Went well today in Byron, signed and sold plenty of books, met some nice people, had some great chats.  (But how many more women are gonna claim to be the Byron Bay Writers’ Festival Director?!  I ask you…) 

More news tomorrow, Day 2, Saturday 20th March…

Elloise Farrow-Smith, "Mornings", ABC North Coast Radio

I was thrilled (and a little shocked) to be phoned today by Mary Ryan’s Books Byron Bay informing me that ABC North Coast Radio wanted me to call them about doing an interview tomorrow re Goodbye Crackernight and my in-store event for it at Mary Ryan’s 10am Friday 19th & Saturday 20th March. Trying in vain to quell my “Yippees”, I phoned ABC North Coast Radio and had an excellent chat with Elloise Farrow-Smith, presenter of their “Mornings” program, and we arranged an interview.  (Though the show’s Producer had caught word of the book and in-store event from some source as yet mysterious, it turns out, by pure coincidence, that Mary Ryan’s Books Byron Bay is the local ABC Centre Shop!)

So tune in, if you can, to ABC North Coast Radio 94.5FM from 10am. It’ll only be a 10-minute or so spot (standard for ABC & Commercial radio), though from my exchange with Elloise it should be a good one.  If you’re not able to tune in live, do check this space over the next week: I’ll post an Audio file of the interview.  So watch this space!

ABC North Coast Radio, 94.5 FM

My thanks once again to Ben, Kylie and Terri of Mary Ryan’s Books Byron Bay and to ABC North Coast Radio, especially to Elloise Farrow-Smith.

Full in-store event details, click HERE.

Had the interview this morning at 10am with Elloise Farrow-Smith.  Glad to say it was excellent.  Great rapport.  Great fun.  Played Living In The 70s by Skyhooks.  I’ll post the Audio file of the interview here over the next week!  Thanks to all at ABC North Coast Radio.

Could it be this woman?

…Could it be this woman?

…Could it be THIS woman?

Well, I guess, to find out the true identity of this Mystery Festival Director, you’ll just have to turn up to Mary Ryan’s Books, 21-25 Fletcher Street, Byron Bay, at 10am on either Friday 19th or Saturday 20th of March…

The ABC Big Diary has just listed this…

Justin Sheedy, author of ‘Goodbye Crackernight’, a comic memoir of growing up in 1970s Australia, will be signing copies of his book and chatting to store customers at Mary Ryan’s Books, Byron Bay, from 10am Friday 19th & Saturday 20th of March. He looks forward to meeting all those who remember when a child’s proudest possession wasn’t a Playstation but a second-hand bike, when fun cost nothing, your dad drove a Valiant and streakers ran in the streets!

Thanks heavens for the ABC.

Northern Star Weekender caption: "The budding author"

Crackers over Crackernight

By Candida Baker

ALSTONVILLE writer Justin Sheedy has good reason to be pleased.  His nostalgic, bitter-sweet memoir, Goodbye Crackernight, about growing up in 1970s Australia, published by Sid Harta, is winning lots of local praise.  Sheedy will be signing copies of his book and speaking in-store at Mary Ryan’s Books in Byron Bay on Friday, March 19, and Saturday, March 20, from 10am.  The book is the story of simpler times, when kids had second-hand bikes not Playstations, and before fireworks were banned.  Sheedy has had a varied career as a taxi driver, a go-go dancer, and a public servant.  He has an amazing recall of things such as the advent of colour TV, cinema matinees and hotpants.

Huge thanks to Candida Baker, Editor, Northern Star Weekender.

(NB: Re my career, my Fine Arts Degree only ‘qualified’ me to drive a cab.  I never pursued the vocation.  My loss.)

It’s pissing with rain up here on the NSW Far North Coast.  Me, I love it:  Mists and clouds moving all round the valley atop which my folks have settled and I’m lucky to be here.  Anyway, today it’s unseasonably cool for the latitude.  Having arrived with only hot-weather clothes, I commented re this to my mum a short time ago.  Kind soul that she is, she gets me an old pair of warmer “trackie dacks” of my father’s.  And all is well, me, as grateful as ever.

A short time later, my old Mum comments (having been reminded of Trackies Through the Ages just now) that she remembered a birthday present of her and Dad to an old friend:  13 years ago, it was a track-suit – affectionately known in Australia as a “trackie”.  It was a nice pair though, she assured, given they’d been friends with this man since the 1950s.

In my own experience since a child, this old friend of theirs happened to be one of the kindest, most quietly soulful men you’d ever meet – particularly when you were small, or even big and still low and needed his patient advice.

“Yes, they were a good quality pair,” Mum added, “sort of beige in colour.  …Used to wear them a lot on cold nights on his farm…”

Their old friend passed away after a long illness just last Christmas.  Dr David Southan was one of the most highly educated, successful and influential medical professionals of his type on this Planet.  The funeral was huge – even in Country NSW.

“Anyway,” Mum piped up softly, “they buried him in them.”  She paused for a few moments.  “…Sad really.”

“No, Mah,” I found myself smiling.

“…He felt at home in them.”

Hi, All.  Just a quick note that author-signed copies of Goodbye Crackernight are currently available at Dymocks – Westfield Chatswood, also at Abbey’s Bookshop – York Street near Townhall Station, Sydney. Be quick if you’d like to pick one up, though:  These stores will re-stock with new orders of the book, but I may not be able to get in to do further signings for a while…

Once again my sincere thanks to all who’ve been party to the recent Facebook response to the book.  Most of all to Yasmine Wick Kopita, Beccy Connell and Bill Gibson.  To them and to everyone else who commented over the past few days on Facebook, if only you could know what a support you’ve been.

Yours sincerely

Justin Sheedy.

PS: Remember: If you find Goodbye Crackernight unavailable on the shelves of any bookstore of your choice, simply ask over the counter for it to be ordered in for you and it will be very easily.

Northside Broadcasting

Hi, All.  I’m utterly delighted to be doing a second radio interview on Northside FM99.3 re my book, Goodbye Crackernight, tomorrow, Friday 19th of February from 4pm, on Tom Furey’s drivetime show, “The Long Way Home”.  Tom is an excellent bloke – he was kind enough to have me on his show last September in the lead up to the book launch.  It was great fun, he even replayed the interview a few days later, and said he hoped we could do a few more.  (!)

Tom has now read Goodbye Crackernight in full and, to my profound relief, calls it “a bloody good read”.  We should be playing some classic tracks from the period of the book, the 1970s, including some highly rare ones (remember The Banana Splits?)  Please do tune in – 99.3 on your FM dial or listen online at Northside Broadcasting’s website.  They’re a great station, featuring a spectrum of excellent music you won’t hear anywhere else, also some truly refreshing announcers, and Tom Furey is one of their best.

So tune in on your way home.  For further information, call the studios on (02) 9419 6969.  Or call us on air!  (During music tracks is best).  We’d love to hear from you.

A mighty thanks to Tom Furey and all at Northside FM.

Show was great fun. Thanks to Tom and Bear, and North Shore’s 99.3!

In-store poster for book event at Mary Ryan's Books, Bryon Bay

Hi, All!  As you’ll gather from the above, I’m lucky enough to be having an in-store event for Goodbye Crackernight at Mary Ryan’s Books, Byron Bay, from 10am Friday and Saturday 19 & 20th of March.  (Woo-hoo.) Mary Ryan’s Books is the main bookstore in Byron Bay and I’ll be privileged to be there, signing books, talking all about Goodbye Crackernight to store customers, legions of screaming fans, fainting girls, swooning mothers, grown men weeping – you get the picture.  …In essence, bashing their ears until they each buy a book – any, ANY excuse just to get the hell back out of there and into the street.

Mary Ryan’s Books is located at 21-25 Fletcher Street, Byron Bay, right in the centre of things. If you have any enquiries re the event, don’t hesitate to call store manager, Ben, on (02) 6685 8183 or email to byronbay@maryryan.com.au

Thanks hugely to Ben & Kylie and to all at Mary Ryan’s Books for putting on this event.

ABC North Coast Radio Interview!

See recent coverage in the lead-up to the event in the Northern Star Weekender!  (This is one of the largest newspapers covering the Byron Bay area.)  Article: “Crackers over Crackernight”…

LATE-BREAKING NEWS:  Play “Spot the Byron Bay Writers’ Festival Director“!

Friday 19th March, Byron Bay In-Store Event: Day 1.  Full Story & Pics

Saturday 20th, Day 2: Went off well!  Did a few readings to store customers – good reaction there, (one  customer bought 5 copies!), sold  & signed plenty of books, some really nice talks with people about it and the era covered, store management happy, things in the pipeline.  Once again my thanks to all at Mary Ryan’s Books.

Mary Ryan's Books Byron Bay

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