This is a snippet from a brief talk I’ll be giving at the SA Writers Centre this Thursday on the subject of what editors do. Whenever I tell people I’m a book editor, and the conversation doesn’t swiftly move on, their first question is usually, ‘So what do editors do?’ Their tone is that of […]
By Vikki Wakefield One of the questions most commonly asked of a writer is: where do you get your ideas from? Short answer: ideas are everywhere. An idea is the brilliant start to everything, a comet of the imagination, a blazing possibility that will fizzle and die if you don’t pay it some attention. The […]
By Lia Weston As writers, one of the few statements we can probably all agree on is that art is subjective. There’s wriggle room within that definition, too; you can appreciate (or learn to appreciate in some cases) the work that goes into a particular piece even if you can’t stand the end result. I, […]
By Malcolm Walker Continued on from this previous post …The psychological motivation of characters can also have a bearing when thinking up names. If a particular character is serious or frivolous, sensitive or uncaring, happy or sad, does the name you settle upon reflect or enhance these traits or does it work against the grain? […]
By Malcolm Walker Shakespeare asks, ‘What’s in a name?’ and answers by telling us roses smell sweet whatever they are called. But Tim Winton’s character Rose Pickles out of Cloudstreet is anything but sweet: her character comes fully armed with thorns for most of the story – even though she softens towards the end of […]
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