sallymurphy.com.au

Sally Murphy, Australian author

Writing Quote of the Week

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The beautiful part of writing is that you don’t have to get it right the first time, unlike, say, a brain surgeon. You can always do it better, find the exact word, the apt phrase, the leaping simile.

(Robert Cormier)

Snowy’s Christmas Blog Tour: Week Five

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Welcome to the fifth stop on the Snowy’s Christmas blog tour. Illustrator David Murphy (yes, we have the same surname – he’s my wonderful brother in law) has dropped in to chat about his role in the book’s creation. Welcome Dave.

1. What was it like to get your first publishing contract?

It was very exciting to receive a phone call from Sally, telling me we had received a request to write and illustrate Snowy’s Christmas. After the excitement had died down I suddenly realized I had an enormous amount of work to do in a very short amount of time. I had heard other illustrators explain how they had spent 6 months to two years creating their masterpieces. When the contract arrived I realized I had a much shorter period. From the first pencil stroke to the last illustration; I completed Snowy in just under 5 months. It was worth it, though. Particularly, as it was also an opportunity to work with my fabulously talented sister in law Sally Murphy

2. Tell us about the steps involved in illustrating a picture book.

Every publisher, editor and illustrator work differently. In my case, I created an online studio where I posted my illustrations for comment by Kimberley and Linsay, at Random House. This was, initially a very rough layout, which they commented on. I had a rare face to face meeting and ironed out some of the small details in the characterizations and staging of the story. From then on it was pencil – post – comment – revise – repost – inks. Random House had the inked line art scanned and sent me the files. I then digitally coloured them. Then more rounds of illustrate – post – comment – repost. There were many late nights over a hot illustrating table of graphics tablet. On one night it was so hot (being the middle of summer) the ink literally flowed out of the nib. Luckily we were able to fix it up post scan.

3. What role are you playing in promoting the book?

I love talking to people about my work – I always have. Since Snowy’s Christmas hit the shelves, I have had great fun talking to all sorts of people. The ABC radio interview was a highlight. I also have several local events where I will be discussing and reading from the book. I have been approached by people from all walks who want me to talk to their groups. This is not only great fun but it gives me a chance to spread the word about Snowy…and every copy of Snowy’s Christmas I sign also get’s an original Dave Murphy illustration above my signature.


There was one thing I did to give me some confidence when speaking in front of people, and that was to have a large plush version of Snowy made. He’s gorgeous and gives me something to pat when I’m talking. I have to watch him closely, though as a couple of three and four year olds have tried to walk off with him.

The only thing I have regretted about the release of Snowy’s Christmas is not being able to do anything with Sally (we live on opposite sides of the country). She gave me such a fantastic story to illustrate that I think we could have a lot of fun talking about the book. Who knows, maybe the next one…..?

Over to you Dave – is there anything else you want to talk about?

Yes – The Australian Christmas

Christmas is special in Australia. It has its own traditions and its own special meaning to Australians. I could not illustrate this story without drawing imagery directly from the Australian bush. The bushland and its inhabitants in my illustrations were inspired by what I see in the grasslands and woodland which I regularly bushwalk through. I populated the background with some bush creatures anyone should be able to see on a bushwalk in Australia. I have also included small Aussie Christmas touches : the Christmas decorations in the gum tree, the Bush Christmas heralds and, of course, the cricket match at the end of Christmas day (back page).

The idea that Santa uses kangaroos when he is in Australia has been part of the Australian psyche for a long time. Sally’s story brings this idea to life brilliantly. I am very proud to be able to illustrate the story and add to the Australian bush Christmas tradition.

Thanks for sharing, David.

Snowy’s Christmas is available across Australia in bookstores and department stores. Online, you can purchase it from Booktopia (at below rrp).

If you’ve missed the start of the tour, you can follow it at:
Week One: 4 October Deescribe Writing Blog
Week Two: 11 October Write and Read With Dale
Week three: 18 October Alphabet Soup Blog
Week Four: 25 October Let’s Have Words
Week Five: 1 November Sally Murphy’s Writing for Children Blog (you’re here)
Week Six: 8 November Aussiereviews Blog
Week Seven: 15 November Samantha Hughes’ Blog
Week Eight: 22 November Robyn Opie’s Writing Children’s Books Blog
Week Nine: 29 November Stories are Light
Week Ten: 6 December The Aussie Christmas Blog
Week Eleven: 13 December Tales I Tell

Say It Once: Then Stop

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Somewhere in my recent reading I read a piece of writing advice that spoke a little at the time, but resonated further later on. The writer, speaking about poetry, advised writers to be succinct – to say what they want to say and then stop. Too often, he said, a poet will presume the reader is a little stupid, and not only say what they want to say, but then say it again differently, or even interpret what they’ve had to say.

Yesterday, I wrote my daily poem from the perspective of a child whose mother is an author. I imagined the poem giving all sorts of examples of how the child appears in his mother’s books. But, in line ten, before I got to the list, I wrote ‘those characters are me.’ Suddenly, that earlier advice came back to me. A list would be nice, it would certainly make the poem longer, but was it necessary? I’d just made the point of the poem: The kid sees himself in the stories his mum tells. So, I stopped.

Then, just to be sure, I read the poem to my kids – and guess, what? They got it. They didn’t need me to explain that the kid sees himself in those stories. Just saying ‘those characters are me’ was enough.

I wish I could remember exactly who offered the advice I read (I’ve been doing quite a bit of reading lately) so I could properly attribute it, but, like so much good advice, it took a little while to make its mark and so someone is missing out on the credit. But I wanted to share it, because, whether you write poetry or prose, it’s advice that bears heeding, especially when writing for kids.

Children are smart. They can interpret things for themselves. Give them the information and let them have the satisfaction of arriving at the answer, the emotion, the response. Use your dialogue, your description, or your rhythm to create that response – then leave them to it.

And I’m going to say no more – for fear of not taking my own advice.

Choosing the Writing Advice Book for You

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Yesterday I talked about why you should consider buying books of writing advice in addition to using the wide range of advice available online. All well and good, but with so many books available to buy, it can be hard to know which ones to buy. So, here are some quick pointers to selecting the right book for your writing needs.

1. Is It Aimed at You? Not every writing book is aimed at the same audience. Read the back cover blurb or the online description, and consider whether it is aimed at beginning or more experienced writers and whether it covers the genre you are interested in. For example, I’m a published author of children’s picture books, poetry and verse novels, so I am less likely to be interested in a book called How To Write Picture Books, than I am in one called Perfecting Your Prose. If you are new to writing children’s poems, you would get more benefit from Writing in Rhyme than, perhaps, a book called Tightening Your Verse.

2. What are the Author’s Credentials? On the book’s blurb, or isnde the book, there should be some information about the author’s background. If someone is going to tell you how to write a chidlren’s book, you would like to think that they are themselves a children’s book author, or editor or perhaps a reviewer. The advice they then give will likely come from experience, and be tried and tested.

3. What Do You Want from the Book? I admit to having a preference for books which actually give me some exercise to do. I want to be told to sit down and write, and given a challenge or starter which gets me going. You might feel the same, or you might want something different. For example, if you are trying to market your work you might be looking for a book which lists publishers and other markets. Or you might want something technical – a grammar guide, perhaps.

4. Recommendations. Before you spend your hard-earned money on a how-to book, it is good to hear from people who have already bought and used it. Ask your writer friends for recommendations, or search online. If you browse an online bookstore like Amazon, you’ll find reader reviews and recommendations. (Note, if, like me, you live in Australia and would prefer to support a local bookstore, you can still use Amazon as a source of recommendations before seeking the books locally)

5. Date of Publication. The more recent the book, the more up to date the advice and information. This is especially pertinent to market information, which changes all the time. With a ‘how-to’ book, the advice does tend to stay relevant longer, but even then, things can change. For example, where once picture book manuscripts averaged 1000 words, the preferred length now is 600 words or fewer. However, a popular book will often be updated when it is reprinted and some books go on speaking to readers for many years.

You’ll notice that in both this and yesterday’s article I have not actually pointed you to any specific books, because I wanted to give some more general advice. However, I will close by sharing a brief list of some of my favourite writing books. If you have a favourite which isn’t listed, feel free to leave a comment below.

The Writing Book: A Manual for Fiction Writers, by Kate Grenville (1990) ISBN 0-04442124-9 (Not specifically about writing for children, but lots of wonderful writing exercises)

Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market, by Alice Pope (Produced Annually) (Essential if you want to get published in the US or Canada especially)

Poetry Matters: Writing a Poem from the Inside Out, by Ralph Fletcher (2002) ISBN 978-0380797035 (I’m reading this one at the moment and am only half way through but love it. It is aimed at young poets but has lots to offer adult writers and teachers)

Poemcrazy: Freeing Your Life with Words by Susan G. Wooldridge (1997) ISBN 978-0609800980 (Gets you writing poetry and playing with words)

Okay, that’s a very short list because these are the four I use regularly. Perhaps I’ll build on this list from time to time.

When the Universe Aligns a Poem is Born (and remembered)

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Weird. I’ve just had one of those strange moments where a series of coincidences leads you to ponder whether there’s any such thing AS a coincidence. Here’s what happened:

Last night, as I lay half-awake in bed, an image came to me, which my brain instantly started teasing out into a poem. The metaphor was so strong that I was sure I would remember it in the morning. But, as every writer knows, those late-night and mid-night flashes of brilliance rarely remain in the light of day and thus it was for me. When I sat down to write my daily poem this afternoon I had a vague feeling that I’d begun a poem in bed last night, but no idea what it was about.
Earlier today, my son (Murphlet Four) did some origami and, amongst other things, made two origami bats, which he left on the dining table.

Then, this afternoon, the Murphlets have had Malcolm in the Middle playing on Foxtel. This is a show which never ceases to distract me from my work and, today, I’d half watched an episode involving a swarm of bats.

Afternoon tea time came and, as I sat at the dining room table the origami bats caught my eye. ‘Isn’t it funny,’ I thought to myself, ‘how such a coincidence happens.’ Out of all the animals Murphlet Four could have made, he’d made a bat, an hour or two BEFORE the bat episode was on the television.

Now, here’s the eerie part. Just as that thought crossed my mind, last night’s poem came back to me. My late night head-poem was about bats in a mango tree! I jumped up, came back to my desk and started writing – and the poem was still there. Now, I’m not especially fond of bats, and have never written about them before – so what alignment of the universe cased me to create a poem about them late last night, Murphlet Four to make two bats out of origami this morning, and an episode of Malcolm In the middle featuring bats to show on the television this afternoon?
Whatever it is, I’m grateful for the latter two because, combined, they led to my recapturing that late night flash of inspiration.

sallymurphy.com.au