Yumi Takahashi is a visual artist living in Getxo, Spain. She and her partner, Taka, maintain the blog Dear Plastic. Yumi also has a blog here. Starting today, Yumi and I will be collaborating on an eight-day series of blog posts in which we will trade inspiration on the theme ‘Halcyon Days’. This is a […]

Reasons I love writing in Spring: These photos were taken in the Hunter Valley and the Hunter Valley Gardens last week. I was inspired by Yumi and Taka at Dear Plastic, who often post photos of the flowers they see on their travels around the world. A Guide To The Trees While we’re on the subject […]

I think eBooks are great but nothing will ever really beat beautiful hardcovers. A few years ago, I was browsing the tables at the University of Sydney Bookfest, looking for good secondhand books. Thinking that I might find some Sylvia Plath, I ended up in the Poetry section. Sylvia wasn’t there but I picked up […]

The Spark Exhibition opened on Saturday 27 August at Sun Studios.  It features the work of Eronnie Samuels, a Polynesian artist, who has a studio in the warehouse where I write.  We’ve been comparing notes on the creative process over the past few months and it’s been fascinating for me to watch how this exhibition has […]

The moment I decided to acquire a typewriter arrived as I stood in The Museum of Modern Art, New York, looking at this Olivetti Lettera 22.  It was on display as one of the key design achievements of the 20th century. Back in Sydney, I picked up this Lettera 32, a later model designed in […]

I take courses and workshops in other artistic disciplines.  Some might identify this as writer’s procrastination – the sort of thing that goes down as “Research” alongside Spending Three Straight Days Watching Dr Who. Courses really do help, though. By forcing me to keep learning and creating, they keep the momentum going in my creative […]

The banners for this blog were designed by the incredibly talented illustrator, Matt Huynh.  I felt very lucky to be able to work with him for the first time (hopefully it’s not the last!). Since my intent for this blog is to talk about the creative process, Matt suggested that he draw elements of my […]

  I’m a fiction writer from Sydney, Australia.  The main purpose of this website is to provide information about my work, however, I also intend to discuss the creative process and provide you with insights into the methods I use to develop my work and keep the creativity flowing. This blog is called The Fictional […]