Write Across Queensland! Cosmo's Fun Fearless Female Awards! Third unrelated thing!

STRAYA.

1.
I spent September 9 to 14 travelling from Longreach to Mt Isa and visiting schools (Longreach State School! Winton State School! Hughenden State School! Cloncurry State School! Good Shepherd Catholic College, Mt Isa! And Mt Isa Theatrical Society, too!) as part of Brisbane Writers Festival's Write Across Queensland tour, along with BWF Associate Producer David Burton and performance poet Scott Sneddon/Darkwing.

I've never visited western QLD before - I have not really been outback at all in my life - and it was just astoundingly awesome on numerous levels. All of my anecdotes about being a creepster on the bus and eavesdropping didn't really work, because they didn't really have buses, but apart from that it was just so excellent to be able to meet really amazing librarians and teachers and kids who were super excited to meet an author and who had so many great ideas and so much enthusiasm (and it's always fantastic to see my books on the shelves of a school library! Or just any shelf generally!). The heat was kind of unbearable (I would likely die if I visited in summer) and I ate a lot of questionable meals (vegetarian options are lacking) but it was brilliant. I talk about being lucky all the time to the point of really, really annoying people, but I am, you guys. The places I get to visit! The people I get to meet! You should take up being an author, it's excellent.

2.
I would not typify myself as particularly 'fun' or 'fearless' but the people at Cosmopolitan seem to think I am, because I'm a nominee for their Fun Fearless Female awards? Which is totally awesome, and incredibly exciting, and there are some really talented, amazing women in the author category (and the other categories, too) so it's nice to be up alongside them. You can vote for me, if you'd like.

3.
Oh, and here are a couple of articles I wrote for Birdee last month: one on following your dreams, not your marks, and a totally unrelated, kind of rambly piece on what annoys me about Jamie Oliver's TED talk.

All This Could End book trailers!

I was invited to be quizmaster at CBCA Queensland's State Final for the Readers Cup last night at the State Library, as part of Brisbane Writers Festival. All This Could End was one of the five novels the year 8-9 teams were quizzed on. It's just overall this really excellent, fun event, and awesome because there are not enough opportunities for brilliant readers to be celebrated/really competitive.

As part of the Readers Cup, each team had to make a book trailer based on one of the set novels, and the two schools that made trailers based on my book were really creative/great so I wanted to share them with you!

This one is by All Saints Anglican School (filmed on a beach quite close to where I imagine the story occurring!):

And this one (featuring a bank robbery! as filmed in their school library! security footage!) is by students at Somerville House (who I believe were the overall winners on the night):

P.S. If you create anything inspired by Girl Saves Boy or All This Could End (book trailer/art/cake/whatever), email it to me! I'd love to see it.