Every Second Tuesday: an update

The second half of 2024 got off to a flying start for the Elwood Writers blog yesterday with a fascinating new post from Helen, all about the power of the spoken word.

And the momentum continues today with this update on the Elwood Writers anthology Every Second Tuesday. We recently decided, for administrative reasons, to close our account with IngramSpark, the printers and distributors of the anthology. It takes 45 days for the closure to fully take effect, so the title is slowly being withdrawn, bit by bit, and by the end of July Every Second Tuesday will no longer be available from the usual channels. For now, it can still be purchased print-on-demand or as an e-book from some platforms (click here to view an example), but this is unlikely to be the case for much longer. The situation might even have changed by the time you finish reading this post!

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you might be familiar with the voyage of Every Second Tuesday. Having discussed it for many months, Elwood Writers started to put an anthology together in early 2019, working on structural edits of the pieces in the second half of that year. In early 2020, Barry copy-edited the manuscript – when finished, he declared that no one would ever find a single typographical error in the entire anthology! So far, no one has challenged his bold claim. We’re forever grateful to David Grigg at Rightword Enterprises for his tireless and patient collaboration on designing and publishing the book, and creating a beautiful finished product. Lee Kofman launched the anthology in a glittering online Q&A event hosted by Melbourne bookseller Readings in December 2020. In the same month, the ever-supportive Tim McQueen of Vision Australia Radio generously dedicated an entire episode of Cover to Cover to the anthology. Other radio appearances included an interview on 3CR’s Published…Or Not, and readings on 94.9 MAINfm’s The Quiet Carriage. There have been many other events along the way, too many to list in this brief post, as well as wonderful reviews, a panoply of supportive readers and booksellers, and plenty of warm glows. And one of the best things is that we distributed or sold our entire print run, which means we’ve never had to remainder or pulp a single copy.

None of this means that Every Second Tuesday is disappearing. Far from it. The anthology will continue to grace the shelves of many public libraries in Australia (and maybe even beyond), as well as the shelves of any bookstores that might still be holding stock – although most of the bookstores we supplied sold out very quickly.

The upshot of this quick (ish) update is that if you’re late to the party or you’ve been here forever and still don’t have a copy of Every Second Tuesday, then you’ll need to act quickly if you’d like to get your hands on it because opportunities to buy the book are dwindling. We hear it’s a very good book, so you won’t regret it. The clock is ticking …

Happy reading,

P.S. If you miss the boat, or you end up kicking yourself at the end of July because you didn’t get hold of a copy, then there is a small chance that all may not be completely lost – but more on that later.

Coming up in February: Elwood Writers on Cover to Cover

It’s been a radio-themed start to 2024 for the group, and that looks set to continue into next month as a selection of our work features in the 2 February edition of Cover to Cover on Vision Australia Radio.

The lineup includes our pieces from the latest edition of 20 Artists magazine, published in December: Barry’s ‘Portrait’, ‘A Pocket Handkerchief at the Edge of the World’ by Margaret, and Helen’s poem ‘Behind the Mask’.

Also included in the program is a re-broadcast of Barry’s short story ‘Gray’ from Broken Rules and Other Stories (Transit Lounge), with a new introduction. And we’ll be sharing the hour with Julie Koh, whose story ‘On the Road’ is taken from New Australian Fiction 2023 (Kill Your Darlings).

As always, you can listen to Cover to Cover on the radio if you’re in Australia, or online from anywhere in the world. And if you happen to miss the show, we’ll be sharing the podcast the following week.

Tune in on Friday 2 February (repeated Sunday 4 February) – listening details can be found on the Vision Australia Radio website – just click here.

Thanks as ever to Tim McQueen and the team at Vision Australia Radio for continuing to support and encourage Australian writing in all its many forms.

More information on our stories in 20 Artists magazine can be found by clicking here.

Happy reading and listening and writing.

Elwood Writers and Cover to Cover: Happy 500th Episode!

On 24 November last year, Cover to Cover on Vision Australia Radio reached an important milestone: episode 500 of the program. In the introduction to that week’s broadcast, producer and presenter Tim McQueen points out that over the last ten years approximately 1500 stories have been read on Cover to Cover, by about 500 different authors.

Tim and the team are always keen to promote Australian authors, and Elwood Writers has enjoyed a tremendous amount of support and encouragement almost since the program began. We’ve created the material for a number of special themed episodes, starting with, appropriately enough, ‘Starting Over’ for episode 38. On many occasions we’ve had the opportunity to visit the studios and read our work on-air. And we even get a mention in this anniversary episode. And, our very own Helen McDonald gets her very own shout-out as the program’s most-read author in 2020. Quite an achievement – well done to Helen!

We wrote a blog post to publicise episode 500 last year but in the end-of-year festive flurry we neglected to share the podcast of the program after it had been broadcast. We’re remedying that right now – you’ll find all the links you need below.

Click here to go to the podcast of episode 500. You can listen directly, or download the audio file for later, should you so wish.

Click here for an audio file of the episode.

For more information about the work of Vision Australia Radio, click here.

If you’d like to revisit our November 2023 blog post about episode 500 of Cover to Cover, click here.

You’ll find recordings of all the themed episodes that Elwood Writers has created for Cover to Cover by clicking this link here.

Thanks as always to Tim and the entire team at Cover to Cover and Vision Australia Radio for all their valuable support – it means a great deal and is very much appreciated. And huge congratulations to you all on reaching 500 episodes. Here’s to many more episodes, and many more milestones.

Happy listening, reading, and writing to everyone.

Elwood Writers on “Best of Cover to Cover 2023”

Happy New Year from Elwood Writers.

Tune in to Vision Australia Radio (VAR) this Friday at 1:00pm (AEDT) for another chance to hear our tribute to Jennifer Bryce on Cover to Cover (CTC), originally broadcast on 4 August last year, and now featuring in The Best of CTC 2023.

As always, you can listen on the radio if you’re in Australia, or online from anywhere in the world. Details can be found at the VAR website – just click here for more info.

First post of 2024, and the new year is less than 12 hours old. We’re hitting the ground running. Jenny would be proud.

Here’s hoping for a safe and peaceful 2024.

Elwood Writers shares the celebration: 500 Cover to Cover episodes

This Friday marks the 500th edition of Vision Australia Radio’s weekly literary program Cover to Cover. Produced and hosted by Tim McQueen, the program delivers book readings and short stories to an audience not just in Australia but across the globe.

Elwood Writers has a long history of contributing to Cover to Cover, starting with our very first dedicated broadcast – appropriately titled ‘Starting Over’ – back in January 2015. That was episode 38 of Cover to Cover. Our latest program was a tribute to our much loved and missed co-founder Jennifer Bryce (episode 484), which aired on 4 August this year.

Many congratulations to Tim and the entire team at Cover to Cover. Happy 500th episode! We’ll be listening.

Podcast: Cover to Cover Ep. 484 | Tribute to Jennifer Bryce

The Elwood Writers tribute to colleague and friend Jennifer Bryce was broadcast on Vision Australia Radio’s Cover to Cover last Friday, 4 August 2023 (repeated Sunday 6 August). If you missed the program, or if you’d like to listen again, it’s now available as a podcast at the link below:

The recording can also be accessed via the MP3 audio-file below:

We hope you enjoy this celebration of Jenny’s life and work.

Best wishes,

A Life Celebrated On Radio

Do tune in to Cover to Cover on Vision Australia Radio (VAR) this Friday evening at 8:00pm (AEST) to hear our tribute to Jennifer Bryce, our friend and colleague who co-founded Elwood Writers in 2007. Jenny died in April, and we were invited by Tim McQueen, presenter and producer of Cover to Cover, to put together a one-hour program honouring her life and work.

Our program focusses on Jenny’s literary and musical achievements, and features recordings of Jenny reading her stories ‘Memories of Adelaide’ and ‘So This Is Winter’. Barry reads Jenny’s short-story ‘Benjamin’, and Helen reads Jenny’s essay about the music she commissioned for the trio Ensemble Françaix. There are tributes and musical interludes, and Margaret does the honours in holding the program together with her wonderfully informative intros and links.

We reached the edge of the old Luna Park – mainly ruins – a few broken fences where it had once been secured because the structure was unsafe. Sure enough, the waters were receding quite dramatically. We stood and watched as the man-in-the-moon mouth sucked up the waters and regurgitated them out to sea, wheezing and gurgling to the beat of some unknown subterranean rhythm. Towers still tottered over the entrance, barely supporting a few fragile wooden slats – all that remained of the scenic railway. A wind sprang up, further agitating the swirling water, and for just a moment I could hear a clattering like the old train, and squeals as the carriages swooped through a tunnel.
from ‘So This Is Winter’ by Jennifer Bryce

You can listen to the program online from anywhere in the world – just hit the ‘listen live’ button on the VAR homepage. Or if you’d prefer going old-school, the radio frequency and tuning details are also on the website. You’ll find everything you need at the link below:

https://radio.visionaustralia.org

The program will be repeated on Sunday afternoon at 1:00pm, and we’ll share the podcast on this site as soon as it’s available.

Why not lose yourself for an hour in stories and music – we’d love you to join us in celebrating Jenny. Whenever and however you choose to listen, you’ll enjoy the warmest of welcomes …

Huge thanks go as always to Tim McQueen and the team at Vision Australia Radio for promoting and supporting the work of writers everywhere.

Jennifer Bryce

A Tribute on Vision Australia Radio

We’re slowly coming to terms with the enormous loss of our very dear friend and writing colleague Jennifer Bryce, who died on 27 April.

Jennifer co-founded Elwood Writers with Barry Lee Thompson in 2007. She achieved so much in her writing career, and was published widely in Australia and overseas.

*Elwood Writers soiree, St Kilda Library, 25 August 2018 (photo: Harriet Claire Tarbuck)*

Jennifer has written a broad range of fiction, both historical and contemporary, spanning themes such as loss, love, grieving, war, and the environment. The strength of her vision was a key driver in the production of the Elwood Writers anthology Every Second Tuesday. 2019 saw the publication of her debut novel, Lily Campbell’s Secret, launched at Readings in Carlton by Toni Jordan. Jenny’s follow-up novel had been successfully pitched to a publishing house, and the manuscript was under consideration at the time of her death. You can read more about Jenny’s work in her bio from this website – just click on the link here.

We’re honoured to have been invited by Tim McQueen of Vision Australia Radio (VAR) to create a special tribute, and this will be broadcast in Tim’s weekly literary program Cover to Cover. We’re working on the material now, and will showcase a selection of Jenny’s finest work. We’ll record at the studios of VAR in Melbourne in July, and the tribute will air soon after that. Details to follow as soon as they’re available.

Jenny is deeply missed by all who were fortunate to know her. For us, she will forever be the beating heart of Elwood Writers.

Literary Fortnight

The Best Of Cover To Cover 2022: on Vision Australia Radio over two weeks from Monday to Friday at 1:00pm (AEST) 26 December to 6 January. That’s ten of the best episodes from this year.

We don’t know for sure which day the Elwood Writers ‘Adelaide’ program will re-air, but a little bird tells us it might be Thursday 29 December.

To avoid missing out, make this a literary holiday season and listen to all the broadcasts. What better way to transit from one year to the next than by immersing yourself in stories and the soothing sounds of spoken words.

Listening details and further info can be found at the link below:

https://radio.visionaustralia.org

However you choose to spend it, have a safe and peaceful festive period.

Happy writing, reading, and listening.

The Gift of Reading

It’s that time of the year again. How quickly it comes around. Maybe you’re on the lookout for some original festive gift ideas? For the reader in your life, might we suggest a copy of the Elwood Writers anthology Every Second Tuesday? We think there’s something in the book for everyone. But don’t just take our word for it:

The anthology Every Second Tuesday hangs together well. It covers periods from the First World War to the far-too-soon future, with a variety of poetry, memoir, fact and fiction. The evocation of place, from the 1916 trenches near Boulogne to Luna Park in St Kilda is marvellous. Each of the authors has their own distinct voice – the voices blend together like a great choir.
Tim McQueen | Producer and presenter of Cover to Cover, Vision Australia Radio

You can order the paperback from most online platforms. Book Depository offers free worldwide delivery, and they currently have 10% off their list price – find them at the link below:

Every Second Tuesday at Book Depository

If ebooks are preferred, Every Second Tuesday is available from all the major retailers, including the one below:

Every Second Tuesday Kindle Edition

Why not share the wonderful gift of reading this December? Books make great stocking fillers, and you’ll also be supporting Australian writing.

Happy December,