CHILDREN’S author John Heffernan overcomes the continual challenge of keeping up with a young audience by spending as much time as possible in the classroom.
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In light of that, Mr Heffernan is in Cootamundra to promote his literature, discuss the creative process and provide constructive writing tips at primary schools.
Spending Monday and Tuesday at Cootamundra Public School, Wednesday at EA Southee School, Thursday at Sacred Heart Central School and half a day today at Stockinbingal Public School, Mr Heffernan’s significant investment of time and expertise will no doubt have a lasting impression on local kids.
At a brief tutorial on Monday Year 3 and 4 at Cootamundra Public School listened intently as Mr Heffernan explained how to write a suspense story.
“You have to build it up in the reader’s mind; make the reader feel frightened for the character,” he said.
Mr Heffernan had the students laughing, he had them holding their breath, and there was no shortage of questions asked by students and even a teacher.
On Monday a Year 4 teacher asked if Mr Heffernan abides by the standard creative writing structure outlined in school curriculum; orientation, complication and resolution.
While Mr Heffernan was hesitant to say yes, he did confirm that planning is on essential part of the job.
As a published author, he says his career as a writer has “always been building”.
“I’ve been a farmer for most of my life and nine years ago my writing was really taking off.
“It was either the farm or the books, so I stopped farming.”
Touring Australia is just one of the perks of the job. Mr Heffernan resides in a small country town near Armidale, so when Cootamundra Public School teacher Jo Trickett extended an invitation to visit the school, and others in the area, he gladly accepted.
“Country towns are beautiful. Cootamundra is a nice town; it’s really pretty, I love the big, wide streets.”
And while students have much to learn from his works, experience and broad understanding of the publishing industry, he can also appreciate the benefits of telling his stories first-hand.
“My audience is changing all the time, so on tour you can get to know what the audience is like, test out ideas and see if they work.”
Mr Heffernan says that storytelling is all in the delivery, and there are two essential elements, “you need a good yarn and strong characters.”
That is the secret to his success.
Seven of Mr Heffernan’s books have been published by Scholastic including Pup (2002), GBH (2003), Two Summers (2003), Elvis on Four Legs (2004), One of Those Days (2009), Where There’s Smoke (2010) and Harry’s War (2011).
The Island is probably his most famous work; an illustrated book about peace which is used in schools as an educational tool.
