Enter the zone! The Carmel Bird Short Fiction Award 2013

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Burgess_Meredith_The_Twilight_ZoneI’m very, very excited to announce that this year I am judging the Carmel Bird Short Fiction Award for Spineless Wonders. The winner and shortlisted stories will be considered for publication in the Spineless Wonders annual anthology, which I have already been putting together, and trust me, you want to be published alongside these writers! The winner will also receive $500.

Entries close on 31 July 2013. Please read the submission guidelines very carefully, and do not send stories directly to me. I will be reading them blind.

So what’s the theme?

A woman driving across country sees the same hitchhiker again and again; another woman takes an elevator to a strange, deserted floor of a department building to be sold a busted thimble by a mannequin; the people on a quiet street begin to accuse each other of being aliens after the electricity goes off… these are some of the (trademarked) adventures in the realm of The Twilight Zone.

Watching and being spooked by these stories is a child in a lounge room at the bottom of the world. The settings are familiar, but also slightly strange. The child is used to these accents (except perhaps the way the presenter, Rod Serling, says Zyone) but it is not the way she speaks. She has heard that the water in her toilet even goes in a different direction. She suspects that, on this side of the world, they may be closer to the Zone than anyone suspects.

The ‘fifth dimension’ of The Twilight Zone, Rod Serling often said, was also the realm of imagination. And as anyone blessed/cursed with a good imagination may know, fear of the unknown or the inexplicable may not only keep you awake at night, but may compel you to write. Serling, and other writers on the show, developed frightening scenarios, and often with more than entertainment in mind. Episodes of The Twilight Zone are often metaphors for equality, justice, the nuclear threat and more. Though they are just as often pure, spooky fun.

You are being invited into the zone. You are invited to be inspired by it, by its mood, themes, characters, settings, symbols, liberal ideas, strangeness and openness; but you should also ponder the zone in relation to your own particular context. This competition invites zone-style, or zone-inspired stories from the bottom of the world. The ensuing collection will acknowledge the undeniable cultural influence of memorable American programs like TZ on our lives ‘down under’, but it will also engage with the way we appropriate the messages within them in our own context, and our own lives (and in regards to our own ‘uneasiness’). Your story can be set in any era, and any place (though our rich and varied landscape could provide so many great potential zones).

I’m looking forward to reading your stories…

Explaining myself and my many hats

Aside

I was recently asked to write a blog post for Collaboration, the blog of the Book Industry Collaborative Council (BICC), explaining what I do and how I came to be involved in so many different facets of the book industry. It took me a while, as it felt strange to ‘explain myself’! If you are curious about how I got to be an all-rounder, though, in terms of books and writing, you may like to have a read.

Flash fiction published in Tincture!

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tinctureI’ve recently had two flash pieces published in new e-journal Tincture, titled ‘Apocalypse’, and ‘Glitch’, both stories in the absurd vein, set in offices.

You can buy it here for $8, in many different formats (DRM-free). All proceeds go to paying the writers. See the full list of contributors here. I’m pretty excited to be published alongside Sam van Zweden, one of my favourite bloggers.

Hope you enjoy!

After you’ve had a read, you might want to submit.

Love & logic: Graeme Simsion on The Rosie Project

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The Rosie ProjectText Publishing (buy paperback / ebook)

This feature interview was first published in The Big Issue no. 425

The main character in the novel, The Rosie Project, has difficulty understanding social cues. ‘Wherever Don goes, chaos will follow’, says the author, Graeme Simsion. Don Tillman is a professor of genetics at the University of Melbourne, undertaking a self-assigned ‘Wife Project’, a 16-page questionnaire designed to help him find a life partner. Don is fit, successful, and possesses a variety of impressive skills. Social interaction, however, is not so straightforward for Don and although he never acknowledges it, the reader firmly suspects that he exhibits characteristics of Asperger’s syndrome.

‘It started off inspired by a friend of mine’, Simsion explains. ‘I’ve known this guy for over 30 years—we go jogging together—and he can be hard work at times. He’s got an opinion on everything.’ Simsion’s friend also has a particular way of speaking, which the author channelled when he began writing Don: ‘He uses computer words, like “this meal has a fault”, or “I’ll initialise my eating procedure”‘. Simsion’s friend, too, has had a tough time socially in his life. He eventually found a partner, but Simsion says, ‘for a guy who was fit, intelligent, wealthy’, it was a struggle.

Graeme Simsion

Graeme Simsion

Simsion did research into Asperger’s syndrome for The Rosie Project, mainly through first-person accounts of people with Asperger’s, or those living with them. ‘I made a very conscious decision that this [book] would be in first person,’ Simsion says, ‘Don is highly functioning enough that we can relate to him.’

Simsion was clear that he did not want Don to be the kind of character who ‘helped [other characters] grow because they [had] met him, which you see in a film like Rain Man.’ Being inside Don’s head (essentially an unreliable narrator) makes for good humour, as the reader can interpret certain social cues, or subtleties of language, that Don misses. Don’s first date with Rosie is thwarted, for example, by his showing up to a fancy restaurant in a Gore-Tex jacket and then, under stress, proceeding to ‘disarm’ the bouncers with his aikido moves.

The contrast between Don’s competency in some areas and his ineptitude in others makes for classic comedy. But it also makes for depth of character, since Simsion makes Don work for his skills. In one of the best scenes in the book, Don appears almost heroic when he manages to remember, and mix, a massive number of cocktails at a function. (It’s part of a surreptitious scheme to collect genetic material for a side project with Rosie, who is trying to identify her real father.) But Don’s cocktail knowledge, while extremely impressive, is not ‘magic’. Don has spent hours and hours with a cocktail book, testing and memorising recipes. Simsion says he didn’t want the knowledge and skills to come to Don easily. ‘There’s this cliché that if you have Asperger’s or autism you’ve got a gift.’ From his reading, and from talking to people—mainly people who have autistic children—Simsion found that this idea of giftedness is one stereotype many struggle against. ‘Don’s very focused, but he’s not magic,’ Simsion says, ‘I tried to make him human.’

Though the author has had incredible pre-release success with The Rosie Project, selling the rights into more than 30 countries, he, too, has had to work hard for it. After a mid-life career change (Simsion is from a science and business background), the project began life as a screenplay, which Simsion wrote during many years studying screenwriting. The project has changed significantly since its inception. One influence on the story’s eventual tone and shape was the romantic comedy genre, particularly classic screwball comedies. These films also helped with the development of the female character, Rosie. Simsion watched many of the classics, including His Girl Friday (1940), Bringing up Baby (1938), Philadelphia Story (1940), Some Like it Hot (1959) and The Apartment (1960). He particularly noted the strong female characters featured in many of the films, and thinks of Rosie as being more in line with a Katherine Hepburn style character, than female characters in contemporary romantic comedies.

But there is a somewhat traditional binary in the book, in that Rosie is the more impulsive and emotional character, while Don is the rational one. Simsion admits that some female readers have likened Don’s logic to that of ‘all blokes’, not just those with Asperger’s. Although the point is that Don is often ‘kidding himself’, says Simsion, when he believes he’s acting rationally. For example, when Don says, ‘I made a rational decision to go and see Rosie at the pub and help her find her father because that was good use of my time’, the reader thinks: yeah, right…

But it could also be said that there’s a Don and Rosie inside all of us: the side that tries to make the best and most profitable use of time, and the side which encourages us to ‘stop worrying about it’, and is open to new experiences. One of the reasons the book is so successful, and humorous, is due the reader’s recognition of these warring aspects.

Wild thing

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The fourth wild thing stomps onto the stage. His face is seared from coming a little too close to life and the people who, as he tells us, say he drinks too much and laughs too loud. He abandons the microphone, shouting out into the darkness. He’s had periods of howling into the night in Tasmania, he admits, letting new neighbours know he is there. He’s in love, he tells us, with a Tasmanian bush woman. And for some time he can’t seem to get past that point. We sense that love is something new, for him, and he has to let the world know. We are likely to say ‘I understand’, but he would say ‘how could you?’ We lean back, though our eyelids are peeled. Will he go over time? Be dragged off the stage? Keep swearing? Is this his ‘act’? Is this why they invited him? Due to the likeliness of this happening? Is he, then, like the televised prophet in the film Network? Is it OK to be both wary and thrilled? Especially when he takes to the Virgin Blue Voyeur magazine and its article on jails that are now luxury hotels. That red of his face deepens; he grows and spits and literally tears the magazine. Can you believe this? he is asking us. Places of utter fucking misery turned to novelty and comfort? His rage is genuine. He is a site of misery. Under the bright lights and getting paid.

I’m baaaaaack & upcoming events

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Having a month off social media was wonderful, I’d highly recommend it. I was able to work on many different projects without distraction (and without comparing myself to others so much). Despite thesis and job-searching stress, my mind felt calmer, and I was able to concentrate for longer stretches. Most of all, as I’d intended, I was able to have a good think about the role social media plays in my life (and my career). And I’ve decided that participating in social media is beneficial to me, but it’s not essential. I really enjoy the interactions I have with friends and like-minded people through blogging, Facebook, Twitter etc.—I certainly missed the status updates of specific people—but I can also live a perfectly happy, fulfilled life without being constantly connected.

LiteraryMinded still plays a role in my career, which is wonderful, but I’ve realised that I’ve published and presented enough on- and off-line that even if I curtail my social media use, I won’t be missing out on any opportunities. So I’ll be writing just as much, but across the board: pieces online and for print media, and much longer pieces that will surface at some point in time.

The thesis is… getting there. And I’ve been very busy besides. You may have seen my piece in Crikey about David Bowie’s new song (which I am intensely excited about). I’ve also interviewed Graeme Simsion, author of the charming romantic comedy The Rosie Project, for The Big Issue, that’ll be out next Friday (8 Feb). You can also catch Graeme Simsion and I in conversation at Readings in Carlton next Thursday (7 Feb) at 5:30.

This year I’m running the Dog’s Tales storytelling events at Dog’s Bar in St Kilda! The first one is this coming Monday (4 Feb), featuring Meg Mundell and David Sornig. It’ll run monthly from then on (all the details are here). Come along, have a drink, and listen to some great writers. There’s also a short open mic slot at each event, and you must register your interest in advance. You can do that  by emailing me: literaryminded at gmail dot com.

The programs are out for the Perth Writers Festival, and the Bellingen Readers and Writers Festival. I’m chairing events at each of these lovely festivals, and I’ll also be giving a blogging workshop on the Sunday (24 Feb) in Perth.

I’ll be teaching a two-day course on blogging and social media for beginners at the NSW Writers’ Centre in April. It was great fun last year, and some wonderful blogs came out of it. Doing it over two days gives the students time to play around during the course and ask me lots of questions, which really works.

Phew! I’ve been saving that all up. I hope you’ve all had a nice, relaxing and productive month. See you when I see you.

2012: cut, print, that’s a wrap & see you in February

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IMG_20121202_2019102012 has been a crap year in some respects; a year of rejections, near misses and setbacks. There has been injury and some sickness. There has been grief. At times it has been hard to stay optimistic. I’ve also, at times, found it very hard to have faith in myself and my work. There’s been a cumulative effect of small difficulties, a sensation of rawness.

However, I have not been without a home, without friends, without love, without work, without money. I am incredibly grateful for all that I have, and have done, and I know that every year cannot be as wildly incredible as the previous few years. In fact, I think I was a little spoiled by them.

I do feel that 2013 will be a year where many things will change. With my writing, I need to both become more serious, and more patient. In terms of nonfiction/reviewing work, I’d like to write longer pieces, and for a range of media. I have to admit that writing regularly for LiteraryMinded is now holding me back in this regard. I need to read wider and deeper around the pieces I write, and when I’m keeping up one or two blog posts a week, this just can’t happen. So, after a complete break in January from social media (to break the habit) I think I will blog with less frequency. This is the first time in 5.5 years—the blog’s entire history—that I’ve come to a decision like this. I will still link to my reviews, interviews and articles in other places from here, and will still occasionally write original pieces/reviews/updates for the blog, ie. when at festivals. So it may not even seem that different. I’m just removing the mental priority status on the blog because now (unlike when I was starting out) I have to admit that it is hindering my practice and my progress.

Fiction-wise, I have the novel, one smaller project, and a planned project on the go. I want to dedicate more time to fiction. Through closer reading and analysis, as outlined above, I want to continue to develop as a fiction writer. Become more sophisticated in style, and bolder in ideas. I don’t want to be afraid to experiment, as an artist, nor do I want to be afraid to entertain.

That’s just some of the lit-related stuff. In 2013 I’ll also be finishing a doctorate, looking for work, editing an anthology (more on that soon), running the monthly Dog’s Bar St Kilda storytelling nights (first one is 4 Feb), attending festivals, and hopefully travelling. Travel is important to my writing as well as my personal well-being and growth. I also hope to learn more, be humble, be charitable, always honest, and if I can’t overcome my weaknesses I hope I at least don’t beat myself up too much over them.

So I usually end the year, on LiteraryMinded, with a list of achievements, events and random facts. As a summary for my readers, and for myself. It’s become a bit of a ritual. And this year the process will help me, I believe, to see that despite some difficulties, I have still achieved much!

In 2012, I…

interviewed Alan Hollinghurst, Ramona Koval, Irma Gold, Jessie Cole, AS Patrić, Annabel Smith, Jenna Williams of 100 Story Building, Courtney Collins, Emily Maguire, Belinda Castles, Sean M Whelan, Paul D Carter, a.rawlings, Simon Callow, Emily Perkins, The Rag and Bone Man Press, Deborah Robertson, Carrie Tiffany; and Kent MacCarter interviewed Johan Harstad

contributed to Varuna’s writer-a-day project 

continued to read classic books I’d always meant to

completed the Australian Women Writers Reading & Reviewing Challenge

still yearned for a four-legged friend

supported the Queensland Literary Awards, because: Newman

wished I were as cool as Ron Charles

learnt about some fascinating characters in my family history

went to a conference in Georgia and took a side trip to New York (after Sandy, during the US election)

was invited to one writers’ festival and then the director never replied to my emails, meaning that I also missed out on another one that I turned down because I thought I was going to the first one

was jealous of G when Nick Cave said hello to him

tried to focus on the good things at Sydney Film Festival

was Highly Commended in the Qantas Spirit of Youth Awards in the Written Word category

seemed to drop off the list for a few events to which I’m normally invited. But was invited to some different ones

published an essay on Ghostbusters in the Geek Mook; wrote about New York for Killings

hosted guest reviews by Dallas Angguish, Troy Martin, Gabriel Ng, and Andrew Wrathall

pretty much abandoned my ereader

began a literary show called ‘A Drink with…’ and interviewed Lisa Lang, Omar Musa and Chris Flynn. The fourth interview still hasn’t been edited as my crew are getting a lot of work. I don’t know if it ever will be, to be honest

was very happy to meet my friends’ gorgeous bub

reviewed books for LiteraryMinded, Cordite Poetry Review, the Australian, Sydney Morning Herald, and Bookseller+Publisher; shared a ‘month of reading’ in the Victorian Writer, and started writing features semi-regularly for The Big Issue (links in the interview section above)

came close a few times but I’m still waiting for my cigar

started wearing lipstick

really got into writing flash fiction, and was published in Seizure‘s Flashers series, and by the London Literary Project

started learning German

held a ‘spectacular’ for LiteraryMinded‘s fifth birthday where y’all asked me questions (parts one, two, three, four and five). You guysss

exercised three times per week

was a judge in the Meanjin tournament of books and the Best Australian Blogs competition

ate a crap-load of cheese

did my best to support some people close to me dealing with mental illnesses and disorders

presented at Offset Festival, chaired panels at Sydney Writers’ Festival (and this is probably one of my best, if most self-indulgent, blog posts of the year), chaired and appeared on panels at Bellingen Readers and Writers Festival, hosted a Late Night Book Club event on short stories at the Emerging Writers’ Festival, taught a blogging course at the NSW Writers’ Centre (to be repeated this April, see their website!)

was interviewed by The Signal Express, Embedded Literati, and Killings

was an official blogger and panel host at the Melbourne Writers Festival

stayed on track with my thesis

shared my favourite books on Marilyn Monroe

once again failed to read the winners of most of the major literary awards

lost my beautiful Nanna

was trolled by an Oxfordian

was Maid of Honour at my best friend’s gorgeous Fremantle wedding

remained madly in love

—

OK, this is it. A month off social media from January 1… I’ll be on email: literaryminded (at) gmail (dot) com. And on my mobile. And checking my PO Box (PO Box 6266, St Kilda Road Central, Vic 8008) if you want to send me a postcard. If you hear of any great jobs in Melbourne, preferably part-time at this stage (four days is ideal), do get in touch. I’m already applying for them.

See also: 2011, 2010, 2009.

Happy New Year everyone. You’re wonderful. Thanks, as always, for reading.