Category: Uncategorized
-
In the midst of roadworks …
I am trapped inside the house by giant machines today and although it’s beautiful spring weather and I have an urge to visit the beach, see the ocean, feel the sand, the furtherest I can go is my own back yard. (a somewhat noisy, smelly place atm and not at all beachy) But sunlight is…
-
Kay Nielsen
I’ve discovered the beautiful illustrations of Kay Rasmus Nielsen, at first through Brain Pickings and then onwards and upwards through the internet. Nielsen’s illustrations are strange, wonderful, fragile creations. This one is from East of the Sun and West of the Moon: Old Tales from the North. Its text is ‘The Troll was quite willing,…
-
Daisy Tintania
This skeletal but well-dressed lady from artist Michael Thomas reminds me a lot of my character Daisy Tintania in What the Dead Said. So much so, I’ve had some cards printed up and I’ll be handing them out at Galaxy Bookshop in Sydney on 30 August as part of a book signing. Fellow Dragonfall author…
-
Choices
Have you made a choice that you feel defines your life? Not necessarily something big, but something that says: this is me. Have you made a choice you deeply regret? Do you feel that any one action can define a person? Does a choice made when younger “count” when you are older? These are all…
-
A review of The Remnants
John Hughes’ The Remnants requires much of a reader. It requires thought, perseverance and a certain stamina, but it is not without its rewards. The central story is taken from a father’s papers – diaries, notebooks and a manuscript – found and translated by his son. The book presents snippets from these sources with a…
-
Book signing
I’ll be signing copies of What the Dead Said at Galaxy Bookshop (upstairs at 131 York Street, Sydney) on Thursday 30 August from 6-7pm. Fellow Dragonfall Press author Gary Stowe will be there too. Come and say hi!
-
Sydney Story Factory opens its Martian Embassy
The Sydney Story Factory is about to open its new premises in Redfern. I’m one of the many volunteer tutors who help kids tell stories of all kinds and I’m looking forward to working in this wonderful new space. The SSF was founded by Cath Keenan and Tim Dick, drawing on inspiration from 826 Valencia,…
-
Things large and small
I’ve recently discovered and been entranced by the Scale of the Universe 2. When you enter the site you come in at the level of a human – or if you prefer, a Dodo. You can scroll down past ants, bacteria, molecules and atoms to quantum foam or scroll up past blue whales and planets,…
-
Directives
With apologies to the wonderous Neil Gaiman, I offer these less sage – but perhaps still necessary – directives for life in the science fictional universe. Trust the pilot with the old and rusted machine, nothing new and shiny is likely to work. Wormholes and alternative timelines may look like an easy way out of…
-
Black Juice
This is my second review for the Australian Women Writers Challenge: Margo Lanagan’s short story collection, Black Juice. Lanagan’s worlds are not necessarily places you would want to visit. They are strange and often monstrous. Horrifying angels – noisy, smelly, unknowable – inhabit once place. Terrifying creatures erupt from the ground in another. Alien creatures…
DJ Daniels 