Check out some of the wonderful literary events happening in Sydney and around NSW (and online) this December!

‘I mostly find that I don’t know what I want to say, or even what I really think about a subject, until I write the essay. An argument tends to arrive for me simultaneously with the writing of it, and the essays I find most rewarding to write and to read are the ones where a train of thought leads you somewhere you couldn’t have predicted arriving at.’

‘Most of what’s usually described as ‘voice’ happens on the sentence level, and I find that I need to work out what kind of ‘voice’ I want a particular story to have before I can really dive into it.’

‘It’s important to remember not everything you find fascinating will be the same for a reader. The key is to consider whether a ‘fact’ will drive the narrative, deepen characterisation, add to the theme, advance a plot, or instil a sense of place.’

‘New ideas flow in a variety of ways but one great avenue comes from walking the streets! Observing people on trains. Looking out the window.’

‘There’s any number of reasons why someone gives up on a first draft but I think the most common is probably a loss of confidence in the project. To this I say: no one writes clean, publishable first drafts. Everyone’s first draft is terrible but the most important thing is persevering and getting it down on the page.’

Check out some of the wonderful literary events happening in Sydney and around NSW (and online) this November!

‘Education writing is writing for children! It’s just that the sales channels are different, and the briefs more exacting.’

‘While the first objects that come to mind for writing might be precious items that have a clear significance through their artistic, heirloom, or monetary value, humble and everyday objects are no less interesting to write with. It’s the stories they connect to that make them profound.’