Category Archives: Australian Writers

October 3, 2010 · 9:51 am

Covers!

Here’s the cover for Marianne’s new YA book Burn Bright. Verrrry cool!

Burn Bright is the first books of marianne’s new YA series.

In Ixion music and party are our only beliefs. Darkness is our comfort. We have few rules but they are absolute . . .

Retra doesn’t want to go to Ixion, the island of ever-night, ever-youth and never-sleep. Retra is a Seal – sealed minds, sealed community. She doesn’t crave parties and pleasure, experience and freedom.

But her brother Joel left for Ixion two years ago, and Retra is determined to find him. Braving the intense pain of her obedience strip to escape the only home she’s ever known, Retra stows away on the barge that will take her to her brother.

When she can’t find Joel, Retra finds herself drawn deeper into the intoxicating world of Ixion. Come to me, whispers a voice in her head. Who are the Ripers, the mysterious guardians of Ixion? What are the Night Creatures Retra can see in the shadows? And what happens to those who grow too old for Ixion?

Retra will find that Ixion has its pleasures, but its secrets are deadly. Will friendship, and the creation of an eternal bond with a Riper, be enough to save her from the darkness?

Listen well, baby bats. Burn bright, but do not stray from the paths. Remember, when you live in a place of darkness you also live with creatures of the dark.

Burn Bright is due to be published early 2011.

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Filed under Australian Writers, Children's Books, Covers, Dark Urban Fantasy, Fun Stuff, Genre, Promoting Friend's Books

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September 16, 2010 · 10:57 am

More Bookplates for Friends

The people over at Twelfth Planet Press have produced a lovely anthology of my friend, Marianne de Pierres’ stories called Glitter Rose. So I’ve produced a lovely bookplate for Marianne.

‘The Glitter Rose stories are set against the background of Carmine Island (an island reminiscent of Stradbroke Island, Queensland) where a decade ago spores from deep in the ocean blew in, by a freak of nature, and settled on the island. These spores bring fierce allergies to the inhabitants of the island. And maybe other, more sinister effects. As we follow Tinashi’s journey of moving to and settling into island life, we get a clearer picture of just what is happening on Carmine Island.’

And here is Marianne with her books at World Con.

So if you like surreal sensual stories set in our world with a tiwst, take a look at Marianne’s Glitter Rose.

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Filed under Australian Writers, Covers, Fantasy books, Indy Press, Promoting Friend's Books

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August 26, 2010 · 3:38 am

Drop by and say Hi

On Saturday the 28th of August, I’m going to be at Logan North Library so drop by and say Hi.

I’ll be with the romantic by cynical Trent Jamieson, author of Death Most Definite, the pocket rocket Kylie Chan, author of the Dark Heaven series, the lovely Louise Cusack author and mentor, and Anthony Puttee author of the Johnny Marsh books.

We’ll be talking about promoting your books and this is all part of Logan North Library’s month of Speculative Fiction. So you are sure to see Darth Vader and a Storm Trouper or two!

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Filed under Australian Writers, Dark Urban Fantasy, Fantasy books, Fun Stuff, Genre, Mentoring, Promoting Friend's Books, Publishing Industry, Specialist Bookshops, The Writing Fraternity

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August 13, 2010 · 11:32 pm

Friday the 13th – perfect date to launch Trent’s book

Here we are at Trent’s book launch. That’s Marianne de Pierres on the left, Trent with his books, then I’m behind him in the pink beret (was having a bad hair day, the curls would not behave) and Kylie Chan.

It was a great evening over at Avid Reader in West End. The previous two days we’d have pouring rain then gale force winds. Everything settled down so the garden terrace was still and the night was clear. There was standing room only as Trent’s friends and family came to support him. Marianne and I have known Trent for fifteen years since the Vision Writers group started and he’s been part of ROR for the last 9.

Books and writers aren’t made over night. You put in a long apprenticeship and then once you are published the work gets harder!

Feeling very proud and happy for Trent.

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August 10, 2010 · 9:59 am

Celebrating Friends’ books

Today I’m celebrating the launch of Trent Jamieson’s book Death Most Definite, published by Orbit, part of the Death Works trilogy.

Here is the trailer.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQtI__Zc5bY]

Tren’t s book is set in Brisbane with a quirky hero and an off beat premise. It’s a refreshing take on Dark Urban Fantasy.

Go Trent!

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July 26, 2010 · 9:05 pm

Mentoring Retreat in the Tropics

Good friend of mine, Sandy Curtis, is running a writing retreat at Kellys Beach Resort. So if you live up that way, near  the coast in central Queensland and you’d like to spend 3 days at a lovely resort with a published mentor going through your book, short story or play …

Writers retreat to the beach!

Three storytellers will each offer their unique insights into writing at a mentoring retreat at Kelly’s Beach Resort, Bargara on the coast near Bundaberg, in Queensland.
The Bundaberg based professionals will mentor emerging novelists, short story crafters and playwrights over three days from 15-17 October 2010.

Mentoring the Muse is proposed as an intensive retreat-style development program similar to iniatives like the Varuna Manuscript Development Awards in NSW or the QWC/Hachette Australia Manuscript Development Program. These have been highly successful at supporting writers to improve their work to publishable standard, resulting in numerous publishing contracts for participants.

There is nothing like getting away from family and work and concentrating on your writing in a beautiful environment with other writers, while being mentored by someone who ‘gets’ your writing!

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Filed under Australian Writers, creativity, Mentoring, Nourish the Writer, Publishing Industry, The Writing Fraternity, Writing craft

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· 10:23 am

When friends have books coming out …

I get to celebrate!

Over at the ROR blog Kylie Chan has done a post on Sustaining Plots. Since this is book six of her Dark Heaven series, she can speak with authority. She’s also doing a giveaway of ‘Hell to Heaven’.

Go Kylie!

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July 21, 2010 · 8:21 am

Go Trent!

My good friend Trent Jamieson has been interviewed over at The Australian Literature Review.

He talks about how he writes:

‘Well, I’m not much of a planner, so first drafts are generally me trying things out and trying to make sense of stuff. Most of this book was written at the Toowong Library (in the local history section) in longhand. I’d walk down there every weekday, that I wasn’t working, listening to the same music to get me in the right frame of mind (mainly, for the first book Okkervil River, Gotye, and Spoon) and write until I’d filled about eight pages or so of my notebook. Then I’d go home and type them into my computer.’

Having read Trent’s book in its final form before it went off to the publisher (and loving it then) I’m really looking forward to getting a copy of it when it released.

And over at the Galaxy blog, Trent has done a guest post on his new series and writing in general.

For more on Trent and his weird and wondferful world view, drop by his blog.

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July 19, 2010 · 12:23 am

In need of a little R&R

My writing friend, Richard Harland, has just come back from a tour of the US and the UK to promote his steampunk YA book, Worldshaker. Being the kind of chap he is, he got right into the whole thing and had this outfit made.

To read about his tour see here.

Richard is back home and having a well deserved rest.

I wish I could say I had such a good reason to need some R&R, but all I’ve been doing is working, renovating my house, trying to complete a book and helping to run a national workshop. None of which are as exciting as visiting the Basilica of the Holy Blood in Bruges. (Go Richard!).

Is anyone else running on the spot just to stop from going backwards?

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Filed under Australian Writers, Nourish the Writer, Promoting Friend's Books, The World in all its Absurdity, The Writing Fraternity

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June 30, 2010 · 8:46 pm

DUF Giveaway

It is always a thrill when someone you’ve known for years gets published. Here is the cover of Nicole Murphy’s new  book, first of a series. They are dark urban fantasy.

Over on the ROR blog Nicole is talking about the process of getting published and there’s a giveaway!

The Dream of Asarlai is an urban fantasy trilogy being published in Australia by HarperVoyager. The first book, Secret Ones, is due to hit the shelves in July, with the other two books appearing next year.

Here’s the blurb.

She′s from an ancient clan. He has no family. Can they save the world … together?

Maggie Shaunessy is used to keeping secrets. She′s a fantastic teacher, but she′s also gadda, part of a hidden, powerful race – and she has a habit of annoying the wrong people.

Until Lucas Valeroso meets Maggie, he had no idea what awaited him: super-human powers, a smart and beautiful woman interested in more than unlocking his new abilities and, above all, a sense of belonging.

But dark ambition and dangerous bigotry are emerging in the gadda ranks. Lucas′s new family might cast him out before he′s even truly found his place. And Maggie must work with new allies to find and retrieve a missing artefact before the entire world is changed for all time.

′fresh and interesting approach to an urban fantasy series′ Bookseller+Publisher’

Support Aussie authors not only becaue they’re Australian, but because they write damn fine books!

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