Our lives have ups and downs. Our lives can also move forward and back, such as when we look to the future or examine the past. Our lives can also be filled with a murky mess of unknowns, such as when we journey to new places or meet new people,…
So, I suppose some of you are wondering why I’ve been asking writers this week: in how many fiction categories do you write? Well, I had a theory I wanted to explore… about genre. Now, don’t roll your eyes. Yes, ‘genre’ is a topic that’s so often debated these days…
What’s up world? Fantasy is the biggest-selling form of fiction. Yet the When Genres Attack team at Shearer’s Bookshop, Leichhardt, had to cancel their speculative fiction panel this week due to lack of interest? What the?
Given the distant realms to which our imaginations journey on screen and in books, is ‘far-fetched’ now a redundant phrase? Someone said to me recently that, for them, the movie Wild Wild West was too far-fetched because of the advanced inventions it featured. For those who don’t recall, Wild Wild…
What does it mean to be a writer living in Australia? It’s Australia Day today! A day when we celebrate everything great about Australia. As a writer, I love living in Australia. So do most Aussie authors. Or do they…? Last year, I asked some acclaimed Aussie authors about their…
Creating dreams, and pursuing them… Last Saturday at the 2011 NSW Writers’ Centre Speculative Fiction Festival, Pamela Freeman (Blood Ties, Deep Water and Full Circle) said that speculative fiction was: the kind of story that my mother would say weakens your hold on reality For me, this summarised the entire…
We’re entering ‘The Age of [What]?’ After posting my blog “Times have changed for fantasy writers… or have they?” about the timeless struggles authors endure because of genre-restraints, one of my readers posted a very clever discussion point in reply, relating to the rise of urban fantasy. I love a…
