Here it is! I could not be happier with this beautiful cover by the terrific design team at Harlequin. I think it perfectly sums up the mood and tone of the book. The other exciting bit of news is that After the Party is now available for pre-order ahead of the Feb 2019 publication. Amazon: https://amzn.to/2QC0jAL […]
I Have a Book Cover Read More »
One of the best things about getting involved in the online writing community is the lovely people you meet – and Vanessa Carnevale is one of the loveliest. What first put Vanessa on my radar was her excellent podcast – Your Creative Life – which is a must-listen for any aspiring writer. Then, earlier this
Meet Vanessa Carnevale, author of ‘The Florentine Bridge’ Read More »
Well, this is a Book Birdy first! Sunni Overend is the first writer to be featured twice on the blog, which I think is testament to the fascinating nature of her personal writing story and also her fabulous books, which are a really fresh take on contemporary women’s fiction. Sunni first came on my radar
Meet Sunni Overend, author of ‘The Dangers of Truffle Hunting’ Read More »
I have to admit to cringing a little (lot) when I re-read my first (and never to be published) manuscript. What I dislike most about it is that it’s written in the first-person, present tense. Here’s the first paragraph: I watch the stream of water snaking its way down my body. It used to take
Writing in the First Person: ‘Front Page News’, by Katie Rowney Read More »
There are so many different types of authors in this world – but the ones that really excite me are those who seem to operate on a different plane to the rest of us. The ones who notice things that we (or I) seem to miss – and then convey these things using extraordinary, inventive
Meet Jennifer Down, author of ‘Our Magic Hour’ Read More »
Imagine you’re at the start of your creative writing life. You have a short story. You have no idea if it’s any good. But you send it off anyway to a national, well-respected short story competition – the first one you’ve ever entered. You wait and wait. Then the results come in and you nearly
Meet E.C. Thorpe – Winner of the Stringybark Short Story Award 2015 Read More »
There’s this natty little function on the Sydney Writer’s Festival website that allows you to search for events by genre. There’s fiction, of course (more than 60 events, mostly literary fiction) but also more ‘niche’ genres, such as crime (16 events), sport (6 events), even spirituality and religion (6 events). But have a guess at
There are times (many) when I think of the ego involved in writing. What makes my voice, my thoughts, my ideas, worth recording, let alone publishing? What gives me the right to think I can and should write? Who cares what I have to say? Then a writer comes along who makes you realise that
The Ego of Writing: ‘My Name is Lucy Barton’, by Elizabeth Strout Read More »
I was 19 when I traveled overseas, alone, for the first time. The only book I packed was The Lonely Planet Guide to the USA. It was my bible, telling me where to go, how to get there and where to stay. In those days, the internet was something you could only use in a cafe, and
Two very different books. Two very different genres. Two very different writers. Two very different target audiences. But at the heart of both – sex. More specifically, sex within the context of a relationship, but also outside of that context. In The Dangerous Bride, we meet Lee Kofman in a Melbourne fetish club on the
On Sex: ‘The Dangerous Bride,’ by Lee Kofman and Kirsty Eagar’s ‘Summer Skin’ Read More »
