"What should my resolution for 2026 be?", I mulled as I cooked dinner last week. *Relentless Positivity* were the words that flashed in my mind. Not being an optimist by nature, I was somewhat excited by the prospect of experimenting with a different mental mode for the ensuring 12 months but then, I read the news ... It's not going to be easy, I realised. The world events inspired me to get clinical about positive thinking; what it means in practice and how to deal with a mi

If you had to pick one word to describe 2025, what would you say? I'd hasten a guess that no one opted for steady, calm or indeed normal ... Perhaps it was fitting then, that for the final Willow the Wonderer book I left the external world behind and delved instead into the worlds that lie within —  our inner worlds after all are places we can condition and control. Even as the writer, it can sometimes take a while to articulate the essence of the work you have produced. The

Here it is folks -- the book cover for the fifth and final Willow the Wonderer book. We had put our shortlist to a vote. It was wonderful to receive so many responses from our community of readers. In the end, it was a near unanimous vote for little Willow hugging the Earth. Cover Reveal for the fifth and final Willow the Wonderer picture book!   One of our readers' put it best when she said, "Willow hugging the Earth is a lovely image for children to grow up with."   We had

Don't just read out loud - Perform! One of the most wonderful things about picture books is that, more often than not, these books are read out loud by adults to their little ones, be it grandkids, kids or students. So, I wanted to share some insights on the creative choices I have made when writing these books that will touch upon a topic that we often forget to discuss: Poetry is meant to be performed. Hopefully it inspires our adult readers to perhaps become a bit more the

Most of you are no doubt familiar with Counsellor Sian. Her original book review of Willow the Wonderer series is the stuff of legends, having reached over half a million folks across Australia! Sian is a registered therapeutic counsellor and has a private practice in QLD . She brings over a decade of experience in the field and a passion to help people find peace in their world. We were keen to hear what Sian made of our new Willow the Wonderer book - Space Odyssey - so

Remember Pam? She's worked in libraries for most of her life - 26 years in fact! There she was back in 2021, enjoying a quiet retirement in the country working on her art practice with her best mate, when she came across two creative souls publising their first picture children's picture book - Willow the Wonderer . It was about the search for happiness and had just the right philosophical pull and ethereal quality to get Pam to sacrifice her prized anonymity and agree to fro

"...It's exactly what young people need to hear." With that endorsement from one of our reviewers from our First Readers' Club (who also happens to be a psychologist) we felt ready to hit print and publish on the third book in our Willow the Wonderer picture book series - Space Odyssey . But let me rewind a little bit and introduce our First Readers' Club properly. Our First Readers' Club : how it all began Our First Readers' Club began quite organically back in 2021 as were

Willow the Wonderer: Space Odyssey Space Odyssey has officially launched - and with that our Willow the Wonderer picture book series is now three books strong. As I pen this blog, many books are already on their way to little wonderers all around Australia. A brand new addition to their Willow the Wonderer collection and hopefully, repertoire of life's wisdom. It's all the stuff that celebrations are made of but getting into a celebratory mood this past week was not possible

Independent Australian publisher, Wise As Stories, has launched the third title in their popular children's book series, Willow the Wonderer. Entitled 'Space Odyssey', the Simplified Chinese rights to the highly anticipated book also sold to Beijing Reader & Thinker Culture Co pre-publication. For Immediate Release : 11.10.23 Wise As Stories are pleased to announce that the third book in their ‘ Willow the Wonderer ’ children's picture book series was officially launched to