Published on: 15 September 2021



On Monday our Year 9 Creative Writing students received a guest talk from journalist Callum Denness in preparation for their upcoming journalism unit.

An accomplished journalist, author and current supervising producer for ABC’s flagship current affairs program 7.30, Mr Denness spoke to the boys about his career in the industry and what steps to take should boys wish to work as a journalist/producer.

During his talk, which was done via Zoom from Sydney, the boys had the opportunity to ask Mr Denness questions about his experiences reporting around the world. When asked ‘What was your most dangerous experience?’ Callum shared stories from his experience reporting for The Project; himself and his camera crew being surrounded by an angry mob, attending riots in war-torn countries and free diving with sharks in Hawaii in preparation for his novel.

Callum also imparted the following advice, “There were a lot of valuable comments made throughout Callum’s speech, but the piece of advice that resonated most with the boys was to be ambitious, inquisitive, listen carefully, research and not be afraid of making mistakes,” said English teacher Ms Nadia Forte.

Ms Forte commented on the importance of these guest talks, saying “The fact that the School is able to give the boys opportunities to speak with accomplished professionals in the industry is so valuable and will surely inspire their own creative writing journey.”

“As it is an elective class, there is a real mixed ability of writers, however what I love to see is that they’re all challenging themselves and focusing on their creativity in a written form. The boys were polite and attentive and did a great job representing Christ Church.”