They say that those who can do and those who can't teach. Little wonder then that students flocked to hear from a panel of industry experts about the complex business of feature writing. Benjamin Law, Andrew McMillen and Bonnie Stevens genorosly shared their tricks and tips to students who lapped it up. It was rather gratifying that many of the things they said reinforced rather than contradicted things I have been banging on about all semester (and indeed for years before this). But there were a couple of things I never thought to mention. Benjamin Law's hot tip to his teenage self? Get exercise. Writing, he said, is a lonely business and self care is vital. All day you exercise your mind. Taking time out to exercise your body is good for your physical and mental wellbeing and for your work. Andrew's tip was also surprising. Get a good chair. His set him back $1000 but saved him from the crippling pain of sitting for hours in whatever chair he had salvaged.
But, of course, I liked Bonnie's tip the best. She said: Go to your lectures and your tutes. I didn't even pay her. Had I done so, the end of that sentence may have been "because your lecturers are ace and you will learn so much your brain will explode". Okay, I don't think I could afford to get anyone to say that. Because I didn't pay her she said that lectures and tutes are incredible breeding grounds for contacts and collaboration. She's right of course. You might even learn something.
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