So You Want To Be A Writer With Valerie Khoo And Allison Tait: Australian Writers' Centre Podcast

What kind of life-spanning damage can parents do to their children? Award-winning author Barry Jonsberg explores this and themes of masculinity in his latest YA novel, Darkest Night, Brightest Star. Barry joins the podcast to share his inspiration for the story and insights into his writing process. 00:00 Welcome04:18 Writing tip: Supporting other writers07:32 WIN!: Best Left Buried by Neil A. White10:04 Word of the week: ‘Hyperborean’11:39 Writer in residence: Barry Johnsberg12:12 Describing of Darkest Night, Brightest Star17:00 Writing quieter characters like Morgan20:54 The theme of toxic masculinity22:04 Understanding Morgan's father23:38 Crafting Three-Dimensional Characters25:10 The writing process from draft to publication27:26 Challenges of commissioned writing30:04 Writing for Young Adults34:09 Balancing full-time writing and life36:50 Current and future projects39:57 Advice for aspiring writers42:34 Final thoughts Read the show notes Connect with Valerie and listeners in the podcast comm