Sarah Armstrong
Sarah grew up in a family with no television, which meant she was a voracious (if fairly indiscriminate) reader, and was determined to be a writer. She became a journalist at ABC Radio where she won a Walkley Award. In the late 90s, she left the ABC and moved to the hills outside Byron Bay to devote herself to writing fiction. She wrote three acclaimed novels, including Salt Rain which was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award.
Her first children’s novels are Big Magic and Magic Awry for readers aged 9+ (published by Hardie Grant in 2022 and 2023). They are modern magical day adventures in a travelling circus that explore found family and our connection to nature. 11-year-old Tulsi shares a rare, secret ability with her mother – they both have Big Magic in their veins. When her mum gets trapped in a parallel universe, Tulsi sets off on a race against time to save her. She has to learn a lifetime of magic in a flash, voyage through alternate worlds, magic battle her evil grandmother and change the course of destiny. Oh, and save the circus too.
Sarah has been working as a highly regarded writing teacher for nearly twenty years. She works with primary and secondary students, mentors teen and adult writers, and teaches adults’ classes and workshops, at Southern Cross Uni and including teaches the Byron Writers Festival’s the Novel Intensive course.
Her writing presentations and workshops in schools are dynamic and very practical, and her goal is to get children excited about writing and reading. She shares the writing tools she uses in her own books (getting a first draft down quickly and not expecting too much of it). She explains her own writing process from first idea to published book, and takes the students behind the scenes of a writer’s life with stories and photos. In her workshops, Sarah emphasises the importance of rewriting, and demonstrates how helpful brainstorming is for plot ideas.
She lives with her partner, the writer Alan Close, and their daughter in the northern NSW town of Mullumbimby (which features in all her novels, albeit slightly disguised!).
TALKS
PRIMARY STUDENTS
Ideas are Everywhere (45 - 60 mins)
In this fun and interactive presentation, Sarah reminds us that story ideas are all around, all the time. She describes how the first inklings of ‘Big Magic’ and ‘Magic Awry’ came to her and how she developed those ideas into the finished books. She brainstorms story ideas with the group, demonstrating that ideas really are everywhere. She gives lots of practical writing tips, and using stories and photos, takes the students behind the scenes of a writer’s life.
Topics Covered
- Ideas are all around us
- How to turn the spark of an idea into a story
- The importance of giving your character something to want
- How vital stakes are in a story
- Rewriting is essential to making a story better
Writing Magic (45 - 60 mins)
Using her magical middle-grade duology, ‘Big Magic’ and ‘Magic Awry’, Sarah shares her inspiration for the books and explains how she built the magical world of the series, how she created magical characters and the research involved in her books. She takes the students behind the scenes of a writer’s life and shares practical writing tips. She also shares her journey from ABC journalist to novelist for adults before she found a home writing for kids. And, because ‘Big Magic’ and ‘Magic Awry’ are set in the circus, she invites a few kids to come up and help her set a circus mood before reading from her book.
Topics Covered
- How to come up with magical ideas
- Magical world building
- The magic of reading (it allows us to slip into the shoes of other people)
- Practical writing tips including how to bring narrative tension to your story and the importance of stakes
- Circus fun!
UPPER PRIMARY and LOWER SECONDARY STUDENTS
The Writer’s Toolkit
Sarah brings her years of experience as a writing teacher to this very practical presentation which gives students a set of creative writing tools to take away. Using her own books as examples, she starts by talking about idea generation, then discusses narrative tension, story stakes and how to flesh out a story with description. In this interactive presentation, she invites the students to brainstorm ideas with her. This can also be run as a hands-on writing workshop for smaller groups.
Topics Covered
- Ideas and how to find them
- How to give your story narrative tension
- How to increase the stakes in your story
- How to slow your story down at the dramatic moments (when to show and when to tell)
- Why rewriting is so important
WORKSHOPS
Writing from Life (90 mins for up to 30 students)
Story ideas are all around us and our own lives offer rich sources of story inspiration. Sarah explains how she draws on her own life in her writing and guides young writers in finding story ideas from their own lives – whether they tell an event as it happened or use it as a jumping off point. She leads the writers through getting started on their story, and how to write a story with narrative tension and evocative detail. In a small group, there will be chance for some writers to receive constructive individual feedback from Sarah.
Topics Covered
- How to find story ideas in your own life
- Letting your first draft be imperfect
- Writing true stories with narrative tension
- How to write evocative detail in rewriting
- When to show and when to tell
- The (crucial!) importance of rewriting
Testimonials
Sarah Armstrong shared her passion for reading and writing with us at Holy Family and inspired the students with her stories of travelling to exotic places as a journalist and living in a rainforest valley. She also taught the students tips and tricks on how to create their own magical stories, using their imagination, observation and curiosity. The students loved Sarah Armstrong’s visit and enjoyed listening to her read from Big Magic. They also had fun participating in the writing workshops, where they practised creating their own characters, settings and conflicts. The older students especially appreciated the opportunity to improve their writing skills and receive feedback from a professional writer. A huge thanks to Sarah for visiting our school - she is a talented and generous writer who has a gift for creating magic with words. We'd love to have Sarah back again in the future!
Holy Family Primary School, Indooroopilly - August, 2023Sarah's presentation with our Year 5 & 6 and Year 7 students was highly engaging. She hooked the students into the world of story telling, shared tips for crafting clever stories, and even had the students perform circus acts! All of this was in an effort to convey different ways students can be inspired to write their own stories. Our students loved their visit from Sarah.
St. Rita's Catholic College - August, 2023Sarah was great, very accomodating to our needs. Her talk to the whole school as well as small group workshop was exceptional.
Sophia College - August, 2023Sarah's presentation was invaluable! Her insights and techniques have transformed the way I approach my writing. I can already see a significant improvement in my work.
Coomera Anglican College - May 2023Sarah's whole school performance and workshop sessions were so incredibly engaging and captivating. She was able to retain the attention of all students from Kindergarten to Year 6! Sarah's presentation was fun, exciting and very humorous. She has left our students incredibly inspired, thank you Sarah!
Condong Public School - May 2023
Salt Rain
Magic Awry
Big Magic
Promise
His Other House