Wanna play Dungeons and Dragons on Livewire? Register your interest here!

Some thing to note…

• Don’t worry if you can’t play or don’t know how- we are all going to learn together! Log in to check out the livestreamed games for a bit of insight into how the game works (kind of, we had no idea what we were doing).
• Whether we play or not, we are going to run a Character Building Workshops in chat in late June- log in for more details. Even if you don’t want to play on LW, you can still build a character, just for fun, or to use to play elsewhere.
• Keep your eyes peeled for an article series coming soon that lays out all the basics of game play, dice and characters!

Got something more to tell us, or have questions? PM a chat host, or email livewire@starlight.org.au.

It’s that time of year again. The original, and still the best… Livewire’s Got Talent!

This is the comp where you can show off your skills, your talents, and the things that make your heart happy. Whatever your talent is, we want to see it. Create an account or sign up to take part now!

And, before you say it- yes, everyone has a talent! Even you! Notable past entries to LWGT have included hair and make up styling, cup stacking, swimming, and dog training. Think outside the box and enter with what you are good at- whatever that may be.

Here’s what you need to know to take part in the best, most fun comp we’ve ever run.

Categories

• Music- Do you sing? Play an instrument? Make cool mixes? Upload them as a video in LWTV, or email us your mp3/wav/audio files so we can post them.
• Photography / Visual Arts- This category is for photography (obviously) and any visual art you make, be that digital or pictures of physical flat artworks.
• Dance- Are you a dancer? We want to see it! Any style, videos under 5 minutes.
• Textile Arts & Craft- This is the category for sewing, macrame, sculpting, polymer clay, jewellery- all your crafty, makey things.
• Miscellaneous- Does your talent not fit in any of the above categories? Then Miscellaneous it is! This is the category for anything else, whatever that may be.

Entries open Saturday 1st May and close midnight Monday 31st May 11:59pm.

Voting
Voting will be done using a form in the Articles section of Livewire. The voting form will be published on Tuesday 1st June, and remain open until midnight 14th June. You can vote once per category.

Prizes
The final prize announcement is coming soon! Stay tuned because we promise, you will want in on this- these are good prizes!
In addition to that, everyone who enters will receive a small prize in the mail in June.

How to get involved

Log in or register for more details, including how to enter and the T’s&C’s.

Here at Livewire, we’re a pretty accepting bunch. We know that people come in all types, shapes and sizes. We get that people have different tastes, likes and dislikes. And we understand that people have a wide variety of different identities and different ways of seeing themselves and their bodies.

One of the things that people often use to identify themselves is their gender. It might seem pretty simple- you are born a male or a female, and you stay that way. But that’s not always the way it works.

Sometimes, a person is born into a body that doesn’t fit the gender they feel they are. Someone might be identified as a male when they are born. But as they get older, they realise that the label of male, or boy, or man, just didn’t fit them at all. They know in their heart that their correct gender is female. It’s just that their physical body doesn’t fit that the gender they feel themselves to be.

Identifying as a gender different to the one you were born is called ‘gender diversity’, and it’s probably much more common than you think. There’s a few terms that fall under gender diversity, all of them slightly different. Some of the terms that you might come across are…

Gender Diverse- People who are gender diverse might be transgender, or agender, or non-binary, or might just be thinking and questioning how gender applies to them.

Transgender, or trans – This is where your physical body doesn’t represent the gender you know yourself to be. So, someone might be assigned a female gender at birth, but they know that inside, they identify as male.

Agender – This one applies to a people who feel that gender doesn’t actually apply to them at all. They don’t feel male or female.  They just feel like themselves, and the gender label doesn’t mean anything.

Non-binary – A bit like agender, people who identify as non-binary don’t feel like male or female specifically applies to them. They identify as neither male nor female, but another gender entirely.

Gender Fluid – A person who is gender fluid feels their gender may change from day to day. Some days they might be male, some days female, and some days neither.

Cisgender – Cisgender people are those that do identify with the gender they are assigned a birth. If you were assigned as a female at birth, and you feel like a female all the time- you’re cisgender.

All these terms are totally okay and can be great tools to use to tell other people how you see yourself. It’s up to individuals to decide what words they want to use to identify themselves. It’s okay for people to change their mind about how they identify as well. They might identify as transgender, and then a day, a week, a month or a year later, they will identify as something else. We’re all fluid, and our identity changes often.

If someone you know does identify as transgender or non-binary, they might ask you to change the way you refer to them. Changing your pronouns can be very important for some people, and often a difficult thing to express.

A pronoun is what you call someone when you’re not using their name. The most common pronouns are he/his/him and she/hers/her. Some people feel these don’t correctly apply to them, so they might ask that you use the pronouns they/theirs/them instead.  They/them/theirs are pronouns that mean the same thing as he/his/him, or she/hers/her, but are gender neutral.

Using the pronouns people prefer can be tricky sometimes- it can be difficult to remember to use the right pronoun when you’re used to referring to a person in a particular way. If you do slip up and use the wrong pronoun, just apologise, correct yourself and move on. It gets easier with practice!

That’s just some basics on gender and pronouns. Gender can be a pretty complex thing, and the way people identify can be fluid and changeable. What’s important is the person and what they mean to you. At Livewire, everyone’s welcome and we want everyone to feel comfortable. Recognising people’s different genders and the way they identify is just one small thing we can do to make sure everyone is accepted here, and that Livewire remains the safe, awesome space you all know and love.

If you want to find out more about what a Rep is, please click here. Otherwise, read on to find out more about who the fantastic Reps are:

Rep_Mackie

Nickname: I have Many MANYY nicknames like Mackie, Mc-Truides, Moodle (rhythms with noodle he he!) Macronie, CHEESE!! Yep and Maccas 😉

What is the best thing about being a Rep: The best thing about being a Rep is all the amazing opportunities to help out the community, talk to new members, and create Content!!!

Favourite colour, food, chocolate, movie and music: Righty-O! my ultimate favorite color is Pink!!!! Favorite food must be SPAGHETTI!! No wait or is it lasagna?? HEHE! Favorite movie would have to be Tangled! I love me some dark cholate and a bit of white cholate every now and again, and I’m more into up beat pop music, like happy upbeat pop music, if that is even a thing!

Hobbies/Interest: I love to read books (consider my self-book worm!) I love to sing and have jam sessions and also play piano!!!

What do you do outside of Livewire: I am secretly a unicorn spreading sparkles and smiles throughout school! But I’m a nerdy unicorn that wars glasses!

What do you like to do in your free time: I love to make myself a cuppa of Hot chocolate, snuggle in my doona with a book or a movie and doze off into a magical world!

Which actor would play you in a movie about your life: Totally Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon!!!!) from Legally Blonde!!!

What was your favourite character when you were growing up: Sounds strange but – Dora!! She helped me learn most of my Spanish!!!

If you were ice cream, which flavour would you be: oooh hard choice!!! But I’d be the classy Peppermint chocolate chip!!!

If you were an animal, what would you be and why: Nawww a cute little turtle!!! Because they are slow, ready and win the race!!! Yep! I’d be a turtle I’m a slow runner ha ha!

What would be your preferred pet if you could have anything: I’d love a pet chameleon! They are soo cool and cute!! I wish I could change color and blend into my environment.

If you were able to meet anyone throughout all of human history, who would it be and why: I already have!!!! Rebel Wilson!!! She is so darling in person, sweet and totally – knock your socks off Funny!!

Dream job: A Journalist for sure! I’d love to start my own blog one day and study at University!!

Hogwarts House: My fellow Hufflepuffs…. Where are you at???

Rep_Kenzie

Nickname: Kenzie (my first name is Mackenzie)

What is the best thing about being a Rep: The best thing about being a rep would have to be the responsibility! I love the fact that I get to help hosts, welcome new members and run events etc!

Favourite colour, food, chocolate, movie and music: My favourite colour is a light teal/mint! Food; I love lasagne and spaghetti, but I also love mango and watermelon! Chocolate; I love most chocolates, the only ones that I don’t like are ones with nuts, Turkish delete and cherry ripe! Movie; I don’t really have a favourite move, but I love to watch medical doccos! Music; once again I don’t have a real favourite, but I do like Coldplay, Guy Sebastian and many 80’s/90’s songs!

Hobbies/Interest: I love gymnastics and dancing, plus being here on Livewire!

What do you do outside of Livewire: Outside of livewire I attend school, so gymnastics and dancing!

What do you like to do in your free time: Chilling on Livewire, talking to friends, going to the shops and many other things!

Which actor would play you in a movie about your life: I actually don’t really know! Many actors I like don’t really fit this question!

What was your favourite character when you were growing up: As Sabrina may know… Dora! I also loved the wiggles and play school and thought that Dorothy the dinosaur was pretty cool!

If you were ice cream, which flavour would you be: I think maybe a mango sorbet? I love mango 😛 but it has a vibrant colour, just like me 🙂

If you were an animal, what would you be and why: I am not sure! Maybe a meerkat or echidna?

What would be your preferred pet if you could have anything: I really want a puggle (a baby echidna)!

If you were able to meet anyone throughout all of human history, who would it be and why: Wow! Maybe Oprah Winfrey? Or malalah! They are incredible woman that have the most amazing stories and advice!

Dream job: It may seem silly, but a pediatric neurosurgeon.

Hogwarts House: Hufflepuff 🙂

Rep_CharlotteF

Nickname: Char (which autocorrects to Chat sometimes) or have been called Charmander too!

Favourite colour, food, chocolate, movie and music: i love the colour blue (sky blue to be exact!).

Hobbies/Interest: baking, baking, baking! Literally, anything sweet I will make. Recently I’ve been
baking Christmas-inspired food (such as rumballs, white Christmas and gingerbread) but my
favourite thing to bake would have to be biscuits. Also, the more chocolate in the choc-chip cookies,
the better!

What do you do outside of Livewire: I have just graduated year 12, so I spent a lotttt of time
studying. I have just started a job as a medical receptionist and am planning to stay busy with that
until uni starts in Feb/March. I am hoping to do my double bachelor of nursing/psychological science
so I can become a paediatric nurse 

What do you like to do in your free time: I love to go for a swim in our pool, go for a drive (love to
the beach or waterfalls!), or bake. I also enjoy taking our dog Polly for a walk.

If you were ice cream, which flavour would you be: cookies and cream!! Has been my favourite
for years, because you sort of get the best of both worlds in terms of chocolate/vanilla

If you were an animal, what would you be and why: My favourite animal is an owl, however, I am
not as wise as an owl haha so maybe a cat! So i can have 9 lives  oh and I love the fact they sleep
whenever they want!

What would be your preferred pet if you could have anything: Well, I would love to have a
bunny or a turtle as owl’s aren’t exactly legal as pets where I am! I almost impulse bought a turtle
during the second wave of covid haha.

If you were able to meet anyone throughout all of human history, who would it be and why: I
would love to meet myself when I was like 5 just to try and change some of the silly things I’ve done
haha!

Dream job: Paediatric nurse is my first goal, then after that, I would love to work in the PICU/NICU

Hogwarts House: Hufflepuff?

Rep_Dommmm

Nickname: My full name is Dominic but I’m known around here as Dommmm or domino or dome… or Thomas….( Dw it’s a looooooong story)

Favourite colour: Kinda funny as I’m fully colourblind…. but I’ll just say blue…

Favourite food: probably something to do with potato or Mexican

Favourite Chocolate: Probably a flake, twirl or Jaffas

Favourite movie: my favourite movie is probably “we bought a zoo”
Hobbies/Interest: I love sport, love working on most things business-related and entrepreneurial type things also popping by chat and dropping an unusual fact that makes Lori rethink everything and then leaving while rethinks everything after the bombshell I dropped : ) (you’re welcome Lori)

What do you do outside of Livewire: I love most sport or anything that requires being active really but I also work on my business I’m launching “eventually” haha

What do you like to do in your free time: As I said I love being active when I’m up to it, apart from that I don’t mind a good tv series to watch. Also can be seen hanging with my mates which kinda had a hiatus due to COVID popping in to say hi to the world

Which actor would play you in a movie about your life: not sure, my serious answer would be that fetus dommmm could be played by Jacob Tremblay? but we could just find a random brown-haired dude at the shops or something.. would be a lot cheaper to produce the movie and if we save money on the production costs.. we could buy a lot of Sneks

What was your favourite character when you were growing up: fav character off the top of my head? I guess Brum

If you were ice cream, which flavour would you be: Choccy or Neapolitan but only really eat the choc and strawberry

If you were an animal, what would you be and why: That’s a tough question as a lot of animals are misunderstood, uhh I guess maybe a dolphin or giraffe? Maybe a crocodile

What would be your preferred pet if you could have anything: ever since I could talk I would always ask if I could get a pet croc cause why not

If you were able to meet anyone throughout all of human history, who would it be and why: If I could meet anyone I’d probably choose to meet Steve Irwin, I’ve always looked up to him even as fetus dommmm, always used to watch crocodile hunter.

Dream job: My Dream job would probably be an Entrepreneur with a side of philanthropy or owning a zoo/conservation facility, but really anything really that I can make a difference in someone else’s life.

Hogwarts House: 10 points to Gryffindor

Rep_Bridget

Nickname: Whilst my actual name is Bridget, some of you may have know me as Bridgo (my old username) or Bridge (looking at you @tashlw ) or B.

Favourite colour: Blue

Favourite food: Pasta!

Favourite chocolate: Pineapple Lumps and Turkish Delight

Favourite movie: the Martian (surprise surprise)

Hobbies/interest: I looooooove playing AFL and pretty much any sport. Also, anything and everything science!!!

What do you do outside of Livewire: I go to school (in year 12 this year – yikes!), watch a bunch of TV, run around and play sports when I can but 95% of the time you’ll probably find me studyin (at least this year you will) or down a very random, very sciencey YouTube blackhole – I mean what else is YouTube for??

What do you like to do in your free time: well in my VERY limited free time, I spend a fair bit of time researching cool science stuff (or at least I find it cool), I love going for a run/walk/swim/bushwalk when my health decides to cooperate and hanging out with my mates and going to the beach. Oh, and eating, a LOT of eating.

If you were an ice cream, which flavour would you be: strawberry (because it’s my fav!)

If you were an animal, what would you be and why: I reckon I’d be a monkey because then I could muck around and run and swing around trees all day.

What would be your preferred pet if you could have anything: I’d love to get a dog.

Dream job: either a paediatric oncologist (not sure yet whether practising or research) or an astronaut-doctor (like Chris Beck in the Martian – that would be sooo cool hey?)

Hogwarts House: From memory, I think I’m Ravenclaw?

November. A month like any other…or is it!?

If you answered no to this, and then proceeded to click attending on the Legend Convention event https://my.livewire.org.au/events/legend-convention/ , congratulations! You’ve just collected your first point on the path to being crowned Legend of Legends™ and scoring some wild prizes along the way!

Throughout the month you’ll have chances to collect additional points by:

– attending one of 12 dedicated trivia events on subjects ranging from Disney to DC, Shrek to Video Games, Musicals and much, much more!

– watching your favourite weekly live streams – Ms Squiggle, Would I LIvewirE To You (WILTY) and Catchphrase.

– attending special events featuring guest artists and experts from the world of comics, gaming and pop culture based craft!

– staying alert (but not alarmed) for other opportunities as they arise.

Prizes will be given along the way – and in even more amazing news – as soon as you’ve joined the Legend Convention group and collected your first 5 points you’ll win yourself your very own Amazon Echo!

We’ll be updating the competition leaderboard daily so stay tuned.

Best of luck in your quest! 🙂

What’s in it for me?:  A Kindle! Yep, every Livewire Member who submits a story gets a Kindle.

Ok! I’m excited, how do I enter? Great question! All you need to do is become a fully validated Livewire Member then post your story on the Livewire NewsFeed and tag us!

Details, Details, Details:  For everyone who has entered already- thank you!  Your Kindle will be coming to you in September, with all your stories pre-loaded onto it. For anyone who hasn’t entered yet- you can still get a Kindle! Here is how the activity will work for stories submitted after August 31.

• You must be a fully validated Livewire Member
• You need to publish your story on the Livewire NewsFeed and tag @livewirecompetitions
• Your Kindle will be sent to you within a week or two of your story being posted
• Kindles sent out after August 31 will not have stories pre-loaded on them
• One entry (and one Kindle!) per person (across the whole activity, not just the extension!)
• All entries must be your own work, and must be Livewire appropriate (think PG rated)
• We have 150 Kindles to give away- this activity will keep running until they have all been claimed
• We reserve the right to refuse entries if they don’t meet these conditions

So by now you might be wondering- what does my Story need to be, to make a valid entry? Well, there a lot of options!

Your Story could be…

• A poem or lyrics (max 250 words)
• Short Story (500-2000 words)
• Kids story (max 250 words)
• A review i.e. movie, game, book (max 500 words)
• A letter (max 1000 words)
• Film, play or musical script (250-2000 words)
• Storyboard or Comic (min 5 words)
• Essay (500-2000 words)
• Article (250-1000 words)

Happy Storytelling, Livewire! Remember, if you have any mates who are eligible for Livewire and want a Kindle of their own- send them our way!

Needs Some Inspo… grab a cuppa and read more below…

Once upon a time a Livewire Member sat down on a cold winter’s night with uggs boots, a cuppa and laptop open. They stared blankly at the white rectangle wondering what story was stirring inside them waiting to be told. Then they had a flash bolt of lightning and remembered the whispering voice of the great writers’ that the best way to overcome writer’s block is to just start. This and the drive to get a kindle just for participating compelled the Livewirian to tap the keys over and over until the page was full and the story had unfolded.

So Livewire as you may tell already this theme is storytelling!!

The aim: Tell us a story, we all have a budding story in us waiting to tell.

But how?: Get out your pen and paper, iPad or laptop and start writing. Sometimes going for a walk, listening to music or watching a film can be a great way for ideas to come to mind. And if you’re not a fan of typing, perhaps try speech to text! Google it, there are so many out there.

Looking for inspiration your own life and story can be a great start! Think of stories that you love and what you love so much about them?

* Remember all content needs to be Livewire appropriate (PG rated), and your own work.

Livewire reserves the right to refuse entries if they do not meet the above criteria

There is always lots happening on Livewire!

The Know Show fills you in with what’s happening, week by week.

Ms Squiggle is an interactive livestream- can you guess the squiggle before it’s done?

Would I Lie-vewire To You is where you test your skills and see if you can pick the truth from the lie- livestreamed from Queensland Children’s Hospital Starlight Express Room.

CatchPhrase is the ultimate livestreamed game show, streamed from Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital.

Book Club is our monthly book catch up chat room- what have you been reading?

Trivia is your chance to test your trivia knowledge and win cool prizes.

Lena’s Quiz Night is run by one of our awesome mentors.

And Livewire competitions are always running! Register now to see what cool prizes are up for grabs this month.

Do you think Livewire Online is the bee’s knees and have a friend or family member you think should join?

As long as they’re a teen, who is living with illness or disability, or a sibling- if they sign up to Livewire before the end of June EXTENDED 🎉 and become a fully validated member just because you told them how great Livewire is – we’ll give you a $25 Amazon voucher!

If you do tell a friend, make sure you tell us by emailing [email protected] so we can look out for their sign up.

And, the even better news… you can tell as many people as you want – the more people who sign up to Livewire (and become fully validated members), the more vouchers you’ll receive!

We have up to 50 vouchers to give away but this is only for the month of June EXTENDED 🎉 so get sharing!

If you want to send them an email, just copy and paste the below:

Hi,

I’m part of an online community called Livewire that I think you’d really like. It’s free to join and there’s heaps of fun stuff to do like live streaming, game shows, videos, competitions, and live chat.

Livewire is just for teens aged 12-20 and who are living with illness or disability, or a sibling. It’s a place where people just get it and you can really be yourself.

If you want to join just head on over to www.livewire.org.au / www.livewire.org.nz and click join now!

Make sure you let them know I sent you because I’ll get a $25 voucher if you become a fully validated member of the community. It’s a win-win because I really think they’ll love being a part of Livewire!

_____________________________________

The important stuff:

This is only available to current and fully validated Livewire Online Members – that means we have all the important info from you and your parents. If you’re unsure, ask a chat host or reach out to Tash at [email protected]

To become a new member, you must meet the criteria for membership, sign up for the first time, and become fully validated by 30th June 2020 EXTENDED 🎉

Criteria for membership of Livewire: aged 12-20, and living with a serious illness, chronic health condition or disability, or a sibling residing in Australia or New Zealand. Vouchers will only be sent once a health professional or Starlight team verifies the new member meets the criteria for membership.