Would you rather win all the awards or make all the money? “Both” is a valid answer, but few writers are so lucky. Sometimes peers and publishers will push you one way or another, when really, all you want to do is be yourself. How have the Word Docs managed this? In a lively conversation spanning everything from pop culture to professorships, Amy, Alex and Sean reveal all.

 

Episode 9 - tags

Academia

Awards

Bias

Classism

Comic-Con

Comics

Community

Competition

Conventions

Cultural capital

Cultural cringe

Defining success

F-bombs

Genre fiction

Inclusivity

Intellectual laziness

Literary fiction

Parental advice

Participatory culture

Polymaths

Pop culture

Popularity

Power relations

Prejudice

Reading habits

Representation

Sexism

Slang

Supanova

Tortured metaphors

Youth

Would you rather win all the awards or make all the money? &ldquo;Both&rdquo; is a valid answer, but few writers are so lucky. Sometimes peers and publishers will push you one way or another, when really, all you want to do is be yourself. How have the Word Docs managed this? In a lively conversation spanning everything from pop culture to professorships, Amy, Alex and Sean reveal all.
&nbsp;
Episode 9 - tags
Academia
Awards
Bias
Classism
Comic-Con
Comics
Community
Competition
Conventions
Cultural capital
Cultural cringe
Defining success
F-bombs
Genre fiction
Inclusivity
Intellectual laziness
Literary fiction
Parental advice
Participatory culture
Polymaths
Pop culture
Popularity
Power relations
Prejudice
Reading habits
Representation
Sexism
Slang
Supanova
Tortured metaphors
Youth

Alex, Amy and Sean (aka Dr Alex Vickery-Howe, Dr Amy T Matthews and Dr Sean Williams)
are professional writers who also lecture full-time at Flinders University, South Australia.
They’ve joined forces to cover topics of interest to new writers in a lively, conversational
style that frequently segues to areas far from where they started. If you’ve ever wondered
what writers talk about beyond the lecture theatre or festival circuit, here’s your chance to
find out.

Bios

Dr Alex Vickery-Howe is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. In 2008 he made his
writing debut with a bilingual, bicultural horror rock musical in Okinawa, Japan, where it
opened the Kijimuna Festival (now Ricca Ricca Festival) and played to rave reviews and full
houses, before selling out again at the Adelaide OzAsia Festival. He has subsequently
written and published works for a number of Australian theatre companies. On screen, Alex
has written and directed short films which have played to a variety of international festivals.
He holds a PhD from Flinders University, where he specialises in writing internationally for
younger audiences.
Links:
https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/alex.vickeryhowe

Dr Amy Matthews is an award-winning novelist who publishes literary fiction under the
name Amy T Matthews and historical fiction under the name Tess LeSue. She&#39;s published
short stories in collections including Best Australian Stories and co-edited three anthologies
of short fiction and poetry. Amy is a past chair and current board member of Writers SA and
teaches creative writing at Flinders University. Her current research focusses on writing
colonial historical fiction and the intersections of gender, race and power in romance. This
makes it all sound very serious. It's actually ridiculously fun.
Links:
https://amytmatthews.com
https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/amy.t.matthews
https://tesslesue.com
 
Dr Sean Williams is an award-winning, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of forty-nine novels and over one hundred and twenty short stories for adults, young adults and children.

As well as his original fiction, he has contributed to shared universes such as Star Wars and Doctor Who, collaborated with authors like Garth Nix, and lived on an Antarctica base in the name of research. His latest novel is Impossible Music, about a young heavy metal guitarist who loses his hearing. He teaches creative writing at Flinders University and writes music under the monicker “theadelaidean”.

Links:
www.seanwilliams.com
https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/sean.williams

Alex, Amy and Sean (aka Dr Alex Vickery-Howe, Dr Amy T Matthews and Dr Sean Williams) are professional writers who also lecture full-time at Flinders University, South Australia. They&rsquo;ve joined forces to cover topics of interest to new writers in a lively, conversational style that frequently segues to areas far from where they started. If you&rsquo;ve ever wondered what writers talk about beyond the lecture theatre or festival circuit, here&rsquo;s your chance to find out.
Bios Dr Alex Vickery-Howe is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. In 2008 he made his writing debut with a bilingual, bicultural horror rock musical in Okinawa, Japan, where it opened the Kijimuna Festival (now Ricca Ricca Festival) and played to rave reviews and full houses, before selling out again at the Adelaide OzAsia Festival. He has subsequently written and published works for a number of Australian theatre companies. On screen, Alex has written and directed short films which have played to a variety of international festivals. He holds a PhD from Flinders University, where he specialises in writing internationally for younger audiences. Links: <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/alex.vickeryhowe">https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/alex.vickeryhowe</a> Dr Amy Matthews is an award-winning novelist who publishes literary fiction under the name Amy T Matthews and historical fiction under the name Tess LeSue. She&amp;#39;s published short stories in collections including Best Australian Stories and co-edited three anthologies of short fiction and poetry. Amy is a past chair and current board member of Writers SA and teaches creative writing at Flinders University. Her current research focusses on writing colonial historical fiction and the intersections of gender, race and power in romance. This makes it all sound very serious. It's actually ridiculously fun. Links: https://amytmatthews.com https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/amy.t.matthews https://tesslesue.com &nbsp; Dr Sean Williams is an award-winning, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of forty-nine novels and over one hundred and twenty short stories for adults, young adults and children.
As well as his original fiction, he has contributed to shared universes such as Star Wars and Doctor Who, collaborated with authors like Garth Nix, and lived on an Antarctica base in the name of research. His latest novel is Impossible Music, about a young heavy metal guitarist who loses his hearing. He teaches creative writing at Flinders University and writes music under the monicker &ldquo;theadelaidean&rdquo;.
Links: www.seanwilliams.com https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/sean.williams

Word Docs

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"Welcome to the FOMO Food Court" (Acclaim vs Popularity)

The Word Docs have returned! Out of the classroom and back at the mics, Amy, Alex and Sean are dissecting the fertile minds of director Lisa Harper Campbell and actor Gianluca Noble who have brought Alex’s latest play Watchlist to the stage. How do talented people turn scribbles on a page into a live event? Who does it belong to once the author has ‘died’ and the director has left the building? Why does Alex get arrested for public walking? Is it just the beard? We don’t think it’s the beard. Join us! We’re back! 

The Word Docs have returned! Out of the classroom and back at the mics, Amy, Alex and Sean are dissecting the fertile minds of director Lisa Harper Campbell and actor Gianluca Noble who have brought Alex&rsquo;s latest play&nbsp;Watchlist&nbsp;to the stage. How do talented people turn scribbles on a page into a live event? Who does it belong to once the author has &lsquo;died&rsquo; and the director has left the building? Why does Alex get arrested for public walking? Is it just the beard? We don&rsquo;t think it&rsquo;s the beard. Join us! We&rsquo;re back!&nbsp;

“You Know Alex” (Watchlist) - Word Docs

The Word Docs bare their bruised egos this week and attempt to find a balming (is that a word?) salve. Alex drags Sean and Amy into the cobwebby corners of their psyches, seeking to learn whether ego is a help or a hindrance in an artist's life. This week we'll learn about the book that broke Sean; traverse the Dark Place and the Vague Place; confront mediocrity; and try to ignore the fact that Alex's dad seems to be popping out of the wardrobe. We tackle troubling questions, such as: Is smugness perilous? What projects should we say no to? Where's the line between self-belief and delusion, or self-belief and narcissism? And is Caleb Lewis real? (Spoiler: we don't believe he's real.) Join us for an unusually serious and vulnerable episode Of Word Docs. Please...?

The Word Docs bare their bruised egos this week and attempt to find a balming (is that a word?) salve. Alex drags Sean and Amy into the cobwebby corners of their psyches, seeking to learn whether ego is a help or a hindrance in an artist's life. This week we'll learn about the book that broke Sean; traverse the Dark Place and the Vague Place; confront mediocrity; and try to ignore the fact that Alex's dad seems to be popping out of the wardrobe. We tackle troubling questions, such as: Is smugness perilous? What projects should we say no to? Where's the line between self-belief and delusion, or self-belief and narcissism? And is Caleb Lewis real? (Spoiler: we don't believe he's real.) Join us for an unusually serious and vulnerable episode Of Word Docs. Please...?

'My Medium Career (Ego)' - Word Docs

Before you write your magnum opus – or perhaps during – a visit to a distant shore to get you in the mood and help you find the perfect setting for your novel is not a bad idea. Likewise, visiting the scene of your favourite work can bring you deeper into an author’s mindset. This week, the Word Docs share their tales of pilgrimages. From the ice flats of Antarctica to the oppressive heat of a bathhouse in Shinjuku, the dynamic trio are not afraid to push boundaries and smash social norms...even if it ends in injury and humiliation. 

Stay tuned for the outtake: It's longer than Alex's novel.

Before you write your magnum opus &ndash; or perhaps during &ndash; a visit to a distant shore to get you in the mood and help you find the perfect setting for your novel is not a bad idea. Likewise, visiting the scene of your favourite work can bring you deeper into an author&rsquo;s mindset. This week, the Word Docs share their tales of pilgrimages. From the ice flats of Antarctica to the oppressive heat of a bathhouse in Shinjuku, the dynamic trio are not afraid to push boundaries and smash social norms...even if it ends in injury and humiliation.&nbsp;
Stay tuned for the outtake: It's longer than Alex's novel.

"Welcome to the FOMO Food Court" (Acclaim vs Popularity)

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