Darren Groth - Author - Speaker - Mentor

On The Way To Byron Bay

December 20th, 2009

Mean WriterAs part of the mission to have me ultimately rule the universe, Hachette have secured my inclusion in the 2010 Byron Bay Writers Festival program, happening August 2-8.

Aside from the official launch of Kindling, my involvement in this prestigious Oz-Lit event will not be fully defined until late March.  It may feature panels, workshops, a signing event or two.  Whatever the formal commitments, know that I will be networking for the purposes of name-dropping, eating the free food and generally acting like a literary tosser.  Stay tuned…

Many thanks to my publicity manager, Emma Noble, and publisher, Vanessa Radnidge, for bringing this fantastic opportunity about. 

  

Brotherly Love

August 18th, 2009

ConcentrateThe first Brothers Groth collaboration, Concentrate, has been shortlisted in the prestigious Text Prize for 2009.

A competition taking submissions from all states and territories of Australia, The Text Prize received around 300 manuscripts.  The shortlist reduced that hefty number to 4.

Take a look at Concentrate’s selection as well as the other fine candidates up for the gong…  

Kindling Catches Fire!

August 12th, 2009

Kindling

The fifteen year odyssey to nab a major publishing house has come to an end…

On Tuesday, August 11 2009, I agreed to a generous offer sheet provided by Hachette Australia for the publication of my fifth novel, Kindling.  It will be released in July 2010, with a possible launch at the Byron Bay Writer’s Festival.

My sincerest thanks goes to my Oz agents, Tara and Grace, and to Vanessa Radnidge at Hachette.

Watch this space for all the exciting news and developments as ‘Kindling’ moves towards its grand entrance upon the literary stage…

Arguwrite #4 - Mo or Less with PI

July 23rd, 2009

Mo...The Australian Government is currently pondering Parallel Importation (PI) of books - a de-regulation whereby Australian written and published works would have to compete with a flood of overseas knock-offs - more often than not American - of said works.  This is a bad thing.  To understand exactly why, check out Tim Winton’s excellent recent Miles Franklin speech and the briefing notes from Saving Aussie Books.  These arguments are powerful, eloquent, irrepressible.  They reflect unanimity in all sectors of the book industry - a rare occurrence indeed.  They lay out grisly examples of this implementation elsewhere in the world, citing disturbing facts and damnable stats.  They are coming from a place of good intention. 

Remarkably, this foolproof approach to the issue has not won the day.  The enemy doesn’t see fit to align with reason.  So let me re-position the debate a little.  Let me use a voice to resonate with the naysayers.  Let me, utilizing the preferred tools of our opponents’ trade - cliche and hyperbole, dodgy allegory and sensationalist drivel - make a statement they will understand.

May I present to you…”The Magnum PI Arguwrite Against PI”.

Now, Magnum PI, aka Tom Selleck, did very well.  Really made something of himself.  He was the cornerstone of a show that owed its success to a “…wide range of stories appealing to a broad cross section of fans.” (www.tv.com).  But there was more to the Magnum triumph than mere well-told tales. 

There was the moustache. 

The moustache gave ol’ Tommy-boy personality.  Individuality.  It set him apart from the crowd.  Made him a relateable, reliable, bankable industry.  Sure, the same sorts of stories were done elsewhere, on Hawaii Five-O and The Rockford Files.  Jack Lord, though, didn’t have the soup-strainer.  James Garner’s dial bore no evidence of face-fungus.  The mo made the show.     

But then a brain snap was indulged by peripheral folks who thought they knew better.  Maybe it was his agents?  His stylists?  Perhaps it was Allan Fels and Bob Carr?  Who knows?  Wherever responsibility rests, they saw an opportunity for themselves.  They ignored successful precedent.  They claimed the average fan could get a better deal.  Unfortunately, they proved as convincing as they were misguided.  And so, after a long period of very real cultural and commercial accomplishment, the iconic Thomas ‘Magnum’ Selleck ditched the mo.  

The result was plain to see.

Thankfully for the actor, the change was identified as grievous gaffe soon after, and he went on to perform many more ’stache-centric TV and movie roles in the decades that followed.  Looking back, Selleck probably wishes he had obeyed his instincts.  As he himself said: “Son, never throw a punch at a Redwood.”

Prime Minister Rudd and colleagues - do the right thing.  Leave the PI where it belongs, with Magnum and his mo. 

Do the wrong thing, shave the face of the Oz publishing industry with parallel imports…and we’ll be putting the razor to our collective wrists in the end.  

Concentrate With The Brothers Groth

July 12th, 2009

ConcentrateHow many Groths does it take to write a novel?

Two…one to write it and the other to wedgie the one writing it…

Yes, the collaboration of Darren and Simon Groth has finally produced something more useful than a police report.  Concentrate is a young adult novel that explores fortitude and faith, and contends magic happens if you are prepared to believe.  A previous incarnation of the manuscript garnered significant publisher interest prior to the re-draft - look for a deal to be done on the new improved version in the next couple of months.  

Check out the synopsis for Concentrate below: 

The Greenhill cricket team’s new kid, Dane Faulkner, is angry, Aboriginal, doesn’t wear a helmet, and cherishes an old bat dubbed ‘Concentrate’ due to the scrawled message on its spine. He’s also a phenom. Michael Duffy wants to figure out what makes the strange, gifted newcomer tick, but has his own problems – a blinkered father, an overprotective big sister, and impaired vision that is threatening his baggy green dream.
When a bigoted, bullying opponent is trumped using the Concentrate, a bond between the boys is forged and the source of the new kid’s freakish performances is revealed: a powerful, mystical presence within the willow itself. It is a presence Dane believes comes courtesy of his full-blood father, severely head-injured in a construction accident and rehabilitating in the family home. Michael - empathetic due to his own mother’s battle with leukaemia and the only other person ‘chosen’ to experience the Concentrate’s supernatural gift - is convinced of Dane’s claims during a late-night experiment at the local nets. Then the cricketing miracle begins to give way to the medical variety and Michael understands that, in Dane Faulkner’s world, nothing is impossible.
But what about his own world?
Convinced of Destiny’s mean streak during a disastrous audition for higher honours, and having abandoned his promises of playing for Australia, Michael carries the dormant bat into his last ever innings – the district grand final. Is there life still remaining in the dream? Is there alchemy still to be witnessed? Perhaps if he can concentrate…

Concentrate is a story of courage, determination and hope undeniable. Combining the best elements of realist and escapist youth literature, it contends that magic happens if you are prepared to believe.

What’s My Scene

July 7th, 2009

The Umbilical WordA little retro-trawling has turned up an old ‘Polaroid’  profile piece I did for Scene Magazine around the launch of The Umbilical Word.   

A sampler…

“My books are like a BCC bus driver meets a Mazda MX5 with a touch of DUI” 

You’ve learned well, Grasshopper…

May 3rd, 2009

FuCongrats to a number of emerging authors of my workshop / mentorship acquaintance who’ve had some recent successes:

Adair Jones, Claire Kamber, Sheryl Gwyther, Julie Nickerson AND Katherine Battersby!

Talented one and all…despite any influence I might have had on them.  

5 Minutes For You…and UW!

March 26th, 2009

The Umbilical WordSome more good press from the land of Oz.

Nationally circulated magazine ‘Pregnancy and Birth’  has recommended The Umbilical Word as their ‘Read This!’ tome in the April 09 issue.  

Thanks to publisher IP and the Australian Book Group for bringing this to darrengroth.com’s attention.

Kindling…Coming Soon(ish)

January 28th, 2009

Kindling

In the finest traditions of movie trailers, here is a sneak preview of my new, soon-to-be-completed novel, Kindling.

So, go grab a packet of Jaffas, drop your voice to an impossibly low register, and read the synopsis of what promises to be my best work to date… 

Ten year old Kieran Monk is autistic. He doesn’t like questions, is afraid to look people in the eye, and his best friend is a plastic Mr Incredible bobblehead that never leaves his hand.
Nate Monk is Kieran’s father. He’s a single parent of a ‘differently wired’ child, a talented musician who once stood on the cusp of success, and a man resigned to a pragmatic life of responsibility over opportunity.
Both share the scarred aftermath of the Infernal Day. On a perfect Autumn April noon five and a half years before, wife and mother Felicity died saving her only child from a raging house fire. Although Kieran’s inadvertent hand was complicit in the tragedy, Nate refused to apportion blame. The tragic circumstances of the blaze, however, constituted a secret that a fearful father dared not share with his ‘different’ son.
But today, as the burning forests of nearby Pendarra Hill fill the sky with smoke and the TV screen with concern, Kieran will discover the devastating truth. And driven by a desire to make amends for the ‘stupid little kid’ of half a decade before, he will disappear into the night.
Now, Nate must search; not only the suburban streets and shops and backyards, but also the depths of his courage and spirit. He must come to terms with the past in order to defy a second tragedy and rekindle hope for a future dampened by doubt. He must be dauntless to do what needs to be done. He must be unflinching to go where his boy has gone:
To the fire.

Told via the dual narrative of father and son, Kindling is a compelling page-turner of heartbreak, healing and heroism. It is a story about nurturing the spark that resides within us all and fighting the flames that life sets in our path.

The Publisher And The Word

November 2nd, 2008

The Umbilical WordThe most recent newsletter of IP delivers more lowdown on the mid-year The Umbilical Word Aussie launch and associated festivities.

Check out the kind words, photos from the events, positive sales news and a re-hash of the Brisbane News UW feature.

Also, keep an eye out for the soon-to-be-released podcast of my reading at the IP Winter Gala…