The initial draft of my first novel was titled Staging Life. It told the story of two friends, based on me and my husband, who end up in the Afterlife. A few theatre references were thrown in and, hey presto, I had my first draft. Then I had it professionally assessed. Besides changing the title, …
Writing Life vs. Real Life
Since mid last year there has been a change to my life. My husband is at home full time, and this is nice. Our days off together include lying in bed with no hurry to get up. Of making coffee from the espresso machine and enjoying organic muesli in the morning. Of planning renovations together or …
That Manuscript you Agonise Over
Perhaps 'agonise' is too strong a word. You see, I've gone back to work on the fifth draft of The Midnight Man, a novel I need to get right. I haven't been this obsessed with perfection since my first book. It's currently novella length and tells the story of Stan, a middle aged man in an …
Adultery and the Beta Reader
For the first time I used a Beta Reader. I've tried to before on another project but the person I wanted wasn't interested as the main character was not gay. He reasoned that he'd spent a lifetime reading mainstream novels, and that now with the explosion of queer writing, he wanted to indulge in stories …
Love on the Menu
Over twenty-five years ago, a charming man cooked me dinner. He had this unique recipe for lasagne which included eggs, ham and a home-made vegetarian sauce. He also baked a vegetarian cake with grated zucchini, carrot and cheese. These were his specialities and all I could offer in return was nachos. But it wasn't a paint by …
Let’s Raise a Glass
Earlier this year I met a woman on vacation from The Netherlands. She sidled up to me sipping champagne at a book launch we were both at. We said the usual things two perfect strangers making small talk say at a social event. You know, where she’d been before she ended up in Sydney? Who …
The ‘Love At First Sight’ Myth
Let me start by saying I actually believe in 'love at first sight'. I just think its named wrong. 'At first sight' implies it's a visual thing. And writers and film-makers keep perpetuating this myth by having our romantic heroes fall for the physical attributes of their intended lover. Too often it's all about the …
