It's summer in Melbourne, but you might not know it. Rain poured down during our Elwood Writers' summer soiree this December. If you can imagine, it was a bit like inviting our guests to a literary Key Largo. No Lauren Bacall or Humphrey Bogart to hand, but we battened down the hatches nevertheless, and enjoyed … Continue reading A Literary Soiree
Author: Margaret McCaffrey
Margaret is a Melbourne/Naarm-based writer developing a memoir about the relationship she had with her father, who was wounded in Greece and made a German prisoner of war during World War II.
Excerpts from the manuscript can be found in American Writers Review, Jewels of San Fedele and Clairitage Press. In 2013 she received a scholarship to the Norman Mailer Writers Colony where she began her memoir.
In 2015, she gained an MA in Creative Writing from Wilkes University, PA. She writes non-fiction, personal essay and the occasional short story.
Reading your Work – Aloud
I'm preparing for a late afternoon soiree. In my own home. The household might have questions about it, I may feel nervous to give a public reading, invited guests might feel 'iffy' about what is required of them. Who knows. But, nevertheless, we proceed. The reason? I want to develop certain memoir pieces to the … Continue reading Reading your Work – Aloud
Memoir at Adelaide Writers Week
Vicky Laveau Harvie won the 2019 Stella Prize for her memoir, The Erratics. The following year I heard her speak at the closing night of Adelaide Writers' Week. The Erratics is the story of the author's return to her native Canada where her mother has been hospitalized with a broken hip. As an inveterate liar, … Continue reading Memoir at Adelaide Writers Week
Celebrating a Life
Tonight, we at Elwood Writers feel privileged to honour the life and writings of our colleague and friend Jennifer Bryce, who died earlier this year. Tune in to Cover to Cover on Vision Australia Radio (see information below) to hear a variety of Jenny's stories read by members of the group. Enjoy the tribute which … Continue reading Celebrating a Life
Writing Friendship
Chuck Palahniuk (Fight Club) says that ‘life only makes sense in retrospect’. My story ‘For Jane’ began some years ago when I wanted to write about the endurance - or otherwise - of friendships. Author JG Ballard maintains that friends only become so when they have a secondary experience in common. We six friends shared our … Continue reading Writing Friendship
Anzac Day for Writers
Poet and novelist, Ocean Vuong, whose mother was a child of the Vietnam War, says that all literature is the history of war*. He need not be taken literally, although I tend to do so myself. More broadly, we may agree that literature relies on conflict or inner tension for its existence. Sometimes with resolution, … Continue reading Anzac Day for Writers
A Tribute to Jennifer Bryce
On 27 April, our friend and colleague Jennifer Bryce from my writing group died peacefully in Melbourne, farewelled by family and friends. Jenny and Barry Lee Thompson co-founded Elwood Writers in 2007. Helen McDonald and I both joined two years later. I have written previously, both on my blog and for the online US newsletter … Continue reading A Tribute to Jennifer Bryce
Elwood Writers on the Radio
Elwood Writers ‘Adelaide’ stories will re-air in late December on Vision Australia Radio (VAR). While not definite, we believe they will feature on Thursday 29 December. VAR's Cover to Cover.(CTC) program is showcasing its 'best of ...' from Boxing Day 2022 until 6 January 2023. Elwood Writers feature-program has something for everybody: poetry, sci-fi, dream-fiction … Continue reading Elwood Writers on the Radio
The Procrastination of Writers
I'm doing it now. Procrastinating, that is. I have my notebooks out, my laptop at the ready. I know what I have to do to dive into the next section of the short story. Instead, I'm doing a post - which I love - and reading about the latest election results here or overseas, and … Continue reading The Procrastination of Writers
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Writer*
Loneliness may be in vogue these days. In a rare interview given recently, actor Brad Pitt admitted to feeling lonely - ever since childhood it seems. If this is so, I wondered, what hope is there for the rest of us? The loneliness of the writer, though, has its own unique qualities; its benefits and … Continue reading The Loneliness of the Long Distance Writer*
WRITINGS AND MUSINGS OF MARGARET MCCAFFREY 