PHIL FITZPATRICK

IN LAST YEAR’S WASH-UP of the Crocodile Prize Awards, I spent some time sending off articles about it to some Australian journals and magazines that I thought might be interested in Papua New Guinean literature.

My success was relatively modest but I thought it might be worthwhile doing the same thing again this year.

In scanning around for likely outlets I noticed that the most recent edition of PNG Resources magazine had run a review of Jonathon Ritchie’s book, Ebia Olewale: A Life of Service published by UPNG Press in a new section of the magazine called ‘Worth Reading’.

The magazine is produced in Australia’s mining hub in Perth and has been around since 1979.  It gets out to many of the resource companies operating in Papua New Guinea.  I personally find it an excellent way of keeping up with what’s going on in Papua New Guinea resource development and a useful source for potential consultancy work.

Since the Crocodile Prize received very generous support from the resources sector, particularly through Ok Tedi Mining Limited and the Papua New Guinea Chamber of Mining and Petroleum, I thought it was worth a try and sent off a couple of articles, one about the prize and the other about Sil Bolkin’s new book, The Flight of Galkope.

I was pleasantly surprised to get a positive response from Kristy Moroney, the new managing editor at Energy Publications.

To quote Kristy:  “I have a new section at the back of the magazine where I would like to feature books from and about PNG.  Any authors that need a plug – please send their details my way.  The section is only new and I hope to grow it.

On another note, if you have essays or articles written by local people on local issues relatable to mining resources – I’d love to see them with a view for publication.

I can’t offer any money at this stage, but publication for a new author can be its own reward”.

Kristy’s modest offer looks like one of those things that could lead to more opportunities for Papua New Guinea writers and I would urge anyone interested to give it a try.

Contact Kristy at [email protected] if you have something worth publishing.

Think big but start small is a well-known but apt cliché for writers.