About
I am a writer, editor, book-production junkie, literature activist and aspiring literary agent. Socratic Ignorance is Bliss is where I empty my thoughts – sometimes briefly, sometimes not so briefly, but hopefully always in a coherent and provocative fashion and preferably according to a semi-regular timeline. These will be musings on literary culture, philosophy and interesting things that happen.
Send me emails and leave comments around the place here – I will probably respond. I like cows and bicycles and fishing rods and the internet.
Nomadology
I wrote a few posts for Nomadology while I was on a sort-of-working holiday in Queensland. One of the posts got picked up by Dumbo Feather.
Paine Management
When I’m not ranting about yearning for bratwurst on here, I’m running a small publishing-services business called Paine Management, which is mostly a ruse to establish a literary agency that will focus on representing emerging writers to publishers in Australia and the rest of the world.
I am currently representing a handful of writers in a semi-formal, rather sporadic way. Mostly I just be a person they can call on unconditionally for support in their writing endeavours: I advise on the development of their careers and occasionally represent them to publishers. If this interests you, please feel free to contact me.
Writing
I used to write mostly fiction about hanging out with my ex-girlfriends at pubs. Now I focus on writing book reviews and the occasional essay. When I get an idea these days, it is usually a non-fiction idea. I write occasional fiction because I enjoy it.
Some of these entries have links to actual content.
Fiction
‘Psychological Flatulence’ One-eight Vulture (forthcoming)
‘Chapter 13’ Let’s Get Unconscious, Falcon vs. Monkey, Falcon Wins (forthcoming)
‘Legends 4, USA!’ Shotgun: an anthology, Paroxysm Press (2006)
‘A goitre-shaped protuberance’ Allnighter, Cardigan Press (2006)
‘Oysters are not always aphrodisiacs’ Voiceworks, Express Media (Issue 64, Autumn – 2006)
‘The whole-pint silence’ Voiceworks, Express Media (Issue 62, Spring – 2005)
‘A goitre-shaped protuberance’ Voiceworks, Express Media (Issue 60, Autumn – 2005)
‘Cows do sleep standing up’ Studio (Issue 96, Spring – 2004)
‘Tending the wounds of The Shrine’ SKiVE: Short stories online (March – 2004)
‘The second-hand body’ Banksnotes (June 2003)
‘The unimog on the road through the river-land’ Banksnotes (July 2003)
‘Ignoramass’ Banksnotes (August 2003)
‘The unimog on the road through the river-land’ dB Magazine (2002)
‘Sitting in the Shade’ On Dit (2002)
Non-fiction
‘From General Reader to Critic, or, There and Back Again: A memoir about falling in and out of love with Dave Eggers through criticism’ (working title) Emerging Writers’ Festival Reader (forthcoming)
‘The Wrong Way There’, Dumbo feather, pass it on. (20, Winter 2009)
Blogging at Nomadology (2008–2009)
‘Melbourne Is Not The World, Duh’ Independent Press Mook (working title), Vignette Press (forthcoming)
‘Cut your teeth on the bloodied shards of genre’ Voiceworks, Express Media (Issue 65, Winter, 2006)
Editorials for Voiceworks
Book Reviews
On Dit, Adelaide University student newspaper (2002)
K-PAX, Gene Brewer
Anyway – The Paradoxical Commandments, Kent M Keith
You Shall Know Our Velocity!, Dave Eggers
The Golden Age, John C Wright
China Lake, Meg Gardiner
Coming Home, Maggie Hamilton
… the word, newsletter of Society of Editors, South Australia (2003–2005)
Literati, James Phelan
The House That Words Built, edited by Ioana Petrescu and Kasey Kilgariff
Australian Book Review (2006–present)
Measuring Up, Gabrielle Stroud (forthcoming)
Metro, Alasdair Duncan
The Island of Four Rivers, Christopher Morgan
ABC Radio National’s The Book Show (2007–present)
Omega Park, Amy Barker (forthcoming)
What is the What, Dave Eggers
Callisto, Torsten Krol
Let the Northern Lights Erase your Name, Vendela Vida
Endangered List, Brian Westlake
Submarine, Joe Dunthorne
The Big Issue (May 2008–present)
Say Everything, Scott Rosenberg (forthcoming)
Filthy Lucre, Joseph Heath
The Blogging Revolution, Antony Loewenstein
Breath, Tim Winton
