For a month I had a competition running on Goodreads giving readers the chance to win 10 signed copies of The Sunburnt Country.  The competition has now ended and I’ve been sent the list of 10 winners.  Congrats to the following people: Lee-ann Lewis Roz Groves Scott Mann Rupa Bale Emma Franke Gisele Wright Julie Hughes-Owen Eugenia A Clare Morton Sarah Jefferyes   Today I am sending you your signed copy. It may take a few weeks as postage from rural WA to the rest of Australia can take a while. But know it is on its way. Thank you to all that entered and to all those who have left reivews and comments about The Sunburnt Country. There are some great ones, so thank you for making my day. 🙂  

How I made my ‘House’ a Home – Part Two. Back in February I was on Helene Young’s blog talking about how a house is not a home without an animal or two (or three). Well, a small town story is not a small town story without a feathered or furry friend. While my human characters in House for all Seasons are fictional, my animals are usually inspired by real-life versions (which is fine because they can’t read, therefore they can’t sue me or not talk to me when I get them wrong!) My host today, Fiona Palmer, is a sucker for an animal too, so I thought I’d share the inspiration behind my House for all Seasons menagerie – the Part 2 – and the important roles they play. Part 1 – is my canine characters (and those that think they’re a dog!) Now for Part 2 – The menagerie…. Name: Muddy The Award-Winning

[nggallery id=4]   Jenn J McLeod is taking you home to the country…. Gosh, I’m glad I’m not following on from Tony Park’s post [add link]. My writer whereabouts would seem rather tame after his – and in more ways than one; my little corner of the country is delightfully dull in terms of wildlife. It’s quiet and peaceful, which was a very lovely change from the hectic corporate existence in Sydney. Where I began… I wasn’t always small town girl. Growing up in Curl Curl – a leafy Sydney beachside suburb – I was more likely to find sand in unmentionable places than Redbacks on my toilet seat (or feet, Fee!). One day I woke up and found myself living in Sydney’s Hills district in a ‘McMansion’– the air-conditioned cocoon with an automatic garage door that swallowed us up into a private oblivion, then spat us out every morning like clockwork to tackle the

Wool Press – A bale bag is placed inside the press. The fleeces, depending on grade, are put inside and pressed down until the required weight.         Video of filling press- pressing (sorry for the bad quality of videoing!)   A 5 stand shearing shed. Raised Floor – this is where the shearers are raised so the rousies don’t have to bend down.   Skirting table – The fleece is thrown on top and the dirty edges are skirted off. Any stains, black wool or skin is also taken off.     Videos of shearing upclose. Gotta love the music in the background!   Here is one of the many limo’s that take shearing crews to and from sheds!     Thanks to the Jensen’s and Garard’s for letting me into their sheds, and their shearing crews for allowing me put them on the www! Cheers x  

Tony is my next author in my blog series ‘Writers Whereabouts’. It’s easy to see why Tony’s books are so great. Look where he lives! I read his latest release Dark Heart not that long ago and I must admit it was the little gorilla who I loved the most. My home town – Tony Park. Thanks for the invitation to blog about my home town, Fiona – now, I just wish I had one! My wife, Nicola, and I lead an unusual life spread across two continents and two very different environments. We spend six months of each year living in a two bedroom flat in a block of units on a six-lane highway in suburban Sydney and the remainder of the year living in the African bush, surrounded by wild animals.       Here’s the quiet street I live on in Sydney – the six-lane Pacific Highway, with its eclectic, villagey collection

So the new book came out while I was in Perth kicking off my tour. It was amazing to see The Sunburnt Country up in the bookshops and to hear they were selling so well. I started with a trip to Albany where the guys from Paperbark looked after me down at the boatshed. I’ve signed a heap of books too, so if you are near Albany and would like a personally autographed book, drop in and see Lockie or Georgie. Here is Georgie and I parked right next to the wine table! Too bad I had to drive. 🙁 I had to get up early, leaving at 5am to get to Albany on time. I had missed heaps of Kangaroo’s on my way to Lake Grace, and was quite releaved seeing as I was driving my new car. Well newish. But just out of Lake Grace my good fortune came to an end as

February 2013 Dear Fiona, Has it been one month already? I feel like it was just yesterday I was writing to tell you about my January release, “The Girl in the Hard Hat.” Well, this month I have an e-book coming out that’s a little bit different. It’s a romantic, comedy novella set in urban Sydney. The title is, “One Little White Lie.” I actually started writing this story about eight years ago and couldn’t seem to get it right. I put the manuscript aside and didn’t look at it again until my agent asked me if I had something I could submit for Random House’s new digital first romance line. On a whim, I got this manuscript out and with fresh eyes could finally see the reason the story wasn’t working. It was because the premise wasn’t really big enough to warrant a full blown novel. In fact, a novella size would suit it

The winner of the signed copy of The Sunburt Country is…..   Missy!! Congrats Missy, I have just sent you an email! And just in case you were wondering the silo in the paddock was taken in WA. Thank you all for joining in. Not long now until release day. I’ll be in Albany on the 24th at the Boatshed and then in Perth on th 26th, Margaret River 27th and Busselton on the 28th. Check my events page, or facebook for more information. Cheers x PS Thank you for all your birthday wishes. 🙂

As promised here is the next chance for you to win a copy of The Sunburnt Country. Today I got my first copy in the mail. Always such a great feeling, to hold your words in your hand and admire the cover. They have compacted this book, with the words smaller on the page. I don’t like it when they spaced it all out as if trying to make the book look bigger than it is. And on the plus side it will be lighter to post this way lol. So for your chance to go in the draw to win a signed copy of this book, all you have to do is watch the book trailer here, and then comment and tell me which picture you think was taken in WA. Every comment will go into the draw, regardless if wrong or right. It will be drawn on Friday the 15th. x Also a

I met Rachael Johns years ago through the Romance Writers of Australia and have since loved watching her career grow as a writer. We are both WA girls living out in our small communities and we have both managed local grocery shops. So it’s no wonder we get on so well. Rach and I did a talk together last year after the Dowerin Field days. I got to drive through her small town of Goomalling and see her shop. It made me think about the places we live and for us rural authors, the small towns we write about. I asked Rach to write about her home town and because I enjoyed reading her blog I’m thinking of starting a blog series on Writers and their Whereabouts. Rach writes about country characters and rural towns so beautifully and it’s no wonder when you see where she lives. Thanks for stopping by Rach!   My Life