I once heard the American novelist Ethan Canin say that “restriction breeds invention”. And to be honest, the 2012 QWC/Hachette Manuscript Development Program couldn’t have come at a more restricted time. Should I get in, the five-day retreat in November would land in the middle of the week I was due to submit my Masters, and just nine days before my husband and…

Writers are encouraged to develop their 'Voice', their unique signature 'sound', but there is much debate as to what constitutes a writer's voice. Is it about style, pacing, syntax, language? All of the above? Or is it something ineffable that rises from the soul of the individual writer? And, if so, how does the writer unearth that raw, honest voice inside.

 

In 2008 I was studying Professional Writing and Editing at TAFE and one day a flyer for the Hachette/Queensland Writers Centre Development Program made it’s way around my Short Story class. I only had a skeleton of a novel and I thought I had no chance of making it into the program. I passed the flyer along to the next student, knowing that there was no way

I wrote my novel No Remorse because I wanted to write the type of book I love to read – big action adventures set in exotic locations. It took three years, from 2008 to publication in late 2011 (ebook) and Jan 2012 (paperback). My timing was unfortunate in one sense, because this period…

“Don’t act like you don’t belong there. Just own it, and go learn some things.”

This was the advice of my wonderful mentor when I—a shrieking, jittery ball of excitement—told her I’d been selected to participate in the 2012 QWC/Hachette Manuscript Development Program. I knew I should listen to her because she’s always right, but I didn’t quite know how to do it. The opportunity was huge…

Whitsunday Voices Youth Literature Festival is held in Mackay on 17-20 July.

The Children’s and Young Adult Writers And Illustrators (CYA) Conference is held in Brisbane on 6 July.

FROM REEF TO RIGGER: This is My Place! takes place in Gladstone 30 July to 2 August.

WQ spoke to Chris Bongers, Louise Cusack, Richard Harland, Ian Irvine and Jessica Shirvington about their experiences with author visits to schools.

"A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds." So said Francis Bacon, and in an industry with so much competition, this has never been truer than it is today for aspiring writers. I was thrilled to recently have the opportunity to share my self-publishing journey with regional writers and I'll be doing that again in June when I join the panel in Brisbane for QWC's IQ Seminar, Going It…