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Hanging out in the fog

Brandenburg Gate, January 2011 With few customers a hot coffee is  always a consolation.  This is my favourite holiday snap. I am drawn to the incongruity of the seemingly NQR (not quite right) character (it's a German historical precinct not the North Pole) with a coffee. At the Brandenburg Gate, performers, dressed as WW2 soliders, stand in prime positions and expect payment from tourists who feel the need for a photo opportunity.  This has been feedback week:   1. Monday feedback on Thesis 2. Tuesday feedback on Staff Attitudes to School Survey 3. Wednesday feedback at gym. I feel empathy with the reindeer - will he learn the hard way that he's got it wrong?  But, like the coffe-break reindeer, I also see the sense in reflecting over coffee and ... coffee at Seven Seeds, Carlton is very good.  Feedback question: So, how do you think I’m progressing? In response to feedback here are my SMART goals: 1. writing to a timeline/structure before next meeting with supp

Capturing the essence of 'Fairytales' for German translation

This week I revamped my poster, attempting to simplify it to send to Prof. Dr. Achim Barsch who has a student who is willing to translate it for me. It's difficult to know what to put in or leave out. An exercise in succinctly capturing the essence for another market.

Australian Society of Authors

The Experimedia room in the State Library of Victoria was a surprise. Most of my time at the SLV has been spent hunched over microfiche readers in dark corrals persistently trying to unearth tiny deposits of information on Ernst.  The light-filled bluestone lined courtyard  (once a carpark between buildings) with its modern atrium ceiling and digital tools is an intriguing blend of past and future.  Last night I was delighted that Hazel Edwards invited me to be part of the celebration of the ASA 's 'rebirth' in Victoria, with the opportunity to meet other writers and gain a compelling insight into the future of books and authorship in the digital age. 

Letter to the Editor (but not in German)

  I was fortunate to be in Kassel researching the influence of the Brothers Grimm on the writing of one of Australia's first fairytale writers, Olga Ernst. When I attended the Opening Ceremony of the temporary Bruder-Grimm-Museum, I  was impressed with the quality of the exhibits. The visual imagery of the clothes line, hung with strips of text from the most loved fairytales in the world, drew me into the world of Grimm -  the installation seemed to have been plucked from a peasant's backyard. Being able to see the editorial changes in some of the text will be particularly interesting to those visitors who have only read the later edition of their works. With my very limited German I appreciated that the text is also being provided in English. My friends Thomas and Gerlinde sent me the text of the article 'Im schlauraffenland' 22 jan 2011 and I was pleased to discover that there is an English version as I am only able to read a little of the German edition I was able

Bruder Grimm Centre -visually appealing

A temporary, but visually appealing, home for the Brothers Grimm. I was fortunate to be in Kassel researching the influence of the Brothers Grimm on the writing of one of Australia's first fairytale writers, Olga Ernst, arriving the day before the Opening of the  interm Bruder Grimm Centre (the original is being renovated and will be completed in 2014) . strips of shredded text Although my German is very limited, the passion of the speakers for 'their fairytales' was obvious and the audience was as devoted. Two large rooms are lined with exhibits that carefully and sequentially will take the visitor through the lives and work of the Grimms.   I  was impressed with the quality of the exhibits. The visual imagery of the clothes line, hung with strips of text from the most loved fairytales in the world, drew me into the world of Grimm -  the installation seemed to have been plucked from a peasant's backyard.  Being able to see the editorial changes in s

Exploring the influence of the Grimm Brothers

Rothenburg ob Tauber used in Grimm film. I was intrigued to learn there is high interest around the world about the influence of the Grimms on writing.  Olga Ernst's admittance that she was influenced in her fairytale writing by the Grimms makes her one of this select group. I intend to contact the  group in Canada doing similar work to me.  Since my return I have been in contact with  Dr. Vanessa Joosen (Antwerp University) on who is editing a book on the   translation and reception of Grimm's fairy tales around the world believing that    'A systematic history of the translation of these tales and their reception outside of Germany still needs to be written, and parallels between the reception in different countries or parts of the world are yet largely unexplored. With this volume, the editors hope to gain insight into the afterlife of the Grimm tales in translation, and how they merged with the fairy-tale traditions of other countries and inspired new writin

Das Hildebrandslied - January 18th

Professor Dr.  Barsch arrange for a student guide Annika to accompany us to view some of the oldest manuscripts in Kassel at the Library. The jewel for us was the first scholarly edition produced by the Brothers Grimm (1812) in pride of place next to the two pieces of famous manuscript, The Lay of Hildebrand (800).  A heroic lay that is one of the earliest   literacy work in German written in Old High German alliterative verse. It tells of the tragic encounter in battle between a son and the father he does not recognise. It is written on the first and last pages of a theological manuscript.    There was also an early Gutenburg Bible which was amazing. I think what we have that is comparable in Australia.  Annika Berressem, a student at Kassel University offered to be our guide  and with our friend  Thomas translated much of the notes beside the rare books.