Category Archives: My process

Award season

2 Replies

It’s been a very long while between blog posts, apologies!

The good news is that I’ve been busy writing and have some exciting projects in the pipeline. More about those soon.

In the meantime, I’m thrilled to share that Scout and the Rescue Dogs has been honoured with a Children’s Book Council of Australia shortlisting. For those not working in KidLit, it’s a huge and wonderful thing.

In the buildup to Children’s Book Week, schools across Australia make amazing library displays that will include Scout. Young ‘shadow judges‘ will discuss the stories, choose their own winners, and do fun activities based on each book.

But that’s not all… Scout and the Rescue Dogs has also been shortlisted for the West Australian Young Readers’ Book Awards. And, one of my favourites, Granny Grommet and Me, is back.

Fremantle Press has brightened the cover and published this story about surfing grannies in a smaller format that’s perfect for small hands. Since it was last in print, there are dozens more Granny Grommets braving the surf in Kinjarling Albany, and dozens more young grommets as well. Check out some of the clips and photos of the real GGs on this page.

Between all this excitement, I’ve been writing and editing, and early next year, I’ll have three new titles coming out. Two picture books, each with an amazing illustrator, and a biography/novel about an inspirational Australian. I’ll be posting about them soon.

In other news, I’ve jumped on board Shepherd, a great site where authors recommend five books linked to a topic. My first list is called The Best Books with an Important Octopus Character. It’s inspired, of course, by the octopus characters in my novel The Shark Caller. One is a giant gatekeeper, and the other is Izzy’s frightening adversary. Browsing Shepherd is addictive, in that one link leads to another and another and another … I’ve added so many titles to my reading stack!

Well, back to the editing for me. My next post will focus on Anzac books and activities. All the best for now.

Anzac Resources for Teachers

Lesson planning takes time. Here are some Anzac-related links for teachers and librarians, including this clip; an Anzac Day reflection from Mt Clarence during Covid.

Each book in the WWI ‘Light’ series has teaching notes with worksheet activities created by Fremantle Press. Website links include these as well as reviews and images for Lighthouse Girl, Light Horse Boy, In the Lamplight, and The Last Light Horse.

If you’d like to know more about ‘Lighthouse Girl’ Faye Howe, click here. And information about warhorse Sandy can be found here.

For class printouts, follow these links:

a semaphore chart and activity,
a WWI horses cloze worksheet,
a Morse code activity
another cloze worksheet linking to WWI nursing.

My Blog posts cover various thematic, WWI, WWII, and Anzac topics. Posts share background details for each book, as well as my creative journeys. Try typing each title as well as keywords like; For Teachers, Anzacs, Historical Fiction, My Process, Light Horse, warhorse, lighthouse, WWI mascots, WWI nursing, Harefield, WWII.

You might also like to check out the clips on my YouTube channel. There are Book trailers for Light Horse Boy and Lighthouse Girl, links to the 2014 Albany commemorative events, and a clip with music by Simone Keane. This Destination WA interview with Dianne on Breaksea Island also shows details of the National Anzac Centre in Albany.

This reading from The Last Light Horse is taken in the Snowy Mountains the area that inspired Sandy’s story, while this clip shows Dianne and her dog Harry unwrapping their first copy of the book. Or Read ABC article about Sandy

Here’s another article about the books in the ‘Light’ series: Chauvel Foundation, and a series review. Plus a few more links to a range of Anzac stories: 17 best Anzac Day books for kids, Books on War, Great Books for Anzac Day, Readings.

Finally, if you live in Perth or Rockingham, here’s a sneak peek of Theatre 180‘s adaptation of the ‘Light’ series. I hope these links are helpful.

Warhorses and The Chauvel Foundation

I was honoured when Lt Col. John Boyce emailed, asking to interview me for an article to be posted on The Chauvel Foundation website. The foundation aims to, ‘promote, support and inspire service to the community by building public awareness of the attributes, dedication and accomplishments of the Australian Light Horse and their greatest commander, General Sir Harry Chauvel.’ It’s a terrific reference resource for those interested in Australian history.

The article, ‘Writing for Younger Readers about the Light Horse‘ shares details of my writing journey with examples from The Last Light Horse and Light Horse Boy. Lt Col. John Boyce has a deep interest in military history and his percipient questions led to interesting reflections on my creative process. I also liked the way page draft examples were included.

My interest in General Sir Harry Chauvel, sparked by WWI research for the ‘Light series’, deepened after meeting Sir Harry’s granddaughter, Dr Honor Auhinleck. A fellow author, Honor contacted me after students at Corryong College read Light Horse Boy and decided to research the veterans on their town cenotaph. That led to a meeting in Corryong, an ongoing friendship, and Upper Murray book launches.

The Chauvel Foundation website is an historical treasure trove of information. There are articles with details about battles, horses, the Lighthorsemen, Art and Poetry, as well as Sir Harry himself. Not only a great reference site, it’s an enjoyable site to dip into for interesting reading.

A warhorse can’t write letters home …

… nor keep a diary. In earlier ‘Light’ series titles, Lighthouse Girl, Light Horse Boy and In the Lamplight, I used point-of-view switches between 1st person and 3rd person to add layers. I couldn’t do this for The Last Light Horse.

Researching and writing about a wartime horse was challenging. I needed to add layers differently. There are excellent historic records for humans that served, but that’s not often the case for animals.

The Last Light Horse is divided into four parts, linked to four of the significant men in Sandy’s life. The first is Francis O’Donnell. His family owned the brick kiln in old Tallangatta where Sandy hauled bricks. Francis was keen to serve, however as a Catholic, he was encouraged not to support an ‘English’ war. Instead, Francis donated his best horse. You can read more about Francis here.

The next important figure in Sandy’s life was Major General Bridges. His dying wish was that Sandy be brought home to Australia. The page below shows details of his funeral. In the left-hand image, boots are turned backward to denote a fallen soldier.

After the death of Major General Bridges, Captain Leslie Whitfield, a veterinarian, cared for Sandy In Egypt. When Whitfield was transferred to France, Sandy went too. The veterinarians rode horses to the edge of battle to treat wounded animals. A steady horse like Sandy was invaluable.

Archibald Jordon met Sandy at the Calias Veterinary Hospital. Archie became Sandy’s groom and was the soldier chosen to accompany the old horse home. Their ship docked in Melbourne soon after the 1918 Armistice was signed.

Sandy had been away for over four years. He spent his remaining days at Maribyrnong until, aged 23, and almost blind, he was euthanised. Archie died a few months later.

Each year on Remembrance Day, as well as wearing a red poppy to remember the people who served, I wear a purple poppy to remember the animals that have gone to war. There are other warhorse-related blog posts on this site, focusing on different titles in the ‘Light’ series. To read more, use the search function. Lest we Forget.

Remembering

This Remembrance Day I’m especially remembering the nurses.

Who would’ve thought four years ago when I was researching the WWI Spanish Influenza pandemic for In the Lamplight that we’d be in the situation we’re now in?

In 1918-1919, nurses risked their lives to care for vulnerable patients. Their dedication was a major inspiration for my writing process. I tried to imagine their stoicism and fear. It’s estimated that a third of the world’s population became infected by the Spanish Flu and that over 50 million people died.

Today, around the world, medical staff are again risking their lives, this time to save people suffering from Covid-19. At the time of writing, over 1 million people have died from coronavirus with more than 50 million people infected.

Images from WWI hospitals helped bring my fictitious characters to life. I wonder what future creative responses will be inspired by the current images of healthcare workers in P2 masks, gloves and body gowns.

Lest we forget; not only the brave nurses of the past, but also the selfless dedication of our current medical heroes.

STEM, National Science Week and the Web of Life

8 Replies

When I was little I loved jigsaws. I was good at Maths until Year 5. Then we moved overseas and I missed a few important things, like short division. When we returned I was in high school. My new teacher was a brilliant mathematician but couldn’t fathom my inability to get things the first time (I’d been put in the top maths class). It wasn’t until long after leaving school that I learned there was an actual purpose to memorising algebraic formula, things like sine and cosine were used in the real world!

Biology was way more interesting to me. Who remembers The Web of Life textbook? I loved that book. It was a brick and I carried it one and a half kilometres to and from school for years. The Web of Life was full of interesting charts and images that related to the world around me. I loved the title too.

Image: http://www.amandacurtin.com

Last week was National Science Week and each morning I’d hoped to receive the first ten copies of my new book, Munjed Al Muderis – from refugee to surgical inventor. Today they arrived at last. They look great and so for me, the fun of National Science Week continues …

Munjed’s story is part of the Aussie STEM Stars series, celebrating Australian experts in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. His work has made Australia a world-leader in osseointegration. Unlike me, Munjed excels in both biology and algebra! Being part of the Aussie STEM Stars series has helped me reassess the importance of STEM subjects (even maths). I’ve loved reading about Georgia Fear Ware‘s fascinating work with reptiles and cane toads as well as learning more about amazing Fiona Wood. I hope readers of all ages will enjoy this terrific new series.

Historical Fiction

Who doesn’t love learning about the past through a great story?

Historical Fiction is one of my favourite genres, so it was a pleasure to chat with award-winning Elaine Forrestal and learn about her latest book as part of the Fremantle Press podcast series. You can hear the show here (the audio levels improve as it goes).

Elaine’s Goldfields Girl explores the amazing and true story of Clara Saunders, one of two women on the Coolgardie Goldfields during the 1890s. There are many parallels between Clara and Fay Catherine Howe, the Breaksea Island lighthouse keeper’s daughter who signaled to departing soldiers in 1914. Both were strong, resilient young women who faced daily challenges simply to find food and fresh water to drink. Fictitious Rose (In the Lamplight) was also a brave teenager, having to overcome her shyness to develop nursing skills and help wounded Australians in her English village.

Elaine and I are similar in our approach to writing; we’re attracted to the same kind of characters and both love weaving historical mini-stories into our fiction. Things like Paddy Hannan‘s gold nugget gift to Clara, Jimmy the Wallaby and the Harefield Flag. In this podcast we talk about different ways we research, from scanning microfiche, travelling to remote settings, finding lost diaries and sleuthing animal mascots to visions of Elaine haunting the Battye Library We also share writing tips for other writers who are passionate about historical fiction.

Thank you to Fremantle Press and the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund for creating this wonderful podcast series. Follow the link for more conversations.

We hope you enjoy our conversation with talented poet and writer, Rebecca Higgie.

World Refugee Day

2 Replies

Refugees bring wisdom, skills and fresh perspectives to our ‘Lucky Country’.

Saturday June 20th is World Refugee Day. For the past eight months I’ve been researching the life of Dr Munjed Al Muderis, the world-renowned surgeon whose fascination for robotics, his dedication and glass-half-full attitude has led Australia to become the world leader for pioneering osseointegration surgery. Munjed Al Muderis – From refugee to surgical inventor will be published by Wild Dingo Press on September 1st 2020. A sneak cover peek is below.

According to the United Nations 1951 Refugee Convention, a refugee is someone who fled his or her home and country owing to “a well-founded fear of persecution because of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion”.

After refusing to mutilate the ears of army deserters in Iraq, Munjed fled for his life with one possession, the medical book Last’s Anatomy. He survived an horrendous voyage in a rickety, overcrowded boat, arrived at Christmas Island and was taken to Curtin Detention Centre in north-western Australia. There he suffered ten months of bullying, false accusations and indignities. But Munjed never gave up. He always wanted to make a difference, to help those less fortunate.

Osseintegration is a revolutionary surgical procedure whereby a metal stem is implanted into the bone of a patient’s remaining limb. The stem then connects to a robotic prosthesis, allowing improved sensory experience, greater movement and less pain. The surgery is life-changing for patients. Munjed’s interest in robotics was sparked long ago when he was a child watching Arnie Schwarzenegger as “The terminator“.

Munjed Al Muderis – From refugee to surgical inventor explores Munjed’s journey to Australia and other life-shaping moments from his early years. This book is the third title in the Aussie STEM Stars series. The first three books will be released together. In Book 1 Cristy Burne explores the life of Fiona Wood AM. In Book 2 Claire Saxby explores the life of Dr Georgia Ward-Fear.

Munjed’s skill and compassion has changed the lives of thousands of people across the world. He’s a powerful advocate for Amnesty International, the Red Cross and asylum seekers. Munjed is the current NSW Australian of the Year and has received many other accolades. This inspirational surgeon and humanitarian is one of many refugees who have enriched Australia. On this World Refugee Day let’s all take a moment to acknowledge these contributions and to remember the importance of kindness.

Embers

6 Replies

After the horrendous fires are extinguished the ripples will continue. Socials ripples of devastated families and ravaged town, loss of stock and wildlife, financial hardship and deep emotional scars.

Yesterday my sister evacuated from her remote home in the Snowy Mountains. Their property is home to endangered quoll (filmed by the BBC), as well as wombats, echidna and beautiful mountain birds. My heart aches for the dying wildlife, innocent victims of our lack of environmental care. The photos show the home track; on a normal day and earlier this week.

Before leaving they nailed tin sheets over the wooden verandas, left water for the animals and nailed meat from the freezer onto the quoll trees. Further south my cousins and niece are fighting fires, and my daughter returns from holiday to toxic Canberra air. Amongst all this devastation there is another tiny loss, insignificant to anyone but me.

For several months I’ve been working on a novel. I’m two-thirds into a first draft with funding help from the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries. The setting of this story is a road journey through regions now devastated by fire; Gippsland, Eden, Batlow, the lower Snowies … Given the catastrophic fires, horror and sadness my current storyline now seems trivial. I will need to alter the setting or indeed the whole tone of my project. But first we need to get through Saturday. We’re en route to family in Albury. Let’s hope communities across Australia are safe during the next bout of extreme weather. Thank you to our brave firies.

Animals who Talk

I’m thrilled to announce the launch of my new website www.animalswhotalk.com. A website dedicated to all things anthropomorphic.

For several months Zoe and Felix from Social Force have been patiently helping me the shape the website and the accompanying Wolfish Blog. I love the final look of the site and look forward to adding more information over summer. My regular blog posts will look at ways authors and illustrators use animal characters in fiction. I’ll be sharing background to my own works, listing favourite animal titles and providing links to interesting articles and discussions about anthropomorphism.

For teachers, there will be links to themes, topics and animal species which you may find useful when programming. For book-lovers I hope you’ll find your next favourite animal story. You can also Join the Pack to receive regular posts and I’d love to hear from you. Who are your favourite animal characters? Do you love Bottersnikes? What is your daemon?

During the next few weeks clips of authors and illustrators will appear on the Instagram carousel. They’ll be sharing their thoughts on how animals inspire their creativity. The first clip will be up soon. Enjoy!

The word count is growing …

Summer = Writing Time.

Like many people at this time of the year I am planning a road trip. However this road trip is a fictitious one. The novel that I’m working on revolves around the twelve year old daughter of a truck driver and a special summer journey she takes with her dad. Their travels so far have taken them from Benalla in Victoria to Frankston, Sale, the Ninety Mile Beach and Eden. I hope to visit these locations after this first read-through draft is completed. In the meantime I’m learning a lot about trucks and it’s exciting to see the word count of this project growing. Thanks to the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries for 13 weeks of funded creative writing time.

Writing Time

For an author writing time is a precious gift and I’m grateful to the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries for providing me with 13 weeks of funded creative writing time via a Creative Development grant. This means that the manuscript I’ve been trying to write between doing other day-job-work will actually be written!

The project is for middle-grade readers with a probable final word length of around 30,000 words. I have characters in place, chapters roughed out and it’s exciting to see the story coming to life as I start joining the dots. My aim is to complete a read-through draft ready to submit to publishers by mid-February. I’ll be posting four progress blogs between now and then sharing details of my writing journey, how the characters are unfolding and updates on the elusive word count. The latter goes up and down as I edit. The working title of my story is Scout and the Big Rig. More details in another post soon …

World Octopus Day & Entangled Ideas

There is alchemy in the business of writing. Authors are often asked where their ideas come from. Divine inspiration, shells on a beach, talk-back radio … Sometimes I can pinpoint a moment, more often a story grows from linked moments of wonder or interest. As ideas come together and bubble, a manuscript grows, and sometimes, with luck, this mash turns into a book. Some moments that sparked The Shark Caller involved diving on reefs in PNG’s New Britain area as well as snorkeling in Marovo Lagoon (Solomon Islands) and WA’s Greens Pool.

Greens Pool was especially significant as it became (in my mind) the fictitious ‘Abalone Cove’.

In the opening scene of The Shark Caller a teenage boy dies in mysterious circumstances at Abalone Cove. A blue-ringed octopus is involved. I once saw a blue-ring in Greens Pool; just a surprised flash before it turned sandy brown and crept away. Greens Pool is a magical place to swim. When I lived in Denmark my regular loop involved a long lap, from a rock that sometimes hid a wobbegong to the far end where a Gloomy Octopus lived under a large rock. Her garden of shells gave away the entrance. These shark and octopus encounters swirled around in my imagination, along with the evocative rocks that guard Greens Pool. I added PNG diving experiences, environmental worries and my own sense of communities being linked by oceans. This all gave me a strong sense of setting to draw on during the long writing process.

Greens Pool, WA

If you’d like to read more about The Shark Caller, here is a post from last World Octopus Day.

Returning to Port Hedland

2 Replies

Last week I returned to Port Hedland, the first time since 2015 when I was researching The Dog with Seven Names. After a breakfast presentation with the Chamber of Commerce, Mayor Camilo Blanco and I visited DOME café, the refurbished hospital where my fictitious dog lived in 1942.

The first time I visited this site, the hospital building was fenced off and in disrepair. Travelling back in 2015, the most I’d hoped for was to be able to take photographs through the wire fencing. Imagine my surprise when I arrived at dusk to find lights blazing in a newly renovated building. I went inside, ordered a coffee and walked along the verandahs, imagining the scene in World War Two when dozens of burnt patients were evacuated from Broome after the strafing of Dutch flying boats. It’s just one of the passages in my novel which was enriched by being able to walk through the old hospital rather than view it through holes in a fence. Thanks DOME, I love your policy of keeping our heritage alive by restoring historic buildings.

Cafe’ manager, Hannah shared interesting renovation details and even mentioned a ‘presence’ felt by some visitors (perhaps there’s another story there). Thanks to the Town of Port Hedland, Librarian, Gill Westera and Port Hedland SHS for inviting me to Port Hedland to share The Dog with Seven Names. I look forward to visiting again in 2020 when I’ll also travel to other book settings such as Marble Bar. In the meantime, you may like to follow these links to see photos from previous research trips to Broome and Port Hedland.

Wishing friends and readers a safe and peaceful festive season

Thank you teachers, librarians, booksellers, readers and the teams at Fremantle Press, Penguin Random House, Black Swan Theatre, the Literature Centre and CBCA for your support throughout 2018. It’s certainly been an eventful year, with the publication of two new books, In the Lamplight and The Dog with Seven Names, a UK launch and book tour, Candlewick’s US release of Nanna’s Button Tin, school visits across WA and NSW, and the regional WA tour of Black Swan Theatre’s wonderful adaptation The Lighthouse Girl.

Other 2018 highlights include ASA mentoring the super talented Amelia Mellor, speaking at the National ALEA/AATE Conference, Write Around the Murray and the CBCA NSW Kids Bookweek event. I love being part of the friendly and inclusive children’s literature community. Special thanks to the SCBWI West team for all that you do to support creative spirits.

2019 looks like being another exciting year. More about that in a few weeks. In the meantime I’ll be enjoying a quiet family Christmas at home, with plenty of beach-time, reading and the odd glass of bubbles. I’m also happily writing something new. Stay safe and thank you for helping to make 2018 a good year.

Stereo Stories – Living in the 70’s

During this year’s Write Around the Murray festival in Albury, I attended a fabulous music/words performance project called Stereo Stories. I was so inspired by the concept and shared memories, that on the plane home next day, I wrote a song-memory of my own. You can find it here on the Stereo Stories site. And here is the fabulous Skyhooks record cover that inspired my story. The Skyhooks website says this debut album sold 300,000 copies. Does it bring back memories for anyone else?

Yikes, we found more artwork …

Brian Simmonds and I are both spring- cleaning, and we’ve found fifteen more images for the November sale. Anyone who has already contacted me to express interest should have received an email with these images by now. Please advise if you haven’t.

Free pick-up delivery is possible for Albany and Perth.

Large concept sketches for In the Lamplight $100

Large Concept sketches for Lighthouse Girl $100.

End of Year Writing time :-)

The school year is winding up. Library, school and conference visits are mostly completed, and even in Albany the days are warming. It’s now the season for intensive writing time at my desk.

First up, I’ve returned to a long ago YA novel called Shadows Walking. I began this story in 2002 (I know). Shadows Walking is set in wartime Papua New Guinea and current time California/Australia. I’ve had to mega-edit the latter! The book was optioned for publication long ago but that lapsed and by then I was busy with Lighthouse Girl and then the others in the ‘Light’ series as well as PhD research and linked novels …

Re-reading the old manuscript has been interesting, wondering whether it’s worth putting in the months of effort needed to tighten and reshape the story. I’ve decided yes, and so far I’ve removed some characters, lowered the age of my central character as well as done some serious slash and burn editing. The good news is that I can see that I’ve improved in my craft over the past fifteen years.

Since 2002, when I walked the Kokoda Track to research this story, another Kokoda linked title has been published. Photographs in the Mud (2005) shares similar themes to Shadows Walking and in some ways is a crystallisation of the longer novel, but only in some ways. Returning to the novel is timely; this year I’ve been honoured by people approaching me at conferences and schools to say how much they enjoy Photographs in the Mud. It was my first picture book (not one for young children) and I’m grateful that in these days of books going out of print so quickly, Fremantle Press have kept this one. Hurrah for them. Another fun part of returning to Shadows Walking is revisiting photos from the trek. Here is a collage. I look so much younger.

a868148fbe54

cb35a6f89df6

d8c4bfa9ca9f

83ade6835416

2c3bf4c998a4

I’m hoping to complete my through-edit soon. Then I have a list of other projects I’d like to start, none of which involve war!

I’ll keep you posted on my progress …

Bookweek Month – that’s a wrap.

As Bookweek Month draws to a close, children’s authors and illustrators across Australia will be slowing down before heading back into their creative caves. I’ve had a wonderful Bookmonth travelling from Albany to Broome, from Perth to Sydney, from Canberra to the NSW Central Coast. Massive thanks to the dedicated teachers, librarians and Children’s Book Council of Australia volunteers who organised my visits. You are legends! I’ve met thousands of young readers and seeing that the joy of reading is alive and well enriches my work and inspires me.

Broom

Students from Roebuck Primary

When you live in chilly Albany, being invited to celebrate Bookweek with Broome students, teachers and librarians in July is like winning a children’s author lottery. During a week of presentations, I spoke with hundreds of students from Years 3 to 10. Broome library staff made a great welcome display and young readers from St Mary’s College, Broome Primary and Roebuck Primary came into the library to ‘Find Story Treasure’ and celebrate the Bookweek theme.

Continue reading →

End of School Holidays Competition

Win a signed copy of Dianne Wolfer’s new book, The Dog with Seven Names.

Poor Harry doesn’t love dressing up, but maybe your dog does …

During WW2, the dog in Dianne’s new story is given seven names; Princess, Dog, Flynn (after the founder of the Flying Doctor Service), Gengi (gold), Florence (after the famous nurse), Pooch and Engel (angel).

Choose one of those names as inspiration to style your own dog and send Dianne a photo. The one Harry likes best will win a signed book (posted to you). Photos will be shared on Dianne’s Blog and/or Dianne Wolfer – Author Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/DianneWolferAuthor/

Please email photos and your dog’s name to dianne@westnet.com.au before July 31^st.