In the 'real world' I'm a librarian, and in a recent post on the Queensland Writers Centre blog The Empty Page, I put on my librarians hat (and blogger ID) to let the QLD writers community know about the great resources that are held in the James Cook University Library Special Collections. I've always been a great lover of history and in particular the stories of early Australian pioneers trying to set up an existence in a land that could be harsh on those from European climes. One story that really fascinated me, was that of an unknown English lady who travelled to Australia in the late 1800's. During her voyage she drew and painted the most glorious depictions of plant life and landscapes, which survive to this day in the form of a small sketchbook held at JCU. Wouldn't the tale of her travels and her art make such a lovely story? There are so many great ideas out there and I feel very lucky to work so closely with the records and photographs of our history.