I’m a writer. I love words. But before I was a writer, I was an engineer, so I also love numbers. The typical word count for a novel is around 80,000. Non-novelists often baulk at the idea of writing that many words, and no question, it’s a mammoth task. To make it more manageable, I … Continue reading Engineering the Story—How to Write a Novel in 80 Days
I’m a city girl, born and bred, but this year, Barto and I bought a country retreat near Mansfield, the township gateway to the Victorian high country. Our house is two and a half hours from Melbourne and a fifteen-minute drive from Mansfield—secluded, but not isolated. Perched on a hill, it overlooks Lake Eildon and … Continue reading Alone at Mansfield
A fun post today. Last week at writer’s group, we did an exercise in which we had to respond to the following prompt in 20 minutes. The police arrive at your door with a search warrant. There is something in the house that they cannot see, that nobody can ever see. This is my (slightly edited) … Continue reading Short Fiction: The Search Warrant
Part four of four in the Music & Dance on the Lagoon series, after Blame It On The Tango and Countdown to Show Day. After months of preparation, weeks of rehearsals and days of tearing my hair out, show day for Music & Dance on the Lagoon finally arrived. Tables and chairs were decorated, the bar was charged and security … Continue reading Show Day, Music & Dance on the Lagoon
Part three of four in the Music & Dance on the Lagoon series. Continued from part two, Blame It On The Tango. Music & Dance on the Lagoon was set for Saturday February 2, 2008. Most of my Lagos friends planned to be there. If it flopped, I’d have to go into hiding. Or skip the country. One … Continue reading Countdown to Show Day
It is my pleasure to introduce Lisa Eskinazi, author, poet & e-activist. Lisa has been writing since she could pick up a pen. Sharing her experience of bullying and mental health issues to bring comfort to others and advocate for justice is her dream come true. She lives in a cosy apartment in Melbourne, filled with as many baby pink and faux fur accessories as she can afford and battles bedtime procrastination. Continue reading Lisa Eskinazi, From High School Dropout to Author
I’m taking a break from the Lagos story to bring you the next in my interview series. Today’s winding narrative comes from Gail Cleare, whose love of writing has taken her from advertising to literature. We are excited to announce that her book, the USA Today bestseller The Taste of Air, has been just chosen for a … Continue reading Gail Cleare, From Ad Executive to Novelist
(Part two of four in the Music & Dance on the Lagoon story. Photo: Ice Nweke and Andrea Barton.) In my last blog, I wrote about the myriad of problems we encountered setting up Music & Dance on the Lagoon. Many of those difficulties were beyond our control, but some were self-imposed. A more sensible person … Continue reading Blame It On The Tango
Part one of four in the Music & Dance on the Lagoon story. They say it never rains but it pours. Using this adage, Music & Dance on the Lagoon was a veritable tempest. After the buzz of Nigerian Gems, I combined my new love of salsa with my passion for storytelling and wrote a … Continue reading Music & Dance on the Lagoon
When I published Nigerian Gems, I used the pseudonym Jo Demmer. People often ask how I chose my pen name. Jo is my middle name, after my great-grandmother, Josephine. Demmer is my mother’s maiden name. The novel I was working on at the time, Sunrise Court, was rife with intrigue and infidelity and I didn’t … Continue reading To Be Oneself Or To Be Someone Else
Brightside Story Studio 