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The Essence of Travel Fiction
Whenever I am asked what I write, the mention of travel fiction always raises eyebrows. Travel may be a minor component in many forms of fiction but escalating it to the primary genre is something relatively uncommon. I never had any inclination to become a writer, but I was changed by my experiences travelling. The standard approach may have been to start a travel blog, but there were already so many out there, that I felt there was little I could add. The same applied to travel guides, had I chosen that. Essentially, neither option really offered the opportunity to tell the stories that stood out to me. No city…
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The Ride to Work – Available Now
The Ride to Work was officially released on June 25th. It is available in both paperback and E-book editions. Both are available through Amazon and all other online retailers. If you would like a signed copy of the paperback, please email chris@crpage.com.au. Price is $19.95 plus $7.95 postage and handling.
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Living Landscape Writers Festival
The City of Port Adelaide and Enfield played host to the inaugural Living Landscape Writers Festival on April 9th and 10th at Harts Mill. Amongst the speakers, prominent authors such as Hannah Kent, Molly Murn and Karen Wyld ensured an entertaining and informative event. Along with many other people present, I gained a lot of insight listening to a wide range of writers discussing the role of the natural environment in their work. The event was ideal for more than just writers; there were enough events and festivities to keep everyone enjoying themselves. To compliment the stunning scene and vibrant events, we were blessed with exquisite weather. After a full…
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Home Is Where The Heart Is
Home is generally considered to be our place of residence. Having spent the past two weeks away from ‘home,’ I think the true meaning of the word is misunderstood. I have missed my wife, facing the longest time without seeing each other in eight years, yet it has felt at times like it is her rather than me that is away as there is nothing else about ‘home’ that I have noticed missing. From this, the concept of home has been closely on my mind. Last Friday, I was one of the many thousands of people who stormed on to the Sydney Cricket Ground to celebrate the 1000th career goal…
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Putin’s Russia and a novel set in his hometown
Just over two years ago, I was sitting in Pyshechnaya, a donut shop in Saint Petersburg with my wife-to-be, Alison. I was explaining my idea for a novel set in the city, inspired by its status as ‘hero-city.’ The Siege of Leningrad was arguably history’s most horrific military operation. For 872 days, the city was cut off from the world, with more than a million of its citizens losing their lives, primarily through starvation, disease and hypothermia, but also the heavy bombing that was inflicted in the early stages. Amongst the dead was a young child named Viktor Putin. Viktor died of diphtheria in the early stages of the siege,…
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Pandemic Fiction
Events that shape history not only dominate the news cycle, they eventually shape fiction across all genres. COVID-19 is yet to be at the heart of too many of the stories being released, but it is inevitable we will start to see the impact grow. This might not be stories based around the pandemic, but the little changes that impact our day to day life will start being presented more in books, film and television. Every genre may start seeing this, even if perhaps not quite as facetiously as the below examples indicate: Romance: ‘She was dressed to impress, a skimpy face mask revealing just a subtle glimpse of nose.’…
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The Novel and the Marathon
Writing a novel and running a marathon. These two feats have nothing in common, right? Wrong. At different times of life I have looked at both of these as aspirational goals. I didn’t get too close to achieving one of them, but in the process of completing the other, I developed an understanding of their similarities. Both of these tests of human endeavour and stamina require training, planning and discipline. There are times when all of this is easy; when inspiration first strikes, it is easy to start those training sessions on the road, or to start planning out your plot and characters. As time passes, getting out of bed…
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Four Funerals and a Wedding
No, I’m not seeking to rework the classic 1990’s British comedy, but to give an explanation of how a high school dropout ended up pursuing a career as a writer. Through the first half of life, I’d barely read a book let alone considered writing one. In my twenties I did attempt to write a screenplay, inspired by a vivid dream I’d woken up in the middle of. It took a decade to complete a first draft and by the time I begun attempting to edit, the holes in the script were obvious enough for me to admit defeat. I was in my late thirties and still had no idea…