Hi cHEwY gum gums!

No, I haven’t gone off the face of the earth…I just went to the other side. I went on my Euroadventure, travelled to many countries, had many Maccas and other delights, and even got some ideas for some stories. It was a lovely break. One of the most humbling experiences was visiting the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam. She always wanted to be an author and tragically she became one of the most well-known of the last century. I’ve never read her story but I’m going to now.

So I’m back in Oz, back into the swing of things in term 4. My voice was so unfit when I did my first school visit, funny how you have to train your voice again after not using it for so long. I also made it back in time for the Spring into Stories event in Lawson. It was a fundraiser for those who were affected by the Blue Mountains fires last year.There was a massive turnout of support from authors, illustrators and storytellers.

I got to sit next to Emily Rodda again (after we worked together at the Sydney Writers Festival back in 2012) and I got to meet many excited readers and fans. Hooray for books and hooray for stories.

Oh, while we’re on the subject of pleasant Sunday afternoons…I got to go the CBCA Big Day Out at the NSW Writers Centre last month. It was a stellar line up, and the families were there in droves. I love meeting and chatting to parents, many of them don’t know who I am. And so we chat about my books and I slowly win them over hehe. Maybe they’re buying out of pity, but I appreciate the support all the same haha.

So what’s next for me? Well, I’m going to meet up with my editor to discuss the next cHEwY creation. Yes, it has been awhile since I’ve last released a book. I’m happy to have Ethan come out next year, but I’m also hoping to have Nothing’s Prefect up for next year. Anyhoo, I’m off to the Gold Coast this arvo for a series of talks at Southern Cross University. More on that soon.

O.W