Castle News

Some people have asked what the plans are for 2026. In the first episode of Finding Elara Season three, I talk about the plans and ambitions for the year. There is quite a bit planned for the show and in general for the year ahead. I broke it down into different segments on the episode. What is happening with the Pod, my business, family and my personal writing. I am open and honest in the episode. Only time will tell if I achieve all of these things throughout the year or

I was really excited to put out this interview because I was the guest! It was a little topsy turvy to come in as a guest on my own show, but I really enjoyed the experience. Izzy, the sound girl was gracious and patient with me. I was focussed on limiting my nervous ticks throughout the interview as I am aware of how challenging that is to edit.

Bushland Castle Productions has just opened the gates for 2 writing Scroll competitions. A Speculative fiction challenge that focusses on the Catalyst of change and a Memoir challenge that focusses on the heritage that built your foundation. The team are excited to work through the submissions and the Council of Quills have been assembled.

I was interviewing someone for the podcast recently and I asked who their ideal writing avatar was. This is something that I was introduced to when I first started the podcast in 2018 and it has popped up in writing circle, marketing plans and business development. Who is your ideal client/student/reader/listener. What do they look like, what are they passionate about, when to they find time to listen to podcasts/read books/hang around on social media?

I was so excited to talk to Heather, not only because she is an incredible creative, but because she one of the squires for the Otherworldly Emergence Speculative Fiction Novella Series. I had been meeting with her on teams and discord for some time before we met in person. So talking about her creative process and the full stories she has released to the world was awesome. I hope you enjoy the chat.

At the end of February I thought that is would be a fabulous idea to undertake a mindfulness challenge for March. I didn't want to over complicate it. The activities had to be completed within 5 minutes a day. I wanted to highlight the multiple techniques that would calm the mind and help reframe your mindset when in stressful situations. After alll, the best way to learn a different technique is when you are calm. Practicing something new may help add that skill to your ment

I am content to admit that I am a bit of a chocaholic. I can't really eat as much as I would have when I was younger... the minute on the lips saying seems to be literal after 40. So when I saw a book with Chocolate in large print it was like a homing beacon. Then seeing the title, I'd rather eat chocolate I was instantly curious. But there are secret depth hidden within the tale. It is certainly worth having a look.

The first fiction reading journal I used wasn't really anything special. I had heard of the idea from someone online and thought that would be a great way to keep track of the books I had read and remind me about the stories, months or years down the track. It has come in handy when a third book comes out and I really want to read it, but it was a while ago since I read the first. I write my own opinions in it, so when I read it back to myself it normally brings me back to th

I thought that it would be fun to start and daily post within the Bushland Pages community. Something that will help people try mindfulness for at least 5 minutes a day. These activities are short and things that you most likely already do every day. I am just writing it down and suggesting people give it a go. People have been sharing their reflections with me and it has been great to hear some of the creative interpretations of these different activities.

When you start a project sometimes it seems like there are so many moving parts that you have to start putting in the right order. I know for the Otherworldly Emergence series there have been many aspects that I had to pull into order to make it make sense. Every creative project deserves a moment of your time to put together a general plan.

For some people the creativity flows continuously and it is hard to capture all the drops in time before distractions steals it away. For others, there seems to be a blockage in their pipes! The blank page elicits fear and confusion. The self doubt spiral begins to spin like the water down a drain.

There are several reasons in the creative industries that you may require a media pack. When you are guesting on a podcast, any interview opportunities, speaking engagements, building collaborations and potentially sponsorships. These are created as your one stop information package to send out. It could be through a google link, or an email, as long as the information gets through.

The first time I saw a show about a Tattoo that took control of someone, it was when I was much younger and watching the X-files. I have since read several different narratives that had explored this topic in their own unique way and David has really levelled up with his approach. The Tattoo gains a life of its own and has a personality. I hope that you enjoy hearing all about it on the podcast.

There are always a number of literary competitions running throughout the year. The frequency and reward vary wildly. But why should you put yourself out there and have your work submitted to one of these competitions?

Leading into the Otherworldly emergence we need to start raising awareness of the series and provide little teasers about what is coming with the series. The hooks for each of the stories and the development of the covers. At BCP we are trying to be transparent about out process and keep people who are interested in the loop with what we are putting together to share with the world.

Within the buddy writing sessions and write-ins on discord, we run writing sprints. This is a way to help people get their drafts down fast without having the pressure of the perfecting their prose. Or they can be used as focussed editing time. Or in my case, blog writing, while I am in the process of building a backlog of content during the Indie Author Book Fair Minisode Series

At bushland Castle Productions we are dedicated to providing a sustainable Author support platform and building a community around celebrating author development and growth. We provide Creative Consultations, Accountability Meetings, Write-in Sessions, Mindset Reset meetings and editorial review meetings. All of these services are designed to support and encourage the author in their writerly journey. Although we do recommend a number of fabulous businesses that we have worke

The way that you approach the job on any day can impact the outcome. I am not so certain that you can have 100% control of your moods and emotional weather through out the day, but you can take stock and course correct if you veer off track.

Modern life is full of so many distractions. From screens or many sizes to, constant auditory input, the faced pace of the life that we choose to live. It is easy to see why accountability tracking is so important. Tracking progress through a reporting system I can honestly say that I have fallen into distractions on a few occasions. Okay, more than a few. I have implemented controls to encourage continuous progression on my most important projects, but it is not as easy as i

There are so many reasons that you can fall through the gaps into this liminal space. Sometimes for but a moment and sometimes for longer than you would like to admit.