The Heart’s Ground, a Life of Anne Elder, by Julia Hamer

In 1956. in a letter to her friend Jonet Wilkie, the Melbourne poet Anne Elder (1918-1976) wrote:

Convey deep appreciation to your mother for her remarks in a letter to mine. She puts her finger right on the spot when she says writing verses is something which can still provide satisfaction almost to one’s dying breath.  It is something I have been puddling away at all my life, but only lately have grown confident enough to post them off.  I still get lots of knock-backs & don’t suppose I will ever get very far as I’m too simple minded & about 20 years behind the times as to style.  John [her husband] I suspect is secretly proud of my little successes, but goes cold with fury when he arrives home late at night & finds me with a glazed eye of composition & unwilling to spring up and boil the…