Totally Lit!

Dan Marais and Danica Patterson discuss Children’s Rights Queensland, the creation of The Big Book of Rights and Hello You! and the organisation’s community programs. Danica describes consulting with 200 children, the fast timeline to publication, and how children’s artwork inspired the illustrations. They also cover upcoming releases, Children’s Week and Child Protection Week events, ambassadorship opportunities, and Danica’s varied publishing experience.

This episode celebrates how authors and community initiatives help raise awareness of children’s rights and offers practical advice for writers interested in working with organisations or pursuing different publishing routes.

Children’s Rights Queensland 

Queensland Child Protection Week – Protecting children is everybody's business

Dannika Patterson

Host: Ky Garvey

Theme Song: Claire Houghton

Logo: Tondo Creative - https://www.tondo.com.au/

Production: Aud Pitch - https://www.virtualcreatrix.com/

Totally Lit is an independent podcast. You can help support us to continue to chat with wonderful Australian creatives by leaving a review on Itunes or sharing our socials with your friends.  You can also make a contribution at:

www.buymeacoffee.com/Totallylit

For those of you who know me I am kind of a caffeine addict! So you can keep me fueled with caffeine and this will also help with equipment & podcasting platform fees etc. 

I love to interact with our listeners so feel free to say hello either by email or social media:

Totallylitpodcast@gmail.com

In this episode Ky Garvey talks with Gabriella Page, an Australian opera chorister living in Italy,  about her new middle-grade mystery The Nardi Puzzle, which sends a 12-year-old into a 13-hour escape game inside an Italian mansion. They discuss Gabriella's pathway to publication, the puzzle design and research behind the book, and how she balances a singing career with writing while staying connected to the Australian kid-lit community from abroad.

Gabriella also shares personal moments from her mentorship experience, coping with loss, and the joys and challenges of creating stories that invite young readers to solve clues alongside the protagonists.

About the book:

Thirteen players. Thirteen hours. One extraordinary prize.

When 12-year-old Sebastian Walker is invited to legendary game-maker Elisabetta Nardi’s mansion in Sardinia, he thinks he can finally leave his troubles behind. Instead, he’s thrust into a real-world escape game with the other twelve guests, and the prize could change his life.

If Sebastian wants to solve the clues hidden around the mysterious East Wing and find the secret exit, he must team up with the bubbly Lali and brilliant Vita. Even as a team, though, it won’t be easy … and elimination is always just around the corner.

The Nardi Puzzle

About the author:

Gabriella Page is a West Australian singer and children’s author based in Italy. Since completing her master’s degree in classical music, she’s worked as an opera chorister, English teacher and occasional translator.
 
In 2022, Gabriella was selected to take part in the ASA/CA Award Mentorship programme. She has a penchant for puzzles and mystery, and she aims to blend humour and darkness in her novels.
 
When Gabriella is not singing or writing, you can find her trawling the gelato shops around Cagliari, hoarding books or applying sunscreen.

To learn more about Gabriella and her upcoming projects, head to www.gabriellapage.com

Host: Ky Garvey

Theme Song: Claire Houghton

Logo: Tondo Creative - https://www.tondo.com.au/

Production: Aud Pitch - https://www.virtualcreatrix.com/

Totally Lit is an independent podcast. You can help support us to continue to chat with wonderful Australian creatives by leaving a review on Itunes or sharing our socials with your friends.  You can also make a contribution at:

www.buymeacoffee.com/Totallylit

For those of you who know me I am kind of a caffeine addict! So you can keep me fueled with caffeine and this will also help with equipment & podcasting platform fees etc. 

I love to interact with our listeners so feel free to say hello either by email or social media:

Totallylitpodcast@gmail.com

Author Dan Thomas chats with Ky Garvey about his new picture book Bedtime and No Butts, the creative process behind writing for children, and the joys and anxieties of being an author. They discuss illustration, publishing journeys, school visits, and connecting with young readers.

The conversation also covers Dan's past work in advertising, stand-up, and documentary filmmaking, plus tips on pitching, writing routines, and the changing landscape of publishing.

About the book: It's bedtime for Boris … but he is not ready! But I can't find Bear! But we haven't had our story! But I'm thirsty! But, but, but! Will Boris ever stop with the bedtime buts?!

A cheeky, charming and all-too relatable story for bedtime wrigglers … (and their poor grown-ups!)

About the author: Dan Thomas has written all sorts of stuff, including comedy, commercials, TV and t-shirts – but what he really loves is picture books! Dan also runs a production company 'All About Me Films' which saves people's stories on film. He has two children and lives in Melbourne with his wife, author Ingrid Laguna.

Dan Thomas | Scholastic Australia

Buy the book: Books | Online Bookshop | QBD (This is an affiliate link)

Host: Ky Garvey

Theme Song: Claire Houghton

Logo: Tondo Creative - https://www.tondo.com.au/

Production: Aud Pitch - https://www.virtualcreatrix.com/

Totally Lit is an independent podcast. You can help support us to continue to chat with wonderful Australian creatives by leaving a review on Itunes or sharing our socials with your friends.  You can also make a contribution at:

www.buymeacoffee.com/Totallylit

For those of you who know me I am kind of a caffeine addict! So you can keep me fueled with caffeine and this will also help with equipment & podcasting platform fees etc. 

I love to interact with our listeners so feel free to say hello either by email or social media:

Totallylitpodcast@gmail.com

Host Ky Garvey chats with Jemima Parker about her debut picture book Poppy Makes Pockets (EK Books), her upcoming titles with EK and Scholastic, and the real-life moments that launched her publishing journey — from open submissions to writing retreats and personal connections.

Jemima shares practical tips for aspiring authors, the joy of collaborating with an illustrator, and release details (Poppy Makes Pockets out 14 July, launch at The Book Cow on 25 July).

About the book:

Poppy loves collecting treasures while out exploring, from smooth stones to glossy feathers and everything in between. But hardly any of her clothes have pockets to carry them! Join Poppy as she sets about solving her pocket-less problem, for herself and the whole neighbourhood. Touching on themes of creativity, fabric upcycling and community, Poppy Makes Pockets will bring a smile to the face of little readers everywhere – and might even inspire some to get crafting themselves.

About the author:

Jemima Parker has been writing and sewing for as long as she can remember, and is passionate about nurturing creativity in children. She holds a degree in Visual Arts (Textiles) from the Australian National University School of Art and Design, and has exhibited widely throughout Australia and abroad.

Poppy Makes Pockets is Jemima’s first picture book. She was inspired to write it by her young nieces, who love to collect treasures but almost never have any pockets to carry them. Inevitably, Jemima ends up carrying a handful of special pebbles, leaves and sticks. She once sewed two large, brightly coloured pockets onto a pair of trousers for her two-year-old niece, so she could carry her own treasures.

When Jemima’s not writing, you’ll find her playing with her dogs, practicing yoga or curled up somewhere with a good book. She was born in a small town on Australia’s far-south coast, and now lives in Canberra.

Poppy Makes Pockets

jemima parker

Buy the book: Books | Online Bookshop | QBD (This is an affiliate link)

Host: Ky Garvey

Theme Song: Claire Houghton

Logo: Tondo Creative - https://www.tondo.com.au/

Production: Aud Pitch - https://www.virtualcreatrix.com/

Totally Lit is an independent podcast. You can help support us to continue to chat with wonderful Australian creatives by leaving a review on Itunes or sharing our socials with your friends.  You can also make a contribution at:

www.buymeacoffee.com/Totallylit

For those of you who know me I am kind of a caffeine addict! So you can keep me fueled with caffeine and this will also help with equipment & podcasting platform fees etc. 

I love to interact with our listeners so feel free to say hello either by email or social media:

Totallylitpodcast@gmail.com

In this episode Ky talks with children’s author Lellie Lopoter about her picture book Bella Grows a Bicycle — a heartwarming tale of a girl who starts with a single seed and, through bartering, upcycling and community swaps, works her way to a bicycle. The story introduces kids to the swap economy, resourcefulness, goal-setting and resilience in a fun, uplifting way.

The conversation also covers the author’s personal background, her research and PhD in sustainability and public value, the publishing process with Five Mile, marketing and launch plans, and upcoming residencies. It’s an encouraging chat about creativity, persistence and making the most of what you have.

About the book:

Join clever and determined Bella on a delightful swapping adventure! Starting with a tiny seed, Bella dreams big and trades her way through a series of creative exchanges, working towards her goal of a shiny new bicycle. Along the way, she discovers the value of patience, resourcefulness, and thinking outside the box.

With charming illustrations and an engaging, feel-good storyline, Bella Grows a Bicycle introduces young readers to early financial literacy concepts in a fun and accessible way, celebrating perseverance, independence, and the joy of achieving a goal.

About the author:

Kellie, publishing under the pseudonym Lellie Lopter, is an award-winning author, illustrator, and creator. She won the Marshall Allan Hill Writing Competition, was a finalist in the NYC Midnight Flash Fiction Competition, and was shortlisted for the Noble Hawk Illustration Prize. Her debut book Rhyme Time (2023) was a finalist in the Wishing Shelf Book Awards, while My Brother Born Sleeping (2023) received an Honourable Mention in the Purple Dragonfly Book Awards.​​​​

​Kellie studied art in Broken Hill, children’s illustration in Mildura, and she completed the Certificate of Professional Children’s Writing with Cengage Australia. She has undertaken mentorships with the NSW Writing Centre and Exisle Academy and she was selected for Writers Victoria’s 2024 Writeability Goes Online program for writers with a disability. Lellie is a passionate advocate for children’s literacy, and she is a member of SCBWI, ASA, and Writers Victoria. Lellie actively contributes to the PLCC Author Backpack Project, the Author Pen Pals Program, the Incognito Art Show, and she leads Sunraysia’s Free Little Library Project.

Home Page | Lellielopter

Bella Grows a Bicycle by Lellie Lopter – Five Mile Press

Buy the book: Books | Online Bookshop | QBD (This is an affiliate link)

Host: Ky Garvey

Theme Song: Claire Houghton

Logo: Tondo Creative - https://www.tondo.com.au/

Production: Aud Pitch - https://www.virtualcreatrix.com/

Totally Lit is an independent podcast. You can help support us to continue to chat with wonderful Australian creatives by leaving a review on Itunes or sharing our socials with your friends.  You can also make a contribution at:

www.buymeacoffee.com/Totallylit

For those of you who know me I am kind of a caffeine addict! So you can keep me fueled with caffeine and this will also help with equipment & podcasting platform fees etc. 

I love to interact with our listeners so feel free to say hello either by email or social media:

Totallylitpodcast@gmail.com