National Poetry Month - in Australia - is now four years old, and once again it is spearheaded by Red Room Poetry, which is described by ArtsHub as "Australia’s leading organisation that commissions poets and produces live poetry events nationally". ArtsHub adds that this Month is "a festival that celebrates emerging and established writers, as … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Poetry Month 2024
Literary events
Brigitta Olubas and Susan Wyndham in conversation with Julieanne Lamond
This week's Meet-the-Author conversation with Brigitta Olubas and Susan Wyndham about their book Hazzard and Harrower: The letters was high priority for me - not only because Hazzard and Harrower are wonderful writers, but because Olubas and Wyndham are themselves significant players in Australia's literary community. For those who don't know them, Shirley Hazzard (1931-2016) … Continue reading Brigitta Olubas and Susan Wyndham in conversation with Julieanne Lamond
ACT Literary Awards 2024
On Thursday evening, I attended the presentation of the ACT Literary Awards (which I also attended last year when they were called the ACT Notable Book Awards). These awards are made by Marion (the ACT Writers Centre), and this year's event was MC'd by the CEO Katy Mutton (left) and Board Chair, Emma Batchelor. As … Continue reading ACT Literary Awards 2024
Author Talk: the Craft of Crime, Sulari Gentill & Chris Hammer with Anna Steele
This author talk was not one of my usual series - that is, not ANU/Canberra Times Meet the Author or Muse Canberra's conversations. Instead, it was presented by the Friends of the National Library of Australia, of which I am a member. Despite the cold, drizzly night, it was a full house, which is not … Continue reading Author Talk: the Craft of Crime, Sulari Gentill & Chris Hammer with Anna Steele
Shankari Chandran in conversation with Karen Viggers
Shankari Chandran's conversation with Karen Viggers is the second Meet the Author event I've managed to attend this year, and it reminded me how much I wish I could get to more of these sessions. This one featured Shankari Chandran, author of the Miles Franklin winning novel, Chai time at Cinnamon Gardens (my review), in … Continue reading Shankari Chandran in conversation with Karen Viggers
Monday musings on Australian literature: Stella Prize 2024 Winner
The 2024 Stella Prize winner was announced last Thursday, the 2nd of May, but that was the also the day my blog turned 15, and I didn't want to flood cyberspace with too many posts. Then this weekend was the SixDegrees meme which meant another post coming at you. So, I decided to do my … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Stella Prize 2024 Winner
Monday musings on Australian literature: Blak and Bright, 2024
Eight years ago, I wrote a post about a new festival called Blak and Bright, which was described at the time as "the debut event of the Victorian Indigenous Literary Festival". I am thrilled to find that eight years later, this festival is still going strong. So often festivals, and literary initiatives in general, appear … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Blak and Bright, 2024
Stella Prize 2024 Longlist announced
As has happened in the past, this week's Monday Musings has been gazumped by the announcement this evening of the Stella Prize longlist. I attended the online streamed announcement from the Adelaide Festival Writers Week As I say every year, I don't do well at having read the Stella Prize longlist at the time of … Continue reading Stella Prize 2024 Longlist announced
Karen Viggers in conversation with Alex Sloan
When Colin Steele emailed out the schedule, to date, for this year's Meet the Author series, I immediately marked in my calendar those events I could attend. There weren't many, as life is busy with yoga, tai chi, reading group and concert subscriptions, but the first I could attend was local author Karen Viggers (who … Continue reading Karen Viggers in conversation with Alex Sloan
ACT Book of the Year Award 2023 shortlist and winner
This year I attended, for the first time, the announcement of the ACT Book of the Year award, which was held at the Woden Public Library. For some reason our award doesn't get the media recognition or attention that it deserves. Sure, it is not one of the wealthiest literary prizes in the country, and … Continue reading ACT Book of the Year Award 2023 shortlist and winner
Whispering Gums 