tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23336208833208554082011-07-31T20:11:25.362+10:00For a teenage girl, any and every situation can seem life and death. It's easy to discount their behaviour as irrational, as coming from the hormones exploding through their brains and bodies. But what if the turmoil of the teenage years makes them vulnerable to psychic disturbances?Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.comBlogger701100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-90355151336759469112009-09-20T16:37:00.005+10:002009-09-21T20:27:38.279+10:00

I've just finished reading The Devil You Know, a new YA book by Australian writer Leonie Norrington, which was just released last month (August 09). I found it incredibly difficult to read. Not because it was poorly written; in fact it was just the opposite. The writing is superb - tight, controlled, fast-paced. But, in creating the world of young Damien and his family, the writing was

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-3739508041694608722009-09-04T18:03:00.006+10:002009-09-04T18:21:36.854+10:00

In the waiting room at a specialists office today I picked up the exhibition booklet from a 2007 exhibition of 'outsider art'by Arts Project Australia (APA). I flicked through the book and started reading the opening notes about the exhibition, which were about the history of 'outsider art' and the very notion of classifying the art of people who have mental or intellectual disabilities as '

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-53472059549016565372009-08-23T13:52:00.005+10:002009-08-23T14:13:24.651+10:00

Words are slippery things. Trying to find the right one seems impossible at times and it can seem like everything has been written before. That's when your brain seizes up and nothing flows and the only thing coming off at the end of your fingers are pedestrian sentences that plod along into nowhere. Words sometimes behave like stubborn toddlers, like when you're dragged as a kid into some

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-89756118683003518702009-07-25T16:49:00.004+10:002009-07-25T17:05:22.013+10:00

The other day I was talking to my daughter about my latest writing project and how I hoped to have it ready to submit soon. In her ultra honest & intuitive way she said, 'Well, don't rush it like you usually do.' The words pinged around in my head firing off all sorts of neuroses. Me? Rush things?? Do I really?Well, yes. Too often I get caught up in the goal and the outcome instead of the process

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-57879949822494976662009-07-16T12:03:00.003+10:002009-07-16T12:24:29.884+10:00

We all love to hate Montgomery Burns (okay, all except for Waylon Smithers). Mr Burns is the arch-capitalist. The epitome of greed is good. The man who stole the sun from Springfield to force them into 24-hour use of his nuclear energy.Well, he aint got nothin' on Australia's Productivity Commission! After completely screwing with the Australian music industry a few years ago (anyone noticed CD

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-88087498833283116342009-07-11T14:16:00.003+10:002009-07-11T14:29:00.762+10:00

This morning I dreamt I was walking with some people, carrying a large cocktail type glass filled with water that had a bright orange goldfish swimming in it. The fish was too big for the glass and kept bumping its face up against the side, its mouth gaping. I commented that the fish needed a bigger bowl, then suddenly the fish jumped right out of the glass and onto my shoulder. I've had weirder

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-56809672744771684382009-06-28T18:38:00.003+10:002009-06-28T18:53:28.830+10:00

Although I'm very glad I did my Masters, and I'm looking forward to the future challenge of a Phd, nothing beats writing just for the pure joy of it.In my current project I'm moving away from issue-based realism, letting go of the logic and just letting fly - mostly with luminous greeen vomit! (not mine, the characters...)I'm finding the words are flowing more easily as I focus on action-based

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-58118251400784609862009-06-23T21:15:00.005+10:002009-06-23T21:37:16.848+10:00

In the past two weeks I've read two YA novels: Give me Truth by Australian writer, Bill Condon and The Sky Inside by a US writer, now living in Germany, Clare Dunkle.Condon's book fits under the 'issue' genre in that it deals with the lives of two teens, David and Caitlin, whose parents are going through marriage problems and separation. It's written in multiple first-person perspective, with

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-25796362878890290222009-06-18T20:21:00.002+10:002009-06-18T20:29:15.860+10:00

As a result of a conversation with friends a couple of weeks ago, I've decided to change direction for a couple of months. I will get back to the 'new project' but right now I'm throwing myself into a completely different project for a short while.Okay, not exactly completely different. I'm giving myself six weeks to rewrite an old spec-fic manuscript that I wrote back in 2003/04. I've had some

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-87217531669929542142009-06-04T21:53:00.004+10:002009-06-04T22:05:45.965+10:00

Sometimes I think a lot of my issues around character/plot would be more easily solved if I felt more comfortable writing in the third person. I've written quite a few short stories from the third person perspective, and Curse of Fire, the kids' reader I had published a few years ago, was also written from the third person perspective.Most kids and YA books are written in first person, though,

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-1701741704357086962009-05-25T20:35:00.003+10:002009-05-25T20:41:41.301+10:00

Perhaps this isn't a good time to be making big decisions. But I seem to have inadvertently made one anyway.I had a chat with someone at uni last week and at the end of the conversation the outcome seemed to be that I had decided to do a Phd.According to myself, I loved doing the research on brain development and trauma so much that I've decided to wade into the mire once more and go even deeper.

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-6154628106739780452009-05-21T12:07:00.004+10:002009-05-21T12:31:01.822+10:00

It's a week since I got that rejection that devastated me and I've had a chance to cry about it and talk to my friends about it and slowly I'm getting some perspective on it. I think it's a good idea for me to leave the manuscript alone for a while; not look at it and not submit it anywhere else. I need to get some distance from the manuscript and the whole project. Maybe by the end of the year

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-39486505084079815812009-05-14T13:10:00.003+10:002009-05-14T13:21:45.377+10:00

I've just got another rejection for Girl in the Shadows - the second in a couple of weeks. At least this one had some encouraging words to say, but it really has put me in a position where I need to rethink what I'm doing as a writer.I've been working at a writing career for 10 years now, with only minor success. I worked really hard at Girl in the Shadows; it's the best writing I can do. It's

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-75993936802939593282009-05-07T12:50:00.003+10:002009-05-07T12:56:23.388+10:00

Every writer knows that rejections are part and parcel of the publishing world. But that doesn't make you feel any better when you get one. Especially when the rejection is essentially a rote note written on a scrap of paper (okay, maybe not a scrap of paper but one of those crappy 'with compliments' type notes).Maybe it's just me, but I think if you've taken the time and effort to make a

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-53534215376809127332009-03-30T19:49:00.003+10:002009-03-30T19:59:11.462+10:00

I've passed my masters - yay!I still have to do a few minor updates to it but I've officially passed. I was really happy with the examiners' comments both for the manuscript and the exegesis. One examiner described Girl in the Shadows as "an engaging and well-paced work with credible characters, convincing thematic development, written in a style which was both clear and yet suggestively obtuse

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-47088279169293832232009-02-07T12:04:00.003+10:002009-02-07T12:10:14.979+10:00

Although it appears I abandoned this blog months ago, it's probably worthwhile noting that I'm finally about to submit my masters research for examination. Yep, not only did I finish the manuscript, but I actually managed to write & finish the exegesis (short thesis).In September last year I thought it would never be done. My research & my manuscript had taken me in an entirely different

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-86119471366746930842008-07-26T13:15:00.003+10:002008-07-26T13:26:19.687+10:00

My manuscript should be lying somewhere in a big pile of manuscripts at Text Publishing by now. I agonised over the synopsis and ended up changing it at the last minute and now I'm too chicken to go back and look at it again in case I see a big, ugly mistake staring out at me. It's gone now & that's that.So now I have no excuse for not starting on my 'exegesis' (or thesis in normal language).

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-55956464667418365842008-07-13T14:11:00.003+10:002008-07-13T14:16:18.350+10:00

To enter the Text Publishing young adult fiction competition, I have to come up with a 100 word synopsis for Girl in the Shadows. So far, I've put together three I'm reasonably happy with but I'm not sure which one works best. What do you think?Synopsis AWhat happens when you look in the mirror and see a face that isn't yours? You hope it's a nightmare, a horror story. But it's real. It's the

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-16962456841954388632008-07-12T13:29:00.003+10:002008-07-12T13:36:53.835+10:00

I've got feedback from my sister and also a younger reader (someone from the target audience) and so far, so good.My sister picked up a few things for me to tidy up. Mostly it was things where new scenes didn't quite mesh with the old. But nothing too major - probably only about 5 hours work maximum. The younger reader really enjoyed it, too, which is a big bonus. She also gave me some great

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-88333489010737624402008-06-29T10:43:00.002+10:002008-06-29T10:52:55.592+10:00

Yep, I've done it (again). Finished the manuscript & sent it off to my sister for a read through. She hasn't read it before but I've talked to her a lot about different writing issues I've faced throughout the process, so it'll be interesting to see what she thinks of the (almost) final product.At least I know she won't be horribly cruel & all criticisms will be handed down gently.I've also

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-65459836990675293292008-06-21T12:38:00.006+10:002008-06-21T12:55:35.535+10:00

This week I tackled the major time issue within the narrative and the solution turned out to be much easier than what I'd thought.I was preparing to extend the span of time within the central part of the story. But that really wasn't going to work. Then I considered each of the scenes, and the time when they could/should happen, and I realised I was imposing unnecessary restrictions on myself.I'm

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-2515961017228802532008-06-05T19:00:00.002+10:002008-06-05T19:08:07.645+10:00

So far, so good. I managed to get chapter 1 to work properly without having to do a complete rewrite, so the levitation scene stays. I was thinking about a few alternatives, but none of them seemed to fit properly. I was a bit worried that the levitation scene was a bit cliched, but I think I've got around that. I mean, it really just is something teenage girls do. But I've toned it down a bit

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-9907873656347131642008-05-26T17:53:00.003+10:002008-05-26T18:00:58.084+10:00

Last week I read through my manuscript, made some notes and then did a scene by scene exercise where I wrote down a brief description of each scene in the manuscript. It didn't take long to get the scenes down - only about three hours - and it's a really useful way to find holes in the manuscript and scenes that are out of time sequence. The exercise has shown me that I definately need to extend

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-21665176431231767632008-05-16T17:45:00.002+10:002008-05-16T17:52:53.622+10:00

It's time to start tying all the bits and pieces together. This manuscript has changes so much from my original draft that it's almost a completely different story! And there comes a point where you have to stop rewriting, take a deep breath, take stock of where the story is and make a decision about its future.Doing the masters course has really helped in the development of this manuscript. But

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-12507649773719392602008-04-25T12:15:00.005+10:002008-04-25T12:27:11.493+10:00

I set myself a goal to write for 20-30 minutes each day, and I've been doing pretty close to that. Mostly I've been working on adding detail to the manuscript and also writing a couple of new scenes. I chucked the whole convict doco storyline that I started working on in January- it was awful! The girls are still working on an English assignment,but it's a much more interesting one that involves

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-87623483441640973262008-03-23T16:56:00.002+10:002008-03-23T17:00:51.659+10:00

Things aren't exactly going to plan this year. I'm not having the time I'd really like to devote to this manuscript.But what I can do is 30 minutes a day. It's not a lot but it's enough to keep the manuscript going. And it's going through more changes! But they're all for the better so at the moment the plan is to stick with it and make a little progress each day.Who knows - I may be closer to

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-90312854384825549112008-01-03T17:01:00.000+10:002008-01-03T17:08:11.808+10:00

I've been quite slack on the rewriting front.The good news is that I've rewritten the first chapter and really sharpened up my first page and it's working well.The bad news (for me) is that I now realise that to make the rewrite work, I have to actually research and write the 'group assignment' that the girls have to do for their English assessment.Sounds crazy (& like too much work) I know. But

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-50403871736025803962007-12-04T15:10:00.000+10:002007-12-04T15:17:39.142+10:00

Okay, well I never really had it under control. But getting sick and not being able to even go near a computer for almost a week really does throw a spanner in the works.For some reason, I seem to catch every virus going around, and manage to get it ten times worse than everyone else. But thanks to taking it easy & resting I think I'm on the mend now. At least, I've managed to use the computer

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-83710393510010095632007-11-27T16:10:00.000+10:002007-11-27T16:16:19.233+10:00

I got a bit of a start on my chapter 1 rewrite on the weekend but I have too many distractions at the moment, including a short story I'm trying to get finished for a short story comp that closes next week.I need more time! But where I get it from is a problem. Still, it's a problem most writers face so at least I know I'm not alone.I really, really want to finish this short story. And I only

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-75685083706217512962007-11-21T12:50:00.000+10:002007-11-21T12:56:05.198+10:00

I have yet to embark on the big rewrite. Instead I've been working out relationships between the girls and having another look at their characters/backgrounds. This, I'm hoping, will help me add that extra detail and depth that the manuscript assessor thinks I need.I'm also looking at the character of Tash's father. I know it's meant to be bad form to write characters that are all bad, but let's

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-71564695942218383892007-11-12T12:56:00.000+10:002007-11-12T13:06:06.727+10:00

Last Friday YA fantasy writer, Alison Goodman, ran a workshop for our master's group on writing killer beginnings. She is a great presenter and teacher and I'm really sorry I missed her earlier workshop on killer endings (but hey, I wasn't leaving New York early for anyone!).An outstanding first page is a necessity - many publishers/editors don't read beyond the first paragraph, let alone the

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-79651544027900659232007-11-06T12:52:00.000+10:002007-11-06T13:16:44.618+10:00

The manuscript assessment has arrived and I'm not in a state of shock, depression or about to throw my manuscript in the bin. So that's a positive!I've read through it a couple of times but I think I need to read through it a couple more before I get stuck into the rewriting. The assessor has made some good suggestions and some interetsting points, and although I don't agree with everything they

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-39819281038049288132007-11-02T12:29:00.000+10:002007-11-02T12:35:14.605+10:00

The manuscript assessment by Driftwood has been finished & is waiting for me to pick it up from Sharyn's office.But she's not in today so I have to wait until Monday! I suppose a few more day's suspense won't kill me.I'm hoping that it gives me some clear direction about what to do with my next rewrite. The manuscript has gone through a lot of changes already this year and I specifically asked

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-65129519867910443522007-10-22T13:15:00.000+10:002007-10-22T13:22:04.344+10:00

It's about six weeks since my last blog entry. That would be because it's been about six weeks since I did any masters-related work!Still no news from the manuscript assessment service. Apparently there were problems with payment from the uni & also my manuscript arrived missing the last 30 or so pages! I sent them another full version by email last week, so hopefully I won't be waiting too much

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-17901392070503943642007-09-02T10:49:00.000+10:002007-09-02T10:55:35.483+10:00

It's been nearly two weeks since I sent off my manuscript for assessment. In that time you'd think I'd have been hard at work on my exegesis. I haven't done a damn thing.I was thinking that maybe I'd look at changing the books I'm writing about for the case study section. I'll definately stick with Sonya Hartnett's Surrender. But I'm wondering if there's a more suitable book than The Tulip

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-80422092688126518552007-08-20T12:38:00.000+10:002007-08-20T12:48:43.012+10:00

Yesterday I emailed my manuscript to Sharyn, my supervisor, who will now send it off to the manuscript assessment service. The assessment process will probably take about 6 to 8 weeks, so it should be ready for me to get into just after I come back from New York.I'm pretty happy with Girl in the Shadows as it is at the moment, but I'm sure that the assessors will find plenty to pick on. I haven't

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-79062764663212708882007-08-15T12:15:00.000+10:002007-08-15T12:21:46.544+10:00

Yay! I've finished - again...How many times have I 'finished' this manuscript? I've lost count. Maybe it's not finished until it's printed and in the stores. Which means, I may never finish...Oh well, it's finished for now with a brand new ending & a modified beginning. The opening lines of the first chapter that I posted here months ago no longer exist. The manuscript is also longer - just over

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-24808619597440018662007-08-13T16:50:00.000+10:002007-08-13T16:59:15.844+10:00

Endings are difficult. I spent another 5 or 6 hours on the ending on the weekend and it's still not done. Maybe I'm being impatient. But I really want the ending to work and the fact is that, after the climax, both Mal and Tash are different people; what they've been through is a life changing event.For Tash it's life changing because she's left home and cut off all contact with her parents. They

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-55678917198622902912007-08-06T13:10:00.000+10:002007-08-06T13:20:34.163+10:00

I got my new 'climax' for Girl in the Shadows critiqued by the group last Friday, and as always they gave me really useful feedback.On the weekend I used the feedback to edit the story climax then I got stuck into writing a new ending. Basically, now that the climax has changed, the entire ending has to be rewritten as well.It's hard to do. I had to force myself to sit at the keyboard and get the

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-50815092856936992512007-07-31T12:54:00.000+10:002007-07-31T13:03:30.605+10:00

Last Saturday (28 July) we had a fantastic workshop with writer Libby Gleeson.Libby has had a long and distinguished career as a children's writer and her list includes award winning picture books, chapter books and young adult fiction. Her workshop had some great exercises that really helped me to focus on what was and wasn't working in my manuscript. And, as a result of one exercise, I was able

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-89190206177951974282007-07-23T14:58:00.000+10:002007-07-23T15:04:49.930+10:00

I've been going through Sharyn's 'to-do' list for my manuscript and I did a whole heap of writing on the weekend. I think it's going okay.Alot of it is going back in and putting in 'clues'. Well, not so much clues as bits of information that add to the story so that there is more of a consistent build up to the climax.That's where having an independent person reading your manuscript is so helpful

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-38747868127026805382007-07-16T12:49:00.000+10:002007-07-16T12:59:18.374+10:00

Sharyn (my main supervisor) and assistant supervisor Viv have both read the latest version of Girl in the Shadows and given feedback. They were very encouraging and Sharyn feels it's almost there. But she still gave me a list of things to work on before I send it off for manuscript appraisal!I started on the list this weekend and I think it should only take me a couple more weekends of work to

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-68836197965970267052007-06-29T12:56:00.000+10:002007-06-29T13:04:39.232+10:00

Last night I finished another rewrite. Now my manuscript is ready to face the bold red pen of the manuscript assessor!I've sent a copy of my pride & joy to Sharyn (my supervisor) and she and Vivian (the associate supervisor) will read it first then, if they think it's ready, they'll send it off to a professional manuscript assessment service.I'm really not sure what state it'll be in when it

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-6151564857753305172007-06-25T13:07:00.000+10:002007-06-25T13:09:16.480+10:00

Yesterday I finished off and submitted my AIRS library research assignment.So it is done and I will never speak of it again.

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-24520872704971240142007-06-22T12:04:00.000+10:002007-06-22T12:14:51.718+10:00

I got heaps of writing done last weekend. Didn't touch my AIRS assignment, which is due on 30 June at the absolute latest, but I'll look at this weekend (seriously, I mean it, I think...)So this weekend I'm tackling the tricky part of the rewrite, which is the final few chapters. With the changes I've made to how Tash is handling things there's quite a bit I need to change. It'll be a challenge

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-51677243363263682762007-06-16T18:20:00.000+10:002007-06-16T18:33:46.798+10:00

Today I've finally started doing some more rewriting on the manuscript. It seems like ages since I've touched it, though it's really only a bit more than a week.The problem I'm trying to overcome at the moment is a severe case of left-brain-itis. I've realised that all that research into brain development got my own brain stuck in scientific, logical mode. Not a good place for a creative writer

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-84930108117904449932007-06-03T16:05:00.000+10:002007-06-03T16:15:34.244+10:00

The presentation is now over and done with and I'm really bloody happy about that.It wasn't nervewracking to deliver because it was just in front of our cohort and the supervisors. But it was still a big relief to get it out of the way, especially because it had been taking up valuable writing time.I still have that (seemingly pointless) research module to complete sometime this month, but I'm

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-23268872411801574542007-05-28T13:00:00.000+10:002007-05-28T13:02:33.534+10:00

The presentation is due in four days. The AIRS (research) unit is a complete schmozzle. I've done no work on my manuscript for 8 days. That sums it all up for now.

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-59489091854315436822007-05-19T17:42:00.000+10:002007-05-19T17:58:00.484+10:00

Maybe it's post-handing-in-assignment depression, but I'm having a giving up day. That's one of those days when you realise that your writing is totally crap, you'll never get your manuscript published & if by some absolute miracle you do, then it will languish somewhere in a book warehouse & not see the light of day until it appears slashed to $2 on a discount table somewhere in KMart.Some days

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-62737723217437951272007-05-15T12:52:00.000+10:002007-05-15T13:01:44.882+10:00

On the weekend I finished my first assignment (the one on the "interpretive paradigm"). It really wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. Possibly, this means that I've completely missed the point but Kel read it & she reckons it all flows & makes sense, so that's good enough for me.It was helpful putting everything down on paper & drawing the threads together of the different types of

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-15321102923300261312007-05-09T13:24:00.000+10:002007-05-09T13:36:18.360+10:00

It can be just a bit freaky when your characters talk to you. Especially when they're quite insistent. But I suppose that's also one of the most interesting things about being a writer.You know your character doesn't really exist in flesh and blood, in that you can't drop over to their house & have a coffee with them. I can't ask Tash to walk the dog, for example, or get Malia to go down the shop

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-43528841447676766902007-05-05T08:12:00.000+10:002007-05-05T08:20:53.609+10:00

Last night we had our first peer critiquing session in our group. That's where you bravely submit your writing to the scrutiny of others and take on board their feedback. It's a delicate thing, giving people feedback about their writing. But last night was really useful for me.I was one of two 'guinea pigs' - the rest of the group won't start submitting work for critting until the next session -

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-74321730172420227982007-05-02T13:54:00.000+10:002007-05-04T14:23:08.206+10:00

Not only is adolescence a form of insanity, it's a highly contagious form that is easily transferred to unsuspecting parents.Okay, I have no scientific proof of the above. But I have found some fascinating research (thanks heaps, Leah!) that is going to work in perfectly with my exegesis.Peter Brugger, a German scientist, has done heaps of research into phantoms of all kinds. One of his theories

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-61421441453129343382007-04-27T10:10:00.000+10:002007-04-27T10:27:40.225+10:00

I've finished another draft of Girl in the Shadows, and it's getting pretty close to where I want it to be. In this last rewrite I completely rewrote one character (Mrs Steppa), deleted an entire chapter (which actually felt quite good) and weeded out a whole lot of unnecessary description.As part of the master's course, my manuscript gets assessed by a professional manuscript assessor, who will

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-24073382408800558462007-04-19T16:42:00.000+10:002007-04-19T20:49:15.860+10:00

Tomorrow I meet with my master's supervisor to talk about where I think I'm going with the exegesis. This means that I'd better come up with something to say that's a bit more positive than the previous post.I have come across some interesting stuff. One paper I read was written in the 1960s by a team of psychiatrists. They did a study where they sat people in front of a mirror in a dark room for

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-36372627364592314382007-04-19T14:16:00.000+10:002007-04-19T14:28:58.396+10:00

According to one of the readings I had to do for uni, the exegesis (that thing I'm supposed to write for my masters) should demonstrate 'scholarliness' and that the writer is 'an expert in the field.'Looks like I'm screwed...Post-Jungian shadow archetype despair has set in. (Hey, did that sound scholarly?)To be honest, I'm not even sure that see the point of the exegesis, much less want to write

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-40521841403651718632007-04-16T21:14:00.000+10:002007-04-16T21:29:18.134+10:00

You take a week off work & avoid the news as much as possible & what happens? One of your literary heroes up & dies! Kurt Vonnegut died almost a week ago & I only found out today (when I was surfing the net at work - for research purposes of course!).I have loved Vonnegut's writing since I was a teenager. A few years ago I went to a second hand bookstore & bought about four or five of his books,

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-87852861759768620702007-04-12T17:34:00.000+10:002007-04-12T17:45:55.265+10:00

In about five weeks time I'm supposed to hand in a 2,500-3000 word assignment on... well I'm not exactly sure! But one of the things I can choose to write about is my "interpretive paradigm". So far, my thinking is that I feign confusion between "interpretive paradigm" & "interpretive dance" and come up with a 2 or 3 minute dance piece, possibly performed behind a curtain so I'm in fact a shadow,

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-67046840661313670702007-04-06T17:50:00.000+10:002007-04-06T17:57:12.983+10:00

I've got 10 days off work to get stuck into my research & weirdly enough, I'm starting to enjoy it. I'm finding the same writers' names in my research around Jung and his shadow theory, so I'm thinking that I'm on the right track.Even better, I'm really starting to see how this research can give my writing more depth. As I write down notes from the books/papers I'm reading on one page, on the

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-71747501208571458132007-04-01T14:24:00.000+10:002007-04-01T14:37:15.023+10:00

One of the main reasons I wanted to do this master's course was so that I could particpate in writing workshops with established childrens/YA writers.Yesterday we had a full day workshop with Sydney -based writer, Libby Hathorn. It was one of the most inspiring writing workshop I've ever attended. Libby's style is simple and direct and it's this that allows her passion for writing, both as an

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-62296334874048884862007-03-29T12:59:00.000+10:002007-03-29T13:06:18.385+10:00

On the weekend I worked on chapters 2 and 3 of my manuscript and I'm really happy with how it's progressing. This could mean a few of things:1. I'm delusional coz I'm actually writing a heap of crap.2. My standards are low.3. I was working on someone else's manuscript.4. My writing is improving with practice.Let's hope it's number 4! Peter Bishop from the Varuna Centre advised me to focus on

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-1835257971465051732007-03-24T15:30:00.000+10:002007-03-24T15:51:26.760+10:00

I'm pretty excited because I've actually found something through research that relates directly to my manuscript.Jung described shadows as "the imperfect being in you that follows after and does everything that you are loath to do, or the things you are too cowardly or decent to do."Now that's something I can explore that will really help my manuscript. I even know a book I can use as a case

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-35435142920538664862007-03-20T20:25:00.000+10:002007-03-20T20:38:15.543+10:00

I've had my first major freak-out and (sort of) recovered. Thanks to Kelleigh I think I now (sort of) know how to get started on the research side of things. When I start getting into it, it's pretty interesting trawling through all these weird and wonderful documents and trying to find something that relates to my topic. But it's far from simple.What I'm trying to find is documented evidence of

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-4716555454158812462007-03-13T12:53:00.000+10:002007-03-13T13:00:29.438+10:00

...one bite at a time. My good friend Helen gave me this piece of (somewhat strange) advice many years ago and it's something I need to pay attention to right now.Last Saturday I spent almost 5 hours in a lecture theatre listening to an information overload on research and thesis writing. Am I freaking out? Am I thinking I've bitten off more than I can chew? Am I ready to run for the hills?Yes,

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-69848575307780684062007-03-09T11:21:00.000+10:002007-03-09T16:46:01.571+10:00

Shouldn't it be first chapter blues? You'd think so, but I've just done another rewrite of my first chapter & I'm pretty happy with it. I actually think it's quite good. Clearly, I am a failure as a tortured artist. Don't get me wrong, I do have my moments of wanting to chuck everything I've ever written in the bin. And stuff that I wrote years ago that I thought was fabulous can now make me

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-27730806848218568262007-03-06T13:05:00.000+10:002007-03-06T21:00:50.932+10:00

Many people choose a book based on its first few sentences or even the first line. One of my favourite first lines is 'It was 7 minutes to midnight.' (Mark Haddon, Curious incident of the dog in the night time). I love it because it's such a simple sentence and yet it's so precise. I also like how he writes the number '7' (rather than the word), which hints at the narrator's obsession with

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-30136697879628575192007-03-03T11:01:00.000+10:002007-03-03T12:30:22.760+10:00

Last night we had the first meeting of our Masters cohort in children's and youth writing. It looks like it's going to be a great year, but really bloody busy.Although we're all writing for young adults (rather than children) everyone's project is different and exciting. I can see some great books resulting from this year - hopefully mine will be one of them!The research work (exegesis - what

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-26098341193408933352007-02-25T17:35:00.000+10:002007-02-25T17:44:51.281+10:00

No, luckily at this stage I don't have to write something clever. I have to find a piece of clever writing, a piece of writing that I'm passionate about. Being a course in children's & youth writing I should probably pick a kids/YA writer. But instead I'm choosing something from Elizabeth Jolley - right now I feel she's the only writer I can choose. And she has so much to choose from. No doubt

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-26835924594134169482007-02-20T12:42:00.000+10:002007-02-20T14:01:38.681+10:00

I was really sad to hear about Elizabeth Jolley's passing. She has always been one of my writing heroes, especially because, like me, she didn't begin writing until her late 30s. As a writer, Elizabeth Jolley had the most wicked humour. You'd read a sentence or paragraph of perfectly reasonable looking words and realised she'd strung them together in wild, memorable ways.Like the true lady she

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2333620883320855408.post-36893410045968255362007-02-18T16:44:00.000+10:002007-02-18T16:53:57.929+10:00

In about one week's time I will be officially starting my Masters at QUT. Managing time is going to be my biggest issue, but hey, isn't it everyones?Still, part-time (instead of full-time) work would be a big help. So if there's someone out there who wants to hire an experience web content writer/editor with a strong interest (and pretty good skills) in user-centred design for three days a week

Maree Kimberleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18170380402953962748noreply@blogger.com0