Forty South Tasmania - Issue 86

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Perhaps the greatest pleasure of being a grumpy old editor is recognising and fostering good writers. It’s tempting, on those occasions when you meet talented lovers of words learning the craft of communication, to discard the grumpiness and sing their praises (out of tune but grammatically perfect).

Grumpiness went out the window early in the preparation cycle of this issue when I was contacted by a young woman named Grace Heathcote. She was not an established writer, she said, but she had hopes of becoming one. And she had a story to tell, she said, about a penguin.

I am not going to say there was a tear in my eye at the end of Grace Heathcote’s story, but it was close. Judge for yourself. The story of Miss Simpson starts on p14. Have tissues handy.

Talking of established writers, Nick Brodie is quickly become a national treasure. He is one of the younger voices in the righting of the wrongs of historical interpretation, especially in Tasmania, but it is a powerful voice being increasingly heard. You don’t get far as a historian if you’re not a good writer. In this issue he has written 1,500 words about a Hobart street corner, and there is not a dull word in it. p30.

Bert Spinks, Don Defenderfer, James Dryburgh and Peter Grant have become four of the most consistent contributors to this magazine, and I am beginning to think of them as “my special guys”. Each likes to get away, to replace the pace of urban existence with the special reality of the state’s quiet places. It is not too fanciful to say that they commune with the soul of Tasmania. And then they come back and write about it in Tasmania 40°South.

More and more, these days, I forget to be grumpy.

Forty South Tasmania Magazine Description:

Tasmania has been described as the world's best-kept secret, but it's not our fault - we have been telling the world about Tasmania for over 20 years. Forty South Tasmania has been described as a lifestyle magazine with brains. It offers three things: interesting features about Australia's island state, good writing and stunning photography. The magazine is a household name in Tasmania, but also has many subscribers elsewhere - people who have visited this beautiful place and now read the magazine for a regular reminder of an extraordinary experience. Forty South Tasmania offers feature stories, and stunning photography, about Tasmanian places and people, tourism, history and lifestyle, and regular columns on Tasmanian food, wine, arts and culture.