Fremantle Press: The Last Whale on Can We Help?: "Chris Pash, the author of The Last Whale, will appear on the ABC TV program Can We Help? on Friday April 24 at 6.30pm.
The segment is A Moment in time, a capsule of history about the final days of whaling in Australia thirty years ago
The Last Whale follows the lives of Australia’s last whalers at Albany, Western Australia, and a group of activists who fought to close the industry"
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
indigo Journal Calls for Submissions from WA Writers
West Australia's newest journal of Creative Writing is calling for submissions for volume 4, to be published in October 2009.indigo welcomes work from unpublished, new and leading writers of poetry, short stories and creative non-fiction (i.e. personal essay, biography and memoir).
All poetry, short stories and creative non-fiction published in indigo are selected anonymously by an interchanging panel of guest editors who oversee the work produced in each volume.
'We are proud to have award-winning Tasmanian author Amanda Lohrey selecting the short stories for volume 4’,' says managing editor of indigo journal, Donna Ward. Lohrey has written 5 novels and selected the short stories for Best Australian Short Stories 2002 (Black Inc). Her recent novella Vertigo, also published by Black Inc, has gathered widespread positive reviews.
The guest editor responsible for the selection of poetry for volume 4 is nationally respected West Australian poet Lucy Dougan, author of The Memory Shell (Five Islands Press 1998) and the recent White Clay (Giramondo), which was released in 2008.
Chris Pash, the author behind The Last Whale (Fremantle Press), a recent account of the end of whaling in Australia, will select the creative non-fiction entries. 'Although he now lives and works in Sydney, Chris is very much an "Albany person",' says Ward.
Along with the poetry and creative non-fiction of up and coming West Australian writers, this volume of indigo will feature short stories by local writer Susan Midalia, author of the short story collection, The History of the Beanbag (UWA Press 2007) and an interview with one of WA's best known artists of this form, Robert Drewe, whose recent collection of stories The Rip (Penguin) is out now.
You can submit to indigo if you live in Western Australia, or reside elsewhere but have lived in W.A. for at least ten years of your life.The deadline for submissions is May 30th and you can download guidelines at http://www.indigojournal.org.au/.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Interview - Jon Doust, author of Boy on a Wire
Sent to boarding school at a young age, Jack Muir decides he’s a survivor. He gets by with a quick wit and a fast mouth. Others aren’t so lucky. This story from stand-up comedian and writer, Jon Doust, is humorous and deeply poignant—a close-to-the-bone tale of how underdogs survive the system.
Kiri Falls talks with Albany, WA, author Jon Doust about his novel Boy on a Wire
What has your previous writing experience been?
I’ve had two children’s books published, Magpie Mischief and Magwheel Madness.
How different was the experience of writing a novel for older readers?
Quite different. The story was very close to me. It was draining, a bit emotional. Yeah, it was emotional. And I did a lot of research, because I wanted to reconnect with the time. That was fascinating. There were things that I didn’t remember happening the way they happened.
Was it a difficult process or did you enjoy it?
It was difficult but I enjoyed reflecting with passion, with those emotional undercurrents. Or not so much enjoyed, that’s not really the word. But I wouldn’t shy away from writing something like that again, I’m not afraid of it. In the privacy of my own head, that is. Now that I have to go out and talk about it it might be different!
I expect you’ll often be asked the kind of question I’m about to ask: where did the character of Jack emerge from?
From deep within (laughs). The starting point was me. But he became somebody other than me. Certain aspects of myself are idealised, I might say. Some bits are not like me, some bits are worse than me. Jack is an expansion of some of my characteristics and a reflection of others.
All the characters are compilations. It’s difficult to do justice to the different personalities. It’s true that they just have to fit the story. You see, I didn’t start writing knowing what the book was about. The book simply emerged. Everybody was rewritten at least once, Jack more than once. They had to suit the book, and then they had to suit themselves.
Read the rest of the Interview
Kiri Falls talks with Albany, WA, author Jon Doust about his novel Boy on a Wire
What has your previous writing experience been?
I’ve had two children’s books published, Magpie Mischief and Magwheel Madness.
How different was the experience of writing a novel for older readers?
Quite different. The story was very close to me. It was draining, a bit emotional. Yeah, it was emotional. And I did a lot of research, because I wanted to reconnect with the time. That was fascinating. There were things that I didn’t remember happening the way they happened.
Was it a difficult process or did you enjoy it?
It was difficult but I enjoyed reflecting with passion, with those emotional undercurrents. Or not so much enjoyed, that’s not really the word. But I wouldn’t shy away from writing something like that again, I’m not afraid of it. In the privacy of my own head, that is. Now that I have to go out and talk about it it might be different!
I expect you’ll often be asked the kind of question I’m about to ask: where did the character of Jack emerge from?
From deep within (laughs). The starting point was me. But he became somebody other than me. Certain aspects of myself are idealised, I might say. Some bits are not like me, some bits are worse than me. Jack is an expansion of some of my characteristics and a reflection of others.
All the characters are compilations. It’s difficult to do justice to the different personalities. It’s true that they just have to fit the story. You see, I didn’t start writing knowing what the book was about. The book simply emerged. Everybody was rewritten at least once, Jack more than once. They had to suit the book, and then they had to suit themselves.
Read the rest of the Interview
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