Committee report from President Christine Atkinson
Hi all
We’re getting to the pointy end of what’s been a strange year all round. Someone mentioned the other day how many weeks it is until Christmas. Good on all of us for making it out of the longest March in history and somehow zipping through the intervening months.
Our October speaker was Maree Kimberly on young adult fiction, which she explained is not a genre but can be broken into many genres. Maree’s novel is in the late stages of publication and is sure to be a hit with young adults (and young-hearted adults). Her insights into the do’s and don’ts were excellent. The recording is available for purchase via MemNet if you weren’t able to tune in on the night.
In lieu of an end-of-year dinner, we’re holding a virtual 30th anniversary event in late November. Our trusty events team is pulling it together and collecting stories and memories from members (either to include in a presentation or as contributions on the night), so let them know if you’re in. You can email Ian and the team on edqld.events@iped-editors.org.
In membership news, EdsQ currently has 252 active financial members. During September we welcomed associate members Anne-Marie Tripp, Josephine Wilson and Bec Cameron. Please keep an eye out for them on Zoom or other virtual gathering spaces and make them feel welcome.
I’d love to be able to share some more good news from our members, so please send me your stories of success in the times of COVID-19. (Note, stories are not required to be related to COVID-19 — did you launch your website, finish a big job, make your first steps into freelancing?) Email me at edqld.president@iped-editors.org.
See you on the Zooms,
Christine
October member meeting
What exactly is YA, or young adult fiction, when it’s at home?
That’s what YA author Maree Kimberley answered as part of her presentation ‘Genre Games; Writing and editing for young adult fiction’, as part of EdsQ’s member event on Wednesday 7 October.
Maree’s YA novel Dirt Circus League, published by Text Publishing, is expected to reach bookshelves in April 2021. As with many 2020 new releases, COVID-19 had other plans for publishers’ timelines. As Maree explained, this last attempt by fate to stall the birth of her book has left her undeterred and vastly more educated about the entire publishing and editing process. As well as being able to thoroughly shine a light on what exactly YA is, she explained that it’s not a genre.
Maree’s presentation was rich with her creative and eclectic North Queensland life experiences and influences. From jumping on a one-way bus at 19 to see the great beyond, to fostering a love of a remote and tropical land, to developing a love of neuroscience, Maree’s early unconventional life is the backbone to her genre-busting YA story. It’s centred on Asa, a young, intuitive, medical wannabe looking to reconnect with her family and the world she feels removed from.
Maree explained that YA in the realm of academia has no agreed definition; it’s more a ‘readership’ than anything else.
YA fiction is defined by core themes through the narrative that are stories pitched at coming-of-age readers that revolve around discussing typical adolescent questions like, ‘who am I?’ and, ‘why am I here?’ Driven predominantly by young characters, true YA narratives will rarely include adults, and those that do hide them in supporting roles.
The success of a YA publication lies in its ability to reach and captivate its young and impressionable audience. Raw characters with authentic emotions and youthful energy are critical success markers.
Dirt Circus League has been in the making for about 10 years. It spawned from thesis work as part of her Creative Writing PhD, and was originally written to focus on her thesis’s theme of posthumanism. The story was picked up years later by an agent who convinced Maree to reshape it substantially.
Recalling working with an agent and later an in-house editor, first-time author Maree spoke frankly about her naivety in recognising relationship boundaries. Could she push back on comments? Would she still maintain narrative control when a contract had been signed?
Her experience across a decade of rewriting Dirt Circus League with her editor has shown Maree that a good editor joins an author as part of their team, not the other way around. A good editor will understand what the author wants from the project; this guides their editorial suggestions in nudging the author constantly, enthusiastically and positively towards those goals.
Maree’s experience with her editor might have prompted many rewrites. Many character changes resulted, but at no point did she feel changes were forced on her, and many disputed suggestions were left in the margin.
Trust was the critical success factor Maree describes in her relationship with her editor. The editorial phase may have been long and arduous, but the editor-author trust (and the author-editor trust) resulted in a partnership that capitalised on Maree’s creative strengths and her writing goals. Dirt Circus League is an excellent example of how vastly a story can change as a result of collaborative and constructive input.
The resulting narrative questions religion, the paranormal, medical intuition and violence; it explores what happens if you walk away from everything you know to start afresh, somewhere north.
Keep your eyes peeled in April 2021 for Dirt Circus League. If you want to keep up to date about its release you can also visit mareekimberley.com.au and sign up for her newsletter.
Members who registered can view the presentation. If you missed registration but want to check out Maree Kimberley’s presentation, you can view it for a small fee here.
Editors Queensland celebrates 30 years
The next EdsQ members event is one with a difference and not to be missed.
Please join us on Wednesday 25 November as we celebrate this historic event: EdsQ’s 30th anniversary.
Event organisers are putting the finishing touches on what promises to be an exciting program of presentations from past and current members.
EdsQ members will receive their official invitation soon but, for now, please save the date: Wednesday 25 November 2020, 6.45pm.