Category Archives: Memoir

A Hybrid Volunteer Assignment in Nepal – Climbing New Mountains

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Australian Eastern Standard time is four-and-a-quarter hours ahead of Nepalese time. I know that because I recently taught an online class at Kathmandu University that started at 5.30pm their time, which was 9.45pm Brisbane time. I finally signed off at midnight AEST.

Thankfully, coffee and the enthusiasm of the students and the course coordinator, my Nepalese colleague Dr Prakash Paudel, kept me going.

That teaching session was part of a 12-month ‘hybrid’ assignment I’ve accepted in 2024 as a Visiting Scholar with the Australian Volunteers Program, which is funded by the Australian Government. This involves 11 months working online with staff and students of the School of Education at Kathmandu University and four weeks in country.

I’ll be supporting teaching and research in the School’s Master of Technical and Vocational Education (MTVET) program, as well as helping with its Journal of Education and Research.

During my late-night session, it was encouraging to see how interactive and responsive the students were and how well they were able to contextualise theory and ideas from elsewhere to their local context. (Intriguingly, there are also a couple of Namibian students enrolled.)

And, of course, I learnt a lot about those local situations in a very short time, with lots more to come! In case you’re wondering, classes are conducted in English.

I’m looking forward to learning more about the local culture during my one-month stay, which starts mid-April this year. I won’t be doing any trekking in the Himalayas, but I know I have some learning mountains to climb. Good for my brain, and my humility.

I took on this volunteer assignment because I saw it as an opportunity to give back some of the learning and experience I’ve accumulated over the years through teaching, researching and writing about adult and workplace learning and vocational education and training.

Kathmandu University’s MTVET has much in common with Masters programs I’ve been involved in at the University of New England, Armidale, and in the past 18 years at Griffith University, Brisbane.

My wife Cheryl and I recently had a meal at a Nepalese restaurant in Brisbane, Jhigu Bhoye Chhen. Delicious food, and friendly and efficient service. I’m looking forward to trying out more of the extensive Nepalese cuisine when I arrive in the country in a couple of weeks.

Until next time

Darryl Dymock

Last year came upon me quickly: An overview of my writing and publishing 2022

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Last year came upon me quickly,

like a rainshower

out of a clear blue sky.

It scrambled

over me

like a monkey over a car bonnet

Then was gone.

Whenever someone asks me if I’m working on a book at the moment, I tell them, ‘I’m always writing something.’ And it’s true. It may not be a book (but I do usually have a long-term project on the go), however my laptop and I continue to be close friends.

Highlights for 2022 included the launch of my 7th non-fiction book, A Great and Restless Spirit, and launch of the Oxley Men’s Shed Writers Group second anthology, Offcuts 2: Sketches and Stories from the Shed, which I edited.

In between I was involved in a whole raft of interesting and sometimes challenging writing, publishing and mentoring activities.

Feb – May: Mentoring non-fiction writer through Queensland Writers Centre (QWC)

10 March: Talk to The Gap Uniting Church Men’s Group: ‘Putting a life into words’

25 March: Launch of A Great and Restless Spirit: The incredible true story of Australian Harry Hawker at Avid Reader Bookshop, West End, Brisbane by Assoc Prof Tim Mavin.

29 May: Chalkies video presentation, State Library of Queensland, Anzac Square Memorial Galleries

18 June: Community talk, Anglican Church, Sherwood: ‘Two restless spirits: Bert Hinkler & Harry Hawker’

July: Article published online by Military Heritage & History Victoria: ‘The Chalkies: 1966-73’

August: Publisher Hachette Australia advised me they are doing a new print run of 1500 copies of my 2013 book, Hustling Hinkler.

September: Mentoring non-fiction writer through QWC

September: Invited article, ‘Writing and learning; Learning and writing’, Australian Council for Adult Literacy Newsletter

17 September: QWC workshop: ‘Kickstart Your memoir Writing’

8 October: Corinda Library talk: ‘Two restless spirits: Bert Hinkler & Harry Hawker’

15 October: Gold Coast Writers Association workshop, Burleigh: ‘Writing non-fiction from surveys and interviews’

19 October: Mt Gravatt Library talk: ‘Two restless spirits: Bert Hinkler & Harry Hawker’

28 October: Talk to Aviation Historical Society of Australia (Qld) ‘Two restless spirits: Bert Hinkler & Harry Hawker’

29 October: Launch of Offcuts 2: Sketches and stories from the Shed @ Oxley Men’s Shed by Councillor Nicole Johnston

Co-authored research publications, Griffith University, 2022

Le, A. H., Billett, S., Choy, S., & Dymock, D. (2022). Supporting worklife learning at work to sustain employability. International Journal of Training and Development, pp. 1– 21.

Billett, S., Dymock, D., Hodge, S., Choy, S., & Le, A. H. (2022).: Shaping Young People’s Decision-Making About Post-School Pathways: Institutional and Personal Factors (book chapter). In The Standing of Vocational Education and the Occupations It Serves (pp. 103-136). Springer, Cham.

Billett, S., Dymock, D., Choy, S., Hodge, S., & Le, A. H. (2022). Informing and Advising the Zones of Influence Shaping Young People’s Decision-Making About Post-School Pathways (Phase 3) (book chapter). In The Standing of Vocational Education and the Occupations It Serves (pp. 373-395). Springer, Cham.

Dymock, D. & Tyler, M. (2022) Issues in developing professional learning for the VET sector in Victoria, Commissioned paper, Vocational Development Centre and Australian Council for Educational Research.

No matter how much I write and for what purpose, Mark Twain’s advice always rings true:

‘The time to begin writing an article is when you have finished it to your satisfaction. By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is you really want to say.‘

Write on!

Until next time

Darryl Dymock

Title image: Brateevsky, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0&gt;, via Wikimedia Commons

Mark Twain image: Napoleon Sarony, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

‘One of my top reads for 2022’

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Great Gift for Father’s Day! Or any day!

A Great and Restless Spirit: the incredible true story of Harry Hawker by D R Dymock, author of Hustling Hinkler.

His one need was speed

If Harry Hawker MBE AFC (1889-1921) was alive today, he’d be churning desert dust in the Dakar Rally, strapped in a rocket on a SpaceX flight, or taking pole position in Formula 1.

Victorian-born Hawker moved to England at age 22 and became an overnight aviation legend. In his day, he flew faster, higher and for longer than anyone else in Britain. His one need was speed.

When he wasn’t racing planes, cars and speedboats, Hawker was helping design and test WWI fighting aircraft. His boss, aviation trailblazer Tommy Sopwith, thought he was a genius.

Behind him stood a remarkable Englishwoman who kept his feet on the ground. But the mother of two grew increasingly anxious as her go-getting husband continually pushed the boundaries.

Especially when he disappeared attempting the first transatlantic flight …

And bubbling away was an underlying weakness that would literally help bring Harry Hawker down. Forever.

‘One of my top reads for 2022’

‘I had a job to put it down.’

Order A Great and Restless Spirit from all good bookshops, including Avid Reader and Riverbend Books, Brisbane.

OR order the e-book online from all the usual sellers: Booktopia, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, etc.

Kickstart Your Memoir Writing

A Queensland Writers Centre workshop with Darryl Dymock

in-person and online: 17 September 2022

EVERYONE HAS STORIES ABOUT THEIR LIFE. THIS WORKSHOP WILL GIVE YOU THE IMPETUS YOU’VE ALWAYS NEEDED TO START TELLING YOURS.

Getting started is often the hardest part of writing about your life, especially if you’re not sure how or where to begin.

In this workshop, you’ll not only write the first sentence of what will become your ongoing life history, you’ll be able to use a proven framework for deciding what to write about, where to start and how to go on. Even if you’ve never strung sentences together since your schooldays!

This workshop is aimed primarily at beginners, but you’re also welcome if you’ve already taken early steps with your memoirs but need some direction to keep going. Do this for yourself, and your family.

For more information and to register, click the link here.