I'm thrilled that my manuscript The Skeleton House has won the 2023 Forgarty Literary Award and will be published by Fremantle Press sometime in 2024 (TBC). Now that I've finally managed a decent sleep after two nights of staring into the dark with various muscles spasming (winning the Fogarty > eight shots of espresso), I'm … Continue reading 2023 Fogarty Literary Award: The Ripple Effect
Swimming Superstar! 🌟
For the month of February, I took part in the Starlight Super Swim Challenge to raise money for Starlight, a charity that provides fantastic emotional and mental support for children and young adults in hospital. They use play, creativity, and social connection to help children who are missing out on school, playing with friends, and … Continue reading Swimming Superstar! 🌟
Business Trip (Albany)
I went on my first business trip recently. It was pretty standard: tiring, missed my family, very busy, slept in a sleeping bag, constantly cut string and helping people make friendship bracelets...yep, all normal, right? So how does an operations (non-teaching) employee at a school end up trekking 5 hours down south with two buses … Continue reading Business Trip (Albany)
Deep Dive: The Visa Conundrum (UK)
Let’s cut to the chase: I’m an American citizen who lived in England for eight years before moving to Australia. Over the years, I've been asked about how to be “an expat in London too.” Well, I have jumped through many a metaphorical hoop and spent many an hour researching. In this post, I’m going … Continue reading Deep Dive: The Visa Conundrum (UK)
Talk Nerdy to Me: The Bullet Journal
We have this running joke about Mom's planner. Mostly it involves my brother wailing and flailing as he struggles to flee but insists it's too powerful: It has its own gravitational field! It's like a black hole! There's no escape -- I will be consumed! (He collapses to the floor and claws at the tile.) … Continue reading Talk Nerdy to Me: The Bullet Journal
Found: Saxaphone
On Thursday the weather finally started to behave like late May (we've had weeks of rain). After dinner, we decided to go for a walk. Little did we know this walk would change the course of my Friday. It was mild and quiet, with a few other people and dogs having the same idea as … Continue reading Found: Saxaphone
On Being an Official(ish) Writer Person
It's Day 6 of the 14 days to a kickass writing habit. Yay! Today was hard. We were asked to think about our writing habit (or lack thereof) and figure out the conditions that make our writing thrive. Bingo. The root of my writing problems and the reason for signing up for this course in … Continue reading On Being an Official(ish) Writer Person
Don’t Annoy the Javelinas
I've just signed up to "14 Days to a Solid Writing Habit" on Writers' HQ. Why? To sum, the pandemic has thrashed my brain and sucked up my writing mojo. Turns out I take a lot of inspiration (gasp) from the real world. Also turns out you can't just sit in your flat and eat … Continue reading Don’t Annoy the Javelinas
Decade of Dreams™
Ha. HA. Back in January I wrote something that went like this: "Seven days into the new year and new decade, we're on the brink of WWIII, half of the southern hemisphere is ablaze, and I think I'm coming down with a cold. Still, nothing can dampen my spirits: folks, like it or not, this … Continue reading Decade of Dreams™
Katherine Allum 