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Thorn Birds
I guess I'm just not a Thorn Birds person. All those decades ago when it was first published and became a best-seller, I dipped into it and very quickly decided it was boringly bad writing. I didn't bother going any further
Just recently a friend asked why it wasn't on Australia's list of top ten books (recently decided by poll) and enthused about ( Read more... ) -
Marian at Rainforest Creek
Long dark hair, slim back,
she crouches by the stream.
The small brown ducks,
the towering trees,
the rounded stones shallow water,
the weeds, the patches of sunny sky
spread themselves before her -
surround, encompass her:
her natural habitat.
( Read more... ) -
This Morning in My Back Yard
The morning is bright early, with the blaze of true summer. Both expectancy and certainty are in the air. Yes it is warm, yes it will get hotter. The leaves are very still - no wind, not the slightest breeze. Even the tendrils of vine questing above the fence are motionless, balancing on air. My neighbour's roof makes patches of red through the ( Read more... ) -
Creating Yet Another Outdoor Writing Spot
So, here's outdoor writing spot number two. Its a very small space, just room for one small, straight-backed chair.( Read more... ) -
In the Guest Bedroom
1:
Hebe has put me in a bower of green and purple, the colours of feminism - in gentle tonings, leavened with white and accented with wood. There are plain, thin frames of dark wood around the windows and the built-in wardrobe. The bedside tables and the small semi-circular shelf in the corner are of blonder wood. The ceiling, the ceiling fan, and ( Read more... ) -
What is the Measure of Success?
A friend asked on facebook recently, in a poetry group:
'Dear Writers: what, for you, is success?'
I answered:
1. Touching people's hearts.
2. Applause (as performance poet).
3. The respect of my peers.
4. People remembering particular poems for years.
5. Respecting myself / my work.
6. Publication by reputable publishers/editors.
7. Money.
... In ( Read more... ) -
The King of the Cats is Dead - poem
This week my featured poet in Poets United's 'I Wish I'd Written This' is the late Aussie expatriate Peter Porter: http://poetryblogroll.blogspot.com.au/2012/12/i-wish-id-written-this_14.html
