Historical Costumes: Walking in a Character's Clothes

One of the best ways to bring an historical novel to life is through detailed research. Nowadays there are many channels for research – primary sources are more available online than they’ve ever been, and often free to access with a click of a button. Those with a larger budget can travel and immerse themselves in surviving castles, or examine the artefacts of life in museums and art galleries. But there is another way, and that is to recreate the experiences of another time for yourself. While books and documents can give you insight into events and what people thought of them, and places can give you a sense of scale and atmosphere, research through recreation can give you unexpected insights into why people might have behaved in certain ways, and a detailed understanding of the rhythms of lives that were very different to our own.

Creating costumes and then wearing them offers an incredibly rich source of information. When you understand how much fabric goes into making a Tudor dress and how much ornamentation is needed, you gain a better understanding of the wealth required to dress that way. When you lace yourself up into a corset, you begin to see how women’s lives were restrained (literally), how they had to walk and sit and why they might have taken to their beds from time to time for the sheer relief! Wearing the elaborate headdress of the Chinese court makes you realise how necessary it is to keep very still. And if you ever take on the project of trying to handsew one of these garments, apart from learning new curse words, you gain some insight into the lives of those whose lives were functional rather than ornamental.

In writing my own historical fantasy, Harlequin’s Riddle, which is set in a second world Italian Renaissance, I was able to draw on my experience of researching, making and wearing two different outfits from the time, as well as on memories of the many feasts I’ve attended where I have been surrounded by such beautiful dresses. This allowed me not only to write vivid descriptions of the beauty of these dresses, but also to show small details such as tying the sleeves on and what it feels like to wear something that is made from heavier material than most things we wear today. Attending a medieval feast in our day and age really does transport you to another time, and open the door to a different world. Once this sort of experience is in your sense bank, you can write about it more easily to create that world for your readers.

I’m really excited to be bringing along a range of outfits from different time periods to the HNSA conference so that those who come to the workshop can see for themselves how they are constructed, how heavy they are and maybe even what it’s like to wear them. 

Recreating Historical Costumes Workshop

What is it like to wear a Tudor outfit or dance in a Renaissance dress? How heavy is an ancient Chinese hanfu and how much fabric goes into its creation? These questions and more will be answered by Rachel Nightingale in this workshop, where you will have a chance to get up close and personal with a range of outfits made by historical re-enactors based on research and portraits. You will have the chance to look at a number of costuming books that deconstruct historical costumes, and perhaps even to try on a historical outfit.

Rachel Nightingale will be conducting her Recreating Historical Costumes workshop on Sunday 10 September at the 2017 HNSA Melbourne Conference. The cost is only $20 for the session once a full weekend or day ticket has been bought. Purchasing a workshop tickets entitles you to entry into a $100 Dymocks Gift  Card giveaway.

In addition to Rachel's session, there is a suite of skills based workshops with top rate tuition including Authorpreneurship, Social Media, Pitching, Self Publishing, Writing Romance for the International Market, Children and Young Adult Fiction, Trove, Scrivener, Family History and Historical Mystery. And for those who enjoy costumes, we also have Leif the Viking providing a session on armour! Learn more at our website.

The Gazini Players are proud to present

For your Edification and Enjoyment

Tales of great Joy, and of great Woe

Ten years ago, Mina’s beloved older brother disappeared with a troupe of Travelling Players, and was never heard from again.

On the eve of Mina’s own departure with a troupe, her father tells her she has a special gift for Storytelling, a gift he silenced years before because he was afraid of her ability to call visions into being with her stories.

Mina soon discovers that the Travelling Players draw their powers from a mysterious place called Tarya, where dreams are transformed into reality.  While trying to solve the mystery of her brother’s disappearance, she discovers a dark cost to the Players’ onstage antics. Torn between saving her brother or exposing the truth about the Players, could her gifts as a storyteller offer a way to solve Harlequin’s riddle?

Rachel Nightingale has been writing since the age of 8 (early works are safely hidden away). She holds a Masters degree and PhD in Creative Writing. Winning the Mercury Short Story competition (junior section) at the age of 16 fueled her desire to share her stories with the world. Subsequent short stories have been shortlisted in a number of competitions and a play, No Sequel, won the People's Choice Award and First Prize at the Eltham Little Theatre's 10 Minute Play competition. Another, Crime Fiction, was performed at Short and Sweet Manila and Sydney.

Rachel’s second passion after writing is the theatre, and she has been performing in shows and working backstage for a rather long time. She co-wrote and performed in the 2013-2015 version of the hugely popular Murder on the Puffing Billy Express, a 1920s murder mystery set on the iconic Dandenong Ranges train. The inspiration for the Tarya trilogy, which begins with Harlequin's Riddle, began when she read a quote by Broadway actor Alan Cumming about that in-between moment just before you step onstage, and began to wonder might be found in that place between worlds.

Harlequin's Riddle is available via Odyssey  Books.

HNSA 2017 Conference

The HNSA 2017 Melbourne Conference is being held on 8-10 September 2017 at Swinburne University. This celebration of the historical fiction genre will showcase over 60 speakers discussing inspiration, writing craft, research, publishing pathways and personal histories in our weekend programme. Among the many acclaimed historical novelists participating are Kerry Greenwood, Kate Forsyth, Deborah Challinor, Libby Hathorn, Lucy Treloar, Sophie Masson, Sulari Gentill, Robert Gott and Arnold Zable. The HNSA’s speakers’ list is available on the HNSA website.

In addition to the two stream weekend programme, there will be ten craft based super sessions and two research masterclasses.You won’t want to miss our interactive sessions on armour and historical costumes either! Purchase a ticket and you will be entered in the draw to win a $100 Dymocks Gift Card.

Manuscript assessments will be conducted by industry experts, Alison Arnold and Irina Dunn. Our free extended academic programme is open for general admission but bookings are essential.

Our First Pages Pitch Contest offers an opportunity for submissions to be read aloud to a panel of publishers. And we are delighted to announce the introduction of our inaugural HNSA Short Story Contest with a $500 prize!

Visit our website to purchase your tickets now!

Subscribe to our newsletter for interviews, reviews and news.

Learn about our sponsorship opportunities.

Let’s make a noise about historical fiction!

The Enduring Fascination of Historical Crime Fiction by Christa Ludlow

Historical crime fiction has an enduring fascination. The possibility of journeying back through time to the era of Sherlock Holmes, gaslight and hansom cabs; constables patrolling streets shrouded in fog; detectives attending autopsies in chilly underground caverns – what could be more enticing? 

We don’t have to travel to London to experience these thrills - Sydney has its own fascinating history of crime and punishment to be explored, as I discovered many years ago when I was conducting research for exhibitions at the Justice and Police Museum in Sydney. If you haven’t visited the Museum, it is in a beautiful old sandstone building near Circular Quay, which was formerly the Water Police Station and Court House. The Museum houses what used to be a private Police Force collection of artefacts relating to crime and criminals, from the early nineteenth century up to the present day.

I trained as a historian and I have written about the history of institutions like the Children’s Court, prisons and asylums. As I was trawling through old police records, photographs and newspaper accounts to find ideas for exhibitions, I wondered why no one was writing historical crime fiction (my favourite reading genre) set in nineteenth century Sydney. Sydney, its buildings, streets and institutions, seemed full of mystery to me. The result is Taken At Night, my first mystery novel, set in Sydney in 1900.

In 1900 Sydney was the largest city in Australia and the fifth largest port in the British Empire. But like all cities, its population was made up of winners and losers. While Sydney’s affluent inhabitants enjoyed the hotels, shopping arcades and theatres, life was much tougher in The Rocks, Millers Point, and Surry Hills. The maritime strike of 1890 and the following depression had taken its toll on the city’s working class. The waterfront areas were allowed to decline and slums proliferated, causing problems with health, child welfare and crime.

Sydney in 1900 was quite a diverse and complex city, if you looked closely. As a busy port, it was exposed to people of different races and beliefs. About 3500 Chinese were recorded as living in Sydney, there were Chinese language newspapers and, by 1904, a Chinese temple. Sailors and travellers of many nations passed through, including from India, the Middle East, South East Asia and Europe. 

The indigenous peoples of Australia continued to make a life in Sydney, despite discrimination and restricted freedom. Many Aboriginal people were attracted to the city by the opportunities for work at the railway workshops, on the wharves and in factories. Experts and new ideas were fashionable. Votes for women, spiritualism, theosophy, Socialism, ethnology and social Darwinism were all subjects debated in the newspapers and at public lectures. Some of these ideas influenced the response to urban crime.

I have written elsewhere how in the 1890s male Australian writers like Henry Lawson and Banjo Patterson saw the city as a maze of evil and corruption and set their stories in the Australian Bush. Women, on the other hand, saw opportunities in city life. They were starting to enter the fields of literature, photography and journalism. In Taken At Night, the protagonist is a photographer and her profession allows her to roam the streets with a purpose and a camera. In 1891 the Illustrated Sydney News noted that nearly every newspaper of standing had one or more women among its contributors or staff writers. Photographers such as Laura Praed and May and Minna Moore were having their photographs published. 

Criminology was still in its infancy. While fingerprinting was being practised by the police force in India, it was not accepted in England until 1901. Sydney’s police did not adopt it until 1911. One large and threatening shadow hung over Sydney in 1900 – the bubonic plague. It had first been noticed in China, then progressed to India and to the Pacific. It was carried by fleas on rats which infested the ships travelling between ports. In 1900, with no antibiotics, once a person contracted the disease, little could be done but wait and see. The plague plays a key role in Taken At Night and the sequel to be published this year, The Dark Room – many crimes could be committed under cover of quarantine! 

In response to the plague, which killed over 100 people, whole streets, buildings and wharves in Darling Harbour, Walsh Bay, The Rocks and Millers Point were demolished. With them went much of the city’s mystery. But occasionally in an old book, a photograph or even wandering the streets you can find traces of that city of mystery.

Christa A. Ludlow

www.sydneymysteries.com

Books: Taken at Night (2016) Paperback, eBook, The Dark Room (forthcoming, 2017). Connect with Christa on: Twitter and Facebook

Taken at Night

A missing woman, a city in turmoil and a mysterious photographer ….

The year is 1900, and photographer Beatrix Spencer has just opened her studio in the bustling colonial metropolis of Sydney. But it is a turbulent time to start a new business. A deadly outbreak of plague is threatening the city. Soldiers are about to embark for the Boer War. Women are struggling to gain rights and recognition.
When a woman doctor disappears from a quarantined ship, Beatrix is drawn into the investigation led by Detective Fergus Blair, who has secrets of his own. Despite their very different backgrounds, Fergus and Beatrix find that the city’s underworld is closer and more dangerous than either of them realized. And somewhere, another more sinister photographer is at work…

HNSA 2017 Conference

The HNSA 2017 Melbourne Conference is being held on 8-10 September 2017 at Swinburne University. This celebration of the historical fiction genre will showcase over 60 speakers discussing inspiration, writing craft, research, publishing pathways and personal histories in our weekend programme. Among the many acclaimed historical novelists participating are Kerry Greenwood, Kate Forsyth, Deborah Challinor, Libby Hathorn, Lucy Treloar, Sophie Masson, Sulari Gentill, Robert Gott and Arnold Zable. The HNSA’s speakers’ list is available on the HNSA website.

In addition to the two stream weekend programme, there will be ten craft based super sessions and two research masterclasses.You won’t want to miss our interactive sessions on armour and historical costumes either! Purchase a ticket and you will be entered in the draw to win a $100 Dymocks Gift Card.

Manuscript assessments will be conducted by industry experts, Alison Arnold and Irina Dunn. Our free extended academic programme is open for general admission but bookings are essential.

Our First Pages Pitch Contest offers an opportunity for submissions to be read aloud to a panel of publishers. And we are delighted to announce the introduction of our inaugural HNSA Short Story Contest with a $500 prize!

Visit our website to purchase your tickets now!

Subscribe to our newsletter for interviews, reviews and news.

Learn about our sponsorship opportunities.

Let’s make a noise about historical fiction!

Interview with Cheryl Hayden

Cheryl Hayden is a researcher and novelist with a passion for 16th Century Cornwall.   Her novel, A Christmas Game, examined the plight of the rebel Cornishmen during and after the 1549 Prayer Book Rebellion. She is currently a PhD candidate at Flinders University, writing a fictional account of the life of Tristram Winslade.  Cheryl was born and raised in Melbourne and now lives in Brisbane where her sub-tropical garden is a major diversion when creative blockages strike.

What is the inspiration for your current book?

My 2012 novel, A Christmas Game, and my current work-in-progress are both inspired by a little-known period of rebellion that occurred in Cornwall during the early modern period, from 1497 to 1648.   Initially, my interest in Cornwall stemmed from my family’s mining heritage there – they were tin miners working in the very dangerous but incredibly spectacular area just north-east of Land’s End – very Poldark!  After researching that history and writing a still unpublished novel, my interest took off towards rebellion.

Is there a particular theme you are exploring in this book?

Issues of identity and homeland seem to be a common thread in my work. I was fascinated from a young age about my ancestors being ‘Cornish’ but didn’t understand what this meant until I undertook an M.A. in Cornish Studies at the University of Exeter. The Cornish are Celtic, and do not consider themselves to be English, and many native Cornish today still regard Cornwall as a separate nation. It has long been a fraught issue and for a novelist there is a great deal of scope for developing great characters and a lot of conflict with which to surround them.  

Which period of history particularly interests you? Why?

The 16th Century is my particular focus. We are all familiar with the Tudor monarchs, but what we often don’t see is the plight of people on the receiving end of their increasingly nationalistic policies.  My characters are fighting against the imposition of religious reform. In A Christmas Game, they are resisting the religious reforms introduced by Edward VI in 1549 and their protest leads to out-and-out war against their own king.

What resources do you use to research your book?

I read as much as possible – serious texts that delve into primary sources. I also use the UK National Archives online data base, as well as the Cornwall Records Office online catalogue. Devon also has online databases. More and more material is being digitized, so as the years roll by, there is more and more available. I also visit the places I write about. I’ve been to Cornwall five times now, and know it well.  On my last visit, I visited the 16th Century home of the Winslade family, who feature in A Christmas Game and in my work-in-progress.  

What is more important to you: historical authenticity or accuracy?

Authenticity is a complex idea – can anything that is a reproduction or a representation ever be authentic?  As for accuracy, if we’re talking about events occurring on specific dates, then it depends on how significant the event or the date is.  My aim is to be totally across my subject matter and the setting and to have a thorough understanding of my characters. I want my readers to feel confident that I am taking them on a credible journey into the past that will withstand historical scrutiny of my key themes and critical events.  

Which character in your current book is your favourite? Why?

In A Christmas Game, I think I probably love Margh Tredannack best. He is a young man, just married, who joins a protest against the introduction of the English Language Prayer Book mainly because he has just completed his military training and thinks it will be a bit of fun to go off with his friends. When the whole thing spirals into war and treason, he must manage his terror and try to keep his men safe. Then, having lost everything, he must pick up the fragments of his life.  Jenna is equally inspiring. She is utterly terrified for most of the novel, and is truly brave and loyal.  

Which authors have influenced you?

Myriad authors including Peter Carey, Umberto Eco, Patrick White, Hilary Mantel, Michelle de Kretser, Richard Flanagan, Alan M. Kent, Daphne du Maurier and A.S. Byatt.  

What advice would you give an aspiring author?

Learn to write. Do courses, join groups and enter competitions. Read great writing, whether it be journalism, short stories, fiction or non-fiction. Be gracious about receiving constructive criticism and use it to hone your skills. Finally, be true to the story that is in your heart and give it your best shot.

Tell us about your next book or work in progress.

My work in progress is part of my PhD in Creative Writing. It returns to 16th Century Cornwall to follow the true life story of Tristram Winslade, who in 1595 wrote to King Philip II of Spain urging another Armada. Tristram’s life is emerging as an expectedly sensational roller-coaster. His father and grandfather appeared as real life characters in A Christmas Game. 

Margh Tredannack is living in newly wedded bliss on his father’s estate in western Cornwall. Miles away, near the banks of the Tamar, Jenna Rosewarne is promised to a loathsome cousin. In the summer of 1549, their worlds collide as the Cornish rise in protest against Edward VI’s English language prayer book. All of a sudden they are on the road to catastrophe, waging war against their own King. Trust, grief and despair bind them together, but does it count as love? And is it enough to save them?       

You can connect with Cheryl via Facebook or Email her to purchase your copy of A Christmas Game.

Cheryl Hayden is presenting a paper in The Lie of History: How the Mirror of the Present Shapes the Past for its Own Purposes in the HNSA Academic Programme on Sunday 10th September.

There is no question that we are constructions of our own times, and the writing of history is always shaped by those who recount the past for their own purposes. How does the mirror of the present day reflect and dictate the telling of history? Do we filter a version of history that tells more about us than the times of long ago through what we choose to reveal and erase? Dr Wendy J Dunn will discuss these questions with panel members Drs Glenice Whitting, Diane Murray, Gillian Polack, and Cheryl Hayden.

Presentation of all papers will be followed by a discussion between Prof. Josie Arnold and Christopher Raja on the same topic.

Abstract: Knit Two, Drop Four: Finding lost heroes in the holes of history’s knitting by Cheryl Hayden (PhD candidate, Flinders University)

Across the western world globalisation is creating renewed nationalist fervour, and with it, renewed interest in the historiographies from which nations draw their identities. The Tudor dynasty in 16th Century England is today being analysed and glorified throughout popular culture, confirming in the minds of the English and their diaspora, of the ‘rightness’ of the Protestant reformation and the victory of the nation state over the backward, evil threat presented by Catholicism. Is it possible, today, to unpick this entrenched historiography to repatriate the stories of those who suffered for this cause?

Entry to the academic programme is included in the price of a weekend or day ticket but please book your place because seating isrestricted. 

HNSA 2017 Conference

The HNSA 2017 Melbourne Conference is being held on 8-10 September 2017 at Swinburne University. This celebration of the historical fiction genre will showcase over 60 speakers discussing inspiration, writing craft, research, publishing pathways and personal histories in our weekend programme. Among the many acclaimed historical novelists participating are Kerry Greenwood, Kate Forsyth, Deborah Challinor, Libby Hathorn, Lucy Treloar, Sophie Masson, Sulari Gentill, Robert Gott and Arnold Zable. The HNSA’s speakers’ list is available on the HNSA website.

In addition to the two stream weekend programme, there will be ten craft based super sessions and two research masterclasses.You won’t want to miss our interactive sessions on armour and historical costumes either! Purchase a ticket and you will be entered in the draw to win a $100 Dymocks Gift Card.

Manuscript assessments will be conducted by industry experts, Alison Arnold and Irina Dunn. Our free extended academic programme is open for general admission but bookings are essential.

Our First Pages Pitch Contest offers an opportunity for submissions to be read aloud to a panel of publishers. And we are delighted to announce the introduction of our inaugural HNSA Short Story Contest with a $500 prize!

Visit our website to purchase your tickets now!

Subscribe to our newsletter for interviews, reviews and news.

Learn about our sponsorship opportunities.

Let’s make a noise about historical fiction!

Interview with Gabrielle Wang

Gabrielle Wang is an award winning children’s author and illustrator whose books are a blend of Chinese and Western culture with a touch of fantasy.

She has twice won the Aurealis Award for Best Children’s Long Fiction and her novels have been named Notables in the Children’s Book Council of Australia Awards. 

Her first novel, The Garden of Empress Cassia was listed on the USBBY Outstanding International Books Honour List. Gabrielle has published fifteen novels with 

Penguin Books Australia including Little Paradise, an historical fiction YA romance novel based on her parents' relationship during World War 2. 

This book was Highly Commended in the Prime Minister's Literary Awards. She has also written two of the girls - the Poppy books and the Pearlie books - in the highly

popular Our Australian Girl series. Her middle grade novel is The Beast of Hushing Wood was published by Penguin Random House in 2017. 

www.gabriellewang.com

What is the inspiration for your current book?

I am working on a new chapter for the Pearlie books, which are part of the very popular Our Australian Girl series published by Penguin. The four novels came out in 2014 but a new hard cover bind up featuring all four novels in one, will be released in June 2018. I have been asked by my publisher to write a chapter to include in the new edition. It follows on from the final book so I am now researching World War II Perth. I love historical fiction. It means one can learn so much more about the world.

Is there a particular theme you are exploring in this book?

The theme is war and how it affects families in war torn areas, in particular children.

Which period of history particularly interests you? Why?

The period of history I wrote about in the Pearlie novels was Darwin during World War Two. The reason for this was because there are very few books for children to read about this period in Australian history. World War I, in particular Gallipoli is well covered, however Darwin and the northern towns during World War II is rarely written about. And yet it was a very important time in Australia’s history when the bonds between Australia and the USA were forged. I wanted to show how we had our own refugees who needed to flee their homes. Seen through my young protagonist’s eyes, the tragedy of the bombing of Darwin is made that much more real.

What resources do you use to research your book?

I use the internet for photos and information as well as the library. If I need to, I buy books online. One of the best sources is the Ask a Librarian service available online with major libraries. Then there is nothing better than visiting the place you are writing about. With the Pearlie books I visited Darwin to get the feel of the land. Most of Darwin was destroyed during the bombing and later with Cyclone Tracy but I was able to interview people who lived through that time. I also visited museums and joined a Battlefield Tour to look at important military sites.

What is more important to you: historical authenticity or accuracy?

I try to be both authentic and accurate. For example I’ve been trying to find out as much as I can about Perth in 1943 and in particular Perth Zoo and the Chinese market gardens. I am only writing a 2500 word chapter but in order to be authentic and accurate I need to do my research as thoroughly as I can. Then again, because I am writing historical fiction, characters in the novel are invented.
 

Which character in your current book is your favourite? Why?

My protagonist Pearlie of course, but I also love Tinto, her cheeky pygmy marmoset.

Are you a ‘plotter’ or a ‘pantser’? How long does it generally take you
to write a book?

Writing historical fiction I am definitely a plotter. With the Our Australian Girl series because there had to be an overarching story across all four novels, as well as each book being a novel on its own, so before I started writing the series I needed to plot each one out. With my young adult historical fiction novel, Little Paradise, which is also set during World War II in Melbourne and China, it was important to plot it out as it covers four years in the life of Mirabel, the main character. I also write fiction and when I do, I allow the story to develop organically. I love this freedom and the way things that happen during the day serendipitously feed your story. As for how long it takes to write a novel, usually about two years.

What advice would you give an aspiring author?

I guess it’s the same advice all authors give and that is to edit, edit, edit.

Read your work out aloud. That way you’ll pick up mistakes that you might gloss over when reading silently. Join a writing group where you can share your work. Start off small. My first publication was a short story in a children’s magazine. The more publications you have behind you the better it is when sending your manuscript out to a publisher. It shows that you are serious about your writing and work hard at it.

Tell us about your next book or work in progress.

I’m working on the new chapter for Pearlie, which I mentioned above. I am also writing a new middle grade novel which is a sequel to A Ghost in My Suitcase. It’s called Ting Ting the Ghosthunter and as you can see is all about ghosts. I’m an illustrator as well so I’m having fun designing both book covers. I enjoy writing both historical fiction and fiction. They stretch me in different ways. In order to grow we need to constantly challenge ourselves and not be afraid to take on something that may appear too hard.
   

Meet Pearlie

It's 1941 . . . and the war is changing Pearlie's life every day. Darwin is full of soldiers, there's a spy on the loose, and people are turning against Pearlie's best friend, Naoko, just because she's Japanese. When everything falls apart, will Pearlie be brave enough to stick up for what's right, or will her old fears get the better of her? Meet Pearlie and join her adventure in the first of four exciting stories about a courageous girl in a world at war.

Gabrielle Wang will be appearing in at the 2017 HNSA conference in the following panel: Children and Young Adult Fiction: How difficult can it be? Is writing fiction for children and young adults an easy option?

Connect with Gabrielle via her website, or on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

HNSA 2017 Conference

The HNSA 2017 Melbourne Conference is being held on 8-10 September 2017 at Swinburne University. This celebration of the historical fiction genre will showcase over 60 speakers discussing inspiration, writing craft, research, publishing pathways and personal histories in our weekend programme. 

Among the many acclaimed historical novelists participating are Kerry Greenwood, Kate Forsyth, Deborah Challinor, Libby Hathorn, Lucy Treloar, Sophie Masson, Sulari Gentill, Robert Gott and Arnold Zable. The HNSA’s speakers’ list is available on the HNSA website.

In addition to the two stream weekend programme, there will be ten craft based super sessions and two research masterclasses.You won’t want to miss our interactive sessions on armour and historical costumes either! Purchase a ticket and you will be entered in the draw to win a $100 Dymocks Gift Card.

Manuscript assessments will be conducted by industry experts, Alison Arnold and Irina Dunn. 

Our free extended academic programme is open for general admission but bookings are essential.

Our First Pages Pitch Contest offers an opportunity for submissions to be read aloud to a panel of publishers. And we are delighted to announce the introduction of our inaugural HNSA Short Story Contest with a $500 prize!

Visit our website to purchase your tickets now!

Subscribe to our newsletter for interviews, reviews and news.

Learn about our sponsorship opportunities.

Let’s make a noise about historical fiction!

Imagining the Past Podcast Series: Kelly Gardiner and Catherine Padmore

HNSA is proud to announce the release of the final podcast in our series 'Imagining the Past' before the 2017 HNSA Melbourne Conference. This week our host, Kelly Gardiner, is in the hot seat chatting with colleague, Catherine Padmore, about historical bio-fiction. The podcast is a taste of what you will hear at the 2017 HNSA Conference in Melbourne from 8-10 September at Swinburne University Hawthorn. More information about the programme is available at our website.

Dr Catherine Padmore was awarded her PhD in creative writing in 2002, and she has taught literary studies and creative writing at La Trobe since 2005. Her first novel, Sibyl’s Cave (Allen and Unwin, 2004) was shortlisted for The Australian/Vogel Award and commended in the first book category of The Commonwealth Writers’ Prize (south-east Asia and south Pacific region). Catherine has been awarded two retreat fellowships at Varuna, the Writers’ House, and in 2014 she was short-listed for their Publisher Introduction Program. She has novels-in-progress about Amy Dudley and Levina Teerlinc. Her short creative works have been published in Island, The Journal of Australian Writers and Writing, The Big Issue, The Australian, Dotlit, Antithesis and in the anthology Reflecting on Melbourne (Poetica Christi, 2009). Catherine’s scholarly work has been published in Australian Literary Studies, TEXT, JASAL, Life Writing and Lateral, with chapters in Telling Stories: Australian Life and Literature 1935-2012 (MUP, 2013) and Expanding the Canon of Early Modern Women’s Writing (CSP, 2010).

You can purchase Sibyl's Cave via Allen & Unwin.

An evocative novel about memory and discovery anchored to the landscape and colours of Italy, England and Australia. Shortlisted for the Australian/Vogel's Literary Award 2001.

Steeped in the landscape and colours of its locations, Sibyl's Cave follows the orphaned Billie through her childhood in Italy to the United Kingdom during World War II with her adopted family, to art school and then, finally, to her new life as an adult in Australia.

Interrupting the reclusive island life that Billie shares with Troy her housekeeper and Stan her housemate on the Hawkesbury River, Billie's niece Lorelei and her daughter Elissa arrive unannounced from England. As their lives intertwine stories emerge and secrets are revealed.

With an evocative eye for personality and place, Sibyl's Cave alternates between Billie's past, unearthed in her diaries and memories, and her present-day life on the island. It is a rich story about family and the importance of identity.

Kelly Gardiner’s most recent book is 1917 (published early in 2017), a novel for young readers set during the First World War. Her previous books include Goddess, based on the remarkable life of the seventeenth century French swordswoman and opera singer, Julie d’Aubigny. Kelly’s historical novels for young adults include The Sultan’s Eyes and Act of Faith, set during the time of the English Civil Wars and the Inquisition. Both books were shortlisted for the Ethel Turner Prize in the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards. Her books for younger readers are the ‘Swashbuckler’ adventure trilogy Ocean Without End, The Pirate’s Revenge and The Silver Swan – set in Malta during the Napoleonic invasion, and a picture book, Billabong Bill’s Bushfire Christmas. Kelly has worked on newspapers, magazines and websites, and her articles, poems, book reviews and travel writing have appeared in journals, magazines and newspapers as diverse as ‘The New York Times’, ‘Marie Claire’, ‘New Idea’, and ‘Going Down Swinging’. She works at the State Library of Victoria and teaches creative writing at La Trobe University. Kelly is also the co-host of Unladylike, a podcast on women and writing. And, of course, is the host of HNSA's Imagining the Past podcast series. 

You can connect with Kelly via Twitter and Facebook. Links to purchase her books are available at her website.

The war in France rages in the skies, and support for the war in Australia turns cold. Alex flies high above the trenches of the Western Front, while a world away his sister Maggie finds herself in the midst of political upheaval. Somehow, both must find the courage to fight on.

1917 is the fourth in Scholastic’s ‘Australia’s Great War’ series, commemorating the centenary of the First World War. It is written for readers nine and up.

HNSA 2017 Conference

Kelly Gardiner and Catherine Padmore will be appearing in our academic programme: 'Bio-Fiction: Can you Defame the Dead?' at HNSA 2017 on Saturday 9 September with Kate Forsyth, Ariella van Luyn and Gabrielle Ryan. The session is included in the price of a full weekend or day ticket but seating is limited so please reserve your seat. Our second academic panel is 'The Lie of History: How the Mirror of the Present shapes the Past for its own Purposes' on Sunday 10 September with Wendy J Dunn, Diane Murray, Glenice Whitting, Cheryl Hayden and Gillian Polack followed by a discussion between Prof Josie Arnold and Christopher Raja.

Kelly is also conducting a workshop on Scrivener for Beginners. Cost is $20 once a full weekend or day ticket is purchased. Purchase of a workshop ticket entitles the attendee entry into a draw to win a $100 Dymocks Gift Card. You can find out more about our suite of workshops at our website. 

The HNSA 2017 Melbourne Conference is being held on 8-10 September 2017 at Swinburne University. This celebration of the historical fiction genre will showcase over 60 speakers discussing inspiration, writing craft, research, publishing pathways and personal histories in our weekend programme. Among the many acclaimed historical novelists participating are Kerry Greenwood, Kate Forsyth, Deborah Challinor, Libby Hathorn, Lucy Treloar, Sophie Masson, Sulari Gentill, Robert Gott and Arnold Zable. The HNSA’s speakers’ list is available on the HNSA website.

In addition to the two stream weekend programme, there will be ten craft based super sessions and two research masterclasses.You won’t want to miss our interactive sessions on armour and historical costumes either! Purchase a ticket and you will be entered in the draw to win a $100 Dymocks Gift Card.

Manuscript assessments will be conducted by industry experts, Alison Arnold and Irina Dunn. Our free extended academic programme is open for general admission but bookings are essential.

Our First Pages Pitch Contest offers an opportunity for submissions to be read aloud to a panel of publishers. And we are delighted to announce the introduction of our inaugural HNSA Short Story Contest with a $500 prize!

Visit our website to purchase your tickets now!

Subscribe to our newsletter for interviews, reviews and news.

Learn about our sponsorship opportunities.

Let’s make a noise about historical fiction!