sallymurphy.com.au

Sally Murphy, Australian author

Bits and Pieces

by

I’m having a bit of a catch up week this week. It’s school holidays in Western Australia, which means my kids are home (which is great) and thus that it isn’t the best time for serious writing sessions. Instead, I am using the time to catch up on some desk-clearing, email answering, reading and more. Nothing makes me feel more virtuous than a tidy desk – even though it never lasts.
One thing I have been dong as part of this is catching up on my blog reading. I use Google’s blog reader to keep track of my favourite blogs. In theory, this allows me to log in regularly and see all of the updates. In reality, I tend to not check it regularly enough and so, when I do, I have  a lot of blog posts to wade through. But when I do, there are always some real gems. Pick of the posts today were two on getting published and the publishing process. Firstly, Kathy Teaman talked about the road to publication in her post Baby Steps. If you’re trying to get published for the frsit time, this is a must read – and even if you’ve already been published, it is still really good advice. Secondly, Ian Irvine has today begun a series of posts titled The Truth About Publishing, which promises to offer a no-holds-barred view into the publication process. Well worth following.
I’ve also managed to get hold of a few more pictures of the Premier’s Literary Awards (see below), taken on the actual night. Here’s me receiving the award from Minister for Culture and the Arts John Day:

And here I am trying hard to sound eloquent and clever in my speech:
And, lastly, the screen showing the announcement and the book’s cover:
I’ve had a couple of media interviews  this week, which is lovely. The first piece appeared in one of the two local papers today – if you’re interested you can read it here.
Okay, back to work!

Hot Writing link: SCBWI Australia

by

It’s been a while since I shared a link to a great writing resource, but I had an email from an old acquaintance today asking for some tips on getting started  as a children’s author. Among other advice, I suggested she head over to the SCBWI Australia website.  There, among other resources, she’ll find a great series of articles contributed by various SCBWI Australia members on topics including how to get published, how to promote and even how to choose a title.

Check it out here.

Writing Children’s Poetry – a Useful Article

by

As you’ll know, if you’ve been following my blog, I love to write poetry for children. From a quick rhyme to a verse novel, I love the way that poetry allows a depth of expression it’s harder to capture in prose. And kids like reading and listening to poetry, too.

I find that when I’m busy in my non-writing life, I can often catch ten minutes to write a first draft of a poem, wheras I may not have time to write something longer. Of coruse, whilst it sounds easy to use thsoe ten minutes to write a poem there is always a need to then take time later to revise and rework. No first draft is ever complete.

If you are trying to get your children’s poetry published, you may find this article useful. Whilst it does not focus on technique, it has good general advice about getting started and finding markets. Well worth a read.

Hot Link: Wonderful Blog Post About Rejection

by

Katherine Battersby, at the Well Read Rabbit blog (isn’t that a wonderful name for a blog, btw) has a wonderful post about rejection, which you’ll find here. Rejection is one of the hardest parts of being a professional writer. Katheirne’s article provides a wonderful take on the process of responding to a rejection. Enjoy!
sallymurphy.com.au