My Writing Endeavours Part Three

Welcome back to my unprofessional yet eager writing exercises with U3A The Writers Collective based in Brisbane, Australia. Each week, give or take, I will post a short story which I have written to read out in our group. The theme comes from our prompt Word of the Week. Each writer gets the opportunity, at least once, to chose the Word of the Week.

This time, I have departed from my usual short story and have written script dialogue. The formatting, layout and presentation may not be to industry standard but I enjoyed writing it.
With thanks to the best playwright of them all, Mr W. Shakespeare.

THE WRITERS COLLECTIVE HOMEWORK MARCH 2026

WORD THEME: Plot
TITLE: ‘Lost The Plot’
SETTING: Old church hall am-dram stage rehearsal
CAST: Fran, Angelo, Elizabeth, Stage Crew
DRAFT: Version One
FONT: Courier New, 12-point
WORDCOUNT: 252
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~~ACT ONE SCENE ONE~~

Fran: (thinks) I remember the time when Angelo had lost the plot half way through the second act…

She says (shouts) “For heaven’s sake, man, we’ve been through this a hundred times. Lola gives you a hug and you walk away. You do not apologise!”

Angelo: (shrugs) “But she is sad and lonely.”

Fran: (through clenched teeth) “That’s the whole idea. You are leaving her and going to Spain. Of course she will be sad, but comfort is not where the plot is taking us at this stage in our rehearsals. Okay?”

Angelo: (nods) “Okay.”
He leans over and pats Elizabeth on the arm.

Elizabeth: (gives Angelo a wan smile, quick shrug to Fran)
“Can we do it again please?”

Fran: (firm) “Okay, okay, take it from when Lola tells you she will not visit you in Spain.”

Angelo: (a wail) Angelo begins sniffling. He grapples in his pocket for handkerchief. “I can’t go on like this. My one true love has rejected me, pushed me aside for someone new.”

Elizabeth: (smile) “That someone new will be very, very new because I am having a baby.”

Audience of five: director, producer, stage manager, lighting technician, repetiteur, erupt into cheers and whistles.

Angelo: (bemused) thinks everyone has lost the plot.
He glances over at Elizabeth and she is calm, smiling.

Angelo: (shock) “Is this true, wife?”

Elizabeth: (nods, smiles) “Yes, husband, it is true.”

~~END~~

Author Note: This scene is not part of an original performance.
It is a take on the more usual ring-and-surprise marriage proposal.
Rehearsal ended 10pm with coffee and cake at Director’s house.
💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Violin rehearsal prior to a preview of ‘Lost The Plot’ a stage play never actually performed.
GOMA © image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

National Simultaneous Storytime 2026!

Remember your favourite childhood books? Please make a note that on Wednesday 27th May 2026 at 12.00noon AEST, millions of children, parents, teachers, and library lovers across Australia will come together to read Luna Roo the Kangaroo Baller at the same time.
So much reading fun that I wanted to give it a special mention.
Please mark the date, ready to sit down with young readers at home, school or local library to read this book together!
Last year over 2.2 Million participants were part of National Simultaneous Storytime. Could this year be even bigger? Be part of something very special and join in the free fun wherever you live in Australia. GBW.

My Writing Endeavours Part Two

Welcome back to my unprofessional yet eager writing exercises with U3A The Writers Collective based in Brisbane, Australia. Each week I will post a short story which I have written to read out in our group. The theme comes from our prompt Word of the Week. Each writer gets the opportunity, at least once, to chose the Word of the Week. This story is basically a memoir piece from my early years and yet to be read to The Collective. Also, at 475 words it is well over our set wordcount.

PHILLIP ISLAND REMEMBERED
Unlocking the Past

Back in the 1960s Phillip Island off mainland Victoria seemed to me, a young girl, to be a million miles away from civilisation. It was a very long uneventful drive way-back then but now in 2026 only one hour fifty minutes (142 km) on a wide motorway.
Access was from the mainland is via Newhaven and we drove across the original wooden San Remo bridge onto the island, bouncing in our seats with excitement. Looking to the right there were holiday camping sites which sat among the tea-trees and scrubby saltbushes. To the left were sand dunes and the blue, blue sea. In many places the road was sand and gravel but small houses had started to pop up so the narrow main road had a reasonably better surface than my father’s younger days. I don’t remember the small village of Cowes but no doubt today it has the obligatory coffee shops, supermarket and mod cons. There were always small fishing boats bobbing in safe havens and people fishing on the only pier I can remember.
The native animals and bushland was intacked back then and you could see Koalas in the gumtrees on either side of the road but they were high up and usually sleeping. Windows down, my brother spotted a brownish koala in the fork of a eucalypt tree watching us from one sleepy eye. My father craned his neck peering through the windscreen to see it. The car tyre hit a pothole, the vehicle slewed to the left and crashed into the tree. The koala did not blink. Whereas my mother started shouting. I was embarrassed that we had done such an undignified thing and my brother wanted to take a photograph of the whole incident with his little black and white camera.
No other vehicles were around and we were able to drive away unscathed except for the ding in the front left mudguard. I remember we found a picnic spot to eat our packed lunch of sandwiches, fruit and thermos flask tea then drove to Cape Woolamai, a rugged surfing beach with gritty sand, squalling seagulls and huge curling waves which sent salt spray into the wind.
I can recall later visiting the dusk parade of Fairy Penguins (Eudyptula minor) coming up the beach to their burrows in the sand dunes, no lights, no crowds, just small penguins going home for the evening.
Regrettably here was no mention of the local indigenous people and I am now aware that the social history of Phillip Island dates back over 40,000 years to the Bunurong people, the original inhabitants of the Western Port region. Not long ago I was appalled to discover that Phillip Island hosts car and motorcycle events on the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit. An even more tragic outcome, this time for the native plants and wildlife.
Unbeknown to me, our family jaunt around Phillip Island was probably packed with nostalgia for my parents. My parents and grandparents loved the place, my grandfather FC Bernet was an artisan, a skilled craftsman and he painted and sketched many aspects of the island. My father and his siblings had spent school holidays there, swimming and fishing from the jetty beside the small boats, back when the area was relatively unknown and perhaps a more peaceful destination.
I would like to be brave and re-visit Phillip Island again one day.
May this precious piece of rock and sand be preserved forever.

💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Personal collection – Campsite Phillip Island Victoria Australia
Artist of many skills FC Bernet c1950
Image © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

National Simultaneous Storytime 2026!

Because my story remembers my childhood, please make a note that on Wednesday 27th May 2026 at 12.00noon AEST, millions of children, parents, teachers, and library lovers across Australia will come together to read Luna Roo the Kangaroo Baller at the same time.
So much reading fun that I wanted to give it a special mention.
Please mark the date, ready to sit down with young readers at home, school or local library to read this book together!
Last year over 2.2 Million participants were part of National Simultaneous Storytime. Could this year be even bigger? Be part of something very special and join in the free fun wherever you live in Australia. GBW.

My Writing Endeavours Part One

Perhaps you have read my previous posts about The U3A Writers Collective (Brisbane) 2026 but whether or not, I will now proceed to post my classroom endeavours once a week (or when the mood takes me) for your perusal, critique, enjoyment or just plain ‘Goodness me, I can write better than that!’
Since I do not activate a Comments Section, you will have to say your critique out loud to your partner, family, cat, dog, budgerigar, nextdoor neighbour or other writers in your group. As long as you keep writing!
So far I have attended February through to April 2026 and currently in Term Two coming to grips with being the incumbent Convenor/Tutor.
This position changes to someone else each term, and while not prestigious nor a paid position, it is a position to take seriously.
I suggest different writing methods, attending author events, entering short story competitions and keeping our classroom offerings to at least 300 words so everyone gets a chance to read.
I am tossing around introducing well-known authors books and styles for inspiration. Also Ekphrastic Method and Pomodoro Method but currently it may be a bridge too far.
Each week a different person chooses the Word Of The Week which we all have to write about then read out to The Collective.
Some members prefer to email their short stories ahead of meeting but most read out in class.
We are not very stringent with critiquing others work. Too sensitive, too shy, too lacking in confidence? Don’t want to offend? Maybe none but possibly all of these reasons. We really do have to overcome this otherwise we are just choosing a writing prompt word and reading nice short stories to each other each week.
By the way Captain James Cook is the man in my photograph, he sailed in the Endeavour and did a lot of charting, plotting and writing. He was not the first person to ‘discover’ Australia but he sailed widely and spun a good yarn.

THE WRITERS COLLECTIVE HOMEWORK MARCH 2026
THEME WORD: Bounty
TITLE: ‘A Good Haul’
CHARACTERS: William, Emily
DRAFT: Version Two
FONT: Times New Roman
WORDCOUNT: 343
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Every year William and his family attended The Royal Queensland Exhibition Show, colloquially known as Ekka. It was show-time when rural farmers came to town bringing their abundant produce and prize-winning animals to parade before thousands of city folk. It was always fun when a cow or horse kicked up its hooves and galloped towards the nearest exit.
William’s thoughts swirled. Many things would grab his attention like scary rides, food stalls, toffee apples and fairy floss, the prize-winning cakes, vigorous woodchopping, farming equipment, the dogs and bird judging, the baby animal pen and show-stopping events in the main arena.
However, this year was different. William was now a teenager and he didn’t want to attend the Ekka with his family. He had asked classmate Emily if she would like to go with him. She said yes, so now he was a bundle of pre-Ekka nerves.
Also William was unsure if his pocket money would stretch enough to cover food for two. Could he afford his all-time favourite licorice from the Showbag Pavilion? In his opinion it was the best item in the whole of the Ekka.
He waited at the main gates for an hour because he had caught the bus too early and was relieved when Emily was dropped off by her older brother, eliminating an interrogation by her father.
“Hi Em,” he blushed.
Miraculously Emily was loaded with cash. “We can buy anything we want,” she laughed, eyes sparkling.
The quantity they accumulated was impressive by any standards and only after walking through every corrugated iron shed, eyeing every produce stall, did they stop to rest in the grandstand to reveal toys and devour sugary treats.
They shared hotdogs for lunch and drank Coca-Cola, regretting it later when bile rose in their throats on the spinning Cyclone.
William declined a ride home, scared he would be sick in their car.
Emily looked green but before she got into the vehicle she handed him a licorice showbag. The bounty had lost its attraction but her smile said there would be other days.

💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Writers Collective Read Write Review

Those of you who follow my blog (thank you!) will notice that I haven’t posted for a few weeks. Not because I don’t have anything to say, quite the opposite. I have been attending a U3A group The Writers Collective in the city. There’s always something nice about the city vibe and the building is old and mellow. It is also convenient for my bus travel. Gone is my car, replaced by City Council bus timetables and the jostle for a seat. Thank goodness for air-conditioning!

Anyway, I joined The Writers Collective to see what the format was all about and if it would be helpful for my writing: a young adult novel. There is no formal format. Each week we select a prompt word to write about or bring our latest composition. We can either email or read our work to the group in class for feedback and comments. There can also be general literary discussion, time permitting.

Currently we are a thoughtful group of eight novice writers which fluctuates each session and will no doubt change in the following months. Based on the Queensland school term, interested writers can ask to join but often The Collective is fully booked. As you will know from the title, a collective means everyone gets a turn at being the facilitator/convenor, a task which means sending and receiving emails, doing a bit of admin and prompting the group to choose a Word of the Week to creatively write about in any genre, format or style.

The Word of the Week prompt can result in some very different styles and stories. It is a good memory jog for novice writers, and often the beginning of a whole new story. My subconscious goes into overdrive and when I start to write some pretty unexpected short stories flow from my keyboard. Note: I will eventually post them on my blog. In the ‘classroom’ we The Collective read our work aloud as well as send by emails to keep in touch. When our group meets, some writers use their electronic devices but I usually print my stories out on good old white A4 paper. It’s smaller, lighter, no recharge, and I can quickly jot notes in the margin or write down the prompt for the next week.

I have been voted the next Convenor for Term Two. I will be introducing some of my quick writing exercises to stimulate our spontaneity – this is currently under wraps. It will also be informative to talk about why we write, writing organisations, writing competitions, reviewing, flash fiction, publishers, submitting a manuscript to a publisher, attending author talks and writers festivals and generally immersing ourselves in the literary world. For end-of-term we will discuss books and our favourite authors and have our regular lunch together in the nearby café. Consider starting your own Writers Collective and get those words written down!

Say No to AI
Real Writers Forever!

♥ © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

Do Writers Groups Work?

Recently I joined a new Writers Collective. Ten Brisbane writers signed up and eight turned up on the first day. We were a quiet group, hesitant to speak up or indeed read out our work.

I read out my biography and reading/writing background, for what it’s worth not a long document, but it would have been nice if a structure had been decided prior to our first meeting. I guess we have to feel our way into a comfortable situation where everyone can read and share their work, give feedback, and perhaps do a quick (possibly themed) writing exercise in class. This can often turn into a longer piece in the comfort of one’s own home.

In a group, I would also like to talk about our favourite authors and how they inspire us to write. Perhaps sharing tips from those group members who have been published.

The following are my suggestions, bearing in mind that I have not organised a writers group, although I have attended one or two over the years. This one is shaping up to be good.

My Notes: I enjoyed our first group meeting. We were all a bit quiet but I am hoping that will change.

With regard to initial email questions from the group convenor, I forgot to speak up and say I had written a response to them so here they are:

No.1: Personally I don’t think The Collective is suited to self-organising sessions, we probably do need to develop an inclusive structure so everyone has a turn at offering their work, thoughts, opinions, etc, and give polite critiques.

No.2: I think it’s good to develop a more structured approach, e.g. each person has Comment time, Reading aloud time, Feedback time, etc.

No.3: Sharing writing styles, where we write (desk, park, café) and who sees/proofreads our manuscripts?

No.4: Why do we write? I would like to share the groups future goals; online presence, hopes for publishing, family only, personal?

No.5: Immersion https://australianauthors.com.au/
Read lots of similar books if seeking ideas and publication. Writing routines: Do you allocate time to write, re-reading, editing, following current trends, attending author events? Importantly, are we taking our own writing seriously?

No.6: What do we know about publishing? Do we have contacts in the book world, e.g. proof-reader, line edit, hybrid deals? Also do you have a beta reader in mind? This is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to getting your book out there.

Disclaimer: Because I have only written short stories and I am only half-way through a YA Medieval novel (doing extensive research) I am not a well-seasoned writer and I have not been published but I have blogged for several years and won a couple of writing competitions for kudos rather than prize money.

If you have blogged about your own successful writers group, please send me a link! Whether it be notes, blogging, social media, emails or a special book for someone or yourself. Whatever the format, reading and writing is the you-time of your life. Always keep writing. I promise I will.

💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2026

*Michelle Hutton of Beenleigh Quilters at Brisbane Craft & Quilt Fair*
*© image Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2024*

AI is Approaching Your Toddler

This beautiful book from real humans for illustration only!

Mother Jones: “AI Is Coming for Your Toddler’s Bedtime Story – Artificial intelligence poses an increasingly real threat to children’s literature — and children’s learning” warns Lily Meyer.

As a long-time reader of Paula Bardell-Hedley’s prodigiously interesting blog, Winding Up the Week, I came across this snippet (29/11/2025) https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/11/ai-childrens-books/ and Mother Jones certainly sinks the boot into publishing houses. I let fly with the following embellished comments recorded below:

I said “That’s appalling” because Mother Jones said: “AI Is Coming for Your Toddler’s Bedtime Story.” Having read, written and attended courses on writing and illustrating picture books and stories for young children I can voucher for the fact that they come from the heart. Children’s books are not written quickly, or rubber-stamped, and many are written by a teacher or parent who has hands on experience. You cannot dumb-down a child’s story nor can it be over-embellished.

If you have read “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse” by superb British author Charlie Mackesy you should also consider the consequences to children’s artists and illustrators.

Some things in life are too precious, too personal for publishers to tamper with, and I truly hope a computer generated AI will never comprehend the nuance of a child’s reading enjoyment. Better still stay away from young readers.

We need Self Before AI for our future of adaptability and mental stability. The old saying “If you don’t use it you lose it” is needed by a world of people staring too much at their screens. Read with a child, turn the human created/real pages, explain what you both see, let the child colour in some pages, nod off to sleep with the book. Make a picture book a family friend with wrinkled pages and maybe a food stain because it’s all part of the warmth of a human learning experience.

I know from personal and practical contact that children’s books are written by authors with kind hearts, then read by a trusted mature human to enhance a trusting young human’s reading journey through life.
No AI need apply.

💗 © Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

Queensland Reviewers Collective Reading

Just by chance one afternoon I came across a wonderful website which I can recommend.
The readers review many book genres from Australia and overseas on Queensland Reviewers Collective.

They also list current awards, the Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Awards, Ned Kelly Awards and more. They offer reviews for various categories from crime to historical and literary as well as children’s books. Plus there is a Readers Choice which was a landslide win for Emily Maguire – ‘Rapture’ (Allen & Unwin)

Prime Minister’s Literary Awards 2025

Writing Australia announced the winners of the 2025 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards. Two of the winning titles, chosen by an independent panel of judges from shortlists announced in August are:

Fiction – ‘Theory & Practice’ (Michelle de Kretser, Text)

Nonfiction – ‘Mean Streak’ (Rick Morton, Harper Collins Australia)

The awards were presented at a special event, which was live streamed, at the National Library of Australia in Canberra on Monday, 29 September 2025. More information is available on the Creative Australia website.

Ned Kelly Awards 2025

The Australian Crime Writers Association has announced the 2025 Ned Kelly Award winners. The winning works in each category, chosen from shortlists announced in August are:

Best crime fiction – ‘The Creeper’ (Margaret Hickey, Penguin)

Best true crime writing – ‘A Thousand Miles from Care’ (Steve Johnson, HarperCollins)

Best debut crime fiction – ‘All You Took from Me’ (Lisa Kenway, Transit Lounge)

Best international crime fiction – ‘A Case of Matricide’ (Graeme Macrae Burnet, Text)

The winners were announced via a live-streamed video on the Australian Crime Writers Association website on Thursday, 26 September 2025. More information about the Ned Kelly Award Winners is available on the Australian Crime Writers Association website.

Great ideas for Aussie book club reads and also visit Sisters In Crime Australia. Now all I need to do is track down copies of each book then read and review on (whisper) Goodreads.
Whatever you read, enjoy your reading!

📚 With thanks to QRC 💗 Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

What happened to the knitter? Created by Michelle Hutton of Beenleigh Quilters, Brisbane Craft & Quilt Fair Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre 2024 © photo Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2024

Publishing House Seeks Volunteer Reader

Volunteer proof-reader vacancy

Do you have a sharp eye for detail and a love of great stories? Hawkeye Publishing is looking for a volunteer proof-reader to join their team.

You would be helping the Hawkeye Publishing team put the final polish on their newest books, proof-reading manuscripts that have already been line edited and typeset, across a wide range of genres. Typically Hawkeye need one manuscript proof-read every 1-2 months.

Perks of the job: Here’s what they say…

A. Receive a complimentary copy of any book you proof and fall in love with — their gift to you to add to your collection.

B. Invited to the occasional training session and social event, connecting with director Carolyn Martinez and the Hawkeye team.

C. Professional references from a trade publisher.

An eye for detail makes
all the difference!

To be considered: Please send Hawkeye an email with your details:

Your CV and cover letter, with evidence of your proof-reading ability and experience.
With an eye for detail, this is an opportunity to help bring quality Australian stories into the world.
Be part of a friendly, passionate publishing team.
For Hawkeye Publishing I proof-read and reviewed author Jack Roney’s superlative ‘The Ghost Train and The Scarlet Moon’ (see below) such an exciting and inventive adventure story.
Jack also writes adult thrillers.
Have a look at Hawkeye’s book box gift packs: https://hawkeyebooks.com.au/collections/gifts
From gripping thrillers to heartwarming romances and thought provoking non-fiction, Hawkeye Publishing has a lot to offer readers.
You could be the first to read!

‘The Ghost Train and The Scarlet Moon’ Review

The Bright Sword for Restless Readers

**“The Bright Sword”** (Not a child’s book) By Lev Grossman Published Penguin Random House UK 2024

In case you don’t believe me, or dislike the book on principle, please try to read at least a bit of it to gauge the true essence of Lev Grossman’s blockbusting novel “The Bright Sword”.

It is a bit daunting to praise a book which has already received glowing recommendations from Rebecca Yarros and George R.R. Martin. Also the first mentions of King Arthur go back to ancient Welsh poetry from the sixth to the tenth centuries.

But I will plough onward lest there is a reader out there at a place called Wits End with a teenager who does not read. Worry not, this is the book for them. Or any jaded reader really. Sure it’s often a bit gruesome and a large tome but you can get it in different formats – the sheer readability, the accessibility of this tale cannot be underestimated. Parents and Medieval cognoscenti, move out from under estimated and go forth into early Britain badlands as never been scribed before.
(Please note the castle and items photographed with the book are NOT part of the package).

Snippets from my Goodreads review to further tempt non-readers:
Gretchen Bernet-Ward said: “A heavy book (weight-wise) but a highly enjoyable read ✨ Ten stars for this one!” Review posted Goodreads September 2025.

REVIEW: I received a brand new copy of this enthralling tale, or dare I say voluminous tome? “The Bright Sword”, written by author Lev Grossman over a ten year period. It could have been a series but this paperback is 5cm (2 inches) thick with 670 pages not counting the historical note. Think James A. Michener’s blockbusters but don’t despair. It is already a winner! I was keen to get started because it was guaranteed that it would be a while before I could write my review. This is a contemporary take on a very old story and is shaped into something akin to medieval social commentary or something like army bros on reconnoitre. Non-reader teenagers and adults will enjoy it. I have always been a fan of King Arthur, Sir Lancelot, Morgan le Fay, wizard Merlin and those who live in Camelot so I guess it was inevitable I would give notice of intent to read and plough on regardless.

LATER: Well, I had to concede tiredness and take off my reading glasses for awhile. An absorbing tome, male-centric (followed by the age of Guinevere) with a layer of topical subjects like social justice, war, rights, royal privilege, rich and poor, chunks of fantasy, dreams, visions, an angel fight, modern language (not too hip) and general non-glorification of what the middle ages were like to live in way back when dragons breathed fire. See chapter eleven “The Tale Of Sir Palomides” for a satirical ye-olde take on medieval Britain; or Knights in convo “Lancelot is the last of the great ones,” Constantine said gravely, “he’s not like us, he’s a hero.”

FAVES: My aunties said Mary Stewart’s Merlin Trilogy rules (I’m a Heath Ledger fan of “A Knight’s Tale“) but this twisty-turny meeting with sorcerer Merlin is well done, creepy, prophetic and offers touches of universal Monty Python humour in a live-or-die situation. Nimue, The Boss, does some nifty moves on sly Merlin, and has some good words to impart. Of course there is also sad and gruesome stuff involving battles and pitting of wits. My favourite chapter is Fourteen “The Well of Ink” a master class in creating an easily imagined scene even though it is nothing like I have ever experienced. Likeable lads, the knights Bedivere and country boy Collum are in Cornwall, one of the unconquered lands which has not fallen to the Romans so what hope have these guys got? Just the same there is some beautiful/scary written imagery as the scenes dissolve like CGI special effects.

MUST-READ: All in all, perhaps this will become my favourite King Arthur version. Galahad is mentioned and Guinevere plays it cool “Welcome to Avalon,” then comes the Saxon refugees. Later in the land of Pict, a sardonic Dinadan quote “Great, you can give us a tour of the finer coastal haystacks.” Stay with it, I really enjoyed the story and think a variety of readers will love it. If I was so inclined I would say this tale leans toward a universal awareness. A portrayal of semi-factual lifestyles, ancient battles and ongoing things readers may loosely compare to present day. The physical book is impressive but an e-book or author-read audio book is available. Read it before the movie!

💗 Gretchen Bernet-Ward 2025

Prisoner of the State by Lily Arthur

My thoughts have become passionate words on my blog and also on Goodreads. No frills with this post. The book ‘Prisoner of the State’ was loaned to me and I am grateful for the chance to read it. Written by Australian Lily Arthur, every chapter is shattering and true.

HERE are my own personal thoughts, observations and book review comments on a serious, shocking and quite tragic topic.

FORCED adoption, such a brutal and inhuman thing to do to young mothers. I only had to read the first chapters of this biography to be enraged. Such lies and deceit, such an underhanded and basically illegal activity in the name of social propriety and Church teachings. What were the parents of these girls thinking? Perhaps their 1960s puritanical fear of being socially marked was worse than what happened to their vulnerable young daughters.

SURELY not all hospital staff involved were corrupt and morally wrong? Why didn’t someone speak out? Do they regret not alerting the proper authorities? Everyone turned away, didn’t want to get involved, ‘Not my problem; I can’t change the system; what will the neighbours think?’ Three wrong responses! For badly treated and bereft young women their situation became much worse once their babies were taken from them. Mentally and physically they were broken, drugged, lied to and later doomed to wonder at the cruelty of the Australian city they called home.

IT doesn’t matter your status, all that matters is that you are a mother and your baby is the most precious being on the planet and no person or organisation has any right to lie and take such a living breathing joyous gift away from you. In this 1960s case, steps were taken many years later and a mother, Lily Arthur, sprung into action to find out the truth of what happened to her stolen son all those years ago. Not only for her own piece of mind but for hundreds of other young unmarried mothers who were coerced, deceived and told their baby had died.

AS a mother myself I feel sadness for the other women, the adopters who thought those young mothers willingly gave away their supposedly unwanted babies.

WHO needs a document to say they can birth their baby? Who needs a document to say they can keep their baby? In the past a document, a law, a church or organisation of any kind should not have had the power to decree outcomes which sever a healthy fundamental mother/baby bond. Would a mother give up her new born child if she was given clear options? Back then new mothers should have been given clear, concise information, counselling, legal assistance, childcare support and every accessible help for their future. Instead they got human rights abuse and social stigma. Indeed treated like a criminal when in fact a victim of crime.

CAN a male feel and experience the fundamental changes wrought by pregnancy and childbirth? No. The male attitude Lily Arthur has faced while researching, and in courts of law, has been pompous and disparaging. Quote ‘I felt as if I had been victimised all over again.’ Similar treatment by nurses and those convent nuns mentioned in the book, ruled by priests and made barren by repetition, religious teachings and ancient doctrine. If you or anyone you know is going through pregnancy and facing adoption, forced or otherwise, this is the book you should read for both sides of the story.

LILY Arthur had a long road to travel. She kept going. She is still going and has reached milestones in law courts and certainly shines a strong light on the appalling secrets of white and indigenous baby birth exploitation in Australia. No doubt this appropriation happens around the world but it’s not a case of buying a puppy. Later, of course, disclosing a birth mother is a minefield of emotions for both parties. It worked for my cousin, she found her other family and happiness. Many do not, but in both cases I believe the truth should always be told.

‘Author Lily Arthur still seeks both truth and closure.’
Visit blog https://www.lilyarthur.com/about-author
Published 2025 by Big Sky Publishing Pty Ltd.