather Spanish chestnuts from their big tree. It’s very exciting. It’s usually a bit chilly, but there is a lovely fire in the cafe where you can warm up first.
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This piece was first published in the Sydney Morning Herald. Following in the footsteps of Gracie Fields…my brief career as a mill worker. In a radio survey that set out to find Australia’s worst job, removing chicken innards on a production line won hands down….or rather hands
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SPRING AT SISSINGHURST House hunting in the spring of 1930, the English poet Vita Sackville-West viewed a crumbling castle in the Kentish countryside. Standing in the middle of a cabbage patch she looked up at its romantic, Elizabethan tower, turned to her son Nigel and said;
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SHAKEN AND STIRRED! Thanks to classic wines such as Penfold’s Grange, Australians are now less likely to be perceived as a nation of unsophisticated beer swillers. However, cocktails are perhaps more generally associated with Manhattan or Paris than ‘the
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It is such a pleasure to host this guest blog. One of the joys of social media is connecting with people completely outside one’s usual orbit. John Paul Bernett is an amazing fellow; writer, modeller, carer for his beloved wife (and editor), Beverley. I am impressed
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CLENCH YOUR PEN AND KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT! Authors are constantly advised not to respond to negative reviews. I fully agree; you simply cannot argue with another person’s opinion. It is worth remembering that many literary classics suffered a hatchet job when first published. I particularly love
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A PRICELESS GIFT On September 26 1968, Australia’s Consul-General in New York, Sir Reginald Sholl, received a visit from an elderly gentleman offering to present the Australian government with a pair of earrings associated with Governor Lachlan Macquarie’s wife Elizabeth. Sholl’s visitor was Edward Manley Hopkins, great-grandson
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RUFFLED FEATHERS For the seagulls of Australia, the arrival of Europeans was an unpleasant experience. As Cook’s Endeavor made its way along the east coast in 1770, the crew were forced to supplement their dwindling provisions by shooting and eating the birds. Sir Joseph Banks wrote; Sea
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It’s a rare, but delightful experience to come across a project that is fresh, funny and completely engaging. For me, it was author & illustrator Katie W. Stewart’s book, Famous Animals. I was so impressed when Katie posted a sample in a writers’ group we belong to,
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