Honouring a Life

Barbara Kamler (Sophie) and Bernadette Jiwa (Every Shade of Love) have immortalised their loved ones in books they’ve published themselves. Learn how self-publishing has given them creative control to honour their loved ones in print.

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BERNADETTE JIWA grew up in a house with no books but a home full of stories in Dublin, the storytelling capital of the world. These days, she and her family call Melbourne, Australia, home. She began her writing apprenticeship as a blogger and non-fiction writer in her forties. Within a few short years, she became a bestselling author and in-demand story skills teacher. During the pandemic, Bernadette embraced the freedom of fiction and has published two novels, The Making of Her and Every Shade of Love.

BARBARA KAMLER came to Australia as a young teacher in the early 70’s and developed a distinguished career as an academic over the next forty years.  Writer, researcher and storyteller, she has always sought to understand herself and the scattered communities of which she is a part, exploring themes of love—lost and found, memory, mobility and visceral connectivity.

Her debut poetry collection Leaving New Jersey (2016) is a memoir of fifty-six prose poems, recounting the story of leaving America and arriving in Australia (where Barbara did not plan to stay).  Her poetry has appeared in such publications as The Age, The Australian, Australian Poetry Journal, Poetrix, Poetry New Zealand, as well as various anthologies.  'The usual questions do not pertain' was shortlisted for the 2017 Newcastle Poetry Prize.  Her chapbook Two tales of long love (2019) is precursor to her most recent title Love, regardless, 14 narrative poems—based on interviews but transformed into rhythmic, syllabic verse—that celebrate long love, in all its diversity and permutations.