Kate’s debut novel, Skylarking, was first published in 2016. It is inspired by a true story and explores themes of friendship, love and loss. Photo: Gemma Carr.
I tell my daughters I’m writing a novel. That one day, maybe, there will be a real book they can hold in their hands. They believe me; I don’t.
Then I hold my book in my hands. I think of myself as a small girl, face in a book, dreaming of my own name across the cover. Holding it erases all that pain of the writing, the struggling to get the story down on the page just so. But now I feel a wave of new doubt: Will anyone read it? What will they think? Will I be able to write again?
Kate Mildenhall, Finding Gold: On Writing Skylarking.
Kate Mildenhall is a mother, a teacher and a novelist. She’s the celebrated author of not one but three extraordinary pieces of fiction and has recently published her fourth title in the form of a picture book. She knows what it is to be a writer – to have ideas swirl around the mind as they fight to end up on the page.
It’s part of the reason behind her involvement in the 2024 Canberra Writers Festival, which will see artists and literary moguls from across Australia converge on the nation’s capital this spring.
Running from 23 to 27 October, the festival has organised a jam-packed program featuring various master classes, author talks, panel discussions, workshops, book launches and more.
A self-professed ‘workshop junkie’, PhD candidate Kate has opened her books for two hours only on Saturday, 26 October, for a master class session coined ‘The Power of Play’.
Kate’s third novel, The Hummingbird Effect, was shortlisted for the 2024 ABIA Literary Fiction Book of the Year and longlisted for the 2024 Stella Prize. Image: Simon & Schuster Australia.
Since writing is often a solitary practice, Kate believes the opportunity to connect with others in your craft while working towards a shared goal is a really important one.
“The blank page can be scary for writers. We have so many words and ideas floating around in our heads that setting them out on a piece of paper or a Word document can be a real challenge,” she says.
“The Power of Play will spend two hours exploring prompts and exercises that encourage us to step out of our comfort zone and see just what we can do in a short period of time.”
By playing around with words, ideas, emotions, memories and fictional spaces, Kate says writers become more familiar with them and are often surprised with what they go on to produce.
This is what her session is all about – encouraging peers to be a little less controlled in their craft and explore where it takes them.
Kate’s master class is one of a 13-strong series, with sessions running across Friday, Saturday and Sunday (25 to 27 October). Sessions will be held at the Museum of Australian Democracy (Old Parliament House) on Friday and Marie Reay Teaching Centre (ANU) over the weekend.
Just a few of the other master classes on offer this spring are ‘Facing the Dragon in Memoir’ with Qin Qin, ‘Transforming Characters’ with Catherine McKinnon, ‘Tackling True Crime’ with Mark Dapin, and ‘Preparing for Publication’ with Carody Culver and Terri Ann White.
Places in The Power of Play master class are limited – if you’d like to attend, get in quick!
Want to participate in another festival event? Secure your tickets at the Canberra Writers Festival.
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