I’m thrilled to announce that I’ve signed a contract with Penguin Random House Australia for a new novel. Frustratingly, that’s as much information as I can give you right now! …
News, reviews + interviews (August 2019)
You might need a cup of tea for this one… August has been a crazy-busy month, featuring planes, trains and automobiles, Book Week, the MS Readathon, the first Your Kid’s …
News, reviews + interviews [June]
I used to blog every day. Can you believe that? I can’t. I find it particularly difficult to imagine in months like this, where weeks fly by like hours and …
Industry Insider: 10 steps for writing Teachers’ Notes
Being presented with the teachers’ notes for your novel is one of the great joys of being a children’s author. Teachers’ notes are a curriculum-linked resource for a novel, offering …
Meet ‘So You Want To Be A Writer’ the BOOK
It’s been a big year for the So You Want To Be A Writer podcast team! Not only have we screamed past the ONE MILLION download mark (you’ll find my …
Celebrating my 10th anniversary: 10 favourite posts from 10 years of blogging
Ten years ago I started a blog. In the decade that followed my first terrible post (which disappeared in a blog clean-up some years ago), I have written hundreds and …
The Book Of Secrets + The Book Of Answers out now in the US!
Welcome to 2019! I hope you’ve had a fantastic and very restful holiday break. I’ve spent a few weeks away from my blog and everything that goes with it, and …
Come and say hello at Wollongong Writers’ Festival
I’m gearing up for my last official public appearance of the year and I hope you’ll come along to cheer me on! I’m part of the children’s program for Wollongong …
3 NEW simple Book Week ideas from Australian authors
You might remember last year that I put together this post, where six Australian authors shared ideas, templates and printables for how to be their characters for the Book Week …
And now, some straight talking about writing…
I seem to write about writing a lot (you’ll find my hundreds of blog posts about writing here). And if you listen to So You Want To Be A Writer, …
The week that was: filming, festivals and Creative Writing for Kids
If you’ve listened to the So You Want To Be A Writer podcast recently, you’ll know two things about me: video is not my happy place, and I’ve recently created …
The week that was: launch week for The Book Of Answers
Goodness me, but that was a whirlwind. I can’t believe The Book Of Answers (Ateban Cipher #2) has been out for a week already. The Easter long weekend in the middle, …
Advance copies, dedications + a giveaway
With just over two weeks to go until The Book Of Answers (Ateben Cipher #2) lands in bookshops all over Australia, excitement levels are mounting – and hit ‘very high …
Brace yourselves for #writeabookwithal on Feb 1
With one week of the school holidays left, my thoughts are turning to two things: the huge stack of things on my To Do list and the next book I …
News, reviews and interviews: final update for 2017
I sent out my December newsletter last week, full of writerly goodness, updates and links, but, frankly, one newsletter wasn’t enough to contain all my news as we hurtle towards …
Cover reveal! Meet The Book Of Answers (Ateban Cipher #2)!
In a very big week for Ateban Cipher news, I’m thrilled to reveal the cover for THE BOOK OF ANSWERS (out in March 2018). Ta da! Isn’t it lovely? I …
NEWS: The Ateban Cipher is heading to the US!
I’m very, really, extremely excited to announce that Kane Miller, my wonderful US publisher for The Mapmaker Chronicles series, will also be taking The Ateban Cipher series to the US. At …
WIN: Signed poster The Book Of Secrets (Ateban Cipher #1)
Look what I got in the post this morning! Hachette Australia has sent me some of the bookshop posters for THE BOOK OF SECRETS (Ateban Cipher #1) and, frankly, they’re …
Teachers’ Notes: The Book Of Secrets
As an author, teachers’ notes are a surprisingly exciting thing. I love seeing what a specialist reader makes of my books and how they tie them to the various aspects …
Let me read you a story…
Anyone who knows me well, or even listens to my podcast regularly, will know that video and I are not friends. But publishers are persuasive people and so I found …