As I'm writing this, it's nearly noon on the 31st. In a few more hours, it'll be 2013 - and I wish you all a happy and peaceful New Year. Let's hope the conflict zones around the world (especially Syria) can come to a peaceful resolution soon!

First: there's an RSS feed button on this blog page (just scroll down a bit - it's on the right hand side). If you'd like to keep updated, just click on the button and enter your email details.

The webpages and blog and undergoing major changes - which are taking far longer than I thought (whoops). I've updated The Crime Novels, The Whodunnits, The Short Stories and About Bo pages. Currently I'm working on the Gallery pages - and that's where it's slowing down. I'm taking my time chosing WHICH photos go in, rather than blindly uploading all of them.

On the writing front, I'm preparing my query letter(s) to agents/publishers, and have enrolled in a couple of Writer's Digest webinars to help me improve my chances, plus reading up from a few texts: "Guide to Query Letters" by Wendy Burt-Thomas (Writer's Digest books 2008) and "The Sell your Novel Tool Kit" by Elizabeth Lyon (Perigee/Penguin 1997). And what would the New Year be without rehashing a synopsis for the CWA's Debut Dagger competition?

This week, I've relaxed a bit, caught up with friends (always wonderful) and some work around the garden. We really could do with some rain. It's been such a dry spring and an even drier summer, with another hot blast on the way for Thursday. At least it hasn't been as hot as Perth, who've had nearly a week of 40C temperatures! No thanks!

MORE OF THE BLOG AFTER THE PHOTOS (keep scrolling!)

MONARTO:

Friday was a trip to Monarto Zoological Park - and that fabulous open range "zoo." Yep, lions, cheetahs, meerkats, rhinos, zebras, antelope and deer, bison and other plains grazers, chimps, ostrich and of course those beautiful giraffes. They have an impressive program of breeding mammals that are endangered in the wild, including our own yellow-footed rock wallabies.

You can catch a bus for a tour of the area (on/off stops during peak times) or walk some of the lovely trails through the park. An impressive day!

Oh, and we saw singing honeyeaters, yellow-rumped thornbills, wrens, heard babblers and weebills, and saw the tiniest of skinks.

Just before that, we had a SHORT trip to the beautiful Laratinga Wetlands at Mount Barker. It's the first time I've ever seen a SAND BAR in the first lake. It's that dry! Always a great spot for wrens, and there were a considerable number of wading birds (ibis, spoonbill) and of course ducks (black duck, grey teal, dotterels - or was it a plover?) I'll do a better list when I go back and have more time!

MOUNT BARKER

Mount Barker summit is dry, and the birds are moving down the mountain. Perhaps the best was being eye-balled by the juvenile Golden Whistler, who then followed Dad Golden Whistler into the tree-martin's tree for instruction on how to hunt for insects. Seen  Mrs GW in the same area too. The birds are often travelling in groups at the moment, and on various days I've seen large groups of wrens travelling with thornbills (striateds probably, and maybe brown) and fantails. Seen and heard: grey shrike-thrush, black-faced cuckoo-shrike, eastern spinebill, RBFs, rosellas (Adelaide), pardelotes, y/f h/es, babblers (always fun), currawongs, blackbirds, tree-martins, clogs, magpies, galahs, silvereyes, yellow-tailed black cockatoos, sulphur-crested cockatoos. Not all at the one time of course. Yesterday I had 3 groups of wrens (in one batch) OVERRUN me: I just stood still and gaped!

Finished a fabulous TV series The Killing (Forbrydelsen) from Denmark. Great acting, an exciting and thrilling story, and garnished with local politics. Superb television! Sophie Grabol is a goddess!

And finally, vale Gerry Anderson. Thanks for the some of my favourite childhood memories - great stories, heroic characters, and always with a great message. Thunderbirds are Go!

Happy New Year

Yours in writing
Bo
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