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Illuminations featured at Panacea Poets

A huge thank you to the Queensland Poetry Festival team for the invitation to be part of Panacea Poets.

In Panacea Poets, Queensland Poetry Festival administers a twice-weekly booster of short readings from wonderful poets via their youtube channel.

QPF will deliver these soothing doses of poets-in-iso indefinitely.

It is such a great honour to be part of a project to apply the bird of poetry to the experience of the Pandemic, and to maybe inspire listeners to draw on their strengths and optimism.

So many esteemed and inspiring poets – Kirli Saunders, Stuart Barnes, Charmaine Papertalk Green to name just a few, do check out the playlist! I’ll share a few of my faves from time to time!

Here is my reading!

Many thanks to …

It has been a tremendous two years serving on the Queensland Writers Centre Management Committee as Chair alongside other dedicated members, especially, Jemma, Mary, Justin, Lara, Stephen, David, Peter and Colin.

After giving Chamberlin Social Justice, Oration at University of Queensland, 2022

I will continue to be a ‘critical friend’ to the Diversity and Inclusion subcommittee, but am excited for the next chapter, stepping away from Chair to finish my masters of teaching and work on my writing projects.

Many thanks to all the staff, especially CEO Lori-Jay Ellis, Sandra Makaresz and Charlie Hester, volunteers, interns and subcommittee members for all that you do for the Queensland Writers Centre.

Front, Left to right: Charlie, Mary and Jemma, Quills lunch, 2022

January – Fairy Tale Festival

Fairy Tale Festival – Gallery of Modern Art, Brisbane
Fairy Tales Festival storytelling session, held during the ‘Fairy Tales’ exhibition / Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), Brisbane / January 2024 / June Perkins/ Image: Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art /Photography Chloe Callistemon

“My story, like Sharon’s included a Giant (Anifuma in my mother’s language). In it a baby is left in an enchanted Sago patch through the trickery of a lonely and mischievous Fairy, but is educated by a kinder fairy, who teaches survival and the plants of the forest. Eventually the baby, after overcoming a giant, returns home knowledgeable, and clever. They are always protected by a special song sung by their mother, which is a song I heard my mother sing as a child to my brothers.” June Perkins

Create, edit, submit, submit… publish

The cycle of a creative… looking for an audience.

Gumboootspearlz

So it’s been a while since I sent out submissions.

I took some extensive time out from submitting works to do the hard yards on my craft.

I wanted to more mindfully make sure I was sending it to the right spaces – that suited what I was creating and the directions I wish to go in.

The strange thing was when I stopped submitting so much and went inwards, and left my blog and online publications of video recorded poems etc, people invited me to submit works. They found me online, and said would you like to send us something not published before. We like your work.

I attended development workshops, zoom discussions, and was heartened by people hearing, reading, listening – pieces shared in various online spaces.

I attended conferences, concerts and meetings, and wrote about them.

I researched, wrote and delivered talks, and chaired a panels.

Attended…

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Reclaiming Pasifika Voices: Inform, reform, transform

Recent attendance at a conference

Gumboootspearlz

Pictured: Glenda, Melesiale, Tiana, Katarina, Chris and Jioji

Advance Pacific Research Australia: Reclaiming Pasifika Voices: Inform, reform, transform, a conference for Pasifika researchers, students, and postgraduates, and community was held at QUT, July 3 2023 with around 70 participants.

The conference utilised the strengths of Pasifika cultural expressions and protocols to engage undergraduates, community and Pasifika attendees. It also demonstrated the SSAVI principles of spirituality, service, agency, vision, and innovation later shared in detail in a participatory workshop.

The Vision of the Conference, was to encourage all participants to think deeply about why we do research, and how important our motivation, and methodology are to bring about lasting positive outcomes for the communities we serve and originate from as well as those we now live in as part of the diaspora.

This Pasifikaness was woven dynamically throughout the day in the presentation stylings of the presenters and the overall…

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Ezines

A poem included here!

Gumboootspearlz

A members ‘ publication purpose is to cater to a particular, audience and reader.

So it is with the Australian Fairy Tale ezine. Issue number 11.

In this case, the audience is made up of lovers of all things Fairy Tale, folk tale – and creators, are artists, reviewers, creative writers and video content makers.

If you would like to read more on the theme of Magical Transformations, then become a member of the Australian Fairy Tale Society, read and in the future maybe you might be inspired to become a contributor.

Congratulations to the Ezine team.

p.s. I have a poem and theatre review within.

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