We all know that 2020 was pretty bleh all around, but for me personally, as a writer, it was actually pretty great.
After being in a bit of an emotional writing slump - which most authors can agree, this is a profession full of great joys and horrible debilitating lows! - I decided in 2020 I would get back to my writing roots and just submit to whatever was open, apply for opportunities where they arose, and pretty much just stop being a talk-yourself-down sad sack and, well, write.
The result of that was short and longlistings for Australian short story awards I have admired for years, inclusion in a couple of short story anthologies (more on that soon), and wonderful results in a few writing competitions, with encouraging and insightful assessments. Of course, I also got rejected multiple times - but my oh my, don't those small victories put enough pep in your step to make up for it. Sometimes, ya know, you just gotta GET ON UP.
But by far the news that most delighted my heart was that my dream project - the one I have always wanted to write, the one that has always been the most subconciously important to me - got signed with the deliciously cool and supportive Affirm Press.
The first book in my middle grade fantasy adventure series Seven Wherewithal Way comes out in October this year, with three more books released every year after that.
This is a series inspired by my love of folklore, portal fantasies, the supernatural, creatures that go bump-in-the-night, and epic fantasy adventure quests. But at its heart it is also about found family, what it means to be a hero, and the coming-of-age of one lucky little girl who gets thrown into a world she has only ever dreamed about.
It has taken over my heart and I hope you love it as much as I love creating it.
Stay tuned for more updates xx
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