Perth Words… exploring possibilities.

We’re off to South Africa, home of over 75% of the world’s remaining rhinos. Meetings, discussions, observations; and doing what every other passionate, serious rhino advocate is doing-searching for the holy grail.

We’re all equipping our rangers, delivering milk to the orphans and trying to educate the masses; standing our ground, constantly searching for THE answer, “the game changer” solution to end the poaching once and for all.

Maybe there isn’t one. But from the APUs, the education campaigns and individual support, we are attacking the crisis from every angle, and we ARE having an impact.

• In the latest survey in China, 24% fewer people believe rhino horn is a medicinal cure. Education IS working.
• The number of rhinos poached outside of Kruger National Park has decreased.
• There have been 51 more arrests than the same time last year.

It’s difficult to get past the photos of faceless, bloodied rhinos and…

The Kerry landscape is looking very pretty in the trailer for Colin Farrell’s new film, the surreal, dark comedy The Lobster.

Farrell plays a chump of a divorced man who goes to a resort with other romantic losers, including Rachel Weisz, John C. Reilly, and Michael Smiley. If Farrell can’t find a partner by the end of his time there, he will be transformed into a lobster.

Yes, it sounds bizarre. The film was a hit at Cannes. Based on the trailer, this looks to be a refreshing slice of absurd fun, and the excellent cast seems to have embraced the inherent silliness of the concept and have wisely chosen to play it straight.

Farrell usually excels at comedy (In Bruges; Seven Psychopaths; evenHorrible Bosses) and after just watching him be dour and grim in True Detective, I’m looking forward to seeing him relax…

by guest blogger Catherine Bailey

You call her Tara Lazar. I call her Dream-Maker-Genius-Lady. And thanks to Dream-Maker-Genius-Lady, and her month-long picture book idea challenge PiBoIdMo, I now have three picture book contracts.

Tara chose this GIF because she always wanted to be Sherilyn Fenn.

I joined the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCWBI.org) in 2010. Soon after I joined Verla Kay’s Blueboards, now accessible through the SCWBI website. That is where I heard about PiBoIdMo.

I’ll admit at first I did not understand all the hubbub. Come up with a PB idea per day? Who would check to make sure I did it? What if I didn’t? Was I supposed to call somebody? What else happened during PiBoIdMo? Then it clicked. I had to work on my writing–even if just for a bit–EVERY SINGLE DAY. Plus there were these motivational, insightful daily…

Perth Daily Blog: “Seduced by the Yellow”

This week, we paid our bills by selling our wares at the 50th Dowerin Field Day on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

A small country town with a normal population of 352,  Dowerin explodes with the event, attracting about 20,000 people  from all around the South West and maybe further.

Held in the middle of nowhere  – actually on the edge of the Australian Wheatbelt,  farmers flock there to check out the latest equipment.

Some fly their planes in, those in the know stay on farms which suddenly transform into B & B’s while others (like us), drive the 150 km there and another 150 km back on small country roads, each of the three days.

The planes are no surprise given that many farms are the size of small European Countries!

My sister-in-law also took the trip (not by plane but enjoyed our Winter countryside)…