After our monthly book club meeting last night, where we dissected that speech from Julia Gillard and Slipper’s great slip up, oh, and books 50 Shades of Grey and The Great Gatsby; I did finally give myself a moment to think about the day. It helped that our internet connection has spectacularly failed, and the cloud I was relying on for data storage seems to have dissipated... See, rather than get distracted, I could only just think!
I had just muddled through possibly the single most writerly day!
After having no sleep the two nights proceeding, grumping around in the most hideous mood, firing bad tempered responses to Janet the night before, I was surprised anything lovely happened at all.
First up, I met, and had a coffee with, an inspired writer, Jane Grieve, who self published a very successful book and she created so much attention to her work and sold enough copies and currently is under contract with publishers Allen and Unwin to write her memoir. Not only was she interested in the evolution and motivation behind writers’ web, but she told me the same enthusiasm and drive and passion for supporting writers reminded me of her dear friend who happened to start the Queensland Writers Centre!
I met, via the telephone, Graziella Canton Volpato, an older Australian Italian woman who for the first time, is sharing her manuscript – transitioning from writer to author. We had communicated by email before this point and after mentioning we loved our authors promoting the writers web platform, she enthusiastically emailed all her friends and family in Italy. Now my first job today is to make sure we can receive overseas orders!
I checked in with Associate Dean, Dr Peter McIlveen ( USQ) who has published his book Social Constructionism in Vocational Psychology and Career Development. I was lining up with reporter and editor Megan McMaster from Toowoomba Mail, to do an interview with him and his son, Hamish; who also has published a book this year, his first picture book, The Spaghetti Eating Monster!
I met up with two local writers, Bob Grieve and Denise Volp, who kindly responded to my hysterical phone call about a photo opportunity with Megan. They held the Words From Toowoomba anthology aloft for a photo and a story, in preparation for the launch of this free book on Sunday. The contributors, twenty writers from Toowoomba Wordsmiths are as diverse as their writing! Some are established authors, professional writers – and for others, this is the first time their words have seen light!
The local bricks and mortar bookstore owner, Leanne Grundon, (who has an infectious energy and a passion for books AND writers), told me one of the Child Writes children had already made a query as to her purchasing strategy, effectively requested a meeting with her to discuss carrying her book once it was published – this writer is 10!
Then, I stood in front of (borrowed) photocopier, and spent hours, literally hours, scanning the illustrations from the Child Writes kids who have finished their books this year. They will end up on Jetstar as part of the inflight entertainment offering, the books will be offered in the writers’ web bookstore, they will end up bundled up and under many Christmas trees, as copies are already promised to grandparents, siblings, family members!
Interjecting moments of silence was invaluable – I organised ‘officials’ to launch the book for these same children, and had promises of support from the Mayor, Cr Paul Antonio and Cr Carol Taylor in their capacity of representing the Toowoomba Community.
I then tiptoed around an apology due to Janet for being FOUL in my emails the night before as she was simply directing me to different tasks required to keep writers’ web emerging as the fabulous platform it is...
How deeply gratifying it is to work with, play with, be surrounded by such as a selfless, creative group of people – all of them writers.
I slept well J
And that apology – well, it will land on Janet’s desk before this hits your screen - as soon as the internet is accessible again.
X Emma
