• Life of the Mind

    The Write Equation

    Why do you write? That’s a question I’m asked often enough. I don’t know. Well, that’s not exactly true. If I really had to think about it, it’s because I have stories I want to tell. The ideas are lined up – novels, screenplays, short stories … they all want to be written. I can’t imagine I’ll live long enough. People get passionate about all sorts of things. It might be about managing their own business, or sex, or gardening – I mention three entirely disparate things because people’s tastes are eclectic, and range from the professional to the personal. I’m passionate about storytelling. The thing with writing is that…

  • The Story Behind the Book

    Pride: The Inception

    Back in 1999, I started a football website called The Collingwood Rant. Football being a seasonal thing, I needed content during the off-season. Most of the time, I posted odds and ends. I was young and energetic, so I always had content – good, bad, and indifferent. Come 2002, I thought I’d serialize a story. For years, I’d had this idea about a freakishly magical footballer, everybody in awe of his ability, a la The Natural. Here was the perfect medium – a football website featuring a football serial. Now it was just a case of working out the details. I’d always thought the story would unfold in the AFL…