Mini fest – 3 authors, so different but with so much to offer their transfixed audience.

Shaun dished out the treasure from the passionate and brave Isobelle Carmody.

Rebecca tamed the hilarious ideas flooding from the gregarious Dave Lowe.

Lucy will spill the beans on what’s under Peter Carnavas’s Cap!

The authors all shared their different paths to full time writing. While Isobelle has a Batchelor of Arts and experience in journalism, Peter and Dave were teachers before they became full time authors and in Peter’s case an illustrator.  Their motivations however, are similar.

When asked, Peter Carnavas revealed that his motivation was an urge to be creative, to tell a story and to be heard.

Well your audience was certainly listening and we loved everything we heard … even when you made us cry!

Peter put together a new masterclass for us as he knows many of the Write Links members have been to previous workshops. He even wrote two stories for us to practice with. Just like that! Sigh. One of which, Maggie and Frank, made many of us just a little bit teary.

Peter wasn’t precious about his stories. He just wanted to share with us how to make them better. It was fascinating to hear Peter critiquing his own story and invite suggestions from us. Published picture book author, Jacqui Halpin, bravely suggested that the ending was too long and breathed a sign of relief when Peter agreed.

Peter challenged us to think from the perspective of an illustrator. Using planning tools such as a story board. He really believes this will pay off in the long run. Peter asked us to be mindful of how illustrations will help to tell the story. Remember it’s OK if your story doesn’t stay the way your story board it. Tinkering is part of the process.

Peter loves the jigsaw process of putting the pieces together. For example he feels there is a great opportunity to lift the spirits after the ‘blue page’. He urged us to think about the layout of the pages, make sure that we have suspense on the right hand page to encourage the reader to turn over.

Peter certainly doesn’t have any trouble getting his readers to turn the pages of his books! 

What is under his cap? Peter is just like his books, sensitive, generous and genuine with a subtle humour to delight.
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Thank you for sharing so much with us Peter, especially Maggie and Frank.

Lucy McGinley lives in a house where dinosaurs roam the bathroom, chess pieces invade the dinner table and drawings of the weird and the wonderful carpet the floor. Words wrap around her like possums clinging to telecom lines, plop onto pages steadily like koala droppings and dart into the grass like blue tongue lizards! She spends her days captivating kindergarten children and her afternoons marvelling over birds feathers, seedpods and occasionally snake skins, with her son.
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Photos of Peter Carnavas by Lyn Halliday