Andrea Louise Thomas

Words make my heart sing.  I have been crafting letters, stories and poetry since childhood.  I got my Bachelor of Arts degree in English Language and Literature at the University of California, Berkeley which fuelled my passion for story and gave me the opportunity to workshop with many famous poets.  I have been a professional writer for nearly 20 years; writing for magazines and arts organisations. I enjoy interviewing people and writing their stories. I have written more than 300 stories in that time. My passion for performance poetry led me to compete in Poetry Idol at Melbourne Writers Festival 2009- 2011 and become a Victorian State Finalist in the Australian Poetry Slam 2010, 2011 & 2014 and as a feature poet on TV and radio.  One of my performance poems was adapted into an award-winning short film, Train of Thought – Poetry in Film (YouTube https://youtu.be/4i5QpzA6iak?si=V3ohuyjbVzZfD_1Y) which was screened at a number of film festivals including the Cannes International Film Festival 2016. Starting my early career in Education, my teaching credentials have enabled me to nurture many writers from primary and secondary school students to adults. My writing workshops cover letter writing, poetry writing, performance and micro fiction.  I lead the Frankston Writers’ Salon at Frankston Library. I began writing fiction in 2021. Though I have only written three stories so far, two were shortlisted for the Mornington Peninsula Mayor’s Short Story Award in 2023 & 2024. So I must be doing something right. : P I recently finished a children’s picture book and I’m working on the illustrations now. Two new poems were selected for publication this year in Poetry D’Amour Love Poetry Anthology published by WA Poets. Currently woking on finishing a poetry collection to be published in Canada in 2025.