Peter Macinnis, word herder

peter_smiling.jpg - , picture of Peter Macinnis I write for my living, and one way and another, it is a full and pleasant life. I put these pages together to provide background material for people who want to know more about what makes me tick. Lots of writers refer to themselves jokingly as wordsmiths, but most of the time, we don't actually make the words — we just capture them in the wild, wrestle them into shape and force them into place. So that's why I call myself a word herder instead: I face the most unruly words, and I force them to obey my will.

Writing is about telling stories, word herding is about selecting, culling and managing words, telling stories in a coherent way, and that is what I try to do. So I am a word herder.

The other pages:

  • About me
    		•
  • How I get to write a book
    		•
  • What I write: books
    		•
  • Bittersweet: the story of sugar
    		•
  • Why I write
    		•
  • Advice to young writers
    		•
  • What else I write
    		•
  • Rockets: Sulfur, Sputnik and Scramjets
    		•
  • A writer's diary
    		•
  • Some published reviews
    		•
  • I create quizzes
    		•
  • The Killer Bean of Calabar and other stories (aka Poisons)
    		•
  • What I like to read
    		•
  • My Sydney tourist guide
    		•
  • Awards and stuff
    		•
  • Australia's Pioneers, Heroes and Fools
    		•
  • Kokoda Track: 101 Days
    		•

    Books in production

    Available for talks

    I can talk about most things (and often do), but I am mainly useful for talking about writing and researching science and history, and about writing for radio. For bookings, contact Lateral Learning — phone (02)9960-4844.
    This file is http://members.ozemail.com.au/~macinnis/writing/index.htm It was last revised on June 20, 2008, but there are usually fresher pages hanging off this one — I tend to update them and leave this one alone. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials shown here are free of any copyright restrictions, and I can usually be talked out of any I impose, if it is for a good cause. Try me.

    It was created by Peter Macinnis -- macinnis@ozemail.com.au (but mail to that address will BOUNCE. To really get in touch, you need to add my first name at the start of the address -- I am fed up with spam on that other account. Humans can work out how to get the real address, address-harvesting robots can't.)

    people have been here. Not Peter McInnes, Peter McInnis, Peter Macinnes, Peter Maginnis, Peter McGuinness, Peter McGuiness, or Peter Magennis. (Bittersweet or Rockets or The Killer Bean of Calabar, known in the USA as Poisons or Australia's Pioneers, Fools and Heroes)