This is the first spring in our new home and I’ve been watching everything grow, sprout and flower with renewed curiosity, learning about the soil, the flow of moisture, where the light moves; finding out what’s already planted here, what thrives and what needs help to survive.

I’ve also been working hard on the new book, slowly, between freelance jobs. I’m pleased to share the news that I’ve just received some funding from Arts SA to finish it. This will take the pressure off for six months at least. I’m so grateful for the chance to give this project room to take shape and grow in its own time, without the added stresses and constant hustle of precarity.

For the first time, I set out the budget in my application in terms of paying myself a wage for the labour of writing (rather than as expenses or a living allowance). Though we have ‘recommended rates’ set by the ASA and MEAA, writers have no minimum wage and are routinely underpaid for our creative work. I used the Journalists Award as a benchmark, contacted the department to confirm that this was appropriate, and did the maths. A long-term impact of my year as a salaried artist [$] is that I now tend to measure and express my labour in that way in other contexts. This feels important to share as we continue to fight for a better deal for artists and writers – federally, through the new policy framework and Creative Australia, and also here in SA.

Reviewing the book CoUNTESS: Spoiling Illusions since 2008 for The Saturday Paper [$] recently, I was horrified by the gender disparities it lays out. While the focus of that ongoing project is the visual arts, there are certainly parallels in literature. I have been trying to think through the emotional layers of these forces that confine, corral and co-opt our work, and the way we internalise failure in an ‘industry’ that often lets us down by design.

Still, new leaves are showing everywhere. Bees rock up and do their thing. I’m going to bring some of this spring energy to my upcoming workshop as part of Nature Festival SA: Writing with the Natural World. It will be wonderful to think and play with words and stories in the beautiful setting of the Botanic Gardens, and it’s free for Writers SA members and for staff and Friends of the Gardens. I hope you can join me!

One final note – I have added my signature to Writers for the Voice. It’s a loud & clear YES from me.