Podcasts about Aurealis Award

How can you redesign your author business for the publishing environment that actually exists, rather than the one you wish you had? And how do you decide which marketing efforts will still bring readers to your books in ten years' time? Tracy Cooper-Posey shares her solar sail theory after more than 25 years as an author. In the intro, reviving your backlist [The Indy Author]; AI as a medium [Tim O'Reilly]; How to Write, Publish, and Market Short Stories – Joanna Penn. ProWritingAid Storyteller sale: Thursday, 3rd September until September 13th 2026 — 25% off all annual licenses as well as Story Critique credits. Today's show is sponsored by ProWritingAid, writing and editing software that goes way beyond just grammar and typo checking. With its detailed reports on how to improve your writing and integration with writing software, ProWritingAid will help you improve your book before you send it to an editor, agent or publisher. Check it out for free or get 15% off the premium edition at www.ProWritingAid.com/joanna This show is also supported by my Patrons. Join my Community at Patreon.com/thecreativepenn Tracy Cooper-Posey is the multi-award-winning author of over 200 novels and works of nonfiction, science fiction, fantasy, romance, and historical fiction under three pen names. Her books for authors include The Indie Author Survival Guide and The Productive Indie Fiction Writer. You can listen above or on your favorite podcast app or read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and the full transcript is below. Show Notes Learning to write again after chemo, one sentence at a time What enshittification means, and why it is the environment rather than you The hallmarks of an indie author business that persists over time The solar sail theory of long-term discoverability Why social media and paid ads have such a short half-life How to find and reduce the operational drag on your business You can find Tracy at ProductiveIndieFictionWriter.com or StoriesRulePress.com. Transcript of the interview with Tracy Cooper-Posey Jo: Tracy Cooper-Posey is the multi-award-winning author of over 200 novels and works of nonfiction, science fiction, fantasy, romance, and historical fiction under three pen names. Her books for authors include The Indie Author Survival Guide and The Productive Indie Fiction Writer. So welcome back to the show, Tracy. Tracy: Hi, Jo. It's great to be back. Jo: Yes. So you were last on the show in October 2023 talking about The Productive Indie Fiction Writer, and we went into depth then. So give us a bit of an update on your author business and also your life. Because it has been a bit of an up and down. Tracy: Yes, it's been a very interesting three years, because I had just gone into remission with cancer when we were talking last. Now I'm out of remission again and facing treatment in the next few weeks. My husband got cancer and went through treatment, and he's cured. So life has been pretty interesting. All that has made me do a lot of deep thinking about the indie author business and my own business and writing in general. So I'm still here. I'm still publishing, 200 plus books now. I had to learn how to write again. But the writing has shifted a lot towards science fiction and fantasy, including cosy science fiction now, which is the new genre that's just creeping in. All three pen names have been Aurealis Award finalists, which is nice. I'm still continuing the nonfiction work, which is something that you said the last time that we spoke. You said, “Now that you've written one, it's likely you'll write more nonfiction.” And I did. Jo: You did. They're excellent books. Just on that, you mentioned cosy sci-fi. For anyone who might not know, where is that genre? What's in that genre of cosy sci-fi? Tracy: It's not really officially a genre yet. It started off with cosy fantasy, which was where the cosy started. Actually, technically it started with cosy mystery, and everyone understands cosy mystery. The body and the murder are off stage. There's a lot of tea drinking. There's lots of friends, and it's all very polite and mannered. You're focusing more on the emotions and the feel, and they've picked up that cosy aspect of mystery and put it on fantasy. So you get books like, I think the primary one is Legends and Lattes. It's about an orc that's running a coffee shop because they got sick of fighting, and the adventures that they have trying to run their coffee shop. So if you pick up that same cosy sensation and put it on science fiction, that's cosy science fiction. But it's so new that it doesn't have a category on Amazon or anything like that. Cosy fantasy does now. Amazon just created a cosy fantasy category a while ago. But cosy science fiction is so new that people are still arguing over which books are cosy science fiction and which are not. Jo: Oh, that's interesting. You're incredibly prolific. You always have been. You mentioned there that you had to learn how to write again after cancer. What do you think happened, and how did you relearn? Because there are people listening who go through these similar things. Tracy: I think a lot of what happened was, well, life just became incredibly complex and challenging, and just getting through a day of pain took a lot of the energy, what they call the spoons. I didn't have the spoons to write anymore. Also you get chemo brain, which is the really interesting one. When I was going through chemo, I would look at a spreadsheet and just couldn't figure out how it worked. It just didn't make sense to me, so I had to hand over the finances and everything to Mark, which was rather interesting. The way I got myself back into writing again was, it was such an alien idea that writing wasn't even on my radar from day to day. I just didn't have the energy or the concentration to do it. So I started off really, really small. The first thing I did was read a lot of favourite books from other authors just to remember why I loved reading. Then I started reading my own books that I had written, just to remind myself of what I used to love about my own work. Then I just cracked the manuscript one day and read as far as I had written and thought, “Okay, what's the next sentence?” And that's the only thing that I would let myself do, was just write the next sentence. That's it. So I wrote the next sentence, and sat there and thought, “Do I want to write the next sentence?” On that particular day, no, I didn't. But I just kept opening the manuscript and looking and thinking about the next sentence, and eventually I wrote a few more. I think it was that coming back to the manuscript over and over with no pressure, just look at it, can you get the next sentence written? Very slowly I started building up, and now I'm pretty much back to the speed that I was at before the diagnosis. Jo: So I guess we could think about it in the same way that your body is physically recovering, your mind is also recovering. It almost feels like people want to disconnect the two. If you get a physical injury, that shouldn't affect your brain. But as you mentioned, having chemo, that in itself is difficult and has impacts on your brain. So if people think about it more as an injury you have to come back from, rather than day one you're back in, I guess. Tracy: Yes. It's really a rehabilitation-style process, and I think the key is you've got to take all pressure off yourself. I know that, for me in particular, because I was such a workhorse, I could feel this stress because I just wasn't getting things done. Once I gave myself permission to just take as long as it takes and just keep coming back to it, that helped enormously. It still took time for that rehabilitation process to actually work. There's a lot of forgiving yourself, and it has to be a gentle process, I think, because situations like cancer and chemo and whatever the situation is that's pulled you away from your manuscript, they're big life events, and there is a lot of stress involved with them both physically and mentally. So you have to give yourself time. Jo: Yes, it's so important. Okay, well, also in these last three years, as you said, you've got back to writing, and one of the books you have also written is The Anti-Enshittification Field Manual for Indie Authors. You also use Cory Doctorow's enshittification concept around the mature indie author industry. So just talk about what that term [enshittification] means? We think it is now established in the industry, in terms of what is going on there. How do we recognise it and adjust? Tracy: It's a very interesting term. The first time I heard it I raised my brows a bit. I was thinking, “Well, that's a bit cheeky.” The more you think about it, the more appropriate the name is. Basically, Cory Doctorow's idea is that any platform, so for the sake of this discussion, let's say Amazon, starts out serving its users extremely well because it needs them. When everyone first got into indie publishing, Amazon was open doors and you could just publish a book and it would sell, because they would push the book and they would do everything they could to make sure that readers saw your book. Then slowly and increasingly, the platform extracts value from those users for somebody else's benefit, usually shareholders, and ultimately for itself. You can track this process where it starts off really great for the users and then slowly shifts so that it becomes a less than stellar experience for the users. For indie authors, we're particularly exposed because our business sits on top of these platforms. So recognising that a lot of the platforms that we use now have enshittified, excuse me, or are in the process of doing that, that really helps. Because I think for years we were treating everything as a separate problem. We were worrying about organic reach, we were worrying about advertising becoming more expensive. There's subscription creep, there's deteriorating customer service, algorithm changes. Visibility was increasingly pay to play, and it's so much more than that now. The platforms keep removing features or changing the terms. Individually it just looks like a mess, but as soon as you put them together and say, “Oh, I understand now. The platform is enshittifying,” you can see the structural pattern. It actually applies to so many platforms and services. Once you see it, well, for me in particular, that was an enormously positive realisation, because until I saw the pattern, I thought I was failing, and nothing I was doing seemed to work anymore. Once I understood the environment itself had changed, I could stop trying to fix myself and start redesigning the business for the environment that actually exists. Jo: Yes, and that is the point. Redesigning your business for the environment that exists. Because what you mentioned there, I feel like some people still think that organic reach exists. I guess some people will say, “Oh, well, at the moment you can still put a video on, say, TikTok, and it might find an audience there.” Are people still building an audience in these newer platforms? But I think that's the point, isn't it? I guess Substack would be another one. Although we already see that heading in the same direction, with various things. As soon as you go in there thinking, “Yes, I'm going to get organic reach,” even if there is any, it follows this way, doesn't it? Tracy: It does. And this is what's so great about it, is once you recognise this pattern, you see it everywhere, and you can actually track a new platform through that process, and you can anticipate that, okay, maybe we're going to get organic discovery right now, but that's going to diminish. That way you're not disappointed, and you're all set up for when that happens. That means that you can reduce your dependency on these platforms and not expect them to behave like they did in 2011. Jo: It's interesting, though, with Amazon, for example, we've definitely seen that as authors. But on the other side, as a customer, as a reader particularly, I used to find a lot of books on Amazon directly. I'm almost entirely now finding books elsewhere, often through AI, actually, often through Claude. Tracy: Yes, exactly. Jo: And then going on Amazon to maybe get the book. It feels like for readers it's changed too, right? Tracy: Exactly. I mean, indie authors are particularly vulnerable because their entire business is built on these platforms, but this applies to everyone. It's not just indie authors. As you say, it's readers. They're noticing too that the decay of these platforms is starting to impact them as users. I'm exactly like you. I tend to buy my books from Kobo, but I will buy my books from anywhere, and I learn about those books from a dozen different places. I don't rely on just one platform anymore. It's really great once you understand this because then you can build an independent mindset that lets you flex around issues. Jo: Yes, and obviously we like to dwell on the positives here. So given that this is just a reality of the market and various platforms— What are the hallmarks of an indie author business that is more likely to persist over time given the reality of this? Tracy: Okay. Well, I think that the biggest part of it is, as I mentioned before, it's the mindset. Recognising these patterns is really a big one, recognising where a platform is in the process. Also developing a very independent mindset. I mean, we've been saying we're indie authors since 2011, but we were still really relying on those platforms to provide most of our business. I think these days the new indie author is much more independently minded. Even though you're using the platforms, and we're all using them, you develop a flexibility. You understand the industry, and you're making plans ahead of it, so you've got the flexibility there, and the business thinking, which really helps. You deal with any problems that come up. Every time there's an algorithm change, you're not going to wake up in the morning and just go through mourning because half your income has disappeared. You're ready with alternatives, and you've got different things that you can try. So that mindset, that thinking about and recognising patterns and how the industry is going, is critical. Once you've got that in place, then there's a huge number of strategies that you might want to incorporate. This is the thing, every indie author's business is different. We're all in different situations. I have health challenges, someone else may have a day job. I write a lot of books. Someone may be only able to produce a couple of books a year. We're writing in different genres. If you're writing literature, that's different from the sort of science fiction that I write. So the business and how it responds to the conditions out there is going to be different as well. So what you do as an author and for your business will be different. There's a lot of strategies that you can try and see which are most effective for you. One of the biggest, for instance, is something that you say a lot too, diversify your income. Have a durable backlist. Work to get your backlist built up. Direct sales is another strategy that I would say is almost mandatory for every indie author these days. I know a lot of indie authors are going, “Oh, but I've only got two books.” Doesn't matter. If you can sell from your site using just a PayPal link, that's direct sales, and that works. That gives you a lot more independence and agency. Owning your reader relationships, making sure that you keep the readers close, I think that's another critical one. Making sure that you're resilient for the platform so you can adjust when there's changes. And on and on. There's a lot of things that you can do to adapt. Jo: Yes. I think it's interesting just thinking about when you said, for example, direct sales is good for every indie author. I would say every indie author who wants to have a long-term business—and I think that's a really key thing. Because I feel like it's still important to have a difference between people who are writing primarily as a hobby or are not looking for the financial income that you and I think about. So I think that's one thing. I totally agree with you that just having a PayPal button or even selling some physical copies at a local fair or something, that all counts. I think it almost proves something and gives you that more independent mindset. It's like, “Yes, I can actually do this.” That is such a powerful reframe rather than, “I cannot do anything except upload my book on Amazon.” Tracy: Yes. And actually, funny you should mention the live markets, because we experimented over the last year with attending a few live markets and selling books, and there is a genuine power, a little thrill that you get when you sell a book, and you can sign it on the spot for them, and the reader is right there and you're face to face. That process is suddenly not this anonymous process, where you find that you've sold a book overnight and you've got no idea who it is that bought it. That person's right there in front of you, so you can sign the book for them and you have a little exchange. It's really empowering to build that independence into your business. Jo: Yes, and then you also mentioned the durable backlist. Do you think that having books in multiple genres, including nonfiction, is part of how you can make a living? As in, I think people often think, “Oh, maybe if I just write 20 books in one series.” I mean, maybe that works in some genres. I guess thrillers, actually, that can sometimes work, but you do so many things. Is it the 80/20 rule, that 20% of your books make 80% of the income, or does it literally vary from year to year? Tracy: Well, it does swing from year to year. But yes, generally the 80/20 rule holds. It's different from year to year, which 20% is making the 80% of the money. As I mentioned, I'm moving into science fiction and fantasy more, because that's actually more successful for me right now than the romance is. The other thing is, I think it really comes down to the individual author too. Some authors do very well just doing the one genre or even just the one series, and for them it's great. I always worry that that's putting all your eggs in one basket. I think, though, to counter that vulnerability, if you're just doing one series or one genre, go wide. Sell as wide as you can, and that gives you a bit of a hedge against vulnerability. It's a different situation for every author, and it's very hard for me to say, “Well, here's a 15-step list that'll give you all the answers,” because that 15-step list doesn't exist anymore, if it ever did. Just because everyone's business is so different. You need to do a lot of experimenting, I think, and find what works for you. That sounds like I'm waving off the answer, but I'm really not. You really do have to figure it out for yourself. If you do adopt that experimental mindset and say, “Okay, I'm going to do this for six months and track my statistics and see if there's any results there worth pursuing.” Jo: See what happens. Yes, and it's interesting you've also moved more into the nonfiction. Let's get into your solar sail theory, because I've followed you on and off since we met, like a decade ago. Tracy: It was 10 years ago. Jo: I know. It's crazy. It's really crazy. For those listening, we met in Oregon, at the Oregon Workshops with Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch. I've been reading your blog pretty avidly around this solar sail theory, which I love, and now you're talking about writing science fiction, I can appreciate it more. What is your solar sail theory and some of the ways to build it? Tracy: Okay, so solar sail theory is a theory in science. Well, I was going to say science fiction, but there's solid science behind it. Solar sails are a way, they think, because it's never been proven yet, of propelling a spacecraft. You have this huge sail, like kilometres wide, and what it does is it captures photons. Photons are basically light. So when the light hits the solar sail, it gives it a minuscule amount of push, but there's no friction in space, so that push just keeps the ship going and going. So when you've got kilometres of sail, all the photons hitting that can bring a ship up to enormous speeds, like a fraction of light speed, which sounds small if you're not used to science, but a fraction of light speed is enormously fast, and these solar sails can bring a ship up to those sorts of speeds. So you can cross to the next star without needing faster-than-light travel or warp speed or something like that. Put that theory over the top of the indie publishing industry and you suddenly get a very interesting way of thinking about the industry, and it helps you make decisions. So it's not a prescription. Again, it's not a 15-step, here's how to conquer the universe. It's a decision matrix. It helps you figure out what's going to work for you. Whatever strategy or tactic it is that you're thinking about doing, you can ask the question, does this extend my sail? So does it leave something behind that can continue to make me discoverable? So for instance, a 30-second radio advertisement probably is not going to leave anything behind that'll let readers discover you, because once it's aired, it's gone. On the other hand, a podcast interview like this. The podcast interview that I did with you three years ago, I'm still getting people finding me and finding The Productive Indie Fiction Writer three years later because of that. So that's extending the sail, and it's just a little tiny push, like a photon. Blog posts also, they surface indefinitely, so readers can find them 10 years later. And because you're the host of your own podcast, all your podcast interviews and the website, they're also creating surface area, so people keep finding you years later. Also guest articles, and a book in a library. Your entire back catalogue is all part of the solar sail. Jo: I know people listening are going, “But what about social media?” Tracy: Yes. Social media is a tricky one because it's such a short half-life. I think on Facebook, if anyone sees your post at all, after two hours it's basically gone. They never see it unless they actually go to your account, and they need to have heard of you in order to go to your account and see the post. So that makes social media not really a good solar sail builder. It has other uses, and as long as you understand that it does have this very short half-life, then you can use it for the things that it's good at. Jo: Yes, the same with paid ads, for example. Paid ads are the same as social media. Perhaps a quicker push, but as you say, the half-life is quicker. Tracy: Yes. Exactly. Paid ads come and go. There's nothing out there that'll let the reader find you in a couple of years' time. So they're very short term. A lot of people can build their business on these short-term things. They spend thousands of dollars on paid ads each month, and that works for them, but if they stop doing it, then their business halts. It comes to a grinding halt. Whereas if you're building your solar sail, it's a long-term way of setting up your business, so it just keeps ticking on. Jo: Your series of posts on the solar sail, which are also in The Indie Author Survival Guide, they are nonfiction, useful things. So what about for the fiction side? What do you suggest people do around content marketing? Tracy: Well, it all applies to both fiction and nonfiction. I usually write, because The Productive Indie Fiction Writer is addressing fiction authors, this does all apply to fiction as well. As I was saying, your book catalogue, because you're on Amazon, and Barnes & Noble, and Kobo, and Apple, and maybe Google as well, all of those pages are part of your sail. Your own site, all the book pages on your own site are part of the sail. There's different ways to do it, but the common one is you have this standard sail out there that helps readers find you. You coax them to come to your site, and there you try to capture them as readers. So that usually means your email list. Some people use Substack now. There are other alternatives I'm sure I haven't thought of, but email seems to be the principal one. Then you can build that relationship with the readers over the long term. The solar sail just brings all those readers to you so that you can develop that relationship and keep the readers close. For fiction authors, I think this is critical. This helps you build independence from the retail platforms. Jo: Yes, it is interesting. I would put podcasting and YouTube in particular. So I had someone, they were in my Patreon, and they said, “I'm no longer subscribed to your email list because I hear from you in Patreon and on the podcast.” I was thinking about my own behaviour, and for the podcast that I am a hardcore fan of, I'm not on their email list. I was thinking it is because my relationship with those people is more auditory, I guess. The same with YouTubers. People end up subscribing to your YouTube channel. Then the problem still is, if I stop podcasting today, then I can't contact those people again. Except that I know lots of podcasters who stop podcasting and then maybe two years later they just pop on with an update episode. And people are like, “Oh, I never unsubscribed from you on my feed.” So that can appear years later. I definitely still agree that the email list is primary. But if you're somebody listening and you're a more audio or video person, I think we can probably think about the relationship with people on these different dimensions. Tracy: Yes, and some people definitely prefer the audio. I'm utterly text-based myself. I prefer to read. But yes, podcasting, apart from anything else, is a way of keeping contact with the readers, and they can email you in return. So it is a two-way process, so you can develop that relationship. So if that works for you, that is a good alternative. The other thing is too, of course, every episode that you've recorded and put on a webpage is also building your sail. So more and more people are finding you. So podcasting is interesting. If you're guest posting on someone else's blog, that's a somewhat time-consuming way, but it does build up your sail as well. Jo: The only problem with that, I would say, as someone who used to have guest posts, is it's still my website. When it came to auditing my website, about five years ago—and the thing is, because my website's been around since 2008, I had some people guest posting in the early days—and I was like, “This should not be here anymore.” So I am able to get rid of people's things when they're on my site, in the same way that Amazon can take down your book or whatever. Tracy: Yes, and that's where the anti-enshittification process comes in. That's where developing that independent mindset comes in. One of the questions that you need to ask is, how permanent is this? What happens if it goes away? Tat's why blogging on your own site is probably a stronger and better decision than guest blogging on other people's sites, because they have control of that. Jo: Yes, absolutely. So there's so much in these books. These are all excellent books. I feel like you know so much after decades in the trenches, and I love that you're putting out everything in these books. I did want to ask you one specific thing, because obviously we're increasing the size of our sail. But if we have massive amounts of drag, so we have sea anchors or whatever we want to call it in our metaphor, we have to sort that out too. So in The Indie Author Survival Guide, you have a section on protecting the margins. So I wondered if you would talk about the specific ways to think about what is operational drag and how can we reduce it? Tracy: Well, we just actually hit the perfect example. Guest blogging has more drag than blogging on your own site does, because you don't have control over it, so it can disappear. It requires maintenance. It takes your time. So drag is basically anything that is going to slow you down once you've built up speed, coming back to the solar sail theory. The sail will keep you moving, but because we're not working in a vacuum anymore, we're not in space, there are things that can slow you down. Particularly for mature author businesses, we accumulate all this cruft. For instance, Barnes & Noble recently changed their website so that all the URLs for a book changed, and that doesn't sound like a big deal, but I've got 200 books. So suddenly the links didn't work pointing to Barnes & Noble for every book. So the Books2Read universal book links had to be changed for all 200 books. Jo: Oh, I did know that and I haven't done it. Tracy: This is the thing, is when you've only got five books, it's like 10 minutes' worth of work, no problems, and you just move on. When you've got 200 books, that's suddenly a big deal. I only found out accidentally that they had changed them, and once I had confirmed that every single link no longer worked, it was suddenly a massive project. There's also the money drag. Everything these days is software as a subscription. Even Microsoft Office, you've got to pay the fee every year. It works well in theory, because you're getting updated software all the time, but you have a dozen of those or two dozen, suddenly you're spending a lot of money every year for software that once upon a time we used to pay a flat fee for and that was it. So it pays to go through and figure out what expenses you can get rid of or diminish, or can you find a cheaper version. There's advertising. Some advertising just isn't worth spending the money on. If you're doing pay-per-click advertising, you need to monitor it all the time, so that's a time sink that you're blowing money on, technically, because your time is money. There's also, you may not be managing it quite as well as you could, so you're actually burning more money because the ads are not working as effectively as they could. More drag. You need to go through every aspect. There's time drag, repetitive tasks. For instance, Mark and I have, for about, I think we're coming up on 11 years now, we track our sales. Every morning we sit down and go through every platform and record the sales for that day in a spreadsheet so that we can do analysis. It's a good way to spend time because it's got extreme uses. There's a lot of little tasks that you might do, especially if you've been working in the business as long as I have. All these little tasks will build up, and suddenly you forget why you're doing them. Or the conditions have changed and it's not worth doing them anymore. They may not be providing the value that they once used to. So you have to go through and make sure that you're reducing the drag on your business as much as possible so that you can keep moving. Jo: Yes. I had two more extra ones there. You mentioned the things that we do that perhaps we don't need to do anymore. If people are outsourcing, if you have virtual assistants, if you are paying for some kind of service outside your own time, sometimes you can have that going and then when you think, do I need that anymore? So I know some people still do pay for turning posts into social media or making book trailers. That's a good one. Or there's things that people are paying for, and then you might realise that you don't need that service anymore, or you don't need everything that that social media manager is doing anymore. So realistically looking at the benefits of what you're getting. Tracy: Yes, constant review. Jo: Yes. Constant review. Then the other thing I was thinking is a mindset drag. So right now, as we're recording this, in the author community, there's this witch hunting going on around AI usage. Tracy: Yes. Jo: It's the latest thing that's causing massive drama. I feel like it's almost mindset drag to get dragged into some of this drama, and it saps the energy. That can really pull on your boat, on your solar boat. Tracy: Well, actually, I've found that, and this is all part of the indie author mindset, and it's also part of the anti-enshittification process too. I did a lot of research on AI. I did a lot of reading. I listened to a lot of different discussions about it, and then I formed my own policy. What's my policy for AI? What's my policy around AI and its use and so forth? I find that once I had developed that policy for myself, suddenly there's not as much mental drag with all the AI discussions and the witch hunts and all the drama that's going on around it, because I know where I'm sitting and I'm quite comfortable with my position. So I think for a lot of people, it can become very emotional and draining if you still haven't figured out where you sit on the spectrum of AI use. But that's actually how I tackled it, because I was getting very tired of all the dramas. It is draining, and it worries you. So I deliberately went out and did a lot of research and reading, and figured out where I stood, and that made a huge difference for me. Jo: Yes. And again, that's something to look at on your schedule. So maybe in a year's time you re-look at things again and change your decision. I think the same thing with the traditional versus self-publishing versus wide versus KU, and you could just go on. There are pros and cons in every single direction, right? At the end of the day, it's almost the decision fatigue that's stopping you. Or you could say, again, our solar boat has to go in a particular direction. You can't go in every direction at the same time. You just have to make a decision, right? Tracy: Yes. I think being as informed as possible about the industry is one of the big ones. I've spent a lot of time doing a lot of reading, not just about indie publishing over the last few years, but everything to do with publishing and also everything to do with business, because we are in business. That's a bit of a cliché, that a lot of indie authors, their eyes just glaze over when they hear that you're in business. There are aspects of running a business that we just don't get taught as indie authors or as creatives that I think we should be teaching each other or getting each other to learn, because it's basic business survival. Things like pricing, that is an enormously complex business topic, pricing. Most of us are, “Well, what's everyone else doing? Okay, I'll do that.” That's how they make their decisions. There's a lot more to it than that, and it's very complex. We don't have to get a PhD in business management, but I think a little bit more awareness about basic business principles would serve all of us much better. Jo: Yes, there's always so much to learn, but I actually think you've done a really good job with your books. I mean, The Indie Author Survival Guide is a great place to start. They're super, super useful. I do want to talk about—as we come to an end—you've been doing this a long time, as have I, and we've both got some battle scars along the way. You do end your books with hopeful realism, which I like. Now, I'm definitely more of an optimist than you, but I feel like hopeful realism is a good place. So how can people cultivate that feeling of hopeful realism around the business? Tracy: I don't know. Are you more of an optimist than me? Anyway. Well, let's see, because for me, all the book writing and all the research and all the reading that I've been doing over the last few years have given me back a lot of optimism that I didn't have. As I was saying, it was feeling as though I couldn't do anything right. So learning that it wasn't just me that's the problem gave me back my confidence. So that's where the hopeful realism and the optimism came in. So hopeful realism, okay, it comes from understanding, from agency, and from choice. If you understand the industry as it actually exists, not the way you wish it did, and you understand the forces acting on your business and where you sit within them, that helps enormously. Just having that knowledge there, you can see what's going on, you understand what's going on. It's not all a mystery, and you're not scratching your head wondering what to do next. Because of that understanding, you get agency. You're not helpless. When circumstances change, you can respond. You can make decisions instead of simply having things happen to you, and all of that gives you choice. You can go out and research and find out what your options are, and you can choose the best option for you. If that doesn't work, you can go and try something else. So you've got a lot of choices, and you've got things that you can do. You're not helpless. So hopeful realism, I think, is pretty optimistic. Jo: Brilliant. So where can people find you and your books online? Tracy: If you're interested in my nonfiction, the best place to find me is at The Productive Indie Fiction Writer. If you want to find out more about my fiction, the best place to find that is to go to StoriesRulePress.com. My three pen names are there, and also Mark, my husband, who is a writer as well. And shortly, I think, another member of the family's going to be joining us as well. So it's a very family affair on Stories Rule Press. Jo: Well, thanks so much for your time, Tracy. That was great. Tracy: Thank you very much. I'm thrilled I was able to come back and talk again. Thanks, Joanna. The post How To Redesign Your Author Business For The Environment That Actually Exists, With Tracy Cooper-Posey first appeared on The Creative Penn.

We are joined by very special guest, bestselling and Aurealis Award-winning author Kell Woods as we venture into the deep dark woods of children's tales. Hold the lantern high as we breadcrumb our way through boarding school mysteries and gingerbread houses and wicked stepmothers.

My guest this episode is Tracy Cooper-Posey, a prolific author with nearly 250 books across multiple genres and three pen names. She began in traditional publishing, switched to indie in 2011, and now runs a family micro-press. Originally from Australia and now based in Canada, Tracy writes everything from romance to science fiction to thrillers. She has continued to write and publish despite serious health setbacks. Find more author advice, tips, and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center, with a huge archive of 2,000+ blog posts, and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need. We invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. Sponsor Inspirational Indie Authors is proudly sponsored by Bookvault. Sell high-quality, print-on-demand books directly to readers worldwide and earn maximum royalties selling directly. Automate fulfillment and create stunning special editions with BookvaultBespoke. Visit Bookvault.app today for an instant quote. About the Host Howard Lovy has been a journalist for 40 years and now amplifies the voices of independent author-publishers and works with authors as a developmental editor. Find Howard at howardlovy.com, LinkedIn, and X. About the Guest Tracy Cooper-Posey is the author of more than 200 novels across romantic suspense, historical, fantasy, science fiction, and women's fiction—because sticking to one genre just seemed boring. A 2024 Aurealis Award finalist (and a 2023 finalist under her fantasy pen name, Taylen Carver), she also writes science fiction as Cameron Cooper and has collected accolades including the Emma Darcy Award, the SFR Galaxy Award, and a fourth-place finish in Hugh Howey's SPSFC#2. A former magazine editor and romance writing instructor, Tracy now writes full time from Edmonton, Canada, alongside her husband and creative partner, Mark Posey, fueled primarily by Irish Breakfast tea, dark chocolate, and sheer stubbornness. She is also the author of The Productive Indie Fiction Writer, where she helps fellow authors thrive without burning out.

In a special series direct from the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival Laura Jean McKay chats with Irma about the experience of touring her books to the UK, why she threw up in a caravan sink after finishing her novel, how the publishing landscape for short fiction has changed over the last two decades, a disastrous book event that ended up in an Oscar-winning performance, writing about big political themes, the surreal experience of recording her audiobook during the pandemic, why winning prizes can be a lonely experience, the overwhelming and unexpected support of the sci-fi community, how to develop writing muscles, the worst writing advice she received from a very famous author, why a serious illness altered the development of her novel, and the practical methods that she used to climb out of an intense period of writer's block.About Laura Jean MackayLaura Jean McKay is the author of The Animals in That Country - winner of the prestigious Arthur C Clarke Award, The Victorian Prize for Literature, the ABIA Small Publishers Adult Book of the Year and co-winner of the Aurealis Award for Best Science Fiction Novel 2021. Laura is also the author of Holiday in Cambodia and was Adjunct Lecturer in Creative Writing at Massey University. Her latest collection is Gunflower, shortlisted for the Queensland Literary Award and named one of The Guardian's best books of 2023.

In this episode, a conversation with Mykaela Saunders, author of a new collection of short stories, ‘Always Will Be'. Saunders is a Koori/Goori and Lebanese writer, teacher and researcher, and the editor of This All Come Back Now, the Aurealis Award-winning anthology of First Nations speculative fiction.  Saunders has been awarded numerous prizes for their writing, including the 2022 David Unaipon Award, and this most recent work draws from stories written from the past couple of years into a collection that poses the question: what might country, community and culture look like in the Tweed Valley if Gooris reasserted their sovereignty?

Author : Geneve Flynn Narrator : Dzintra Sullivan Host : Alasdair Stuart Audio Producer : Chelsea Davis “Lidless Eyes That See” was first released by PS Publishing in From the Waste Land, an anthology inspired by T.S. Eliot's poem “The Waste Land.” The story was a finalist for the 2022 Aurealis Award for Best Horror […]

The Final Draft Great Conversations podcast is all about books, writing and literary culture. We're dedicated to exploring Australian writing, looking into the issues that drive our storytelling to discover more from the books you love. These are the stories that make us who we are. Dr Mykaela Saunders is a Koori/Goori and Lebanese writer, teacher and researcher. She is the editor of the Aurealis Award–winning This All Come Back Now, and the winner of the 2022 David Unaipon Award for Always Will Be. Always Will Be carries the subtitle; Stories of Goori Sovereignty from the Futures of the Tweed. The collection explores possible futures where First Nations sovereignty is both reclaimed, respected and offers a future for a fragile planet. Final Draft is produced and presented by Andrew Pople Want More Great Conversations with Australian Authors?Great conversations looks back at some of the fantastic authors and writers we feature every week on Final Draft. It's not always possible to use the full conversation live to air and this is your chance to discover more secrets and hidden gems about the books you love… Get in touch with Andrew and Final Draft.We love to hear about what you're reading, what you love about books and what you've discovered from the show! Twitter - https://twitter.com/finaldraft2ser  Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/finaldraft2ser/  Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/finaldraft2ser/ 

Author : Grace Chan Narrator : Rebecca Wei Hsieh Host : Mur Lafferty Audio Producer : Summer Brooks “Death By Water” originally appeared in From the Waste Land (PS Publishing, Oct 2022). It was shortlisted for the Aurealis Award for Best Science Fiction Short Story 2022. Content warning for claustrophic situations and drowning. Death by Water by […] Source

Corey J. White, author of the Aurealis Award-winning novel REPO VIRTUAL and the VoidWitch Saga novellas KILLING GRAVITY, VOID BLACK SHADOW, and STATIC RUIN, came on IZ Pod and talked about ‘Hollywood Animals', their new IZ 295 story; ‘Family Business', their multi-generational solarpunk story written with Andrew Dana Hudson; the power of Mark Fisher; the future of cyberpunk; different ways the world ends; and a whole lot more. // Support Interzone at Patreon to get issues packed with mind- and genre-bending fiction and non-fiction, and visit IZ Digital, IZ's free online sister zine, for even more amazing stories. // https://interzone.press / https://interzone.digital

“Shiny Object Syndrome” is a struggle I've spoken to COUNTELSS business owners about. Thankfully - it is curable! And in this BONUS episode of Seriously in Business I'm speaking with someone whose done just that.Amy Laurens worked with me in The Co+Creation Club and together we worked on TWO brands! One her personal brand as an author, and the other as a publishing house.Amy is now growing her brands, showing up consistently and confidently and has conquered shiny object syndrome - her brand is now slick and SUPER consistent.Amy also shares how she balances running 2 businesses, being a mum AND working full time (it's wild!) - and how she fit doing The Co+Creation Club into all this too.Keen to do what Amy did in your own brand?Join me for the sell-out intimate 10 week LIVE group coaching experience crafted to catapult your business to the next level in professionalism, authenticity and growth through supported self design.Find out more about The Club: https://bit.ly/clubamyABOUT AMY:AMY LAURENS is an Australian author of fantasy fiction for all ages. Her story Bones Of The Sea, about creepy carnivorous mist and bone curses, won the 2021 Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novella. Amy has also written the award-winning portal-fantasy Sanctuary series about Edge, a 13-year-old girl forced to move to a small country town because of witness protection, the humorous fantasy Kaditeos series, following newly graduated Evil Overlord Mercury as she attempts to acquire a castle, the young adult series Storm Foxes, about love and magic and family in small town Australia, and a whole host of non-fiction, both for writers AND for people who don't live with constant voices in their heads.Amy lives with her husband and two kids in suburban Canberra. She used to be a high-school English teacher, and she was once chewed on by a lion. (The two are unrelated. It was her right thumb.) Amy loves chocolate but her body despises it; she has a vegetable garden that mostly thrives on neglect; and owns enough books to be considered a library. Of course. Oh, and she also makes rather fancy cakes in her spare time. She's on all the usual social media channels as @ByAmyLaurens, but you've got the best chance of actually getting a response on Instagram or at www.AmyLaurens.com. 

Welcome to our Summer Series! First off we take you back to our very first ever episode in 2018 where we discuss just what The First Time Podcast is all about (or at least what we planned back then!). Then we chat to Claire G Coleman. Claire G Coleman is a Noongar woman whose family belong to the south coast of Western Australia. She writes fiction, essays, poetry and art criticism while either living in Naarm (Melbourne) or on the road. Born in Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar (Perth), away from her ancestral country she has lived most of her life in Victoria and most of that in and around Naarm (Melbourne). During an extended circuit of the continent she wrote a novel, influenced by certain experiences gained on the road. She has won a Black&Write! Indigenous Writing Fellowship for that novel, Terra Nullius. Terra Nullius was published in Australia by Hachette Australia and in North America by Small Beer Press. And was shortlisted for numerous awards including The Stella Prize 2018, ABIA Matt Richell Award for New Writers 2018, the Aurealis Award for a Science Fiction Novel 2017 and was Highly Commended in the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards 2017 Since we first spoke to Claire, she has been incredibly busy. Her second novel, The Old Lie, was written in response to what she learned when traveling and was published in 2019 by Hachette Australia. Lies, Damned Lies, Claire's first non-fiction book, unpacking the effects of the history of Australia's colonisation, was released on the 1st of September 2021. In 2022, Claire's third novel Enclave was published by Hachette. Check out this episode on our website www.thefirsttimepodcast.com or get in touch via Twitter (@thefirsttimepod) or Instagram (@thefirsttimepod). Don't forget you can support us and the making of Season Six via our Patreon page. Thanks for joining us and we look forward to bringing you brand new episodes from March 2023!

The Final Draft Great Conversations podcast is all about books, writing and literary culture. We're dedicated to exploring Australian writing, looking into the issues that drive our storytelling to discover more from the books you love. These are the stories that make us who we are. Angela Meyer is an author, book industry professional and teacher of writing and publishing. Her debut novel A Superior Specter was met with critical acclaim garnering a slew of prize shortlists including the Aurealis Award for Best Science Fiction Novel.  Her new novel is Moon Sugar Mila was mourning the life she thought she'd have; house, family, the whole suburban dream, when Josh arrived to shake up her world. Josh has this way of transfixing everyone he meets. Good look and with an easy manner that invites you to open up. Mila meets Josh through SugarMeetMe and though their relationship begins in a financial transaction it opens up into something so much more. Together they explore art and music and take part in a clandestine study to make some extra money. Kyle is Josh's best friend and he understands how special that makes him. Sure he often feels like a sidekick but because of Josh he's growing, getting ready to explore the world. When Josh goes missing in Europe Mila follows him to try and uncover what has happened and what she has lost. There she meets Kyle, and together the two follow in Josh's footsteps and try to make sense of his final days…  Join me as we discover Angela Meyer's Moon Sugar... Final Draft is produced and presented by Andrew Pople Want more great conversations with Australian authors? Discover this and many more conversations on Final Draft every week from 2ser. Get in touch with Andrew and Final Draft. We love to hear about what you're reading! Twitter - https://twitter.com/finaldraft2ser  Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/finaldraft2ser/  Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/finaldraft2ser/ 

Angela Meyer is an author, book industry professional and teacher of writing and publishing. Her debut novel A Superior Specter was met with critical acclaim garnering a slew of prize shortlists including the Aurealis Award for Best Science Fiction Novel.  Now if you haven't discovered Angela's writing yet, let me tell you she has an incredible power to write incredibly human stories that explore the fantastic within our world and challenge what it means to live  …and let's face it, the world these days feel like we live on constantly shifting sands, so feeling connected through stories is a powerful thing   ------ In Moon Sugar… Mila was mourning the life she thought she'd have; house, family, the whole suburban dream, when Josh arrived to shake up her world. Josh has this way of transfixing everyone he meets. Good look and with an easy manner that invites you to open up. Mila meets Josh through SugarMeetMe and though their relationship begins in a financial transaction it opens up into something so much more. Together they explore art and music and take part in a clandestine study to make some extra money. Kyle is Josh's best friend and he understands how special that makes him. Sure he often feels like a sidekick but because of Josh he's growing, getting ready to explore the world. When Josh goes missing in Europe Mila follows him to try and uncover what has happened and what she has lost. There she meets Kyle, and together the two follow in Josh's footsteps and try to make sense of his final days…  -------- Moon Sugar takes an exploded view of our world and seeks to understand the ways we are all connected.  In the central relationship between Mila and Josh we are shown a seemingly incongruous relationship of love and respect. Mila seeks out a companion after the breakdown of a relationship. She has come to realize how much she had given over to her partner and what that has meant for her understanding of herself and what she finds pleasurable. Josh is an escort and a sex worker who seeks to honour the people who seek out his companionship. As Mila and Josh come together they explore what it means to be damaged by our experiences but also how we can heal. We see that people can open themselves up and provide space for others. You'll see descriptors like genre defying or genre bending associated with Angela Meyer's work and I have to acknowledge that there is a hole in my description of Moon Sugar. Meyer explores human connectedness through the triangle of Mila, Josh and Kyle but she accelerates this, taking it to new levels and understandings. I don't want to give away spoilers here but just imagine if our digital world could truly live up to its promise of world wide connectivity. If instead of just viewing a glimpse of all those lives we could come to understand each other a little better. Of course that sort of power of connection would not go unnoticed. Powerful forces would seek to control it, and there's still the central tension of Josh's disappearance to unravel. Moon Sugar is a beautiful expansive novel of love, both for others and ourselves, that melds the corporeal with the fantastic in a way we should all hope to discover.

Today's guest is a recipient of the Davitt Award and the Aurealis Award for Best Children's Fiction. Since her breakout novel, Feeling sorry for Celia, she's been a professional writer for over 20 years. She's here today to share her journey with us of positive role models, self doubt, being original in your writing, and to talk about her new book from the super successful Kingdoms and Empires Series, it's the wonderful and amazing, Jaclyn Moriarty.

Just A Spoonful's 2021 season continues with best-selling author, Aurealis Award winner, journalist, screenwriter and assistant film curator at the ACMI museum of screen culture: Maria Lewis! Maria is a stroke survivor (this year is actually her 10 year 'stroke-iversary') who thought they only happened to older people until she found herself in Emergency in her early 20s. We talk about the lifelong after-effects of stroke and how it changed the way her brain works, something she still navigates in her career. We also talk about Mariah Carey fandom and how it feels for Maria (no H) to see her own fans tattoo her own creations onto their bodies. Maria Lewis's seventh novel in the Supernatural Sisters series - The Rose Daughter - came out five months after we recorded this conversation so we talk about her writing that, her previous novels, and why she feels fortunate to be able to wrap up the series on her own terms. Also how good is THERAPY. SBS The Feed's short documentary on young stroke survivors: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/the-feed/young-stroke-survivors-in-australia-the-face-you-wouldn-t-expect Find Maria Lewis here: http://marialewis.com.au https://twitter.com/moviemazz https://instagram.com/maria___lewis Thank you to my Patreon supporters who make my work and rent payments possible! You can subscribe to find bonus content here https://www.patreon.com/BlytheByName Podcast artwork by Melbourne-based artist Erin Michelle Just A Spoonful's theme music is 'Sleepless' by Anna O This podcast is created on the stolen lands of the Wurundjeri People and I extend my respect to elders past and present.

On this week's episode I'm joined by lawyer, jiu jitsu instructor, amateur anatomy expert and winner of the Ditmar Award, Aurealis Award, and Norma K Hemming Award, author Sam Hawke, to talk about her incredible book City of Lies (Poison War, #1). We also discuss her friends reluctance to ever touch any food or drink she prepares anymore, her masterful forgery of her highschool book journal, the worst injury she ever had, General Pompey getting high on mad honey, her former boss' terrible idea to express ideas in pictures, how difficult a Tim-Tam eating contest is, and finding true love by continuously beating a man! Available on Youtube and all podcast platforms!

"I was raised by three sisters, one a witch, one an assassin, and the third just batshit crazy." And so begins THE BRIDGE, from Shirley Jackson Award, Aurealis Award, Shadows Award, and Wonderland Award finalist, J.S. Breukelaar: https://amzn.to/3yhY5ve   "HAUNTHOLOGY is a full-length graphic novel consisting of 24 short, interconnected stories.. These tales range from cosmic, Lovecraftian dread to zombie horror, but all have to do with isolation and loneliness in some form": https://bit.ly/haunthology-ks   Become a member! PATREON: http://bit.ly/ezine-patreon --- Listen to (and watch) patreon-only podcasts, join in private hangouts with the panelists, get free books, and more!   Subscribe to the Lovecraft eZine Youtube channel: https://bit.ly/ezine-video   Twitter: https://twitter.com/misanthropemike   ALL LOVECRAFT EZINE LINKS: https://linktr.ee/misanthropemike  

This month I spent a delightful hour chatting with Australian novelist Jaclyn Moriarty about her book for adults Gravity Is The Thing.We talked about her inspiration for the novel, the unusual structure including what she calls fragmented storytelling, and the idea of the reader trusting you to deliver on the promise of the novel. Jaclyn also talked about some of the techniques she uses to fire her creativity, the unique partnership she embarked on with her editor and backstory.Gravity is the Thing is the story of Abigail Sorensen. She lives in Sydney, is a former lawyer, now owner of the Happiness Cafe and single mother to four year old Oscar. When she was 16, Abi's brother, who she was extremely close to, went missing and his disappearance has never been solved. On the same day her brother went missing, she began receiving random chapters from a self-help book called The Guidebook in the post.She believes the absurdity of The Guidebook and the mystery of her brother's disappearance must be connected so she agrees to keep receiving these chapter for the next 20 years.Now, at the age of 36, Abi has been invited to an all expenses paid retreat to learn the secret behind The Guidebook. What unfolds is a beautiful, heartwarming exploration of opening yourself up to new people and ideas, the unresolved grief of having a missing family member, single parenthood and friendship. All the characters in this book felt like friends by the end. I just loved it so much and have urged so many friends to read it. Remember there can be spoilers in this podcast, although we don't reveal the big resolution to the main mystery of the novel, but as always if you hate knowing anything about a book before you've read it, you can buy a copy of Gravity is the Thing in all the usual places.ABOUT JACLYN MORIARTYShe grew up and still lives in Sydney. She studied Law and English at Sydney University in Australia, Yale in the US and Cambridge in England. She was working as a media and entertainment lawyer when she published her first novel Feeling Sorry for Celia. She now writes full time and is the author of 13 books for children, young adults and grown ups. She has been the recipient of the NSW Premier's Literary Award, the Queensland Literary Award, and the Aurealis Award for Fantasy.JACLYN'S WEBSITE - https://jaclynmoriarty.com/FOLLOW JACLYN ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM & TWITTERShownotes are available at https://www.writersbookclubpodcast.com

Have you ever felt conflicted because a family member's old school way of thinking doesn't align with what you value? Or felt a pull between being Asian and being Australian? Growing up Asian in the west comes with many beautiful things but it can also harbour feelings of confusion and disconnect as we explore our cultural identity. From gendered stereotypes to challenging patriarchal ways of thinking in Asian households, we chat to the incredibly intelligent author, illustrator, editor and lawyer, Rebecca Lim. Rebecca is the author of over 20 books, including Tiger Daughter, The Astrologer's Daughter (a Kirkus Best Book of 2015 and CBCA Notable Book for Older Readers), Afterlight and the bestselling Mercy. Her work has been shortlisted for the Prime Minister's Literary Award, Aurealis Award, INDIEFAB Book of the Year Award and Davitt Award, and has also been longlisted for the Gold Inky Award and the David Gemmell Legend Award. We are so lucky to have her join us on the poddy today as she brings her brilliant insights, witty sense of humour and passion for equality and diversity & inclusion. You can find more Rebecca Lim here and follow her on instagram here. E P I S O D E O U T L I N E ------------------------------------------ •Growing up as an Asian Australian in rural Queensland •Casual racism •Cultural and societal pressures of being an Asian female •Gendered stereotypes •Value differences between generations •The migration experience •Challenging old school waves of thinking •The 'invisible leash' •Patriarchy in Asian countries •Western vs. Asian contexts of feminism and equality •Having arguments with parents because of cultural values and differences •Linking silence with respect and obedience •Why change is can be so difficult •Seeing the other side of the spectrum •Background of Rebecca Lim's novel, Tiger Daughter •Importance of Asian representation and migrant stories in books T I M E S T A M P S -------------------------------- 01:52 Rebecca Lim's background 03:00 Discussion begins If you'd like to continue the conversation, please message us. We'd love to hear from you, feel free to slide into our dms on instagram: @unapologeticallyazn or send us an email: unapologeticallyasianpodcast@gmail.com We also have a website BABY!!!! Check us out at www.unapologeticallyasian.com.au ✨ Be sure to check out the amazing Asian Australian Mental Health Initiative at https://www.justshapesandsounds.com/ and https://www.instagram.com/justshapesandsounds/. Join the 3 month trial of the Shapes & Sounds Club from the end of April to July and get the first month FREE!!! We'll see you on there! ✨

Show Notes:Welcome back to All Things Bookish - we are so excited to be here with Kathryn Barker, author of the recently released, Waking Romeo, which is a retelling and literary mashup of Romeo & Juliet and Wuthering Weights! Kathryn’s first novel In the Skin of a Monster won the Aurealis Award for Best Young Adult Novel. You can buy Waking Romeo by Kathryn Barker here. 

Tonight we’re chatting with Ellen Datlow and Kaaron Warren, authors of Tool Tales: Microfiction Inspired By Antique Tools. Multi-award winning creators Ellen Datlow and Kaaron Warren teamed up on Facebook a few years ago when Ellen posted photos of antique tools and Kaaron wrote microfiction pieces to accompany them, without either of them knowing what the tools were for.The publishers at IFWG would like you to know that if you would like to enter a drawing for a free print (or mobi/epub) copy tonight’s book, all you need to do is subscribe to the IFWG newsletter and fill out details for the drawing – just go to ifwgaustralia.com/treasures. About the authors:Shirley Jackson award-winner Kaaron Warren published her first short story in 1993 and has had fiction in print every year since. She was recently given the Peter McNamara Lifetime Achievement Award and was Guest of Honour at World Fantasy 2018, Stokercon 2019 and Geysercon 2019. Kaaron was a Fellow at the Museum for Australian Democracy, where she researched prime ministers, artists and serial killers. She’s judged the World Fantasy Awards and the Shirley Jackson Awards.She has published five multi-award winning novels (Slights, Walking the Tree, Mistification, The Grief Hole and Tide of Stone) and seven short story collections, including the multi-award winning Through Splintered Walls. She has won the ACT Writers and Publishers Award four times and twice been awarded the Canberra Critics Circle Award for Fiction. Her most recent novella, Into Bones Like Oil (Meerkat Press), was shortlisted for a Shirley Jackson Award and the Bram Stoker Award, winning the Aurealis Award.Ellen Datlow has been editing sf/f/h short fiction for four decades. She was fiction editor of OMNI Magazine and SCIFICTION and currently acquires short stories and novellas for Tor.com and Nightfire. She has edited many anthologies for adults, young adults, and children, including The Best Horror of the Year series and Echoes: The Saga Anthology of Ghost Stories, Final Cuts: New Tales of Hollywood Horror and Other Spectacles, and the reprint anthologies Edited By and Body Shocks. She’s won multiple Locus, Hugo, Stoker, International Horror Guild, Shirley Jackson, and World Fantasy Awards plus the 2012 Il Posto Nero Black Spot Award for Excellence as Best Foreign Editor. Datlow was named recipient of the 2007 Karl Edward Wagner Award, given at the British Fantasy Convention for “outstanding contribution to the genre” and was honored with the Life Achievement Award given by the Horror Writers Association, in acknowledgment of superior achievement over an entire career and honored with the World Fantasy Life Achievement Award at the 2014 World Fantasy Convention.She runs the Fantastic Fiction at KGB reading series in the east village, NYC, with Matthew Kressel.

Tonight we’re chatting with Ellen Datlow and Kaaron Warren, authors of Tool Tales: Microfiction Inspired By Antique Tools. Multi-award winning creators Ellen Datlow and Kaaron Warren teamed up on Facebook a few years ago when Ellen posted photos of antique tools and Kaaron wrote microfiction pieces to accompany them, without either of them knowing what the tools were for.The publishers at IFWG would like you to know that if you would like to enter a drawing for a free print (or mobi/epub) copy tonight’s book, all you need to do is subscribe to the IFWG newsletter and fill out details for the drawing – just go to ifwgaustralia.com/treasures. About the authors:Shirley Jackson award-winner Kaaron Warren published her first short story in 1993 and has had fiction in print every year since. She was recently given the Peter McNamara Lifetime Achievement Award and was Guest of Honour at World Fantasy 2018, Stokercon 2019 and Geysercon 2019. Kaaron was a Fellow at the Museum for Australian Democracy, where she researched prime ministers, artists and serial killers. She’s judged the World Fantasy Awards and the Shirley Jackson Awards.She has published five multi-award winning novels (Slights, Walking the Tree, Mistification, The Grief Hole and Tide of Stone) and seven short story collections, including the multi-award winning Through Splintered Walls. She has won the ACT Writers and Publishers Award four times and twice been awarded the Canberra Critics Circle Award for Fiction. Her most recent novella, Into Bones Like Oil (Meerkat Press), was shortlisted for a Shirley Jackson Award and the Bram Stoker Award, winning the Aurealis Award.Ellen Datlow has been editing sf/f/h short fiction for four decades. She was fiction editor of OMNI Magazine and SCIFICTION and currently acquires short stories and novellas for Tor.com and Nightfire. She has edited many anthologies for adults, young adults, and children, including The Best Horror of the Year series and Echoes: The Saga Anthology of Ghost Stories, Final Cuts: New Tales of Hollywood Horror and Other Spectacles, and the reprint anthologies Edited By and Body Shocks. She’s won multiple Locus, Hugo, Stoker, International Horror Guild, Shirley Jackson, and World Fantasy Awards plus the 2012 Il Posto Nero Black Spot Award for Excellence as Best Foreign Editor. Datlow was named recipient of the 2007 Karl Edward Wagner Award, given at the British Fantasy Convention for “outstanding contribution to the genre” and was honored with the Life Achievement Award given by the Horror Writers Association, in acknowledgment of superior achievement over an entire career and honored with the World Fantasy Life Achievement Award at the 2014 World Fantasy Convention.She runs the Fantastic Fiction at KGB reading series in the east village, NYC, with Matthew Kressel.

Welcome to another Anatomy of a Novel episode. We’ve covered a range of different genres in this series including Crime with Candice Fox, Historical fiction with Kate Forsyth, women’s fiction with Monica McInerney and quite a few more. But we hadn’t covered a Fantasy novel so when the opportunity arose to chat to Australian Fantasy Author Sam Hawke author of The City of Lies and the second book in the Poison Wars duology, the recently released The Hollow Empire we jumped at the chance. Sam is a winner of Australia's premier genre prize the Aurealis Award, plus two Ditmar Awards and joint-winner of the Norma K. Hemming Award for excellence in exploring issues of gender, race, disability and class in SFF. Her work features the best ingredients for a superb fantasy series: war, mystery, betrayal, and magic. She has taken the US by storm with her debut, and her explosive sequel hit bookstore shelves in December 2020 City of Lies was described in a Guardian review as. a compelling fantasy whodunnit - imagine Agatha Christie channelled through Robin Hobb - and a page-turning coming-of-age tale.’ GUARDIAN  For this particular Anatomy of a Novel episode kel and I decided to call in someone who understands and writes the genre. Jo Riccioni is a Sydney based author who was awarded a Varuna residency and a Bundanon Fellowship to work on her first novel The Italians at Cleat's Corner Store, published in 2015 and which won the fiction category of the International Rubery Award for 2015 in the UK. Jo is an accomplished short story writer and has now turned her hand to writing a new genre. With a love-triangle worthy of The Hunger Games, The Branded Season is Year of Wonders, The Last Hours and The Handmaid’s Tale brought to the fantasy realm and served up with all the romance, conflict and quick-fire narrative pace expected by readers of the genre. So with those credentials Jo was the perfect choice to interview Sam. There’s so much gold in here for writers of all genres, not just fantasy, so grab a pen and paper, sit back and listen to Jo Riccioni and Sam Hawke giving us tips on how to write a fantasy novel.         SHOW NOTES:   Writes4Women www.writes4women.com Facebook @writes4women Twitter / Instagram @w4wpodcast   W4W Patreon https://www.writes4women.com/support-us-on-patreon   Sam Hawke Website : click here Facebook: click here Twitter: click here Instagram: click here   Jo Riccioni Website: click here Facebook: click here Instagram: click here   Pamela Cook www.pamelacook.com.au Facebook: click here Twitter: click here  Instagram: click here   Listen Up Podcasting (Kel Butler) www.listenuppodcasting.com.au Facebook @kelbutler / @listenuppodcasting Twitter @KelB See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight we’re chatting with Kaaron Warren, author of the book Slights, which is a re-release from IFWG coming out now.The publishers at IFWG would like you to know that if you would like to enter a drawing for a free print (or mobi/epub) copy tonight’s book, all you need to do is subscribe to the IFWG newsletter and fill out details for the drawing – just go to ifwgaustralia.com/treasures. When Stevie Searle almost dies in the accident that kills her mother, she doesn’t see a shining path or a golden light.Instead, she sees everyone she’s ever slighted, waiting to take a piece of her in a cold, dark room. The person whose place she took in the queue, the schoolmate she cheated off, the bus driver she didn’t pay? All waiting. All wanting to take their revenge when she finally crosses over.Stevie is fascinated by the dark room so she sends herself there again.And again.And Again.About Kaaron Warren Shirley Jackson award-winner Kaaron Warren published her first short story in 1993 and has had fiction in print every year since. She was recently given the Peter McNamara Lifetime Achievement Award and was Guest of Honour at World Fantasy 2018, Stokercon 2019 and Geysercon 2019. Kaaron was a Fellow at the Museum for Australian Democracy, where she researched prime ministers, artists and serial killers. She’s judged the World Fantasy Awards and the Shirley Jackson Awards.She has published five multi-award winning novels (Slights, Walking the Tree, Mistification, The Grief Hole and Tide of Stone) and seven short story collections, including the multi-award winning Through Splintered Walls. She has won the ACT Writers and Publishers Award four times and twice been awarded the Canberra Critics Circle Award for Fiction. Her most recent novella, Into Bones Like Oil (Meerkat Press), was shortlisted for a Shirley Jackson Award and the Bram Stoker Award, winning the Aurealis Award.

Tonight we’re chatting with Kaaron Warren, author of the book Slights, which is a re-release from IFWG coming out now.The publishers at IFWG would like you to know that if you would like to enter a drawing for a free print (or mobi/epub) copy tonight’s book, all you need to do is subscribe to the IFWG newsletter and fill out details for the drawing – just go to ifwgaustralia.com/treasures. When Stevie Searle almost dies in the accident that kills her mother, she doesn’t see a shining path or a golden light.Instead, she sees everyone she’s ever slighted, waiting to take a piece of her in a cold, dark room. The person whose place she took in the queue, the schoolmate she cheated off, the bus driver she didn’t pay? All waiting. All wanting to take their revenge when she finally crosses over.Stevie is fascinated by the dark room so she sends herself there again.And again.And Again.About Kaaron Warren Shirley Jackson award-winner Kaaron Warren published her first short story in 1993 and has had fiction in print every year since. She was recently given the Peter McNamara Lifetime Achievement Award and was Guest of Honour at World Fantasy 2018, Stokercon 2019 and Geysercon 2019. Kaaron was a Fellow at the Museum for Australian Democracy, where she researched prime ministers, artists and serial killers. She’s judged the World Fantasy Awards and the Shirley Jackson Awards.She has published five multi-award winning novels (Slights, Walking the Tree, Mistification, The Grief Hole and Tide of Stone) and seven short story collections, including the multi-award winning Through Splintered Walls. She has won the ACT Writers and Publishers Award four times and twice been awarded the Canberra Critics Circle Award for Fiction. Her most recent novella, Into Bones Like Oil (Meerkat Press), was shortlisted for a Shirley Jackson Award and the Bram Stoker Award, winning the Aurealis Award.

Creative duo NIKE SULWAY and SHAUNA O'MEARA are the Convo Couch with Kel today chatting about their recent book "WINTER'S TALE" which won the 2020 Norma K Hemming Award for Short Fiction. This award honours excellence in the exploration of gender, sexuality, class or disability in speculative fiction work. Which Winter’s Tale does in the most beautiful and interesting way. Nike Sulway is a multi award winning Australian writer, poet and scholar, who writes everything from speculative to literary fiction. She specifically likes to play with the realms of fantasy and fairytale using them to explore sexuality, gender and the relationships of women in interesting ways.  Shauna O’Meara is a Ditmar and Aurealis Award nominated Australian artist, writer and a vet with a passion for all things science fiction. The list of nominations for her many varied works is seemingly endless. Her work has appeared in publications and anthologies such as Cosmos Magazine, Writers of the Future, Andromeda Spaceways, Winds of Change and The Never Never Land. Shauna is currently in the process of creating her first graphic novel and writing a television series. Together they are a mighty powerhouse of talent and through Winter’s Tale they are speaking to a growing section of youth who are searching for a sense of belonging and a new type of identity. One with less rules and restrictions. One that stems from just who we are not where we sit on the gender spectrum. One that is about people not sex.  SHOW NOTES: Writes4Women www.writes4women.com Facebook @writes4women Twitter / Instagram @w4wpodcast W4W Patreon https://www.writes4women.com/support-us-on-patreon Nike Sulway Twelfth Planet Press 'WINTER'S TALE" http://www.twelfthplanetpress.com/products/merchandise/winters-tale Facebook @nike.sulway Shauna O'Meara Web - https://theshaunacorner.wordpress.com Facebook @shauna.omeara.501 Twitter @OMearaShauna Pamela Cook www.pamelacook.com.au Facebook @pamelacookauthor Twitter @PamelaCookAU Instagram @pamelacookwrites Listen Up Podcasting (Kel Butler) www.listenuppodcasting.com.au Facebook @kelbutler / @listenuppodcasting Twitter @KelB     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alice Robinson is a highly awarded writer of literary fiction, and The Glad Shout can only be described as great literature. In this interview, Alice reflects on the impetus to write The Glad Shout, how she's approaching her writing craft in 2020 and what great literature she thinks will come out of this time. Alice's debut novel, Anchor Point, was longlisted for The Stella Prize and the Indie Book Awards. The Glad Shout was shortlisted for an Aurealis Award and The Colin Roderick Literary Award and won the Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction. Alice's stories, essays and reviews have been published widely in literary journals, including in Meanjin, Overland, The Lifted Brow, Kill Your Darlings, The Big Issue Fiction Edition, Fireflies, Arena, The Australian Humanities Review and Australian Book Review.  About The Garret Read the transcript of this interview at thegarretpodcast.com. The interview was recorded by Zoom, and we can't wait to start recording in person again soon. You can also follow The Garret on Twitter and Facebook, or follow our host Astrid Edwards on Twitter or Instagram. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jessica Townsend is the mind behind the record-breaking middle grade fantasy series The Chronicles of Morrigan Crow. Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow kicked off the series, followed by Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow and Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow. This is projected to be a nine-book series, and honestly, this is a magical series of inclusivity, adventure and excellent reader pay offs. Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow was the biggest-selling Australian children's debut since records began. It received the 2018 ABIA for Book of the Year, Book of the Year for Younger Readers and Matt Richell Award for New Writer of the Year; the 2018 Indie Book Awards Book of the Year and Children's Category; the 2017 Aurealis Award for Best Children's Fiction and the 2018 Waterstones Children's Book Prize for Younger Fiction. Jessica has previously appeared on The Garret, and you can listen to her previous interview here. About The Garret Read the transcript of this interview at thegarretpodcast.com. The interview was recorded by Zoom, and we can't wait to start recording in person again soon. You can also follow The Garret on Twitter and Facebook, or follow our host Astrid Edwards on Twitter or Instagram. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi, this is Hayley Camille, the writer of the Avon Calling Radio Show. This podcast is based on a series of crime novels that I began writing in 2013. The first episode, which you'll hear in this podcast, was nominated at that time for an Aurealis Award, which is a speculative fiction award in Australia, after it was first published. Since then, Avon Calling has grown to become a 20-book series, that spans two seasons so far. The audience response to the whole series has been amazing, so we wanted to bring an audio production to you as a whole new way to experience the story. With our production team, along with an incredibly talented cast of voice actors, The Avon Calling Radio Show is bringing this fictional world to life. Let me tell you a little bit about the show. Picture this... 1943, at the height of WW2. A lone vigilante is on a revenge mission to take down the New York City mob. I'm talking blood, guts, bullets and gritty crime. Dark alleys and heroin addicts, extortion and murder. Prostitutes. Violence. Gangsters. Nasty stuff. But this podcast isn't all just Harlem sunsets, flinging shivs and round-house kicks to the head, although, there is a lot of that. Avon Calling will take you on a journey of lost love and ultimate redemption. It's a complicated love triangle wrapped in dark comedy with knives on the side. Our vigilante has a very personal vendetta against the bad guys. A secret identity. Killer moves. But here's the twist... our anti-hero is everything you don't expect. She's a doting mother. She's the perfect wife. She's an immaculately groomed, social butterfly with a heart of gold. She runs charity fundraisers. She bakes cookies. And the kicker... she's the best neighborhood Avon Lady you've ever met. Occasionally though, when she knocks on a door, she's not there to make someone look pretty. She's there for revenge. The scene you are about to hear, is found midway through our first episode. In this scene, our vigilante Avon Lady decides to make a house call to some unsuspecting gangsters. They really shouldn't answer the door. I hope you enjoy our showcase, thank you so much for listening! Transcript can be found at: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KFyH4foeM_qCXQUs48swKaJUPDBS6xXy/view?usp=sharing https://www.hayleycamille.com/podcast/ Twitter: @Hayley__Camille

Jessica Townsend lives on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. Her book Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow, was the biggest-selling Australian children's debut since records began. It has won the 2018 ABIA for Book of the Year, Book of the Year for Younger Readers and Matt Richell Award for New Writer of the Year; the 2018 Indie Book Awards Book of the Year and Children's Category; the 2017 Aurealis Award for Best Children's Fiction; the 2018 Waterstones Children's Book Prize for Younger Fiction and was named a CBCA notable book. She followed it up with her second book Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow, in 2018. Ahead of the release of the third book in the series, Hollowpox, Sarah and Shanu sat down with Jessica to discuss the book, challenging expectations, art imitating life, the need to balance details, and more. WARNING: Spoilers ahead. Books mentioned in this podcast: 'Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow' by Jessica Townsend: https://bit.ly/3k6nIbh Host: Sarah McDuling & Shanu Prasad Guest: Jessica Townsend Producer: Nick Wasiliev

Ten minutes with... is a special series presented by Coode Street that sees readers and booklovers from around the world talk about what they're reading right now and what's getting them through these difficult times. Today Jonathan is joined by Aurealis Award-winning writer Jane Routley and they chat about how Jane's coping with the Melbourne shutdown and with being an essential worker, enjoying and participating in the New Zealand Worldcon, reading the Hugo nominees, watching The Umbrella Academy, American Gods, Tales from the Loop, and lots more. Books mentioned include: Shadow in the Empire of Light by Jane Routley The Sandman by Neil Gaiman and others Fly by Night by Frances Hardinge Fly Trap by Frances Hardinge A Memory of Empire by Arkady Martine Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan  

This episode I am joined by award-winning Australian author and environmentalist Jane Rawson. Formerly editor of the environment and energy section of The Conversation, she now works for the Tasmanian Land Conservancy, writing about nature conservation, and is also the co-founder of Read Tasmania. She likes cats, quiet, minimal capitalisation, and finding out that everything is going to be OK … don't we all! Jane is the author of two novels, a novella and co-authored a nonfiction guide to surviving climate change. Her stories and essays have been published in the Guardian, Lithub, Meanjin, Overland, Review of Australian Fiction, Kill Your Darlings and Australian Book Review and in 2017 she won the Aurealis Award for best science fiction for her novel From The Wreck. The pairings: A Treacherous Country by K.M. Kruimink Winner of the 2020 The Australian/Vogels Literary Award There is a woman, somewhere, here, in Van Diemen's Land, unless she had died or otherwise departed, called Maryanne Maginn. Gabriel Fox, the young son of an old English house, arrives in a land both ancient and new. Drawn by the promise of his heart's desire, and compelled to distance himself from pain at home, Gabriel begins his quest into Van Diemen's Land. His guide, a cannibal who is not all he seems, leads him north where Gabriel might free himself of his distracting burden and seek the woman he must find. As Gabriel traverses this wild country, he uncovers new truths buried within his own memory. For this Tasmanian setting written by a Tasmanian author, Jane suggested a Tasmanian wallaby stew, made with a Tassie Pinot of course, and whilst waiting for it to cook - ever so slowly - a Poltergeist unfilterd gin and tonic. Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir Brought up by unfriendly, ossifying nuns, ancient retainers, and countless skeletons, Gideon is ready to abandon a life of servitude and an afterlife as a reanimated corpse. She packs up her sword, her shoes, and her dirty magazines, and prepares to launch her daring escape. But her childhood nemesis won't set her free without a service. Harrowhark Nonagesimus, Reverend Daughter of the Ninth House and bone witch extraordinaire, has been summoned into action. The Emperor has invited the heirs to each of his loyal Houses to a deadly trial of wits and skill. If Harrowhark succeeds she will become an immortal, all-powerful servant of the Resurrection, but no necromancer can ascend without their cavalier. Without Gideon's sword, Harrow will fail, and the Ninth House will die. Of course, some things are better left dead. For this wildly dark space trip Jane suggests a Kaiju ‘Cthulhu on the Moon' Black IPA with a shot of Tasmanian moonshine for that extra strength hit. Everywhere I look by Helen Garner Spanning fifteen years of work, Everywhere I Look is a book full of unexpected moments, sudden shafts of light, piercing intuition, flashes of anger and incidental humour. It takes us from backstage at the ballet to the trial of a woman for the murder of her newborn baby. It moves effortlessly from the significance of moving house to the pleasure of re-reading Pride and Prejudice. This book is just filled with gorgeous little nuggets of observation and is so beautifully written. It doesn't need to be read as a whole but is easy to dip in and out of. I would pair it with a crisp, dry riesling and some perfectly fresh and crunchy salted or pickled cucumber sandwiches.

We're back with another received fan wisdom hindsight check. Join Deb, Erika, and Tansy as we talk about "The Caves of Androzani" and whether it really belongs at the top of all those fan polls. Is it the greatest Doctor Who story of all time? Or is is "a lot of men being unpleasant in the dark"? Have you watched this story recently? If so, what did you think, and how did that compare with how you felt about it in the first place? Do you agree with its placement in fan polls? Let us know in the comments! ^E Happy things: Erika is delighted that a man from Brooks, Alberta built a life-sized TARDIS in his yard! Tansy won an Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Short Story for "Dragon by Subscription"! looks forward to an online CoNZealand! Deb is delighted by Andrew Smith's tweet of a pic from 40 years ago on the set of "Full Circle"! Support Verity! on Patreon

This week we're probing (with consent) Sean's sometime-collaborator Garth Nix. A man who has penned many bestsellers, Garth gives us the lowdown on writing: where he does it (The beach! Alex is astounded. How does he keep the seagulls at bay?), how he does it (By hand! Alex is further astounded. How does he keep his hand from cramping?), and why writing full time was a trap. We get the dish on what it's like drinking in LA with Sean (there's imaginary nudity involved), on how to collaborate (Amy's taking notes and trying not to get hand-cramp), on moonlighting as a publisher and as an agent (clever), and (most importantly) on how to not to get cross.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we're probing (with consent) Sean's sometime-collaborator Garth Nix. A man who has penned many bestsellers, Garth gives us the lowdown on writing: where he does it (The beach! Alex is astounded. How does he keep the seagulls at bay?), how he does it (By hand! Alex is further astounded. How does he keep his hand from cramping?), and why writing full time was a trap. We get the dish on what it's like drinking in LA with Sean (there's imaginary nudity involved), on how to collaborate (Amy's taking notes and trying not to get hand-cramp), on moonlighting as a publisher and as an agent (clever), and (most importantly) on how to not to get cross.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This episode I am joined by award-winning horror writer Kaaron Warren. Kaaron is a Shirley Jackson award-winning Australian author who published her first short story in 1993. Her short stories and novels have won Australian Shadows Awards, Ditmar Awards and Aurealis Awards. She has published 5 multi-award winning novels, her debut Slights, Walking the Tree, Mistification, The Grief Hole and Tide of Stone. Her most recent novella is a gothic-styled ghost story, Into Bones Like Oil, which has been shortlisted for a Shirley Jackson Award, the Bram Stoker Award and the Aurealis Award. Kaaron chatted with me about writing across genres, finding the humour in horror, embodying characters and being inspired by the stories behind an object. And she recommended some pretty awesome books too! The pairings: Mapp and Lucia by E. F. Benson A series of novels about Emmeline "Lucia" Lucas and Elizabeth Mapp, the stories are a subtly brilliant comedy of social rivalry between the wars, featuring humorous incidents in the lives of (mainly) upper-middle-class British people in the 1920s and 1930s, vying for social prestige and one-upmanship in an atmosphere of extreme cultural snobbery. Emmeline Lucas (known universally to her friends as Lucia) is an arch-snob of the highest order. In Miss Elizabeth Mapp of Mallards Lucia meets her match. Ostensibly the most civil and genteel of society ladies, there is no plan too devious, no plot too cunning, no depths to which they would not sink, in order to win the battle for social supremacy. Using as their deadly weapons garden parties, bridge evenings and charming teas, the two combatants strive to outcharm each other - and the whole of Tilling society - as they vie for the position of doyenne of the town. Kaaron loves this series but particularly this story (#4) as it is full of funny, beautiful and yet somewhat nasty characters! She would pair it with Lobster a la Riseholme - a secret recipe known only to the character Lucia - and a nice glass of sherry :) The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley Set in a bleak strip of coastline in the north west of England in the 1970s, it's the story of two brothers who accompany their parents and members of their parish on a pilgrimage one Easter. The novel is narrated by one of the brothers from a point in the far future. He recalls the pilgrimage of that Easter in the 1970s and wants to record what happened because a body has recently been found in the area that they visited. He feels a fierce sense of protection over his brother who he nicknames Hanny. As boys they were incredibly close because Hanny was mute up until that Easter and they shared a special communication. However, the boys' mother Esther (who the narrator refers to as Mummer) is determined to cure Hanny's muteness by appealing to God and puts him through a series of ardent prayers and rituals to cure him. Kaaron couldn't recommend this tense, gloomy yet, according to her, hilarious, novel and the compelling questions it raises about faith, life's meaning and family. She suggests pairing it with a slow-cooked stew and buckets of tea. When questioned she confirmed no human bits are to be used in the stew!

Ten minutes with... is a special series presented by Coode Street that sees readers and booklovers from around the world talk about what they're reading right now and what's getting them through these difficult times. Today Jonathan spends ten minutes with Aurealis Award-nominated debut novelist Corey J. White to discuss moving to Melbourne, reading Ralph Ellison, the Voidwitch Saga, optimism, cyberpunk and the future, and his recently released debut, Repo Virtual.  Books mentioned include: Repo Virtual by Corey J. White The Voidwitch Saga by Corey J. White Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison Humankind: Solidarity with Non-Human People by Timothy Morton The Only Harmless Great Thing by Brooke Bolander      

Today on the Convo Couch Kel chats with acclaimed speculative fiction author Claire G Coleman. Claire describes herself as a Noongar woman whose family have belonged to the south coast of Western Australia since long before history started being recorded. She writes fiction, essays and poetry while (mostly) traveling around the continent now called Australia in a ragged caravan towed by an ancient troopy"" Claire is the author of and , both speculative fiction novels steeped in devastating personal history. poured out of Claire in 3 months while travelling around Australia, the manuscript won the "Black & Write" fellowship and was nominated for the "Stella Prize" and the "Aurealis Award".Terra NulliusThe Old LieTerra Nullius Today Claire talks about the creative momentum that led to the publication of that first book and writing speculative fiction from a First Nations perspective. SHOW NOTES: Writes4Womenwww.writes4women.comFacebook @writes4womenTwitter / Instagram @w4wpodcast W4W Patreonhttps://www.writes4women.com/support-us-on-patreon Claire. G. Colemanwww.clairegcoleman.comTwitter @clairegcolemanInstagram @clairegcoleman Pamela Cookwww.pamelacook.com.auFacebook @pamelacookauthorTwitter @PamelaCookAU Listen Up Podcasting (Kel Butler)www.listenuppodcasting.com.auFacebook @kelbutler / @listenuppodcastingTwitter @KelB

To celebrate the end of 2019, we've re-released our highest rating fiction interviews of the year: #2 is Claire Coleman, Krissy Kneen, Pitchaya Sudbanthad and Michelle Tanmizi live at Ubud Writers and Readers Festival. Speculative fiction has lurked in the shadows of the literary scene for years while realism hogged the limelight. Now, as the natural and political spheres crumble around us, speculative fiction's dystopian worlds don't seem so different from our own. In this timely conversation, our panelists ask whether we're now at the point where all contemporary fiction is in fact speculative fiction. Claire G. Coleman is a Wirlomin Noongar woman whose ancestral Country is in South Coast Western Australia. Her novel Terra Nullius won a Black&Write! Fellowship and a Norma K Hemming Award, and has been shortlisted for The Stella Prize and an Aurealis Award. The Old Lie is her second novel. Krissy Kneen is the award-winning author of the memoir Affection and five novels including Stella Prize shortlisted An Uncertain Grace. She is also the author of Thomas Shapcott Award-winning poetry collection Eating My Grandmother. She has written and directed documentaries for Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Special Broadcasting Service television.  Pitchaya Sudbanthad is the author of the novel Bangkok Wakes to Rain, published by Riverhead Books (US) and Sceptre (UK). He has received fellowships in fiction writing from the New York Foundation for the Arts and the MacDowell Colony, and currently splits time between Bangkok, Thailand and Brooklyn, USA.  Michelle Tanmizi is Chinese-Indonesian and international. She is an author, leadership coach and trainer, and a motivational speaker. Michelle's first work was a poetry book, Truth. Late Dawn is her first speculative science fiction novel inspired by the conservation crisis we face today.  About The Garret You can also follow The Garret on Twitter and Facebook, or follow our host Astrid Edwards on Twitter or Instagram. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The wait is over! Action Tank Book 2 had arrived! Mike Barry's sequel to the 2017 Aurealis Award nominated graphic novel for kids has just gone live on Kickstarter, and he can't wait for you to read it. As if that wasn't exciting enough, Mike has put together this very special audio treat to make sure you have all the info you need about this sequel-without-equal.

This episode was recorded live at the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival on Friday 25 October 2019. It features Claire G. Coleman, Krissy Kneen, Pitchaya Sudbanthad and Michelle Tanmizi. Speculative fiction has lurked in the shadows of the literary scene for years while realism hogged the limelight. Now, as the natural and political spheres crumble around us, speculative fiction's dystopian worlds don't seem so different from our own. In this timely conversation, our panelists ask whether we're now at the point where all contemporary fiction is in fact speculative fiction. Claire G. Coleman is a Wirlomin Noongar woman whose ancestral Country is in South Coast Western Australia. Her novel Terra Nullius won a Black&Write! Fellowship and a Norma K Hemming Award, and has been shortlisted for The Stella Prize and an Aurealis Award. The Old Lie is her second novel. Krissy Kneen is the award-winning author of the memoir Affection and five novels including Stella Prize shortlisted An Uncertain Grace. She is also the author of Thomas Shapcott Award-winning poetry collection Eating My Grandmother. She has written and directed documentaries for Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Special Broadcasting Service television.  Pitchaya Sudbanthad is the author of the novel Bangkok Wakes to Rain, published by Riverhead Books (US) and Sceptre (UK). He has received fellowships in fiction writing from the New York Foundation for the Arts and the MacDowell Colony, and currently splits time between Bangkok, Thailand and Brooklyn, USA.  Michelle Tanmizi is Chinese-Indonesian and international. She is an author, leadership coach and trainer, and a motivational speaker. Michelle's first work was a poetry book, Truth. Late Dawn is her first speculative science fiction novel inspired by the conservation crisis we face today.  About The Garret You can also follow The Garret on Twitter and Facebook, or follow our host Astrid Edwards on Twitter or Instagram. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Author : Angela Slatter Narrator : Robin McLeavy Host : Alasdair Stuart Audio Producer : Chelsea Davis Discuss on Forums “Home and Hearth” was originally published in the Spectral Press Chapbook Series, March 2014 and the story won the Aurealis Award for Best Short Horror Story 2014. Content Warning: Spoiler Violence against children, race-based violence, […]

Catherine is here today with Kate Forsyth. Kate Forsyth wrote her first novel at the age of seven, and is now the internationally bestselling & award-winning author of almost forty, ranging from picture books to poetry to novels for both adults and children. She was recently voted one of Australia's Favourite 15 Novelists, and has been called 'one of the finest writers of this generation'. She is also an accredited master storyteller with the Australian Guild of Storytellers, and has told stories to both children and adults all over the world. Her most recent book for adults is a historical novel called 'The Beast's Garden' which retells the Grimm brothers' version of 'Beauty & the Beast', set in the German underground resistance to Hitler in World War II. "A wonderful tale of daring and courage, of struggle and survival, of love and loyalty, this is a ‘must read'." Book'd Out 'The Wild Girl' tells the true, untold love story of Wilhelm Grimm and Dortchen Wild, the young woman who told him many of the world's most famous fairy tales. Set during the Napoleonic Wars, 'The Wild Girl' is a story of love, war, heartbreak, and the redemptive power of storytelling, and was named the Most Memorable Love Story of 2013. Kate is probably most famous for 'Bitter Greens', a retelling of the Rapunzel fairy tale interwoven with the dramatic life story of the woman who told the tale as it is best known, the 17th century French writer, Charlotte-Rose de la Force. 'Bitter Greens' has been called 'the best fairy tale retelling since Angela Carter', and won the American Library Association Award for Best Historical Novel of 2015. It was also nominated for a Norma K. Hemming Award, the Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Fiction, and a Ditmar Award. It has sold more than a quarter of a million copies world-wide. Since 'The Witches of Eileanan' was named a Best First Novel of 1998 by Locus Magazine, Kate has won or been nominated for numerous awards, including a CYBIL Award in the US. She's also the only author to win five Aurealis awards in a single year, for her Chain of Charms series – beginning with 'The Gypsy Crown' - which tells of the adventures of two Romany children in the time of the English Civil War. Book 5 of the series, 'The Lightning Bolt', was also a CBCA Notable Book. Kate's books have sold more than a million copies internationally, having been published in 17 countries including the UK, the US, Russia, Germany, France, Japan, Turkey, Spain, Italy, Poland and Slovenia. She has a doctorate in fairy tale studies from at the University of Technology, having already completed a BA in Literature and a MA in Creative Writing. Kate is a direct descendant of Charlotte Waring, the author of the first book for children ever published in Australia, 'A Mother's Offering to her Children''. She lives by the sea in Sydney, Australia, with her husband, three children, and many thousands of books. Kate is also a proud ambassador for the two following wonderful initiatives to help disadvantaged children change their worlds through the power of books and reading - Room to Read and The Pyjama Foundation Find Out More About Kate Forsyth Kate Forsyth's Website Follow Kate of Facebook Kate on Twitter @KateForsyth Kate Forsyth on Instagram @kate_forsyth_ Sit back, tune in and enjoy the show! Subscribe: iTunes | Stitcher | RSS

On this episode of The Writer and the Critic your hosts, Kirstyn McDermott and Ian Mond, begin by talking about the recent Aurealis Awards - in particular the categories of Best Horror Novel and Best Fantasy Novel, the winners of which have been chosen for this month's discussion. The full list of Aurealis Award winners can be found on the official website. The novels for this episode are: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff (Best Fantasy Novel) [22:00] and The Grief Hole by Kaaron Warren (Best Horror Novel) [57:30]. If you've skipped ahead to avoid spoilers, please come back at 1:33:30 for final remarks. Next month, Ian and Kirstyn are reading short fiction again with an anthology and a collection of interconnected stories: Lauriat: A Filipino-Chinese Speculative Fiction Anthology edited by Charles Tan Hurricane Heels by Isabel Yap Read ahead and join in the spoilerific fun!  

On this episode of The Writer and the Critic your hosts, Kirstyn McDermott and Ian Mond, are looking at two Australian speculative fiction novels. But first, they would like to congratulate all winners of the Aurealis Awards and also thank people for nominating this podcast for a Ditmar Award. So much bookish love! After a brief discussion of awards -- very brief, they promise! -- they turn to the books at hand: Crossroads of Canopy by Thoraiya Dyer [8:10] and The Swan Book by Alexis Wright [53:40].   If you've skipped ahead to avoid spoilers, please come back at 1:38:00 for final remarks. Next month, Ian and Kirstyn have chosen two recent Aurealis Award winners to discuss: Nevernight by Jay Kristoff (Best Fantasy Novel) The Grief Hole by Kaaron Warren (Best Horror Novel) Read ahead and join in the spoilerific fun!  

Appeared in Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine Issue 7 Rjurik Davidson has written short stories, essays, screenplays and reviews. He has been short-listed for the Ditmar Award for Best Short Story three times, the Aurealis Award once and won the Ditmar award…

Appeared in Aurealis 36 (Chimeara Publications) Trent Jamieson – Brisbane SF writer – has sold over sixty short stories and won the 2005 Aurealis Award for Best Science Fiction Short Story (‘Slow and Ache’), and the 2008 Aurealis Award for…

Appeared in Dreaming Again (HarperVoyager) Kim Westwood first came to prominence when her short story ‘The Oracle’ won a 2002 Aurealis Award. Since then‚ more stories have appeared: in anthologies such as Agog!‚ Eidolon I and Dreaming Again‚ as well…

This month on The Writer and the Critic your hosts, Kirstyn McDermott and Ian Mond, turn their attention to the 2015 Aurealis Awards which were announced in late March 2016. Sadly, there was no shortlist for the Best Horror Novel this year, although the category was won by Trent Jamieson's most excellent Day Boy, a book which was previously discussed on this podcast. There is much lamenting and some gnashing of teeth as Kirstyn and Ian spend a little time talking about Australia horror fiction and the ramifications of juried awards like the Aurealis failing to produce a shortlist. You can read the judges' report for the Best Horror Novel category, along with reports for all the others, in the Aurealis Awards program booklet. The two books up for discussion this month are both Aurealis Award winners: In the Skin of a Monster by Kathryn Barker which won Best Young Adult Novel [24:50] and A Single Stone by Meg McKinlay [56:00] which took home the award for Best Children's Fiction. If you've skipped ahead to avoid spoilers, please come back at 1:29:20 for final remarks, including information for Patreon supporters about how to nominate and vote for the upcoming Patron's Choice episode. Next month, Kirstyn and Ian will endeavour to fill a couple of large holes in their literary lives by finally getting around to reading novels by two beloved and critically acclaimed authors who have somehow slipped by them. Don't worry, they are currently hanging their heads in shame. Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing Read ahead and join in the spoilerific fun!  

Book 2 of Allison Tait’s The Mapmaker Chronicles is shortlisted for the Aurealis Award, punctuation in famous novels and a poem that shows how tricky English can be. Would you write differently if you were anonymous? Also: what NOT to do when you start a novel, the book “Shady Characters: Ampersands, Interrobangs and other Typographic Curiosities” by Keith Houston and meet thriller author Adrian McKinty. Plus: an interesting storytelling app, and more. Read the show notes.  Connect with Valerie, Allison and listeners in the podcast community on Facebook Visit WritersCentre.com.au | AllisonTait.com | ValerieKhoo.com

In this issue, Superman tempts children with his hot chocolate, and that’s not the only Sex Criminals on television. ALSO a brand new team-up series for DC, the Aurealis Award nominations and some kind of geek related challenge. THEN It’s The Black Hood, Suiciders, Spider-Gwen, Agent Carter and more in What We’ve Been Reading and Watching. PLUS our Kick-Ass Pick of the Week: SUPERMAN: EARTH … Continue reading

Coming Up…. Main Fiction: “I Love You Like Water” by Angela Slatter 02:00 The desert laps at the edge of the city – what used to be a conurbation is now one city short. The place where two cities met is a sand trap. The inhabitants of the place that got swallowed, the hardy few who stayed, are referred to as “sand crabs”. Specialising in dark fantasy and horror, Angela Slatter is the author of the Aurealis Award-winning The Girl with No Hands and Other Tales, the World Fantasy Award finalist Sourdough and Other Stories, Aurealis finalist Midnight and Moonshine (with Lisa L. Hannett), as well as the 2014 releases Black-Winged Angels, The Bitterwood Bible and Other Recountings, and The Female Factory (again with Lisa L. Hannett). Her short stories have appeared in Fantasy, Nightmare and Lightspeed, Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet, Fearie Tales, A Book of Horrors, and Australian, UK and US Best Of... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jonathan Strahan is one of our favorite editors here at Geekerati Media. He has worked for Locus: The Newspaper of the Science Fiction Field as an assistant editor, is an eight-time Hugo Award nominee, has won the World Fantasy Award (Special - Professional) in 2010 for his work as an editor, and his anthologies have won the Locus Award for Best Anthology three times (2008, 2010, 2013) and the Aurealis Award four times.Strahan joins us to discuss the current state of Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature. What's hot, what's not, and what's next? Some fo Strahan's recent publications include:  The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year vol. 8Reach for InfinityDark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery

Jonathan Strahan is one of our favorite editors here at Geekerati Media. He has worked for Locus: The Newspaper of the Science Fiction Field as an assistant editor, is an eight-time Hugo Award nominee, has won the World Fantasy Award (Special - Professional) in 2010 for his work as an editor, and his anthologies have won the Locus Award for Best Anthology three times (2008, 2010, 2013) and the Aurealis Award four times.Strahan joins us to discuss the current state of Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature. What's hot, what's not, and what's next? Some fo Strahan's recent publications include:  The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year vol. 8Reach for InfinityDark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery