Another podcast? Yes! I’ve teamed up with two of my fellow coordinators at Yarra Plenty Regional Library – Sarah Schmidt and Patrick Jovaras – to create a podcast all helping readers through their reading conundrums. The project grew from our Book Valet service, where library members fill in a short…
Read MoreMy favourite books of the year all stand out for their exceptional writing, their ability to draw me in to the world they create or explore, the way they haunt me after I read them (that can be in a positive or negative way) and the desire I have to…
Read MoreThis was a blockbuster year of reading for me. Over 100 books across most genres. But as we all know, it’s not how many you read that matters, it is whether you managed to find books that made your heart sing or kept you up late into the night or…
Read MoreIt was a pleasure to be a part of this discussion as part of The Other Film Festival, in partnership with Arts Acces Victoria which took place at The Wheeler Centre about two of my passions and how they intersect; climate change and disability politics. Chaired by Fiona Tuomy, featuring…
Read MoreWhen I finished up at the Centre for Youth Literature at State Library Victoria I promised myself (and my family) that I’d take six months off to recover from the burnout that came with doing a job where I had put 110% of myself into my work for so long…
Read MoreA new episode of the podcast is available now via iTunes and all your regular podcast services! In this episode I speak with award-winning Young Adult author Ellie Marney about her experiences raising four boys in regional Victoria. We chat about the isolating experience of motherhood in the western context,…
Read MoreIt was a pleasure to be asked to return as a judge again this year for the Darebin Mayor’s Writing Prize. The theme this year was ‘lucky’ and I was struck by how many of the entries had themes of climate change, near misses, appreciating our natural environment and mental…
Read MoreI published this article on SBS this week about trying to understand a disorder at the opposite end of the minimalist spectrum. Both Marie Kondo and Hoarders ask: how much of the stuff surrounding us do we really need? In an age of consumer culture, fast fashion and single-use plastics,…
Read MoreI’ve written about the importance of primary school aged children being able to understand and respect personal boundaries. Being a good person, and a good friend is about more than just not being a bully. If we only focus on teaching young people how not to take part in bullying…
Read MoreIt’s bittersweet to be exiting the Centre for Youth Literature a little over a year since I first joined the team. I came on board for a short-term three month contract and as is often the way with contracts, it was extended. In my time at CYL I’ve worked on…
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