Category Archives: 2012 Perth Writers Festival

Norway: A Writer’s Dream?

By Carina Tan-Van Baren Want to be a writer? Move to Norway. Acclaimed crime novelist Jo Nesbø says Norway “is the best country in the world to be a writer” and from what he and fellow Norwegian, author and playwright Johan … Continue reading

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Me-Worms and They-Worms: The Hunt for Voice

By Tamara Hunter These pretzels are making me thirsty. These PRETZELS are making me THIRSTY. THESE PRETZELS ARE MAKING ME THIRSTY! Who knew pretzels could hold so many shades of meaning? As Elaine, George, Jerry and Kramer demonstrated in the … Continue reading

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Inua Ellams: ‘Musical and delicious to the ear’

By Kaitlyn Plyley Performance poetry is gradually finding its way out of the grunge-covered back rooms of dark pubs and catching the attention of wider audiences. One of the poets carrying this contemporary artform into the mainstream is Inua Ellams, … Continue reading

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Thrillers Make A Killing

By Carina Tan-Van Baren Crime fiction has invaded the zeitgeist. In books, movies, television, even music, crime is a dominant theme devoured by a public hungry for the dark and disturbing. The genre certainly punches with the heavyweights when it comes to readership, with … Continue reading

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Short Can Be Sweet

By Tamara Hunter Erica Jong once described the novel as being like a marriage, with the writer and reader in it for the long haul. Short stories, on the other hand, were like brief, passionate flings. And the poem? A … Continue reading

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How Much Sex Is Too Much?

By Carina Tan-Van Baren Imagine wearing a big placard around your neck: “Dud root”*. This is the image that comes to mind when I contemplate writing my first sex scene.  The idea of putting it all out there, describing the steamiest … Continue reading

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Careful or I’ll Put You In My Book

By Tamara Hunter There’s a great UK website specialising in gifts for writers and one of them is a t-shirt which says: ‘Careful or you’ll end up in my next novel’. You laugh and think “Ahh, writers” quickly followed by … Continue reading

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The Rich Rewards of Research

By Carina Tan-Van Baren and Tamara Hunter Think research is dry and dusty? Rather be conjuring dragons from the clouds? You could be missing one of the most fun parts of writing a book. Far from a necessary evil, authors at … Continue reading

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The Reading Cure

By Tamara Hunter “Is reading overrated?” The question posed by the 2012 Perth Writers Festival session seemed a ridiculous one to ask in a forum jammed with readers, writers, publishers and general devotees of the written word. Talk about preaching … Continue reading

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Festival Feast And 500 Words

And we’re back. After an extended break over the festive season – slave to the demands of “the world of real things” as author John Birmingham describes it – Waxings is back in business. This weekend, yours truly and Tamara … Continue reading

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