It’s always exciting to have one of my books published in another language and to see the differences in the international covers. I was delighted recently to discover that my title Karting Kel had been republished for Chinese readers in Taiwan by Pan Asia Cultural. I love the bright, vivid colouring of the cover.

I’m excited to see one of my eco-fiction short stories for older readers, Beyond the Red Star, published in the new  Ssstories anthology. Mine is one of the scary stories of the group, but it’s a glorious gathering of 54 funny stories, soul stories, adventure stories, all guaranteed to bring smiles, shivers or sighs to […]

A little bit of writing news, well big news for me really. I’m thrilled to say I’ve been awarded a “Highly Commended” in the published section of the 2016 CYA Writing and Illustrating Competition for my middle-grade chapter book “Strange Creatures”. (Pretty cool since they only award one overall “winner”, and no placings, over three combined sections.) […]

What better way to start the year than with a new edition of an old book baby! Just before Christmas, I was delighted to receive the new Cengage Learning multicultural version of my 2001 title Roller-Coaster Ride, re-illustrated by Samantha Asri to set the story in the Middle East for early Arabic readers. I was surprised to find […]

A few months ago, on the hottest day of summer, myself and five other fearless writers gathered in an (unairconditioned) artist space in Mornington to participate in a documentary with a difference. The Art of Story gives an inside view into the creation of stories and the stories behind the stories. The initial six episodes feature novelists, publishers, editors, […]

One of the most exciting things for authors is always the arrival of a package bringing their latest book/s. Or shiny new author copies. Book deliveries have been a bit thin on the ground at my place over the past couple of years while I’ve been fully focused on writing and redrafting two historical novels, which, means it’s […]

March was this writer’s bliss month. I spent two wonderful weeks taking up my Varuna Creative Time Fellowship in the Blue Mountains. Ever since I first started writing seriously a Varuna Fellowship has been on my radar and goal list. The chance to write free from  day-to-day interruptions and really focus on particular aspects of […]

Over on my blog, From Hook to Book, I’ve been tagged to share my writing process. A bit of a worry since, as a child, I was “Chris of the Scabby Knees”, more likely to fall over than tag anyone. Just as well this time I can tag via email. Seriously the Tagged tour asks authors to answer […]

I’m so excited to see some of my books taking a journey that I have long wanted to take myself.  All the way to Africa, and Papua New Guinea, thanks to the amazing efforts of author Tina Marie Clark, CYA Conference, and a fantastic band of helpers. I was lucky (in a strange reversal of fortune) to […]

It’s that time of year  to flex your writing muscles and get your entries in to the fantastic number of competitions and exciting opportunities open to young writers right now. Visit the Young Writers’ Resources page on my writing blog From Hook to Book for details on some cool new opportunities, such as writing residencies, including: three […]