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R. A. Spratt and I share a dubious childhood secret. We were both mad for Trixie Belden. I’m busting another secret; there’s a new super-youth-sleuth in town and she goes by the name of Friday Barnes. And now, I’m going a bit mad for her. Spratt’s latest series of detective stories exploded onto the shelves […]

If you’re not away or flying back from Bologna or at festivals and conference, the SCBWI Network is:-

5-7 p.m.

Monday 2nd April

at The Hughenden

14 Queen Street Woollahra (near Paddington, Sydney).

I have been on a conference and festival trail where I have met kids, librarians, teachers, adults, even politicians from Queensland to Picton to the beautiful Dixon Room in Sydney’s heritage Mitchell Library overlooking our Botanical Gardens towards the Opera House.

I’ll be keynote at the Glouceter Festival , touring the USA with my ‘Butterflies’, visiting Taree, Melbourne ….and more ….. and I am looking forward to speaking at the IBBY Congress in London.  It’s crazy but the wonderful life of a writer.

Deborah Abela, Serena Geddes, Lesley Vamos, Christopher Cheng … are just back from Bologna Book Fair; and

shared a fabulous time with heaps of brilliant authors and illustrators in Somerset on the Gold Coast like Jacqueline Harvey, Michael Wagner, Oliver Phommovanh, Ursula Dubosarsky, Tristan Bancks, Karen Brooks, Leigh Hobbs, Scott Westerfield, James Roy, Georgia Blain and the brilliant list goes on.

Frane Lessac, Mark Greenwood, Sally Murphy, Norm Jorgenson, A J Betts, Dianne Lawrenson, Samantha Hughes …

….and all those WA writers and illustrators are on the move throughout WA and NT at festivals and reaching remote indogenous communities.

Sarah Davis and Deborah Abela have flown to Alice Springs to join them. Love it.

Aleesah Darlison is back from Hong Hong; Jan Latta just back from China speaking at festivals; Jacqueline Harvey is doing her Alice-Miranda tour in the USA and UK.

Sue Whiting’s at All Saints in Perth which I loved when I spoke there last year

This is the coolest community ever!

If anyone is in Sydney on Monday 2nd April, there’s a great talk by Wendy Blaxland on non fiction writing; catch up with SCBWI Conference information on 29th June-2nd July and networking at The Hughenden.

15,000 kids, teachers, visitors come to the Somerset Celebration of Literature Festival

50 authors and illustrators share literature

young people sing, entertain, host, write, create.

I had the pleasure of launching Ships in the Field in the Great Hall to hundreds of young people and adults. 

As a special experience, Anna Pignataro’s illustrations were displayed. The audience loved it.

I love Melissa Egan’s work which captures the spirit of the childhood in amazing magical lyrical sophisticated ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and Spanish influenced works.

There’s this feeling of the uniqueness of childhood and narrative with the sophistication of adult foibles in stunning works by this acclaimed award winning artist.

I’ve known Melissa for many years as she stays at The Hughenden Woollahra and we’ve been known to party late into the night. She’s vivacious and fabulous and I may take up her offer of staying with her in Queensland when I’m there to launch my first picture book Ships in the Field at the Somerset Celebration of Literature next year.

Melissa’s exhibition was opened by artist Christabel Blackman.

Melissa exhibiton was inspired from her Spanish sojorn with the Blackmans.  Her artwork is encouraged by Charles Blackman who was there.

Charles Balckman was born 1928, and is one of the best known Australian artists still living today, especially for the famous Schoolgirl and Alice in Wonderland series of the 1950s. He was a member of the Antipodeans, a group of Melbourne painters that also included Arthur Boyd, David Boyd, John Brack. Robert Dickerson, John Perceval and Clifton Pugh.