What do you love?
I've been following Julie Hedlund since 2012 when I joined her 12x12 in 2012 program. While my writing focus has been more on chapter books rather than picture books, I participate in her 12 Days of Christmas program and enjoy her insights into the writing life....
How to Create a Dragon
This morning, I had my Virtual Writers Group for homeschoolers. There are two regular participants in this group, each with their own way of writing a story. One of them takes the prompt, writes something quickly, then disengages for the rest of the session. This...
Back to Writers Group
Yesterday, I travelled to Melbourne for Young Writers group at the Mt Waverley library for the first time in ages! It was fantastic to drive down the highway and arrive at the library. We had a small group and the kids were happy to be there at a face-to-face session....
What I’ve Read – January 2022
Happy New Year! Welcome to my first book roundup for 2022. It's been a strong start to my reading year with eight books read so far, and a ninth is on the go. Earlier this month, I shared about my to be read strategy for this year. Instead of getting overwhelmed and...
Creating a fictional brand
This morning in Virtual Writers Group, we did a writing prompt around shoes. This led to a discussion about creating brand names. Often, writers want to use fictional brand names in their writing rather than real ones. This could be due to not wanting to worry about...
To Be Read – what’s next?
Many booklovers talk about having a To Be Read pile. I have more of a To Be Read bookshelf! I have so many books on my shelves that I haven't read yet, but want to. After all, if I didn't want to read them, I wouldn't have bought them. The books are a mix of books...
Reading books from the 1930s
After Christmas, I spent a few days with my parents. My mum had some boxes of books from her parents and grandparents that she hadn't gone through yet and we spent a lovely afternoon going through the books. The oldest book we found was from 1872! One gem was a book...
What I’ve Read – December 2021
Happy New Year everyone. Can you believe 2022 is here already? I hope you got some fantastic books for Christmas. My kids gave me some new picture books to add to my collection. According to GoodReads, I read 66 books during 20221. That's only the books that are on...
Merry Christmas 2021
I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. We're having a quiet day at home. My boys and I had our Christmas celebrations yesterday, and today I'm watching daggy Christmas movies and building the Lego typewriter I got for my birthday back in October! I hope...
When you’re not focusing on the words…
Since lockdowns started in early 2020, I have been running Virtual Writers Groups for young writers. I've been setting them a writing prompt, then write along with the kids. During the session, I've been handwriting the stories in notebooks left over from when my kids...