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14.01.2022 I heard today of the death of one of the people I most loved and admired in Australian children's books. Meme McDonald was a writer, theatre-maker, artist and i...nspiration and one of the most generous, open-hearted, thoughtful and loving people I have ever had the privilege to know. She had a strong intellect and a limitless capacity for empathy. She was wise and funny and true. I was privileged to spend a day with her and her then partner, and always friend and collaborator, Boori Monty Pryor, when I interviewed them for what became an article in The Horn Book magazine in 2006, which I have posted here in tribute. I remember the hours and hours and hours it took me to transcribe the tapes of our discussion, because I couldn't hear us over all the laughter. It is one of my favourite memories, and the resulting article is still I think my favourite of anything I've written before or since. The thing that always stands out for me in this interview is the way Meme described her coming to terms with losing her privilege as a white writer to "write whatever you bloody well want". She sums it up here better than just about anyone I know" Stories are our lifeblood they instruct us how to live and how to be and what visions to hold true. They’re fundamental to the happiness of our lives, so they’re very precious. So in that sense, I think if you start to regard stories as an absolute essential of life, rather than a distraction from life, then how you evolve them and in what context, what respect you have for the source of that story, becomes very important whatever culture you come from. I understand Meme was ill for some time, but preferred to keep this a private matter for her and her family. I am heart-broken and while I spent relatively little time with her in real life, I treasured her friendship enormously. We are much richer for her having been here, and so much the poorer for her loss.

14.01.2022 I am a bit reluctant to share this, because I don't like to give oxygen to people like this, but it does reflect an attitude I see from time to time from people ambitious to be writers. For this woman, writing is about being famous, about "wanting to be a star". She even goes so far as to say of her customers (who she describes as 'collectors') ' Some of them will probably never even read the book, she said, but that doesn’t matter as long as they buy. ' Now, a writer wh...o doesn't care if anyone reads her books is not someone with a burning story she has to tell, and it's not someone interested in the craft of writing. There are writers who don't want to be read, and that's finebut they're keeping their writing and their writing lives private, they're not out there hustling to "be a star" at the expense of other writers who are genuinely interested in their craft and their audience. This also infuriates me, because her actions and attitudes downgrade YA literature, confirming the worst instincts of the "they should be reading adult literature" cynics who think YA is craftless and disposable anyway. In short, don't be like Lani. If you want to invest in your career, don't invest in it by buying your own damn books in bulk. Do it by spending time on your craft, reading widely in the genre and for the audience you want to write/for, and if you're so inclined, by engaging a specialist to read and assess/edit your workand this include sensitivity readers, if you are writing outside of your own cultural or ability experience. (ie if you are writing a deaf character, or an Aboriginal character, and you are not deaf/Aboriginal, there are people who you can pay to advise you on the authenticity of your representation. I can help hook you up with such a person if you're interested.) Judith, Misrule Manuscript Assessments

11.01.2022 Why yes, yes they can. http://misrule.com.au/wordpr/our-dark-curriculum-materials/

11.01.2022 This brings great joy to the Misrule villagethe team behind the Paddington movies, including the scriptwriter for Paddington 2, are making The Magic Faraway Tree into a movie. My view is that the Paddington movies have been exemplary in bring these beloved stories to a new audience, making them completely accessible to contemporary viewers, while remaining completely faithful to the spirit and integrity of the source books. I am confident they will do the same with The Magic Faraway Tree stories, which, let's face it, have some elements that are *ahem* showing their age. (Note there's no mention of Dame Slap in the article!) I'm excited, but will have to be patientthere's no release date in the article, so I imagine it's a few years away yet. http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-42053334

10.01.2022 Current reading: Vikki Wakefield's Ballad for a Mad Girl. I've loved Vikki's books since her debut novel, All I Ever Wanted (2011), and have watched her career as one of our more innovative and challenging YA writers develop over the years since. Vikki tells the stories of young peopleyoung womenon the margins, struggling against the odds, but determined to escape the constrictions life, family and societal expectations place on them. I wrote (on Goodreads) of Wakefield's f...irst novel, "Wakefield never plays the safe or expected card with her characters and allows for (realistic) nuances of ethics in their behaviour", and this holds true for Ballad for a Mad Girl. Ballad for a Mad Girl is the story of 17 year old Grace Foley. Grace has always been a risk taker, always one to challenge boundaries and never, ever step away from a challenge. But Grace's life has been up-ended, first by the accidental death of her mother and then subsequently the move from the sanctuary of the family farm to a sterile home in town. And then one night, Grace runs headlong into a twenty year old mystery that begins to haunt herapparently literally. I'm only a few chapters into Ballad, but so far I am utterly compelled by Grace's story, and Wakefield's skilful handling of what may or may not be supernatural elements. The supernatural has long provided a rich metaphorical field for child and teenage characters to work through the cataclysmic changes adolescence can bring about, and I am excited to see where Ballad takes me, and Grace, and Wakefield, for that matter! So far, highly recommended. Photo in the comments taken at the 2012 Sydney Writers' Festival School Day.