Sydney Writers' Centre blog

Former Cosmopolitan editor Mia Freedman talks magazines

Here is a cool short video from Mumbrella, where Tim Burrows speaks to Mia Freedman about her time in the magazine world. Hope you enjoy it!

Submissions and Competitions closing soon

Art(e)fact is an online magazine dedicated to up and coming artists and writers. There is a focus on contemporary art – photography, design, film, and painting all feature in the Winter 2009 edition. So, if you’re into writing about art or writing as art, you should check out this site.

The theme for their next issue is Ordinary to Extraordinary, with some sub-themes of Treasure or Trash, Word Art, and Still Life. Submissions for this one close on Friday 30 September 2009 (just a few days away), but don’t worry if you don’t manage to write something by then. Any submissions received after this date will be considered for future publication.

Contact editor@artefactmagazine.net for more information or visit the website.

Another local mag accepting submissions is The Lifted Brow. This one is a printed magazine and is also sent with CDs featuring new music. The website describes The Lifted Brow as a biannual ‘attack journal’. I can’t tell you what that means as the website says very little else! They do mention, though, that they will consider most types of writing, art and music, but they do lean more towards underground or experimental work.

They’re currently accepting submissions for their next edition and you have until Tuesday 1 December 2009. Check their website carefully and, if you’re interested, get hold of one their previous editions for an idea of what sort of work they’d like to see.

Some other competitions that are closing soon:
The Noosa Arts Theatre One-Act Playwriting Competition – Entries close Sunday 15 November 2009 with plays being presented in mid-June 2010.

The Overland Judith Wright Poetry Prize – Entries close Monday 7 December 2009. First prize is $3,000 and there are also two minor prizes of $500 each.

Aeon Award for Speculative Fiction – Entries close Monday 30 November 2009. First prize is 1,000 Euro for a story of no more than 8,000 words.

Punctuation is Powerful

A good friend sent this enlightening snippet to me today.

An English professor wrote the words ‘A woman without her man is nothing’ on the chalkboard and asked his students to punctuate it correctly.

All of the males in the class wrote ‘A woman, without her man, is nothing.’

All of the females in the class wrote ‘A woman: without her, man is nothing.’

Punctuation is powerful.

Indeed it is.

Book Rant

Attention history teachers! Ben Elton’s book The First Casualty contains probably the best, and simplest, explanation of the events that led to WWI. Here’s a sample:

‘Listen, it’s yer Balkans, innit? Always yer Balkans. …
You’ve got your Austro-Hungarians supposed to be in charge in Sarajevo but most of the Bosnians is Serbs, right, or at least enough of ‘em is to cause a t’do.’
‘What’s Sarajevo got to do with Bosnia then?’
‘Sarajevo’s in Bosnia, you monkey! It’s the capital.’
‘Oh. So?’
‘Well, your Austrians ‘ave got Bosnia, right, but your Bosnians are backed by your Serbs, right? So when a Bosnian Serb shoots –’
‘A Bosnian or a Serb?’
‘A Bosnian and a bleeding Serb, you arse. When this Bosnian Serb loony shoots Ferdinand who’s heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, the Austrians think, right, here’s a chance to put Serbia back in its bleeding box for good, so they give ‘em an ultimatum. They says, ‘You topped our Archduke so from now on you can bleeding knuckle under or else you’re for it.’ Which would have been fine except the Serbs were backed by the Russians, see, and the Russians says to the Austrians, you has a go at Serbia, you has a go at us, right? But the Austrians is backed by the Germans who says to the Russians, you has a go at Austria, you has a go at us, right? Except the Russians is backed by the French who says to the Germans, you has a go at Russia, you has a go at us, right? And altogether they says kick off! Let’s be having you! And the ruck begins.’
‘What about us then?’ the first man enquired. The rest of the group seemed to feel that this was the crux of it.
‘Entente bleeding cordiale, mate,’ the corporal replied. ‘We was backing the French except it wasn’t like an alliance – it was just, well, it was a bleedin’ entente, wasn’t it.’
‘And what’s an enente when it’s at home?’
‘It means we wasn’t obliged to fight.’
‘Never! You mean we didn’t have to?’
‘Nope.’
‘Why the f*** did we then?’
‘F*****’ Belgium.’
‘Belgium?’
‘That’s right, f*****’ Belgium.’
‘Who gives a f*** about Belgium?’
‘Well, you’d have thought no one, wouldn’t you? But we did. ‘Cos the German place to get at the French was to go through Belgium, but we was guaranteeing ‘em, see. So we says to the Germans, you has a go at Belgium, you has a go at us. We’d guaranteed her, see. It was a matter of honour. So in we come.’
‘So what about the Italians, an’ the Japs, an’ the Turks, an’ the Yanks, eh? How did they end up in it? Asked the original inquisitor.
‘F*** knows,’ said the corporal. ‘I lost track after the Belgians.’

OK - it will only give you the basics, but it's a good start! This description goes a long way to describing the absurdity of World War I, and the hopelessness felt by those who had to fight it. It’s also very funny.

The First Casualty is about Douglas Kingsley, a conscientious objector to the war who is smuggled out of prison (where he will almost certainly be murdered for the apparently unforgivable crime of refusing to fight) to solve the murder of an aristocrat, on the front line at Ypres. It’s a murder-mystery but it also  explores the moral fuzziness created by war – what’s the difference between legally sanctioned killing and an illegal murder?

The book starts out well, but eventually the story of Kingsley’s investigation becomes nothing more than a vehicle for describing the horrors of trench warfare. By the time Kingsley solved the mystery of who committed the murder, and freed an innocent man, I no longer cared about the result. The book didn’t seem able to maintain the suspense of a good murder-mystery when the writing was dedicated so much to describing the third battle of Ypres.

The great thing about this book though is the quintessentially English humour and language. As you can see from the excerpt above, the characters are unmistakeably British – I love the way they talk! The scene with Prime Minister David Lloyd George is my favourite in the whole book. Once again, it’s funny and ridiculous, but it gives you a real sense of the bizarre inner workings of those planning the war, and not actually fighting it. 

This is a good read that loses its way a little in the second half. It’s well worth reading this book for the satire and the very dark comedy, but as a murder-mystery, I don’t think it works as well.

Live Poets @ Don Bank

This month's Live Poets will feature Maurice Whelan reading from his recent novel, The Boat People, and his latest book of poetry, The Lilac Bow. He'll also discuss both books with convenor Danny Gardner.

There'll also be the usual open section for anyone wanting to share their poetry, songs or stories.

When: Wednesday 28 October 2009
Where: 6 Napier Street North Sydney
Time: 7.30pm
Cost: $7

For more information contact Danny Gardner on 0422 263 373 or email dannylivepoets@yahoo.com.au.

Writing competitions (for all ages)

There are still a few great competitions to enter before the year’s end. These ones closing in November and December are for short story writers, essay writers, and very, very short story writers.

Fish Publishing is currently accepting entries for its annual writing competition. This Ireland based publisher has been running writing competitions since 1994 and they’ve had the support of some heavyweight writers, including Roddy Doyle and Frank McCourt. Fish Publishing run three writing competitions throughout the year – the Fish Short Story Prize, the Fish One-Page Prize, and the Fish Poetry Prize. Entries are now open for the Short Story Prize.

Stories should be no longer than 5,000 words and should not have been published previously. The winner and nine runners up will be published in the 2010 Fish Anthology. The overall winner will also receive 3,000 Euro, which include 1,000 Euro for travel expenses to attend the anthology launch in Cork, Ireland.

You can find full details on their website.

Closer to home, the Australian Book Review and CAL (Copyright Agency Limited) are once again coming together to hold the Calibre Essay Writing Prize. This is the prize’s fourth year, and essays on any non-fiction subject are welcome. You can write about art, literature, politics, media – anything! Essays must be between 3,000 and 10,000 and previously unpublished.

The writer of the winning essay will receive $10,000. The winning and other shortlisted entries will also be published in the Australian Book Review. Entries close 1 December 2009 and you can download more details and an entry form here.

And finally, for our younger writers, the Nambucca Valley Youth Services Centre wants to read your story – of 12 words or less!  Writers aged between 15 and 25 can enter their stories at 12words.com.au. You have until 1 December 2009 to register and enter your story. Then, judges will select the seven highest rated stories in two age categories – 15-19 and 20-25. The winners for both categories will receive a $1,000 writing mentorship  with Random House, an ipod touch, and a Crumpler bag. Twelve finalists will receive book packs from Random House and a Sony MP3 Walkman. Cool prizes!

You can check out the entries so far at 12words.com.au and rate them. And even if you aren’t eligible to enter the competition, you can still register and share your 12 word story. 

Literary wanderings - Nutcote House

Last week I visited Nutcote, the home of May Gibbs. Surprisingly (well, for me), I didn’t have to go far – it’s just in Neutral Bay! Tucked away in a quiet spot, away from the main thoroughfare of Military Road. You’d be lucky to walk by it if you weren’t looking for it.

Most of us would be familiar with May Gibbs’ work. I well remember reading Snugglepot and Cuddlepie and Bib and Bub in the school library. She was both a writer and very talented illustrator and painter. Her books reflected her desire to give Australian children fantastical characters they could relate to, like the fairies and goblins of her English childhood.

She arrived in Australia at the age of four and lived in Western Australia and South Australia, before settling in Sydney after a visit to England. Nutcote was built in 1925 to May Gibbs’ strict specifications for a simple, practical home. Architect B J Waterhouse created just that – it’s a beautiful house, with the central living area looking over the water at Neutral Bay. There are plenty of examples of Gibbs’ work, and wandering through the perfectly manicured garden gives you a good insight into her inspiration for so many of her characters.

The guides at Nutcote House are volunteers, and they’re passionate about May Gibbs and her work, and preserving it for future generations. One of the volunteers at the house mentioned that Australia doesn’t really have much of a literary heritage, which is why it’s so important that the history of our great writers is preserved, and I agree. She was also lamenting the apparent reluctance of ‘kids these days’ to read, especially classics like Snugglepot and Cuddlepie – all the more reason why our literary landmarks are so important.

And Nutcote is one that is well worth visiting, if only for the lovely gardens and view over the harbour. Entry is only $8 for adults and $3 for children. You can get more details from the website. 

I’m now on the lookout for other local literary hotspots so if you have any suggestions, let us know.

Take off and write!

For all aspiring travel writers, here are a couple of opportunities to get you going.

Shegoes.com.au is a travel and adventure blog for girls who go. Not only is it a great travel resource for anyone dreaming about their next holiday, it’s also a great way for budding travel writers to practice their craft.

Contributions on all aspects of travel are welcome. Stories of 100-500 words will run as a ‘Feature Destination’ so you can choose any country you like! There’s no payment for your stories – you’ll do this for love and the kudos of seeing your writing featured on a great new website.  So if you’d like more information on how to contribute a story email Emma Gardiner at emmagardiner@iinet.net.au, or for daily daydreaming visit shegoes.com.au.

Also for travel writers, the East Gippsland TAFE Travel Writing Awards are now open. Prizes will be on offer for the best travel writing articles, on any experience anywhere in the world, up to 1,500 words. First prize is $1,500 (enough to get you on a flight to your next big adventure), second prize is $500, and third prize is $250. There are also two cash prizes for the best travel stories on the Gippsland region in Victoria.

Entries close on Monday 9 November. There’s a $10 entry fee and all stories must be accompanied by an entry form, which you can download here. For more information email pmillard@egtafe.vic.edu.au.

Finally, if you want to know more about travel writing and how you can make money from your travel stories, our Travel Writing seminar with Geoff Bartlett has two sessions reaming for 2009. You can join us for a Friday morning session or an evening session. These intensive and informative seminars could be just what you need to launch your travel writing career. 

Travel Writing with Geoff Bartlett
When: Friday  6 November 2009
Time: 10am – 12 noon (two-hour morning seminar)
Cost: $75
OR
When: Wednesday 2 December 2009 (two-hour evening seminar)
Time: 6.30pm – 8.30pm
Cost: $75

Book Rant

Once by Morris Gleitzman is the story of Felix, a 10 year-old boy living in an orphanage in Poland during the Nazi occupation. Felix is Jewish and Once is written from his point of view.

The book is a fictional one but based on many true stories. Of the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, an estimated 1.5 million were children – an unbelievably tragic statistic.

This is a beautiful book. I read it in just a couple of days. Felix is such a wonderful character. His imagination initially protects him from the horrors of the Nazi regime. He writes fantastic stories in his little notebook, tells his younger companions stories to comfort them, he even tells a story to a Nazi soldier to help him through the pain of a dental appointment!

Sadly, he eventually begins to see the truth of what’s happening – the Nazis aren’t just concerned with burning books, they’re motives are far more sinister. And I wonder if this childhood loss of innocence is emblematic of our adult view of the world – when we forget about the magic and power of stories.

The book is both funny and tragic. Being a book for younger readers, it is very easy to read, but there’s enough in the characters and narrative to keep the attention of adult readers too. (Interestingly, Once and it’s sequel, Then, have been rereleased as one novel for adults, as well as two novellas for younger readers.)

Read this book! And then give it to your kids to read. It will be a funny, sad and enlightening journey for all.