By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/19/2011
Not a brilliant video, but I had to include an Aussie song in the mix. When I was a kid all the Christmas songs and carols we sang and heard seemed to come from the Northern Hemisphere and feature snow and ice and open fires. I love that my kids have had lots of Aussie influenced songs - and books, too!
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/18/2011
This one is a song and a story. It tells the same tale as one which my wonderful friend Norman Jorgensen brought to life in his book In Flanders Fields. It's a wonderful tale of Christmas goodwill in the midst of war - and a post script many years later.
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/16/2011
Another one from my youth. I was 17 when this one was made and, again, thought it was pretty wonderful at the time because it featured so may of my favorite singers - and, of course, because it was aimed at raising money for such a good cause. Go on, sing along. You know you want to :)
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/16/2011
It isn't Christmas at my house without Lego.
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/14/2011
Another video I've not seen before - and yes, I do realise this is a Coke ad, but it features Train, a band I happen to like. I went so far as to buy their CD this time last year and my kids said "that song sounds just like the Coke ad." Funny that. <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;"
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/14/2011
Last night I had dinner with the members of my new bookgroup. To clarify, the group isn’t new – but I am new to the group, having been invited to join because a member is leaving. I’ve wanted to be part of a bookgroup for ever, but never managed to find one with an opening for a new member. Then this one kind of fell in my lap, when I met up with a lovely lady I knew when I lived in Donnybrook 12
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/13/2011
More Christmas fun. I've not seen this clip before but I have the John Denver/Muppet Christmas album, which I only purchased a few years ago in a moment of nostalgia. Enjoy!
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/12/2011
More Christmas goodness. The Hallelujah Chorus was a big part of my growing up. I spent two years of my life trapped in boarding school, and part of our annual speech night was the whole school massed choir. Not sure the Hallelujah Chorus was done every year, but it was pretty regular - and although I was only there for two years, I'd been attending speech nights there for 10 years or so, because
By: Sally Murphy,
on 12/11/2011
It's been a month since my last post, and with much to do here over the next little while, I'm not sure when I'll write another decent post. So rather than leave this space empty, thought I'd share some of my favourite Christmas bits and bobs. This is the song that's been in my Head the past few days - and the clip just made me giggle with all its glorious 80s- ishness (hey, I coined a new
By: Sally Murphy,
on 11/12/2011
This post doesn’t really need an introduction so let’s get straight to it – five reasons you (or I) should write. 1. 1. You love words. The sound of them, the shape of them, the way they fit together. A perfectly written sentence sends frissons of joy down your spine. 2. 2. You love stories – other people’s as well as your own – and you see them wherever you go. 3. 3.
By: Sally Murphy,
on 11/8/2011
Since my last couple of posts have run towards being a little bit preachy (thou shalt not submit prematurely etc etc), I thought it might be a good change of pace to share a few secrets. Instead of saying what YOU should or shouldn’t be doing, today I’m going to share a quick list of things I have done wrong over the years as I’ve tried to get published. 1. 1. Submitting too soon.
By: Sally Murphy,
on 11/7/2011
Yesterday I talked about some realities of publishers existing to make money, rather than existing just to publish your book/s. But if you’re a writer, what you want is for a publisher to want to make that money from publishing your book. So I thought it might be useful to share some simple ways you can increase your chances of getting published. So, here goes:1. 1. Write. A lot. If you have
By: Sally Murphy,
on 11/6/2011
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By: Sally Murphy,
on 11/2/2011
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By: Sally Murphy,
on 10/16/2011
Almost 20 years ago I remember watching ABC TV with my toddler daughter when a clip of four weird men in skivvies singing ‘Rock a Bye Your Bear” came on. I remember thinking the song was clever, and Murphlet 2 enjoyed it too. Little did I know that those men, who were The Wiggles, would go on to become a huge international phenomenon – or that for years to come, long after my youngest grew out
By: Sally Murphy,
on 10/5/2011
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By: Sally Murphy,
on 10/4/2011
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By: Sally Murphy,
on 10/2/2011
Wow! It’s been such a crazy few days that I haven’t had time to stop by my own bog and post my exciting news. But I’m here now, so please accept a glass of cyber champagne from my virtual butler, help yourself to the cyber nibblies and celebrate with me. Image: digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net “Why?” I hear you ask. Well, on Friday night I attended the Western Australian Premier’s Book
By: Sally Murphy,
on 9/29/2011
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By: Sally Murphy,
on 9/19/2011
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By: Sally Murphy,
on 9/19/2011
My stint as Star Author over at the Christchurch Kids blog continues, and today I have blogged there about some of the books I loved when I was a kid. You can read my post here. Also, if you happen to know any children living in Christchurch, NZ, tell them to enter the contest to win free copies of Pearl Verses the World and Toppling. Cheers
By: Sally Murphy,
on 9/13/2011
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By: Sally Murphy,
on 9/12/2011
On Saturday my lovely friend Frane Lessac and I spoke about getting published as part of the Mundaring Arts Centre's Heartlines Festival. here we are - with me in full flight explaining something and Frane looking on, waiting for her chance to say something clever. Anyway, inspired by this, yesterday I blogged over at the Christchurch Kids blog about the steps involved in the publicaton of
By: Sally Murphy,
on 9/4/2011
I am delighted to welcome fellow Aussie author and all-round wonder, Tania McCarteny here to my blog today.Tanis is in the midst of a blog tour to promtoe her new picture book Riley and The Grumpy Wombat, and has taken the time to call by and share with us her insights in prpearing manuscript submissions. Welcome Tania. Over to you. Riley and the Grumpy Wombat Blog Tour Top 10 Tips for Writing
By: Sally Murphy,
on 9/3/2011
I'm really excited that I've been invited to be the Star Author over at the Christchurch Kids blog this month. I have just blogged over there about young writers and a little about what I've been up to these past few days. You can read the post here.
I agree.. I haven't yet attempt to publish my work, but everything makes sense in your post. Often times we forget that business need to make money and they can't do that if they don't make smart decisions for their company.
Thanks Rose. And good luck with your publishing journey :)
Thanks for the post, Sally. I do agree that this is the bottom line. If publishers don't make profits, they may fold then can't publish anything. I always try to keep in mind the $50,000 question. Will a publisher be willing to spend $50K to publish my book? It's a very telling question.
Great way of putting it Kaye. Publishers make a huge investment in a book long before it sells a single copy and makes any money.