I spent the weekend before Easter at the Bellingen Readers and Writers Festival.

Bellingen is a beautiful town on the Bellinger River. It has a tiny population of just 2,721 but bats above it’s weight in terms of community. It also has a cafe strip to rival any city – this is a place that loves its coffee.

This year the Bellingen Readers and Writers Festival hosted a mix of writers talking on subjects as diverse as political leadership, single parent families in fiction, exploring identity, mining and nuclear energy, how mentors and editors assist aspiring writers … and I could go … but needless to say there was something there for everyone.

It was fascinating to hear authors tell the stories behind the books. You have to give credit to those who manage to navigate the murky world of Australian publishing. It certainly involves following your passion and disregarding the nagging voice of reason which would suggest that  working in an industry which pays poorly, involves long periods of isolation followed by intense sessions of criticism is an insane pursuit.

There were many interesting discussions which left you thinking.

The delicate balancing act the writer must perform when writing about historical events. Establishing your own “rules” on how you will incorporate the historical, particularly in fiction is something each writer must negotiate within their work. Imagination versus historical data is an interesting conundrum for writers dealing with real-life events.

The influence of a writer’s experience and passions in their non-fiction subject choices. The core element to how a writer approaches non-fiction comes from their own perspectives and beliefs. David Marr cited “fairness” as one of the key factors in how he selects subjects and approaches their stories.

There were also very useful sessions on the mechanics of of getting published.

Literary magazines take FOREVER to let you know if they will accept your piece. Hearing some of the beautiful pieces the writers had published made me realise you probably don’t need to write an academic thesis to get published in them, moving, strong, descriptive pieces will get a run. I should start reading some of those literary magazines.

Mentors are highly valuable to beginning writers and a manuscript appraisal will help you put your best work forward to publishers.

I was delighted to meet writer  Jenn J Mcleod when I won a copy of her novel House For All Seasons. Jenn is a 53 year-old first-time author and she gives me hope that perhaps it is not impossible to carve out a new career in your 40’s and 50’s. Thanks Jenn for the enthusiasm, honesty and helpful advice you shared in your sessions.

It was great to discover new books to read over the weekend and my “to be read” pile now includes not just the House for All Seasons, but Jessie Cole’s Darkness on the Edge of Town ,  Belinda Castle’s Hannah & Emil and Carrie Tiffany’s Mateship With Birds.

I’m going to try to take part in the A to Z Challenge Blog Hop this month. That means each day a post related to a letter of the alphabet.