Source: School of Foreign Languages
Written by: Huang Yuehan
Translated by: Peng Ting
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

On March 20, 2015, Australian writer AJ Betts gave a lecture entitled “What does it mean to be an author?” to the freshmen and sophomores of English majors on Zhuhai Campus. The lecture was co-organized by School of Foreign Languages, Sun Yat-sen University, and Australian General-Consulate Guangzhou, China.
 

Australian writer AJ Betts giving a lecture entitled “What does it mean to be an author?”
 

Ms. AJ Betts is an author, teacher and speaker. Reading and writing have been part of her life since childhood. She published her poem at the age of 11. In the lecture, she brought her third book Zac & Mia, winner of the 2014 Ethel Turner Prize for Young People's Literature. It was inspired by her work teaching at a children's hospital. She is also a bike enthusiast and draws much of her writing inspiration from cycling. She encouraged the students to get out into the natural world. 

In the lively discussion after the lecture, Ms. AJ Betts answered questions about writing inspiration and book publishing. She encouraged the students to develop their personal interests and learn from books, thus laying a solid foundation for future study.