I cannot wait to share my new book with you:
The Whale’s
Last Song
As a terrible pandemic rages through a medieval hamlet, a young girl sets off in search of a cure for her pox-infected sister. Meanwhile, out in the depths of the ocean, a whale is returning to the place he was born to exhale his last breath. A timeless allegory about love and sacrifice, The Whale’s Last Song is also a love song to the natural world.
Out October 2024
“Written with the timelessness and universality of a folk tale, imbued with heartfeltness and wit, warmth and a deep, deep knowing, it is both stern and playful, sweet and true, light and profound. It is truly, truly special.”
Publisher of the Year 2024, HarperCollins.
“Fresh, exquisite … a creative tour de force, weaving a sense of belonging and the fallibility of being human and the mysteries of being alive”
Prima Facie
“A bright ode to all that’s good and beautiful in the world. The Whale’s Last Song is a timeless tale, an allegory of the heart”
“So beautifully written, a magical tale. It feels really special, the kind of book suddenly everyone you know is reading.”
Marketing Executive
“Beautiful … My heart aches for this story, so small but heavy with the weight of meaning and emotion. And the writing! I cried over the ending. I loved it. I want to give it to everyone I know.”
Audio Publishing Manager
“A little gem of a book full of heart.”
Intern
I’ve been writing stories since I was six years old...
My 15th book, The Whale’s Last Song came from the grief of losing my mother in 2021, like a cry from somewhere deep inside me. Each year, I run writing retreats and mentor a handful of writers. In 2017, I created Joanne Fedler Media, my own publishing company to publish books by the authors I mentor.
I have a master’s degree in law from Yale and ran a legal advocacy centre to end violence against women in South Africa. I am a devoted ocean swimmer and support many organisations working to protect marine life and ecosystems.
My 15th book, The Whale’s Last Song came from the grief of losing my mother in 2021, like a cry from somewhere deep inside me. Each year, I run writing retreats and mentor a handful of writers. In 2017, I created Joanne Fedler Media, my own publishing company to publish books by the authors I mentor.
I have a master’s degree in law from Yale and ran a legal advocacy centre to end violence against women in South Africa. I am a devoted ocean swimmer and support many organisations working to protect marine life and ecosystems.
Follow me on social media:
What life has taught me
Life is a beautiful infliction
framed by time, uncertain, fragile and phenomenal.
Stories tether us to life when all the body wants to do is fall.
They are the trail of pebbles that leads us from the dark forest, home.
They are the tides that bring us safely back to shore.
I have always been slow dancing with words
holding them against my horny bones
while everything inside me swoons YES!
and DON’T STOP and more
my pen scratching the page
my heart clattering in my chest
like someone falling beyond herself
already claimed
lost, too late,
in love.
Learn to write with me
No matter where you are in your writing journey,
I have created an online course for you.
If you’ve always wanted to write but don’t know where or how to begin, start here. Over 7 days I share 7 writing tips and exercise which can be done in a few minutes, to build your confidence and enjoyment of writing as a daily ritual.
Every week for 24 weeks, you receive an unusual writing exercise to encourage you to explore your creativity in unexpected ways. This course helps you stay connected to your writing over 6 months to create momentum and continuity.
You want to write your story, but where do you start? How do you go about it? How do you make it interesting so others will want to read it?
You’ve got a book in you, but don’t know how to get it out. You need expert guidance and mentoring on the craft. You need to find your unique writing voice. But more than that, you need to believe you’ve got it in you to become an author.
You’ve got a whole lot of story in you, but it’s a tangled mess. You need a hand-hold, a game plan and a cheer squad to get to your first draft.
This course is only available on the Insight Timer app. It consists of 30 lessons which explore how writing can soothe and treat ailments of the soul while imparting practical writing tools.
Featured Videos
If you do nothing else with your life, find one thing that you love. Then give yourself over to it, again and again, each time with greater curiosity, courage and commitment, until you become the self that was made from loving that thing.
