tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-704482797273331192012-02-02T19:40:21.486+08:00Stuff about writing for children, and about life, and about anything that takes my fancy really.Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.comBlogger5161100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-25963929829028353632012-02-02T09:00:00.007+08:002012-02-02T09:17:55.119+08:00

I’ve been reviewing books for more than ten years, mainly for my own book review site, aussiereviews. I love sharing the word about books with readers and, along the way, promoting the work of wonderful Australian creators and publishers. But it wasn’t until my own books were published and, subsequently, reviewed that I understood the impact of a review. Reviews are important, in my opinion, for

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-74724554408993516082012-02-01T17:56:00.000+08:002012-02-01T17:56:36.572+08:00

It’s a new month, which means one month of my National Year of Reading challenge has passed. If you haven’t been reading my posts, or following my updates on Twitter or Facebook, I’ll explain. This year is the National year of Reading here in Australia. Hooray! A whole year of focus on one of life’s great treasures. All around the country there are events,promotions and challenges

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-74568522359895284712012-01-23T12:30:00.000+08:002012-01-23T12:30:34.910+08:00

Another glorious Monday morning in Murphy-world. Things that made me smile this morning: One. Waking up with the knowledge that my beloved is here with me for another week, instead of 300km away like he usually is on Mondays. Two. Diving into my pool and swimming a dozen laps of butterfly (it is not a big pool). At the start of the summer I could manage about 5. Three. Swimming along the

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-24932652520446475942012-01-21T12:05:00.000+08:002012-01-21T12:05:36.435+08:00

It's 20 days since I woke up on New Years Day and decided (a little impulsively) to set myself a challenge - to read 366 books this year (you can read my initial post on this here). So I thought it might be time for an update. So far, I'm right on track - I've managed 20 books in 20 days. This is my list so far: 1. Straight Line to My Heart Bill Condon Allen & Unwin Young

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-1140867595471259662012-01-18T12:22:00.000+08:002012-01-18T12:22:40.622+08:00

I'm having a busy week (who am I kidding? Every week is a busy week) but just wanted to share a couple of exciting happenings. Firstly, on Sunday the new-look Aussiereviews went live. I've been running the site for over ten years, focusing on reviewing Australian books, and the site was well overdue for an overhaul. My lovely daughter did the new design, and I spent quite a bit of time

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-8970561548693555582012-01-13T16:31:00.000+08:002012-01-13T16:31:09.551+08:00

If you want to know more about me, pop over to Monica Kade's Career Confessions blog where you'll find me answering her questions about my writing career. While you're there, check out the confessions by a whole range of inspirational people. Enjoy!

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-11367066369157813142012-01-11T11:10:00.000+08:002012-01-11T11:10:57.231+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-89093917799448123932012-01-06T08:05:00.002+08:002012-01-06T08:05:45.554+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-41801564682708344772012-01-01T12:42:00.000+08:002012-01-01T12:42:59.715+08:00

Happy New Year to you!  I had a pretty awesome 2011 but am really excited about the promise of a brand new year and loving that 2012 is the National Year of Reading. Also really excited about my role as local ambassador for Bunbury, WA. I had toyed with the idea of a reading meme for the National Year of Reading, but there are so many other really good ones already that I hesitated to add

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-32828711995475503252011-12-23T07:46:00.000+08:002011-12-23T07:46:00.554+08:00

It's almost Christmas Eve. Few people are unfamiliar with this poem - but having it read by voice over artists is a bit different.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-56057727663744520922011-12-22T07:26:00.000+08:002011-12-22T07:26:00.229+08:00

Cats! And dogs. And even the odd goat.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-51241049479312250902011-12-21T19:50:00.000+08:002011-12-21T19:50:00.676+08:00

Modern kids might know about The  Chipmunks - but not to many of them know mcuh about viny records and the fun you could have speeding them up. Oh the simpler things in life! I LOVED the Chipmunks in their orginal form.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-43588559399591874412011-12-20T19:14:00.001+08:002011-12-20T19:14:00.584+08:00

If  Mary and Joseph had Facebook.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-39562626433225151622011-12-19T19:55:00.000+08:002011-12-19T19:55:00.199+08:00

Not a brilliant video, but I had to include an Aussie song in the mix. When I was a kid all the Christmas songs and carols we sang and heard seemed to come from the Northern Hemisphere and feature snow and ice and open fires.  I love that my kids have had lots of Aussie influenced songs - and books, too!

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-64055178234285139902011-12-18T19:31:00.001+08:002011-12-18T19:31:01.475+08:00

This one is a song and a story. It tells the same tale as one which my wonderful friend Norman Jorgensen brought to life in his book In Flanders Fields. It's a wonderful tale of Christmas goodwill in the midst of war - and a post script many years later.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-73835554186686467952011-12-17T07:39:00.003+08:002011-12-17T07:39:00.314+08:00

Another one from my youth. I was 17 when this one was made and, again, thought it was pretty wonderful at the time because it featured so may of my favorite singers - and, of course, because it was aimed at raising money for such a good cause. Go on, sing along. You know you want to :)

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-18200139365400627612011-12-16T19:53:00.004+08:002011-12-16T19:53:00.158+08:00

It isn't Christmas at my house without Lego.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-14417528767347491012011-12-15T07:09:00.001+08:002011-12-15T07:09:00.376+08:00

Another video I've not seen before - and yes, I do realise this is a  Coke ad, but it features Train, a band I happen to like. I went so far as to buy their CD this time last year and my kids said "that song sounds just like the Coke ad." Funny that. <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;"

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-18978184518005871742011-12-14T22:25:00.000+08:002011-12-14T22:25:16.525+08:00

Last night I had dinner with the members of my new bookgroup. To clarify, the group isn’t new – but I am new to the group, having been invited to join because a member is leaving. I’ve wanted to be part of a bookgroup for ever, but never managed to find one with an opening for a new member. Then this one kind of fell in my lap, when I met up with a lovely lady I knew when I lived in Donnybrook 12

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-11197156393575421172011-12-14T07:15:00.002+08:002011-12-14T09:40:39.445+08:00

More Christmas fun. I've not seen this clip before but I have the John Denver/Muppet Christmas album, which I only purchased a few years ago in a moment of nostalgia. Enjoy!

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-10348739580526199652011-12-13T08:37:00.005+08:002011-12-13T08:37:00.744+08:00

More Christmas goodness. The Hallelujah Chorus was a big part of my growing up. I spent two years of my life trapped in boarding school, and part of our annual speech night was the whole school massed choir. Not sure the Hallelujah Chorus was done every year, but it was pretty regular - and although I was only there for two years, I'd been attending speech nights there for 10 years or so, because

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-7477311010247160312011-12-12T08:34:00.000+08:002011-12-12T08:34:07.421+08:00

It's been a month since my last post, and with much to do here over the next little while, I'm not sure when I'll write another decent post. So rather than leave this space empty, thought I'd share some of my favourite Christmas bits and bobs. This is the song that's been in my Head the past few days - and the clip just made me giggle with all its glorious 80s- ishness (hey, I coined a new

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-69121099587987530142011-11-12T21:50:00.002+08:002011-11-12T21:50:00.293+08:00

This post doesn’t really need an introduction so let’s get straight to it – five reasons you (or I) should write. 1.      1.  You love words. The  sound of them, the shape of them, the way they fit together. A perfectly written sentence sends frissons of joy down your spine. 2.       2.   You love stories – other people’s as well as your own – and you see them wherever you go. 3.     3.  

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-73983740096518846082011-11-09T09:25:00.002+08:002011-11-09T09:25:00.053+08:00

Since my last couple of posts have run towards being a little bit preachy (thou shalt not submit prematurely etc  etc), I  thought  it might be a good change of pace to share  a few secrets. Instead of saying what YOU should or shouldn’t be doing, today I’m going to share a quick list of things I have done wrong over the years as I’ve tried to get published. 1.      1.  Submitting too soon.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-60412559404937353372011-11-07T20:50:00.000+08:002011-11-07T20:51:01.334+08:00

Yesterday I talked about some realities of publishers existing to make money, rather than existing just to publish your book/s.  But if you’re a writer, what you want is for a publisher to want to make that money from publishing your book. So I thought it might be useful to share some simple ways you can increase your chances of getting published.  So, here goes:1.   1. Write. A lot. If you have

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-56146545300905803932011-11-06T20:50:00.000+08:002011-11-06T20:50:37.033+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-27862424373375427482011-11-03T11:03:00.000+08:002011-11-03T11:03:13.681+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-40030177907561538262011-10-17T11:47:00.000+08:002011-10-17T11:47:55.556+08:00

Almost 20 years ago I remember watching ABC TV with my toddler daughter when a clip of four weird men in skivvies singing ‘Rock a Bye Your Bear” came on. I remember thinking the song was clever, and Murphlet 2 enjoyed it too. Little did I know that those men, who were The Wiggles, would go on to become a huge international phenomenon – or that for years to come, long after my youngest grew out

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-33393174183147894152011-10-06T11:22:00.000+08:002011-10-06T11:22:14.696+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-47256705289646581842011-10-05T14:17:00.000+08:002011-10-05T14:17:49.415+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-34138473375084825412011-10-02T20:31:00.000+08:002011-10-02T20:31:56.330+08:00

Wow! It’s been such a crazy few days that I haven’t had time to stop by my own bog and post my exciting news. But I’m here now, so please accept a glass of cyber champagne from my virtual butler, help yourself to the cyber nibblies and celebrate with me. Image: digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net “Why?” I hear you ask. Well, on Friday night I attended the Western Australian Premier’s Book

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-10651328452919734492011-09-29T21:05:00.000+08:002011-09-29T21:05:40.855+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-28804926309661924382011-09-20T12:46:00.000+08:002011-09-20T12:46:23.494+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-34859536450491057542011-09-19T15:35:00.000+08:002011-09-19T15:35:49.533+08:00

My stint as Star Author over at the Christchurch Kids blog continues, and today I have blogged there about some of the books I loved when I was a kid. You can read my post here.  Also, if you happen to know any children living in Christchurch, NZ, tell them to enter the contest to win free copies of Pearl Verses the World and Toppling. Cheers

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-3928844202555174032011-09-14T13:57:00.000+08:002011-09-14T13:57:04.723+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-3455849673239810042011-09-12T21:36:00.001+08:002011-09-12T21:41:35.084+08:00

On Saturday my lovely friend Frane Lessac and I spoke about getting published as part of the Mundaring Arts Centre's Heartlines Festival. here we are - with me in full flight explaining something and Frane looking on, waiting for her chance to say something clever.   Anyway, inspired by this, yesterday I blogged over at the Christchurch Kids blog about the steps involved in the publicaton of

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-81023638188971243042011-09-05T01:48:00.026+08:002011-09-05T19:26:54.719+08:00

I  am delighted to welcome fellow Aussie author and all-round wonder, Tania McCartney here to my blog today.Tanis is in the midst of a blog tour to promote her new picture book Riley and The Grumpy Wombat, and has taken the time to call by and share with us her insights in preparing manuscript submissions. Welcome Tania. Over to you. Riley and the Grumpy Wombat Blog Tour Top 10 Tips for Writing

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-50294217723061462392011-09-04T11:36:00.000+08:002011-09-04T11:36:52.383+08:00

I'm really excited that I've been invited to be the Star Author over at the Christchurch Kids blog this month. I have just blogged over there about young writers and a little about what I've been up to these past few days. You can read the post here.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-53763315979129946452011-08-23T20:20:00.001+08:002011-08-23T20:21:25.000+08:00

         Happy Bookday to you, Happy Bookday to you, Happy Bookday dear Pearl! Happy... Oh, hello there. So glad you dropped by. Don't mind my offkey singing. I'm pretty excited, you see, because today is the Bookday of the US edition of my children’s verse novel, Pearl Verses the World. If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you might have already heard a bit about this book, because

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-28193172515465579132011-08-10T21:32:00.000+08:002011-08-10T21:32:44.295+08:00

I have a confession to  make. Over the past six months I have struggled to write. I have some excuses - a time consuming day job, a relocation, growing kids, living apart from my beloved during the week - the list goes on. But in spite of all this, I've managed to still watch TV, play games, go for walks - lots of things that are ostensibly less important to me than writing. It's as if the

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-20227733121679758492011-07-21T20:04:00.000+08:002011-07-21T20:04:38.527+08:00

It's still pretty cold here in Australia, but my heart is warm. One reason for this is my wonderful writing friends who are always so willing to share. Today I'm delighted to welcome Belinda Murrell who has dropped in to tell us what it is that warms her heart. Welcome Belinda. What Warms Belinda Murrell's Heart There are three things that warm my heart most of all, and that is my family,

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-89517124526199474962011-07-12T21:25:00.000+08:002011-07-12T21:25:30.686+08:00

For a brief moment today I was warm. the sun peeked out for a few glorious hours and I took myself off for a walk to, and along, the beach. And yep, as I trecked back up the steep stairs from the beach I very vreifly considered  whipping off my jacket and getting down to just two layers - but didn't.  Now the sun has set and the chill is back. The heater is blaring and my snuggy rug is

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-55657907450608403362011-07-11T21:40:00.000+08:002011-07-11T21:40:46.686+08:00

                                               The temperature here in Southwest WA has struggled to top 10 degrees Celcius the past few days, so I must confess to a little envy of today's guest, with her balmy 19 degrees! However, even that is cold - especially by Queensland standards. There are a LOT of Aussies looking for warmth at the moment. But enough whinging about the weather -

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-31537917409542735342011-07-10T19:28:00.001+08:002011-07-10T19:31:59.489+08:00

As the cold snap continues here in Australia (or at least many parts of the country), I am loving this series of heart-warming posts from my friends. Today I'm really thrilled to welcome Anita Bell who has gone the extra mile with her post, writing in rhyme to tell of her 'interesting' travels of late. Welcome Anita. My Heartwarming Week from HellBy Oz Author, AA Bell  The day that Sally

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-78988836270550375792011-06-29T12:15:00.000+08:002011-06-29T12:15:08.097+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-60192795762037206922011-06-22T21:42:00.000+08:002011-06-22T21:42:22.793+08:00

. It's still cold outside here in my part of the world, but when you feel good about life, even cold weather is bearable. So today I'm delighted to welcome the gorgeous Kate Gordon, author of Thyla who I invited to drop in and tell us what warms her heart Welcome Kate! <!--[if gte mso 9]> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal 0 false false false EN-AU

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-72905708330501670752011-06-21T19:17:00.002+08:002011-06-22T15:57:18.807+08:00

A couple of years ago I had a pretty disheartening experience. I had an hour to kill whilst I waited for my beloved to finish an appointment, so I walked along a busy Perth street, browsing in shops and enjoying myself. There were three bookshops in the street, so I thought I’d check and see if any were stocking my books. Pearl Verses the World had been out for several months, had great reviews,

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-24803225868534919872011-06-20T16:33:00.000+08:002011-06-20T16:33:01.207+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-21724862928416652612011-06-17T10:21:00.001+08:002011-06-17T10:21:38.333+08:00

&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;gt;I&lt;/p&gt; Best self-help book ever!

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-28136215964646791512011-06-15T14:46:00.000+08:002011-06-15T14:46:39.426+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-47554536504031958652011-06-11T02:58:00.019+08:002011-06-11T02:58:00.395+08:00

It's always fun to have visitors here on my blog, and today I am delighted to welcome Ian Irvine, who is currently touring the blogosphere talking about his new bookThe Calamitous Queen.  I thought it might be fun to ask Ian all about his glamorous (or otherwise) life as an author. Welcome, Ian. 1.       Congratulations on the release of The Calamitous Queen.  How does it feel to hold your

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-18242643217935816672011-06-10T08:49:00.000+08:002011-06-10T08:49:09.612+08:00

Having talked yesterday about how cool it is to have guest bloggers visit, I'm excited to share that today I'm guest blogging over at Sophia Whitfield's blog. Sophia asked me to share five books which have influenced me. Whilst I found it really hard to focus on just five, it was a really fun trip down memory lane. You'll find the post here. Drop by and leave a comment!

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-56940889277193610412011-06-09T15:25:00.000+08:002011-06-09T15:25:53.492+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-7658628851290664942011-06-06T16:31:00.000+08:002011-06-06T16:31:47.934+08:00

On Friday I was delighted when the school library officer at my dayjob showed me her newly-arrived copy of Toppling.  Yes, of course I've seen my book-baby before, and love it - but this is the first copy I've seen with the gorgeous bronze sticker which says it is a shortlisted book in the CBCA Children's Book of the Year Awards.  I was so excited I had to snap a photo just to prove it was real

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-62024198661640670852011-05-31T15:20:00.000+08:002011-05-31T15:20:35.292+08:00

Tomorrow is officially the first day of winter here in Australia, and I have a confession to make: I am NOT a winter person. Give me blistering sun any day of freezing cold – though my real favourite is hot enough to swim, mild enough not to HAVE to swim. Anyway, to me winter is cold and damp and miserable. But, in the spirit of my quest to put a positive spin on stuff, I thought I’d devote a

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-10588552175170332872011-05-26T08:59:00.000+08:002011-05-26T08:59:35.884+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-76668012580882602382011-05-25T08:10:00.001+08:002011-05-25T08:12:46.762+08:00

One of my students at my teaching dayjob asked me recently why I needed a day job if I am a ‘real’ author (as opposed, I guess, to being an unreal one). I explained that , like most authors, I need a day job to supplement my income. She was a bit puzzled by this, and went on to ask why I bother with writing if it doesn’t make me enough money.  Although I answered her with several reasons, I’ve

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-92151550221918871372011-05-24T17:23:00.001+08:002011-05-24T17:27:05.584+08:00

Have just spent a fun half an hour doing virtual jigsaw puzzles of the covers of Toppling and Pearl Verses the World, after fellow shortlisted author, Chris Bongers pointed out that Mrs B has a great interactive website which has puzzles and  other activities for shortlisted titles in the CBCA Childrens Book of the Year Awards for the past three years. How very cool. The Toppling page has links

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-1920053026411458902011-05-23T12:43:00.000+08:002011-05-23T12:43:25.669+08:00

My beloved brought home some mail from our other house on the weekend, and I was delighted that one of the packages contained author copies of Snowy's Christmas - in Korean.  It's my  first ever foreign language edition - though there have been UK and US versions of some of my books - so it was a novel expereince seeing my story in a form I can't actually read - in spite of looking almost the

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-32569172213755629162011-05-18T20:17:00.000+08:002011-05-18T20:17:37.283+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-31972847223646487842011-05-14T14:21:00.000+08:002011-05-14T14:21:17.992+08:00

I was asked recently why I only write sad books. I was quite taken aback by this question, because I don’t think of myself as someone who writes sad books. But at the same time I knew where the asker was coming from. After all, this person may have read some of my more lighthearted stories in the past, but most recently she had read both Pearl Verses the World and Toppling, both of which deal

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-5833296184804025712011-05-05T21:46:00.000+08:002011-05-05T21:46:55.028+08:00

We had a bit of a strange dinner at our house tonight. My youngest had rugby training, so I didn’t get dinner started until 6.30, planning a simple meal of satay chicken and rice. I boiled the kettle, and got the rice on the stove, then went to dice the chicken. Blehhhhhhh. The chicken had a funny smell. It should have been fresh but it didn’t smell that way, and I don’t take chances with

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-16211566250845972722011-05-02T16:44:00.000+08:002011-05-02T16:44:49.364+08:00

Because I was kind of busy in January this year (moving house, caring for invalid husband, and so forth) I didn’t sit down and write a list of writing goals for the year. This is something I do every year, inspired several years ago by my writing buddy Lyn Uhlman who suggested that our online writing group KWDownUnder, set and share writing goals every year. However, this year I’ve been busy and

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-50470627853458540072011-04-17T10:17:00.000+08:002011-04-17T10:17:45.037+08:00

What a week! Hot on the heels of the news of Toppling's shortlisting for the CBCA Book of the Year Awards, comes the equally exciting news that it has also been shortlisted for the YABBA Awards in the older readers category. The YABBA Awards (YABBA stands for Young Australians' Best Book Award) are an annual children's choice awards, where kids across Victoria nominate their favourite books.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-63937446442132806292011-04-14T08:56:00.000+08:002011-04-14T08:56:11.978+08:00

I’ve never been great with names. Not just with remembering them – though this is a very real problem for me – but also with making them up. This would be why I have several main characters called Marty – after all, having come up with one name for a slightly cheeky, but generally nice character, why not use it again, without remembering that I’ve used it before? And then there are titles –

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-52243351877763619482011-04-13T14:23:00.000+08:002011-04-13T14:23:55.825+08:00

A day-job colleague asked me yesterday whether I made much money from my writing. When I explained that I don’t earn enough to justify giving up the afore-mentioned day job, he was surprised. After all, I’d just told him about being shortlisted for Children’s Book of the Year, and told him about my other books, and the various successes I’ve had with them. I explained that the day job is what

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-18453355962139825562011-04-12T13:28:00.000+08:002011-04-12T13:28:43.208+08:00

I'm delighted to announce that Toppling has been named on the Shortlist for the CBCA Children’s Book of the Year Awards (Younger readers category).  I was in the classroom just starting a year 8 English lesson when the list was announced, and my poor students had no idea why I suddenly started whooping and dancing around the room – until I drew breath long enough to explain. They were very

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-68821810204388441752011-03-24T14:03:00.000+08:002011-03-24T14:03:00.890+08:00

I'm in the midst of finalising school and library bookings for Bookweek, so really enjoyed the post by SchoolVisitExperts on Crowd Control. As someone who has been on both sides of the crowd - as an author, and as a teacher, I found this a great sum up both of the kinds of situations that can arise and of the best way to deal with them.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-80160656354647125132011-03-23T13:17:00.000+08:002011-03-23T13:17:56.106+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-50158223895926813852011-03-17T08:26:00.000+08:002011-03-17T08:26:37.401+08:00

Look at this - two blog posts in as many days!  I feel compelled to pop in this morning and share this link. Sophie Masson, wonderful Australian children's and YA author, has written a brilliant blog post at Writer Unboxed in response to British author  Martin Amis's somewhat controversial statement that :  ‘I’d need to have a brain injury before I write for children’ I won't rehash here what

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-22908326859660280112011-03-16T15:16:00.001+08:002011-03-16T15:16:11.569+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-24513992079025322092010-11-30T02:42:00.020+08:002010-11-30T02:42:00.670+08:00

Tomorrow is a special day - December 1, the start of Advent, and officially time to start preparing for Christmas. Yippee!  I've said it before and I'll say it again - I LOVE Christmas. But of course, I've been a bit naughty (shhhh - don't tell Santa) and have been celebrating Christmas for the past 11 days here on this blog, and elsewhere. My excuse is a good one -I've been celebrating not just

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-79332736731059296692010-11-29T02:33:00.004+08:002010-11-29T02:33:00.506+08:00

Snowy the little white rooooooo, had a very shiny coat... (to the tune of Rudolph the Rednose reindeer). Yes, I know, I am singing (badly) again. But I can't help it - because, as I've said before, I LOVE Christmas, and I'm busily celebrating the release of Snowy's Christmas in paperback. Today, the second last day of my rerun blog tour, I'm taking you back to  one of the most fun stops of last

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-24415129390044946192010-11-28T02:20:00.015+08:002010-11-28T02:20:00.236+08:00

Great. You made it in past all my Christmas lights and rogue tinsel. I may have got a little carried away with the Christmas decorations. I LOVE Christmas! Anyway, welcome back - or, if this is your first time here, just plain welcome. I'm in the midst of celebrating the paperback release of Snowy's Christmas by revisiting last year's blog tour.  Today I'd like to take you back to week 9 of last

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-67090457050036518962010-11-27T02:14:00.016+08:002010-11-27T02:14:00.977+08:00

Deck the shed with bits of wattle, fa la la la la la... Oh, hi there. Come to join the Christmas party? If you've just tuned in, I'm having a blog tour with a difference - because it's really a rerun of a blog tour. That's right, a rerun. To celebrate this year's release of  Snowy's Christmas in paperback  I'm revisiting the blog tour that I took last year to celebrate its release in hardcover.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-78592427096374526502010-11-26T02:06:00.011+08:002010-11-26T02:06:00.982+08:00

Christmas is coming, Sally's getting fat... Nah - not really. Just keeping up the Christmas feel, as the party to celebrate the rerelease of Snowy's Christmas continues. Today we revisit week 7 of last year's blog tour,w here i visited the delightful Sam Hughes for breakfast. The wonderful thing about cyber-goodies is they don't go off, so the bacon and eggs and the pancakes are still fresh if

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-27918406530204319872010-11-25T04:02:00.010+08:002010-11-25T04:02:00.266+08:00

Joy to the world, la la la laaaaaaaa..... I am really enjoying getting into the festive spirit and celebrating the rerelease of Snowy's Christmas - and I hope you are, too. Today, we revisit week six of last year's tour, where I visited the Aussiereviews blog to chat a bit about what it's like when the reviewer becomes the reviewed, a topic pretty dear to my heart. Enjoy.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-54577509926632416182010-11-24T03:55:00.011+08:002010-11-24T03:55:00.140+08:00

Hi there! Fancy a glass of eggnog? Me neither - it's a little too early in the day for me. But I am glad to see you here. I'm just about to start my next rerun - this time taking you back to week five of last year's blog tour, where instead of going elsewhere, I staid put right here and invited Snowy's Christmas  illustrator, my wonderful brother in law David, in for a chat about his role in the

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-10385749818472995202010-11-23T03:50:00.013+08:002010-11-23T03:50:00.299+08:00

On the fourth day of my Christmas blog tour, my friend Claire gave to me... (Come on, sing with me. At the very least you'll drown me out, which would be a great service to humanity). Okay, silliness aside, today is day four in my rerun blog tour, where I revisit last year's blog tour for Snowy's Christmas, to celebrate its rerelease in paperback. Today, we revisit Claire Saxby's blog, where she

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-17887484733814736982010-11-22T03:44:00.018+08:002010-11-22T03:44:00.813+08:00

Ho ho ho! Merry almost-Christmas. I'm so glad you've dropped in for some Christmas fare - and day 3 of my rerun blog tour. If you've not been round lately, you may not know that I'm celebrating the paperback release of Snowy's Christmas by revisiting the blog tour I had last year when I celebrated the hardcover release. So, today, I take you back to week three of last year's tour where David and

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-26015541002605872502010-11-21T03:38:00.015+08:002010-11-21T03:38:00.412+08:00

Welcome back. If you weren't here yesterday, then you may not know that, in the tradition of all good end of year programming, I'm running some reruns. Specifically, for eleven days, I am rerunning my blog tour for Snowy's Christmas. Yesterday, I took you back to week one of last year's tour. Today, then, we revisit week two - and head over to Dale Harcombe's review of  Snowy's Christmas. Enjoy

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-24521959948612005502010-11-20T03:25:00.016+08:002010-11-20T03:25:00.167+08:00

This time last year I was hopping around the word wide web having fun on a big blog tour to celebrate the launch of Snowy's Christmas. I had so much fun on that tour, that, with the book having just been released in a new paperback format, I thought I might try something new - and rerun my blog tour. So, in the tradition of all good reruns, I bring you, day by day, my first ever blog tour rerun.

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-73963164218200072702010-11-19T03:16:00.005+08:002010-11-19T03:16:00.500+08:00

I am delighted to welcome to my blog today children's author, publisher and all round lovely person, Tania McCartney, here as part of her blog tour to promote her new book Riley and the Curious Koala. Tania has kindly agreed to guest blog here - and the topic I gave her is one which is near and dear to my own heart - how to approach a publisher. Over to you, Tania. Approaching Publishersby Tania

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-73799973298435055592010-11-17T14:58:00.000+08:002010-11-17T14:58:37.428+08:00

I've been catching up on my blog reading (much neglected of late in the midst of a very busy couple of months) and have found some real gems to share with you. On Submitting Your Work: Jane Friedman talks about the dos and don'ts of writing a bio to go with your query, while Nicola Morgan makes an excellent point about obsessing (or not) about cover letters. Well said, Nicola. On/For

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-12794531211842911442010-11-01T02:38:00.000+08:002010-11-01T02:38:00.091+08:00

Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you - you still have plenty of time to do your shopping, make your lists, check it twice - even to be naughty and/or nice - but today marks the beginning of my Christmas festivities because today marks the release of the paperback edition of Snowy's Christmas. I'm amazed to think it's been 13 months since the release of the hardcover version, but delighted that

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-43005316879827929812010-10-23T15:59:00.015+08:002010-10-23T20:34:38.716+08:00

Today I am delighted to welcome Angela Sunde, who is here as part of her blog tour to promote her first ever book, Pond Magic. Hi Sally! Thanks for inviting me to your blog. I’m very excited to be here.  1.       Pond Magic is your first book publication. How did it feel to hold that baby in your hands for the first time?It was a little surreal in a way. I’d been excitedly waiting and

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-4843116047471252892010-10-20T03:58:00.001+08:002010-10-20T03:58:00.416+08:00

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Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-49110452184680157982010-10-19T02:50:00.015+08:002010-10-19T02:50:00.649+08:00

I am delighted today to welcome Aleesah Darlinson, who is here as part of her blog tour to promote her new Totally Twins series.   Aleesah has oblingly written a  guest blog on the topic of getting published. Over to you Aleesah. Getting Published As an author, 2010 has been a huge year for me. My first book, Puggle’s Problem, was released in July. My second book, Totally Twins: Musical

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-40481759654249357252010-09-06T11:55:00.000+08:002010-09-06T11:55:54.090+08:00

Phew. I’m home, and have a little time to sit down and blog. My apologies to regular followers for my recent silence – my life has been a whirl! A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to fly to Brisbane for the announcement of the CBCA Children’s Book of the Year Awards. Pearl Verses the World was shortlisted and, to my delight was named an Honour Book.  I travelled to and from Brisbane with

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-38982170247370482072010-08-27T01:56:00.037+08:002010-08-27T01:56:00.184+08:00

If you're a regular here, you'll know that every Friday is Featured Blogger Friday, where I interview a fellow blogger about why and how they blog. This week's guest is Tehani Wessely. Welcome Tehani! Firstly, why do you blog? I started blogging to be one of the "cool kids"! A group of my friends were big bloggers, and I started out mostly reading, and then doing a few random posts (on Live

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-84404067655926924312010-08-20T00:23:00.001+08:002010-08-20T06:13:17.151+08:00

Time once again for Featured Blogger Friday, and this week I am delighted to welcome Heather Burnell. Welcome Heather. Firstly, why do you blog? I started blogging because one of my critique partners thought it would be a great way for us to get to know each other better, but it may have been a conspiracy to help me become more outgoing. I was absolutely terrified that someone was going to

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-31596509944440852702010-08-13T22:46:00.000+08:002010-08-13T22:46:00.794+08:00

A couple of years ago I went through a period where I seriously contemplated giving up on writing as a career. I’d had books published, and was proud of that, but I had a very long spell of rejections, while the publisher of my first trade title went out of business, and the books I had had published didn’t seem to be selling. What kept me going was a combination of the inability to give up (I

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-47657575831224412192010-08-13T00:23:00.000+08:002010-08-13T00:23:00.243+08:00

I love Fridays, because every Friday brings a new visitor - here for Featured Blogger Friday. Today's featured blogger, all the way from Canada, is Jan Markely. Welcome Jan. Firstly, why do you blog? Initially it was all part of my plan to take over the world one blog post at a time! No, really, I like to feel like I'm talking to people who love writing and reading children's books.  What

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-47568510011739822912010-08-06T00:08:00.054+08:002010-08-06T00:08:00.542+08:00

Welcome to another Featured Blogger Friday. This week I am delighted to welcome up and coming Tassie author, and blogger, Kate Gordon. Welcome Kate.  Firstly, why do you blog? I started off blogging because I was a librarian and "Library 2.0" was very big on blogging! Now, I blog because I love reading author blogs and getting an insight into the mind of the people I admire. I figured, since

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-19234933897737078292010-08-05T00:43:00.002+08:002010-08-05T08:41:53.881+08:00

Today I am delighted to welcome brilliant poet and friend Lorraine Marwood, who is here as part of her blog tour to celebrate the release of her new poetry collection, A Ute Picnic. As a poet myself, I wanted to explore how Lorraine (and her publisher) went about putting the collection together. Welcome Lorraine. Tell us a bit about the collection.  What can readers expect to find? Now that's

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-52529763227537502222010-08-03T11:48:00.045+08:002010-08-03T11:48:00.410+08:00

 Lots of goodies around the blogosphere again this week. here are some of my favourites. Enjoy! Writing Advice Nicola Morgan blogs about the process of self-editing. Dee White has wodnerfula dvice ona tricky issue - fixing issues with plot. And one I love - Laura Salas shares Ron Koetrge's poem: Do You Have Any Advice for Those of Us Just Starting Out?  Writing advice and a poem! The Writing

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-15228305940010025122010-07-30T03:38:00.031+08:002010-07-30T03:38:00.758+08:00

It's time once again for Featured Blogger Friday and today I welcome young writer and blogger Brenton Cullen, come to tell us about his blog. Welcome Brenton. Firstly, why do you blog? I blog because I feel like I have so many thoughts and concepts and ideas that I just feel like I immediately have to put out there, and putting your thoughts out via the Internet is one of the easiest ways. Also,

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-82866061590191092372010-07-26T21:00:00.000+08:002010-07-26T21:00:41.852+08:00

As I caught up on my blog reading this evening using my Google Reader, a wonderful tool which tracks all your favourite blogs for you and lists all the posts you haven't read, I thought it might be good to share some of these great posts from time to time. So, in the first of what may (or may not) become a regular feature, here's some of what I've been reading tonight. On Writing Skills Nicola

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-1818553028722539312010-07-26T16:29:00.000+08:002010-07-26T16:29:39.629+08:00

Another lesson which can be summed up in one word and, at the risk of sounding all Sesame Street-ish, the word for today is: Improve. I can hear a little mumble coming from your side of the monitor: How does she know I need to improve my writing? How does she know I’m not brilliant? Truth is I don’t know how brilliant you are (or aren’t) but I do know you can improve. How do I know? Because

Sally Murphyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06094054139556676270noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70448279727333119.post-59667970563488002852010-07-26T13:17:00.000+08:002010-07-26T13:17:07.912+08:00

I'm delighted to be visiting my friend, and talented author, Dee White, over at Kids' Book Capers today, talking about my books and the highs and lows of the writing life. And, if that isn't enough for you, you can also hear a podcast I recorded with Sydney Writers Centre a month or two ago here. When I heard I was going to be interviewed (and recorded) for half an hour, I wondered what I would

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