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Michelle Worthington is an International award-winning author, scriptwriter, playwright and producer. Michelle has twice taken out the International Book Award and been shortlisted for the Australian Speech Pathology Award. In 2018 she received the AusMumPreneur Gold award for Business Excellence and the Redlands BaR award for Best Start Up Business.

Her scripts have been finalists at the California Women's Film Festival, Kids First Film Festival, Gold Coast International Film Festival and 4th Dimension International Indie Film Festival. In 2021, she won the AFIN International Film Award for Best Screenplay and in 2023, she won the Best Unproduced Screenplay Award at the New York International Film Festival.

Before We Sleep is nominated for Best Short Film at the AACTA Awards 2025.

Michelle is an advocate for creating inclusive and diverse productions to allow people of all abilities the chance to share their story.

She has often been described as a real-life book fairy whose magic powers include turning coffee into award-winning books and coaching aspiring authors and illustrators all over the world to achieve their dreams of publication.

In this episode of Not the Plot she offers a behind the scenes look at surviving as a career creative in challenging times, the need for change in the publishing industry, and the importance of knowing your 'why'.

To find out more about Michelle, visit her website at Home or find her on FB at Michelle Worthington Author | Facebook

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Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3

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Award-winning author Dianne Wolfer is a bookworm who reads and writes every day and can’t imagine a world without books. Dianne writes across genres, from picture books for pre-schoolers to fantasy novels for young adults, and historical fiction for all ages.

Her stories are about different cultures, the environment, friendship, being brave, turns in the road and taking chances. She also likes exploring things from different perspectives.

Dianne lives on the south coast of Western Australia with her husband Pete and their dog Harry and has a special interest in animal characters in children’s literature. She is a passionate advocate for children’s literature and presents author talks and workshops at schools and festivals across Australia and Asia.

In this episode of Not the Plot, Dianne chats with Teena Raffa-Mulligan about the changes she's witnessed during her long author career, the challenges of working in the publishing industry, her concerns about AI, and her interest in anthropomorphism.

You can find out more about Dianne at Dianne Wolfer – author and follow her on Facebook at Dianne Wolfer - Author | Facebook

Thank you for listening.

Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3

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Children’s author and poet Renae Hayward was born during a cyclone in Western Australia’s Pilbara region, but grew up by the beaches of Perth’s northern suburbs. Renae now lives near Fremantle with her author/illustrator husband James, their two children and Frankie the Labrador in a house overflowing with books. When she’s not writing, Renae is a passionate advocate for early literacy and a familiar face at story time sessions across Western Australia.

In this conversation with Teena Raffa-Mulligan, Renae shares the challenges of finding creative space while parenting young children and reveals why she switched from writing fantasy to picture books. She reminds aspiring writers not to give up on their author dreams during the tough times and acknowledges the key role her supportive writing community has played in her own author journey.

Find out more about Renae and her books at https://renaehayward.com/

Thank you for listening.

Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3

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Carolyn Wren was born in London and lives in Western Australia with a husband she adores and a very neurotic cat named Lucky.

Carolyn doesn’t like to limit herself to one genre, preferring to let her characters take control. The resulting stories can range from light-hearted comedic contemporary through to action packed romantic suspense and emotion driven urban fantasy. Because she’s a true romantic at heart, one thing remains constant in all her books, she loves a happy ending.

Since she woke up at 3am with a scene in mind and hurriedly scribbled it down in 2009 she’s written 21 books, garnered 23 award nominations and nine winner’s trophies.

In this episode of Not the Plot Carolyn speaks about her creative process, path to publication and finding her tribe. She also shares sound advice on realising that writing dream.

Find out more about Carolyn on the following links:

https://carolynwren.com/

https://www.facebook.com/carolynwrenauthor/

https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B00A2YJB2C

Thank you for listening.

Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3

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Stephen Crabbe’s ancestors were among the first colonists of South Australia, where he lived for most of his life. From his earliest years he loved language and music in many forms, and this led to formal study and qualifications in both. He was also active in a variety of sports. When Stephen took up education as a profession, it was no surprise to anyone that he often specialised in teaching Music, Physical Education or Language Arts. Writing was always a compulsion and he has had articles published and scripts used for screen productions. The focus of his writing these days is historical fiction. Stephen now lives in Western Australia where, outside of writing, he is a competitive sprinter in Masters Athletics.

In this episode of Not the Plot he chats with host Teena Raffa-Mulligan about why he writes historical fiction, his creative process and what he hopes readers will take away from his stories.

For more information about Stephen and his historical fiction series visit his website at Stephen Crabbe--author or visit his Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/stephen.crabbe.77

Thank you for listening.

Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3

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Kym Langfield is an author, illustrator, teacher and counsellor. She has illustrated a range of picture books, including my picture book Solo Dan about a foster child finding his forever home. Her artwork, stories and poems have featured in anthologies and her growing list of publications includes a novella for children. This year marks the start of an exciting new creative venture for Kym, who is now the happy business owner of Splashes & Puddles and is sharing her joy and passion for art with young people by offering visual arts classes. When Kym isn’t working, she loves reading, going on adventures in nature with her family and walking her energetic mischievous dog.

In this episode of Not the Plot, Kym shares where she finds inspiration for her art and writing, her illustration process and her greatest challenge in living a creative life. She highlights the benefits of artistic expression, especially for young people, and offers tips to aspiring creators.

Find out more about Kym on the following links:

https://www.facebook.com/kymlangfield/

https://www.instagram.com/kymlangfield.authorillustrator/

Thank you for listening.

Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3

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Juliet Marillier is an award-winning historical fantasy author who grew up surrounded by Celtic music and stories. Her own Celtic-Gaelic roots inspired her to write her first series, the Sevenwaters Trilogy, a reimagining of The Six Swans fairy tale. Juliet has been a full-time writer for more than 20 years and her work is published internationally. Her lifelong interest in history, folklore and mythology has had a major influence on her writing. Juliet is a member of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids and her spiritual values are often reflected in her work. Her stories focus above all on the personal journeys of the characters, and the human characters’ relationship with the natural world plays a significant part.

In this episode of Not the Plot Juliet speaks with host Teena Raffa-Mulligan about her writing life, Druidism, canine companions, and the power of story telling to teach and to heal.

To find out more about Juliet and her books, visit her website at Home - Juliet Marillier Author

Thank you for listening.

Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3

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Deb Fitzpatrick writes books for readers of all ages, especially adventurous kids with big hearts. Her books have received awards in Australia, been published in the US and optioned for film. She lives in Fremantle, Western Australia, and loves encouraging young writers in her creative writing workshops. Deb enjoys hiking and bushwalking with her family. When she can, she sneaks away to a shack in the karri forest of the south-west of Western Australia. She loves weaving stories from real life into her work.

In this episode of Not the Plot she speaks with host Teena Raffa-Mulligan about her experience of living in the cloud forest of Costa Rica and how it influenced the creation of her novel 50 Packets of Instant Noodles. She also shares insights into her writing process and the inspiration she draws from nature.

To find out more about Deb and her books visit her website at Deb Fitzpatrick | Writer in Fremantle, Perth Western Australia

Thank you for listening.

Find out more about Not the Plot host Teena Raffa-Mulligan at https://www.teenaraffamulligan.com or follow her FB author page https://www.facebook.com/TeenaRaffaMulligan You can also sign up for her occasional newsletter at http://bit.ly/2gqsJz3