For past and upcoming appearances, check Appearances & Media.

As a journalist (specialising in environment reporting) for more than a decade, Emma is an expert interviewer and has appeared on radio, podcasts, panels, debates, as a festival panellist and host, and event MC.

Emma can speak about the craft of writing, navigating the publishing industry, social media for creatives, productivity, combining work and writing, financial freedom for creatives, and journalism.

Emma can speak on the role of small business and particularly indie bookshops in modern cities, as explored in The Last Bookshop, and to the concerns informing The Disorganisation of Celia Stone: environment writing, climate activism and anxiety; feminism and “having it all”; the pressures of the modern workplace; consumption culture, waste and recycling crises; women’s health and body image.

TALKS

What To Read Now – And Why

For: the general book-loving community.

Emma is an English major, a former bookseller, a current journalist, and her debut novel The Last Bookshop mentioned 78 specific books. Books are also a strong theme in Disorganising Celia Stone. So what does such a book nerd read and recommend? This talk covers the books and authors that inspired her as a child, a student, a bookseller, a journalist and finally an author. How her reading habits have changed since becoming a writer. And how all this made it into The Last Bookshop and Disorganising Celia Stone. You’ll leave this talk feeling amused, inspired and with a long shopping/library list!

Novel-writing for Dummies

For: people who have always wanted to write a book, and maybe even have an idea, but have no idea how to start.

How the hell do you plan a book? How you you write a first draft from scratch? Should you edit as you go, and how long should it take? What’s the difference between a chapter and a scene, and how do you make characters realistic? Should you write in the first or third person? Use Word or Scrivener? Learn how to write the kind of book you want to read, from someone who’s done it – twice. Includes recommendations for useful books and podcasts.

Balancing writing and work: Making the time (until you can buy it)

For: People who want to build a sustainable writing career, but also value or need their day job and are overwhelmed by life’s competing demands.

Emma is often asked how she managed to write and publish her first book, plus write two more, all within five years, while working full-time.

How she took more than a year’s unpaid leave over that time, to enable targeted runs at these projects, but continued to progress them while working as well.

Smart financial habits allowed her to take almost eight months in total off unpaid, to edit The Last Bookshop and Thunderbolt Lodge, plus a six-month unpaid sabbatical in 2021 travelling Australia with her family, and completing The Dis-Organisation of Celia Stone, to be published in September 2023.

Personal finance and productivity? Might sound like the opposite of creativity and freedom. But in fact they are two sides of the same coin.

This talk is a practical guide to the long game of fitting writing in, when you work full-time. How to schedule time into your days to get that first draft done, and tips for accountability and productivity; setting milestone goals and planning your attack; how to use the down-time while your drafts “breathe”, or while waiting for publishers/beta readers to assess your work, so that you don’t lose momentum; and how to negotiate with employers about annual leave, unpaid leave and sabbaticals. She also touches on considering the big picture, that is, how you can eventually work towards gaining greater financial freedom and therefore more choice about when and how you write.

Buying time: Financial freedom for creatives

For: People with an existing writing or creative practice who want to leave full-time work behind so they can focus more on writing (or any other creative or useful occupation!)

Includes a discussion of Emma’s personal journey towards financial freedom, and her plan to effectively “retire” and focus on writing full-time by age 45; why Emma calls financial freedom and creative practice two sides of the same coin; how to clarify what financial freedom would mean to you, in accordance with your values, vision and goals; budgets versus spending tracking and analysis; Emma’s top financial freedom blog and podcast recommendations; Emma’s recommended personal finance books; how to save and maintain a minimalist lifestyle while having fun; how to locate truly independent financial planners in your area; how to get the tax man on board and take your writing seriously as a small business; and how to use your time wisely.

NB This is not personalised financial advice, as Emma is not a financial adviser. This is one creative sharing the learnings she has made, helping you define your goals and values, and sharing some resources that might help.

WORKSHOP

Buying time: Financial freedom for creatives

For: People with an existing writing or creative practice who want to leave full-time work behind so they can focus more on writing (or any other creative or useful occupation!)

An interactive workshop covering all the topics of the “Buying time” talk described above, with exercises on defining your vision, values, associated goals, projects and next actions; identifying what areas of spending are important to you and which ones aren’t; making a simple list of your assets; and setting up a rudimentary record-keeping system so that your tax return will be easy and so you claim everything possible. Also includes a handout with Emma’s top blogs, podcasts and personal finance reads.

Rates and bookings

Bookshop and book club appearances are free.

Rates for talks, panels, workshops and hosting/moderating as per Australian Society of Author recommendations.

Rates for speaking or as MC at events such as retreats, conferences, breakfasts, awards ceremonies, for other industries provided on request.