500-word challenge
Congratulations
to our 'Intrigue'
challenge winner
Through The Glass
Darkly
by Gwen AngstromThe next challenge, write up to 500 words around the theme: SPEED. Closes midnight, 1 May 2012 AWST (GMT+8) More>
Category Archives: The Buzz
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
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
Posted in 2012 Perth Writers Festival, 500-word challenge, Blogwax
Tagged competition, perth writers festival, writing
4 Comments
Blogging for Art or Profit
Why don’t more writers’ festivals do in-session food? Philip Thiel handed out slices of pork terrine before his session at the Emerging Writers’ Festival and they were DELICIOUS – not least because I’d skipped lunch to talk to interesting new … Continue reading
Trends in Publishing – Part 3: We’ve Never Had It So Good
Relax. The mega-conglomerates are taking over publishing and that is a good thing. Emmett Stinson, author, poet, academic and president of SPUNC, Australia’s only advocacy group for small presses, says digital convergence in publishing is taking us to a brighter … Continue reading
Trends in Publishing – Part 2: Trends v Heart
Vampires, vampires and… more vampires. That’s a trend. Surprised? Catherine McCredie, a senior editor in the Books for Children and Young Adults department at Penguin Books, says she has lost track of the number of vampire books on the publisher’s … Continue reading
Posted in Blogwax, Emerging Writers Festival 2011, The Buzz
Tagged authors, books, catherine mccredie, digital publishing, dystopia, Emerging Writers' Festival, isabella, malcolm gladwell, outliers, paranormal, paul jennings, penguin, publishers, shaun tan, sonya hartnett, steampunk, the boy and the toy, the lost thing, Town Hall Conference, trends in publishing, vampires, write, writing
1 Comment
Trends in Publishing – Part 1: A Short, Sharp Future?
Here’s an interesting publishing trend – shorter books. Maybe. Editor David Winter says Text Publishing is doing a lot of short books at the moment. It’s not a deliberate strategy, he hastens to add. But his musing about the opportunities … Continue reading
7 Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me
“Talking about writing is not writing, tweeting about writing is not writing, reading about writing is not writing, going to writing conferences is not writing, blogging about your work in progress is not writing… if you want to be a … Continue reading
The Chemistry of Reading
It’s the best and absolute worst thing about reading. You find a book that absorbs you from the very first page and devour it in a single sitting, ignoring ‘real life’ responsibilities like preparing for that important meeting or feeding … Continue reading
Posted in Blogwax, Swancon36/Natcon50, The Buzz
Tagged books, chemistry, commercial, dopamine, fiction, natcon, Nikki Logan, norepinephrine, readers, reading, romance, seratonin, swancon, writing
2 Comments
Writing – A Poor Choice
Warning: Explicit Content (Look away now if you wish to preserve dreams of rich and successful authorhood) You know that romantic notion of the impoverished artist in a garret? Turns out it’s pretty close to the truth. And far from romantic. … Continue reading
Posted in Blogwax, Swancon36/Natcon50, The Buzz
Tagged abs, australian bureau of statistics, author, book, earning, ian nichols, income, natcon, poverty, publisher, swancon, wage, writers, writing
10 Comments
The Structure of a Novel
In the very short time I have been festival-stalking authors and inflicting my newby questions on those nice enough to not run away, I have absorbed two very clear and consistent pieces of advice: If you want to write, just get … Continue reading
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