A month of enjoying the sunshine with pockets of unwelcome chill for a few days this month.

Watching

I had the privilege of attending the Melbourne Theatre Company’s performance of Sunday. The story is about Sunday Reed who in 1934 with her husband John Reed, bought a dairy farm in Heidelberg, now an established Melbourne suburb. Then they invited numerous artists whom they supported and nurtured. One such artist was Sidney Nolan with whom Sunday had an affair.

The play was all the more amazing for the set which if anyone has been to Heidi gallery today will know the house and the oak tree highlighted in the story. But it is also peppered with delightful Melbourne references.

It’s one of the best plays I’ve seen with superb acting particularly by Nikki Shiels. If you get a chance to see, please do.

Reading

Once again, I’ve read some fabulous books. Have you read any of these?

Watch out for reviews in the coming weeks.

Until, next month…

This was a month of writing, reading and watching…just a few of my favourite things.

Oh, and I did manage a mini trip down to Cape Schanck which for those of you not from Melbourne, is a delightful spot along the rugged coast of the Mornington Peninsula, a mere hour or so away from home. There are many delightful spots to eat – one of my favourite places is Merricks General Wine Store. It’s close to Pt Leo Estate also a perfect lunch spot but with the added advantage of a vast sculptor park where an indulgent lunch can be walked off. We stayed at the fabulous RACV Cape Schanck and thoroughly enjoyed a relaxing couple of days.

What have I been reading?

A little light this month but watch out for my reviews coming shortly.

What have I been watching?

I was lucky enough to attend the fabulous Melbourne Theatre Company’s play Sunshine Super Girl which tells the incredible story of Wiradjuri Australian tennis legend Evonne Goolagong Cawley. The set had the audience seated on either side of a tennis court making us part of the experience. The performance was outstanding and if you haven’t seen it yet, you still have time as it closes December 14th.

Writing.

The Palace Hotel is just about done and I’ve been mulling over my next writing project which at this stage is a collection of short stories with a central thread running throughout. There will be more about that next year…

I hope dear readers that you enjoy the upcoming festive season with your family and friends.

Until next month…

Talking

I was invited to speak at two events this month.

The first was at the Generation Women story telling night which is held each month in both Sydney and Melbourne. Women from several generations are invited to share their stories and this month’s theme was Secrets and Lies. Alongside some very illustrious and talented women I lined up to a sell out crowd to tell my secret. I have to confess to shaking a little in my boots and what was my secret? Well, you really had to be there. A very exciting experience.

My second talk was to a Probus group at the Docklands library. Probus, for those who don’t know, is a club for retirees who come together socially. Groups are scattered across Australia, far and wide. I spoke to a group of thirty about my writing journey, the many mistakes I made and how I was actually able to string a sentence or two together. Speaking for about forty minutes the time flew and it was a fun experience.

Watching

The highlight for the month was seeing Hamilton. I’m not really very knowledgeable about American leaders but this was not just an enlightening show of historic interest but an extremely entertaining show. The music was inspired and I wondered why rap had never been used before to convey the story. It was so very clever.

And yes, it’s still cold in Melbourne.

Reading.

My reading this month has been varied so watch out again for my reviews.

Writing

My beta readers provided some very positive and encouraging feedback about my new novel, The Palace Hotel. I am in the final stages of editing and tweaking and hoping that it may be released to the world toward the end of 2023.