This post is for the amazing South Australian Ngarrindjeri Lakum, Ngarrindjeri Weaving, and also my grandmother who gave me a very small yet beautifully woven basket (with a little lid) which she watched being created by an Indigenous weaver many years ago. It still holds a cotton pouch containing my grandmother’s homegrown dried lavender. I never knew how this delightful little basked was woven or what it was woven with but now I know – the swirling pattern is water rushes with pine needles for contrast!
“The seven No:ri (pelicans) in flight formation represent an understanding that by working cooperatively a community can achieve far more than a few working in isolation. The sister basket reminds us of our Ancestors and the gifts they entrusted to us all.” Visuals Tim Barnes and Earth Art.
With little fanfare, many Ngarrindjeri Weavers traditional work entered mainstream living in 20th century. I remember woven placemats on the dining table and woven baskets at picnics. It was not uncommon to see water-rush woven items hanging in the doorway of grocery shops, the natural equivalent of today’s reusable carry bags. For several years I kept scented soaps in a small round woven container with a perfectly fitted flat lid, little knowing its origins – see photo below.
A MEMORY FROM GRETCHEN
CONNECTIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS: “The Ngarrindjeri have a system of ceremonial exchange between neighbouring groups within Ngarrindjeri territories and also with people living further afield. Cultural exchange routes follow the river system north into New South Wales, east along the Coorong through the South East of South Australia to Victoria and North West to the Kaurna people of the Adelaide Plains and through to the Northern Territory.” BEFORE EUROPEAN ARRIVAL: “Prior to European arrival/invasion, woven items were highly valued as part of this exchange system. Ngarrindjeri cloaks and baskets were among the items exchanged for tools and materials that were not found in their area, and locally weaving was traded for speciality items like tanned hides.” CULTURAL EXCHANGE AND TRADE: “Today (when book published) there are many Ngarrindjeri Weavers who teach their cultural weaving in schools and at community events. In so doing they continue the traditional practice of trade through exchange. In the 21st century we think of this continuing practice of trade as the development of economic enterprise.”
The community of East Brisbane and Kangaroo Point is calling for help. It is now public knowledge that the Queensland Government plans to knock down the iconic Woolloongabba ‘Gabba’ Sports Stadium and rebuild on this legendary site.
This will leave three inner city suburbs without a public school, turn Raymond Park into an Olympics warm-up track, and waste many billions of dollars that could be spent on things Queenslanders urgently need, e.g. public housing, schools and hospitals.
You are invited to join the “Rally to Stop the Gabba Demolition” outside the stadium in Woolloongabba Place Park, 810 Stanley Street, Woolloongabba QLD 4102, from 10am on Saturday 25 November, 2023.
Homes will be demolished, a school closed down and original parkland trees will be removed. The historically significant heritage-listed East Brisbane State School (officially Brisbane East State School until September 1994) is one of the first large brick state schools in Brisbane. The original portion of the school was erected in 1899, with extensions added in 1900, 1938 and 1939. The single-storeyed timber Infants School was erected in 1910–11.
I think Queensland politicians and builders need to stop demolishing the past, and stop inflicting ill-conceived plans on the future of Brisbane.
“Saturday’s rally is about showing Government that the community here are not alone – more and more Queenslanders are asking why billions of dollars of their money should be wasted knocking down and rebuilding a stadium.”
Also, Woolloongabba protesters believe it’s a short-sighted Government project with no thought for residential areas, or green spaces, and will add future congestion to surrounding suburbs and city zones. Local residents are not accepting it and ask supporters to join their protest at Woolloongabba Park Place at 10am on Saturday 25 November, 2023.
Carolyn Martinez, Director of Hawkeye Publishing says ‘A cleverly crafted short story is not only enjoyable to read, but is also an excellent strategic step for a writer’s career. A shortlisted story shows publishers that you have unique and creative ideas, know how to draw readers in, and understand how to wield words to their maximum effect.’
The writing group Brisbane Scribes, said ‘Deciding on forty titles to be published in an anthology was problematic enough, but distilling that list to a shortlist stimulated much debate amongst the judges with some passionate advocacy of individual selections. As would be expected, all on the list are well-written explorations of the competition theme and vary markedly in style and subject matter.’
Entrants should be extremely proud of the story they’ve produced and pre-orders are now open.
If you would like to read more about what Hawkeye looks for in short stories, check out Winning Short Story Competitions info below. Each order of this fantastic book includes a previous year’s anthology (while stocks last).
Looking to enter next year?
The 2024 Sydney Hammond Memorial Short Story Competition theme is: ‘The Look That Said It All’.
Hawkeye Publishing can’t wait to read your take on this theme!
The competition opens on the 1st of January 2024. For more information click here.
“The Australian Indigenous Voice Referendum will be held on Saturday 14 October 2023. Every Australian voter will be asked to approve an alteration to the Australian Constitution that would recognise Indigenous Australians, the original custodians.”
Indigenous Australians have, for thousands of years, understood the land, nurtured and worked with nature, followed the seasons, and left no gaping holes in the landscape. Just because we cannot see exactly what is happening with mining in Australia doesn’t mean it’s right for the future. For every tree, rock and animal habitat destroyed we lose something special, something that can never be replaced. Do you know the story of the Dodo? Yes, it was a real bird living in the woods on the coastal areas of Mauritius, minding its own business until someone thought its eggs were tasty on toast and then they decided to eat the Dodo birds until none were left. The world lost a species before future generations got to see it. This is happening every day in Australia when wildlife areas are bulldozed. We have reached an important milestone in our brutal history. Support Indigenous leaders, work together for everyone’s benefit to create a more cohesive society and enhance the stability of our future. The very least we can do is give Indigenous Australians a Voice in Parliament to explain a few things that a succession of political leaders have overlooked.
UPDATE: Sunday 15/10/23: The Voice Referendum 2023 results are in and although it is all cut and dried it still appears to be uppermost in Australian minds. I won’t go into an analysis, or all the hocus-pocus, but suffice to say if anyone reads my blog post they will know how I voted. I have yet to ask whether or not this result was against Prime Minister Anthony Albanese or that our colonial past is alive and well. GBW.
Bibliophiles and books rejoice in a heritage-listed building in the heart of Brisbane CBD. Archives Fine Books is the largest second-hand and antiquarian bookstore in Queensland, a book mine where a bit of fossicking reveals literary gold. Read their suggested online resources, browse their extensive categories, it is like an Aladdin’s cave of amazing volumes but so much better in person. Now they are adding an Australian first.
Before I begin, let me tell you a tale. When I originally discovered Archives Fine Books, the old floorboards were uneven and creaked, books were crammed on shelving which ran into the gloom and rose to the roof like canyons of dark wood. Dull lightbulbs showed thousands of dusty spines and the air felt heavy with—what? Knowledge, books jostling, words waiting? A beam of light spearing through a grimy windowpane. A flash of something around the corner.
I must visit again to see what has changed, if anything has changed. It was the kind of atmosphere where I felt I was not alone. I felt other people around me but nobody was there. I also had to buy something. As I walked through a myriad categories soaring high above my buzzing head, I acknowledged the need to stop and inspect a particular section. A book drew my gaze and I prised it out, knowing I would buy it. Why? Not sure, not sure to this very day, but I knew that book wanted me and I wanted it. It was purchased, slid into a paper bag, the cash register yielded my change and I swiftly exited down the stone steps to the street.
Several forays followed but soon e-books impinged my reading time. Fast forward to 2023 and I have come to my senses. I am planning to revisit, older and creakier like the floorboards of 40 Charlotte Street. I am sure a book is waiting for me. I can hear the pages rustling.
Meanwhile, have you heard of their unique book collection prize? Read on—
WRITE AN ESSAY | CREATE A BIBLIOGRAPHY | SHARE YOUR WISH LIST
The Archives Fine Book Collecting Prize is an occasional prize with a combined value of over $1,000 awarded for an outstanding book collection conceived of and built by a young Australian collector. The purpose of the Archives Fine Book Collecting Prize is to unearth and celebrate current book collecting passions and practices among young Australians so that every young and curious collector can play their part in invigorating existing traditions whilst they develop knowledge and build expertise.
The first national book collecting prize has a combined value of more than $1,000 and includes:
A domestic return air-fare to EITHER the Melbourne Rare Books Fair (July 2024) OR The Sydney Rare Book Fair (October 2024);
A $250 voucher to spend at the Fair;
A $250 Archives Fine Books Voucher;
A one-year subscription to the Bibliographic Society of Australia and New Zealand (BSANZ);
A two-year membership with The Book Collectors’ Society of Australia (BCSA).
Why young people?
This year Archives Fine Books (Queensland) has expanded the geographical scope of their prize to be open to ALL young Australian collectors.
The impulse to celebrate young Australian collectors emerges from Archives Fine Books desire to see the whole book collecting scene in Australia grow and be invigorated. They know book collecting is usually a solitary pastime. By establishing the national prize, they hope to introduce young collectors to the existing community for inspiration and information.
Originally launched as a local prize in 2020 the inaugural Archives Fine Book Collecting Prize was awarded to
To the best of their knowledge this in the first and only Australian Book Collecting Prize. They are seeking those curious young Australians who are already hunting and uncovering things they sense may have something interesting or new to tell us about ourselves and our world; and who, by their collecting foci, are preserving books and ephemeral items into the future.
Note: Entry deadline is 31st December 2023 and the prize-winning collection will be announced in March 2024.
YOUR VOTE—Click the link below and visit the website by 5:00pm on Monday 14 August 2023 to nominate your absolute favourite book by a Queensland author from the list of eight finalists.
I CAST MY VOTE—The books are all outstanding but as the old saying goes ‘You have many choices but only one decision’. You, as a reader, probably have a firm favourite. If not, you can buy their books at SLQ The Library Shop or borrow them from your favourite BCC library in various formats.
THE AUTHOR—The author who receives the most votes will be awarded $10,000 thanks to The Courier-Mail.
THE WINNER—The winner will be revealed at the Queensland Literary Awards ceremony on Wednesday 6 September 2023. Free register here to watch the live stream 7:00pm.
UPDATES—To stay up to date, follow the Queensland Literary Awards on Twitter and Facebook.
Voting is open to everyone, no matter where you live in Australia but Strictly one vote per person
The Courier-Mail People’s Choice Queensland Book of the Year Award celebrates outstanding works by Australian writers, illustrators and creators. The author who receives the most votes from the public will be awarded $10,000 thanks to The Courier-Mail. Find more to read at State Library of Queensland. Visit the official bookseller of the Queensland Literary Awards 2023, and follow them on Facebook and on Twitter@qldlitawards.
WHO WILL WIN?—Pick your favourite book from the list and see what happens. When the winner is announced I will post the result. Meanwhile the literary world is enriched eight ways no matter what transpires.
I had not been through the older Brisbane CBD-adjacent suburb of West End for a long time. My first connection goes back to the 1970-80s when many factories ran along the riverfront, parklands were unsafe and you had to bring your own lunch because there were no fast food chains nearby.
The atmosphere was quietly contained. Small businesses and brick and weatherboard homes sat side-by-side with old corrugated iron roofed cottages on stumps turned into lodging houses for tired hippies, a primary school without many pupils and a lowkey ethnic population. Various businesses like print shop, milk bar, newsagent, café, post office, pub and Chinese takeaway, ran along main Boundary Street and iconic Avid Reader Bookstore had not yet opened. You could get on-street parking and your car was baking hot when you returned. But the streets were free of traffic congestion.
Forget most of the nostalgia above.
The suburb of West End, in the curve of the Brisbane River, has grown and changed phenomenally since then. Admittedly I was there on a weekend and the Davies Park Markets (now West End Markets) located among the ancient fig trees on the corner of Jane Street and Montague Road were in full swing and the traffic was bumper to bumper. I wondered if the ghosts of Kurilpa Peninsula, the Turrbal and Yuggera tribes who originally inhabited the area would have approved.
Bit of intel.
I had a college friend whose father worked at the glass factory on Montague Road alongside the river. He said it was hot work and he drank a lot of water. Fast forward and this West End plot of land is expected to be transformed into an extension of South Bank Parklands after the 2032 Olympic Games. According to ABCTV the Visy Glass property in West End was marked in official Olympics pitch documents as the planned location of a 57,000-square-metre international broadcast centre for the world’s media during the Games. More pressure on the local infrastructure.
Meanwhile, West End residents may not be aware that Kurilpa Peninsula is in danger of highrise, and Brisbane is in danger of zoning changes up to 90-storey towers. To quote Greens MP for Ryan, Elizabeth Watson-Brown, “My Greens colleagues across Brisbane and I are calling on the State Government to reject the Brisbane City Council’s proposal to undemocratically override the neighbourhood plan on the Kurilpa Peninsula (West End) to allow 90-storey towers instead of the current zonings for only 8, 16 or 30-storeys.”
Ryan e-newsletter 18 July 2023
On a lighter note, on Mollison Street, not too far from South Bank parklands and Victoria Bridge, there were hundreds of people milling through the shopping precincts; West Village and the streets around were buzzing with eateries, the vibe was Saturday relaxed. Everyone seemed to have a purpose, many had a happy child or happy dog pleased to be outside in the fresh air. Recycled bags full of organic groceries were fashion accessories.
But, dear reader, this is where the stylus scrapes across the vinyl record. Ouch!
Brisbane has the tag “Liveable City” but I was stunned by the amount of glass and concrete reaching into the sky. Highrise dwellings like modern pigeon lofts soared up along Riverside Drive, Mollison Street, Montague Road and beyond. Okay, everyone needs somewhere safe to live, people want first class homes, people love beautiful views, people want all modern amenities and be within close proximity to their workplace and, after hours, all the good things in life.
So I ask the universe in general.
Do they have to be crammed into concrete columns with tinted windows in small two-bedroom apartments, side-by-side with other buildings crowding the landscape, dehumanising our city, obstructing views of sunrise and casting long afternoon shadows? Housing is at a premium but dark lifts and rabbit warren corridors painted grey on each floor level are second only to a feeling of isolation.
Money always talks the loudest.
Just because units are sold off the plan doesn’t mean the resident will be happy. A bit of exterior stylised shaping of an apartment building makes it appear to be different, yet these buildings are carbon copies of possibly thousands around the world. Where is the uniqueness, the special style of our city? Brisbane and its residents deserve lower-level homes, open, light, airy, which reflect our lifestyle, not rooms 90-storeys above where real connections, real life are but a distant image on the ground. Coupled with West End’s existing car and transport congestion and the threat of further flooding, to me The Plan screams future tenements, a dystopian nightmare of wall-to-wall buildings all staring at each other blocking the sun and any hope for a cleaner greener future.
I have added my voice to No To Hyperdensity. What next?
Maybe in the future we will have to travel to the Moon to find liveable affordable housing. If in doubt, read “Sea of Tranquility” by Emily St. John Mandel.
Sisters in Crime’s Scarlet Stiletto Awards 2023 for best short crime and mystery stories turn 30 this year and the first prize winner takes home $2,000 donated by Swinburne University of Technology, plus the coveted trophy, a scarlet stiletto shoe with a steel stiletto heel plunging into a mount. The shortlist will be announced in October, with the awards being presented at a gala ceremony in Melbourne in late November.
In the lead-up to the ceremony, all of the winning stories over the past 30 years are being narrated by Susanna Lobez for Sisters in Crime’s very first podcast – Scarlet Stiletto Bites: Scintillating Stories by Australian women. The podcast is free and a new episode is available weekly on Fridays on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, Google, and other services.
Christina Lee, judges’ coordinator and winner of two trophies, said that the Scarlet Stiletto Awards were remarkable in their ability to uncover outstanding criminal talent.
“Winning a Scarlet Stiletto Award has often launched literary careers. To date, 4,332 stories have been entered with 33 (soon to be 34) Scarlet Stiletto Award winners–including category winners – going on to have novels published,” she said.
“Well-known authors who got their start with the Scarlet Stiletto Awards include Cate Kennedy, Tara Moss, Aoife Clifford, Ellie Marney, Angela Savage, and Anna Snoekstra. For Dervla McTiernan, just being shortlisted in 2015 gave her the impetus to finish five drafts of her first novel, The Ruin, and put her on the road to becoming a global publishing sensation.”
Former police officer, TJ Hamilton, says that winning the shoe in 2015 was “a huge turning point” in her career. In the eight years since, she has worked in various script departments across a wide variety of Australian dramas and is now in LA working on two crime shows.
Like many of Sisters in Crime’s best ideas, Scarlet Stiletto Awards sprang from a well-lubricated meeting in St Kilda in 1994, when the convenors debated how they could unearth the female criminal talent they were convinced was out there.
“Once a competition was settled on, it didn’t take long to settle on a name – the scarlet stiletto, a feminist play on the traditions of the genre. The stiletto is both a weapon and a shoe worn by women. And of course, the colour scarlet has a special association for us as women. And they were right – talent is lurking everywhere, sometimes in the most unlikely places!” Lee said.
Allen & Unwin is now offering the Best Young Writer Award ($1000). It previously offered a youth award for over two decades. Every Cloud Productions has boosted its Best History with Mystery Award to $1000. Overall, 30th Scarlet Stiletto Awards are offering a record $12,720 in prizes.
Monash University, which previously offered the Emerging Writers’ Award, is now offering an award for Best Campus Crime Story ($600). The only proviso is that it has to be set on the campus of a university, TAFE College, or vocational institution. The award draws on a long history of crime stories set at universities, such as Amanda Cross’ novel, Death in a Tenured Position, and Unable by Reason of Death and Not in Single Spies, set at Redmond Barry College (a thinly disguised RMIT University) by Lee herself and Felicity Allen, under pseudonyms.
Images supplied Sisters In Crime Australia Scarlet Stiletto Awards 2023
List of Award Categories:
Swinburne University Award: 1st Prize: $2000
Simon & Schuster Award: 2nd Prize: $1000
Sun Bookshop & Fremantle Press Award: 3rd Prize: $750
Allen & Unwin Award for Best Young Writer (under 19): $1000
Melbourne Athenaeum Library ‘Body in the Library’ Award: $1250 ($750 runner-up)
Every Cloud Award for Best Mystery with History Story: $1000
HQ Fiction Award for Best Thriller: $1000
Clan Destine Press Award for Best Cross-genre Story: $750
Kerry Greenwood Award for Best Malice Domestic Story: $750
Viliama Grakalic Art and Crime Award: $750
Monash University Award for Best Campus Crime Story: $600
ScriptWorks Award for a Great Film Idea: $500
Liz Navratil Award for Best Story with a Disabled Protagonist Award: $400
Writers Victoria for the story with the Most Satisfying Retribution: Choice of online course, prize worth $250
CLOSING DATE for the Awards is Thursday 31 August 2023 ENTRY FEE is $25 or $20 for Sisters in Crime members. MAXIMUM LENGTH is 5,000 words. The competition is open to all women, whether cisgender, transgender or intersex, who are citizens/residents of Australia.
30th Scarlet Stiletto Awards 2023
To download INFORMATION and a list of FAQs, go here.
A hardcopy Scarlet Stiletto collection of the first-prize winning stories will be launched at the Award ceremony along with Scarlet Stiletto: The Fifteenth Cut, a collection of the 2023 winning stories. Also fourteen collections of winning stories are available: www.clandestinepress.net
My photographs (below) show the Gallery Level because that’s where my true story took place. In those days we called it the balcony level but it still has the bespoke, original shops with artisans working in the background as customers window-shop or browse the fine wares on display.
The main photograph (above) was taken entering Brisbane Arcade from Adelaide Street, City. Partially visible lower right hand corner shows Keri Craig Boutique Emporium to downstairs level. The iconic The Pen Shoppe (left) is small yet packed with the most incredible items you could imagine, and not all pens!
From memory, Brisbane Arcade was not as well lit as it is today and the atmosphere always seemed rather sombre with its darker wood and ‘proper’ shop assistants watching their customers, patiently waiting to be called to assist. Even today, nothing ruffles the ambience, no piped muzak or microphoned spruikers shouting about sales, and never discount bins.
If you desired a sophisticated clothing boutique with timeless elegance or a discreet luncheon you slipped into Brisbane Arcade. You hoped it would rain so you could buy that beautiful umbrella or stylish coat. The hustle and bustle of the city faded away and you knew you were somewhere special. Artisan jewellery, watches, ballet wear. And it didn’t get any better than hand-made Darrell Lea Chocolates deliciously displayed for special occasions. Unfortunately they now come from supermarkets, blocked in cellophane wrappers with lurid colours.
Looking towards Room With RosesBespoke Jewellers
Every time I walk into Brisbane Arcade, the elegance, intimacy and history surround me. In fact I feel I am no longer in the 21st century and I love it.
So, where does my spooky story start? As Mary Poppins (Queenslander P L Travers literary creation) aptly says “Let’s start at the very beginning…”
Well, maybe not at the very, very beginning but certainly two young women deciding on where to go for an end-of-term treat. Unfortunately the divinely delicious Room With Roses café was out of our price range.
The idea of a tea-leaf reading Fortune Teller lured us up the polished stone steps to the gallery level and…
Gallery towards Queen StreetFortune Teller was here
My personal reminiscence is of the Fortune Teller, or Teacup Reader, on the upper level, midway along the gallery walk. I cannot recall the woman’s name but even now I get shivers thinking of that cubbyhole café. In 1973, as a Stott’s Business College end of term treat, my friend and I decided on a special tea-leaf reading.
When we arrived, for some reason I declined and just drank my cup of tea and ate a slice of cake. But my friend opted for a reading. I cannot remember the price of afternoon tea (or a reading) but past documents show a jar of Maxwell House instant coffee was 30 cents back then.
Anyway, it was a real pot of tea with leaves and when my friend finished her beverage, the cup was upended into the saucer. The leaves left behind in the china cup were those the mystical woman read aloud. She told my friend that there were “lots of feathers” in the cup, lots of birds. She said that my friend had a trip ahead, she would leave and go somewhere “very important”. I cannot remember all that was said, we were too amazed to speak. My college pal lived on a poultry farm at Redland Bay and she was due to fly to Canberra ACT where she had been successful in obtaining a job in a ministerial office—I will never forget that tea-leaf reading moment.
Memorabilia Time! My favourite umbrella was obtained from the brolly shop in Brisbane Arcade, pale blue fabric with cane handle, and I have gifted many items from the abundant The Pen Shoppe. Around 1975 I purchased (from the chemist shop) an original USA Diamon-Deb metal nail file which I still own and have travelled extensively with it. Another memorable purchase in 1981 was a beaded headpiece for my bridal veil from the wedding shop near Darrell Lea Chocolates. Over the years I have enjoyed morning teas and shopping forays in the delightfully small yet visually splendid shops in Brisbane Arcade and truly believe this glittering jewel will live on for future generations.
A CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION! LAUNCH OF SISTERS IN CRIME’S 30TH SCARLET STILETTO AWARDS 2023
The idea for a national award for short stories, written by Australian women and featuring a strong female protagonist, was cooked up over a few glasses of wine in 1994 at a convenors’ meeting in St Kilda, Victoria. The purpose was to support and unearth new talent. This has been achieved in spades!
Get in quick for an historic (and enjoyable) occasion – the launch of Sisters in Crime’s 30th Scarlet Stiletto Awards hosted by Angela Savage.
Susanna Lobez and Leigh Redhead will read the winning ‘Body in the Library’ stories from 2021 and 2022.
Date of launch Friday 2nd June 2023 Time 5.30pm (for 6.00pm) until 7.30pm Venue Melbourne Athenaeum Library Level 1, 188 Collins Street Melbourne, Victoria 3000 Australia+ Google Map
Of course, this event is to get writers warmed up for the writing of their own crime short story!
Competition entry details for 2023 will be posted when they come to hand… stay tuned…
Thoughts Become Words 