BRISBANE WRITERS' FESTIVAL

Drusilla Modjeska & Jon Doust
The University of Queensland Library
 
Date: Friday 7th September
Time: 3-4pm
Venue: Event will be held in the Library Conference Room, Level 1, Duhig Building, UQ St Lucia Campus

Topic/Focus: 
Panel discussion between writers Drusilla Modjeska and Jon Doust, Chaired by Professor Joanne Tompkins, School of English, Media Studies and Art History, Faculty of Arts, The University of Queensland. 
The focus will be on issues relating to Papua New Guinea, postcolonial PNG, and national/personal identity

A man talks

Marcel Doust and Vivienne Glance read

An interview with Gillian OShaughnessy on 7.20ABC Afternoon

Jon talks with Gillo: 720ABC

A Barefaced Tale

Went down to Barefaced Stories at The Bird (Perth WA) last night and told the story of the first chapter.
The real story.
The first chapter is, of course, pure fiction.
Here it is:

The man on me moves.
I lie still.
He moves again. Maybe he’s embarrassed to be murdering a sobbing, bleeding, blubbering man who has no power, no strength, no will, no future. He rolls off me. I squeeze my eyes. Lungs suck great chunks of air. I hear him stand and walk away. I don’t know where to but I hope it’s far, so far I can’t see him when I get up off this floor because then I might stumble down the stairs to the kitchen, take one of the houseboy’s long knives, walk up the stairs to his room, open his door, find him lying on his bed exhausted from the attempted murdering and stick him – stick the knife into his musclebound body more than once, maybe as many times as the murder I heard about on Radio Australia last week when one man stabbed another to death because of a sweet potato deal gone sour.
I turn my head to the floor. The crying spreads. I am emptying, pouring out, everything is leaving me. I know that if I cry long enough and hard enough there will be nothing left but a wet patch of tears mixed with blood, and when he comes out of his room to check on me, or someone climbs the stairs, all they will see is a small pool of what was once me.

You can read another coupld of chapters on the Fremantle Press site.

Charlie Lehman speaks

Charlie Lehman speaks about To the Highlands at the Albany launch

The first launch

no sleep.
too much happening inside.
the Albany Town Hall glowed and pulsed.
the sound and light boys - Mark Pemberton, Dave Nile and Victor O'Connor - did a magnificent job.
the music boys - Rod Vervest, Bob Lapinski, Craig Sinclair - sang from their souls.
the readers - Simon Woodward, Rachael Rastrick - read with their lives on their sleeves.
Lester Coyne was humorous and regal.
the MC - Simon Simon John Smale - was perfect.
Andrew Wenzel was deep, meaningful and cuddly.
the wine - FAT TIRE, Oranje Tractor - was surperb (so said the drinkers).
the food from Karin Marsland at 14 Peels Place was better than home cooking.
and Charlie Lehman spoke with insight and compassion.
the author? well, he did what he does.
many thanks to the city of Albany and Adam Cousins, Brian at Albany Amcal, Garth at Solomon Merchant and Paul at IGA Albany.
you can't do this stuff without help.
if you've never been to Albany,Western Australia, this is how it is, just like a multitude of small communities on the planet.
if only we could stay small and stay connected.