One day long ago, when walking in a Victorian State Forest or National Park somewhere, my late uncle beckoned me over and showed me a tiny little plant nestled amongst the leaves. It was green and had sticky leaves the insects stuck to, and he told me it was called drosera, more commonly known as … Continue reading A fascination with carnivorous plants
I've decided to take on the 2013 Australian Women Writers Challenge. This means I'm going to read and review a minimum of six books by Australian women writers. It totally fits in with my pledge to read more this year, and will hopefully help me prioritise which ones on my expanding pile get the nod! … Continue reading Reading Australian Women Writers in 2013…
1. Poor Rhi -- my ranger -- is dead for good this time. (sniff) She was taken out on a snowy ledge by three ghouls, which paralysed and devoured her without her even swinging a blow. My party tried to preserve her body in the snow, but Rhi showed up later as a ghoul herself … Continue reading D&D Chronicles: Shit happens… and then you die
Every now and then I give in to the hankering to grow something edible -- knowing full well I'll abandon it to its own devices. No watering. No fertilisation. I'm shocking. Several years ago I succumbed to the purchase of two columnar apple trees. They're supposed to grow directly up and stay compact for small … Continue reading Apples for birds and butterflies
Today I came across an article on Daily Life that discusses how female authors should consider male -- or at least gender neutral -- pseudonyms if they want to have a higher likelihood of being a) published, b) reviewed, c) read by men. This may or may not be true... but what makes me feel … Continue reading Women adopting male noms: When will we be past this?
Our DM is trying to kill us. No matter where we go, what we do, death lurks around every corner. In the last two sessions since I've chronicled, we've battled giant beetles, a massive wolf, multiple orcs and goblins, enormous crocodiles, dog-sized venomous spiders, and scary vampire bats that sucked our constitution points away... And … Continue reading D&D Chronicles: Doors and a Giant Staircase
Finally it is my turn to play The Next Big Thing and I'm a little bit excited. I was first tagged way back in November by Siri Paulson, but being in the middle of NaNoWriMo at that stage, I put it on hold. Then Sherryl Clark approached me in December and I couldn't see the … Continue reading The Next Big Thing – My Turn
I am really looking forward to 2013. I have no idea why the arbitrary transition from one year to the next should mean anything, but it does, and I always find myself identifying new challenges and revising goals (once I'm done reflecting on the year that was)... Often my plans for a new year involve a scrambling … Continue reading 2013 is here — let’s get to it!
I 'read' something like 30 books in 2012 (as far as I can remember). This isn't a huge total, but it's quite a few more than I suspected. 'Not reading' was one of my huge frustrations last year -- I couldn't seem to fit it in! Thank all the gods for audiobooks. Around two-thirds of … Continue reading What I read in 2012
All is quiet, calm. And then the clatter-scramble of little puppy feet comes as Buddy tears across the living room floor in chase of a ball, or a rag-toy. The sound makes me smile. Puppies are well known to be adorable and Buddy is no exception. He's a miniature Schnauzer, currently about three months old, … Continue reading The clatter-scramble of puppy feet
Ellen Gregory 