Perth Words… exploring possibilities.

The best Arts events inspire controversy . But who would have thought in this age of religious tension, detention and blue ties that a little girl’s toilet break could inspire impassioned letters to the editor? It seems that public urination is a hot topic not just in Paris and Perth but also in Oklahoma . And my parents and husband were close enough to almost feel the splash! They’d perched at a table with a reserved sign amidst people they discovered were from Down South, but the table was actually reserved for Jean-Luc. By the time Karen and I arrived, the controversial moment was over, the asphalt was drying and everyone was enjoying a second drink…

The meeting of The Diver and the Little Girl a few hours later occurred against the impressive backdrop of The Swan River and included Noongar smoke cleansing for purity and cleansing and face painting.

Day Two, Saturday: Mum and Lionel were up early to reclaim their bench.

Meanwhile the rest of the family went to watch The Diver wake up. While waiting near the overpass we noticed people in the multi-storey carpark. We joined them and had a brilliant view of The Diver’s leap, accompanied by a stirring James Bond soundtrack.

The Diver even peered at us as he passed.

We gave him a wave, then raced through the crowd trying to get ahead of the parade so we could take up the amazing offer of being in ‘The Bubble’; a taped off area walking through the street just ahead of Diver. What a great opportunity. We took so many photos…

 We followed The Diver to the park where he had his afternoon nap. The Lilliputians helped Diver remove his helmet then wheeled out a record player and put on a record to help him…

Watching Royal de Luxe’s Giants walk through Perth was unforgettable especially with the knowledge that Lighthouse Girl provided inspiration for the Little Girl Giant’s story. It’s taken a week to catch my breath and sort through dozens of wonderful Giant photos, many taken by my photographer sister, Karen Davidson. Like many others, I followed the Little Girl Giant and The Diver through the streets of Perth for three days. Here is Day One…

After flying to Perth on Thursday I was met by my parents who’d driven across the Nullarbor from Albury. My sister and daughter also flew in to join the fun. For three days we became Giant Groupies. Our first sighting was Thursday evening when Karen and I saw Jean-Luc and his team making preparations at Langley Park. We stopped for a quick chat.

Friday: Mum and Lionel found the perfect bench outside their hotel.

Once they were settled…

The Write Life publishes an infographic to help authors decide whether they should pursue self-publishing or follow the path of traditional publishing.

In a discussion of this infographic, Mutterings of a Fantasy Writer refers to July 2014 Author Earnings Report which reports some statistics about “emerging trends in the world of digital publishing”

One thing that I’ve wanted to point out is that I think there is a general misconception with traditional and self publishers about “getting the book out there.” There is no “out there.” There is only “who is for” and “how is the author cultivating and adding value for readers.” People read and share information based on trust in relationships, and we should bear that in mind when we write/publish a book.

Image Credit: The Write Life

by Dev Petty

I wrote a whole post for this very blog some time ago about NOT writing and just thinking. I wrote about getting to the heart of your story idea in your head before you ever write a word. I believe in that process…big time. But it’s not how I wrote I DON’T WANT TO BE A FROG. That’s a different story. That’s the story of how a sort of basic story idea turned into one with legs…frog legs! In fact, it was the writing of FROG that taught me to slow down and think, to find the story thread before I started writing.

I knew I wanted to write a story all in dialogue. I wanted it to be funny. And I wanted it to be about a frog. I like frogs, it was that simple. Not much to go on, eh? Believe me, my first efforts…