Mo Davey used to distract her kids by telling them stories on the walk to and from school. She wanted to be able to remember them, so when another mum suggested they enrol together in Writing Children's Novels, Mo jumped at the chance. She has now published her debut picture book, I Am Tree Rex, with Berbay Publishing.
A love for storytelling
Mo has always loved storytelling, and while her kids were at school, she used any spare time she had to learn more about illustrating and writing kids stories. But as the days ticked closer to returning to work as a teacher, she knew it was now or never, which is when she discovered the Australian Writers' Centre.
“It was my very first course so it will always be an important part of my journey.” As well as learning the basics of formatting and character development, Mo particularly loved meeting up with other like-minded writers.
“It was great being part of a group with a similar joy of writing. I also met Penny Morrison (a published graduate) there and she invited me to join her writing group. I am still in it today and took over from Penny to run it.”
The value of workshopping
As part of her writing process, Mo workshops her stories with her critique group until she feels it’s ready to go out into the world.
“I then start to focus on who to send the manuscript to. This is the hardest part, matching your story to
the right publishing house or editor. This may be via a conference where you pay extra for an assessment or via an open submission day on a publishing house website.”
With I Am Tree Rex, things went a little bit differently.
“It was an illustration on my Instagram account that caught the attention of the editor. She enquired if
I had a story to go with it and of course I said ‘Yes!'”
When she found out that Berbay Publishing wanted to publish her book, Mo had a range of emotions.
“I was thrilled! I wanted to cry actually. It had been a long journey. But it also felt like the right time. I was ready for this, whereas a few years earlier my work wasn't as strong as it is now.”
Mo has now returned to part-time work, and is teaching art to high school students, while building her illustration portfolio and writing skills.
When we asked her if she would recommend AWC, she said: “Go for it! You will get some really valuable information and make friends you never knew you needed.”
Mo Davey used to distract her kids by telling them stories on the walk to and from school. She wanted to be able to remember them, so when another mum suggested they enrol together in Writing Children's Novels, Mo jumped at the chance. She has now published her debut picture book, I Am Tree Rex, with Berbay Publishing.
As part of her writing process, Mo workshops her stories with her critique group until she feels it’s ready to go out into the world. 
