I end this decade richer for two children, one doctorate, several novels both published and unpublished, and many friends. I had quite a few stoppings and startings in putting this post together, largely because I kept forgetting parts, thinking of new things to add, or realising I had put things in the wrong years. I’m sure I have forgotten many more things, but if I don’t post it now it will be another week. Feel free to remind/correct me of extra details/events in the comments!

2000 – The first year of my doctoral studies. Wrote a new version of ‘Cafe Girl’ (later Cafe la Femme) with an Arts Tasmania grant. Went to Swancon for the first time, and discovered while there that my publisher didn’t like the 3rd Mocklore book. Spent a large part of this trip coming up with a proposal for an alternative 3rd book, but too little too late.

2001 – This was my year of short stories, in which I submitted over 100 pieces through the year, teaching myself to write in different genres, and resting the novel part of my brain. It was also the first ROR in Montville – I brought a YA novel (Green – something, I forget) I had written in a hurry to be part of the gang. Margo brought along the ms of Black Juice and we totally told her that she would get a World Fantasy Award for “Singing My Sister Down.” Thanks to a uni scholarship,  aifin and I went overseas together for the first time, spending a month in Rome, passing through Paris and spending Christmas in London.

2002 – Our trip concluded with visits to Nottingham, York and Surrey, as we spend time with my cousin Marianne and her family. ASIM launched at Convergence in Melbourne, along with AustrAlien Absurdities (which Chuck McKenzie and I had been working on for the past two years) and Agog. This con is generally heralded as the one where the post-Worldcon energy started producing actual stuff. I met Tehani and several ASIMites for the first time. (Ben? Was this the first time we met for reals?) I wrote the 3rd Mocklore novel for the sake of completion, knowing it wouldn’t find a publisher.

2003 – Became Chair & co–convenor of Thylacon 2005 and worked on that for the next two years. Attended my second Swancon, much more fun than the first because I knew many more people. ROR at Varuna, with Trent added to the mix – I brought Drak Magic (Mocklore #3) to be workshopped. Edited issue #9 of ASIM.

2004 – Pregnant with ‘Button’. Went to Conflux (with a condensed ROR beforehand), and to Brisbane to teach at EnVision for a week. Worked on Power and Majesty (book 1 of the Creature Court) until putting it on pause to complete thesis before my supervisor left the uni and my baby was born. Didn’t get back to novel for some time. Thesis was not finished in time either. Failed driving test for the first time. We started our Thursday night tradition with C.  godiyeva and her family moved back to Tasmania. The ABC repeated old Doctor Who throughout the year, making me happy that the music my baby would hear most often in the womb was the theme music.

2005 – Raeli was born and we started learning the hardest, most rewarding job in the known universe. I joined LJ, apparently within a day of getting home from hospital. I also bonded with Finchy’s laptop so closely that it became my laptop… I missed that year’s ROR because it was only a few weeks after having Raeli. Failed driving test for the second time. We upgraded  aifin‘s unit to a house that was very much ours. I ran Thylacon with a 5 month old baby strapped to my chest. As the con madness finally ebbed, I got to know  girliejones online and started writing for ASiF!  godiyeva had Oscar and Thursday night dinners became Thursday night horde. New Doctor Who was launched! Yes, this was a big deal.

2006 – Finally, at the beginning of the year, went back to Power & Majesty with the intent of finishing it for the following year’s ROR workshop and declared myself a novelist again. With my mother, I took over the Deepings Dolls business and launched Pendlerook Designs. Hosted a Tasmanian ROR, with Dirk Flinthart joining the group – I had a version of Power & Majesty workshopped.  aifin and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary. I edited ASIM #22, and briefly wrote Kids Dish, a food blog about cooking for kids, for a dodgy website that was supposed to pay me. I withdrew from ASIM as a member of the collective, and joined Ben & GJ at Shiny. Thesis was finally completed and submitted, after drama with the head of department (and replacement supervisor) who decided it wasn’t up to scratch for a doctorate and should be submitted as a masters instead. With support of the Dean of Students, I submitted it against the wishes of my head of school – one of the most confronting things I have ever had to do.

2007 – Completed requested changes from my examiners and graduated as a Doctor of Classics. Seacastle published by ABC Books – my first children’s novel! Raeli wore a mermaid costume to both the Hobart and Melbourne launch (the latter of which was gracefully pulled together by Rowena!). Exhibited my first quilt in a show – a crazy quilt titled ‘Augusta Valentine.’ Joined the Last Short Story project. Took Raeli to the Melbourne con, and met GJ & Random Alex in person for the first time. Published Drak Magic via LJ ( mocklore, for the 8 or so people still waiting for the 3rd Mocklore novel. Started playing online RP and met Kaia, Jenn &  zeft, among others. Signed with Pulp Fiction Press to publish Cafe La Femme and a sequel. Finished writing new parts of Power and Majesty and posted the first chapter on M’s website, where it attracted the interest of my future agent, Anni.

2008 – I turned 30. Became a godmother to Felix, another of the hordelings. Stepped down from Shiny. Exhibited two quilts – Raeli’s mermaid quilt and the Glamma Garden quilt. I wrote 3 Janes for my Arts Tasmania grant and Siren Beat for M’s anthology. Kaia and I wrote our collaborative “Blueberry” novel in a couple of months. As a side effect of this, I became an Arsenal supporter and started following Premier League. I did NaNoWriMo for the first time, using it to write the Cafe La Femme sequel. Became pregnant with ‘Little Kick’. The Creature Court trilogy sold to HarperCollins Voyager and I officially signed with Anni Haig-Smith as my agent. I quit teaching creative writing at Adult Ed (night classes). Year of no cons (sad!) but  looneymoth finally made it back to live in Hobart. Received my first Aurealis Award nomination for “Fleshy.”

2009 – Raeli started kindergarten. I got my driving license. Mostly, I worked on Creature Court books for Voyager. My first Aurealis Awards ceremony, and my last ROR for a while – two trips to Brisbane! This one was back to Montville, full circle, and I brought my most recent version of P&M along for final feedback. Exhibited my charm quilt. Joined Twitter. Two AA nominations. And, oh yes, Jem joined the family.

Tags: 2009, decade in review, family, talking about myself, writing