Announcement – Dean Mayes to Donate Book Sales to Australian Bush Fire Relief.

Many of you will have seen the devastating images and footage and news reports coming out of Australia over the past few weeks. I've been re-sharing a lot of those images on my Instagram feed.  We are in the grip of unprecedented bush fires, which have been described as the worst in Australia's recorded history.

The Battle for Balance – Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker.

Two years ago, I left the cinema after seeing the highly anticipated "Star Wars: The Last Jedi". I turned to my family and said quietly, "I didn't like it." Their response was muted. None of us liked the film - especially my then 8 year old daughter, who had really embraced Rey as a character

The Holocaust Tattoo & The Barber Shop.

When I was a kid, I used to sweep the hair in my Dad's Barber shop. I have always equated Dad's Barber shop, in the Gippsland town of Moe, with the bar from "Cheers". Dad used to advertise it as "three chairs, no waiting" and it was the kind of place where "everybody knows your

Dorothy – A Legacy.

I don't know how to write an obituary. That may seem strange for someone who professes to be a writer, but the obituary is something I've only ever encountered from a distance. There is a skill to crafting one - encapsulating a life in concise words. But how can one be concise, especially a grandson

From Rambo To Chekhov – A Literary Evolution.

In 1986, my Dad brought home a VHS copy of Rambo: First Blood Part 2. My brother & I were huge fans of Stallone. We adored the Rocky series & we'd even seen First Blood on the sly with our Dad. I think it might have been the first "mature film" we were allowed to

A Wonderful Cacophony Of Words.

One of my most treasured possessions - and most useful tools as a writer - is my 1957 edition of the Oxford Pocket English Dictionary. I picked this up in an antique shop in Healesville, Victoria about 20 years ago - more as a curiosity than anything - but it soon became an essential part

Serenna.

How did I get here? A country house overlooks a gently rolling meadow. Lush, green pasture stretches away into the distance on all sides. A smattering of dairy cows are grazing in the early morning sun nearby. I find myself on my hands and knees on a hillock, not far from the resplendent house. My

Get Your FREE Copy of ‘Embracing Discomfort: A Guide to Taming the Anxiety Beast’ — Ranting & Raving

I happened across this post from author Cameron Maddern today, which I thought really worthy of sharing. As someone who has more than a passing familiarity with Anxiety and Depression, I value anyone who is courageous enough to offer insights and encouragement from a background of their own experiences. I recommend this... DFA. As I

A Complicated Life – George Lucas by Brian Jay Jones.

I'm reading "George Lucas - A Life" by Brian Jay Jones presently. It was a gift I received from my parents for my birthday a few weeks back. Knowing I'm a life long devotee of Star Wars, Mum and Dad knew I was going to love this - and, of course, I was giddy when

C’mon Bro – It’s The Wars!

Nestled in the rolling green hills of the Latrobe Valley in Victoria, Australia lies a great big hole in the ground. It's an open cut mine that, for the better part of a century, has been the source of Australia's largest deposits of brown coal. This brown coal has been dug up by massive dredges