Sandy Fussell's Blog, page 25

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So often I hear: I want to write so much. I've got a story to tell but I don't have the time yet.

I understand. I truly do. But as I carefully explain, there never will be time unless you make it. Stay up half an hour later every night. Stuff ten minutes of ideas into a notebook while you are sitting at the bus stop. Time to write isn't born. It's made.

I don't know how often I convince anyone but I think I did once. We were having a conversation mid-panel-break and when the break was over, sh...

Finally getting around to blogging my first workshop experience. I was petrified. But in true Sandy-style I was determined to make it as hard as I possibly could. I signed up for video conferencing. Hey, if you're going to make a fool of yourself first time round, why restrict it to one school? Let two schools have a laugh.
Fortunately for me I had friendly library faces to work with. Mrs Mac at Thirroul Public School and my own children's librarian extroadinaire, Jane Pretty. So lots of...

Being a children's author can be quite confronting. Embarrassing even. The questions some primary students ask range from jaw-dropping to ego shattering. And on other occasions they can make you feel like Master of the (Writing) Universe. I thought I'd blog about one of my MOTWU moments. I don't want to mention the others!!!

Back in June 2008 I was guest of honour at the Henry Lawson Festival of the Arts in Grenfell. Grenfell is a tiny rural town in the central west of NSW, population 2200, th...

No questions are off limits during my school visits. Question time is my favourite part of any session. So often, in answering a question, I learn something about myself and my writing process. Often it's something I already knew - I just didn't give it enough thought before.

Question #1: If you could go back into any one of your books, what one thing would you change?
This is a particularly pertinent question for me. My first five books were released in an 18 month time frame. It was a...

I often talk to upper primary school sudents about the minimalist environment of the 14th century Inuit peoples of Baffin Island who lived above the Arctic Circle. The setting for Polar Boy. So much of what we take for granted - from our lifestyle to the words and images we use to describe things - just doesn't exist there. No trees, no metal, no cotton and little colour. Very little fire.
Seal oil or beluga whale oil were the options for light, warmth and cooking. Oil was burned in a...