We’re thrilled to introduce you to the incredible people who make up the judging panel of the 2022 Rachel Funari Prize for Fiction. Today, meet author Julie Koh. * The Rachel Funari Prize for Fiction calls for stories by women and non-binary writers. What’s your view on diverse representation in publishing? It’s vital. What do…
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Over the next few weeks, we’ll introduce you to the incredible people who make up the judging panel of the 2022 Rachel Funari Prize for Fiction. Today, meet author and lawyer, Melissa Manning. * First off, congratulations on winning the 2022 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Fiction! It’s an incredible achievement. Tell us about your…
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Vociferate is West Australian writer Emily Sun’s debut poetry collection. In it, Emily meditates upon a range of issues that have shaped her world. Emily was born in British colonial Hong Kong to stateless diasporic-Chinese parents, who are descendants of Chinese sojourners to South-East Asian countries. Emily moved to England at age three before immigrating…
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Josephine Taylor’s new work of historical fiction brings into focus a hidden condition called vulvodynia. It’s a chronic pain experienced by too many women, many of whom are under 25. We spoke to Jo about the book, the condition and her research into the history of hysteria, female sexuality, and the treatment of the female…
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Dizzy Limits is an eclectic collection of experimental non-fiction that uses unorthodox style to capture truth and deeper self-exploration. The book features a range of contributors, who all utilise various styles and voices to produce unique pieces of work. The twenty-two essays explore a range of topics including cultural identity, the body, the environment and…
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In a word: Wow. Just…wow. What a beautiful, heartbreaking book. For what is at first glance a small and unassuming tale, it certainly packs a punch. That being said, it’s done in a really gentle way, with the writing used to carve out the story rather than build it. The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida…
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This is the story of a crime. This is the story of a miracle. There are two stories here. Catherine Noske’s debut novel The Salt Madonna is set on the fictional island of Chesil, where a single terrible event begets religious hysteria that threatens to destroy a close-knit community. The book, which was a decade in…
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Over the next few weeks, we’ll introduce you to the incredible people who make up the judging panel of the 2020 Rachel Funari Prize for Fiction. Today, meet author Eleni Hale. * The Rachel Funari Prize for Fiction calls for stories by women and non-binary writers. What’s your view on diverse representation in publishing? Without…
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Over the next few weeks, we’ll introduce you to the incredible people who make up the judging panel of the 2020 Rachel Funari Prize for Fiction. Today, meet poet, writer and zinester, Rae White. * The Rachel Funari Prize for Fiction calls for stories by women and non-binary writers. What’s your view on diverse representation…
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Journalist-cum-author Azadeh Moaveni commands a wealth of knowledge when it comes to Middle Eastern politics and ideology, and it shines in her latest offering, Guest House for Young Widows: Among the Women of ISIS. This narrative non-fiction is written as a pastiche of sorts, vividly painting a picture of the journeys many Muslim women followed…
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CW: sexual abuse, child abuse The honesty of Patricia Eagle’s Being Mean: A Memoir of Sexual Abuse and Survival is at times a painful and difficult read. The book chronicles Patricia’s life in vignettes from the ages of four to sixty-five, with chapters presented chronologically. The early chapters relay her experiences of child sexual abuse,…
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From Here On, Monsters is Elizabeth Bryer’s debut novel. Having been published in Meanjin, Griffith Review, Kill Your Darlings and Overland (to name just a few), as well as having worked as the inaugural translation editor for The Lifted Brow, Bryer is no stranger to the Australian literary scene. This shows in her writing, which…
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Kaylia Payne chats with author Penelope Hanley about feminism, writing, and her latest novel, ‘After She Left‘. * How long did it take to write After She Left? Probably about two years altogether but it was spread over a much longer time because usually I’m working full time and it’s too hard to write much fiction….
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After She Left follows three generations of women across a span of five decades, utilising the characters and time periods within the novel to explore different facets of feminism. The story begins by introducing one of the three main characters, Deirdre, a free-spirited artist who emigrates from Ireland to Sydney in the 1930s after falling…
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