Dark Sky Dreamings: an Inland Skywriters Anthology

Merrill Findlay

May 2019 · Interactive Publications

About this ebook

When you look up at a midnight sky, what do you see—mottled stars and a full Moon trying hard to compete with the street lamps for your attention? You might be situated in a city, or its sprawling suburbs, where the ever-present urban glow tends to keep your gaze horizontal, missing out on the beckoning mysteries of the Universe.

This Skywriters anthology will change all that. Through the eyes and creativity of people who write about south-eastern inland Australia, we’ll redirect your vision upwards to a brighter Moon, the subtle presence of nearby planets, the cosmic spectacular of our Milky Way galaxy and those celestial bodies even further away.

You’ll find inspiring stories, poems and essays by a great diversity of Australians responding to what some have called the ‘Inland Astro-Trail’, which connects rural and remote communities with world-class astronomical observatories such as those at Parkes, Siding Springs and Narrabri. Some skystories are “literary”, others intensely personal, but all are guaranteed to widen your horizons—upwards!

About the author

Merrill Findlay is a writer and cultural development practitioner who now lives in Forbes, NSW. Her published work includes a critically acclaimed novel, Republic of Women (UQP 1999), book chapters, blog posts, speeches, scholarly articles, conference papers, an opera libretto, and features for the mainstream press, such as The Age, Good Weekend, and the Canberra Times. Her most recent cultural interventions include The Skywriters Project and the Inland Astro-Trail.