In which I defend highbrow lit-ra-cha!
music
Freak out in a moonage daydream: Sean M Whelan on Liner Notes
This is cross-posted from the Melbourne Writers Festival 2012 blog. The Liner Notes spoken word event (run by Babble) is always a festival highlight for me, and this year a bunch of writers, poets et al are set to rock our worlds with an interpretation of David Bowie's album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders … Continue reading Freak out in a moonage daydream: Sean M Whelan on Liner Notes
Whole-hearted lovers and layers of history: an interview with Mardi McConnochie, author of The Voyagers
Viking, May 2011 9780670075966 (Aus, ebook) Stead, a sailor, arrives in Sydney Harbour in 1943. He hasn't seen Marina for five years, and yet he can't forget the three days they spent together prior to the war. Some undeniable connection had been forged. He finds out she failed to enrol in the music school she was … Continue reading Whole-hearted lovers and layers of history: an interview with Mardi McConnochie, author of The Voyagers
Guest review: Matthia Dempsey on Patti Smith’s Just Kids
Bloomsbury/Allen & Unwin February 2010 9780747548409 (Aus, US/Kindle) Reviewed by Matthia Dempsey Emerging from their teens, Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe first encounter each other in 1960s New York, a recognition as much as a meeting. Smith has fled the aftermath of an unplanned pregnancy and adoption, and the factory future that faces her in … Continue reading Guest review: Matthia Dempsey on Patti Smith’s Just Kids
I wanted to marry Michael Jackson
<-- Little Ange with my first love on the wall. The first short story I ever wrote, and read aloud, was called 'Michael Jackson and the Magic Hat'. I was in Year 3. Besides the magic hat, there was mystery, romance and intrigue. My best friends in Year 3 - Genna and Rebecca - both messaged … Continue reading I wanted to marry Michael Jackson
Tabitha Suzuma – Interview
I recently reviewed Tabitha Suzuma's young adult novel A Note of Madness for the journal Viewpoint. I thought I would ask Tabitha a few questions about the themes of depression in the novel and her own journey as a writer. Enjoy. What inspired you to make the characters music students in A Note of … Continue reading Tabitha Suzuma – Interview