Quarter Century
2025 has come to an end and with it, the first quarter of this century is over. I feel so incredibly lucky to have spent that time being an author (initially part-time, but full time now for 12 years). No, I’m not gonna reminisce about the last 25 years… it would take too long and everyone would be mega-bored by the end of it. So, just the last year.
In summary… I wrote some stuff; I had stuff published; I did a lot of talking; and I travelled around a bit. Now, here are the details…
My big publication for the year was You Choose MEGA: Prehistoric Peril, my return to interactive storytelling after a bit of a break (You Choose: Footy Fever in 2017). Then I spent a whole heap of time promoting it. And those promotions aren’t finished with yet, as the book has been chosen for Lit Club 4 Kids (run by Dymocks Children’s Charities) as their Jan/Feb title for 2026.
In the world of educational publishing, I had three books in the NovaStar series of comprehension readers from Cengage Learning (Nelson). Two fiction titles, Sia and We Could Be Famous, and one non-fic, Video Games: From Then to Now.
In the realms of media tie-in fiction, I had a short story in the Doctor Who spinoff anthology Lethbridge-Stewart: The Havoc Files 5. “Leftovers” is a sequel to my Lethbridge-Stewart novel, Fear Frequence (2021). The Doctor Who spinoff picture book I had published in 2024, Down in the London Underground, was nominated for a SCRIBE Award (presented by the International Association of Media Tie-in Writers). Although it didn’t win, it was super cool having it on the shortlist.
And then there were a couple of articles in Oz Kids In Print, a magazine produced by the Children’s Charity Network.
It seems like I’m doing more and more speaking each year. I was a guest at the Whitsunday Voices Youth Literature Festival and Mac PopCon in Qld, as well as at many schools, libraries and bookshop events around Australia.
The stats…
- Schools: 48 (4 virtual)
- Libraries: 5
- Festivals/Conventions: 3 (1 virtual)
- Teacher/Librarian events: 1
- Bookshop Events: 5
That’s 136 individual sessions (including 8 virtual sessions).
One of the things that I love about speaking events is that they often give me the chance to travel. As well as events in and around Melbourne, I attended events in Gippsland, Mackay, Alice Springs, the Sunshine Coast, Canberra and Deniliquin.
And if that wasn’t enough talking, I also recorded the second season of It’s True… Or Is It?, a podcast created by author Michael Pryor. The two of us host it, telling stories both true and not, as we attempt to fool each other and our listeners. Seven of the ten Season 2 eps are already out (along with ten eps of Season 1). Check it out and subscribe on your podcasting platform of choice. Michael and I will soon begin planning Season 3.
So… 2025 was a BIG year! But now it’s time to stop looking back and set my eyes firmly on the future. 2026, here I come!
