THE SOCIETY OF WOMEN WRITERS VICTORIA INC

Patron: Lady April Hamer O.A.M.       Literary Patron: Errol Broome

Society of Women Writers Victoria
Write Away 
August 2008 newsletter 



NEXT MEETING
Friday 
29 August 2008
4th floor, 247-253 Flinders Lane, Melbourne 
(10.30am cuppa, 11am start)
Topic: SWWV AGM followed by presentation of the Alice Award in ACMI reception room, Federation Square

ON THIS DAY IN 1882: The English Sporting Times published an obituary on English cricket, concluding: ‘The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia.’ Thus ‘The Ashes’ were instituted in cricket between England and Australia.


AFTER OUR AUGUST 29 MEETING
The Society of Women Writers, Victoria 
will present the 
Alice Award 2008 as part of the 
Melbourne Writers’ Festival program.
Recipient Dr. Brenda Niall AO - Australian biographer
Venue: ACMI Function Room, Federation Square
Friday, 29 August from 2pm-3pm.

Winner of the Alice award 2008
‘Never say you know the last word about any human heart.’ - Henry James
BRENDA NIALL AO, winner of the 2008 Alice award for significant contribution to writing by a female author, will be presented with the award at Federation Square in the midst of the Melbourne Writers’ Festival. This celebration is open to everyone and it is hoped that as many Society members as possible willl be present on the day.
Niall is one of Australia’s foremost biographers, as well as a literary critic and journalist. She is particularly noted for her work on Australia’s well-known Boyd family of artists and writers. 
Born in Kew in 1930, Niall was educated at Genazzano FCJ College and the University of Melbourne. In June 2004 she was awarded the Order of Australia for ‘services to Australian literature, as an academic, biographer and literary critic’.

We hope as many members and friends as possible might come to see Niall both receive her Award and hear her speak in the ACMI Function Room in Federation Square after our regular meeting at Ross House between 2 and 3pm on Friday, 29 August. 



PRESIDENT’S LETTER - AUGUST 2008
Greetings, members: 
THIS is the last month of my first year as president of the Society in Victoria. Did you know that the Society of Women Writers (NSW) was the first writers’ group established in Australia? We look forward to its centenary in 2025. From NSW, it became a federation of all the state branches until 2000. And now each state is a separate incorporated body, though with strong links, shared aims, and some shared awards. I do feel privileged to belong to our Victorian group. 
It’s time for me to review, and consider. As I reflect on the year, perhaps this is when you, the members, become my ‘voice of socience’. Are you being heard? Is there some overlooked facet of writing you would like explored? Is there a writer or scholar we should invite as guest speaker? Is there a project you would like to initiate? The committee is always ready to listen to you, as I am. 
This month, I have been preoccupied with preparations for the 29th of August, when we have our annual general meeting, with reports from every part of the Society, and the election of committee members. We will have our Patron, Lady April Hamer with us, and two visitors from the NSW Society, Pam Bayfield (the current president), and Dorothy Keyworth (a longtime committee member). After the AGM, and a convivial lunch, we will be going to the ACMI room in Federation Square for the presentation of the Alice Award, which begins at 2 pm. We are expecting there to be several people from the NSW Society at the function, and of course as many of us as possible. The SWW-NSW were the initiators of the Alice Award, and rightly proud of its continuation. Our function is also open to anyone attending the Writers’ Festival. We have arranged for the Festival bookshops to carry some of Brenda Niall’s books and if you want to buy one she will be happy to sign them. I have been reading her work in braille, and learning a great deal of cultural and social history. 
For sometime now we have had a green brochure about the SWWV. I have been consulting with several members including our literary patron, to revise and update this brochure. We have had a series of minor revisions so far, all in green pamphlets, so that it was difficult to ascertain which was the most current. This new expression of ourselves is ‘the blue brochure’, to make it more distinguishable. We intend to have it ready for the Writers Festival and at the AGM for members and friends. 
Our calendar has some changes. In October, June Loves is unable to give her presentation as she needs to be overseas at that time. So Elly Varrenti (who broadcasts on Radio National) will present: ‘Writing memoir and finding your own focus, including what to leave out!’ In September, we will have a members’ forum: the issues you want to bring up. If necessary, we can break up into groups so that people can discuss ideas. Then we can look at how to follow through with some of them. So start doing some wishing and dreaming to prepare this brainstorming type meeting. One of the issues I will throw in the mix is how we will do the Christmas competitions differently: not as competitions, but in some other form that still allows for different genres to be aired. This will then colour the content of our November meeting, which also has a celebratory lunch. We then discontinue official meetings for the summer, although there are special meetings, like the Postal Workshops picnic in January, and maybe an invitation meeting for members and friends presenting readings. 
I invite you to bring friends to the Alice Award, and look forward to being together at the AGM - Rebecca Maxwell



SWWV 2008 Calendar 

Friday 29 August
SWWV Annual General Meeting

Friday 26 September
Members forum

Friday 31 October
Presenter Elly Varrenti (broadcater with ABC Radio National will speak on ‘Writing memoir and finding your own focus, including what to leave out!’ 

Friday, Saturday & Sunday
14, 15 & 16 November
SWWV Biennial Literary Seminar at the Brahma Kumaris Centre in Baxter 

Friday 28 November
Christmas luncheon and results of Christmas competitions

REPORT OF JULY 20O8 MEETING
Riding the instant 
Short story session with Kerry Scuffins 
report by Janet Howie (Immediate past president)

AFTER leading a successful poetry workshop for us in June, writer and teacher Kerry Scuffins returned to present a short story session for our July meeting. This involved reading, listening and commenting on a variety of short stories.
The idea was to show that the short story form is diverse in format, topic and style, and we do not have to stick to the traditional model of beginning, middle and end, with a problem to be resolved. 
Kerry reminded us that whatever form the short story takes, the first sentence must ‘hook’ the reader, and keep them going to the last vital sentence. 
She read and commented on several stories from Richard Brautigan’s Revenge of the Lawn, (1971) followed by stories from students in her writing class at SPAN community house in Thornbury. In between, SWWV members read their work. 
Participants included: Betty Caldwell (on obsession); Bernadette Murphy (poem for a child); Beth Wunderlich (story for a young child); Rebecca Maxwell (an adult fairy tale); and Lin van Hek (a story from her published collection, Anna’s Box). Kerry suggested three short story titles for members to experiment with: On a day like this; Inspecting the weather; and, Mate. Hopefully, at our next reading session, some interesting and different short stories will emerge using these titles. - JANET



EVENTS & COMPETITIONS
Society of Women Writers (Vic)
Biennial Literary Seminar
Theme: Just Imagine!
November 14,15 &16 2008
Captivating speakers
Stimulating writing workshops 
Satruday evening social event
Great food, lovely environment & accommodation!

ACCLAIMED children’s literature expert, Dr. Virginia Lowe, will be just one of an exciting panel of presenters at our 2008 Biennial Literary Seminar to be held from November 14 to 16 at the Brahma Kumaris Centre in Baxter. The theme of this year’s seminar is ‘Just Imagine!’ and perhaps this relates more to children’s books than any other form of writing. Children are the masters of the imaginative process and Virginia is excited about her role in our weekend. A taste of what she is planning for us follows:

I WILL be taking a hands-on approach to creating the picture book at the weekend seminar – using the storyboard, observing how the pictures and the text work together, and remembering to leave half the narrative for the illustrator to tell. Also exercises on developing a character, and selection of publishers and submissions to them. 
However, as I have been invited to give three papers overseas next year,
the research for these will doubtless feed back into the workshop I will give at the literary seminar weekend. The first paper titled ‘Read read!’ ‘Book book!’ children’s encounters with story and pictures will be delivered at Burg Wissem, Germany in March 2009); ‘That rhymes, Mummy!’: Two children’s encounters with poetry from birth to adolescence will be given at the British Museum in London in April 2009); and the last - ‘The man who draw-ed it was wrong!’ Young children’s understanding of the roles of author and illustrator will be delivered at the SCBWI Conference, New Hampshire later the same month. My book Stories, Pictures and Reality: Two children tell (Routledge 2007) is the study of two children (a boy and a girl) from birth to eight years of age, based on a parent observer diary I kept daily for about 13 years. I have run children’s writng workshops for the past 11 years, since Create a Kids’ Book started when I ceased lecturing at Deakin University. It began as a hobby but has grown like Topsy, because we’re the only assessment agency that deals specifically with writing for children. 

OTHER PRESENTERS AT THE SEMINAR will include: David Metzenthen, Diana Lawrenson, Julie Richards, Annete Trevitt, Virginia Lowe, Joan Ackland, Kristen Henry, Molly Travers and Hellen Cooke. 

VENUE FOR BIENNIAL SEMINAR
Feeling frazzled? 
THEN perhaps you need a weekend at a health retreat for the mind and soul? Run by women, the Brahma Kumaris Baxter retreat offers programs all year-round to off-set the hectic lifestyle of today’s world.
Most importantly to SWWV, it is where we hold our biennial literary seminars. 
Set on nine hectares of natural bush land, this huge establishment (once owned by the National Bank) offers lovely, warm, light-filled accommodation and sumptuous vegetarian meals at modest cost. There are numerous comfortable lecture rooms, lounges, and single en-suite bed-rooms. And those who have been there will testify to the absolute tranquility of this oasis on the Mornington Peninsula.
So, if you haven’t attended our biennial seminars before, do consider joining us from November 14 to 16, to hear interesting speakers, communicate with other writers, walk in the bush land – and restore your soul. Interstate SWW members welcome and you don’t have to be a member to come along. So bring a friend.

The Brahma Kumara Centre for Spiritual Learning is at 83-99 Stotts Lane, Frankston South 3199 
Phone: (03) 5971 1599 (Melways map 102 K12)



THE COMPETITIONS & 
ACHIEVEMENTS PAGES
Please send all information to: 
Blaise Van Hecke
33 Baldwin Ave.,
Montmorency Vic., 3094 
Phone: 9434 7761
busybird@bigpond.net.au.




Write Away’s editorial team:
Susan Hudson (coordinator)
Blaise Van Hecke (competitions & achievements)
John & Virginia Lowe (proof readers)
Nalini de Sielvie (distribution)
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