I was thinking about A.S. Patric's recent post on the Overland blog all of yesterday afternoon. I thought I'd have a go at responding to his piece, just off-the-cuff. Note: the words in bold are Alec's. Are we more disconnected? I know how late my crush goes to bed. Are we more superficial? Skin is a surface. Does … Continue reading Response to A.S. Patric’s ‘Questionnaire’
Self-indulgence
Observations, rants, fun stuff, links…
1993—a pivotal year (with thanks to Mrs Grant)
Besides my Oma, the person who most encouraged my writing when I was a child was my year three teacher, Mrs Grant. She was an exchange teacher from Canada and we all grew to love her so much that it was devastating the day she left. She was so sweet that one time, when my best friend … Continue reading 1993—a pivotal year (with thanks to Mrs Grant)
How did I live without them?
Just some of the treats in boxes shipped down by my 'rents this week... (Thanks Mum & Dad! x) Missed my Marilyn collection! I am a movie buff, yes. Hello childhood! Macauley Culkin is my boyfriend. The Roald Dahl box sets were a present from Mum and Dad when I was about nine, and my sister … Continue reading How did I live without them?
This literary-minded week
new into brew 2700 words of fiction. chew http://thefastertimes.com/fiction/2009/11/14/nabokov-in-audio/ (via Meanjin) kangaroo Best Australian Fiction of the 21st Century #3, #2, #1. blue 'When I have acted like a human being for a few hours, as I did today with Max and later at Baum's, I am already full of conceit before I go to … Continue reading This literary-minded week
Avatar: a mash-up
This piece is a mash-up of an undergrad essay from a couple of years ago, plus present thoughts, imaginings and speculation on the narrative of self in a virtual environment. Storytelling is as old as humanity. The human has always actively projected him/herself into realms of fantasy (through song, art, drama, writing). Modernity advanced the visual aspect … Continue reading Avatar: a mash-up
Birthday notes, more from NYWF/TiNA to come
What a lovely thing to wake up to on your birthday! I have somehow muscled out Justine Larbalestier for top spot on Copywrite's Top 50 Australian Blogs for Writers. Thanks for reading and linking to me, lovely folks. I will be writing more on NYWF/TiNA when I hit Bali (hopefully - depending on internet situation), … Continue reading Birthday notes, more from NYWF/TiNA to come
Wisdom
I'm about to embark on an adventure to two festivals - the National Young Writers Festival, and the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival. I want to learn something, many things. And, of course, I want to enjoy every moment. I'll try and blog when I get a chance, though I'm not sure what the internet … Continue reading Wisdom
Adventures of the badge with the face of Albert Camus #1
Shop assistant: Who's that? Me: Albert Camus. SA: Who? Me: He's a philosopher. SA: What? Me: A philosopher. *shop assistant stares blankly* Me: He's a writer. SA: Oh. Does he write poetry? Me: No. SA: What does he write? Me: Philosophy, fiction. *very long pause* SA: Ha,ha, I'm such an airhead!
Now
Inviting the self out. Stuck inside. Curled up in cultures. Taken away and taken back by what I don't know. And then what I know. What I can't grasp because of stuckness. Knowing about Mohezin Tejani's experience of Pink Floyd in 1973. But never having seen Uganda, India, Nepal, Thailand... Having seen the Grand Canyon but … Continue reading Now
Melbourne Writers Festival 2009 diary part five: words like triangles (a further experiment in the confessional)
This post is a creative, experimental mash-up of personal experience plus one of the poems Bernhard Schlink read on Sunday 23 August in RMIT Capitol Theatre, in a session called 'Pleasure and Pain: Poetry and the Body' at Melbourne Writers Festival. The poem is called 'Ballad of the Outer Life' or 'Ballade des auBeren Lebens', and is by … Continue reading Melbourne Writers Festival 2009 diary part five: words like triangles (a further experiment in the confessional)
LiteraryMinded 