Hello my friends, it's been a busy time...

Have been working hard to finish off my MA (the dreaded exegesis has been completed - cue enormous sigh of relief - and have one more assignment due Nov 1st). Have been missing my blogger friends. How are you all?

The radio program last week went smoothly but don't know if anyone actually listened - none of my friends could find the station, or else they forgot. Nevertheless, the Melbourne Jewish Book Festival is underway. Just got back from it about half an hour ago.

Tonight was a very interesting and entertaining session called My Son/Daughter the Doctor: Doctors as Writers. It was about being a doctor and a writer and on the panel were writer/doctors Serge Liberman, Leah Kaminsky and Howard Goldenberg. Serge spoke quite seriously, Howard read out a very entertaining story he'd written, and Leah related a heart-warming anecdote about a ninety-plus-year-old patient who entered the seniour Olympics and won a gold medal. Her delivery was so engaging that it prompted me to ask her afterwards whether she had studied drama. (She hasn't, but says she is a natural drama queen.)

There was an interval during which a supper of goodies and drinks was served in an adjoining room, and after that a sneak peak at The Pen and the Stethescope, a book of short stories  all written by doctors who are also highly acclaimed authors, including both Australian and international doctor/writers. Some are internationally renowned; others are not, but all are outstanding writers. The Pen and the Stethescope will be launched at Readings Hawthorn on Wednesay November 17 at 6.00 for 6.30 pm. and is open to the public. All welcome.

I'll be back later this week to blog about other events at the Jewish Book Festival, including Raphael Aron's session tomorrow night on Cults, Terror and Mind Control, Jon Faine's session on Tuesday 26 (day after tomorrow) on his new book about travelling with his son, and my own session on Wednesday about the censorship of Dancing in the Dark and the controversy that has ensued.


As of next week, I hope to be back to blogging more regularly. Since NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) is coming to a close and writers the world over will have unpublishable first drafts on their hands, I will devote several posts to tips for assessing that first draft and improving on it with the second one.


If I've been remiss in commenting on your posts lately, it's only because I haven't had time to read them. But that too will change...