Dim's Write Stuff

-   I often describe my ideas as niggles, but a more accurate description would be having a giant billboard in my head with a sign that says, ‘Do this cool thing next’. Sometimes I metaphorically drive right past, knowing it’s not a detour I want to take. Other times I’m exiting early with a carload of craft supplies and paper. In the case of my debut graphic novel, it was a billboard that would not go away; it was lit up at night, nudging the corners of my days with whimsical little ideas, characters that would join the scenes playing in my head, and a loose storyline waiting impatiently to be written I made the turn towards my little gnomes early and with great excitement. As a collector of trinkets, my small-hatted friends have been companions in my garden for many years, and it brings me great joy to imagine their lives amongst the plants, playing survival of the fittest (the plants, not the gnomes). I knew there was a story there, but I didn’t know where it would lead me. As ...

Those that know me well know I have a thing for small cute reckless ungulates. My goat fetish began in childhood however, sadly has never bloomed into full-on ownership. How could one not love those rectangular pupils, devil-may-care attitudes and ability to eat anything in their line of vision? The real question here however is, how could one not love Peter Carnavas ' latest junior fiction, Kid.   Kid is a miniature baby goat; dial up the cuteness level. He is sweet natured and open-hearted; giving Wilbur the pig vibes. And he lives on the farm and sleeps with the hens because Kid is an orphan. After a dramatic midnight mission to chase off a marauding fox shortly after his birth, Kid's parents, Buck and Bess disappear into the wilds outside the safe confines of the farm, never to be heard from or seen again. Audrey, the chook literally left holding the baby, raises Kid like one of her own and because of his diminutive size, they share a close and confidential co-existence. ...

When nonsense invites silliness, silliness begets joy. And joy is one of the best things we can feed to our young folk. Unfettered amusement is exactly what you're served in James Foley's , Oh No!   I'm no grammar junkie but as a writer, I do adore a good dollop of onomatopoeia. Oh No! not only promises this from the very first end papers, it delivers it on every single page. Which is great for ramming home the meaning behind this multi-syllabic device, but also achieves the penultimate objective of any picture book, repeat read throughs. Every splish, splash CHOMP ! is accompanied by the query of ' What's that noise? ', because these onomatopoeic words describe sounds which set the scene for the aforementioned silliness and invite further investigation.  It all begins with rapturous applause, or rather a pageful of clap clap clapping for an elephant with a very special cake. Sadly, things soon spiral into a vortex of catastrophic mishaps each more ludicrious ...

Girls. Creatures unto themselves, unique, uncompromising, spirited. Well that's exactly what they can and should be so depicted in this gratifyingly colourful celebration of what girls actually like. Turns out, there is almost no end to what girls like according to the fresh creative duo of Katrina Germein and Deb Hudson . Girls Like is a joyful romp through an endearing neighbourhood of girls as they go about their day to day lives. Each spread addresses a particular generalised 'like', for example food. The thing is, with so many variations of our girls, food favourites vary dramatically, to o. Thus, Green food, hot food, Queen food - what's not to like! Just as young females come in all shapes and sizes, so too do their predilections. How they wear their hair, what type of art they are drawn to, the nights they relish best, the tricks they attempt, the friends they keep. All are as unique and diverse as they are.  The complementary art work by Hudson is beating wi...

Dreams are the conduits to adventure. We've all had a few. Mine, as a freedom seeking teen, was to buy the red and cream bus for sale that I passed everyday on my way to school. Imagine living in a bus, traversing the highways and byways of Oz! Well, Dave Petzold did and wrote about it in the family based adventure, We Live in A Bus . My love of the ocean pulled me in a different direction however thanks to another picturebook-inspired dream - to live on a boat.  I remember a book filled with friendly marine creatures, a sea of swirling colours, freshly caught sea bass for dinner and grilled peaches for dessert, luxuriously illustrated and brimming with whimsical adventure. Could Petzold have shared this dream as well?  We Live On A Boat , is a magnificent ode to the ocean and salute to the 'live aboards' who frequent her currents and tides. Lyrical verse begins with the reoccuring sentiment; we live on a boat which is immediately reinforced with the vessel's name: Luc...

When an adult picks up a junior fiction chapter book and is transported back to a time when nothing else mattered but page turning until the end, you know you're on a winner. Why? Because for me, that time, when I was so utterly absorbed by books my surroundings, time and even food failed to penetrate my intense committment to story, was one of the most joyous in my life.  The Silver Series of chapter books aimed at youngsters between the ages of five to nine not only fuelled that transportation, it actually made me feel like one of those book-loving kids again; like I was nine. This cleverly curated ensemble of engaging stories for kids however is first and foremost that; for kids not a wannabe kid again! And it does so with carefully considered intelligence. So far, I've enjoyed the first three. All sport bright inviting covers, clear theme discriptions and ... joy of joys ... rounded edges! I'm not sure why I like that but feel sure kids with differing tactile sensitivi...