Check this out
Showcase of published work by members of WITS past and present at the Townsville City Library (in Flinders Mall) .
Books, banners, and bling.
Take a look and tell your friends.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
The workshop wrap-up
Dr David Rieter Workshop
On Wednesday 10th June City Libraries presented a full day workshop by Dr David Rieter from Interactive Publications Pty Ltd (IP). Thanks to funding from Townsville City Council twenty people attended the free of charge workshop and as well as gaining an inside view of publishing, we were even supplied morning tea and lunch. Thank you Annette Burns from City Libraries for looking after us so well.
David is the director of Interactive Publications. IP has four imprints.
- Glasshouse Books: Biographies & non-fiction.
- IP Kids: Children’s books.
- IP Digital
- Interactive Press: Flagship literary imprint & poetry.
- IP Pics: Is a competition for unpublished manuscripts and is open for submissions from 1st October - 1st December 2009.
Categories are:
Best fiction
Best Creative non-fiction
Best poetry
Best first book any genre.
Interactive Publications is also involved in an Emerging Author Series. Each year they nominate up to seven titles from their forward list to the Australian Council for support under their Presentation of Promotions Program.
David spoke on the importance of presentation and covered independent and mainstream publishing as well as self- publishing. He stressed that publishing is easy - it’s getting noticed that is difficult.
- Do’s and Don’ts of getting started.
- Writing for the reader.
- How to sell your work to a publisher.
- The importance of your Covering Letter and Synopsis.
- Contracts and getting paid.
- Promoting your work- pre-publication.
- Targeting the Media.
Thank you David for a most informative workshop - and for the bonus discussion that evening at our weekly writer’s meeting. For further information on IP visit David’s website on http://www.ipoz.biz/
WITS is looking forward to working in partnership with Townsville City Council and in conjunction with City Libraries to present future workshops and events.
Lori Hurst
President
On Wednesday 10th June City Libraries presented a full day workshop by Dr David Rieter from Interactive Publications Pty Ltd (IP). Thanks to funding from Townsville City Council twenty people attended the free of charge workshop and as well as gaining an inside view of publishing, we were even supplied morning tea and lunch. Thank you Annette Burns from City Libraries for looking after us so well.
David is the director of Interactive Publications. IP has four imprints.
- Glasshouse Books: Biographies & non-fiction.
- IP Kids: Children’s books.
- IP Digital
- Interactive Press: Flagship literary imprint & poetry.
- IP Pics: Is a competition for unpublished manuscripts and is open for submissions from 1st October - 1st December 2009.
Categories are:
Best fiction
Best Creative non-fiction
Best poetry
Best first book any genre.
Interactive Publications is also involved in an Emerging Author Series. Each year they nominate up to seven titles from their forward list to the Australian Council for support under their Presentation of Promotions Program.
David spoke on the importance of presentation and covered independent and mainstream publishing as well as self- publishing. He stressed that publishing is easy - it’s getting noticed that is difficult.
- Do’s and Don’ts of getting started.
- Writing for the reader.
- How to sell your work to a publisher.
- The importance of your Covering Letter and Synopsis.
- Contracts and getting paid.
- Promoting your work- pre-publication.
- Targeting the Media.
Thank you David for a most informative workshop - and for the bonus discussion that evening at our weekly writer’s meeting. For further information on IP visit David’s website on http://www.ipoz.biz/
WITS is looking forward to working in partnership with Townsville City Council and in conjunction with City Libraries to present future workshops and events.
Lori Hurst
President
Friday, June 26, 2009
THE SHACK: 26/06/09
This week is all about watching and learning from the Masters. So I present to you:http://www.granta.com/Online-Only/Lahiri-Gallant
Jhumpa Lahiri and Mavis Gallant
http://www.granta.com/Online-Only/Paul-Auster
Paul Auster
For more go to www.nikeshmurali.net
Friday, June 19, 2009
THE SHACK: 19/06/09
You could make money from your novels this way
http://www.catherynnemvalente.com/fairyland/
But before you get all excited and post your novel online for gold coin donations, you might want to avoid the 38 most common mistakes made by writers of fiction
More at www.nikeshmurali.net
Friday, June 12, 2009
Byron Bay writers Festival
this is the link for the writers festival.
if there is one thing you do as a writers it is to visit a festival sometime in your career.
If not now ...when?
Writers and rejection
http://jim-murdoch.blogspot.com/2009/06/writers-and-rejection.htm
The most heart-warming publishing story i have read in recent times
http://www.bluemoonrising.nl/interview1.html
More at www.nikeshmurali.net
a wednesday nite treat
Writers in townsville was awash with authors last Wednesday as we played supper hosts to Ann Jones and David Reiter.
Ann and David gave an all day workshop at the libary and then were invited to Wits for a light supper and informal chat.
What a delight these two unassuming authors were at the meeting.
We were fortunate to be able to grill them on their methods, the latest in publishing, the how to, the what if and any other questions which popped into our collective heads.
Ann had written a memoir called Put the billy on and several of our bretheren paid for copies and had them signed by Ann. Her reading was a rounding sucess and gave us the wind of inspiration.
David is well into publishing having set up his own company IP (Interactive press) www.ipoz.biz/ip/ip.htm David talked of the need to, the necessary things, the next big thing, and much more. His newly published book Primary instincts is a romp into the world of the primary school teacher and his short reading was a taste of the cynical humour in the volume.
Thank you Ann and David. I'm sure Wits will follow your rise in the Literary Circles with interest.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Meet the Pres.
Meet the Pres
I’m still buzzing from the success of Monday night’s Literary Dinner. Wasn’t it just fantastic? For all the Witties who couldn’t make it, you missed out on something special.
The venue was great and staff at the Motor Boat Club could not have been more helpful. The menu was extensive and the food yummy and a good price. I wasn’t sure how I would eat my lamb shank it was more in the order of an elephant shank. But with perseverance I managed!!!
Thanks to Kerry Ashwin’s promotional abilities and unflagging energy the final head count was around forty. What an amazing result for our first Literary Dinner. I’d like to work towards making it an annual event.
The best part of the evening after the buzz of success, was the great company, and meeting the authors; Belinda Jeffrey, Matthew Condon and Greg Rogers. As an aspiring writer if you didn’t find them inspirational perhaps its time to take up quilting.
It’s so easy to form an impression of successful people as being different from us mere mortals. Not so, cut them and they bleed. This is purely metaphorical the only time I came close to Greg with a knife was when I ate half of his profiterole.
Anyone who shares their dessert has to be a great guy. Right? But the truth is they were all great. They gave freely of themselves and willingly shared their knowledge. They have survived the rites of passage. You find yourself thinking. “Hey I could do that.” And the beauty of it is if you believe in yourself enough (and put in the hard yards) you can. Belinda’s novel Brown Skin Blue hit the shelves of the book stores on Monday. And we were privileged to have a sneak preview. Thank you for reading an excerpt for us Belinda. We have a copy in WITS library. You’ll have to join the queue. (or maybe even buy your own copy.)
Kerry is not shy around a mike or an audience and handled the role of MC like a professional. Her quirky sense of humour had everyone relaxed and laughing. She did a good take off of David Attenborough. The theme depicted writers as a species apart from the rest of the bunch. And we are.
This brings me to another point. Not all the people attending the dinner were writers but most were associated with, or interested in the arts. I shared a table with Fiona Lake who is renowned for her “Outback photography.” Peter and I went to her launch a few years ago and I recall the stark beauty of her work. Diversity, interaction, networking, that’s what makes the art world turn.
High up on the list of thrills (pardon the pun) for the evening was being part of Kerry Ashwin’s book launch. Long after the Thrill was a big hit. If anyone deserves success it’s Kerry. She has worked so hard and as a friend and fellow member of WITS I felt so proud of her achievement. Kerry’s book was officially launched by the representative of the Townsville City Council Councillor Dale Last. For the record I’ve teed up Councillor Dale Last to participate in my book launch (nothing like a bit of networking). I just hope he doesn’t have to wait around too long.
The Literary Dinner gained WITS a lot of kudos which will add to our standing in the writing world. Our acknowledgement as a serious writer’s group by both QWC and the Townsville City Council will bring about recognition both nationally and locally. Our new signs complete with logo, looked so professional. Thank you Peter for all the hours you put into making the stands. (They were built along the same lines as our house; designed to withstand a force ten gale.) This is another step towards setting up Writers in Townsville as a brand name. We’ll be able to use the logo on cups, T shirts etc in the future. Let’s grow with our successes and be proud to be part of Writer’s in Townsville.
We’ve had several offers of support from QWC recently. Karen Hands was the first to ring and let us know that The Writer’s Train was leaving from Townsville and would we like to avail ourselves of the opportunity. I had to think about this for about three seconds.
Last Sunday most of the committee met up with Julie Beveridge who is the marketing and programming director for QWC. Julie was having a meeting with members of the Townsville City Council on Monday and agreed to convey to them the main points of our discussion.
Thank you to those Witties who gave of their time to ensure that everything ran smoothly Monday night. It makes a huge difference on these occasions to have support. A special thank you to Kerry Ashwin. You put so much into the night. Well done.
And to Belinda, Greg and Matthew our best wishes and gratitude for helping to make our inaugural Literary dinner such a memorable night. You have become part of our circle of writing friends and we’ll follow your careers with special interest. When you think of Townsville think of WITS.
Lori Hurst
President
I’m still buzzing from the success of Monday night’s Literary Dinner. Wasn’t it just fantastic? For all the Witties who couldn’t make it, you missed out on something special.
The venue was great and staff at the Motor Boat Club could not have been more helpful. The menu was extensive and the food yummy and a good price. I wasn’t sure how I would eat my lamb shank it was more in the order of an elephant shank. But with perseverance I managed!!!
Thanks to Kerry Ashwin’s promotional abilities and unflagging energy the final head count was around forty. What an amazing result for our first Literary Dinner. I’d like to work towards making it an annual event.
The best part of the evening after the buzz of success, was the great company, and meeting the authors; Belinda Jeffrey, Matthew Condon and Greg Rogers. As an aspiring writer if you didn’t find them inspirational perhaps its time to take up quilting.
It’s so easy to form an impression of successful people as being different from us mere mortals. Not so, cut them and they bleed. This is purely metaphorical the only time I came close to Greg with a knife was when I ate half of his profiterole.
Anyone who shares their dessert has to be a great guy. Right? But the truth is they were all great. They gave freely of themselves and willingly shared their knowledge. They have survived the rites of passage. You find yourself thinking. “Hey I could do that.” And the beauty of it is if you believe in yourself enough (and put in the hard yards) you can. Belinda’s novel Brown Skin Blue hit the shelves of the book stores on Monday. And we were privileged to have a sneak preview. Thank you for reading an excerpt for us Belinda. We have a copy in WITS library. You’ll have to join the queue. (or maybe even buy your own copy.)
Kerry is not shy around a mike or an audience and handled the role of MC like a professional. Her quirky sense of humour had everyone relaxed and laughing. She did a good take off of David Attenborough. The theme depicted writers as a species apart from the rest of the bunch. And we are.
This brings me to another point. Not all the people attending the dinner were writers but most were associated with, or interested in the arts. I shared a table with Fiona Lake who is renowned for her “Outback photography.” Peter and I went to her launch a few years ago and I recall the stark beauty of her work. Diversity, interaction, networking, that’s what makes the art world turn.
High up on the list of thrills (pardon the pun) for the evening was being part of Kerry Ashwin’s book launch. Long after the Thrill was a big hit. If anyone deserves success it’s Kerry. She has worked so hard and as a friend and fellow member of WITS I felt so proud of her achievement. Kerry’s book was officially launched by the representative of the Townsville City Council Councillor Dale Last. For the record I’ve teed up Councillor Dale Last to participate in my book launch (nothing like a bit of networking). I just hope he doesn’t have to wait around too long.
The Literary Dinner gained WITS a lot of kudos which will add to our standing in the writing world. Our acknowledgement as a serious writer’s group by both QWC and the Townsville City Council will bring about recognition both nationally and locally. Our new signs complete with logo, looked so professional. Thank you Peter for all the hours you put into making the stands. (They were built along the same lines as our house; designed to withstand a force ten gale.) This is another step towards setting up Writers in Townsville as a brand name. We’ll be able to use the logo on cups, T shirts etc in the future. Let’s grow with our successes and be proud to be part of Writer’s in Townsville.
We’ve had several offers of support from QWC recently. Karen Hands was the first to ring and let us know that The Writer’s Train was leaving from Townsville and would we like to avail ourselves of the opportunity. I had to think about this for about three seconds.
Last Sunday most of the committee met up with Julie Beveridge who is the marketing and programming director for QWC. Julie was having a meeting with members of the Townsville City Council on Monday and agreed to convey to them the main points of our discussion.
Thank you to those Witties who gave of their time to ensure that everything ran smoothly Monday night. It makes a huge difference on these occasions to have support. A special thank you to Kerry Ashwin. You put so much into the night. Well done.
And to Belinda, Greg and Matthew our best wishes and gratitude for helping to make our inaugural Literary dinner such a memorable night. You have become part of our circle of writing friends and we’ll follow your careers with special interest. When you think of Townsville think of WITS.
Lori Hurst
President
THE SHACK: 05/06/09
A new way to sell your short fiction
http://www.novelr.com/2009/05/23/the-variant-short-story
How to become a GENIUS?
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/01/opinion/01brooks.html?_r=2
Meet the Kings: How to cope in a family of writers?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/06/AR2008040602325.html
regards
Nikesh Murali
www.nikeshmurali.net
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Want to get the inside line - Read on
Publishing Powerhouse Coming to Far North Queensland
ALL FREE. an opportunity not to be missed. Again I say ALL FREE with lunch thrown in.
Thinking of self-publishing, or helping your publisher sell more of your book?
You need to attend Selling that Book, a practical workshop that sold out in Sydney, Darwin and Airlie Beach!
Publisher Dr David Reiter, cuts through the myths about publishing to reveal strategies for ensuring your book has the best chance of selling out its first edition, and beyond.
Find out how to identify your audiences and then match your writing to what they want.
Gain in-sight into how a keen editorial eye and good design pay dividends.
Learn about what printers want, how to speak their language and ensure you get value for money.
Hear about the latest ways to publish in print and digital form.
See case studies of marketing plans that work and ways to promote and distribute your work without re-mortgaging your house.
to find out a bit more about David check out this linkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_P_Reiter
Selling that Book will take place at Aitkenvale Library at 9am on June 10th. Wednesday, 10 June 2009
Citylibraries Aitkenvale
4 Petunia Street
9 a.m.- 3:30 p.m.
Bookings to: 4727 8310, or
annette.burns@townsville.qld.gov.au
Following this at 4pm will be a free author’s chat held by memoir author Ann Jones, whose book Put the Billy On won the 2008 IP Picks Best Creative Non-Fiction Award. Jones’ book focuses on growing up before and during World War II in the Gulf Country of Far North Queensland. In partnership with the Queensland Narrating Service, IP has also produced an audio version of the book, read by renown Brisbane actor Kaye Stevenson. Ann will discuss the tricks of the trade in turning personal stories into narratives that can engage wider audiences.
To compliment this talk, David Reiter will speak about the risks involved with using real life experiences as the basis for creative writing. He will use his own book, Primary Instinct - a brash expos̩ of the education system Рas a case study.
ALL FREE. an opportunity not to be missed. Again I say ALL FREE with lunch thrown in.
Thinking of self-publishing, or helping your publisher sell more of your book?
You need to attend Selling that Book, a practical workshop that sold out in Sydney, Darwin and Airlie Beach!
Publisher Dr David Reiter, cuts through the myths about publishing to reveal strategies for ensuring your book has the best chance of selling out its first edition, and beyond.
Find out how to identify your audiences and then match your writing to what they want.
Gain in-sight into how a keen editorial eye and good design pay dividends.
Learn about what printers want, how to speak their language and ensure you get value for money.
Hear about the latest ways to publish in print and digital form.
See case studies of marketing plans that work and ways to promote and distribute your work without re-mortgaging your house.
to find out a bit more about David check out this linkhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_P_Reiter
Selling that Book will take place at Aitkenvale Library at 9am on June 10th. Wednesday, 10 June 2009
Citylibraries Aitkenvale
4 Petunia Street
9 a.m.- 3:30 p.m.
Bookings to: 4727 8310, or
annette.burns@townsville.qld.gov.au
Following this at 4pm will be a free author’s chat held by memoir author Ann Jones, whose book Put the Billy On won the 2008 IP Picks Best Creative Non-Fiction Award. Jones’ book focuses on growing up before and during World War II in the Gulf Country of Far North Queensland. In partnership with the Queensland Narrating Service, IP has also produced an audio version of the book, read by renown Brisbane actor Kaye Stevenson. Ann will discuss the tricks of the trade in turning personal stories into narratives that can engage wider audiences.
To compliment this talk, David Reiter will speak about the risks involved with using real life experiences as the basis for creative writing. He will use his own book, Primary Instinct - a brash expos̩ of the education system Рas a case study.
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