Seth Heddon was studying Ancient History at university, although his real passion lay in creating his own fictional worlds. He knew he wanted to make writing his career somehow, so he slipped into a creative writing subject. After reading a piece out in class, a fellow student recommended Seth look at the Write Your Novel program that she was doing at the Australian Writers' Centre. “I'm eternally grateful to [that student] Amelia for this!” Seth told us. “We chatted for a while about it. At 22, I didn't have too much loose change, and I was only tutoring at the time. But I knew I had to take ..read more

Meet Deborah Abela, author of The Kindness Project. Deborah is one of Australia’s most beloved children's authors. Her latest middle grade novel is The Kindness Project, which is her 29th book. Recently, she also released the Book of Wondrous Possibilities. While Deb writes mainly in middle grade, she has also written chapter books and picture books, such as Bear in Space and the upcoming No More Room in the Bed. Also hear about ‘Words at Dawn', a writing initiative for students of the Australian Writers’ Centre. And your chance to win the novel The Many Lies of Veronica Hawkins. You can liste ..read more

This week, we’re giving away three copies of The Many Lies of Veronica Hawkins by Kristina Perez. A captivating and addictive journey through the depths of materialism and extravagance, skillfully capturing the multi-layered society of Hong Kong, this story will keep you on the edge of your seat. Here’s the blurb: A cursed woman. A beautiful socialite. A tragic heiress. Just who was Veronica Hawkins? When Martina Torres arrives in the glamorous and vibrant metropolis of Hong Kong, newly married to her high school sweetheart, the world seems to be her oyster. But looks can be deceiving. Adrift ..read more

Would you like to land a copywriting job in an advertising agency working with blue chip clients? How about working in New York in the heart of advertising land? What about using your copywriting skills to write a bestselling novel? If you like to learn how to do any of these, then you need to listen to Philip Taffs. He has worked as a Senior Writer and Creative Director in both Melbourne and Manhattan. He’s worked with major players like Menulog and Playstation and helped launch the Honda CR-V & Odyssey into Australia.  He has taught copywriting at AWARD School, Strategic Communicati ..read more

Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we're beating around the bushel… Q: Hey AWC, where does “hide one’s light under a bushel” come from? A: Ah, the idiom that Macquarie Dictionary defines as “to conceal one’s abilities or good qualities”? Q: Sounds about right. A: Shall we talk about bushels first? Q: Um, sure. I’m guessing it’s a small b ..read more

Meet Indah Ahmad Zahri, author of 5 picture books including her latest How To Measure The Ocean. Indah, a doctor turned picture book author, delves into her career transition, the inspiration behind her books, and her advocacy work. You can listen to the episode below, on Apple Podcasts, on Spotify, or add the podcast RSS feed manually to your favourite podcast app.   00:00 Celebrating 600 episodes: A journey of writing and publishing 01:19 Upcoming seminar: Mastering action in storytelling 03:45 Nat Newman’s writing tips 10:40 Book giveaway: The North Wind by Alexandra Warwick ..read more

This week, we’re giving away three copies of The North Wind by Alexandra Warwick, author of the Four Winds series. The North Wind is a captivating standalone fantasy romance, featuring an enemies-to-lovers narrative with a slow-burn element. Infused with elements of Greek mythology and reminiscent of Beauty and the Beast and the tale of Hades and Persephone, this enchanting novel marks the beginning of a series. It has garnered a dedicated following on TikTok, beloved by readers for its lush and captivating storytelling. Here’s the blurb: Wren of Edgewood is no stranger to suffering. With her ..read more

Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, a glitch in the Matrix… Q: Hey AWC, where does “shemozzle“ come from? A: As in, “it ended up being quite the shemozzle”? Q: Well yeah, like a mess or chaos etc, right? A: That’s the one. Macquarie Dictionary has it listed as “a confused state of affairs; muddle. An uproar; row.“ Meanwhile, America’s Mer ..read more

Welcome to April’s Furious Fiction story showcase – where we bring you the answers to the questions we asked of our collective community this month. The creative prompts were: Each story’s first sentence had to be a question. Each story had to include something being pulled. Each story had to include the words POST, TEAR and THUNDER. So, pull up a chair and pull on some comfortable clothes as we take a look at some of the trends we saw this month. Yes, legs were pulled. Levers were pulled. Pints were pulled. Pork was pulled. Weight was pulled. And pranks were pulled. (To name just a few!) We ..read more

With the story in her draft manuscript spanning ten years, set across six continents and featuring eight points of view, Deborah Pike knew she needed to get the pacing of her story exactly right. She enrolled in FOCUS ON… Pace at the Australian Writers' Centre and got the insight she needed. “I thought it was crucial to get the pacing right, for it to be plausible, possible, and yet pacy,” Deborah told us. With the knowledge gained from her courses, which also included Fiction Essentials: Scenes and Pitch Your Novel: How to Attract Agents and Publishers, Deborah tightened her manuscript and se ..read more