And, after I wrote that story, I was interested in the world that it was set in and I wrote another maybe another 10 short stories set in the same world.Īnd then I didn’t know what to do with them because it’s very hard to sell a collection of fantasy short stories when you don’t have a name already and I had put them aside. The very beginning of Blood Ties, the very first chapter was actually a short story that I wrote in 1996. So when did you first put pen to paper for that and how has this story evolved since you first thought of it? So I understand that Blood Ties started off as the thesis for your doctorate in Creative Arts. So I was reading from quite an early age, I was reading a lot of fantasy associated things, but also the best of science fiction fantasy writers from around the world.

She was very big on legends and myths, she had a lot of – a very big collection of folk tale and myth and legend and she also bought every year a collection, The Best of SF Short Stories, which was a very influential collection worldwide and unusual to find in the local library at that stage in the '60s. I think it was my local librarian’s fault when I was little. So tell me, how did you get so interested in the fantasy genre? So Pamela, thanks for talking to us today. * Please note that these transcripts have been edited for readability She speaks at writers' festivals around the world and is best known for her series of fantasy novels, The Floramonde Books, and a more recent book for young people, The Black Dress, a fictional account of the childhood of Mary MacKillop in Australia, which won the NSW History Prize for Young People.Ĭlick play to listen.

Pamela is also an accomplished script writer and has taught creative writing at the University of Technology, Sydney the University of Sydney and, of course, with us at the Australian Writers' Centre. Pamela started as a children's writer, and many of her books have been shortlisted for the State Literary Awards, the Children's Book Council Book of the Year Awards, and many others. It's the first in a trilogy, with the second and third books Deep Water and Full Circle coming soon.

Pamela is author of 19 books and her most recent, Blood Ties, is an epic fantasy and originally started as the thesis for her doctorate in creative arts. Pamela Freeman is an award-winning author and one of our creative writing teachers here at the Australian Writers' Centre. How to Build a Successful Freelance Copywriting Business.

Ember and ash by pamela freeman