Writing NSW

Writing with Passion Deborah Abela talks about the highs and lows of her career, her passions, inspiration and writing process, building a career as a children's writer, things she wished she'd known when she started out, pivoting during the pandemic, and being part of a writing community. In conversation with Belinda Murrell.

Building Career Longevity: Publicity, social media, marketing and resilience How do you build a thriving writing career in a rapidly changing industry? How do you help make your books sell? These highly successful professionals discuss the business of publishing including creating dynamic author platforms, social media, dealing with publishers and booksellers, advances and royalties, diverse income streams, and building resilience. With Dot Tonkin, Paul Macdonald, Mick Elliott and Belinda Murrell (chair).

Sally Bradfield, author of Not Quite 30-Love, spoke to Samuel Elliot of The Write Way podcast, about the role Writing NSW's self-publishing course with Joel Naoum helped get her book out.

Sally Bradfield, author of Not Quite 30-Love, spoke to Samuel Elliot of The Write Way podcast, about the role Writing NSW's self-publishing course with Joel Naoum helped get her book out.

This recording is part of the Honouring Australian Writers series, where Writing NSW pays tribute to writers who have made an important contribution to our literary culture. In 2020 we honour renowned author, journalist, playwright, and political activist Katharine Susannah Prichard. As part of re-examining Prichard’s legacy, this conversation between Jacqueline Wright and Jeanine Leane critically considers Prichard’s 1929 novel Coonardoo, and its place within a broader context of how Aboriginal people have been portrayed in their colonisers’ stories. In this discussion are Jacqueline Wright, editor, teacher and author with over 20 years’ experience as a linguist in WA’s remote north-west on Australian Aboriginal language, interpreting and cultural programs, and Jeanine Leane, Wiradjuri writer, poet and academic who as published widely in the area of Aboriginal literature, writing otherness and creative non-fiction. This conversation was recorded during NAIDOC Week, and Writing NSW recognises the 2020 theme Always Was, Always Will Be. First Nations people are the original storytellers on this land, and have occupied and cared for this continent for over 65,000 years. For more recordings, videos and reading material, including a list of the texts mentioned in this recording, visit the Katharine Susannah Prichard Honouring page at writingnsw.org.au

Right now, as we each experience isolation differently, food is a comfort for many. These times are also a reminder of how much food is a vehicle for connecting with family, friends and culture. In Talking Writing: Food, we consider the use of food to convey history, community, identity, love and memory. It can also raise complex questions of class, gender equality, our relationship with nature, and ethics. Recorded online on Thursday 16 July, hear from a panel who experience and write about food in fascinating and varied ways. Chaired by author Debra Adelaide and featuring writer and researcher Donna Lee Brien, poet Ellen van Neerven and food writer Richard Cornish.

What is ‘normal’ when it comes to our bodies? When we think of what that is, we can’t help but be influenced by the excess of images and ideas of what we should (and shouldn’t) be. Queer bodies, obesity, bodies of colour, disability, illness and more tend to fall outside the narrow scope of the body in Australian collective thinking. For Talking Writing: The Body, we spent the evening examining what it is to move through the world with a body that can be marginalised by the limiting socially devised definition of what the body should be and do. In this event, writers discussed writing their own bodies, identity and the challenges of representation in a country that is still grappling with notions of what a ‘normal’ body looks like. Author and Judy Harris Writer in Residence at the Charles Perkins Centre, Tracy Sorensen, chaired this panel featuring author Peter Polites, queercrip poet and historian Robin M Eames, and award-winning Filipina poet and teaching artist Eunice Andrada.

In Febuary 2020 we gathered for an evening of readings and discussion about Africa and it's relationship and influence on writers across the diaspora as a place and culture. Panelists discussed notions of Bla(c)kness in Australia and and the diverse, complex experiences of African migrants and Afro-descendant peoples. This panel was curated and led by actor, writer and activist Moreblesing Maturure and featured Kaiya Aboagye, Eugen Bacon and Tyree Barnette. As this panel was a live event in a relaxed, intimate setting, we didn't use microphones and subsequently the recording is not of the highest quality. We hope you'll bear with the background noise, as the exciting conversation is worth it! For more information on Talking Writing series and other events, head to writingnsw.org.au

On the day that Donald Trump is elected president of the United States, four Western Sydney youths clash in a string of violence, substance abuse and sexual encounters. Written by four of Australia’s most exciting new writers – Winnie Dunn, Stephen Pham, Maryam Azam and Shirley Le – Sex, Drugs & Pork Rolls is an oral storytelling experience from the heart of multicultural suburbia. Directed by Michael Mohammed Ahmad and featuring Emily Havea, Andy Trieu, HaiHa Le and Tasnim Hossain. Presented by Sweatshop: Western Sydney Literacy Movement.

Sometimes the best way to grapple with reality is to write about something else entirely. These writers have created other worlds as a way to reflect on and challenge what we consider to be solid and true. Eugen Bacon, Hannah Donnelly and Khalid Warsame in conversation with Roanna Gonsalves.

In May 2019, Sweatshop: Western Sydney Literacy Movement released the first-ever anthology produced entirely by women of colour. In this exclusive panel discussion, Tongan-Australian editor Winnie Dunn, opens an urgent and critical dialogue with the contributors from this ground-breaking anthology. With Divya Venkataraman, Ferdous Bahar, Janette Chen and Phoebe Grainer.

In 2019, three Western Sydney writers were awarded residencies at Bankstown’s Incubate Artist Studios and their resulting essays in the Sydney Review of Books explore important questions around identity, language and history, as well as the complex relationships between place and culture. Sarah Ayoub, Kiriaki Zakinthinos (Koubaroulis) and Audrey Newton in conversation with Sheila Ngoc Pham. Presented by Bankstown Arts Centre.

The Growing Up in Australia anthologies are significant collections of well-known and new voices telling their own stories. Editors and contributors to anthologies about diverse Australian childhoods discuss their experiences and the ways writing can re-shape the world we live in. Jack Latimore, Alice Pung, Sara Saleh and Ahmed Yussuf in conversation with Benjamin Law.

A conversation about the revival and reclamation of Indigenous languages with Gamilaroi and Anaiwon writer Cathy Craigie, Gadigal poet and educator Joel Davison, Gamilaraay author and linguist Donna McLaren, and Yuwaalaraay writer and musician Nardi Simpson. This panel is dedicated to Kerry Reed-Gilbert, Wiradjuri poet, author, and activist (1956-2019).

In its annual Honouring Australian Writers series, Writing NSW pays tribute to writers who have made an important contribution to our literary culture. In 2019 Writing NSW honoured author, playwright and scriptwriter Sumner Locke Elliott(1917-1991). Featuring archival material, clips and readings, the event featured the following speakers: Walter Mason Margaret Fink Kim Knuckey Sharon Clarke Please note, we have edited out the video components of this recording. Clips and further material will be available on our website.

Ideas Generator, from Writing NSW's 2019 Speculative Fiction Festival. Chaired by Margaret Morgan, with James Bradley, Michael Gillings and Elise Bohan. Photo Credit: Anita Mathews.

Science Fiction Now, part of Writing NSW's 2019 Speculative Fiction Festival. Chaired by Cat Sparks, with Margaret Morgan, Shauna O'Meara and Shankari Chandran. Please note that due to microphone issues on the day, we have had to edit out some sections of this podcast.

World Building 101, from Writing NSW's 2019 Specualtive Fiction Festival. Chaired by Festival Director Keith Stevenson with Mitchell Hogan, Catherine McKinnon and Mykaela Saunders. Photo Credit: Anita Mathews

Panel 1 of the Writing NSW 2019 Speculative Fiction Festival: That Was Then, This is Now. Chaired by Sam Hawke and featuring Rob Hood, Kaaron Waaren and Shankari Chandran. For further Writing NSW festivals, events and courses, visit www.writingnsw.org.au Image Credit: Anita Mathews

On 2 April 2019, Writing NSW presented Talking Writing: Indigenous Languages. The panel was chaired by Gamilaroi and Anaiwon playwright Cathy Craigie, Gamilaraay author and linguist Donna Gayford McLaren, Gunai poet and children’s book author Kirli Saunders, Darug singer and songwriter Jacinta Tobin, and Yuwaalaraay songwriter Nardi Simpson. The panel discussed the endangered status of most Indigenous languages, the idea of a reclamation language, current pushes for healthy speech communities, poetry’s role in language revival, and much more. Talking Writing is Writing NSW's regular themed writing event, designed to explore the limits of what writing is and where it can take you. Keep an eye on our website for future events.

On 3 March 2019, Writing NSW presented Talking Writing: Lambs of God, an in conversation with internationally acclaimed novelist Marele Day and screenwriter Sarah Lambert on the adaptation of Lambs of God, from bestselling novel to highly anticipated prestige drama series premiering on the Foxtel network in 2019. Chaired by Suzanne Leal. In 2019, Foxtel will release a television adaptation of Marele Day’s novel 'Lambs of God', a dark, gothic tale about three nuns living in an isolated convent by the coast and an unwelcome visitor who enters their lives and changes their world forever.

Four artists discuss the craft of writing the domestic, and how they coax out the sublime, ridiculous and otherworldly from everyday life. Featuring Jamie Marina Lau, Alexandra Hollis, Ellena Savage and Laura Elvery. This podcast was recorded on Saturday 29 September 2018 at the National Young Writers’ Festival.

What is political criticism, and how should writers approach it in our practice? What is the best way to skewer politicians with meaning? Four writers share their skills in shaping political criticism in ways that suit them. Featuring Wes Mountain, Eliza Berlage, Claudia Long and James Colley. This podcast was recorded on Saturday 29 September 2018 at the National Young Writers’ Festival.

In this special cross-festival event, three This is Not Art artists discuss the business of art, labour, and the promise of gathering together in space and time despite the odds. Featuring Danni McGrath, Kailum Graves and Creatix Tiara. This podcast was recorded on Sunday 30 September 2018 at the National Young Writers’ Festival.

Indigenous-Pasifika artists Amrita Hepi, Brian Fuata, Emele Ugavule, Latai Taumoepeau and Winnie Dunn talanoa about Australian arts and literature, traversing intersection of race, class, culture, faith, gender and sexuality.

Publishing consultant and literary agent Alex Adsett offers us insight into navigating the complex and at times obscure documents and contracts associated with publishing. This talk was presented as part of Forest for the Trees 2018 at Sydney Writers' Festival.

Bianca Whiteley from the Nielsen BookScan brings us data about books readers are buying, and books that are likely to sell in the future. She also sheds some light on the commonly asked question: what makes a bestseller? This talk was presented at Forest For The Trees 2018 at Sydney Writers' Festival.

In conversation with Julie Koh, novellist and non-fiction writer Charlotte Wood talks about the winding path she took to get her first book published, and how she maintained her writing life. 'Staying on the Path' was presented as part of Forest for the Trees 2018, an event at Sydney Writers' Festival.

Juliet Rogers, CEO of the Australian Society of Authors, offers insight into navigating the complex and sometimes obscure documents associated with publishing. This talk was presented as part of Forest for the Trees 2018 at Sydney Writers' Festival.

•Julie Koh left a career as a lawyer to pursue writing. Her books ‘Capital Misfits’ and ‘Portable Curiosities’ have been met with critical acclaim and in 2017, she was named the Best Young Australian Novelist by the Sydney Morning Herald. She spoke about her life as a writer in 'My Path Through the Forest' as part of Forest for the Trees 2018 at Sydney Writers’ Festival.

This was recorded at Honouring: Oodgeroo Noonuccal at the State Library of NSW on 18 August 2018. In its annual Honouring Australian Writers series, Writing NSW (formerly the NSW Writers’ Centre) pays tribute to writers who have made an important contribution to our literary culture. In 2018 we honoured Oodgeroo Noonuccal (1920-1993), Australia’s first published Aboriginal poet. Oodgeroo Noonuccal, known publicly as Kath Walker until 1988, when she readopted her traditional name, was also a political activist, educator, and artist. The event celebrating her contribution to Australian literature will include conversations, readings, and archival materials. Evelyn Araluen is a poet, teacher and researcher working with Indigenous literatures at the University of Sydney. She has written poetry and criticism for a range of publications, including Overland and Southerly. In 2017 she won the Nakata Brophy Award for Young Indigenous Writers, and in 2018 won the Judith Wright Poetry Prize. Born and raised on the Dharug lands of Western Sydney, she is a descendant of the Bundjalung nation.

This was recorded at Honouring: Oodgeroo Noonuccal at the State Library of NSW on 18 August 2018. In its annual Honouring Australian Writers series, Writing NSW (formerly the NSW Writers’ Centre) pays tribute to writers who have made an important contribution to our literary culture. In 2018 we honoured Oodgeroo Noonuccal (1920-1993), Australia’s first published Aboriginal poet. Oodgeroo Noonuccal, known publicly as Kath Walker until 1988, when she readopted her traditional name, was also a political activist, educator, and artist. The event celebrating her contribution to Australian literature will include conversations, readings, and archival materials. Brenda Saunders is Wiradjuri writer and artist living in Sydney. She has won several prizes and fellowships and in 2014 was awarded the Scanlon Prize and the Woolhara Literary Prize for her collection ‘Looking for Bullin Bullin’. She has published three collections and her poetry and literary reviews appear regularly in national and international anthologies and journals including Best Australian Poems 2013 and 2015 (Black Inc). Brenda is currently completing a manuscript ‘Understory’ concerned with changes to Aboriginal culture and land since colonization.

Five phenomenally successful authors explain how they create fantastical worlds of magic and wonder, and keep readers coming back for more. With Jaclyn Moriarty, Garth Nix, James Bradley, and Kate Forsyth (chair). Recorded at the 2018 Kids & YA Festival.

A panel of writers with very di erent publishing routes discuss the pros and cons of partnership publishing, multi-media storytelling, self-publishing, and traditional publishing. With Anne Donnelly (independently published), Jacqueline de Rose-Ahern (partnership publishing), Graham Davidson (multimedia), and Katrina Roe (chair). Recorded at the 2018 Kids & YA Festival.

Jacqueline Harvey talks to Belinda Murrell about the highs and lows of Jacqueline's career, her passions, inspiration, writing process, and being part of a writing community. Recorded at the 2018 Kids & YA Festival.

How do authors deal with serious issues in YA literature? How do they create diverse YA voices? What are their challenges and joys? With Eleni Hale, Megan Jacobson, Tamar Chnorhokian, James Bradley, and Will Kostakis (chair). Recorded at the 2018 Kids & YA Festival directed by Belinda Murrell.

Writing NSW launched it’s rebrand, new website, and upcoming course program with a night of readings and literary festivities at Lazy Bones on Thursday 7 June 2018. Alana Hicks read from her television drama/comedy script 'Home is a Foreign Country'. ____ Alana Hicks is a Papua New Guinean-Australian digital content maker living in Sydney. A published poet, she has worked on a variety of projects from short films and documentaries to web sketch comedy and theatre. As a web series producer and writer, she has spearheaded The Kvetch Set Sketch Collective’s three online season, and several live shows. Literary anthology Going Down Swinging published a digital interactive feature based on superstition driven violence against women, written by Alana called Smoke and Fire. Alana recently participated in the State and National Talent Camps, Emerging Creative Development Workshops. Recorded by Zacha Rosen Image credit: Raphael Stephens

Writing NSW launched it’s rebrand, new website, and upcoming course program with a night of readings and literary festivities at Lazy Bones on Thursday 7 June 2018. Drew Rooke read from his book 'One Last Spin' published by Scribe Publications. Find out more about the book here: https://scribepublications.com.au/books-authors/books/one-last-spin ____ Drew Rooke is a Sydney-based author and journalist. His work deals primarily with contemporary Australian political and cultural issues, and has appeared in The Saturday Paper, Meanjin, Neighbourhood, and The Sydney Morning Herald. Drew was a finalist in the 2015 Scribe Nonfiction Prize for Young Writers. One Last Spin: the power and peril of the pokies is his first book. Recorded by Zacha Rosen. Image credit: Raphael Stephens

Writing NSW launched it’s rebrand, new website, and upcoming course program with a night of readings and literary festivities at Lazy Bones on Thursday 7 June 2018. Jarrah read from his book 'Hey Brother' published by Allen & Unwin. Find out more about the book here: https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/books/fiction/popular-fiction/Hey-Brother-Jarrah-Dundler-9781760631123 ____ Jarrah Dundler was raised in the Northern Rivers region of NSW. Since completing his arts degree at Griffith University he’s worked as a grant writer, pizza-chef, uni tutor, barista, and a stonemason’s labourer. His debut novel Hey Brother, about the challenges faced by a teenage boy when his brother returns from war, was selected for a Byron Writers Festival Residential Mentorship, a Varuna fellowship and shortlisted for the The Australian/Vogel Literary Award. Jarrah currently lives back in the Northern Rivers region – the setting for his fiction – where he works as a mental health peer worker. Recorded by Zacha Rosen. Image credit: Raphael Stephens

Writing NSW launched it’s rebrand, new website, and upcoming course program with a night of readings and literary festivities at Lazy Bones on Thursday 7 June 2018. Kerri Shying read from her book 'sing out when you want me' published by Flying Island Books/Cerberus Press. ____ Kerri Shying belongs to the Wiradjuri people and is of Chinese / Australian ancestry. A life of slow work with hidden people has given her respect for the small stories the hard places. She has published in the Roland Robinson Awards, and appears in the Women of Words series with Papatuanuku Press, Hunter Writers Centre, Grieve and Inclusion series and a variety of other journals, including Cordite, Billy Blue, Satellite, Users News, and Verity La. Recorded by Zacha Rosen. Image credit: Jeanne Kinninmont

Writing NSW launched it’s rebrand, new website, and upcoming course program with a night of readings and literary festivities at Lazy Bones on Thursday 7 June 2018. Shankari Chandran read from her book 'Song of the Sun God' published by Perera-Hussein. Find out more about the book here: https://pererahussein.com/index.php/books/novels/song-of-the-sun-god-phph.html ____ Shankari Chandran worked as a lawyer in the social justice field for over a decade. In 2017, she published her first two novels. Song of the Sun God (Perera-Hussein Publishing House) was short-listed for the Fairway National Literary Award (Sri Lanka, 2018). The Barrier (Pan Macmillan Australia) has been short-listed for the Norma K Hemming Award (2018) for speculative fiction. Both books have been optioned for television. Shankari is now working on her third book, a thriller also set in Sri Lanka. In 2017, she received a grant from Create NSW and the NSW Writers’ Centre which enabled her to go to Sri Lanka and conduct essential research. Recorded by Zacha Rosen. Photo credit: Jeanne Kinninmont

Writing NSW launched its rebrand, new website, and upcoming course program with a night of readings and literary festivities at Lazy Bones on Thursday 7 June 2018. Stephen Pham read from his 8000 word essay 'Centering the crush: The ephemeral joy of Carly Rae Jepsen' published by The Lifted Brow. ____ Stephen Pham is a Vietnamese-Australian writer from Cabramatta. He is a member of Sweatshop: Western Sydney Literacy Movement. Stephen's short stories and essays have appeared in Overland, Meanjin, Griffith Review, SBS Life, and Sydney Review of Books. In 2017, Stephen received the Create NSW Writers' Fellowship to develop his debut novel, Vietnamatta. Recorded by Zacha Rosen Image credit: Raphael Stephens

When we look at our stages, what do we see reflected back to us? Going beyond white Australia, playwrights from Aboriginal and diverse backgrounds are exploring important conflicts in our society and giving voice to broad experiences. With Andrea James, Sheila Pham (convenor), Disapol Savetsila, and Aanisa Vylet. Curated by Sheila Pham and presented by NSW Writers’ Centre.

These powerful new voices are reshaping the landscape and literature of Australia and influencing how we see ourselves as a community. Hear excerpts of their work and a discussion of what it is to find your voice. With Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Julie Koh, Peter Polites, Ellen van Neerven, and Benjamin Law (convenvor). Presented by NSW Writers’ Centre. Audio Credits Introduced by Shelia Pham Recorded and Produced by Zacha Rosen

According to our national anthem we have boundless plains to share. Since 1788, Australia has experienced successive waves of immigration, from post-war Europeans to refugees from Africa. Liza-Mare Syron discusses how diverse voices become part of the national story with Hani Abdile, Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Hoa Pham, and Markus Zusak. Presented by NSW Writers’ Centre. Welcome to country by Jennifer Newman. Audio Credits Introduced by Shelia Pham Recorded and Produced by Zacha Rosen

A writer’s life entails much more than just getting words on the page. Maxine Beneba Clarke is a slam poet, journalist and the author of the short story collection, Foreign Soil. Her memoir The Hate Race will be published this year. She takes us through what she has learnt so far and her plans for 2016. Recorded at the State Library of NSW as part of Forest for the Trees, a one-day seminar run by NSW Writers' Centre for Sydney Writers' Festival 2016.