Join in to the Rottnest Island Retreat Western Australia 10-13th June

The creative life is an exploration of places within and beyond – filled with community, ideas, sharing and friendships.

Rottnest Retreat, Western Australia – 10-13th June

SCBWI Western Australia headed by author Dianne Wolfer and WA authors and illustrators have a retreat in beautiful Rottnest Island – off the coast of Perth. www.rottnestisland.com

You can come for a day, but I’m staying in a cabin with Sarah Foster Publisher Walker Books and brilliant illustrator Ann James.

It’s casual, personal and fun and while I’m doing some talks, I’ll also be happy to discuss your writing.

Many of the best of WA authors & illustrators will be there workshopping, sharing writing and publishing news .

Here’s the brilliant, talented, welcoming SCBWI WA team. Do I think they’re fantastic? YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

 

dianne.wolfer@scbwiaustralia.org

www.scbwiaustralia.org

 

 

Collection of Australian Kids & Young Adult Books Gifted to Shanghai & Nanjing Libraries

Thankyou to Mark Wang Deputy Chairman Museum of Chinese Australian History for organising this special collection of Australian children’s and young adult books to the Shanghai and Nanjing libraries in an act of friendship and thanks. 

 

                     Shaun Tan’s ‘The Arrival’

 

A Collection of Australian Children’s Books presented to Shanghai Library and Nanjing Library

 MESSAGE FROM THE MINISTER FOR THE ARTS

Marjorie Gardner

Katrina Germein

 Susanne Gervay

Morris Gleitzman

Cassandra Golds

D. C. Green

Sheryl Gwyther

Christine Harris

Libby Hathorn

Rosanne Hawke

Sally Heinrich

Don Henderson

Greg Holfeld

George Ivanoff

Margo Lanagan

John Marsden

Randa Abdel-Fattah

Krista Bell

Wendy Blaxland

Mark Carthew

Chris Cheng

Margaret Clarke

Paul Collins

D. M. Cornish

Meredith Costain

 Cath Crowley

Teresa Culkin Lawrence

Hazel Edwards

Corinne Fenton

Jackie French

Phillipa Meadows

Kierin Meehan

Chrissie Michaels

Glenda Millard

David Millar

 Kirsty Murray

Wendy Orr

Michael Pryor

Sally Rippin

Anne Spudvilas

Ruth Starke

Shaun Tan

Gabrielle Wang

Dee White

Sue Whiting

Carole Wilkinson

  Goldie Alexander

Fabulous Young Adult Authors, Darling Harbour, CBCA & Master Class- Sydney Writers Festival 2010

The View: Gorgeous Sydney Harbour, boats, sunshine

The Boat: Jessica Watson’s Ella’s Pink Lady which has just sailed around the world 

Young Adult Authors: Jaclyn Moriaty, Anthony Eaton, William Kostakis, Susanne Gervay

Teens: Enthusiastic writers from schools all over Sydney – Sydney Girls High, St Scholastics Glebe … great girls.

Touched by comments that all the authors received. I want to share a few written in my card:-

Thankyou for speaking with us. You’re a great inspiration for me. And I love your books!  Mischa

Thankyou so much! I love being around people who love to write.  Ash

Thankyou too – and thankyou to Jane Taylor of the Children’s Book Council Australia who did all the hard work organising it.

Launch of the Blake Religious Art & Poetry Prize

 The 2010 Blake Prize explores religious and spirtual art and one of the important prizes in Art and now Poetry.

The Blake Society was formed by a Jesuit priest Michael Scott, a Jewish businessman Richard Morley and a Catholic lawyer Mary Tennison Woods as a commitment to inter-faith exploration of spirituality.

The Chair, Rod Pattenden Minister of the Uniting Church Paddington, welcomed everyone to the Blake Prize launch - www.blakeprize.com.au

It was opened by Governor of NSW Marie Bashir.

Painter Maryanne Coutts, winner of the 1982 prize and Mark Tredennick winner of the poetry prize 2008 spoke about the creative process.  

Stephanie Lewis, the Executive Director of The Blake Prize who is so passionate about the Blake, welcomed the NSW Writers Centre who partners the Blake Society in the Poetry.

In summary: Despite pouring rain, it was a wonderful launch in the historic Uniting Church, with wonderful food wine, poets, artists and supportors of the Creative Life. 

Christian Teacher-Librarian Conference Sydney

Teacher librarians came from Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria and NSW to this warm and welcoming conference.

Paul MacDonald from Beecroft Book Shop discussed young adult novels with their tradition of search for identity & confronting youth issues. 

I spoke about my younger fiction which although dealing with tough issues is warm, funny, safe, assessible for Christian schools -

I AM JACK – bullying

SUPER JACK – blending families and aging grandparents

ALWAYS  JACK – breast cancer  coming out in October

DAISY SUNSHINE - women’s right for education.

However my YA books are confronting as they deal with teen search for identity – social, sexual, independence - & the eternal youth questions - Who Am I? Why Am I here? Where am I going?

‘That’s Why I Wrote This Song’ where my teen daughter Tory wrote the lyrics and music for the book, captures that searching, emotional power of music,  impact of relationships and search for identity:-

See the video clips of Tory Gervay’s songs – Psycho Dad and I Wanna Be Found on my youtube channel:-www.youtube.com/user/sgervay

 The poem from teenager Elise Higginson given to me at the conference is moving, beautiful and embraces challenging  YA literature  that partners young people on their search for pathways to self realisation.

 

 

 

 Tribute to Nathan

by teenager Elise Higginson

I was down and in the dark

Looking for some reasons why -

Why was I so sad?

Life was just one big mad place

Wherer nothing I did would

Stand out from the crowd

Cried my self to sleep.

 

I couldn’t find any sense with things

And it made me so confused …

 

Constantly looking back

To the past …

 

I wasn’t letting myself have a fresh start

But when I heard your voice

It was like medicine

I was crying for help

Finally I could see some good…

And it kept me going …

 

I didn’t want to go after I heard you sing

Because I would miss the moment

That made my life better.

Thankyou Elise for sharing this. It connects with Tory’s lyrics in her  song ‘I Wanna Be Found’ and shares the journey.

Thankyou Helen for inviting me to speak at this special Conference.