- Launch at Toronto Library, NSW on 11th February 2023
Launching a novel turned out to be one of the best experiences I’ve ever had, and that was down to the enthusiasm radiating from everyone who came along. There had been a huge gap between the time I sent the final, final, final version of my novel (Grey Nomad, Brio Books, 2023) and the date set for the official release of the paperback version. I had spent a lot of time telling people that it was on its way, so to finally be able to crack open the champagne was wonderful.
(Lots of chatting going on!)
GenreCon23 in Brisbane, 18-19th February 2023
After all the staring at the blank page, scribbling, and revising, it was a peak experience to have the opportunity to participate in a panel presentation at GenreCon23 in Brisbane on 18 February.
Most writing festivals are designed for readers (and, of course, for publishers to sell their authors’ books). As such, we eagerly go along to hear directly from the writers of the books we enjoy as well as to be introduced to books we have yet to read. However, GenreCon23 was a conference that was all about writing.
GenreCon is run by the Queensland Writers’ Centre and held in Brisbane each year. It focuses on what have become known as ‘genre’ novels, e.g. crime, speculative fiction (including science fiction, fantasy), historical fiction, romance, and the many wonderful books that blend some or all of these. Like other writing festivals, GenreCon invites selected published authors to present, or to be interviewed ‘in conversation’ with another writer, or to participate as panel members to discuss a topic, or to run workshops. However, for GenreCon, the focus is on the many and varied aspects of the writing process.
GenreCon23 attracted over 200 participants. I had been invited to participate in a panel discussing ‘Putting the Sci back in Sci-Fi’, hosted by another recently published author, Bryn Smith (Magnus Nights: The Helios Incident, Hawkeye Press, 2021).
With renowned authors Garth Nix and Jay Kristoff also on the panel, it wasn’t a surprise to see a large audience in the auditorium.
Garth Nix was the keynote speaker for the event and is a widely known Australian author of many young adult fantasy novels (e.g. the Old Kingdom series which commenced back in 1995 with Sabriel, Harper Collins).
Jay Kristoff is another Australian author with an international following in science fiction and fantasy (e.g. Nevernight series which began in 2016, St Martins Press).
As daunting as it was to sit alongside these two authors, the upside was that they ably helped new writers like Bryn and me to sound knowledgeable! The audience asked lots of questions and later it was most gratifying to have people randomly tell me how much they enjoyed it.
As a newly published author, I was thrilled to see my novel (Grey Nomad, Brio Books, 2023) sitting on the bookstand for sale, let alone have the fun of people approaching me every so often during the event to ask me to sign their copy. As many of you know, my main character in the novel is 70 year old Joyce, keen knitter and CWA member, so it was fascinating to me that most of those buying the book were the many young twenty-somethings.
(Book sales of novels by authors who were presenting at GenreCon23)
In his keynote address, Garth Nix won many writers’ hearts by talking about preparation aka reading for pleasure and how, if you want to learn to use semi-colons, read Lord of the Rings! He was a constant supportive presence for all the writers, attending as many talks as he could, even when not a presenter.
Many of the sessions were held concurrently, so I couldn’t get to all of them but there was something for everyone, e.g. Nalini Singh (romance, paranormal), Natasha Lester (historical fiction), J.P. Pomare (crime), and R.W.R. McDonald (crime). I extended my boundaries and went along to the panels on fairy tales (which included an amazing retelling of Bluebeard!), and horror (in which writers of horror turned out to be exceptionally funny people).
By the end of the two day event, I felt rejuvenated and was itching to get back to writing. Next year, GenreCon24 will feature an overseas keynote for the first time: Patrick Ness, an American-British author of Young Adult fiction (e.g. Chaos Walking trilogy, The Rest of Us Just Live Here, A Monster Calls). I can recommend the experience to anyone interested in writing.