Friday Finds

After the internet-explosion over the last few days, how could I not start this FF with Julia Gillard's address? There is a lot to love about this, and whilst people are (rightfully so) pointing out her hypocrisy regarding the  GLBT community, this still means so, so much politically in Australia right now. This is a balls on the table take-down of a pretty nasty man, and given the recent influx of misogynistic attitudes politically and socially, this was an owning well-deserved. There's a really great round up of all of this stuff (and a whole lot more) over at The Wheeler Centre site by Clementine Ford, and it's definitely worth checking out. 

- On a completely different note, the most recent AWM Speakeasy interview is with literary agent Sophie Hamley. It's a great insight into where agents see themselves in the industry and what she herself looks for in a work and, maybe more importantly, in the authors she chooses to represent. Things to take away seem to be a) don't be too precious and b) don't be too crazy.

- 10 Tips for Generating Killer Science Fiction Story Ideas. I'm always a fan of io9's writing tips, but this list is a particularly good one. Tip 7 is especially great:

 7. Get into a fight with a famous science fiction author

Not literally. Do not go punching Vernor Vinge in the face and then claim I told you to do that. But sure, get into a fight with Vernor Vinge with your stories. Find something about how Vinge depicted cyberspace everting in Rainbows End, and write a story that shows how you think he should have done it. Don't like how Max Barry depicted cybernetic enhancements in Machine Man? Stick it to Max Barry by writing your own take on the subject. A lot of how science fiction has advanced, as a field, is authors trying to one-up each other and responding to each other's takes on the same basic ideas. Even if you don't prove everybody else wrong, you might get a really great story out of it. (Again, do not actually get into a fight with anybody.)

 - I'm basically in-love with this article on Angry Nerds & Sex, written by Siobhan Rosen.

- This really cool infograph on revealing the business of ebooks. 

- Another great list (I swear this is the last), a woman in my crit group mentioned this, and it really is the best. The Different Kinds of People There Are

- Also, I am contemplating making these Saffron-Vanilla Snickerdoodles over the weekend, because holy shit, saffron-vanilla snickerdoodles. 

- Just to take you out, my most recent column is live on LipMag Online. It's on nudity in television. You can check it out over here.

Friday Finds

 - During the course of the week, I found two awesome articles pairing alcoholic drinks with classic novels, and the whole thing has resulted in me and a few friends starting up our own bookclub, Classics & Cocktails. We're running it the first Sunday of the month with the first one being The Great Gatsby and a French 75. I'm thinking I might blog about this here, mostly for the pure hilarity of the thing. If you're wondering about the two articles, you can check them out here and here.


- James Scott Bell has written an awesome post on how to write a novella. As someone currently writing a triptych of the suckers, this was supremely helpful and insightful.


- There's a great post over on LipMag about Robyn Lawley, an Australian model who has just received the job of being Ralph Lauren's first plus-side rep. Woman is gorgeous, plus her tumblr, Robyn Lawley Eats, is basically the best. On the LipMag front too, my new Small Screen Sirens column is up. It's on HBO's Girls and you can check it out over here.

- On a totally far removed note, MTV Geek put up an interesting theory asking whether hunky guys are being sexually objectified in today's superhero films and is that, necessarily, a bad thing?

QPF + LipMag

I had a ball at the close of the Queensland Poetry Festival last night, aptly named Evening Draws Back the Sun. The poet performances were all pretty stellar, with LE Scott, Geoff Lemon, Darkwing Dubs, angela rawlings and the wonderful singer-songwriter, Tylea. She has a Myspace page for her music, and I recommend having a listen.

In other exciting news, my second column for Lip Magazine is up today on their website. You can check it out here.

Small Screen Sirens: Writing for LipMag

In this-is-super-exciting news, I'm pleased to announce that as of this morning(!), I am a new fortnightly online columnist for Lip, an awesome local feminist magazine. I've been a fan of there's for quite some time, and the reality of getting to contribute is leaving me borderline delirious with enthusiasm. The column is dubbed Silver Screen Sirens and I'll be chatting about representations of women in television, both genre-wise and show-specifically. You can check out my first column over here on The Newsroom. While you're at it, you should take a look at some of their other columns and articles. It's all pretty sweet stuff.