I was very happy to be asked to springboard off my recent post Stella, and a digression on envy, work, inadequacy for the Wheeler Centre blog. Authors Krissy Kneen, Alan Baxter, Max Barry and Mel Campbell kindly and honestly responded to my probing questions about writerly anxieties and feelings of inadequacy, and some of their responses … Continue reading Fear, failure and fraudulence at the Wheeler Centre blog
Franz Kafka
Brethren is one of my favourite words (but that has nothing to do with Peril, my best books of 2009, Kafka's diary, or an Overland blog guest post)
* This week I went to the launch of Peril, edition 8: 'why are people so unkind'? It featured readings, and a fun, sexy performance by Ladies of Colour Agency that made me want to get up an shake it, baby. Maxine Clarke, who performed her poetry, gives a very warm of a rundown of … Continue reading Brethren is one of my favourite words (but that has nothing to do with Peril, my best books of 2009, Kafka's diary, or an Overland blog guest post)
Literary heroes
Today was the first day of the Overland Masterclass for Progressive Writers. There are nine of us, giving (hopefully) constructive feedback of each others' stories, plus taking in feedback from Overlandassociate editor Rjurik Davidson. Each day, an established writer also participates in the workshop, and today it was Tony Birch. Tomorrow will be the incomparable … Continue reading Literary heroes
A few moments of history, horror, and Kafka in Prague
This is an edited extract from an essay I am working on about my trip to Europe early this year. I have never seen buildings so old. The aged stone of Edinburgh or Venice, the disturbingly mismatched architecture of London, Oslo and Berlin. Ancient blackened churches rise out of the steel, gripping defiantly to tradition. The … Continue reading A few moments of history, horror, and Kafka in Prague
