Michael Gerard Bauer Author

blog 50: In which what happens in Charleville doesn’t stay in Charleville.

Posted on May 31, 2013 by mgbauer

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of spending a couple of days in the Queensland country town of Charleville.

I flew there with fellow author and friend Chris Bongers (Dust, Henry Hoey Hobson, Drongoes) to be part of the inaugural St Mary’s Primary School Writers’ Festival.

Chris and I arrived in Charleville via a touchdown in Roma on Sunday afternoon. You could tell we were City Folk. We were the only ones taking photos of the kangaroos from the airport car park.

As soon as we arrived our lovely host Dom Gardiner the Teacher Librarian for Charleville, Cunnamulla and Quilpie took us on a quick tour of the Town including a stop at the beautiful and historic Hotel Corones before dropping us at our accommodation. We stayed at the Mulga Inn which was very nice although I thought perhaps my kitchen facilities left a bit to be desired.*

(* Point of Clarification: The photo above is NOT one of the kitchen facilities in my unit at The Mulga Inn. It is in fact an attempt at humour – yes, I know, hard to believe isn’t it? The photo was actually taken at the Charleville Historic House. Just thought I’d point that out in case I got sued by the Mulga Inn where the rooms were lovely, the people friendly, the service spot on and the meals huge & hearty!)

The next morning after a huge & hearty dinner and an equally huge & hearty breakfast we headed off for St Mary’s Primary just down the road.

The Festival itself was a one day event involving Grades 1 to 7. Apart from Chris and me, local picture book creators Michelle Sheehan and Donna Reynolds (The Flood Grungies), local Poet Majella Stapleton (Back to the Warrego) and writing legend and winner of the 2012 Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature Herb Wharton, also attended.

And as well as the students from St Mary’s Charleville, some students from Sacred Heart Primary in Cunnamulla and St Finbarr’s Primary in Quilpie travelled around 200 kms to be part of the day!

It was a wonderful day and the kids and the teachers were fantastic. I was however just a little disappointed by the turn out for my sessions …

Chris had much more success in drawing a crowd. Here she is about to strangle a student …

After the Festival our host Dom kindly (some might say foolishly) lent us her car and Chris and I set out to see some of the sights of Charleville.

The great thing about driving in Charleville is that the streets are very wide. They were built like that because in the past they needed to be wide enough to allow a full bullock team of 12 bullocks and two drays to turn around!

As a result it’s very easy to do U-turns in Charleville streets and that can lead to in-car conversations like this:

CHRIS: What are you doing?
ME: Another U-turn.
CHRIS: Why?
ME: Because I CAN!

Anyway, after numerous U-turns our first stop was the STIGER VORTEX CANNONS!!!!!

In 1902 “renowned meteorologists and self-confessed rain-maker” Clement Wragge arrived in Charleville with his vortex cannons to try to end a long and crippling drought by firing ‘rain producing gas’ into the atmosphere. The townsfolk said it was “a crazy scheme that just might work!”

Sadly as it turned out, they were only half right.

In the photo above you can see one of the big Vortex cannons that were used while the one I’m posing with is the much more convenient Vortex-mini – “For the modern rain-maker on the go!”

Next we headed to the nearby parklands.

There I immediately showed my untapped potential as a Tractor Model by trying out for Mr August in the much-anticipated Hunks and Tractors Calendar.

Meanwhile Chris stumbled upon the Oldest Coffee Making Machine in the Southern Hemisphere!

Then we jumped back into our car and armed with a steely determination, careful pre-planning, a detailed map, in-car GPS and a town with very few streets, we somehow managed to drive to the wrong place.

Eventually however we did find what we were looking for – the new walkway beside the Warrego River and the flood levees. When we got there the levees were dry and those good old boys were drinking … no wait on, that’s something else.

Here’s a picture of me pretending to be striding out manfully beside the Warrego River when really I’m just walking up and down on the spot like an idiot.

And here’s a photo I took of Chris just before I realised she was slowly sinking into the mud …

SAM_1808

Tragically, seconds later …

That night following a huge & hearty meal at the RSL we were looking forward to viewing the heavens at the Cosmos Centre and Observatory which was just near our Hotel but unfortunately even though the weather was beautiful during the day, the clouds rolled in at night and the viewing was cancelled.

We also would have loved to have been able to visit the Charleville Bilby Experience but opening times just didn’t fit with our stay.

We also missed out on this!

Not to worry. In the morning there was still time before our flight home to see a few final local attractions.

First stop after a coffee at Heinemann’s Bakery was just down the road at the MAGISTRATES COURT! Luckily Dom’s husband Terry is the Magistrate.

On the way there we met this little guy …

Isn’t he GORGEOUS! I think his name was Polly. I didn’t catch the name of the Parrot.

We learned heaps from Terry during our tour of the Magistrates Court Building. For example, did you know that in the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: the police who investigate crime and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders. These are … no wait on, that’s something else too …

Never mind. Of course everyone knows that the very best thing about visiting a real live court room are the PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES!

There’s the ‘accused in the docks’ photo …

“Honest Your Honour we had no idea there was a limit to how many U-turns you can do in the main street of Charleville!”

There’s the ‘member of the jury’ photo …

“What do you mean the other jury members have retired to consider their verdict! What’s to consider! They’re guilty as hell! Sixteen U-turns and all without a bullock dray. Besides, their eyes are too close together!”

The ‘Defence Attorney objecting’ photo …

“Your honor, ladies and gentlemen of the jury. For the past twenty minutes I have sat idly by while my worthy opponent, the prosecuting attorney has stood up here and made a complete jackass out of himself. Now it’s MY turn. Now it’s easy for the prosecuting attorney to stand up here and accuse me of all these horrible crimes. It’s easy for him, he’s got PROOF. But what about me?” (c) Agent 86 Get Smart TV series.

And finally the ‘Approaching the Bench/Plea Bargain’ photo …

“Look Your Honour, I’m willing to take a substantial fine in return for you giving the clown I’m with 12 hours in the Lock-up. Anything to avoid having to sit next to him on the flight home.”

Eventually we were forced to leave the Court Room because apparently some criminals needed to use it. Whatever happened to the rights of law-abiding citizens I say!

Last stop before the airport was back up the street to the Charleville Historic House and Museum.

There was so much to see here – machinery, clothes, appliances, furniture, artefacts etc etc – although I thought some of it was a bit dated. They should think about getting in more modern, up-to-date, state-of-the-art historical stuff.

During our visit we also had the pleasure of being entertained by some excellent didgeridoo playing …

The man who talked to us and played the didgeridoo wasn’t keen on his photo being on facebook but I’m hoping this shot will be ok.

Chris earned some extra cash as a switch-board operator. One ringy-dingy …

We met some interesting people. He works in something to do with car safety and she’s a model of some sort …

And we saw this …

It’s either a big burl from a gum tree or a giant wad of used chewing gum discovered under a seat when they tore down the old Charleville Picture Theatre. I can’t remember which.

Anyway pretty soon our time was up and we had to make the short drive to the airport where we dropped off Dom’s car …

… and boarded our plane for the 750 kms flight back to Brissie.

Thus endeth my first ever visit to Charleville and this massive blog!

Charleville is a great place. I loved it. A big thanks to the lovely Dom for inviting us to the Festival and for her friendship and generosity. And of course a special thanks to Chris for being such a wonderful and hilarious travelling companion. You can find out more about Chris and her books and hear her side of the Charleville story on her terrific author page HERE.

Cheers

Michael

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Charleville, Chris Bongers, Drongoes, Dust, Henry Hoey Hobson, Hotel Corones, Warrego River | 18 Comments

blog 49: In which I tell the tale of Eric Vale.

Posted on May 2, 2013 by mgbauer

Ever wondered about the story behind the inspiration, creation and development of the ERIC VALE series?

No?

Well bad luck, because that’s what this blog is going to be all about!

Strangely enough, the whole Eric Vale series owes its very existence to my inability to type properly. As it happened, one day when I was writing a comment on my daughter Meg’s facebook page about something being an ‘epic fail’, I accidentally typed ‘eric fail’.

Yes I had an epic fail with my epic fail!

After Meg pointed my error out to me we started to refer to mistakes as Eric Fails. And that led to me thinking about a boy whose name unfortunately sounded like epic fail.

Some time later my publisher asked me if I had any ideas for a book for younger readers. As I was planning to write a serious YA book my answer was, ‘No, not really. Except maybe I’ve got a title – Eric Vale Epic Fail.’ I thought it could be a story about a boy who gets the nickname Epic Fail and because of that things start going wrong for him and so he has to have some kind of an Epic Win to set them right.’

My ever-wise and supportive publisher Dyan Blacklock saw potential in that idea, so she encouraged me to think about it a bit more, and the rest as they say, is the fairly recent past.

It’s hard to believe that three books and the incredibly wonderful experience of working with my son, all came about because I typed one wrong letter. I’m constantly amazed at the tiny, seemingly insignificant things, that can sometimes grow into stories.

Dedication for Eric Vale Epic Fail

The other thing I mentioned to my publisher back then was that I’d love to do something with my son Joe because as well as being an amazing film-maker (script-writer, director, actor, editor, special effects etc) I said he was also brilliant at cartoons and illustrating. My publisher knew a bit about Joe because he had created the original covers for Don’t Call Me Ishmael and Ishmael and the Return of the Dugongs, but I’m sure my claims just sounded like an over-proud and very biased dad talking.

Joe putting together the shot for the cover for Ishmael and the Return of the Dugongs on a local squash court.

Joe creating the original DCM Ishmael cover when he was in Grade 12.

But I was confident that if he was given the chance, Joe could do a brilliant job at illustrating a story.

And I had years of evidence to support this belief.

Joe and his older sister Meg had been drawing pretty amazing things ever since they could hold a pencil. When Joe was at pre-school and other kids were doing stick figures, he was drawing anatomically correct dinosaurs. At one point he started a project where he was attempting to draw and label – with their scientific names – every type of dinosaur bone known to man!

Joe and big sister Meg. Drawing was an everyday activity.

We have boxes filled with Meg and Joe’s illustrated stories. When he was a bit older Joe started drawing cartoon strips. He was in Grade Three (8 years old) when he created and completed The Adventures of Mr Reasonable – an epic comic adventure that went for 34 detailed pages.

Mr Reasonable cover

One of the 34 pages of The Adventures of Mr Reasonable. A modern classic!

Joe also did some very perceptive family portraits, including this one. I think he was 12 years old.

And without any formal art training he seemed to be able to create fantastic sculptures as well. Here are some he made for me over the years.

Even though I like to think that some of Meg and Joe’s artistic ability came from me …

My failed attempt from many years back to write and illustrate a picture book. It was about a boy called Joseph who liked to draw and was obsessed with dinosaurs and dreamed of discovering one of his own. Gee, I wonder where I got THAT idea from????

… but the real source of their talent was their grandfather, my wife’s father Ben.

Ben earned his living painting houses and hanging wall paper and crafting beautiful things for people, but he was also a very talented artist and sculptor and a perfectionist in everything he did. He spent lots of time with Joe and Meg teaching them the finer points of drawing and illustrating. I dedicated the second Ishmael book to Ben.

To my father-in-law
L.P.J. ‘Ben’ van Schyndel (1925 -2006)
Master tradesman, artist, philosopher, knight in shining white overalls
and tireless promoter of my books
With love and thanks

Joe with his late grandfather Ben.

One of Ben’s sculptures – The Inquisitor.

Ben self-portrait.

As Joe got older he filled book after book up with his cartoons, jokes and funny ideas for stories. He even did a cartoon strip for Pizza Capers based on their mascot Wedgy.

Joe’s main passion of course is film-making so he also draws detailed storyboards for his films. They are works of art in themselves. Below are two pages from the 166 page storyboard for the first feature film he and his partner Rita made, a horror/comedy called The Killage.

So back when I told my publisher that I thought Joe would do a better job illustrating my books than any other illustrator she could offer me, I really meant it. (And having seen the finished products I wouldn’t want anyone but Joe to illustrate the books).

My publisher however was understandably and rightfully dubious. Joe would certainly have to prove himself. There was no way in the world he would be given the important task of illustrating an entire book if he wasn’t up to it. He was on trial.

The first step in the journey towards the publication of what would ultimately become Eric Vale Epic Fail was that I wrote a brief sample story about a boy called Eric Vale who had an overactive imagination. I built it around some rough cartoons Joe had drawn in the past which I just cut and pasted into the text. It was pretty basic and looked nothing like the eventual story. For example in this version Eric is the drawer of the cartoons. This is not the case in Eric Vale Epic Fail where Eric is a writer of an action adventure tale about Secret Agent Derek ‘Danger’ Dale, rather than an artist.

After the publisher saw the sample she suggested that I should try to write the full Eric Vale Epic Fail story first and if it was successful then Joe would be given a chance at illustrating it. When the ms was finished and accepted, Joe submitted his character designs. Below are some initial ones. Some characters (eg Chewy and Tyrone) were eventually changed or toned down a bit, but when the publishers saw these, I think they began to understand my confidence in Joe’s ability.

Initial character sketches.

Revised character sketches.

The first time I saw the initial 25 pages of Eric Vale Epic Fail complete with Joe’s illustrations, I was blown away. So were the publishers. It was much better than either of us expected. And I expected it to be great!

Suddenly my story was at least twice as good and twice as funny. Joe wasn’t just bringing the action and characters to life, he was using the text to create his own jokes and plays on words and funny asides (as well as plenty of film references!). I loved it! Needless to say Joe got the gig and even though he drew far more cartoons than expected, he still completed the 186 fully illustrated pages on time despite a very tight timeline. An amazing effort for a first time book illustrator.

The text Joe receives.

Same text with Joe’s illustrations added.

Poem by the character of Chewy.

Chewy’s poem after Joe has added the illustrations.

So the writing process for each of the Eric Vale books has gone like this:

1. I decide on a rhyming title (with the aid of many helpful and creative suggestions from Joe and my wife Adrie) that I think I can fit a potential story under.

2. I write the manuscript of around 20,000 words.

3. The publisher edits and typesets the ms in a handwritten-style font.

4. Joe is sent these typeset pages with the brief to fill in the white spaces on the page as creatively and humorously as he can.

There is some general discussion between Joe and me about each Eric Vale story, but unlike Joe’s (cruelly life-like) illustration of us below, we tend to work quite separately on our individual parts of the project. Luckily though we share the same sense of humour and understanding of the characters so it all seems to fit together perfectly.

It really is a dream come true to work on a project like this with Joe. He has every bit of his grandfather’s talent and attention to detail and his drawings and jokes make me laugh out loud. I also love writing scenes and storylines that I know Joe will enjoy illustrating. As a big fan of the Batman Dark Knight and Indiana Jones films I knew he would love the superhero theme of Eric Vale Super Male. And as an equally big fan of films like Alien, Independence Day and Star Wars, I knew the extraterrestrial theme of Eric Vale Off The Rails would be right up his alley.

Speaking of films and extraterrestrial beings, recently Joe and his partner Rita (Artspear Entertainment) have been extremely busy filming their second feature film, a sci-fi comedy called AUSTRALIENS . You can see a brief teaser for the film here. As soon as Joe completes the illustrations for Eric Vale Off The Rails he will be spending all his waking hours working on the post-production and special effects work for the film.

Rita and Joe filming AUSTRALIENS

And if you haven’t seen it yet, Joe finally got to combine his illustration and film-making skills when he made the wonderful trailer for Eric Vale Epic Fail. You can check it out HERE.

That’s about it. If I can drag Joe away from his film work at some stage there may be a fourth Eric Vale in the future or even a stand alone Secret Agent Derek ‘Danger’ Dale story or perhaps some other new and exciting project. I hope so. It is always a joy to work with my far-more-talented son. Besides, he makes me look good!

(Now I just have to find a way to work with my super talented daughter Meg. The only trouble is, she can already write me under the table!)

Cheers
Michael

Below are some further links to things Eric as well as some miscellaneous photos that might be of interest.

Teachers Notes for Eric Vale Epic Fail.
Teachers Notes for Eric Vale Super Male.
Kids Book Review.
Children’s Books Daily Review.
Bookseller + Publisher Review.
Readplus Review.
The Way We Work: Joe and I interviewed about the creation of Eric Vale here.

COMING SOON!

Joe’s character sketch poster of all the cast and crew of AUSTRALIENS. Can you find me and my wife Adrie in there as MIB Agents?

Joe and Rita promoting AUSTRALIENS with a well- known Australian.

Joe in his alien make-up.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Artspear Entertainment, Australiens, Don't Call Me Ishmael, Eric Vale Epic Fail, Eric Vale Off The Rails, Eric Vale Super Male, Illustrator, Ishmael and the Return of the Dugongs, Joe Bauer, Michael Gerard Bauer, Rita Artmann, The Killage, Writing Process | 2 Comments

blog 48: In which I bring you up to speed with what’s been slowing me down. (This one’s especially for you Gabbie.)

Posted on April 27, 2013 by mgbauer

In my last post I proudly and boldly announced that I had “returned with a fierce determination to write often and incisively on the big issues“.

Then two months passed without a word.

That’s right. I totally suck at fierce determination.

However I’m willing to give it another go!

Now my publisher did ask me to write something on the background to the ERIC VALE series of books but before I write that blog, I thought I’d just bring you up to speed on what I’ve been doing since my last post and try to justify my two months of blogging silence. Sound good? What? Oh, right. Really? Well it’s my page and I’m still going to do it whether you like it or not!

Well shortly after I wrote my last blog (Remember that? It was back in the Mesozoic Era.) I attended the Kids’ Lit Quiz in Ipswich. I was there as part of a writers’ team with these three talented and lovely people – Chris Bongers, Brian Falkner and Narelle Oliver. It was a heap of fun. And we actually got some questions right! (Mainly the ones about our own books though)

Following that I had a week visiting some lovely schools in Adelaide, followed by a week visiting lovely schools here in Brisbane, followed by four days in Sydney where I visited Inaburra School in the Shire and took part in the Newington Festival, both of which were also lovely!

At Newington I caught up with many amazing author/illustrator friends including:

Archie Fusillo and Barry Heard.

Barry Jonsberg and Richard Harland.

And Scot Gardner and Michael Pryor. In this photo, Scot has just been told he would be appearing on my blog.

Then I went to Western Australia for three weeks doing writing workshops for The Literature Centre (TLC) with young writers from around the state. During my time there I met so many enthusiastic and talented students and it was a real pleasure to work with them. Some of the students had been doing the Talented Young Writers program for three or four years and therefore had attended workshops from over a dozen of the country’s top writers. Then tragically their luck ran out and they got me.

First up I flew to Perth and then Lesley Reece of The Literature Centre and I flew from Perth way up north to Port Hedland for a day of writing workshops at Hedland Senior High School.

While in Hedland I also managed to save an unsuspecting tourist from this rogue croc. No please, it was nothing.

Then we had a five hour taxi drive inland (!) to Newman for two days of workshops at Newman Senior High School.

Our wonderful taxi driver Mick.

From Newman lookout overlooking the town.

How’d you like to change one of these bad boys? They do things BIG in Newman!

Then we flew back to The Literature Centre in Fremantle which is located in the Renovated Hospital Wing of the Old Fremantle Prison. This is where I spent the Easter long weekend … all alone.

At night when I turned off the lights I swear I could hear groans of anguish, the gnashing of teeth, the rattling of chains, and the outpouring of foul-mouthed abuse.

And that was just me!

The Literature Centre Fremantle

View of the old Guard Tower from the front door of where I was staying.

My room in TLC with original picture book drawings on the wall.

Where I ran Writing Workshops at TLC.

While I was in Fremantle over Easter I got to visit the fabulous Markets and get a bite to eat.

Is my seafood paella almost ready? Maybe I should have ordered the ‘small’?

And I also got to see some terrific performers as part of the Annual Fremantle Street Festival. There were huge crowds everywhere in Freo over the three days of the long weekend. What a fantastic event.

After Easter we flew to Geraldton for two days of workshops and there I had the great pleasure of meeting author Glyn Parry who is the teacher-librarian at Geraldton Senior College. Glyn was also our hilarious and very generous tour guide.

Geraldton provided more stunning landscapes.

And seascapes …

Then finally we flew to Albany for two more days of workshops, this time at Great Southern Grammar School but sadly I forgot to take any photos so you’ll just have to imagine how beautiful that place was.

After that it was home to Brisbane!

For 5 days.

THEN I had a trip away doing one day Literary Festivals at Boys Grammar and Girls Grammar in Rockhampton as well as at Emerald North State School. The trip was organised by Paul Collins of Ford Street Publishing and Elaine Ouston of Morris Publishing and involved 10 authors and illustrators. As well as Paul and Elaine, there was Julie Fison, Judith Rossell, Kevin Burgemeestre, Susanne Gervay, Krista Bell, Meredith Costain and Royce Bond. A great bunch of people and lots of laughs were had along the way!

With from left Julie Fison, Krista Bell and Jude Rossell.

And of course everyone, especially Susanne Gervay, was overjoyed to meet me.

We also met lots of lovely students and teachers and saw some beautiful locations especially around Keppel Bay.

We even made the Rockhampton Bulletin. See here.

As you can see it’s been a packed, at times draining, but ultimately an amazing and enjoyable two months. And I only really scratched the surface with this overview.

Which is why I’ve been so slack with my blogging of late.

Cheers
Michael

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Archie Fisillo, Barry Heard, Barry Jonsberg, Brian Faulkner, Chris Bongers, Elaine Ouston, Eric Vale, Geraldton, Glyn Parry, Judith Rossell, Julie Fison, Kevin Burgemeestre, Krista Bell, Meredith Costain, Narelle Oliver, Newington Festival, Newman, Paul Collins, Port Hedland, Richard Harland, Royce Bond, Scot Gardner. Michael Pryor, Susanne Gervay, The Literature Centre Fremantle | 11 Comments

blog 47: In which I get back into the game!

Posted on February 11, 2013 by mgbauer

It’s been far too long since I’ve blogged, however never fear. I have now returned with a fierce determination to write often and incisively on the big issues that confront us all on a daily basis, and fearlessly addressing them in a way that cuts right through to the beating heart of what it means to be a human being living on Planet Earth in the 21st Century.

Failing that, I’ll just rabbit on about things and make stuff up as usual.

First up – a brief recap of recent history to bring us up-to-date.

Well, 2012 finished in a frenzy of activity for me with the release of Eric Vale Epic Fail and the writing of the next two stories in the series. (Eric Vale Super Male comes out in Australia in April). So far EVEF has received some lovely reviews, none more epically lovely than THIS ONE.

Then Christmas came …

… and went.

Then it was a new year and following a long-honoured tradition they called it one more than the last year, and it became 2013. That’s about when my writing motivation and inspiration went into self-imposed hibernation, had a near death experience and has only just begun to emerge with sleepy eyes, bad breath and hibernation hair, back into the world.

One exciting thing that has happened so far this year already has been that my son Joe (who illustrates the Eric Vale series) and his partner Rita completed the shooting of their second feature film Australiens. It’s a comedy sci-fi about an alien invasion of Australia – specifically Brisbane. (My wife catered for a lot of the filming and she and I have tiny non-speaking roles as MIB agents.)

You can find out all about Australiens HERE as well as see hundreds and hundreds of fantastic photos from the shoot and read about other amazing Artspear productions. You could also watch this TEASER.

Another exciting thing was that my wife and I got to spend a few days in Melbourne with our beautiful and talented daughter Meg.

Also since I last blogged Templar Publishing UK have posted trailers for each book in the Ishmael series here, here, here, and there. (WARNING: Extreme close-ups of my face may upset some viewers!)

And for anyone who might like the Ishmael Series, I’ve set up a special facebook page THE ISHMAEL TRILOGY – MICHAEL GERARD BAUER. This page contains a never-ending supply of quotes, trivia, little known facts, photos, competitions, news and links about all things Ishmael. If you’re an ISHMAELITE, you could do worse than ‘LIKE’ the page!

If you want more general news about me and my writing, there’s always my facebook author page at MICHAEL GERARD BAUER AUTHOR.

OK, I think that brings us fairly much up to date now.

The rest of the year ahead is already looking exciting and busy.

Just a Dog has been out in the US for a few months and seems to going well, so hopefully that will continue.
Some further overseas editions of my books will be coming out this year so I’ll post about them when they do.
Eric Vale Epic Fail will be travelling to overseas bookfairs early on in the year, so my fingers (and Joe’s) are crossed that it finds some new homes. The lovely and awesome folk at Hanser in Germany are already taking it on.
As well as visiting a lot of schools in and around Brisbane, so far this year I am also travelling to Adelaide (three times), Sydney, Western Australia (Albany, Geraldton, Port Headland, Newman & Fremantle with The Literature Centre), Rockhampton, Yeppoon, Emerald & Cairns Qld, Wangaratta Vic, and Melbourne (twice, including the MWF) doing school visits and festivals.
And as far as new writing goes, apart from some smaller pieces, my main focus this year hopefully will be on a serious young adult novel – the one I was supposed to write last year before three Eric Vales took over my life!

Finally, if you’re looking for a great book to read (and who isn’t?), then hot off the presses, I highly recommend MY LIFE AS AN ALPHABET by the amazing Barry Jonsberg.

Cheers all
Michael.