Write Around the Murray (WAM) started on Saturday the 16th of September for me. I jumped in my car for a road trip, grabbed a coffee from my local and switched on an episode of the Life Uncut Podcast. Travelling to Albury was so lovely and having the time to duck into GreenStreat was a highlight! If you haven’t been there, it’s one of the best salad bars and the choices are endless!

In the lead-up to WAM, I’d been reading Kate Mildenhall’s latest novel called The Hummingbird Effect. This book was incredibly hard to put down, to the point that I had to take my delicious salad and perch myself in the city’s park to read for a bit before heading in to listen to Debra Dank and Kathryn Heyman.

Debra and Kathryn discussed their works on nonfiction and how the heavy experiences they’d had in their lives, lead them being where they are now.

Following this discussion, I went for a wander around Albury’s LibraryMuseum, which is where the WAM Festival is annually held. The space was incredibly inviting and it was clear that all of those within the space were there to have a great time and connect over books.

Albury’s LibraryMuseum held the space of a festival bookshop (of which I attended 😉), a preloved bookshop, selling good quality library books, a fantastic coffee van, workshops spaces for little ones and an awesome podcasting section. This is where you could verbally share your feedback and engage with the creative team of WAM. Such a fantastic idea!

That afternoon, we also heard from Paul Delegano discussing his book Prudish Nation. In this interview we heard about Paul’s experience of reaching out to a large and diverse demographic of authors to interview them on their thoughts around unconventional relationships. Openly, Paul discussed his journey of holding preconceived thoughts around marriage, unity and social norms. And then, how he fell a non-monogamous marriage himself. This discussion was so interesting and clever. I must admit, it wasn’t expecting to walk away with so many thoughts, feelings and preconceived ideas of my own washing away.

After Paul’s interview, we all parted ways to book into motels, grab a drink and refresh before coming back for Stereo Stories.

I must kindly thank WAM for generously gifting me a ticket to Stereo Stories for the evening, with Ann-Marie (WAM’s Director) excitedly telling it is an event NOT to miss – how could I say no!

Upon entering Albury’s LibraryMuseum for Stereo Stories, I bumped into the lovely roaming Poet of WAM, Joel McKerrow, who read me a poem from one of his books and my gosh, did it resonate with me! It was about change, outgrowing environments & experiences, and looking to keep growing as an individual. Joel’s talent for words and expression is extraordinary. He also performed inside as we all gathered for a social drink, nibble and network before heading into what was set to be a sold out show!

Stereo Stories was up there as a highlight of my WAM experience 🎹🥁🎷🎸🎻 🎤 Stereo Stories is where a talented band comes together to combine their love and performance of music, with personal stories and a memory that connects with the particular song played. So for example, Paul Delegano took to the stage to discuss a memory and experience he had with his young child and a Nina Simone song that was playing at the time of that experience taking place. The band then brings the two creative streams together – storytelling and music. Here is a link to Stereo Stories youtube channel for you to discover them for yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe6YSHP5piA

On this evening, I made new bookish friends, connected with many talented people and networked with WAM’s awesome team. It was a joy ⭐️