Students and staff have relished the interactive sessions from our 2022 Author-in-residence, Shane McCarthy. Shane, who lives locally, describes himself as a “Comic book writer guy”. As a freelance writer, his work has been published internationally by the likes of DC Comics, Marvel Comics and IDW. He was the first Australian to write Batman for DC Comics and also created the Transformer ‘Drift’ who has appeared in films, cartoons, toys and even a McDonald's Happy Meal!

Shane said that he has felt welcome at LJBC due to the wonderful work put in prior to his arrival. Library staff, Mrs O’Garr and Mrs Addison, created displays representing Shane’s work, creating a lively air of anticipation. When asked for feedback, one student gave Shane 20/10, whilst others said that he was awesome. This was evidenced by the large lines to get his autograph on bookmarks created for this occasion by library staff.

Shane hopes that, from their interactions with his classes, students will have a deeper understanding of story that they can take with them going forward. His advice to students interested in a similar career is to read more than you write and write more than you feel you need to. He says it’s all storytelling – so learn to tell stories!

Kate Di Florio

Teacher Librarian