Today’s episode is going to be a little different. We’re not getting into a work of literary fiction seeking to illuminate our world, rather we’re exploring the practical ways we can make change ourselves. Jean Hinchliffe describes her journey into social change and the lessons she’s learned about how to advocate for what you believe in. Oh, and Jean’s still in high school. Yeah, the kids are going to be ok and can we do any less than support them as they try to make the world a better place Join me as we discover Jean Hinchliffe’s Lead The Way...

Evie Wyld is the author of The Bass Rock, a novel which has gone on to win the Stella Prize for 2021. In part two of the conversation we are getting into spoiler territory, exploring all the questions that arise from a close reading of the novel. And a warning; the conversation does discuss violence against women and if this is a topic you'd prefer to avoid maybe skip this one. The Bass Rock weaves together three narratives across the centuries exploring the pervasive violence that women must live with daily. The novel opens on a scene of a child and her mother walking on the beach, about to make a gruesome discovery. We then meet Vivianne arriving in town late at night to catalogue the estate of her grandmother Ruth. In post war Scotland Ruth arrives at her new home unsure of her place and her role in the lives of her adopted children. And some centuries earlier Sarah must flee her village after she is charged with witchcraft and faces brutality at the hands of the townsfolk and burning at the stake.

Evie Wyld is the Miles Franklin award winning author of All the Birds Singing. She joined me on Final Draft last year to discuss The Bass Rock, a novel which has gone on to win the Stella Prize for 2021. Today we are revisiting that conversation with a special extended chat that takes in all the bits that didn't make it to air last time... The Bass Rock weaves together three narratives across the centuries exploring the pervasive violence that women must live with daily. The novel opens on a scene of a child and her mother walking on the beach, about to make a gruesome discovery. We then meet Vivianne arriving in town late at night to catalogue the estate of her grandmother Ruth. In post war Scotland Ruth arrives at her new home unsure of her place and her role in the lives of her adopted children. And some centuries earlier Sarah must flee her village after she is charged with witchcraft and faces brutality at the hands of the townsfolk and burning at the stake.

Claire Thomas is the author of Fugitive Blue which won the Dobbie Award for women writers, as well as being longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award. Claire is an academic who teaches literary studies and creative writing. She has a new novel that I will be discussing today called The Performance. The Performance centres around three women attend a staging of Samuel Beckett’s play Happy Days. Inside the theatre the air is conditioned to a chill, a matter of stark contrast to the world outside. Bushfires rage outside the city and each of the women have navigated this sweltering outer world to find some modicum of solitude and peace within the theatre. As the play begins each of the women find their minds drifting out through memory, their lives and into the pressures that threaten their peace.

In part two of our conversation Emily talks secrets; how they inform the plot and how they drive the narrative forward. There's even some secrets of our own to share in a special spoilers section at the end where Emily and I discuss one of the most impactful moments of A Million Things Rae is pretty self sufficient for a ten year old. She can get to school lunch packed. Clean the house, although the backyard is a mess. And she’s always got time for her dog Splinter. In fact until the money in her Mum’s back account runs out no one needs to know her Mum’s not around. Lettie next door could be a problem though. Always on her porch, just sitting and watching. If she notices Rae’s on her own there could be trouble. But Lettie’s got problems of her own.

Rae is pretty self sufficient for a ten year old. She can get to school lunch packed. Clean the house, although the backyard is a mess. And she’s always got time for her dog Splinter. In fact until the money in her Mum’s back account runs out no one needs to know her Mum’s not around. Lettie next door could be a problem though. Always on her porch, just sitting and watching. If she notices Rae’s on her own there could be trouble. But Lettie’s got problems of her own.

AB Endacott is a self published author. It's creatively freeing but also a lot of work. In Part Two of our conversation with AB Endacott we explore the creation of the books. Deliverance of the Blessed takes us into the world of the Sanctuary and a core group of the Blessed. Kaylene is mourning the death of her love Luka. She’s desperate and will do almost anything to get him back. Just as she’s about to make an irreversible decision though she is offered a chance. But could hope be more terrible than the loss she feels?

Deliverance of the Blessed takes us into the world of the Sanctuary and a core group of the Blessed. Kaylene is mourning the death of her love Luka. She’s desperate and will do almost anything to get him back. Just as she’s about to make an irreversible decision though she is offered a chance. But could hope be more terrible than the loss she feels?

In part two of our conversation Eileen shares one of her poems from the collection... Eileen Chong is an Australian poet of Chinese descent. She is the author of eight collections of poetry and her work has been listed for more prizes than a half hour show like ours could possibly list but I’ll just mention the likes of the The Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards and the PM’s Literary Award. Her first collection Burning Rice is taught as part of the NSW HSC Syllabus and today we will be talking about her new collection A Thousand Crimson Blooms.

Eileen Chong is an Australian poet of Chinese descent. She is the author of eight collections of poetry and her work has been listed for more prizes than a half hour show like ours could possibly list but I’ll just mention the likes of the The Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards and the PM’s Literary Award. Her first collection Burning Rice is taught as part of the NSW HSC Syllabus and today we will be talking about her new collection A Thousand Crimson Blooms.

Emily Maguire is the author of fiction and non-fiction. Her 2016 novel An Isolated Incident garnered short list noms for the Stella Prize and the Miles Franklin. It explored the reverberations within a community around a horrific act of violence against a young woman. Her latest novel Love Objects takes us into Sydney’s Inner West where Nicole has lived pretty much her entire life. It’s a modest house but Nic has always said her family has a bed there if they ever need it. Nicole hasn't had much in the way of family after her mum died and her sister moved to Brisbane. When Michelle left she took Lena, Nic’s niece.

In part two of the conversation with Emily we dive deeper into the family dynamic at the heart of Love Objects. Nicole has always looked out for family. When her sister Michelle packed up and left Sydney for Brisbane Nic was devastated. Nic had always treated her niece Lena like her own and to be separated was unbearable. Now Lena’s back in Sydney studying and every Sunday she and Nic meet up for lunch. When Nic misses their date one Sunday, Lena goes in search of her aunt. What she finds changes everything and Lena will have to confront the lengths she will go to for someone she loves…

Nicole has always looked out for family. When her sister Michelle packed up and left Sydney for Brisbane Nic was devastated. Nic had always treated her niece Lena like her own and to be separated was unbearable. Now Lena’s back in Sydney studying and every Sunday she and Nic meet up for lunch. When Nic misses their date one Sunday, Lena goes in search of her aunt. What she finds changes everything and Lena will have to confront the lengths she will go to for someone she loves…

Three women attend a staging of Samuel Beckett’s play Happy Days. Inside the theatre is air conditioned to a chill, while outside bushfires rage outside the city. On the stage a woman is trapped to her waist inside an expanding mound, happily exploring her past through items in her bag. Within the audience the women’s minds drift out across time. Margot considers her family, expanded to include a new grandson, even as her husband slowly moves into his old age. Ivy thinks about her world and how far she’s come from the person she was at uni. Summer wishes she could pay closer attention to the stage. Her job is to usher guests to their seats but her mind is miles away as the fires circling the city move closer to her girlfriends family home. Join me as we discover Claire Thomas’s The Performance...

Three women attend a staging of Samuel Beckett’s play Happy Days. Inside the theatre is air conditioned to a chill, while outside bushfires rage outside the city. On the stage a woman is trapped to her waist inside an expanding mound, happily exploring her past through items in her bag. Within the audience the women’s minds drift out across time. Margot considers her family, expanded to include a new grandson, even as her husband slowly moves into his old age. Ivy thinks about her world and how far she’s come from the person she was at uni. Summer wishes she could pay closer attention to the stage. Her job is to usher guests to their seats but her mind is miles away as the fires circling the city move closer to her girlfriends family home. Join me as we discover Claire Thomas’s The Performance...

Zoya Patel is the author of No Country Woman. She is the founding editor of Feminartsy and has been published widely including Junkee, Women’s Agenda and The Canberra Times. Today she is joining us as the head of the 2021 Stella Prize Judging Panel. The Stella Prize is an annual award open to books published by women and non-binary writers. It’s now in its ninth year and always offers up an incredible selection of titles.

In rural Pakistan Malika is entrusted to the care of Ayesha after her parents are killed in an accident. She grows up along another survivor, Tahir, gradually becoming part of the village life. As Malika is entrusted with more responsibility it emerges that she has an extraordinary intelligence. Malika’s talents are destined to take her away from the village until a violent betrayal threatens her entire world. In Melbourne Kate is piecing together her life after the death of her mother. She’s always leant on her career as a surgeon and has little to show in the way of personal relationships. When a young woman from PAkistan enters her life, will she finally learn to open up to others? Join me as we discover L.P. McMahon’s As Swallows Fly...

Erma Bridges is tired. She just got off a thirty six hour flight to answer as yet unknown charges of misconduct from her university. A university where young women are disappearing at an alarming rate. A university where one young woman, Erma’s missing research assistant, is about to reappear and brutally attack Erma for seemingly no discernible reason. When Erma wakes from the shocking attack she must try and piece together what has happened to her life. Why did her research assistant turn on her. Did it have anything to do with her book on the History of Reader Deployed Young Adult Fiction and the missing interviews with an elusive author?

Layla is an inventor. After winning a scholarship to an exclusive school she is now preparing for the Grand Designs Tourismo which will take her to Germany and working her hardest to win a place on the Special International Invention Tour. But Layla’s plans for conquering the world with her inventions hit a hurdle when her family must travel to Sudan to be at her grandmother’s bedside. This trip challenges Layla to discover who she is beyond the world of her inventors workshop...

Layla is an inventor. After winning a scholarship to an exclusive school she is now preparing for the Grand Designs Tourismo which will take her to Germany and working her hardest to win a place on the Special International Invention Tour. But Layla’s plans for conquering the world with her inventions hit a hurdle when her family must travel to Sudan to be at her grandmother’s bedside. This trip challenges Layla to discover who she is beyond the world of her inventors workshop...

Today I have a novel of Sydney that has become a favourite already of my reading this year. Friends & Dark Shapes is a gorgeous meditation on movement. The novel had me reflecting on the ways I move through life, through relationships and yes through this city. As I record this just outside of Sydney in the Blue Mountains, I find Friends & Dark Shapes takes me back to the streets and the people that I have loved. When I spoke with Kavita for Final Draft she compared our conversation to a virtual walk through Sydney. I think that’s a good metaphor for the experience of reading Friends & Dark Shapes This is a soulful novel that I would highly recommend

Michael Williams has joined the Sydney Writers Festival as its artistic director for 2021 following Michaela McGuire leaving to take the helm at Melbourne Writers Festival. It’s like the two passed each other somewhere around Albury as Michael was the director of Melbourne’s Wheeler Centre for more than a decade. He’s also been a presenter on Radio National and RRR down in Melbourne. And Michael has joined the festival in the wake of the cancellation of last year's festival due to Covid. We’re all excited to see a return to the stages and talks and Michael has put together a program worth anticipating Join me as Michael Williams takes us through the 2021 Sydney Writers Festival...

Harper Brown has arrived in Paris to live her dream. She’s leaving her romantic baggage behind and starting a job at an online magazine as its new art & culture writer. This is Paris and a small borrowed apartment and rude co-workers are just part of the charm. Except Harper’s nourishing dreams of becoming a hard-hitting reporter and the arrogant git currently doing that job is ignoring her warnings that a serial killer may be stalking women on the streets of Paris.

The Animals in That Country takes us north. Jean is a guide in a wildlife preserve. Irascibly anti-social, Jean drinks too much, smokes too much and picks fights online. Except for Thursdays when she cleans herself up and looks after her granddaughter. Jeans son Lee may have done a runner, but he did leave behind Kimberly and Jean is fiercely protective of Kim, even if Kim’s mum Ange has little time for Jean. Jean and Kimberly love to plan for the day when they will have their own wildlife preserve. They carefully scrapbook their ideas, even as the news warns them of an illness spreading in the south. Zooflu has hit the southern states hard, bringing flu-like symptoms, pink eyes and the ability to talk to animals! Soon the park must close their gates and quarantine themselves against the pandemic, because who knows what the rescued animals will have to say about their captivity?

Four friends move into a share-house in Redfern. Over the course of four seasons the friends navigate communal living and try to get a handle on whether this is in fact their lives or just another stepping stone towards a place everyone else seems to have reached. From toilet rolls and the dishwashing roster, to navigating space in a city that is always shifting and seemingly forever out of reach; Friends & Dark Shapes explores love, longing and loss in Sydney.