It’s been quite a busy few months since the last update, so very briefly here are some things that happened.

• We had a great launch for The Pain, My Mother, Sir Tiffy Cyber Boy and Me at Riverbend Books in Brisbane. A huge thanks to the wonderful Chris Bongers for doing the honours and for everyone who supported the event.

Chris Bongers with many generous words.

Cupcakes!

With Zarkora series authors Nicholas and Alison Lochel

With Joe Bauer and Rita Artmann of ARTSPEAR ENTERTAINMENT

• My awesome daughter the Meg- star married a man whom we also love.

• I spent a terrific week in Perth at St Mark’s Anglican Community School.

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• Along with many other authors, publishers and supporters of the Australia Book Industry  – including Morris Gleitzman – I spoke at the Productivity Commission hearing in support of maintaining the present Parallel Import Restrictions.

• Along with my wife and other members of my family I travelled overseas to stay with my sister at her beautiful home in London and to attend the wedding of her elder son in southern France. Despite a few missed trains, a fantastic few weeks!

My sister’s backyard London

Bath Cathedral

Beetling in England

English Village

“Downton Abbey”/Highclere Castle

Roman Baths – Bath

View from hotel – Bath

Shakespeare’s birthplace

Poor Yorrick! – Stratford

Oxford

Provence

Provence

Avignon

Wedding Reception

Post wedding get together

The Eel Pie Church St Twickenham

Wherwell Village

Anne Hathaway’s Cottage

• Son Joe (illustrator for the Eric Vale and Derek ‘Danger’ Dale series) and daughter-in-law Rita’s hilarious independent sci-fi comedy AUSTRALIENS was released in the USA in July by Midnight Releasing and a special limited Blu-ray edition was also released in Australia by Monster Pictures who are distributing the Australian and UK dvd version. The film has been receiving a lot of great reviews which it certainly deserves. Congratulations to everyone who contributed to the making of the film. See ARTSPEAR ENTERTAINMENT for all of Joe and Rita’s other projects.

• As for my writing, I had some good news regarding the official ‘go ahead’ for my next publication. I’m excited by this because it’s different from anything I’ve done before. More on that later.

That’s about it as far as highlights go. I have a quiet couple of weeks ahead of me before a busy 5 weeks or so of school visits around Brisbane, up in Rockhampton and Townsville and down in Melbourne. I also have three days at the Brisbane Writers Festival and a brief appearance at the Melbourne Writers Festival where I’ll be chairing a panel for the Wilderness Society featuring Graeme Base and Aunty Joy Murphy.

As far as writing goes I hope to start on a new YA novel soon. My only problem is that I have the skeletons of three possible story ideas fighting it out for attention in my head – a serious drama, a romantic comedy and a dystopian adventure. Not sure which one to commit to. Any thoughts?

Till the next blog.

Cheers
Michael