May to June

It was nice to dabble around the edges of Sydney Writers' Fest over the weekend. Both panels I was on had good sizeable audiences with smart questions at the ready; both chairs chaired like champs, both sets of fellow panellists were a pleasure to panelise with.

Now it's back to novel-writing as much as I can in a fairly cluttered life, until, in a fortnight, Continuum 8 down in Melbourne, which will be a different, more spec-ficky kind of fun, with some relatives-visiting thrown in as well. Then, June looks fairly clear for the writing, and so does July, except for a spot of root canal therapy and then, right at the end, this workshop in Fiji, where I hope to thaw out sufficiently to be inspiring about writing from your innermost soul.

Mind you, ahead of time, all months look "fairly clear for the writing" until I get up close, and then one thing after another gets in the way. And honest, it's not all socialising and frivolity! I tend to forget, for example, that stories, nay, collections, will need their copyediting or their proofs combed through at some point—right now I'm going through the US Yellowcake copyedits, which are showing me up for the scatterbrained, completely whimsical, just-pleasing-myself, addicted-to-hyphens writer I am. So far, one small and one large embarrassment have been brought to light, in stories that have both been published twice previously. Aargh.

In less mortifying news, a German deal is in the offing for Tender Morsels and Sea Hearts/Brides, which is wonderful. So this time next year, maybe I'll be blogging from sunny Berlin instead of chilly Lewisham.

SWF Lanagan shenanigans

This year I'm on the grown-ups' program for the Sydney Writers' Fest, on a couple of interesting looking panels. You'll want to come to these, and it won't cost you a cent—hm, unless you live in Perth. Or LA. Anyway, here they are. They're both on Sunday:

• Her Dark Materials at 11.30 in the Bangarra Theatre, with Lucy Christopher and Kirsty Eagar, facilitated by Hilary Rogers. "Is anything out of bounds in young-adult fiction? How do writers approach challenging topics or dark moral landscapes?" Lucy and Kirsty and I will tell Hilary Rogers where to draw the line!


• Islands of the Imagination, at 2.30 in Sydney Dance 4: "Fairytale, folklore and fantasy combine to create otherworldly island creations in Margo Lanagan and Mette Jakobsen's latest work. They explore how to feed and release the imagination in fiction, in conversation with Judith Ridge."

I will try my damnedest to sound intelligent and interesting. Failing that, I'll crack a lot of bad jokes. See you there!