Writers

Amanda’s earliest writing was shaped by her life growing up with her somewhat eccentric family on a farm in Tasmania. She now finds peace and inspiration living in the Dandenong Ranges with husband-man, 2 poppets, rampant garden and multiple pets, including a very cheeky chook called Boudica the Brave Warrior Queen of all Chickens.

In 2009 Amanda won a writing competition with the prize being writing a chapter of a chain thriller with bestselling author, James Patterson. The book, Airborne, was about a highly contagious airborne virus with no cure, that’s quickly spread around the world by international travellers. Obviously, a work of science fiction…

Amanda’s author website is www.amandagambasauthor.com

Kylie is a blogger, travel writer, foodie, cooking teacher, sake sommelier and Japanophile. She has a sideline interest in mycology. She writes non-fiction and enjoys exploring language, communication and cultural learning and teaching through travel. An avid traveller, recently grounded during COVID, Kylie is once again enjoying flying the fluffy skies to far-away places. 

Calling the Dandenong Ranges home since 2003, she is almost a local. She is perpetually grateful for the forest and the community of “The Hills”. She shares her home with her beloved partner-in-crime, lots of kids, two cats, and a ridiculously spoiled Moodle called Yoki-san.

Kylie’s blog is blossomkitty.com and her writing website is kylieeklunddenman.com

Morte first began writing in primary school, earning a gold star from the librarian for her self-illustrated story of a red hen. She hasn’t looked back.

From poetry and short stories on early computer bulletin boards, to a Romantic Thriller novel completed (and as yet unpublished) after graduating from RMIT with a Diploma of Arts in Professional Writing and Editing.

Morte lives in the forest with her husband, daughter, and two cats. When not writing, she enjoys spinning, weaving, and other fibre arts. Also, a little gin and good chocolate!

Teresa Lawler has been writing on and off for several decades now. Her work has never been published, unless you count that time her opinion piece on gun control was published in the Canberra Times when she was twelve. These days, Teresa works full time in the human rights space, raises a small human and even smaller doglet, and admittedly spends a lot of time watching fairly trashy TV and labelling her pantry. But she feels there is likely a repressed writer in there somewhere, yearning for escape. So here she is.

Helen is an avid reader who thought she might have a go at this writing caper. She is partial to writing in short form and dabbling in poetry but writing in a longer format is not off the cards. Helen has lived in the Dandenong Ranges since 2005 and has two adult children, still at home but finding their wings. Her solace in recent lockdowns has been the beautiful area she calls home, especially putting one foot in front of the other in the forest. Drawing and music are other interests. She is married and hopes she and her husband can pursue their common interests of wine, history and travel as soon as that is possible.

Samantha doesn’t consider herself to be a writer, although she does spend time pondering what it would be like. If only that “not good enough” story would pipe down for long enough. 

Born in the UK, Australia has been Samantha’s adopted home since 2010, she has always lived and worked in and around the Dandenong Ranges. Samantha is passionate about building local communities, as well as women supporting women. When she does lean into the discomfort Samantha enjoys writing personal reflections, and she has long dreamt of writing a blog about the banality of day-to-day life. She would eventually love to out her inner critic in writing for the benefit of others, as she believes in the power of vulnerability to connect people. Samantha is a single mum; she works in the community services sector and lives a quiet life with her young son and their cat in the flatlands.

Marita has been a primary school teacher for more than a decade. She loves children’s literature and has a special interest in teaching kids to read and write.

She herself was the recipient of a pen license at age 8 and has used it with varying degrees of success since then. Marita continues to write, mostly for fun and as a way of processing the world and her experiences in it. She resides in the Dandenong Ranges with her partner, son and puppy.

Elissa McKay has a bad habit of sticking a finger in every pie. She did a double degree in Anthropology and Creative Writing before she began her career in gifted education and the environment sector. More stuff happened and then she washed up in federal politics as a media adviser for ministers and senators holding portfolios in education, environment, health and workplace relations, before moving to the Dandenong Ranges.

Elissa’s hugely popular social media updates throughout the first year of the pandemic were published in the book Moments of Hysteria.

Google refuses to forget that Elissa won the Irving Prize for Wit and Humor from the University of California at Berkeley in 2000. She used the prize money to buy cargo pants.

Bethany Sinclair-Giardini is originally from London and migrated to the Dandenong Ranges just outside Melbourne in 2017. Working as an archivist, her career in information governance spans three decades, and she has enjoyed minor success in writing for archival publications.

Gaining her PhD in Historical Manuscripts and Literary Archives from Queen’s University Belfast, prior to which she studied Medieval & Tudor Studies for her Masters, Bethany has built upon these qualifications to pursue historical fiction writing, and she has just finished writing her first novel ‘Scandulum’ and is currently researching and drafting her second novel ‘The Silver Bodkins.’

Bethany’s author page is www.drbethanywrites.com

Jim Reiher lives in Avonsleigh with his wife Vikki. Between them, they have 8 adult children and 23 grandchildren.

Jim has written non-fiction magazine articles, journal articles, and books, over many years. In more recent times he has turned his hand to fiction.

Besides writings, Jim does clowning and magic, and paints. He is semi-retired and works part time as a Learning Assistant in Lilydale.

Jim’s web page is found at https://jimreiherswritings.com/

A lifelong lover of story and song, Kel White’s career has been a constant challenge to combine the two. He has peppered his personal and professional life with involvement in theatre, music, performance, and — more recently — poetry and prose.

He currently works as an educator, helping young adults process the pain of puberty through art, whilst raising a son with his wife. Time permitting, Kel manages to pen a few pages here and there, writing female-led fantasy for teens and speculative fiction.

More of his works can be found at www.kelwhite.com

Tracey is a mum of a lockdown first born. Between making up songs about the daily slog of motherhood, for the amusement of their small person, and the quirky odd situations that life in lockdown brought, she put pen to paper to spark some inspiration for kids book ideas for “out the other side.”

All her life Maggie has written something, poetry, passionate essays at school, journals, and sensible uninspiring academic papers. Now, as an Elder that book she knew was in her is surfacing. The words and stories in her head have grown louder and want to be expressed.

The Yarra Valley Writers Festival, online due to covid, was a catalyst for her to  learn more. Fascinated by the interviews and the insights of authors from this little Festival Maggie was inspired to enrol in Writers Courses and join writers’ groups.

Maggie lives in the Dandenong Ranges and dreams of running away to a beautiful place by a river or the ocean to write all day whilst taking breaks for wonderful walks, wine, and beautiful local food.

Judie Mitchell is a retired teacher of English, History and Literature. It is no wonder then, that she is driven to write historical fiction! She has self-published her first novel on Amazon (KDP) – Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, set in a small colonial New England Puritan village in 1769. It is based on a true story of the first recorded prosecution for an abortion. Judie loves research, and the period just grabbed her interest. She and her husband visited New England in 2017 and walked in the footsteps of many of her characters and the people she had researched.

Judie lives in Ferny Creek and has been in the hills for 23 years (not quite a local yet?). She has a large garden which is her happy space, a spoodle called Peanut, four chooks, and a husband who amuses himself analyzing footy stats and American politics. Not to mention Sudoku!

Judie is writing her next novel about domestic abuse in the same setting, also based on a true story. She thinks she must be writing in a new genre of historical true crime, and supposedly true crime sells! Nevertheless she hasn’t got a book deal yet.

Nalini is a student majoring in literature and philosophy who has been writing for fun since before she could hold a pen; this involved dictating epic fantasies to her mother who transcribed them on the family’s Windows XP computer.

Alongside her studies, Nalini writes non-fiction on her blog, subedits for Farrago magazine, and occasionally publishes fiction pieces in random spots across the internet. In addition, she has worked with a major education company to publish a VCE Literature textbook.

She also works as a tutor teaching reading, writing and preaching the self-help advice of various dead men (philosophers) across the centuries.

Nalini’s blog can be found at: https://ergothoughts.wordpress.com/

Unpublished scribbler. Mother of four incredible people. Happy to own it because it has taken up a large chunk of my life and soul raising them. And I’m proud.

Teaching English to teenagers is my current employment, challenge, and reward. I have tried my hand at a small business specializing in the works of artists and creators. I sold my own jewelry creations that are influenced by soft curls and shapes in nature, my attraction to Art Nouveau and my Celtic heritage.

Travel is a relatively new addition to my life, and I treasure engaging with people from different backgrounds and outlooks. The Dandenong Ranges have been the backdrop to all my life adventures, and I don’t know how I would cope without the tall, majestic, trees.

I have come late to creative writing—a true novice at the age of seventy-six—and I love it! I didn’t think I would have either the time or the emotional where-with-all to cope with multiple rejections of my work, so, last year I self-published my memoir and travel stories; My Windows, My Views … My Life and Travels, along with a small book of short stories and reflections on life: Just a Hint of Autumn …

I also have a third book (fiction founded in truth about a nurse’s life — I was a nurse and midwife once upon a time!) which a British hybrid publisher has shown interest in taking up and I am waiting to hear further about that at the moment.

 At the moment I am completing some travel tales/stories. Having just recently returned from Africa, I am full of topics, mind pictures and ideas for further stories!

Website: www.mywindowsmyviews.com

I have worked in the Dandenong Ranges for nine years and have recently started to engage in some creative pursuits. The idea of writing came to me as a random thought while considering some short courses to do on the weekends. I haven’t written a story since I left school many years ago,  so I’m looking forward to learning techniques and ideas to make my stories enticing to a reader.

I’m excited to be on this journey and look forward to seeing where it will lead.

Denise Shakespeare was born in England and immigrated to Australia when she was seven. She has lived in SA, Qld and Sydney, NSW. She now lives in the Dandenong Ranges, VIC. She writes poetry and fiction. A former teacher, Denise has an Arts Degree from Macquarie University, Sydney. She has completed several modules of a Professional Writing and Editing Course at Chisholm Institute. Her poetry has appeared in FLY, page seventeen, Positive Words and Heart of the Hills.