I am very excited that Going Down Swinging have published 'Irish Orphan Immigration' in The Blue Corner. This is a piece that is close to my heart as well as being different to my usual style. One of my ancestors, Honora Bentley (photo kindly supplied by Beth Chamberlain) was an Irish Orphan who emigrated to Australia in 1849. She is one of my most fascinating ancestors and her story, or what I have so far discovered of it, has captivated me. Of course, I have to write about her.

But the Orphan story isn't necessarily easy to write. Especially the bit about their reception in Australian ports. I wanted to use the words of the colonists at the time and what better way than to use original text and 'erase'. So, follow the link to the Blue Corner and see what it is/was all about. There's an audio file to go with, which includes the voices of Eleanor Jackson and Andrew Phillips as well as my own.

While we're talking about family history, I have so far neglected to mention that I will be going on a cruise next year: the 4th Unlock the Past history and genealogy cruise. As well as all the obviously exciting things a genealogy cruise has to offer, I will be giving a presentation about 'Writing Poetry: different ways to present your family history'. Earlier this week I got to speak to Unlock the Past. here's what I had to say.

And (it's a huge week for news), speaking of interviews, my third and final interview for the 2013 Queensland Poetry Festival: spoken in one strange word, with New Zealand based poet Siobhan Harvey, is available here. 

That ought to keep you busy a while.

While we're on the topic of the Queensland Poetry Festival, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to speak to a few of the poets who will appear this year. First up, I spoke with Felicity Plunkett and then Aden Rolfe. Find out what they had to say.

In other news, I was very excited last week to finally discover the maiden name of one of my 4x great grandmothers from Bideford, Devon: Grace Moore. I celebrated, as I usually do, with a good dose of chocolate and an hour or so at FamilySearch to see what else I could find. In some ways, it's odd that it took so long to discover her name, as it wasn't very difficult. It just took a little sideways thinking, like ordering the birth certificate of her youngest child. Her eldest is my direct ancestor, but he was born before registration was mandatory. Now the problem is: which ancestor to attack next!

There's something about the end of semester that renders me incapable of writing a list or even acting like there might be something specific I should be doing. But now that I've basked in the nothingness of after-semester glow for a few weeks, it's time to share.

First and most exciting is that the programme for the Queensland Poetry Festival 2013 is out. It's here, and if you'll be in Brisbane during the 23rd to 25th August, then you'd be wise to stop on by. Most events are free to attend, with only the workshops and 'Set Fire to the Air' on the Friday night attracting fees. So there's really no excuse. I love this festival. See you there.

I'm particularly excited to have enrolled in the workshop series with 2013 Arts Queensland Poet in Residence, Canadian poet Shane Rhodes. Can't wait.

If waiting until August seems a little more than you can stand, head on over here. Pascalle Burton's Letter.Box.Stamp.Collect. is an installation that forms part of the 2013 festival and she has already been gathering poems (including one from yours truly), so head on over and check it out. You don't even need to be in Brisbane!

I am very excited about this special event combining poetry and food that Queensland Poetry Festival and Mondo Organics have teamed up to create:  a unique evening of high class dining interwoven with intimate poetry readings from Eleanor Jackson, Graham Nunn and myself. Also known as Seasonings: the poetry of food.

What
Seasonings: the poetry of food
A 3-course meal, wine and drinks, intimate and unexpected poetry readings, and a special gift for every guest.

Where
Mondo Organics
166 Hardgrave Road, West End, Qld.

When
Thursday June 20, 2013 @ 6:45 pm – 9:00 pm

Why
Because you deserve to treat yourself.

How
Book through Queensland Poetry Festival. Tickets are $110 per person, with a 10% discount applying when you book a table of ten.

Seating is limited for this one-off evening, so get in before tickets sell out.