Christine Bongers's Blog, page 18

Tough gigs…

I've done some tough gigs in my time.

I've turned up to give a talk and found that the only other woman in the room was a topless waitress…

I've talked to Year Nine boys in thirty-five degree heat, last period on a Friday, after Phys Ed…

I've sat alone at an author signing table while every every child in the known universe lined up for Morris Gleitzman at the table next to me.

So, when I land a gig like the Gold Coast Literati, I feel honour-bound to publicly thank the high heavens (Gold Coast...

Memories of my father

I feel my father's presence more deeply since he died.

Smoothing the curled edge of an old photograph,  reminds me…

that men can be trusted

mothers are precious

and children,

a blessing.

My father taught me to shoot, to drive a car and a truck… how to change a tyre and clean out a spark plug.

I learned to speak in public from Mum

because he never would.

But he did like to heckle…

When I reached thirty, he asked if I thought I would marry

before I lost my looks

completely.

It was that word –...

Goodbye dacks of track, hello party dress!

One of the fringe benefits of being a published author is that one occasionally gets an invite out.

I've dusted off my frock for the Gold Coast Literati on 28 and 29 May, and am starting to salivate over the smorgasbord of authorial delights on offer.

First up is the Friday night literary feast – "a unique chance for an intimate conversation with the Literati -  some of Australia's most talented and successful authors.'  A three course meal, hot and cold running authors at each table, and...

Listening to your mother

My Mum turns 80 this year; my Mum-in-law is 83.

Both were born into the Great Depression and World War Two, have endured the deaths of husbands and parents, and lived rich lives which include 13 children, 33 grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren between them.

Resilience and a sense of humour have made them much-loved by their large extended families. They have earned their right to be heard, so this Mother's Day, here's a little selection from the chocolate box of Nana sayings treasured by b...

Why write?

I once wrote the words 'I do not write because I must. I write because I can.'

Like being able to whistle, or sing, or do cartwheels, it was fun to do for its own sake, and a pleasure to share with others.

I've done it so often, and for so long, I've become a bit of a word junkie; I get irritable and out-of-sorts when I'm not writing and am only at peace when I am. I don't dwell too much on the why – it feels good, it's not illegal, so why not?

I am fascinated, though, by what motivates others t...

By george, she's got it!

Writers love the aha moment, the shriek of eureka, the epiphany-producing breakthrough, the gravity of the apocryphal apple falling on one's head.

The exquisite flash of revelation and insight afforded by a creative leap, the illumination of a new connection that is so bright and shiny and real that it has the power to bridge a divide and pull your protagonist through.

It can bubble up like a what-about-a-water-bottle in the bath, shock you into wakefulness at three in the morning, spring...

Serial monogamist

It's not like I went looking for it. But after breaking my vows twice in less than twelve months, it might be time to have a good hard look at myself.

In my own defence, I wasn't used to the freedom. Dust and I had been together a long time. First love and all that. But as soon as what we had became public, I had to move on.

I stumbled into something I wasn't prepared for, an irresistible character in a difficult situation (The Lonely Dead, for those in the know).  I was a bit out of my depth i...

Making the list

It was a heart-stopping moment, reading my name in the Children's Book Council of Australia's list of Notable Books for 2010.

I checked three times and it was still there.  Alongside many new and old writing friends including Michael Gerard Bauer, John Danalis, Gus Gordon, Kate Constable, Sam Bowring and Penny Tangey.

But wonderful books like Belinda Jeffrey's Brown Skin Blue and Kirsty Eagar's Raw Blue were missing.

I'm new to this game.  Dust is the first manuscript I ever wrote, the first...

The last word on Somerset Writer's Festival

"Thank you, Somerset Celebration of Literature, for four of the most joyous days of my writing life." John Danalis, author of Riding the Black Cockatoo

"Missing you all. Sob." Belinda Jeffrey, author of Brown Skin Blue

"Fabulous four days…Why can't life be like that all the time??" Kate Constable, author of the Chanters of Tremaris trilogy

"Now that the music has stopped it seems a little embarrassing." Gus Gordon, author and illustrator of 67 children's books and newly crowned Dancing King of S...

First glimpse of my new baby

We're celebrating a new arrival in the Bongers household this week: the first advance copy of Henry Hoey Hobson!

The uncorrected proof in book form is now making its way to booksellers and reviewers ahead of its 1 July launch.

Here's a sneak preview …

Cover illustration by Geoff Kelly Cover design by Sandra Nobes

Twelve-year-old Henry Hoey Hobson arrives at his sixth school, Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, to discover he's the only boy in Year Seven.

Friendless, fatherless and non-Catholic, Henry...