Not many young people can say that they’ve published a book before they’ve even finished high school.
But that’s not the case for Marianne Handoko, a Year 10 student at Aspect South East Sydney School, who has published not one, not two, but three books through Story Factory’s Year of Poetry program. She is currently working on a fourth.
Marianne, who has autism and can have trouble communicating, finds a way to express herself through writing and poetry.
Her mother, Meliana, says: “We started with Story Factory at Redfern, working one-on-one with one of the staff. After that, she joined the group workshops here in Parramatta. Coming to Story Factory, it’s an outlet for her – she doesn’t do this anywhere else.”
Marianne has a particular method for writing her books, using an alphabet board system.
She will first indicate if she would like to use a letter, a punctuation mark or start a new line on one board, before pointing to individual block letters to spell out each word – which her mum, a Story Factory educator or a volunteer will transcribe. This process takes time but allows Marianne’s distinctive voice to come through.
“It’s a joy to work with Marianne,” says Purnima Mahesh, Story Factory’s Open Programs Officer. “It’s wonderful to view the world through her eyes and to see all the words that she carries with her. She’s very precise and knows exactly what words she wants to write and spells them out, deliberately, one letter at a time.”
Marianne is innately curious and deeply philosophical. Her poetry asks challenging questions, encouraging her readers to think about the world around them.
“[At Story Factory] we are taught to find our voice through writing,” she says. “I am autistic. Story is a way to let world know that I have thought.”
When asked what poetry means to her, Marianne composed the following poem: “Thankfully, wonderfully, carefully concerts have actually started, yet? / Beautifully, right here on this manger! / Teaches all of uses with seen bonus.”
Marianne’s collections of poetry – Saw One Personally, Tide of Time, and Talk to a Reader – are available to purchase on the Story Factory website.
“Safe Stormy Night”, an excerpt from Talk to a Reader by Marianne Handoko:
She lays her open inspiration to sometimes. We are spun, we are tooled, spoiled to rot. She who sees today, tomorrow sees her. Today, she wants to slack so since she whines, she sobs she scolds. / see some sitting, / see some starving, / see some stepping? / see star shining? / snore she sleeps. / sent sea shore, / shake she shook! / shame side small? / She says she shall see. Sale season seeker, sale spares show, sale sight special sometimes taken to her as inspiration.
