Online Clinic with Dr Sandra Thibodeaux
There’s nothing more important in the writing process than honest and constructive feedback. In this online clinic you’ll receive just that, both from our experienced workshop lead Dr Sandra Thibodeaux and your peers. So, if you have a chapter of your book that you think needs some work, a screenplay that’s waiting to be dusted off, or a poem or two that needs a critical eye, then this is the course for you.
Dr Sandra Thibodeaux is a playwright and poet who has published four collections of poetry, with the latest being Dirty H2O (Mulla Mulla Press). Sandra has written more than a dozen plays that have been staged as part of festivals across Indonesia and Australia, and broadcast on Radio National. Her latest plays include The Age of Bones, A Smoke Social, Mr Takahashi (and other falling secrets) and The Lion Tamer. Sandra has twice won the NT Literary Awards for her plays, and has been short-listed for both the Patrick White and Griffin playwriting awards. The Age of Bones was nominated for a prestigious Green Room Award (Melbourne) for Best Ensemble and is currently being adapted for the screen. Sandra has conducted creative writing workshops and courses across Australia for around 15 years. She was previously Lecturer in Literary Studies and Creative Writing at Charles Darwin University.
Course information
- The course is run entirely on an online interactive platform called Wet Ink (and we’ll give detailed instructions).
- Each month for three months, you will submit up to 1500 words in any genre. This might include: a short story; a selection of poetry; a section from your novel; or part of a screenplay. You may choose to work on different pieces each round, or to develop the one with multiple drafts–it’s up to you.
- The following week you’ll receive feedback from Sandra and your course mates.
- All participants will be given the opportunity to read and comment on writing from others in the group. While this process of giving feedback is optional, it is strongly encouraged. Participation will enrich the process overall and help you to reflect on and improve your own writing.
- Access to a computer and the internet is a requirement of this course.
Course Dates
Enroll by 11th January 2020
18th January 2021– first submission deadline
15th February 2021 – second submission deadline
15th March 2021 – third and final submission deadline
Cost
General – $180
Member – $150
How Can Settlers Write First Nations’ Characters Respectfully?
How can setters write First Nations characters respectfully? If we write place-based narratives or histories that are empty of First Nations characters then we feed the Terra Nullius Lie. But if we do, how can we write so we don’t fall into the same old Settler mistakes of writing Tokenism, imposing White Voice, or appropriating First Nations’ Cultures? This workshop explores the maxim ‘Connection – Compassion – Collaboration’ to develop First Nations Characters respectfully. This workshop will be a guided self-exploration of these three Principles.
Zohl dé Ishtar has spent her life living and working with Indigenous Australian and Pacific women, and their communities, to protect their Cultures, Customs, Laws, Lives and Country. For the past 20 years Zohl has lived in the Great Sandy Desert with the Women Elders of the Balgo Community where she co-founded and managed the Kapululangu Aboriginal Women’s Law and Culture Centre. Zohl has written two books about these experiences; Daughters of the Pacific (1994) & Holding Yawulyu: White Culture and Black Women’s Law (2005). She was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005 as part of the 1000 Peace Women Across the Globe.
When: Sat 5th Sep, 2-5pm
Where: via Zoom
Cost: $80 non-members, $50 members
2020 Young Territory Author Awards Free Workshop (secondary age)
The Young Territory Author Awards is an annual writing competition where entrants write and produce their own book. The Awards aim to inspire children and young people in the NT to explore their ideas and turn them into stories. The competition is open to all Territorians 18 years and under, and is organised in association with other public libraries and schools throughout the Northern Territory. The competition is in its 30th year of production and showcases the incredible imagination and creativity of young people in the community, providing them with an opportunity to develop their writing skills and have their work nationally recognised. You can find out more about the awards here.
This free workshop run by the NTWC will take place via Zoom video link and is aimed at secondary school age children (click here for our workshop for primary age children). Our workshop lead will take you through the basic elements of producing a book to make sure you craft the best possible story, and whether you enter the awards is up to you!
Cost: free (sign up using this Eventbrite link)
When: Saturday 18 July, 12:00-13:30
Where: via Zoom
2020 Young Territory Author Awards Free Workshop (primary age)
The Young Territory Author Awards is an annual writing competition where entrants write and produce their own book. The Awards aim to inspire children and young people in the NT to explore their ideas and turn them into stories. The competition is open to all Territorians 18 years and under, and is organised in association with other public libraries and schools throughout the Northern Territory. The competition is in its 30th year of production and showcases the incredible imagination and creativity of young people in the community, providing them with an opportunity to develop their writing skills and have their work nationally recognised. You can find out more about the awards here.
This free workshop run by the NTWC will take place via Zoom video link and is aimed at primary school age children (click here for our workshop for secondary school students). Local teacher and writer Lyndal Carberry will take budding young authors through the basic elements of storytelling and help them develop their ideas into a finished product, and whether they enter the Young Author Awards or not, this is a great skill for the future!
Cost: free (sign up using this Eventbrite link)
When: Saturday 18 July, 10:00-11:30
Where: via Zoom
Beautiful Language with Ilka Tampke
Language is the raw material from which we build our stories. The more confident we are using words, sentences and paragraphs, the more control we have over our reader’s emotions.
Join award-winning author Ilka Tampke to take a deep dive into the power of language in fiction: crafting beautiful sentences, building artful paragraphs, infusing our work with metaphor, making our writing strong, muscular and musical.
Through readings and exercises, you will leave this workshop with greater mastery of the written word.
Ilka Tampke Tampke’s first novel, Skin, was published in eight countries and was nominated for the Voss Literary Prize and the Aurealis Award in 2016. Her second novel, Songwoman, was published in four countries and won the Most Underrated Book Award 2019. Ilka teaches fiction at RMIT University and is currently completing a PhD at La Trobe University. She lives in the Macedon Ranges of Victoria.
Click here to read our review of Skin
WHEN: 25 July, 10:00-13:00
WHERE: via Zoom video link (online)
COST: $80 for non-members, $50 for members
Online Writing Clinic with Ilka Tampke
Writing both historical fiction and fantasy requires us to take the reader to another world and make it feel vividly real.
Join with me to talk about research, craft and taking an imaginative leap into a different reality.
Ilka Tampke Tampke’s first novel, Skin, was published in eight countries and was nominated for the Voss Literary Prize and the Aurealis Award in 2016. Her second novel, Songwoman, was published in four countries and won the Most Underrated Book Award 2019. Ilka teaches fiction at RMIT University and is currently completing a PhD at La Trobe University. She lives in the Macedon Ranges of Victoria.
Click here to read a review of Skin
Course information
- The course is run completely by email.
- Each month for three months, you will submit up to 1500 words in any genre. This might include: a short story; a section from your novel; or a specific piece of historical or fantasy genre fiction. You may choose to work on different pieces each round, or to develop the one with multiple drafts–it’s up to you.
- The following week you’ll receive feedback from Ilka Tampka and your peers.
- All participants will be given the opportunity to read and comment on writing from others in the group. While this process of giving feedback is optional, it is strongly encouraged. Participation will enrich the process overall and help you to reflect on and improve your own writing.
- Access to a computer and the internet is a requirement of this course.
Course Dates
Enrollment- by 6th July
3rd August – first submission deadline
7th September – second submission deadline
5th October – third and final submission deadline
General – $180
Member – $150
Honouring Culture in Writing – making cross cultural writing benefit everyone
How do you honour your own culture in your writing? How do you depict it in ways that are meaningful and engaging?
How do you write about culture that brings pride to yourself, others and the readers?
How can your research and writing improve Settler-Indigenous relations?
How can you position your writing into the wider socio-cultural field in ways that benefit First Nations’ Peoples in Australia’s remote Aboriginal communities.
This workshop will provide techniques and insights into how to write stories that move cross culturally. Zohl dé Ishtar has spent her life living and working with Indigenous Australian and Pacific women, and their communities, to protect their Cultures, Customs, Laws, Lives and Country. For the past 20 years Zohl has lived with the Women Elders of the Balgo Community where she co-founded and managed the Kapululangu Aboriginal Women’s Law and Culture Centre. Zohl has written two books about these experiences; Daughters of the Pacific (1994) & Holding Yawulyu: White Culture and Black Women’s Law (2005). (Both published by Spinifex Press, Australia) and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005.
WHEN 6 June, 14:00-17:00
AT via Zoom
COST $45/$35 members
A Literary Agent & You with Alex Adsett
In this two hour zoom workshop with literary agent Alex Adsett you will learn what an agent does, if and when they can help your career, the different ways to pitch to publishers and agents (and what not to do), and an opportunity to try out a live pitch on the day. The pitches will be chosen at random, with a live 3 min pitch to the room, where the pitch (not the manuscript) is then critiqued by Alex.
Alex Adsett is a literary agent and publishing consultant offering commercial contract advice to authors and publishers. She has more than twenty years’ experience working in the publishing and bookselling industry and has managed Alex Adsett Publishing Services since 2008. As a consultant, Alex helps authors and publishers negotiate publishing contracts in line with industry standards. As a literary agent, she is focused on finding exceptional manuscripts for adults, young adults and children, from romance to literary to non-fiction. Alex represents a select stable of authors including Melissa Lucashenko, Ruby Hamad, Isobelle Carmody, and Trent Jamieson. She is often to be found on twitter at @alexadsett or via her website www.alexadsett.com.au.
Date: Sunday 21 June, 10am-12pm
Venue: Zoom video link
Cost: $30 NTWC members/$50 non-members
Creative Writing for Young People with Erin Gough
In this online workshop for young people aged 12-16 years, award-winning Young Adult author Erin Gough takes us into the craft of storytelling. We will investigate the elements of a good story, including setting, conflict, plot and theme, with a particular focus on how to develop well-rounded and compelling characters. Participants will then have the opportunity to craft their own stories, either individually or in groups, and to receive feedback on their work.
Erin Gough’s award-winning fiction has been published globally. She is the author of two books for young adults: The Flywheel, which won the Ampersand Prize, and Amelia Westlake, winner of the Readings Young Adult Book Prize and the NSW Premier’s Prize for Young Adult Fiction. Erin’s short fiction has appeared in places including The Griffith Review, Kindred, and Best Australian Stories.
What will I need to participate online?
In light of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we are offering this workshop online. As with our regular workshops, participants can expect to receive high quality teaching and plenty of opportunity for interaction and discussion.
You will need:
Tuesday May 26
5:00-6:30pm
Free, limited capacity. Bookings Essential. CLICK HERE
For young people aged 12-16 years.
This workshop is proudly supported by City of Darwin Libraries
Children’s Book Consultation with Erica Wagner
Are you writing books for children U12? Long time publisher, editor and bookseller Erica Wagner has agreed to offer 30 minute personal feedback over Zoom after reading a selection of your work. This is a unique opportunity to get advice directly from an experienced publisher and gain valuable insight into your work. Not one to be missed! (more…)
Online – Gathering Ground: Walking, Talking and Writing With Place with Kelly Lee Hickey
In light of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic, this walkshop will now take place online, where you can walk in your garden, write at home, and connect with others online. Please take special precautions in joining this event. Maintain your physical distance when walking, and give yourself ample space for writing.
“When you give yourself to places, they give you yourself back…. Exploring the world is one the best ways of exploring the mind, and walking travels both terrains.”– Rebecca Solnit, Wanderlust: A History of Walking
Walking and writing have a long history together. Gathering Ground is an invitation to this explore this tradition through three weekends of writing walk-shops. Each week a provocation will be explored through a short writers walk, followed by a generative writing session. This workshop is open to writers and artists of any form or experience interested in developing new ways of seeing, being and writing with/in place.
Kelly Lee Hickey was raised in Darwin, on the sweat soaked wetlands of Larrakia Land, and has made her home in the dusty red country of the Arrernte nation in Mparntwe/Alice Springs since 2008. An artist, producer and creative researcher, her practice explores the intersections between people and places, through collaborative and participatory works. Her work has been published and performed in Australia, China, Finland, New Zealand, Indonesia and Germany.
What will I need to participate online?
As with our regular workshops, participants can expect to receive high quality teaching and plenty of opportunity for interaction and discussion.
You will need:
Online via ZOOM, Saturday 28th March and 4th April, 10am – 12am
Price: Full $60, Member $50 (book using link below)
Online Writing Memoir with Joanne van Os
In light of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, we are now offering this workshop online. The date has been confirmed as 18 April and will be offered via our online video link service called Zoom. This is a great opportunity to get the best out of writing your memoir in these times of isolation!
Every life has its stories. A memoir can cover a person’s whole life, or just a small section, and it can be about yourself, or someone else, but is usually from a personal perspective. It’s a genre that’s growing in popularity, with readers enjoying stories of ordinary people’s extraordinary lives. In this workshop Jo will seek to inspire, instruct and help you get started. For anyone who’s ever thought about writing a memoir.
Joanne van Os’ first book was best-selling memoir Outback Heart (Penguin), published in 2005 it tells the story of life with her first husband, the ‘Real Crocodile Dundee’ Rod Ansell, mustering wild cattle and buffalo and living a 19th century lifestyle in remote parts of the Northern Territory, and his tragic end in 1999. Children’s novels followed: Brumby Plains, Castaway, and The Secret of the Lonely Isles (shortlisted for the 2012 Territory Read awards). Her first general fiction novel, Ronan’s Echo, about the battle of Fromelles in WWI and the excavation of buried soldiers in 2010, was published in 2014. She is currently working on a new book.
What will I need to participate online?
As with our regular workshops, participants can expect to receive high quality teaching and plenty of opportunity for interaction and discussion.
You will need:
Saturday, April 18th
10am – 1pm
$80/$50 NTWC members
Writing Picture Books with Katrina Germein (Online)
Picture books are a unique genre that delight both adults and children. But what makes them special? How do writers take readers on a journey with so few words to play with? And how do the author and illustrator work together? In this workshop aspiring writers are invited to examine some of the important elements of text for picture books. We will consider how to begin writing a picture book and how to refine and strengthen a story.
Topics include
- Word Length
- Emotional Impact
- Characters
- Structure
- Editing
- Commercial appeal
- How to submit to publishers
Katrina Germein is a best-selling picture book author. Published worldwide, her first book, Big Rain Coming, has remained continuously in print since it was originally published in 1999. Katrina’s popular story, Thunderstorm Dancing, is among many of Katrina’s titles to have received a Notable Commendation from The Children’s Book Council of Australia and featured on children’s television programs such as Play School. Katrina’s much-loved picture book, My Dad Thinks He’s Funny, was Highly Commended in the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards and in 2019, Katrina received the Speech Pathology Book of the Year Award for Let’s Go Strolling. New titles for 2020 include: Tell ‘Em, Shoo You Crocodile and My Dad Thinks He’s Super Funny.
What will I need to participate online?
As with our regular workshops, participants can expect to receive high quality teaching and plenty of opportunity for interaction and discussion.
You will need:
6 June
10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Online (via Zoom)
$80/$50 NTWC members
Click here to book tickets
