The KidLit Pod
Author Shara Curlett hosts a collective, industry-wide discussion around the importance of books for kids, sharing opinions, thoughts, ideas, research, and the science around the importance of stories and why we need to persist in encouraging our children to turn to a book, rather than a device.
The KidLit Pod
KidLit Hang with Bethany Loveridge, Adrian Beck and Shara Curlett
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And we're back! It's time for our monthly chat with Australian kidlit legends Bethany Loveridge and Adrian Beck, accompanied by our host, NZ author Shara Curlett.
The team joke about Zoom call distractions (including Bethany’s dog, Sugar Plum), before introducing their recent and upcoming books and launches, including Shara's Protector of Beyond launch plans in Brisbane, Bethany’s Josie Mack and the Mega Division, and Adrian’s newly released Nowhere House and his double launch with Amy Doak.
Adrian questions launches, and they discuss how publication days can feel anticlimactic and whether launches make books feel “real”. Betty offers fantastic tips, including assigning people to take photos!
The trio plays a series of would-you-rather questions, shares Bethany’s story of befriending a donkey as a teen, before our shoutout to Adrian's new mystery novel, Nowhere House.
Adrian raises concerns from a recent Guardian Australia article about books going to market too quickly and disappearing fast, touching on sales windows, discoverability, and the value of independent bookshops and smaller presses. This segues into a who would survive a haunted house situation. The answer? Not Adrian. This all leads to a signed-book giveaway. (Information available on The KidLit Pod instagram page.)
The trio finish the chat with some current reads, a film recommendation (Wolfwalkers), shout-outs, and a humorous “surprise” close-up ant image.
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BOOK SHOUTOUT LINK:
Nowhere House by Adrian Beck - published by Scholastic Australia
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FURTHER LINKS:
Bethany Loveridge website - bethanyloveridge.com
Bethany Loveridge on Instagram
Adrian Beck website - adrianbeck.com.au
WHAT WE'RE READING:
Survival Show by Juno Dawon - published by Simon and Schuster
The Witches of Winderry Spires (upcoming release) by Karen Foxlee - published by Allen & Unwin
Don't Forget to Smile by Ariane Beeston - published by Black Inc. Books
TV RECOMMENDATION:
SHOUTOUTS:
Hira Nathan - The Mindful Māori
Follow The KidLit Pod on Instagram (@thekidlitpod)
Find out more about The KidLit Pod host, Shara Curlett, here:
[00:00:00] Shara Curlett: Welcome to The KidLit Pod. I'm Shara Curlett, your host and author of two middle grade novels, Welcome to Miracle, released in 2025, and Protector of Beyond, the first book in an upcoming fantasy series with Penguin Australia, set for release September 2026. Now, it's that time of the month again for another KidLit Hang with Bethany Loveridge and Adrian Beck.
Bethany Loveridge is a children's author and illustrator. She's also a teacher and curriculum specialist, as well as one of the founders of Perentie Press, the new graphic novel imprint. As an emerging author, Bethany won several awards and mentorship opportunities, which led to her debut middle grade fiction, Harper Wells: Renegade Timeline Officer, the first in a series of three books. She's also the author of the magical and funny picture book Genie Snail with Chris Kennett, and her latest junior fiction series, Josie Mack and the Mega Division, illustrated by Jade Goodwin, which is out now.
Adrian Beck is a best-selling author who writes and illustrates funny action-packed stories for kids. His most recent titles include Villain, Villain Respawn, and the Speech Pathology Australia award-winning series, Fox Kid. His latest novel, Nowhere House, has also just been released. Adrian is a former TV producer and a connoisseur of very bad dad jokes. He's appeared at hundreds of schools, and if you'd like to hear more accolades, as he'll tell you himself, just Google him.
In our monthly KidLit Hang episodes, you can expect us to veer off topic, laugh too much, and segue into the most ridiculous conversations. But as I said last month, it's all a bit of fun and we all need some fun in our lives.
So here we go. This month's Kidlit Hang with Betty Love and Adrian Beck.
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[00:01:42] Shara Curlett: All right, team. So here we are again. Welcome Adrian Beck and Bethany Loveridge to The KidLit Pod.
[00:01:48] Adrian Beck: Yay. Yay. Hooray. And some sort of canine member, I can see that's- ... poking his nose into the shot. Well, who's this, Betty?
[00:01:55] Bethany Loveridge: This is Sugar Plum the boxer.
[00:01:57] Adrian Beck: Sugar Plum.
[00:02:00] Bethany Loveridge: Yes. He's very, very handsome and very helpful.
[00:02:03] Adrian Beck: And very affectionate, I see. There's a big slobbery tongue which, uh, gets a bit of a workout.
[00:02:09] Shara Curlett: And does he participate in all your Zoom calls?
[00:02:12] Bethany Loveridge: Uh, yes in some manner.
[00:02:14] Adrian Beck: And, uh, is that a box I can see in the background which is looking pretty full? Uh, what is it, your birthday? What's going on there?
[00:02:24] Bethany Loveridge: Do you know what? Shara and Adrian and I, for the listeners' sake, just talked about the fact that I would open this later. But it's, I believe it's Shara's, Protector of Beyond. Ooh.
[00:02:34] Adrian Beck: It must be pretty big.
[00:02:35] Bethany Loveridge: Well, I think it's pretty special, but all will be revealed at another time when I-
[00:02:40] Adrian Beck: It's a big box. How many books have you got?
[00:02:41] Bethany Loveridge: Well, it's not very heavy, though.
[00:02:44] Adrian Beck: Right. Okay.
[00:02:45] Bethany Loveridge: So.
[00:02:45] Adrian Beck: Wow. I dunno. Well, that's exciting. And the, what, the Protector of Beyond? It's not far away, right?
[00:02:50] Shara Curlett: Uh, yeah, a couple of months now, so, ooh.
[00:02:54] Bethany Loveridge: That's, that's an interesting noise to make. Ugh.
[00:02:57] Shara Curlett: Well, at some- I was listening to, I was listening to Adrian drinking.
[00:03:00] Adrian Beck: Sorry about that. Uh. So you were reacting to my drink more so than the arc coming out.
[00:03:04] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, fair enough.
[00:03:05] Adrian Beck: So I took a sip, Shara goes, "Ugh." I'll refrain from drinking on camera for the rest of this chat. But is that an excited sound, Shara, about-
[00:03:14] Shara Curlett: Oh yes, you know when things take so long and you feel like you've been waiting forever? I'm just super excited for people to read it, so yeah. Good noise. Even though it didn't sound like it.
[00:03:25] Adrian Beck: I think it was more a reaction to seeing me slurping on an ice coffee. That was, that's enough for, send anyone over the edge.
[00:03:31] Bethany Loveridge: Hey, I also bought this book the other day.
[00:03:34] Adrian Beck: What?
[00:03:34] Shara Curlett: Oh, look at it.
[00:03:36] Adrian Beck: My goodness.
[00:03:37] Shara Curlett: That is awesome ...
[00:03:37] Bethany Loveridge: This book is called Nowhere House by Adrian Beck. I don't actually think it's out yet. Is it out yet?
[00:03:42] Adrian Beck: I don't think it is, no. But by the time this drops, it's probably out.
[00:03:46] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, yeah, okay. And I read it, and it was brilliant.
[00:03:48] Adrian Beck: Oh. You're, what a legend. Thank you very much. And Josie Mack is out, isn't it?
[00:03:55] Shara Curlett: Yes.
[00:03:56] Bethany Loveridge: It is. Sure is.
[00:03:57] Adrian Beck: Yes.
[00:03:57] Bethany Loveridge: And it even made its way to New Zealand.
[00:03:59] Shara Curlett: It did. It lew, flew over the ocean and made its way into my hot little hands. And Oh, you should have seen my daughter's reaction. She snatched it out of my hands, sat down, and then it was just, like, face in a book for the next-
[00:04:12] Adrian Beck: How good ...
[00:04:12] Shara Curlett: Yeah. She loved it. Spoiler alert.
[00:04:15] Adrian Beck: The cover-
[00:04:15] Bethany Loveridge: Fantastic ...
[00:04:16] Adrian Beck: -looks fantastic, too. Who's your illustrator for the cover, Betty?
[00:04:19] Bethany Loveridge: Jade Goodwin did the illustrations. Not just the cover, but there's internal illustrations, too, so.
[00:04:24] Adrian Beck: Fantastic.
[00:04:25] Shara Curlett: How's this- Yeah, those are beautiful. They're so good.
[00:04:26] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, agreed. Hard agree. It's incredible.
[00:04:26] Adrian Beck: Now, can I ask you a controversial question?
[00:04:32] Bethany Loveridge: Me?
[00:04:33] Adrian Beck: Both of you.
[00:04:33] Shara Curlett: Is this a surprise that you're mentioning?
[00:04:35] Adrian Beck: No, no. This is a ... Oh, it might be. I, I did say in the group chat that I had a surprise. Maybe this could be half a surprise. I have an interesting take on publication days. Now, I have to preface this by saying having a book out is fantastic, and we love it obviously.
[00:04:51] Adrian Beck: But do either of you find that publication days are a real letdown? A real flatener.
[00:04:59] Bethany Loveridge: Well, I do. I mean, Shara and I have talked about this before actually, because we've both rocked up at bookstores on publication day and like-
[00:05:06] Shara Curlett: Where's my book? ...
[00:05:08] Bethany Loveridge: dogs are killing each other, and be like, "We're here to sign our books." And they're like, "Who are you? What's your book?" Never heard of it. So it's, it's sort of more of a guideline. Kind of like when you get a due date when you're expecting a child, Adrian. Yes. You... Well, I mean, you've got children.
[00:05:22] Adrian Beck: I do, yeah. And they've not come- And they didn't come on the exact date No. Yeah.
[00:05:26] Bethany Loveridge: No, they don't. Actually, both of mine were, like, two, t- 10 days and two weeks over. So-
[00:05:31] Adrian Beck: Mm ...
[00:05:32] Bethany Loveridge: it's that, it's that kind of like, "It's arrived," but it hasn't.
[00:05:36] Shara Curlett: Yeah. And then you're just waiting. Yeah.
[00:05:38] Adrian Beck: I feel like you kind of expect, you know, some sort of amazing, day where, everyone's just coming up to you, asking for autographs and, uh you're chauffeured around in a limo to all the amazing events that are happening on that one day. But really, most the time it just comes and goes, and you're not even really sure if it really happened, right?
[00:05:57] Bethany Loveridge: Well, I mean, you can do it yourself. You can celebrate yourself. You should start to do that.
[00:06:01] Adrian Beck: What do you do?
[00:06:02] Bethany Loveridge: Take yourself out for breakfast. Just tell everyone, like, while you're buying your morning coffee- "my book's out today. Oh, oh, I've got one in my bag. Here it is."
[00:06:11] Adrian Beck: Yeah, that's right.
[00:06:13] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, so let me tell you about it. I'm sure you would be good at that, Adrian, actually.
[00:06:17] Adrian Beck: I think that, that could actually be... Yeah, that could be the next phase.
[00:06:19] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. And they will be, ... I mean, you're their customer- Mm so they'll be happy for you. That would be a great way to start. Yeah. And then everywhere you go, like school drop off.
[00:06:27] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:06:28] Bethany Loveridge: "Hey, how you going?" "Oh, yeah, you know, good. My book's out today. Oh, here it is."
[00:06:33] Shara Curlett: It's been a while since your debut, Adrian. What did you do when your-
[00:06:36] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah ...
[00:06:36] Shara Curlett: -very first book
[00:06:37] Bethany Loveridge: On, on account of being so, so old, Adrian.
[00:06:40] Adrian Beck: Um- On account of being so old, yes ...
[00:06:41] Bethany Loveridge: it's been a while.
[00:06:41] Adrian Beck: Um, it was a... Have a look, it was about 15 years ago. It was 14, 15 years ago.
[00:06:46] Shara Curlett: Was it?
[00:06:47] Adrian Beck: Yeah. Wow ... what did I do? I, I, maybe this is a hangover from that. I didn't do much at all. It was just a standard day. I was still working in TV. So I hadn't turned into a full-time author just yet. So I had a lot of other [00:07:00] things on my plate, and, um, it just sort of came and went. But I think- I don't know. I just sort of feel like, you know how movie stars have the movie premieres? And there's a big red carpet event and all that sort of stuff. And if you're a sports person, you got like the World Cup or a grand final or whatever it might be. I feel like there needs to be ... I suppose maybe it's the launch. Is the launch the equivalent, do you think? If you don't have a launch, maybe you're missing out on that visual moment where it's officially out. Maybe that's the thing. Yeah.
[00:07:27] Shara Curlett: Maybe. I chose not to have a launch for my first book, and I'm not sure why. I just ... I don't know. I just didn't want to. My son wasn't in school yet, so I just hung out with my husband and my son. And like Bethany and I have talked about, I went to one bookstore and it was there and it was amazing. Then I went to the second bookstore and it wasn't. So instead we went to an art gallery. We had lunch, and then we had pizza and wine for dinner and watched a movie, and it was an amazing day.
[00:07:53] Adrian Beck: That's a good way of doing it, actually. Mm.
[00:07:54] Shara Curlett: Yep.
[00:07:54] Bethany Loveridge: Do you remember, maybe you don't remember, I was still aspiring at this point, but I think it was 2021 after the year that was 2020, they had a debut ball. Do you remember that? Like, watching all of the ...
[00:08:06] Adrian Beck: Yeah. Yeah.
[00:08:07] Bethany Loveridge: I was just-
[00:08:07] Adrian Beck: I remember seeing that online, yeah.
[00:08:09] Bethany Loveridge: And it was huge. And I I don't know if it was connected to ... Yeah, I was trying to Google and find out what it was connected to, but someone, I think probably, Love Your Bookshop Day. Mm. It was that crew. Anyway, someone threw this debut ball for authors who missed out on having a launch because of COVID.
[00:08:23] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:08:24] Bethany Loveridge: And it was, and it was epic. I mean, maybe we need a debut ball every year, like for Australian authors. Fun.
[00:08:28] Shara Curlett: That's a good idea.
[00:08:30] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:08:30] Bethany Loveridge: Isn't it?
[00:08:31] Adrian Beck: Debut crew.
[00:08:32] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. Well, it is like the debut crew,
[00:08:33] Adrian Beck: but with an event ... epic.
[00:08:34] Shara Curlett: With an event.
[00:08:34] Adrian Beck: Yeah, I like that. Yeah.
[00:08:35] Adrian Beck: And then
[00:08:37] Bethany Loveridge: have a bookseller come along and, and sell everyone's books and-
[00:08:40] Shara Curlett: That's a great idea ...
[00:08:41] Bethany Loveridge: and you have to dress up and- I agree. Someone should make that happen. And then-
[00:08:45] Shara Curlett: yeah, someone else.
[00:08:46] Adrian Beck: Someone who's actually in the Debut crew now, which none of us are.
[00:08:50] Bethany Loveridge: No. Oh, well, it could be sponsored by, like, Clive Palmer. No, it could be sponsored by The Kid Lit pod- KidLit Pod cast.
[00:08:59] Adrian Beck: Yes, that's true.
[00:09:00] Shara Curlett: Oh, could it?
[00:09:00] Adrian Beck: 'Cause that's a- Yeah ... that's a goldmine, that-
[00:09:01] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah ...
[00:09:02] Shara Curlett: and that, in turn, could be sponsored by, like, you know, something else.
[00:09:07] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. Clive Palmer.
[00:09:09] Adrian Beck: So tell me this Betty, you did a launch, Did that make it feel real? Do you reckon that ticks that box?
[00:09:14] Bethany Loveridge: You know what? I've had three books out, and I have done the silliest things. So, the first book came out last September, which is also when I turned 40, and so I had-
[00:09:23] Adrian Beck: No. No ...
[00:09:24] Bethany Loveridge: yeah, it's a true story. And I had a... I booked one hall, and I just had my
[00:09:30] Adrian Beck: Sorry, I was covering my mouth as I took a sip of coffee because-
[00:09:33] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, that was way less distracting ...
[00:09:34] Adrian Beck: it got such a visceral reaction from Shara last time that I didn't wanna send her over. Yeah.
[00:09:39] Bethany Loveridge: So I thought it would be good, right? Because I'm gonna have friends come up from New South Wales and wherever they're coming from, and so they can just come up for one day. So I had my book launch in the afternoon, and I had over 100 people there. It was, it was-
[00:09:52] Adrian Beck: That's good ...
[00:09:52] Bethany Loveridge: -huge. Epic. And then I went home for an outfit change and a- three shots of coffee and 20-minute nap, and thought, "Can I cancel it? No." And then went back and had my 40th in the same hall. So it was like, it was epic.
[00:10:06] Shara Curlett: Wow.
[00:10:06] Adrian Beck: Did anyone stick around, like, from the launch and they just sort of hung around in the hall as it became the party?
[00:10:11] Bethany Loveridge: It was interesting because I had to tell people. Like, I think some people hung out in the car park. But I couldn't-
[00:10:20] Adrian Beck: You had to, you had to get them out, did you?
[00:10:21] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, we had to do a lockup because it was, I had to have a security guard for my birthday party, basically. So it needed to be two separate events. Otherwise I would've had to pay for a security guard for, like, 12 hours. So yes, it was pretty large. And then with my, with Genie Snail, I thought, "Oh, I'm only gonna have a launch in Melbourne at The Little Bookroom," 'cause Chris is down there in Bendigo. He was gonna come too, Chris Kennett, the illustrator.
[00:10:44] Adrian Beck: Mm.
[00:10:44] Bethany Loveridge: But then my family and friends up here were kind of like, "Oh, that's a rip." So I ended up having one here in Brisbane, and then one there. And then I did the same thing for Josie Mack. I thought, "I'm just gonna have one in Sydney-
[00:10:55] Adrian Beck: Mm ...
[00:10:56] Bethany Loveridge: at Glee Books 'cause Jade's down there in Hunter Valley, so she can come to that." And then again, I just changed my mind two weeks before and had one in Brisbane. So I managed to have, like, multiple launches for my second and third book. So that's pretty obvious that there's something happening, like
[00:11:10] Adrian Beck: I'd say so. But Shara, what are you gonna do for Protector of Beyond? Are you gonna change your- Yeah ... whole mindset? Are you gonna set up some sort of massive event- Ooh ... slash birthday party?
[00:11:20] Shara Curlett: I don't know what I can and can't say yet. I don't know what details are-
[00:11:23] Adrian Beck: But there's something.
[00:11:24] Shara Curlett: There's something. Yeah, there's something. And, someone here that we're chatting with right now might be involved as well.
[00:11:30] Adrian Beck: Well, it's not me, so I'm trying to narrow it down.
[00:11:32] Bethany Loveridge: It's Sugar Plum.
[00:11:34] Adrian Beck: Oh, and is that going to be... it'll be in Australia, right? There'll be something in Australia.
[00:11:38] Shara Curlett: Yep. I am heading over to Australia and we're gonna launch it in Brisbane, which is very, very cool. I am super excited.
[00:11:45] Adrian Beck: That's great. And then will you do, like, a little bit of a tour of all the capital cities and, that sort of... A bit like, you know, Oprah when she visited Australia?
[00:11:53] Bethany Loveridge: Or Prince Harry or...
[00:11:55] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:11:55] Shara Curlett: I'll head over to Sydney afterwards, but, you know, my kids are young and, I just, I don't wanna leave them for too long, so-
[00:12:02] Adrian Beck: Yeah, yeah ...
[00:12:02] Shara Curlett: -ask me again next year when they're a little bit older. I don't know.
[00:12:05] Bethany Loveridge: yeah. What about you, Adrian, given that your book is already out but not out?
[00:12:08] Adrian Beck: Mm. Well, I'm doing a double book launch with Amy Doak, which will be-
[00:12:13] Bethany Loveridge: Ah.
[00:12:13] Adrian Beck: -Good fun at The Book Room. And by the time this drops, you know, we can safely say it went really, really well. Um, but-
[00:12:21] Shara Curlett: When is it?
[00:12:22] Adrian Beck: It is and was on July the 4th- at 2:00 PM. And, yeah, it was good fun. Amy's, obviously written some great mystery, sort of murder mystery, sort of not always murder mystery, books. Eleanor Jones series has been huge, so it is great to always catch up with her. So We're gonna have, and did have, a lot of fun, putting each other on the spot with, tricky questions. And I've got a few surprises up my sleeve, which will- Ooh ... not surprise anyone. Um- And yes, uh, she did or did not react well to them, I can certainly say.
[00:12:51] Shara Curlett: And do you find, doing, like, a double launch, uh, what's the difference for you in doing a double launch versus a [00:13:00] single launch?
[00:13:01] Adrian Beck: I hadn't done a launch for ages, and maybe that is why I have this kind of question about, is launch day a letdown, or is it not? Because-
[00:13:10] Bethany Loveridge: Not ...
[00:13:10] Adrian Beck: -I hadn't been marketing it-
[00:13:11] Bethany Loveridge: It's awesome ...
[00:13:11] Adrian Beck: -with, with any... It's awesome, yes. Betty says it's awesome. But I hadn't been marketing it with any sort of, actual in real life event. So I thought, it's about time I did. I'll just test the waters and see how it goes.
[00:13:23] Adrian Beck: And then I thought, it would be more fun for me if I could do it with someone, and it would be like a, you know, a joint celebration. So I just randomly texted Amy, 'cause she lives down in Victoria as well, and she has a book coming out at the same time. And she's, she was so open to it, I was like, hang on, maybe I've texted the wrong Amy.
[00:13:42] Adrian Beck: Like, what's going on here? You know? And she, she was like, "Yeah, let's do it. This sounds great." Then it was all happening. So yeah. I also find with books that are for slightly older kids, but not yet teenagers, It's really hard to get actual kids to come to your launch. When you're writing picture books, you can get toddlers and preschoolers and even, you know, preps and grade ones, you can get them along. The parents are pretty engaged in what they're reading at that stage. Once you get to upper middle grade, lower YA, uh, as, as Sugarplum is, uh, licking the camera in agreeance. It's hard to get the kids along. I think you're getting more teacher librarians and author friends along at that age. What do you guys reckon?
[00:14:22] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, absolutely. I think teacher librarians are probably super keen to come along to, you know, any kind of high school reader event to try and get bangers. And Amy Doak would be popular in high schools, for sure.
[00:14:36] Shara Curlett: I just say it's super hard to take you seriously when you've got a ... there's like a big dog muzzle in the camera.
[00:14:45] Adrian Beck: The, the ... Not only that, the dog is licking, and so it looks like the dog's actually speaking and, and Betty's the voice of the dog.
[00:14:51] Bethany Loveridge: I'm so sorry. Ah, he's a he's a lovely boy. Um, yeah, I don't even know what the question was.
[00:15:00] Bethany Loveridge: I forgot.
[00:15:02] Adrian Beck: That's okay. You do have a dog that's sort of stealing a lot of focus. But we can all look forward to Shara's big launch later in the year.
[00:15:09] Shara Curlett: Well, I was just gonna say, Adrian, for yours are you taking an, a physical red carpet?
[00:15:13] Adrian Beck: I should, shouldn't I? Uh, no, I am not. and did not. But I am going to take a couple of little props and things like that, just to elevate it above, being a chat, slightly. But most of it will be a chat. We're gonna interview each other and put each other under the pump.
[00:15:29] Bethany Loveridge: What you do have to do, or what you should do, and this is what I suggest to anyone who's never had a launch before, is to just ... you need to put several people in charge of taking photos.
[00:15:40] Adrian Beck: Ah.
[00:15:40] Bethany Loveridge: Cause otherwise you will do this whole amazing thing and get out the other side and go, "Oh, I didn't take any photos." 'Cause you're busy. And my debut, as I said, there was over 100 people there and I didn't ... Like, what I would give for a photo of me, ... with all the people, like who came to support me behind me. Like that would've been a, a treasured [00:16:00] thing. I can't have a debut again. I'm probably never gonna pull that many people. Mm. Um, so ha. You guys sp- that's where you're supposed to say, "Stop it, Bethany." "Hundreds of people will come to you." You know?
[00:16:11] Shara Curlett: We missed our cue, Adrian.
[00:16:13] Adrian Beck: Yeah. Yes. S- sorry. The, the, that'll be the smallest- Just ed- ... that they'll ever be, the crowds. Yeah.
[00:16:18] Bethany Loveridge: That's- Just edit, edit that in later, Shara. Like right after I say I'll never pull a crowd like that. Just ... No. Uh, yeah, so that's my suggestion, or my recommendation. ... Like last time I I had a launch and my friends were all saying, "What can we do? What can we do?" And I was like, "Oh, take lots of photos." Like-
[00:16:33] Shara Curlett: That's a good point, actually. ... So what other tips do you have?
[00:16:36] Bethany Loveridge: Well, that's a good one because my memory is really bogus. But apart from that- I don't know. My last launch was very different in that I played a lot of games, and I had some kids say to me afterwards, that's the most fun they've had at a book launch. s been more about, like, the adult audience that are there. And I mean, that's gonna be interesting, Adrian, if you, like, have all these fun and silly games for, you know, for tweens to play, and then you just have a room full of adults. I mean, they'd get behind it too.
[00:17:05] Adrian Beck: Well, they would, because they know that I'm an imbecile. And, that's all part of it. And then I'll have Amy, who's not an imbecile, and she'll bring us back to some normality.
[00:17:12] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. No, she was ... Like, in retrospect, she was a great choice like, that worked out really well. There was a balance there.
[00:17:18] Shara Curlett: It was a nice balance, yeah.
[00:17:20] Adrian Beck: Yes. Yeah. It was, it was excellent, wasn't it? Mm.
[00:17:22] Bethany Loveridge: And in the photos too, it was, you know, 'cause she's beautiful and-
[00:17:25] Adrian Beck: Yeah ...
[00:17:25] Bethany Loveridge: you know,
[00:17:27] Adrian Beck: -there's a balance. Yeah. There's r- a real sort of balance. Yin, Yin and yang. Yeah. I see what you're saying, yeah.
[00:17:31] Shara Curlett: Are you gonna record it?
[00:17:32] Adrian Beck: Um, maybe. Should I record it? Maybe I'll record it.
[00:17:35] Shara Curlett: I think you should. Yeah.
[00:17:36] Adrian Beck: Yeah. Yeah. I hadn't thought of that.
[00:17:37] Shara Curlett: And then put it on your podcast.
[00:17:38] Adrian Beck: Yeah. I'll put it on my podcast, and then I'll, you know, inflict it on your podcast as well-
[00:17:43] Shara Curlett: Yeah ...
[00:17:44] Adrian Beck: -so that you get a week off having t- to record.
[00:17:46] Shara Curlett: Oh, Sold. Done. We can just put out the same podcast on our, our-
[00:17:51] Adrian Beck: That's right. Different intro and outro.
[00:17:54] Bethany Loveridge: All right, Shara, Now that we're half an hour into this, are we gonna start with, uh, would you rathers?
[00:17:59] Shara Curlett: Yeah, we are gonna move into would you rathers, and this time I only have three.
[00:18:04] Bethany Loveridge: Okay.
[00:18:05] Shara Curlett: So-
[00:18:05] Adrian Beck: That's cool ...
[00:18:06] Shara Curlett: -but I have thought of, a consequence if you don't answer.
[00:18:09] Bethany Loveridge: Ooh. Okay.
[00:18:10] Adrian Beck: Jeepers.
[00:18:12] Shara Curlett: And Adrian is having another drink. I really feel like the hand makes it worse.
[00:18:19] Adrian Beck: Oh. Sorry about that. Gee, I mean-
[00:18:23] Bethany Loveridge: That's r- that's a red card, that is ...
[00:18:25] Adrian Beck: I mean, I can't, I can't even have a drink, hidden by my hand. What I'm gonna do is I'm gonna turn my camera off if I need to have a drink.
[00:18:32] Bethany Loveridge: Just go like this.
[00:18:33] Adrian Beck: Yeah, okay. I'll just, uh, I'll try this camera.
[00:18:34] Shara Curlett: I'm glad to see it's not your wife delivering it to you again, otherwise I'd start to believe that's kind of a thing.
[00:18:40] Adrian Beck: No, no, that was, uh, I'd love to make that a thing- ... but it's not a thing. It's more the other way around actually. All right. What have, what have you got for us, Shara?
[00:18:49] Shara Curlett: The consequence, yeah, the consequence for the would you rather, if you don't answer, you need to do a signed book giveaway.
[00:18:55] Adrian Beck: Oh. Ooh. Jeepers. But that-
[00:18:57] Bethany Loveridge: That sounds fun.
[00:18:59] Shara Curlett: Okay. Done. So would you rather own a rhino the size of a hamster or a hamster the size of a rhino?
[00:19:05] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, a mini rhino. Jeepers. That's like- I know ... that's the coolest thing ever.
[00:19:10] Shara Curlett: Cute, right?
[00:19:11] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, heck yeah.
[00:19:12] Shara Curlett: I'd like quite a few of them.
[00:19:13] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah.
[00:19:14] Adrian Beck: Yeah, but-
[00:19:14] Bethany Loveridge: Like a little pack ...
[00:19:14] Adrian Beck: -how good would be a massive hamster? Good for what? Well, w- watching TV, you wouldn't need a couch. You could just sort of curl up into the hamster.
[00:19:20] Bethany Loveridge: Ah. You know? Yeah. I don't know.
[00:19:21] Shara Curlett: And the heartbeat just gives you the comfort.
[00:19:23] Adrian Beck: Yeah,
[00:19:24] Bethany Loveridge: that's right. Can I just ask, Shara, 'cause you're in New Zealand, but do you have hamsters? 'Cause we don't, like-
[00:19:29] Shara Curlett: I think we have guinea pigs, but I don't-
[00:19:31] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, we have guinea pigs.
[00:19:32] Shara Curlett: Yeah.
[00:19:33] Adrian Beck: We don't have rhinos either.
[00:19:33] Shara Curlett: Are you changing the question again?
[00:19:36] Bethany Loveridge: No.
[00:19:37] Adrian Beck: She wants it to be native.
[00:19:39] Shara Curlett: Can we make this accurate?
[00:19:40] Adrian Beck: That's right. I mean, you're in New Zealand, so I don't think this is very accurate about a life-size massive hamster.
[00:19:47] Bethany Loveridge: Well, we don't have rhinos in Australia either, to be fair. But it's just that I know what a rhino is, and I don't know if I know what a hamster is. 'Cause they're not the same as a guinea pig.
[00:19:57] Shara Curlett: No.
[00:19:57] Bethany Loveridge: No.
[00:19:57] Shara Curlett: Aren't they very similar though? Like-
[00:19:59] Adrian Beck: Surely.
[00:20:00] Bethany Loveridge: Are they more- ... like rodent-y? No. How can they be more ro- y- like more rat-like than a guinea pig?
[00:20:06] Shara Curlett: Are they smaller or bigger? I don't even know.
[00:20:08] Adrian Beck: What are you worried about them?
[00:20:09] Bethany Loveridge: I think-
[00:20:10] Adrian Beck: What's the difference? Do you think they've got some sort of stinger on their back end or something? What?
[00:20:14] Bethany Loveridge: Well, see, I own guinea pigs, and they can be nasty, right? So I wouldn't want a big one.
[00:20:18] Shara Curlett: Oh.
[00:20:18] Bethany Loveridge: But maybe- Ah,
[00:20:19] Shara Curlett: you own guinea pigs?
[00:20:20] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah.
[00:20:21] Adrian Beck: right. Whereas rhinos are, are known to be very affectionate.
[00:20:23] Adrian Beck: Well, yeah. Yeah, well that, that's ri- at least they're not hippos. I wouldn't want it. Like, although a little mini hippo.
[00:20:29] Shara Curlett: Oh, can you imagine it swimming in, like, the sink or the bathtub?
[00:20:32] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, I'm sorry, but I was obsessed with Mudang, last year. So Mudang the pygmy hippo. So this would be like a pygmy, pygmy hippo. It would be, like, out of this world. Oh. So my answer is a hippo the size of a guinea pig.
[00:20:46] Shara Curlett: Me too.
[00:20:48] Adrian Beck: I want a massive hamster that I can sort of snuggle up into on cold nights.
[00:20:52] Bethany Loveridge: Well, I have a massive sugar plum I can snuggle up and, you know, he's pretty good.
[00:20:56] Shara Curlett: I feel like our choices reflect our personalities quite well.
[00:21:01] Adrian Beck: I don't know what she means by that.
[00:21:03] Shara Curlett: All right, next one. Would you rather your food always be too hot, not spicy hot, like heat hot, or always too cold? Everything you eat.
[00:21:12] Bethany Loveridge: Too hot.
[00:21:13] Adrian Beck: that's- Yeah, I think hot 'cause you can just wait, can't you?
[00:21:15] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, that's a really silly question.
[00:21:16] Shara Curlett: But then you have to wait.
[00:21:18] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah,
[00:21:18] Shara Curlett: but- Like, it's burning hot.
[00:21:20] Adrian Beck: Yeah, but surely you don't have to wait 10 minutes.
[00:21:22] Bethany Loveridge: No. You just get a bit on your fork
[00:21:24] Adrian Beck: And,
[00:21:25] Shara Curlett: and- Well, say you're in a hot country and it takes, like, an hour to cool down
[00:21:29] Bethany Loveridge: Well, you got bigger problems. If you're
[00:21:32] Adrian Beck: taking an hour to cool down, that's a really hot country.
[00:21:34] Bethany Loveridge: Just put it in the fridge for five seconds. Not that long.
[00:21:38] Shara Curlett: Chill it a bit longer. You're making me regret my question choice. I might have to think of a different one.
[00:21:41] Adrian Beck: I do. Sometimes when you're at the footy and it's freezing cold, a very piping hot pie is exactly what you want. You want your mouth just blistering.
[00:21:49] Bethany Loveridge: Oh.
[00:21:50] Adrian Beck: Maybe. You don't quite agree with that, Shara?
[00:21:51] Shara Curlett: Well, I like ice a lot. I like ice drinks and ice.
[00:21:55] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:21:56] Bethany Loveridge: I just think tepid stuff is bad, and plus you could be going into, like, food poisoning land, so.
[00:22:02] Shara Curlett: Excellent point. Okay. I actually just retract the question. So I don't want an answer.
[00:22:07] Adrian Beck: I think Shara's gonna be sending out the book this week.
[00:22:09] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, I think she is too.
[00:22:10] Shara Curlett: Say you were locked in a room full of spiders.
[00:22:13] Adrian Beck: Ah. Can we not?
[00:22:14] Shara Curlett: Would you rather have the lights off or the lights on?
[00:22:17] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, on?
[00:22:18] Adrian Beck: Gee, you'd have to be on, wouldn't you? You'd, you'd wanna see what's coming at you, wouldn't you?
[00:22:21] Shara Curlett: Would you?
[00:22:21] Adrian Beck: Otherwise you'd feel like everything's-
[00:22:22] Adrian Beck: Wait.
[00:22:22] Adrian Beck: All right ... everything- But then you'd just
[00:22:23] Adrian Beck: have the noise
[00:22:24] Bethany Loveridge: I'm, I'm really sorry to be this guy, but what kind of spiders because-
[00:22:28] Adrian Beck: Oh, are they native to Australia?
[00:22:30] Shara Curlett: Huntsman.
[00:22:30] Bethany Loveridge: Huntsman Oh, well off then.
[00:22:32] Shara Curlett: What's worse?
[00:22:32] Bethany Loveridge: Like, if they were red, if they're redbacks I'd want the light on.
[00:22:35] Adrian Beck: Well, you like huntsmen- That- ... do you?
[00:22:37] Bethany Loveridge: No, but they're not gonna hurt you. You could just have the lights off and maybe, you know, meditate, get your-
[00:22:42] Adrian Beck: What about daddy long legs?
[00:22:44] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, fine. Turn the lights off. Don't need to know about it. But redbacks, like something that's gonna hurt you, you want the light on so you can kill them.
[00:22:51] Adrian Beck: I mean, I just want the light on no matter what 'cause I don't want them anywhere near me.
[00:22:55] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, fair enough.
[00:22:56] Adrian Beck: So I'm just gonna be on the lookout and sort of doing like some kung fu, sort [00:23:00] of if it's coming at me I'm gonna go bang, like that, you know?
[00:23:02] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. Probably use a shoe.
[00:23:03] Shara Curlett: So I'm actually gonna do a few more because I feel like we need to amp this up.
[00:23:07] Bethany Loveridge: Did you just Google really good would you rathers?
[00:23:10] Shara Curlett: Yeah, I did.
[00:23:10] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, she did.
[00:23:12] Shara Curlett: Except they're not that good, so I might have to just make it up. Would you rather use chopsticks for the rest of your life- Yes ... or your feet to eat with?
[00:23:20] Bethany Loveridge: Chopsticks.
[00:23:21] Adrian Beck: I think chopsticks. My feet, they go in bad places.
[00:23:25] Bethany Loveridge: I'm pretty good at, I'm pretty good at using chopsticks, so.
[00:23:28] Adrian Beck: With your
[00:23:29] Bethany Loveridge: No, with my hands.
[00:23:30] Adrian Beck: Makes sense.
[00:23:31] Shara Curlett: Would you, Would you rather your only mode of transportation be a donkey or a giraffe?
[00:23:36] Bethany Loveridge: Donkey. I love donkeys. Mm.
[00:23:38] Shara Curlett: have you met a donkey?
[00:23:39] Bethany Loveridge: Yes, I have. Oh. I have actually bonded with a donkey.
[00:23:42] Bethany Loveridge: Like-
[00:23:42] Shara Curlett: You've bonded with one?
[00:23:43] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. And, and-
[00:23:45] Shara Curlett: So Adrian, uh, just, Adrian's just doing like a, "What do you even call that?"
[00:23:51] Adrian Beck: What? Uh, I, I just think she should've wound that up, but, um,
[00:23:55] Bethany Loveridge: I reckon- I didn't, I didn't tell the whole story. There is a story. Let me tell you now.
[00:23:58] Shara Curlett: I wanna hear the story.
[00:23:59] Adrian Beck: I like giraffes, but I wanna hear the story.
[00:24:01]
[00:24:06] Bethany Loveridge: School finished, I enrolled in university, I went for two weeks, I realised that, um, there's this thing called studying which I'd never done in my whole school career, and so I rocked up at class and I didn't even know where to find the readings, let alone hadn't read them. And so I dropped out of uni and moved with my parents, to like country Queensland, and I was basically the only young person.
[00:24:30] Bethany Loveridge: I got a job picking passionfruit, and I would walk a lot around the place, and I found a donkey that was, like, living in the back of behind a hall by a creek by itself, like no houses around. And I kind of would walk past it every day, and it would ignore me and, like, go to the opposite side of the paddock.
[00:24:47] Bethany Loveridge: But by the end of my year there we were like, we were besties. So I kind of kept going to visit it, and then I started taking it apples and carrots, and then it would get to the point where it would see me and gallop.
[00:24:58] Shara Curlett: Aw.
[00:24:58] Bethany Loveridge: Um, or, or be, like be [00:25:00] waiting for me there, and then when I would leave it would cry.
[00:25:03] Bethany Loveridge: Like it-
[00:25:03] Shara Curlett: Oh, make that noise like...
[00:25:05] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah ... yeah. Mournful, kind of eeoring, as I would walk away, so. Mm. And I never knew who it belonged to, never had a friend. And so I would go there and spend like an hour just talking, telling it about stuff, and we'd go down to the creek together and- So yeah, I really like donkeys.
[00:25:21]
[00:25:23] Shara Curlett: Should we... We need like music montage.
[00:25:26] Bethany Loveridge: I mean, that's up to you. You gotta do the editing,
[00:25:28]
[00:25:28] Adrian Beck: I feel like you're kind of a bit like Shrek
[00:25:30] Bethany Loveridge: Well, no
[00:25:30] Adrian Beck: Well no? What do you mean no?
[00:25:31] Bethany Loveridge: I mean, there's a donkey in Shrek, and I just told this-
[00:25:34] Adrian Beck: Yeah, and y- yeah, the donkey was your best friend.
[00:25:35] Bethany Loveridge: It's true, the donkey was my best friend. I have said that before. I mean, how would you be? I was, you know, 17, 18, first year out of high school, living in the country, friends with a donkey. So-
[00:25:46] Shara Curlett: Is this where your story came from?
[00:25:48] Bethany Loveridge: Which story? The one about- The donkey ... the donkey?
[00:25:50] Shara Curlett: Yeah.
[00:25:51] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah.
[00:25:51] Shara Curlett: Aw.
[00:25:52] Bethany Loveridge: That's right, 'cause- Now
[00:25:53] Shara Curlett: I, I love it so much more.
[00:25:55] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, stop it. Aw. Hear that publishers? Shara loves [00:26:00] my story about the donkey.
[00:26:01] Adrian Beck: Hmm. It wasn't that one though, surely.
[00:26:02] Bethany Loveridge: Well, no. I never gave that donkey a name. I felt like, you know, it was its own donkey. Yeah. Just called it Donkey. I think about it all the time. Often.
[00:26:10] Adrian Beck: So this was a, um, this was a sort of a, a, a good period of your life?
[00:26:14] Bethany Loveridge: It was all right. It was very peaceful and quiet. Probably a nice slow moment in, you know, I'd had nothing to do. It was, yeah, it was pretty great, wasn't it? Mm. If only I'd decided that I could write a book by then, I could have written 52- ... novels in that year of meandering with donkeys. Mm. Um, I also, like, you know, picked up a lot of sticks and rocks and
[00:26:36] Adrian Beck: Wow. It- it just sounds like, it sounds like quite a period of your life there, Betty
[00:26:39] Shara Curlett: Yeah, like formative.
[00:26:40] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:26:41] Bethany Loveridge: There you go. What has it done? Don't know. I just yearn for... I do like quiet and being alone, Mm ... slash with an animal friend.
[00:26:49] Adrian Beck: Mm.
[00:26:49] Shara Curlett: It formed the introspective Betty.
[00:26:51] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, maybe.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[00:26:55] Shara Curlett: I'm jumping in here to share a little bit about Adrian Beck's new book, Nowhere House. A cursed house, a decades-old mystery, a brother and sister on the edge. Nate is furious that he's had to leave his school, break up his band, and move to the middle of nowhere with his family, but he never imagined he'd be moving into an old farmhouse that's been left for dead.
From the moment Nate's family arrives, he's sure someone is watching them, and a series of creepy discoveries leads him straight to danger. Soon, Nate and his little sister, Mila, uncover a chilling secret. The previous owner's children vanished without a trace, but someone is desperate to keep the house's secrets hidden. And if Nate can't solve the mystery of the missing kids in time, maybe he and his sister will be next.
I mean, I feel like that blurb says it all. But there are a number of other people who have said wonderful things about this book. One of them, Ashley from The Book Muse said, " It was plotted well with all the threads dangling where they needed to, and was set up so that the isolation worked well. The characters need a way to solve the mystery without it being too [00:28:00] easy, and Adrian Beck has done this really well here. It's one of his best books yet, and I hope that readers devour this one, as well."
And Kids Reading Guide said, "For readers who love a spooky, mysterious story that is a real page-turner and will keep them guessing until the last page." So if you're looking for a fast-paced mystery for readers 10 plus who like danger, twists, and creepiness, then this is a book for you.
And now, back to our chat with Bethany Loveridge and Adrian Beck.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[00:28:29] Shara Curlett: Okay. We're gonna do two more. Two more. Okay.
[00:28:32] Bethany Loveridge: Adrian didn't even answer that one, but-
[00:28:34] Adrian Beck: I've got a hot topic, too, so let me
[00:28:36] Shara Curlett: go. Oh, okay. Non-stop Ooh,
[00:28:43] Shara Curlett: mini-mes or one, like, double-sized
[00:28:46] Adrian Beck: Oh. Oh, God. Wouldn't be able to fit through doorways. I'm gonna go, um, mini-mes, please.
[00:28:51] Shara Curlett: Mini-mes, yeah.
[00:28:53] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:28:53] Bethany Loveridge: I'm gonna go signed giveaway, because how- ... ridiculous. Like, how ridiculous. Neither of those things.
[00:29:01] Adrian Beck: You're refusing that one?
[00:29:02] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. How ridiculous.
[00:29:04] Adrian Beck: I like that one.
[00:29:05] Bethany Loveridge: Why would I want a big me? That's-
[00:29:07] Shara Curlett: Or maybe, like, little yous, though.
[00:29:09] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. They'd be able
[00:29:09] Shara Curlett: to just pet them on the head.
[00:29:10] Bethany Loveridge: I just like the, but that's, that's- Hey, little Betty ... complex ...
[00:29:14] Adrian Beck: go and find the little donkey. Find a stick, little Betty.
[00:29:17] Bethany Loveridge: Are they, like, would they be my children, though? They had, would they have my, like-
[00:29:20] Adrian Beck: They're clones of you
[00:29:21] Bethany Loveridge: complex consciousness? Like, it just
[00:29:24] Adrian Beck: would be- They, they have your equine tendencies
[00:29:26] Shara Curlett: Imagine they could just clean the house for you. How good would that be?
[00:29:29] Bethany Loveridge: Why, no, it's, there's gonna be five more of me being like, "Well, you clean the house." Like, I didn't make that mess, and I've got a book to write, so.
[00:29:39] Shara Curlett: They'd all be pointing fingers at each other saying, "You do it," you reckon?
[00:29:42] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, I don't know what we'd do. Probably s- we'd probably make a football team. Like, All right, I retract. I'm gonna go with the football team.
[00:29:48] Shara Curlett: There we go.
[00:29:49] Adrian Beck: Betty FC.
[00:29:51] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. Did you go the small Adrians too?
[00:29:53] Adrian Beck: Yeah. Yeah. All right. How, how cool would that be? Lots of little Adrians running around.
[00:29:56] Bethany Loveridge: Let's have the half size league.
[00:29:58] Shara Curlett: Yeah.
[00:29:58] Adrian Beck: Yeah, that's right. They can play off [00:30:00] against each other.
[00:30:00] Bethany Loveridge: Yep.
[00:30:01] Adrian Beck: And the winner gets to pat the donkey.
[00:30:04] Shara Curlett: All right, last one. Would you rather be trapped in a romantic comedy with your enemies or trapped in a horror movie with your friends? I'm gonna go horror movie with friends.
[00:30:14] Adrian Beck: Really?
[00:30:15] Shara Curlett: I think, yeah.
[00:30:15] Bethany Loveridge: Why?
[00:30:16] Shara Curlett: Just because, you know, friends- Are
[00:30:17] Bethany Loveridge: you the final girl? Are you the final girl?
[00:30:19] Shara Curlett: Like- Oh, that's a good question. Yeah.
[00:30:21] Adrian Beck: If the three of us were in a haunted house-
[00:30:23] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah ...
[00:30:23] Adrian Beck: who would be the final girl?
[00:30:24] Bethany Loveridge: I don't have any enemies, so.
[00:30:26] Shara Curlett: Yeah, neither you know, if we're talking final, like, .. you gotta back yourself?
[00:30:31] Bethany Loveridge: It'd be me.
[00:30:32] Shara Curlett: I... It'll be me.
[00:30:34] Bethany Loveridge: No.
[00:30:35] Adrian Beck: It wouldn't be me. No.
[00:30:36] Shara Curlett: It wouldn't be?
[00:30:36] Adrian Beck: No.
[00:30:36] Bethany Loveridge: For, for reasons.
[00:30:37] Adrian Beck: I'd go in the first act.
[00:30:39] Shara Curlett: You're the joker that they get rid of at the start, right?
[00:30:42] Adrian Beck: One of you two would be... I, I don't know. You're both very tenacious in different ways, but it might come down to-
[00:30:47] Shara Curlett: I used to do kickboxing ...
[00:30:48] Adrian Beck: you know, skills you learnt with a donkey when you were younger, and that's come back- Yep -and really become useful.
[00:30:53] Bethany Loveridge: Do you know when you watch a film and there's a group of people, and it's a horror film, and you never really, like, see... You know, you'll get to learn some backstory and kind of be bonded with particular characters, and then there'll be one or two and you're like, "Oh, they're gonna die." Like, We haven't seen a close-up of them. Mm. We never met their parents. Mm. Like, they're not... Yeah. So that's none of us. So we need to get some other people in part of our crew. Mm. Uh- So then the three of us-
[00:31:17] Shara Curlett: We could be the final two.
[00:31:19] Bethany Loveridge: Well, it could be-
[00:31:20] Shara Curlett: But I don't think Adrian, Adrian's not making it, but-
[00:31:22] Adrian Beck: I don't think
[00:31:22] Bethany Loveridge: I... oh, okay. I
[00:31:23] Adrian Beck: pr- I appreciate your honesty, Shara, and you might actually be right. I think, look, I might sacrifice myself in a heroic way, but- Oh,
[00:31:30] Shara Curlett: yes. Yeah ...
[00:31:31] Adrian Beck: -more likely than not I'll slip down the stairs and that'll be the end of me.
[00:31:35] Bethany Loveridge: I love the fact that Shara's like, "I've done kickboxing." I'm like, the whole time my brain is like, "I'm gonna find a good place to hide, and I'm gonna stay there the whole time, and that's why I will be the final girl."
[00:31:46] Shara Curlett: Like, when I watch, any kind of, like, horror-thriller with my husband I'm the one saying, "No, go there, do that." And he deals with it now, but I can't say it's enjoyable for him,
[00:31:56] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, but Shara, like, when I watch Who Wants To Be A Millionaire with [00:32:00] my husband he always gets the answers right.
[00:32:02] Bethany Loveridge: But when he went on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire- Ooh ... this is his trauma I'm putting on this podcast. You know, it's different. All I'll say is it's different when you're there. Yeah.
[00:32:11] Shara Curlett: When you're there? Ooh. Like- So he was on-
[00:32:13] Bethany Loveridge: You know, in, in the moment ...
[00:32:14] Shara Curlett: he was on the actual Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?
[00:32:16] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, he was great.
[00:32:17] Shara Curlett: How, when, how long ago was
[00:32:18] Adrian Beck: this? It doesn't sound like he was that great.
[00:32:19] Shara Curlett: Yeah, I reckon.
[00:32:21] Bethany Loveridge: I think it was about 15 years ago, so it's probably disappeared from... Yeah. I was also on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.
[00:32:27] Shara Curlett: What?
[00:32:27] Adrian Beck: Who made the most money, both of you?
[00:32:29] Bethany Loveridge: on that show. No, no, no, no. I was in the audience .
[00:32:31] Adrian Beck: Oh, right, okay.
[00:32:32] Bethany Loveridge: 'Cause they, they cut to me, and they cut out most of what I said, 'cause Eddie McGuire was like, "And how did you meet?" And I was like, "Well, let me tell you a story." So they're filming me in the audience telling this beautiful narrative about how we met, and,
[00:32:44] Shara Curlett: And it didn't make it?
[00:32:45] Bethany Loveridge: No. Most of it was cut.
[00:32:47] Shara Curlett: So, is anyone giving away any books? I've lost track.
[00:32:49] Adrian Beck: Why don't we, why don't we all give away a book? Because we all- Yeah. Yeah ... we, we want to. Yeah.
[00:32:54] Shara Curlett: Yeah. I like it.
[00:32:54] Shara Curlett: How do we-
[00:32:54] Adrian Beck: You can come up with an amazing way of promoting the, your podcast, Shara, and it involves giving three of our wonderful books away.
[00:33:02] Shara Curlett: Okay. We will do this.
[00:33:03] Bethany Loveridge: Let's, let's deliberate. No, let's not.
[00:33:05] Adrian Beck: Yeah. Someone will win somehow. Stay tuned.
[00:33:07] Shara Curlett: Someone will somehow. It's
[00:33:09] Bethany Loveridge: something.
[00:33:09] Shara Curlett: Yeah.
[00:33:09] Bethany Loveridge: Someone has won, probably. Oh, no. No, no. They haven't won. They have to listen to us-
[00:33:13] Shara Curlett: No, they haven't.
[00:33:13] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, sorry. Got excited.
[00:33:14] Shara Curlett: So Adrian, I've been waiting all day. What is-
[00:33:17] Adrian Beck: Have you? ...
[00:33:17] Shara Curlett: -your surprise?
[00:33:18] Adrian Beck: It's a hot topic, you know? Ah. So I wanted to ask you, I just wanted to get your views. You don't have to have the most amazing hot takes off the top of your head. I understand. I never do. But, we probably all saw that Guardian Australia article about, uh, book titles are going to market before they're ready. Oh, yeah. Yeah. And they're sliding from view immediately. That was the headline, right? Yeah.
[00:33:36] Bethany Loveridge: I did read, I did read that article.
[00:33:38] Adrian Beck: Yeah. So I wondered, do you feel like books are going too quickly? Are they getting out there too quickly? And then are they disappearing too quickly? I wanted to get your thoughts on it, ' cause I did, I did, Google how, how many books are actually coming out a year in Australia. I didn't-
[00:33:53] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, yeah ...
[00:33:53] Adrian Beck: find out exactly, but- Uh, according to an Arts Hub article, 22,000 books came out last year, which roughly works out- Wow to be about 12 books a person. So do you think the average person buys 12 books a year? I don't know whether the market can really sustain that many books.
[00:34:09] Bethany Loveridge: Well, is this traditionally published across every genre and age and audience or...?
[00:34:14] Adrian Beck: Yeah, well I think it's across the board.
[00:34:16] Bethany Loveridge: All.
[00:34:16] Adrian Beck: Yeah. '
[00:34:17] Bethany Loveridge: Cause I think there's a lot of you know, self-published straight to Amazon kind of pay-on-demand books- Mm that probably take up a huge percentage of that market. Yeah. I mean, if you look at publishers, that I know probably only put out, like, 30 kids books a year, the biggest ones. And most smaller presses much less than that, so, yeah, it's an interesting statistic, but I would think that we would need to know what kind of books, like, I'm not gonna say disparaging things about self-published books. There's some fabulous ones. But it's pretty easy, right? To- Mm ... kind of make a book and put it
[00:34:48] Adrian Beck: up. I haven't interrogated that figure. But I wonder if with more and more books being printed and we hear about less and less readers available to them, I mean, it obviously means- Mm that individual authors are just ... Their individual numbers [00:35:00] of possible sales are going down, you know? Mm. So it's harder to be a creative and sustain a living.
[00:35:05] Shara Curlett: Yeah. I mean, if your books go to market one year and then they're off the shelf the next year, like, how do you get that longevity in the market, right? Like, they've gotta make room, which all bookstores do, I guess. They've gotta make room for the new books coming through, otherwise they get no shelf life. Mm. So yeah, it's a tricky balance, I think.
[00:35:23] Adrian Beck: And also given, a lot of the times within the industry, and Betty, being the publisher of, of, um, Panacea Press, you would know this- um, that there's about three months, they say, roughly three months a book sits on the shelf, and then if it hasn't sold, a lot of the times it gets sent back.
[00:35:41] Shara Curlett: Mm.
[00:35:41] Bethany Loveridge: Yes. Well, particularly if it's in somewhere like Big W, and there's challenges there, aren't there? Because there's nobody hand-selling books, so they have to magic their way into readers' hands. But Big W is ... Like, is it still Australia's biggest book retailer? Like-
[00:35:54] Adrian Beck: I think it is, yeah.
[00:35:55] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. So if you do have a book in Big W, there's the potential there that more people are gonna see it, because, you know, everybody shops at Big W. So, I don't know. I, myself and my children, and my daughter's nine, so she's in that middle grade kind of readership which is my ... I'm writing in as well. I mean, I feel like there's not enough books.
[00:36:14] Adrian Beck: Yeah. Okay.
[00:36:15] Bethany Loveridge: I would, buy more than 20 books a year.
[00:36:18] Shara Curlett: Yeah, same.
[00:36:19] Bethany Loveridge: But we're probably not the average,
[00:36:20] Shara Curlett: No.
[00:36:21] Adrian Beck: No.
[00:36:21] Bethany Loveridge: So, yeah.
[00:36:21] Shara Curlett: But I do think there's not enough graphic novels.
[00:36:24] Bethany Loveridge: Well. Exactly ... I mean, I was looking for, You know, I went on holidays recently, and I really wanted to take a book, and I love fantasy, right? Mm. And there was just ... There was nothing. There was nothing new that I hadn't read in the fantasy genre by an Australian author.
So I mean, I wasn't going onto Amazon and really deeply looking. I was going to my local bookstore and being like, "What have we got?" but yeah, m- I don't know. Maybe there's stuff that I haven't read that came out last year, or the year before and I guess maybe that's a bit sad that it's not discoverable.
[00:36:51] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:36:51] Shara Curlett: Yeah.
[00:36:52] Adrian Beck: It's hard- Or
[00:36:52] Bethany Loveridge: kind of
[00:36:53] Adrian Beck: like- ... hard for them to be found ...
[00:36:54] Bethany Loveridge: I went into Kinokuniya in Sydney, last week, and I found two of my books in there, and the third one [00:37:00] was coming in, so it was very exciting. But it's like-
[00:37:02] Shara Curlett: It's so big, right?
[00:37:03] Bethany Loveridge: It's huge. And it's just a tiny little spine, and there's thousands of books, and you just think how on earth would anyone find your book unless they were looking for it? Like- Mm.
[00:37:11] Shara Curlett: Yeah.
[00:37:12] Bethany Loveridge: It's not like the library where you go in and there's a dragon sticker on the spine of everything that's a fantasy book, and you can do, do, do, do, do, do, just, like, drag them into your bag and borrow them all out. So, You gotta find a hand seller.
[00:37:21] Shara Curlett: And you gotta have people ... Well, he's disappeared, isn't he?
[00:37:24] Bethany Loveridge: He's having his coffee off the
[00:37:26] Adrian Beck: the room. Oh.
[00:37:27] Shara Curlett: Oh. I didn't even know there was a dog in there with you.
[00:37:30] Adrian Beck: It wasn't like- Yeah, she was asleep on the side. It wasn't like-
[00:37:32] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, I see.
[00:37:33] Shara Curlett: She'd- Jessica doesn't love you as much as Betty's dog.
[00:37:34] Adrian Beck: Clearly not. Clearly not. Oh, that's interesting. Yeah. I was wondering what you guys thought of it, because sometimes, you know, you feel like you put all this work into a book and then it disappears a few months later, and you think, "Oh, gosh, that's, that's heartbreaking." And also I was wondering about, um, Past Net Press and what, what you guys think about the three-month thing, Betty. Is that something you guys- are aware of or have to deal with?
[00:37:56] Bethany Loveridge: I mean, most of my personal books that I've written are with Wombat Rhiza Books. Yep. Which is a smaller independent Australian publisher, traditional publisher.
[00:38:05] Bethany Loveridge: And they are still selling books that they brought out 15 years ago. And that's kind of, I think, a perk of working with a smaller press, is that they can do what they like and they can continue to sell Mm ... their back list, and they do. Mm. so I think-
[00:38:19] Shara Curlett: That's really interesting, actually ...
[00:38:20] Bethany Loveridge: yeah, it's a very special part of working with a smaller press, is that they get to keep their titles for as long as they want. And I've got a few series, and I think that's another thing, not even just with small press, but when you have a series of books you know, when the second one comes out, You'll get a new injection of the first one. The third one comes out, you'll get the first and second one back on the shelves again. And then,
[00:38:39] Adrian Beck: Hopefully ...
[00:38:40] Bethany Loveridge: you know, then you just have to be Jessica Townsend to get them to stay on the shelf. Mm. but yeah, no, I think that it's a challenge, but there's a lot of disappointment and heartbreak with being a children's author anyway. Yeah. So, I mean, you kind of get rejected more than you don't. maybe I will just buy lots and lots of copies personally and keep them and pretend like I'm covered in my books for the rest of my life.
[00:39:04] Bethany Loveridge: So-
[00:39:05] Shara Curlett: Just put them all over your bed and swim in them or what?
[00:39:08] Bethany Loveridge: Well, what do libraries do? Like once a library has a book- you know, do they keep them?
[00:39:12] Adrian Beck: They weed them out eventually.
[00:39:14] Bethany Loveridge: Like if you've written something awful that dates poorly. Yeah.
[00:39:17] Adrian Beck: Yeah. They weed them out eventually. Yeah. Yeah. And I think they look at, um, how often they're being borrowed as well, if that sort of stuff's available.
[00:39:23] Shara Curlett: I just, I think in general, I don't, I just don't think there can be enough kids books. I think as an industry, like we just need to keep pumping them out and yes there'll be heartbreak, we'll all experience it. But also I think, you know, it's kind of what spurs us on to write more.
[00:39:38] Bethany Loveridge: Well, there's all types of readers-
[00:39:40] Shara Curlett: Mm ...
[00:39:40] Bethany Loveridge: as well. And so we can't just homogenize down to 10 people who write books and only give them contracts. I think it's really important to just keep like experimenting. And that's actually another perk of working with a small publisher. Like if they really love something but it's not proven to be commercially successful, they [00:40:00] might still do it. And publishers like Midnight Sun are killing it for that reason because they get to choose special, special things that aren't necessarily commercial.
[00:40:08] Bethany Loveridge: But yes, all types of readers, that's right. Because like I need more genre stories all the time. I need a fresh injection of Australian written fantasy to keep me going and keep me happy.
[00:40:19] Bethany Loveridge: You know, as a 12-year-old. Uh, so.
[00:40:21] Adrian Beck: A donkey lover. That's the thing, um- ... I think you're right and that goes back to the importance of independent bookshops because, um- Yep. Mm ... without those hand selling, without a kid turning up or kid turning up with a parent and explaining what they like in a book- Where else are they gonna get that help?
[00:40:38] Adrian Beck: Mm. I mean, maybe your school librarian as well, obviously. But it just goes to show that having a variety of books is great for the readers and the audience. Might be difficult for the industry. It might be difficult for the individual creators. But on the flip side, the readers definitely, are getting heaps of great options that they can sink their teeth into. Yeah. Which ultimately is why all of us [00:41:00] do it, I'd say.
[00:41:00] Shara Curlett: It's interesting when I had the episode with Jack Heath come out and we were talking about AI and how actually because AI is eventually gonna spew out a whole bunch of stuff that kind of sounds like us, we have to then start writing in a way that it doesn't sound like us. You know, constantly pushing it. And if anything, kids are gonna be seeking out the titles I don't know, maybe they'll like the comfort titles as well, but I think people will be start gravitating towards stuff that feels real and written by a real person.
[00:41:31] Adrian Beck: Mm. Yeah.
[00:41:31] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. they'll all be reading Shirley Marr, who just no one else writes like Shirley Marr. you know. I actually think there'll be a revolution against AI and against tech in schools, and I think we will all decide that we need to regress a little bit.
[00:41:45] Shara Curlett: I hope so. But-
[00:41:46] Adrian Beck: I, I hope so too, but I don't have a lot- Yeah ... of faith that there will, because I feel like- Mm ... even the teacher librarians ... A lot of them are being, sidelined and said, " for us to justify keeping you here, we need you to learn how to use tech." You know? Mm. It's kind of like the two polar opposites whether the leaders in all these different sections of community, they're very focused on tech being the future and not being left behind and all that sort of business.
[00:42:09] Shara Curlett: Mm. Yeah. I think studies I will come out, though. I mean, it hasn't been a around long enough for there- Mm ... to have been a bunch of studies around it. Mm. And you're already starting to see the brain scans of kids when they're using devices or whatever, watching games versus actually reading a book. A physical book. And If there's enough data that comes out of it, you can't deny that. Like-
[00:42:29] Adrian Beck: Let's hope so.
[00:42:30] Bethany Loveridge: There's so many, so many great memes of, like, people skipping through the forest, hanging out with their donkeys, and it's like- ... us being left behind by AI, like- Just joyful.
[00:42:39] Adrian Beck: That would've particularly resonated with you.
[00:42:41] Bethany Loveridge: Absolutely. I don't, I haven't actually seen one with a donkey. I was just projecting that. Make it happen. Sure. AI's gonna, AI is gonna make it for me.
[00:42:50] Adrian Beck: AI donkey, the ultimate.
[00:42:51] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, dear ...
[00:42:52] Shara Curlett: so my surprise for you both, because it's actually a surprise rather than a topic. I thought that's what we were doing, Adrian. I've just sent you both a DM- in the [00:43:00] Pod Crew.
[00:43:00] Adrian Beck: Okay.
[00:43:01] Bethany Loveridge: Beautiful. Oh, it's got au- it's got audio. It's a-
[00:43:05] Shara Curlett: Oh, does it ...
[00:43:06] Adrian Beck: it's a- it's an extreme close-up of an ant's face. Oh my goodness. And it looks- Look at it ... it looks like an absolute beast of a thing. Looks like something from a horror movie where I die in the first act and you two survive.
[00:43:18] Shara Curlett: Yeah ... teeth and the eyes, though. I just- Yeah ... I saw it, and I, at first- Yeah ... I was just like, "I, I can't show this to my kids." Um, but also I was just like, "Man, maybe we should be getting inspi-" Yeah, there it is. Look at that.
[00:43:32] Bethany Loveridge: Mm.
[00:43:32] Shara Curlett: Maybe we should be getting inspiration, from microscopic,
[00:43:36] Bethany Loveridge: Absolutely ...
[00:43:37] Shara Curlett: you know, like tardigrades, how cute they are?
[00:43:39] Bethany Loveridge: Well, I watched Dune last night, which went for, like, over two hours, but the worms, like that ant- Oh, yeah reminds me a bit of the worms.
[00:43:46] Adrian Beck: So I'm glad you found that and thought, "I'm gonna send it to these two."
[00:43:49] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. Surprise,
[00:43:50] Adrian Beck: surprise. This curious looking beast thing. Yeah, that'll be great.
[00:43:53] Bethany Loveridge: Oh. Ah. When you saw it, you were like, "Ah, this reminds me of Adrian and Betty."
[00:43:56] Adrian Beck: Yeah. But per body mass ratio and all that sort of stuff, [00:44:00] ants do have the biggest brains of any creature. And I know that because my daughter told me. Oh. So there you go. Oh. There's a citation.
[00:44:07] Bethany Loveridge: And they're, like, super strong too, right?
[00:44:10] Adrian Beck: For their b- Yeah, so they're strong and smart-
[00:44:12] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah ...
[00:44:13] Adrian Beck: but not necessarily all that good on the eye.
[00:44:16] Bethany Loveridge: No. So having an ant the size of a rhino or a rhino the size of an ant-
[00:44:20] Adrian Beck: Yeah. What would you go with?
[00:44:22] Bethany Loveridge: Might have to go the small rhino again.
[00:44:24] Shara Curlett: Yeah,
[00:44:25] Adrian Beck: What about the small rhinos? What do
[00:44:26] Bethany Loveridge: they- On account of the ant being clever and strong and evil.
[00:44:29] Adrian Beck: Yeah. And it wouldn't be- Yeah ... good to let that loose.
[00:44:32] Bethany Loveridge: Imagine if it was a fire ant as well.
[00:44:34] Shara Curlett: Oh, I wonder what their faces look like if it's the same.
[00:44:36] Bethany Loveridge: Uh-huh. Do you, every time you see a red ant, are you like, "Oh, it could be a fire ant"? Like, we don't know about ants, but we're all paranoid about these red ants every time there's a red ant.
[00:44:45] Shara Curlett: Are they the Argentinian ants, the red ants?
[00:44:47] Bethany Loveridge: Don't know, but they're evil. Fire ant. Oh, you mean not the fire ants. I meant the fire ants were evil.
[00:44:53] Adrian Beck: I would put the light on though if I was in a room full of fire ants. I'd still keep the light on.
[00:44:58] Shara Curlett: Oh, they would just climb up your leg and,
[00:45:01] Adrian Beck: oh.
[00:45:01] Bethany Loveridge: Blah, blah, I don't mean to- Don't mean to be like antist or anything, but it pretty much just looks like an ant. Like, I don't know how you're supposed to tell me about- Cause if you see one, you have to be... No, sorry, we're talking about fire ants now. Oh, true. Yeah, if you see one, you have to be, like you have to alert the authorities because it's serious-
[00:45:15] Shara Curlett: Oh, really? ...
[00:45:16] Bethany Loveridge: serious business. Oh, they, yeah. They're incredibly invasive, and they sting and hurt people as well.
[00:45:21] Shara Curlett: Um- Don't you just, do you squish them?
[00:45:23] Bethany Loveridge: What, like millions of them?
[00:45:24] Shara Curlett: Oh. Are they big?
[00:45:25] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, 'cause you're in New Zealand, right? Do you have snakes?
[00:45:28] Shara Curlett: No.
[00:45:29] Adrian Beck: they don't.
[00:45:29] Bethany Loveridge: Whoa.
[00:45:30] Adrian Beck: No, no.
[00:45:30] Shara Curlett: Whoa.
[00:45:31] Bethany Loveridge: Do you have ants, though?
[00:45:32] Shara Curlett: I have a bunch of ants in my kitchen right now that I'm trying to get rid of, and they keep finding new homes. Like, I got rid of three nests last weekend.
[00:45:40] Bethany Loveridge: Three nests? Sorry.
[00:45:43] Shara Curlett: I never thought it would be you, Betty. Never thought it would be you. today- Oh ... today- So sorry. Today I lifted up a container and there's a bunch of ants, like black underneath the container. I just can't get rid of them at the moment. So then I just look at this picture and I'm just like, "You guys are evil."
[00:46:00] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:46:01] Bethany Loveridge: But what happens when they remember and their leader- ... comes back the size of a rhinoceros?
[00:46:07] Adrian Beck: Mm.
[00:46:07] Shara Curlett: They will super size and take over. Anyway, did you come up with a surprise, Betty, at all? Or did you not?
[00:46:14] Bethany Loveridge: Well, my surprise is Sugar Plum. Aw ... but his little nose is right near the microphone and he's snoring, so I'm really sorry if-
[00:46:21] Shara Curlett: Oh, I didn't even hear it.
[00:46:22] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. This is, you know, compelling stuff and everything, but- his face is like right there, snoring into the microphone,
[00:46:28] Adrian Beck: thought that was you.
[00:46:30] Shara Curlett: All right, Kidlit Hang, we talked about what we were reading and stuff. I don't think we've got time for that this time.
[00:46:35] Adrian Beck: Well, I can do it quick.
[00:46:36] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, let's do it quick.
[00:46:37] Adrian Beck: I am reading currently, since, I know you're interested, Shara, The Survival Show, and it says- Oh ... it's X Factor meets Hunger Games. They've gotta sing for their lives in a dystopian future, and it's quite fun. I quite like it.
[00:46:48] Shara Curlett: Ooh, that sounds cool, actually.
[00:46:50] Adrian Beck: Mm.
[00:46:51] Bethany Loveridge: Well, I stole this ARC. It's called The Witches of Windery Spires- Ooh ... and it's Karen Foxlee's not even out yet book.
[00:46:58] Adrian Beck: That looks good.
[00:46:59] Bethany Loveridge: And Karen [00:47:00] Foxlee is my favourite-favourite, so- I don't know when it comes out. Later this year. Get excited.
[00:47:04] Shara Curlett: How did you get the ARC? How come you got the ARC? How do I get the ARC?
[00:47:06] Shara Curlett: Mm.
[00:47:06] Bethany Loveridge: I don't know if I can tell that information. Oh. I might lose my, I might lose my, um, source
[00:47:11] Adrian Beck: Due to Parsnip Press. That's what it is.
[00:47:13] Shara Curlett: Is this like a publisher secret squirrel
[00:47:15] Adrian Beck: That's what it is.
[00:47:16] Shara Curlett: Uh. Oh.
[00:47:16] Bethany Loveridge: Not e- no, it's not even-
[00:47:17] Adrian Beck: They've got a secret society.
[00:47:18] Bethany Loveridge: No, it's not even that. And even if it was, I wouldn't tell you.
[00:47:21] Adrian Beck: That's exactly what she would say.
[00:47:23] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, I know.
[00:47:24] Adrian Beck: Mm.
[00:47:24] Bethany Loveridge: I also might read this one, Nowhere House.
[00:47:26] Adrian Beck: You said you already read it, so you were lying before.
[00:47:28] Bethany Loveridge: No, I said that by the time people listen to the podcast.
[00:47:34] Adrian Beck: Oh, she's got me. Man. I- What about you, Shara?
[00:47:37] Shara Curlett: I don't have it physically with me at the moment, but, I'm reading Don't Forget to Smile by Ariane Beeston. Mm. Um, it's actually a YA novel, in the ballet world, which, I'm not the target market for this book, but it's really, really good. The way that she's written it, it's from two different perspectives, modern-day kind of language. There's even a third party who we don't know who they are. And the chapters are, a really good length. there's some which are just one page. and I'm charging through it, so yeah, that's a really good one.
[00:48:05] Adrian Beck: Mm.
[00:48:05] Bethany Loveridge: Awesome.
[00:48:06] Shara Curlett: All right.
[00:48:06] Bethany Loveridge: Well- I guess we should also say how good was that Australia versus Paraguay game, and- Ah ... I'm so pleased, I'm so pleased Australia won. By the time this podcast comes out, right? It's nil-all at the moment.
[00:48:18] Shara Curlett: Is it?
[00:48:19] Bethany Loveridge: Yes. But
[00:48:19] Shara Curlett: that's- So I'm, I'm- ...
[00:48:20] Bethany Loveridge: hardly surprising
[00:48:21] Shara Curlett: I'm busy speaking here using eye contact and all that kind of thing, and these two are just watching- watching the Socceroos. I know it. I can see your eyes shifting off to the side.
[00:48:31] Adrian Beck: Yeah, or maybe there was a donkey coming up to Betty's house and she was, you know- ... making eye contact with the donkey through the window. Do you want a carrot?
[00:48:39] Bethany Loveridge: donkey is in the country. What about... Well, no, I don't wanna have a Dune tattoo on my body somewhere.
[00:48:45] Shara Curlett: Oh, last thing we watched, tattoo on your body?
[00:48:47] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah.
[00:48:48] Shara Curlett: Well, mine is, uh... What is mine? Gosh. My husband's been away for three weeks in the UK and other places for work. And I've actually not been watching much of anything 'cause I'm just so tired.
[00:48:59] Bethany Loveridge: Have you been [00:49:00] like writing? ' you know- once the kids are asleep, or is that a funny joke? Like, they never go to sleep and-
[00:49:04] Shara Curlett: Oh, that's a really funny joke, because-
[00:49:06] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah, sorry ...
[00:49:06] Shara Curlett: i'll get one, one to sleep, and then I will be in with the other one. the dog's taken to sleeping on the bed so my daughter doesn't feel like she's alone, and so I come in and the dog's snoring, and then she's asleep and, you know, I'm just out to it. I write in the mornings if I can. That's my writing time at the moment. But I did, I watched Parks and Rec.
[00:49:23] Adrian Beck: Oh, yeah ...
[00:49:23] Shara Curlett: I could have that tattooed on somewhere.
[00:49:25] Adrian Beck: That's good. Yeah.
[00:49:26] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. What about you, Adrian? What's your tattoo?
[00:49:28] Adrian Beck: What is my tattoo? My tattoo would probably be Wayward Pines, no, not Wayward Pines. What's it called? Widow's, What is it called? Widow's Bay? Widow's... something like that. Widow's Bay? It's a weird tattoo to have though, isn't it?
[00:49:39] Adrian Beck: I mean, depending where you have it, it might be- ... it Could, could be good. Yeah.
[00:49:46] Shara Curlett: I feel like we're losing it today.
[00:49:48] Bethany Loveridge: Oh. I just wanna say, I just wanna tell everybody that I watched this animated film called Wolfwalkers while I was away.
[00:49:55] Shara Curlett: Ooh ...
[00:49:56] Bethany Loveridge: and it's on Apple TV, possibly somewhere else, but, yeah, it was made in 2020, and it was an Oscar nominee for Best Animated Feature in 2021. But, it's incredible. You can see, like, the hand-drawn animations throughout.
[00:50:08] Shara Curlett: Oh, wow.
[00:50:09] Bethany Loveridge: and I watched it with my nine-year-old daughter, and she was like, "This is the best. This is my favorite movie ever." Um-
[00:50:13] Shara Curlett: Oh, really?
[00:50:14] Adrian Beck: Good recommendation. Yeah.
[00:50:16] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. It's basically, like, about a young girl who's a hunter who goes to Ireland with her father, and their job is to, like, wipe out the wolf pack, but they kind of stumble upon these Wolfwalkers who are you know, people during the day and then wolves during the night.
[00:50:29] Bethany Loveridge: Um-
[00:50:29] Shara Curlett: Ooh.
[00:50:30] Bethany Loveridge: Yeah. So it's kind of fantastical but beautiful as well.
[00:50:34] Shara Curlett: Oh, that sounds very cool ...
[00:50:35] Bethany Loveridge: -and touching because obviously there's two different worlds clashing. Yeah. I love an animation and a hand-drawn one is even more special.
[00:50:44] Shara Curlett: Even seeing the, you know how sometimes they do, like, stop motion so you can see how they're, piecing them together when there's the gaps between them? I love that.
[00:50:52] Bethany Loveridge: Mm. I follow the LAIKA Studios and a few other of those on Instagram who show that kind of, like... Stop motion's my favorite as a film TV [00:51:00] teacher, but, you know- Mm ... the incremental movements and-
[00:51:02] Shara Curlett: Yeah ...
[00:51:03] Bethany Loveridge: -when they do it in time lapse and you see the big humans inside the scene moving the set. Oh,
[00:51:07] Shara Curlett: So good. So just to wrap it up, who would you like to give a shout-out to this month?
[00:51:11] Adrian Beck: Hm. good question. I'm gonna give a shout-out-
[00:51:13] Shara Curlett: You look surprised by this, Adrian.
[00:51:15] Adrian Beck: I am.
[00:51:16] Shara Curlett: Have you got one?
[00:51:17] Adrian Beck: I'm gonna give a shout-out to my launch partner, Amy Doak, for being awesome and helping me out so much on the day, and providing lots and lots of cake. It was excellent.
[00:51:28] Shara Curlett: Ah, awesome. How much cake did you
[00:51:30] Adrian Beck: was about four of them.
[00:51:35] Bethany Loveridge: Love it.
[00:51:35] Shara Curlett: I'm gonna give a shout-out to, his name's Hira Nathan. so He's written a few books in New Zealand, and they've gone to bestseller status basically. He self-published the first one, it's about showing gratitude, on a daily basis. It's your mindfulness. It's your daily practice of the Māori language in New Zealand. And it sold so well that he was then picked up by a publisher, and they in turn published [00:52:00] a kids' version. And then he's just written another one for adults. But he's doing a lot of mindfulness stuff. He calls himself The Mindful Māori. And we actually met in Dunedin, so we used to work together at a pub. So it's so cool having someone from my past, and we've kind of merged into the same industry together. And he's awesome, so I just wanna do a shout-out to him.
[00:52:21] Adrian Beck: Great work.
[00:52:21] Bethany Loveridge: What was his name again?
[00:52:22] Shara Curlett: Hira Nathan. So H-I-R-A N-A-T-H-A-N. But he's The Mindful Māori on Instagram.
[00:52:29] Bethany Loveridge: Cool.
[00:52:29] Adrian Beck: What was that the book ?
[00:52:30] Shara Curlett: So it's a daily bilingual journal, so it's about journaling thoughts every day.
[00:52:34] Bethany Loveridge: That sounds very practical and helpful.
[00:52:36] Shara Curlett: I guess it's like your kind of morning pages, right? It's a form of that.
[00:52:39] Bethany Loveridge: I don't know what morning pages is, but I assume-
[00:52:42] Shara Curlett: Don't you? ...
[00:52:42] Bethany Loveridge: -it's pages that you do in every morning.
[00:52:44] Shara Curlett: Yeah. -
[00:52:45] Adrian Beck: You assume correctly.
[00:52:46] Shara Curlett: I've heard Tristan Banks is a big fan of it.
[00:52:48] Adrian Beck: He goes on about it forever. Yeah. Don't get him started on that.
[00:52:50] Bethany Loveridge: Like,
[00:52:50] Adrian Beck: he has- Morning pages and Byron Bay. Just avoid those topics completely with him.
[00:52:54] Bethany Loveridge: He has a diary. Is that, like, what we're saying?
[00:52:57] Adrian Beck: Yeah, he's ... Yeah, yeah, basically. Yeah.
[00:52:58] Bethany Loveridge: Oh, that's nice for him.
[00:52:59] Adrian Beck: Yeah.
[00:53:01] Bethany Loveridge: Could be his secret to success. Uh, I'm gonna do a shout-out too, and my shout-out is to every contr