Happy Birthday To Me

Today’s my birthday!

Guess what I’m doing?

Final edit of my next book In Ecstasy- due for release in April 2008!

No rest for the writer!!

Penguin- Puffin Teaching Package Destroying Avalon as a Cyber bullying Resource

For those of you interested in teaching Destroying Avalon and have not found anything useful in  my teaching package I’d like to direct you to Penguin’s Puffin Website:

http://www.penguin.com.au/puffin

Click on Teachers- then go to Teachers’ Notes

http://www.penguin.com.au/puffin/NOTES/f_notes.cfm

Then go to Units for the Secondary Classroom, pull down the menu and click on Destroying Avalon.

http://www.penguin.com.au/puffin/NOTES/secondary-pdf/Destroying%20Avalon%20by%20Kate%20McCaffrey.pdf

That’s the link (kinda long and scary looking isn’t it!!) But what you will end up with is a different angle for teaching Destroying Avalon. This focuses more on the text as a tool for combating bullying than as a ‘literary analysis’ of text- so I guess it depends on your aim.

But there you go two to choose from!

Teaching packages galore!

What could be better????

Children’s Book Council Celebrity Brunch

Last Sunday it was a privilege to attend the CBC’s Celebrity Brunch where the short listed books were reviewed. This year three wonderful students from St Stephen’s School Carramar were invited to review the Older Reader’s Section. After they came to terms with the fact their all time favourite English teacher’s book wasn’t on the list (though we all were delighted it made Notables!!) they set about reviewing.

Well, wasn’t I the proud teacher! My students (who I share with the Head of Department- actually they’re really hers, but I like to claim them) were  well spoken, intelligent and engaging, the three of them were wonderful ambassadors for the school. They opened the proceedings and then each celebrity reviewer stood up to make their contribution.

I had a light bulb moment. Now, this is going to seem patently obvious to most people- and it something I’ve paid lip service to myself (without really understanding) a review is just one opinion. I know- there is no great revelation here. But when you watch people stand up and deliver their review it puts into context the faceless reviewer. Reviewers are just people with their own likes and dislikes, their bad days, fights with their partners, annoying or delinquent children, they are normal, everyday people who have an opinion to express.

I guess I realised the scathing reviews (not that there’s been that many) but the ones I remember- before any of the praiseworthy -are just the opinion of someone who didn’t like something I wrote. Perhaps they’d been a victim of bullying as a child and thought I trivialised it, perhaps they expected something more of the book that I didn’t deliver, perhaps they just didn’t like the way I wrote. What I learnt was it didn’t really matter. I need to take on more of the praiseworthy reviews- because after all, these people obviously have more in common with me. Why should I disregard those reviews that praise my work in favour of the ones that diss it?

So, I have a new mind set with regard to reviews- one that I really hope I can embrace. From now on I will look at all reviews (good and bad- you never know there might be something to learn from the bad ones!!)and try my hardest to remember what the good ones say!

We Are Watching You wins Bronze

Annie Thomson the producer of the ABC’s Street Stories radio documentary into cyber bullying We Are Watching You just won a bronze world medal at the New York Festival Awards.

As the medal implies- it is a world wide award and in my opinion much deserved. Personally I think she should have received the gold- but hey, bronze is very impressive too!

To listen to her recording I hope the hyper link at the top of my blog still works. Otherwise visit ABC radio’s website for details. In the production Annie interviews an author of a fiction novel about cyber bullying (okay- yes it’s me), a teacher (not me), a parent of a victim, a victim and 2 bullies- caught by their school! It is a fantastic resource- for anyone teaching cyber bullying, for parent forums and general awareness into the issue.

Destroying Avalon is a Talking Book

Well, here’s more good news! I had a phone call the other day from my publisher to tell me Louis Braille Audio Books wish to turn Destroying Avalon into one!! Isn’t that exciting? It means for those who are vision impaired, or don’t like reading (the whole Year 9 cohort at my school!!!) or who are travelling long distances in the car will be able to hear the audio- unabridged version of Destroying Avalon.

I can’t wait to see what it looks like as a CD! (I’m thinking probably round and shiny- but what would I know!) My publisher said they go into production quite quickly- and they get professional actors to read the part- so don’t fear it isn’t me reading it!!!!