The art work is simply titled 'young writers' and it celebrates the young writers of 2013. It is an acrylic work on canvas, revealing a celebration of "eight eyes" in various shapes and colours allowing the viewer a smorgasbord of imagination.
Young writer Jeremy Dover described it: "The dark background and the sight / insights / eyes coming forward bringing light.
Young writer Belinda Croft concurs - "the philosophical work expresses the diversity of the young emerging writers, what insights we express and a light to our own generation".
As the artist, under my historic artistic name 'Tronson du Coudray', it took a week to get the foundations of the colours to what I sought to convey, then the eyes were painted with a number of overlays of light spread - followed by a corporation of reds, pinks and whites combined and then thickly implanted in the spaces.
Conference of Young Emerging Writers
The coined term the 'young writers' has been replaced for 2014 as the 'Conference of Young Emerging Writers'. It was all initiated in 2009 with Christian Today providing two columns a day of young writers from Australia, New Zealand along with a number of International young writers.
2014 represents my 37th year in Christian Ministry and it's been my privilege to have engaged in some remarkable ministry positions such as the Australian cricket team chaplain for 17 years, then developing Life After Cricket, establishing respite facilities in Moruya, Tweed Heads and Laguna Quays for athletes at the Australian Institute of Sport and an Olympic ministry – but mentoring 50 young writers, the next generation's Christian leaders has been "something else".
These young emerging writers keep me young, young at heart and young in spirit, they astonish and amaze me. I pinch myself, how remarkable is this - Is it real ? Or am I dreaming? The Lord has somehow touched them and me in a very special way! Many of them have sent Emails saying how much they are looking forward to 2014. So am I … so am I …
2014 brings additional factors
There are a number of changes that will come for the 2014 Conference of Young Emerging Writer program. The first is associated with the Basil Sellers Young Writer Awards in that there will be three groups of Panellists –
• an Australian Panellist group of seven people,
• a different group of seven persons for the New Zealand young writers and a third
• group of seven for the Sport young writers.
A second major development is that there are now five of the young emerging writers who have taken additional responsibility to coordinate one week of the five of each Cycle.
These five "young emerging writer coordinators"' send out reminders to those on their week's list, read through their articles before sending them on to Christian Today for the following week's publication.
These coordinators are:
Week 1 - International – Dr Mark Tronson
Week 2 - Russell Modlin (Sunshine Coast)
Week 3 - Laura Veloso (Melbourne)
Week 4 - Natalie Chu (Sydney)
Week 5 - Amanda Robinson (Auckland)
Sport - Adam Schoenmaker (Brisbane)
The work load with 60 plus young emerging writers in 2014 was getting a bit tricky, and this provides relief for me, but in addition, as Christian Today editor David Chang exclaimed, it ensures the long term future of the PSI Conference of Young Emerging Writers program.
The 2014 Conference of Young Emerging Writer program is initiated on Monday 20 January. In this new year summer period we're republishing the Best of 2013 from each young writer – this provides everyone a welcome break.
Dr Mark Tronson is a Baptist minister (retired) who served as the Australian cricket team chaplain for 17 years (2000 ret) and established Life After Cricket in 2001. He was recognised by the Olympic Ministry Medal in 2009 presented by Carl Lewis Olympian of the Century. He has written 24 books, and enjoys writing. He is married to Delma, with four adult children and grand-children.
Mark Tronson's archive of articles can be viewed at
www.pressserviceinternational.org/mark-tronson.html