Karen and Irma chat about structuring a novel, in particular the use of prologues and epilogues.

Then in the first of an occasional series with debut authors, Irma talks to Dominic Amerena and Lisa Moule about the challenging process of writing their first novels, how to trust your writing instincts, their very different paths to finding agents and publishers, the brutal reality of rejection (how it stopped Dominic writing novels for a decade and why one rejection made Lisa cry like a teenage girl), how to best approach agents, how writing short form pieces helped lay the ground for their novels, why Lisa Moule decided not to voice her own audiobook (even though she is a voice actor), and Lisa’s Teams mishap with a psychedelic filter during her first important publishing meeting.

About Lisa and Dominic

Lisa Moule is the author of The Mother of All Calamaties, released in March this year by Allen & Unwin. She is also an actor, voice artist, and presenter of 3CR’s ‘Published or Not’ program. She is based in Naarm/Melbourne.

Dominic Amerena is the author of I Want Everything, which was the first novel published by Summit Books, the new literary imprint of Simon & Schuster, just over a year ago. It has since won or been shortlisted for a number of awards. He lives in Greece, and is coming to us from Athens today.

Find out more about Irma and Karen

Visit Irma Gold’s website, or follow her on Instagram and Facebook

Visit Karen Viggers’ website, or follow her on Instagram and Facebook

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Irma and Karen answer a listener question about the transition from emerging writer to established, then chat about their latest reading recommendations.

Then Karen talks to poet Robbie Coburn about how discovering Edgar Allan Poe when he was 14 was like being let out of jail, how mimicking great writers can help develop your writing early on, how he connects poems to memories like songs, the best way for poets to get their work out into the world, the value of mentorship for poets, why allowing horses to gallop into his work helped him find himself as a writer, how to persist despite devastating rejection, and how his granny would have been proud of him receiving an award sticker for his verse novel.

About Robbie

Robbie Coburn is the author of several poetry collections and a young adult verse novel The Foal in the Wire. He has published several chapbooks and zines, and his poems have been published in numerous Australian and international journals. He has run poetry workshops for Headspace – a youth mental health organisation. He grew up on a farm in regional Victoria and now lives in Melbourne.

Find out more about Irma and Karen

Visit Irma Gold’s website, or follow her on Instagram and Facebook

Visit Karen Viggers’ website, or follow her on Instagram and Facebook

Follow Secrets From the Green Room on Instagram and Facebook

Karen and Irma chat about the environmental cost of publishing books, and uncover some positive take-aways.

Then Irma talks to children’s author Ingrid Laguna about how running away from home impacted her as a creative, how the traumatic experience of losing her own twin boys led to her memoir and then a novel for kids, why her agent didn’t want to pitch her book but then her publisher ended up loving it, why kids books need to tackle tough subjects, how to keep going when you’re writing about traumatic personal events, writing book recommendations, and top tips for engaging school visits.

About Ingrid

Ingrid Laguna is a multi-award-winning novelist and educator. She has published a memoir and numerous books for children. Her work has been published internationally, featured by Reading Australia and given Notable recognition by the CBCA. Ingrid’s writing has featured in various publications, including The Monthly, The Age, Teacher Magazine and the AEU Magazine. She runs a range of writing courses and regularly presents to teachers and students at schools, libraries, festivals and conferences.

Show notes

Why plantation stock is better for making paper

Arts Law for any legal issues

The Writer’s Room by Charlotte Wood

The 90-Day Novel by Alan Watts

Find out more about Irma and Karen

Visit Irma Gold’s website, or follow her on Instagram and Facebook

Visit Karen Viggers’ website, or follow her on Instagram and Facebook

Follow Secrets From the Green Room on Instagram and Facebook