This could be you

Larissa Ferenchuk’s dream of becoming a picture book author comes true

Larissa Ferenchuk had had story ideas swirling around her head for some time, but wasn’t sure how to get them into a picture book. So she enrolled in Writing Picture Books at the Australian Writers' Centre to give herself a creative outlet – and hopefully learn to write down some of those stories.

Laura Holloway turned her idea into a published picture book

Although she had lots of ideas, Laura knew she needed knowledge and structure if she wanted to see any of her stories in print one day. She enrolled in Writing Picture Books and Reinvent Yourself and began to take her writing more seriously.

How Ruth McGurk got her picture book contract for ‘The Dinosaur Did It'

Ruth was drawn to the Australian Writers' Centre’s Writing Picture Books course because it was short and punchy, and she finished feeling like she knew exactly what publishers were looking for. After working on a few manuscripts, Ruth signed with Five Mile to publish her first picture book, The Dinosaur Did It, and is also contracted to write another one.

From police force to published author

Kerryn Mayne was on maternity leave from her job on the police force when she returned to her high school love of writing. She soon realised that her professional experiences of crime and policing could be useful when penning her own stories, so she fired up her computer and got down to work. With an outline for a new book idea, Kerryn enrolled in Creative Writing Stage 1 online at the Australian Writers’ Centre, so she could learn about the writing process and connect with other aspiring writers.

How Amy Tan gained confidence to write her first novel

Amy Tan had always been interested in creative writing and, although she works as a copywriter, she wasn’t confident in her fiction skills. So she turned to an Australian Writers' Centre course. One of the exercises that she worked on during that course eventually evolved into part of her debut novel, Katie Goes to KL. This has now been published in Australia and Singapore by Penguin under her pen name Su-May Tan.

Astrid Scholte: Now an award-winning author of young adult fiction

Rebecca Grant goes from physiotherapist to picture book author

“I knew I needed to improve my writing skills, so I decided to bite the bullet and register for the Writing Picture Books course. I completed the modules and assignments in pockets of free time around my kids and job, and it sparked the desire to dive even deeper into the kid lit world. The more I learnt, the more I realised how little I knew!” Rebecca told us.

Emma Pei Yin’s journey to publishing success

“I rolled up my sleeves, signed up for as many courses as I could with AWC and just went from there,” Emma told us. 

After fine-tuning her skills, Emma perfected her manuscript and her pitch, and received offers from five literary agents before signing with Laurie Robertson at Peters Fraser Dunlop.

Judy Wollin’s creative collaboration leads to her middle grade novel

When Judy Wollin heard young family members say they didn’t like reading, she decided to write something they would love! As an education professional, she knew that she could benefit from learning the practicalities of how to write a novel, and so she turned to the Australian Writers' Centre.

Sarah Bailey: Daydreamer to dream book deal