Shortlisted!

Surprised - and ludicrously happy - to find that Elizabeth Macarthur  has been shortlisted for the Ashurst Business Literature Prize. Some info about the prize, according to the website: Launched in 2004 by Blake Dawson and the State Library of NSW, the $30,000 Ashurst Business Literature Prize is acknowledged as Australia’s most important award for business writing. The prestigious prize was originally established by law firm Ashurst (formerly Blake Dawson) and the State Library of NSW to encourage the highest possible standards of literary commentary on Australian business and financial [...]

2019-04-12T17:45:23+10:00April 12th, 2019|Elizabeth Macarthur, Life, Writing|7 Comments
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Random Thoughts About Author Talks

People are generous. My author talk at 'Clunes on Sunday' was chaired by a woman who had inherited her farm from her mother, who had inherited it from her own mother. She told me that mine was the first book she'd read in twenty years and that she'd enjoyed it very much. She also said - and I think this is the nicest compliment I've ever received about my writing - that it read like it was written by someone from the country.* People are kind. Elizabeth Macarthur's descendant, John Macarthur-Stanham, [...]

2018-06-19T22:14:35+10:00June 19th, 2018|Life, Writing|5 Comments
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Speaking as an author…

I was afraid, when I began to do author talks, that someone would take me to task about this dubious fact, or that poorly argued inference. I thought they might interrogate me about my sources, or debate the validity of some of my suppositions. It hasn't happened. Not yet, anyway. What I AM constantly being asked is why, and how, I first became interested in EM. If you're wondering too, I wrote about the answer to that ages ago, in a post you can find here. Sometimes I'm asked about [...]

2018-05-27T19:02:02+10:00May 27th, 2018|Author Interviews, Writing|4 Comments
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What does being a new author feel like?

So far? Joyous. My friends and family are all super happy for me and it's too soon for any dubious reviews. Quite the opposite, including this very nice one in The West Australian. People have even complimented me on my neat handwriting. In the past week alone I've had a launch party, two library talks and five radio interviews (including one with Wendy Harmer - yes WENDY HARMER!!!!!!) And every occasion was full of people who wished me well, and simply wanted to know more about Elizabeth Macarthur. The launch [...]

2018-04-15T17:11:11+10:00April 15th, 2018|Writing|8 Comments
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Invisible Women of Australian History

Today is yet another milestone: I've had an essay, titled Invisible Women, published in the excellent Inside Story magazine. Inside Story's contributor list reads like a Who's Who of quality Australian journalism, so I'm feeling bit lightheaded, frankly. A version of this essay began life as the final chapter of the biography. I wanted to discuss Elizabeth Macarthur's legacy, and to explain why she was important, and it all came out in a heated rush. But my editor thought not, saying that it differed (in tone and content) too widely [...]

2018-04-09T21:58:51+10:00April 9th, 2018|Interesting Articles, Writing|2 Comments
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How to launch a book

Full confession: launching a book really is fun. And everyone is so nice! Over in Facebook land I've never had so many likes in my life. I went into Readings Carlton to sign some copies, and they've subsequently put a copy of Elizabeth Macarthur into the window. Truly, I can now die happy. I've had two radio interviews so far, and they both went well. Only one is available online, though: ABC Melbourne (774) Breakfast Show. Fast forward to 1:14:20 if you want to hear me rabbiting on for about 6 minutes [...]

2018-04-04T21:00:00+10:00April 4th, 2018|Writing|0 Comments
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Straight from the horse’s mouth

Spent publication day (April 2) just horsing around. But that said, the horse did say he enjoyed the book. And, now that the book is out in the world, I can only hope that others are buying and reading it too. Plenty of signed copies at Readings Carlton, thanks for asking. My family keep asking me if I know how many copies have been sold yet, or if I've had any feedback. But (with the exception of two very kind online reviews so far, thanks Lisa and Bill) it's kind [...]

2018-04-03T14:08:41+10:00April 3rd, 2018|Writing|0 Comments
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Waiting

What to do in the limbo between the book being out of the box, and the book being out in the world (or at least in bookshops)? It seems like a long three weeks until the official publication date of April 2 but what does that mean anyway? April 2 is Easter Monday, so in reality the book will start appearing in shops during the week prior, and in the weeks after. But what does that mean for me? It's not like I'm going to rush out and buy a [...]

2018-04-09T21:33:01+10:00March 12th, 2018|Life, Writing|8 Comments
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Regional bookshops going broke

I've been doing the rounds of my local independent bookshops, and although the shops are well-stocked, and often beautiful, the economic picture is not pretty. At each shop I have a good browse, buy a book, then have a chat with the person at the counter (usually the owner) about my forthcoming biography. I let them know that, as a local writer, I'm open to suggestions, and happy to do talks, signings, events, whatever. I give them a flyer and my contact details. Usually the conversation ends there, with the [...]

2018-03-24T02:26:21+11:00March 5th, 2018|Writing|9 Comments
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