Hello Darwin!
I arrived a few days early for Romance Writers of Australia’s annual conference last month to soak in the warmth of Darwin and spend time on my writing. My ‘city view’ room turned out to be a ‘waterfront view’ - what a win!
What could possibly go wrong?
A writing desk was by the window, and when I was struck half-way through the conference with a devastating 48-hour migraine (#OMG), I was grateful for the darkness of my hotel room and the fresh air and beauty outside the window.
More on that later, and more about conference now.
Cocktail Party
I struggle with sensory overload, so this year I came prepared with ear ‘loops’ to help me concentrate on conversations and mute loud background noises.
However, while the cocktail party was in full swing, I was taxiing to the Urgent Care Clinic in Darwin, to have one of the loops extracted from inside my ear canal (a very uncomfortable predicament, and not where it should be).
I managed to arrive back for the last 15 minutes of the cocktail party. Noise level wasn’t a problem as most conference-goers had left.
Saturday sessions
I was up early, the events of Friday night behind me, feeling great and excited for the conference to begin!
This is a rundown of the sessions I attended:
Preparing to Pitch - Sarah Younger, Executive Agent at Nancy Yost Literary Agency, was a fantastic speaker and had so much great pitching advice for everyone. I took copious notes.
Finding Your Why and Unlocking Your Voice - Renae Black and Emma Muggleston’s workshop was based on Simon Sinek’s 'Start with Why' philosophy. A really thought provoking session, that prompted me to explore the ‘why’ in my own writing.
Hooked from the Very First Page - Crafting Irresistible Openings - I hung onto Sandy Barker’s every word because opening chapters are not my strong suit and I need all the help, tips and tricks I can get. I know I love a hooky opening and I want to be able to write one. Every. Single. Time.
Let’s Get Practical! Instagram for Authors - Georgia Moore does Instagram like a pro, and this workshop blew my mind. A wealth of knowledge, she introduced us to a whole world of functionality, I never knew existed. Can’t wait to put it all into practice.
The Hook Test: Find Out Why Publishers and Agents Stop Reading - This was a fun and really informative session where author and voice artist Catherine Bilson read out anonymous member pitches. Publisher, Ali Watts from Penguin Random House, and Agents Chloe Berry and Sarah Younger responded on why they would or wouldn’t have stopped reading.
The Gala Dinner.
Bright lights, pink tones and a pulsing heart on the wide screen. Sensory overload to the max, but oh what a fun night. The highlight for me is always celebrating the achievements of aspiring, emerging and established writers. I left, as always, feeling so inspired.
Sunday Sessions:
And that was it! 3am I woke in agony - a migraine. I was devastated and couldn’t get up for the start of conference. My medication didn’t work. Sunday was a blur and mostly spent in my hotel room in bed, curtains drawn.
How I wish we lived in a world where I could turn back time, remove the migraine, and revisit all the sessions on the Sunday.
Book appreciation…
This month was a huge turning point in reading for me. I dipped my toe into the world of audio books.
My TBR pile was wobbly and threatening to topple over. Eye strain and persistent migraines constantly frustrate my desire to read as much as I’d like to. So, I finally ‘gave in’ and downloaded the library app ‘Borrow Box’ to see what all this ‘audio book’ fuss was about.
I chose a short book for my ‘test’ listen: Three Days in June by Anne Tyler, and wow! Beautifully and gently narrated. The perfect book to introduce me to a different way of ‘reading’ without eyestrain and headaches. I’m addicted!
Did I say, ‘I dipped my toe in?’ More like dove in headfirst! What an audio listening month this was.
Notes from a Podcast Junkie…
So You Want to Be a Writer hosted by Valerie Khoo
This podcast drops every Tuesday. How do I know this? I heave a big sigh of relief when I see it appear in my Podcast feed right on time.
Valerie makes me laugh!
Could that be a better reason to listen to a Podcast (aside from all the talk about books and writing)? Valerie is the CEO of the Australian Writers Centre and her passion for words, writing and supporting writers shines through. I'm pretty sure it’s on every aspiring writer’s bucket list to be interviewed on this podcast one day - I know it’s on mine.
I enjoy the author interviews immensely, but word nerd that I am, the smaller segments, like ‘word of the week’ are gold. I also hang out for Nat’s writing tip and an update on her creative life (which is jam packed, and so varied). The banter between Valerie and Nat is sometimes hilarious, always fascinating and a must listen to.
What I’m looking forward to…
Come October 1, I’ll be joining another group of Write Till Christmas writers again, where we’ll set writing goals to achieve by the 25 December 2026. We’ll have zoom catch ups and writing sprints and motivate each other to hit our writing goals! Can’t wait!