Fully Lit

In this episode, we return to Roland Barthes’ famous 1967 essay, The Death of the Author. This influential text is often taught as an anti-authoritarian gesture, shifting the power of meaning from the author to the reader. But what happens when we consider Barthes’ ideas alongside the voices of anticolonial writers who, at the same historical moment, were mobilising literature to galvanise communities against oppression?We explore what these debates reveal about contemporary writing’s tendency to blur authorial fact with fiction, and why questions of agency still matter today. The conversation is sparked by Michael Griffiths’ new book, The Death of the Author and Anticolonial Thought, and was recorded live at UTS’ Centre for the Advancement of Indigenous Knowledges.GuestsMichael Griffiths – Author of The Death of the Author and Anticolonial Thought, Michael is a scholar whose work explores intersections between literary theory and postcolonial studies.Ben Etherington – Academic and writer with expertise in world literature and cultural theory.Elizabeth McMahon – Scholar and author focusing on literature, identity, and critical theory.Graham Akhurst – Academic and author whose work engages with Indigenous storytelling and creative practice.CreditsThis live event was recorded on Gadigal land, live, at UTS’ Centre for the Advancement of Indigenous Knowledges on November 27.The event was produced and recorded by Ben Etherington.Fully Lit is an Impact Studios podcast, made in collaboration with the Sydney Review of Books. Its producer is Regina Botros. Executive producers are Sarah Gilbert and James Jiang.

Recorded at the UTS Writers’ Festival on Friday, 7 November 2025, this episode of Fully Lit Live brings you Rebel Daughters, where you’ll hear acclaimed poet Anne Casey share readings from her latest collection, followed by a Q&A with award-winning poet and critic Sarah Holland-Batt, newly appointed Professor and Head of Creative Writing at UTS. Together, they explore themes of resilience, heritage, feminism, and the rebellious spirit that shapes contemporary Australian writing.GuestsAnne Casey Anne Casey is an award-winning Irish-Australian poet and writer whose work spans themes of identity, heritage, and resilience. Her poetry has been widely published internationally and translated into multiple languages. Anne is known for her evocative style and fearless exploration of social and cultural issues.Sarah Holland-Batt Sarah Holland-Batt is an acclaimed Australian poet, critic, and academic. She is the newly appointed Professor and Head of Creative Writing at the University of Technology Sydney. Sarah is the author of several award-winning poetry collections and a leading voice in contemporary literature. Her work often interrogates memory, mortality, and the complexities of human experience, earning her recognition as one of Australia’s most influential literary figures.

In December 2023, the Sydney Review of Books  and Western Sydney University's Writing and Society Research Centre were delighted to announce renowned fiction writer, Yumna Kassab, as the inaugural Parramatta Laureate in Literature, a program delivered in partnership with the City of Parramatta. The program, now in its second iteration, recognises the unique and vital work of writers as contributors to narratives of place – through storying, remembering histories, and shaping a creative vision for our shared future.As the inaugural Laureate, Kassab has composed Parramatta: A Dictionary of Place and Memory. She writes in the introduction to her work: 'It was my idea that a dictionary could tell the story of a person (me) in connection with a place (Parramatta) with enough flexibility to take in detours, digressions, musings, and general quirkiness. I knew at the outset that the entries would be placed under titles and it would be fragmentary in spirit.' Extracts from the Parramatta Dictionary are free to read on the Sydney Review of Books website.Author note:Yumna Kassab is a Parramatta-based novelist and short fiction writer, a high school teacher, and a staunch supporter of the Western Sydney Wanderers. The Lovers (2023) was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award, the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Fiction, and the Victorian Premier’s Award for Fiction. She has also authored The House of Youssef  (2019), Australiana (2022), Politica (2024), and Theory of Everything (2025).GuestsHost: Kate Fagan - Director of the Writing and Society Research Centre Western Sydney UniversityInterviewer: James Jiang - Editor at The Sydney Review of BooksCreditsRecording engineer Sevan Dermelkonian recorded this episode on the 30th October, 2025 at PHIVE, Active Wellness Studios, Parramatta.Fully Lit is a collaboration between Impact Studios, UTS, and the Sydney Review of Books. Its producer is Regina Botros, and its executive producers are Sarah Gilbert and James Jiang.

In this episode, we’re bringing you a story from our friends at History Lab.Historical novelist Sienna Brown brings to life the story of Nellie Small, a trailblazing performer whose life challenged the boundaries of race, gender, and identity in early 20th-century Australia. You'll hear actor Zahra Newman as Nellie, and an interview with playwright Alana Valentina, for whom Nellie has been a rich source of writerly inspiration. Head to History Lab and subscribe to hear all four episodes of this special series, Caribbean Echoes - and much more. History Lab is an Impact Studios podcast, made in collaboration with the Australian Centre for Public History. VoicesAlana Valentine is a librettist, playwright, and director who is an expert at working with real life subjects and stories, dramatizing them with respect. She has three plays on the NSW HSC Syllabus: Parramatta Girls, Shafana and Aunt Sarrinah, and Cyberbile. Her play, Letters to Lindy, has seen hundreds of amateur and school productions. Valentine is particularly distinguished in her skills as a co-collaborator, notably with Barbara and the Camp Dogs, which won the 2019 Helpmann Award for Best Musical and Best Original Score. She has chronicled her practice in Bowerbird and published the memoir Wed By The Wayside. Professor Cassandra Pybus FAHA specializes historical narratives about people who have been marginalized, forgotten or written out of history. An award-winning author she has published 13 books including Black Founders: The Unknown Story of Australia's First Black Settlers and the bestselling biography, Truganini. She has held research professorships at the University of Sydney, Georgetown University in Washington DC, the University of Texas and King's College London. She is descended from a colonist who received the largest free land grant on Truganini's traditional country of Bruny Island. Vanessa Cassin is Education Manager at Society of Australian Genealogists with extensive experience in providing training and assessment in the trustee industry, both as an in-house trainer for the NSW Trustee & Guardian and as an assessor for Western Sydney University the College’s Registered Training Organisation. Vanessa holds a Diploma in Family Historical Studies from the Society of Australian Genealogists and has been researching her own family history for over 20 years. Zahra Newman was born in Port Antonio, Jamaica, and moved to Australia at age 14. A graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts, Newman has an extensive list of credits in theatre, television, and film. Her notable works include her performance as Nabalungi in the original Australian cast of The Book of Mormon, and her lead role in the play The Hate Race and in the film Long Story Short. She has received a Green Room Award, a Sydney Theatre Award, and multiple Helpmann Award nominations. Newman played all 23 characters in the Sydney...

In this special live episode of Fully Lit, we head to Parramatta for The Poets Speak, an evening of powerful readings and conversation presented by Giramondo Publishing.Recorded as part of Parramatta’s Lit Festival and the Sydney Fringe Festival, the event features acclaimed poets Eunice Andrada (Kontra), Kate Fagan (Song in the Grass), Hasib Hourani (rock flight), Šime Knežević (In Your Dreams), and Suneeta Peres da Costa (The Prodigal). With host Giramondo Publisher Ivor Indyk, the poets share their work and reflect on its origins, themes, and provocations.Eunice Andrada's first poetry collection, Flood Damages, won the Anne Elder Award and was a finalist for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award and the Dame Mary Gilmore Award. Her second collection, TAKE CARE, was a finalist for the Judith Wright Calanthe Award, Stella Prize, Australian Literature Society Gold Medal, and two NSW Premier’s Literary Awards. Her third volume, KONTRA, will be published in October 2025. Kate Fagan is a writer, musician and scholar. Her book First Light was shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards and Age Book of the Year Award. Kate is an internationally esteemed songwriter, and is currently Director of the WSU Writing and Society Research Centre. Her most recent book is Song in the Grass. Hasib Hourani is a Lebanese-Palestinian writer, editor, arts worker and educator. His work has been published in Meanjin, Overland, Australian Poetry and Cordite, among others. He is a 2020 recipient of The Wheeler Centre’s Next Chapter Scheme. His debut book is rock flight. Šime Knežević is a poet and playwright from Sydney with Croatian heritage. His poems have been published widely in Australian and international literary journals. His first book-length poetry collection is In Your Dreams.Suneeta Peres da Costa was born in Sydney and is of Goan heritage. She writes fiction, non-fiction, plays and poetry. Her novella Saudade was shortlisted for the 2019 Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Awards. Her first book of poetry, The Prodigal, was published in 2024. Presented by Giramondo Publishing.This event was recorded live on September 25, 2025.Fully Lit is an Impact Studios podcast.

Explore the poetic, philosophical, and genre-defying world of Gail Jones’s latest novel, The Name of the Sister, in this episode of Fully Lit Live. In conversation with fellow author Debra Adelaide, Jones reflects on the difference between a crime novel and a novel with a crime in it, and asks how a novel might bear witness to suffering, honouring rather than exploiting it. Jones's work - always deeply visual, filled with images that linger in the mind's eye - invites listeners to consider how literature shapes our inner worlds. In this episode, she reminds us that we are made up of all we have read. The Name of the Sister is Gail Jones' 11th novel, and it was published this year by Text.  This episode is brought to you in partnership with our friends at Gleebooks. Head to the Gleebooks events page to discover more great literary events featuring some of Australia’s best and best known authors. GuestsGail Jones is a celebrated and prolific Australian writer, as well as a researcher and academic. Debra Adelaide is the author or editor of 17 books, including novels, nonfiction, and reference works. CreditsFully Lit is made by Impact Studios, a media production house based on Gadigal land at UTS, Sydney. This episode was recorded at Sydney's Gleebooks, also on Gadigal land. Fully Lit is made by producer Regina Botros and its executive producers are Sarah Gilbert of UTS Impact Studios, and James Jiang, editor of the Sydney Review of Books.

In this spirited discussion, three critics—Max Easton, Eda Gunaydin, and Lucy Van—join Sydney Review of Books editor, James Jiang, to explore the evolving role of the critic. Together, they delve into how they each came to criticism, the influences that shaped their voices, the ethics and implications of writing negative reviews, and whether we are truly living in a post-literate culture.This episode was recorded live as part of the Parramatta Lit Festival, held within the Sydney Fringe Festival on 6 September 2025 at Western Sydney University – Parramatta City Campus.Host: James Jiang — Editor, Sydney Review of BooksPanelists: Max Easton, Eda Gunaydin, Lucy VanRecording Engineer: Sevan Dermelkonian

Poetry month has been and gone, but we have plenty more to say about poetry and poetry criticism!So we're bringing you a 2024 episode of 'Poetry Says,' wherein host Alice Allan reflects on Ben Etherington's 2015 essay 'The Poet Tasters' - a forensic and statistical critique of Australian poetry that brought Alice's career as a poetry reviewer to an abrupt stop. What kind of critical culture do you get when most critics are also poets? And how can the reviewer not break out into a cold sweat when appraising the work of friends and colleagues?FeaturingAlice Allan is a Melbourne writer and editor who brought her show, 'Poetry Says' to a close earlier this year, with its 300th episode. Further reading and listeningRead 'The Poet Tasters', Ben Etherington's 2015 essay in the Sydney Review of Books, Then read 'The Poet Eaters' - Alice Allan and James Jiang on poetry reviewing ten years after ‘The Poet Tasters.’'Poetry Says' was published from 2016 to early 2025.CreditsRegina Botros - producerSarah Gilbert and James Jiang - executive producersFully Lit is brought to you by UTS Impact Studios and the Sydney Review of Books.

Hear what poet and critic Sarah Holland-Batt has to say about Australia's as-yet-uncrowned Poet Laureate. She takes a close look at the tradition and explores poetry's relationship to power, highlighting the potential pitfalls and possible benefits of such a figure. Can a poet laureate bring poetry back in Australia, where it's long been an afterthought for cultural policymakers? How might such a person engage our politics? And can we (shall we?) build the infrastructure to support poetic careers—not just poetic moments? And, most urgently, how long will it take before someone dubs the be-laureled bard Australia's Poet Lorikeet?Further readingFor the written version of this address, see The Poet in the Public Arena by Sarah Holland-Batt, published in Sydney Review of Books. To learn more about her work, visit Sarah Holland-Batt. CREDITSFully Lit is brought to you by UTS Impact Studios, the Sydney Review of Books and the UTS Writing and Publishing Program. Executive producers, Sarah Gilbert and James Jiang. Producer Regina Botros.

This special edition of Fully Lit Live was recorded at the Abercrombie Hotel in Sydney, on beautiful Gadigal land. It was a night of celebration, conversation, and creative sparks, as we launched the podcast with a vibrant discussion on the power of audio as a medium for literary criticism - one where the critique is embodied, voiced and felt, and built in conversation with one another and with you, our listeners, in mind. Sophie Gee of the Secret Life of Books was there to host a conversation with Lynda Ng and Ben Etherington, then Delia Falconer, of the UTS Writing and Publishing Program, introduced our friendly crowd to Eda Gunaydin, the 2025 UTS-Copyright Agency writer in residence. Then we ate cake!Further readingEda Gunaydin is the author of Root and Branch (2022, New South), a collection of essays. You can read many of her published essays via her website. You can find Eileen Chong's poem, 'We Speak of Flowers,' about launching a book here, thanks to Kill Your Darlings. CreditsThis live event was recorded by Simon Branthwaite, who also did sound design on this episode. Fully Lit is an Impact Studios podcast, made in collaboration with the Sydney Review of Books. Its producer is Regina Botros. Executive producers are Sarah Gilbert and James Jiang.

On this episode Teela Reid and Merinda Dutton, the co-founders of Blackfulla Bookclub, talk about the online community they’ve built around First Nations storytelling and discuss their experiences of reading Fire Front, an anthology of poetry and essays curated by Alison Whittaker. It’s about seeing, and hearing, and reading the world through powerful First Nations perspectives. Listen up. We are republishing this episode from the Sydney Review of Books' very first podcast season, to mark this month's NAIDOC week celebrations. * Please note that this episode contains names and references to deceased persons* You can find Blackfulla Bookclub on Instagram @blackfulla_bookclub Merinda Dutton is on Twitter and Instagram @min_dutton Teela Reid is on Twitter and Instagram @teelareid Fire Front: First Nations poetry And Power Today was curated by Alison Whittaker and published by UQP. We acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands on which we work, the Burramattagal people of the Darug nation and the Gadigal people of the Eora nation We pay our respects to elders past, present, and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded, and the struggles for justice are ongoing. We acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands this digital platform reaches.Fully Lit is brought to you by UTS Impact Studios, the Sydney Review of Books and the UTS Writing and Publishing Program.

In an engaging, though-provoking and moving conversation, Winnie Dunn, Julie Janson and Siang Lu - all shortlisted for the 2025 Miles Franklin Literary Award - discuss their nominated works, the ideas that shaped them, and the questions they raise about Australian life, literature and identity today, with writer and broadcaster Sunil Badami.  The Miles Franklin Literary Award is Australia’s most prestigious literary prize, awarded each year to a novel of the highest literary merit that presents Australian life in any of its phases. This special episode of Fully Lit is presented by Copyright Agency Cultural Fund and Gleebooks, Sydney’s premier literary events program. Head to Gleebooks' events page to discover more great literary events featuring some of Australia’s best and best known authors. GuestsWinnie Dunn is a Tongan-Australian writer from Mount Druitt. She is the general manager of Sweatshop Literacy Movement. Her debut novel is Dirt Poor Islanders, published by Hachette. Julie Janson is a Burruberongal woman of the Darug Aboriginal nation NSW. She is a novelist, playwright, and poet. Her novel Compassion is published by Magabala Books. Her career as a playwright resulted in ten productions at various theatres including Belvoir and Sydney Opera House. As a poet she is co-recipient of the Oodgeroo Noonuccal Poetry Prize 2016 and winner of the Judith Wright Poetry Prize 2019. Her Indigenous crime novel Madukka the River Serpent was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award 2023. Benevolence, an Indigenous historical novel published by Magabala in 2020, and later published by Harper Collins in the USA and UK, was shortlisted for the Barbara Jefferis Award 2022 and the Voss Literary Prize. Her shortlisted novel Compassion is a sequel to Benevolence A gripping historical novel set in colonial NSW, charting resistance, survival, and legacy through the life of a Darug woman outlaw. Siang Lu is the author of Ghost Cities, published by University of Queensland Press.  His first book The Whitewash won the ABIA Audiobook of the Year in 2023. Ghost Cities has been shortlisted for five literary awards, including the 2025 Russell Prize for Humour Writing, the VPLA John Clarke Humour Award, the Readings New Australian Fiction Prize and The University of Queensland Fiction Book Award and The Courier-Mail People’s Choice Queensland Book of the Year Award at the Queensland Literary Awards. In 2023 Siang was named one of the Top 40 Under 40 Asian-Australians at the Asian-Australian Leadership Awards. CreditsFully Lit is is a podcast by Impact Studios, a media production house based on Gadigal land at UTS, Sydney. This episode was recorded at Gleebooks, at an event hosted by Sunil Badami. Sound engineering by Simon Branthwaite. Executive producer, Sarah Gilbert.

Writer, editor and producer Charle Malycon (Penguin Random House and Overland literary journal) and co-founder and director of Amplify bookstore, Jing Xuan Teo, join Alice Grundy to dissect the current state of the industry. What goes on behind the scenes? What is the work of publishing today and who is doing it? Our guests share their personal experiences in publishing and bookselling, taking the listener through the complex process of getting a book from manuscript to reader and highlighting the many hands that shape the reader’s experience.  Alice Grundy is Managing Editor of Australia Institute Press and a Research Manager at The Australia Institute. She worked in book publishing for over a decade before researching a PhD on editing and publishing history, the first half of which was published as a minigraph by Cambridge University Press.  Charle Malycon (Shh-arl, she//her) is an editor, writer and critic. She is a fulltime editor at one of Australia’s largest publishing houses and has poetry, monologues, short stories and literary reviews published in ABR, Meanjin, Overland, UTS Writers’ Anthology, UTS Central and Voices for Woman. She has an MA Creative Writing, a BA Communications and is a professional member of IPEd, APA and ASA. Jing Xuan Teo is a freelance marketer and co-founder of Amplify Bookstore, Australia's first antiracist bookstore specialising in books by BIPOC authors. Her focus is on strategic content creation, community building and supporting marginalised authors throughout the publishing process.  Readings Author and bookseller Laura Elizabeth Woollett reading from her essay, ‘Paying to Play’, at the Sydney Review of Books. CreditsFully Lit is presented by Anna Funder. The podcast series is produced, edited and sound designed by Regina Botros. Sound engineering by Simon Branthwaite. Executive producers are James Jiang and Sarah Gilbert. Fully Lit is a co-production between UTS Impact Studios and the Sydney Review of Books, with support from the UTS Writing and Publishing Program. To cite this episode:  Impact Studios, Botros, R., Gilbert, S., & Jiang, J. (2025, May 15). Fully Lit: a podcast about Australian writing, Ep 8, Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15421502 

Anita Heiss, Wiradjuri woman, author and editor at large at Bundyi, a First Nations imprint at Simon & Schuster, shares her insights into the Australian publishing industry with Alice Grundy, managing editor at Australia Institute Press. They take a close look at the way First Nations writing has affected and been affected by the prevailing practices in the industry, from author-editor relationships to marketing. What would sovereign publishing look like for First Nations writers in Australia? Alice Grundy is Managing Editor of Australia Institute Press and a Research Manager at The Australia Institute. She worked in book publishing for over a decade before researching a PhD on editing and publishing history, the first half of which was published as a minigraph by Cambridge University Press.  Anita Heiss is an internationally published, award-winning author of 25 books across genres. She is a proud member of the Wiradyuri Nation of central NSW, an Ambassador for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation and Professor of Communications at the University of Queensland. Her adult fiction includes Manhattan Dreaming, Paris Dreaming and Tiddas which she adapted for the stage. Her novel Barbed Wire and Cherry Blossoms was shortlisted for the QLD Literary Awards and longlisted for the Dublin International Literary Prize. Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray won the 2022 NSW Premier’s Literary Prize for Indigenous Writing, was shortlisted for the 2021 HNSA ARA Historical Novel (Adult Category) and longlisted for the 2022 Stella Prize. In 2023, Anita released a children’s book Bidhi Galing (Big Rain) illustrated by Samantha Campbell, and became Publisher of her own imprint, Bundyi Publishing (Simon & Schuster). In 2024, she released the historical novel Dirrayawadha (Rise Up). Anita’s latest novel is Red Dust Running. Further reading  ‘Dhuuluu-Yala (To Talk Straight): Publishing Aboriginal Literature,’  Dirrayawadha Don't Take Your Love To Town My Place 'Just How White is the Book Industry?' 'Unliterary History: Toni Morrison, The Black Book, and 'Real Black Publishing'CreditsFully Lit is presented by Anna Funder. The podcast series is produced, edited and sound designed by Regina Botros. Sound engineering by Simon Branthwaite. Executive producers are James Jiang and Sarah Gilbert. Fully Lit is a co-production between UTS Impact Studios and the Sydney Review of...

Award-winning poets Bella Li and Ellen Van Neerven join fellow poet Lisa Gorton for a discussion on poetry, responsibility and poetry’s place in Australian public life. With readings from each poet's work, along with other poems from Australia and beyond, our panelists explore the balance between poetry as a private practice and its public impact, attending to the ways in which poetry can unsettle language, shaping and reshaping our sense of history. Lisa Gorton writes poetry, fiction and essays. Her awards include the Philip Hodgins Memorial Medal, the Prime Minister's Prize for Fiction, the NSW Premier's People's Choice Award for Fiction, the Victorian Premier's Prize for Poetry, and the Wesley Michel Wright Poetry Prize. Lisa studied at the universities of Melbourne and Oxford, with a Masters in Renaissance Literature and a Doctorate on John Donne's poetry and prose. She has contributed poems to Izabela Pluta's artist's book Figures of Slippage and Oscillation (Perimeter Press) and to exhibitions such as This is a Poem at Buxton Contemporary Art Museum. Lisa's fifth and most recent poetry collection is the limited-edition chapbook Mirror Landscape (Life Before Man, 2024), written with the support of a Creative Australia BR Whiting residency in Rome. Bella Li is the author of Argosy (Vagabond Press, 2017), Lost Lake (Vagabond Press, 2018), and Theory of Colours (Vagabond Press, 2021). Her work has won the Victorian and NSW Premier's awards for poetry and an ABDA award for book design, and has featured in exhibitions, catalogues, and programs of the National Gallery of Victoria, Heide Museum of Modern Art, and the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Recent work can be found in HEAT, Debris Magazine, The Saturday Paper, and Australian Poetry Journal.  Ellen van Neerven is an award-winning writer of Mununjali Yugambeh and Dutch heritage. Ellen’s first book, Heat and Light, was the recipient of the David Unaipon Award, the Dobbie Literary Award and the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards Indigenous Writers’ Prize. They are the author of two poetry collections: Comfort Food, which was shortlisted for the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards Kenneth Slessor Prize; and Throat, which won the Kenneth Slessor Prize, the Multicultural NSW Award and Book of the Year in the NSW Premier’s Literary Awards. Their latest book, Personal Score: Sport, Culture, Identity, won the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Non-fiction in 2024. Readings ‘Argosy’ read by author, Bella Li ‘Constitute’ read by author, Ellen van Neerven ‘Personal Score’ excerpt read its author, Ellen van Neerven ‘An American Lyric’ from a...

How can poetry act upon the world? Hear John Kinsella hold up a bulldozer with a poem, and take a tour through his life as a reader, poet and activist as he and Lisa Gorton delve into the people and poets who influenced him. They discuss the challenges and responsibilities of being a poet, reflecting on the growing threats to our ecosystems and long-postponed colonial reckonings. In this context, what can poetry do, and what are the possibilities and limitations of a future Australian poet laureate? Lisa Gorton writes poetry, fiction and essays. Her awards include the Philip Hodgins Memorial Medal, the Prime Minister's Prize for Fiction, the NSW Premier's People's Choice Award for Fiction, the Victorian Premier's Prize for Poetry, and the Wesley Michel Wright Poetry Prize. Lisa studied at the universities of Melbourne and Oxford, with a Masters in Renaissance Literature and a Doctorate on John Donne's poetry and prose. She has contributed poems to Izabela Pluta's artist's book Figures of Slippage and Oscillation (Perimeter Press) and to exhibitions such as This is a Poem at Buxton Contemporary Art Museum. Lisa's fifth and most recent poetry collection is the limited-edition chapbook Mirror Landscape (Life Before Man, 2024), written with the support of a Creative Australia BR Whiting residency in Rome. John Kinsella is the author of over forty books. His many awards include the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Poetry, the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Poetry, the John Bray Poetry Award, the Judith Wright Calanthe Award for Poetry and the Western Australian Premier’s Book Award for Poetry (three times). His latest books are the three volumes of his collected poems, The Ascension of Sheep (UWAP, 2022), Harsh Hakea (UWAP, 2023) and Spirals (UWAP, 2024), and the story collection Beam of Light (Transit Lounge, 2024). He is a Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge University, and Emeritus Professor of Literature and Environment at Curtin University, Western Australia. He lives on Ballardong Noongar land at ‘Jam Tree Gully’ in the Western Australian Wheatbelt. In 2007 he received the Christopher Brennan Award for lifetime achievement in poetry and in 2024 he was inducted into the Western Australian Writers Hall of Fame. Readings 'Paradise Lost' by John Milton, excerpt read by John Kinsella 'Bulldozer' read by its author, John Kinsella 'Indexing' read by its author, John Kinsella Further reading: An essay by Sarah Holland-Batt about an Australian Poet Laureate  John Kinsella’s thoughts about the same. CreditsFully Lit is presented by Anna Funder. The podcast series is produced, edited and sound designed by Regina Botros. Sound engineering by Simon Branthwaite. Executive producers are James Jiang and Sarah Gilbert. Fully Lit is a co-production between

If you're enjoying this podcast, here's a podcast we think you'll like too!The Secret Life of Books is made by Sophie Gee, an academic and a writer, and Jonty Claypole, broadcaster and producer.Sophie and Jonty tell the story behind the story of the literary classics that everyone wants to read, feels they should read or has already read and loved.They reveal the secret histories, hidden players and big ideas behind the great books.They show how they came into being, why they matter, and how they changed the world. And try to have a bit of fun along the way.https://shows.acast.com/secret-life-of-books

Who gets to critique First Nations literature — and how should it be taught?Novelist Melanie Saward and critic Ben Etherington join writer and academic Graham Akhurst to dive into the complex world of reading, teaching, and evaluating First Nations writing.From the classroom to the review page, they explore the responsibilities that come with critiquing Indigenous stories — and what’s at stake when they’re misread or misunderstood.Plus, a powerful intervention from the archive by Alexis Wright.Graham Akhurst is a Kokomini writer and the author of Borderland (UWAP). He is the Director of the Centre for the Advancement of Indigenous Knowledges at UTS and a Senior Lecturer in Indigenous Australian Studies and Creative Writing. As a Fulbright Scholar, Graham took his love for writing to New York City, where he studied for an MFA in Fiction at Hunter College. He is a board member of Varuna: The National Writers’ House, and the Sydney Review of Books. He lives with his wife on Gadigal Country in Sydney and enjoys walking Centennial Park with a good audiobook. Melanie Saward is a Bigambul and Wakka Wakka woman, author, academic, and publishing all-rounder.  Ben Etherington is Associate Professor in English at Western Sydney University. His current research, which is supported by an Australian Research Council grant, is on the poetics of anglophone Caribbean Creole verse between the abolition of slavery and decolonization. He is also collaborating with the Sydney-based Jamaican writer Sienna Brown on a podcast series about the history of Caribbean people in Australia. Ben has previously worked with Alexis Wright on feature on the Gangalidda activist and leader Clarence Walden and has been a regular contributor to the Sydney Review of Books, especially writing on criticism. Archival recordings  Alexis Wright, recorded by Ben Etherington for his students. With thanks to Alexis Wright.  Further reading Jeanine Leane’s essay, ‘Cultural Rigour’, from the Sydney Review of Books.  CreditsFully Lit is presented by Anna Funder. The podcast series is produced, edited and sound designed by Regina Botros. Sound engineering by Simon Branthwaite. Executive producers are James Jiang and Sarah Gilbert. Fully Lit is a co-production between UTS Impact Studios and the Sydney Review of Books, with support from the UTS Writing and Publishing Program. To cite this episode:  Impact Studios, Botros, R., Gilbert, S., & Jiang, J. (2025, May 15). Fully Lit: a podcast about Australian writing, Ep 4, Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15421502

What does it really take to read and review First Nations writing with integrity?Wiradjuri poet and critic Jeanine Leane joins Graham Akhurst for a powerful conversation that turns the spotlight on the critics themselves. With sharp insight and deep cultural knowledge, Jeanine unpacks the idea of “cultural rigour” — and why it’s essential for anyone engaging with Black writing in Australia.Whether you're a reader, reviewer, or writer, this episode challenges you to rethink what it means to read responsibly — and to listen deeply.Graham AkhurstGraham Akhurst is a Kokomini writer and the author of Borderland (UWAP). He is the Director of the Centre for the Advancement of Indigenous Knowledges at UTS and a Senior Lecturer in Indigenous Australian Studies and Creative Writing. As a Fulbright Scholar, Graham took his love for writing to New York City, where he studied for an MFA in Fiction at Hunter College. He is a board member of Varuna: The National Writers’ House, and the Sydney Review of Books. He lives with his wife on Gadigal Country in Sydney and enjoys walking Centennial Park with a good audiobook. Jeanine LeaneJeanine Leane is a Wiradjuri writer, teacher and academic from southwest New South Wales. After a longer teaching career, she completed a doctorate in Australian literature and Aboriginal representation and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Australian Centre for Indigenous History at the Australian National University. She is the recipient of two Discovery Indigenous Awards through the Australian Research Council, ‘The David Unaipon Award: Shaping the literary and history of Aboriginal Writing in Australia’ (2014-2017) and; 'Indigenous Storytelling and the Living Archive of Aboriginal Knowledge' (2020 -2024). Jeanine has published widely in the area of Aboriginal literature, writing otherness and creative non-fiction. Jeanine was the recipient of the University of Canberra Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Poetry Prize, and she has won the Oodgeroo Noonucal Prize for Poetry twice (2017 & 2019). Her second volume of poetry, Walk Back Over was released in 2018 by Cordite Press. In 2020 Jeanine edited Guwayu – for all times – a First Nations collection commissioned by Red Room Poetry and published by Magabala Books.Readings 'The Past' read by its author, Oodgeroo Noonuccal 'We Are Going' read by its author,  Oodgeroo Noonuccal 'History' read by its author, Jeanine Leane a...

What is the Australian novel today? Is it even a novel?  And what remains of the idea of a national literature once we eschew nationalistic clichés of Aussieness?  Writers Mykaela Saunders and Yumna Kassab join Lynda Ng to tackle these questions. With readings from Australian fiction that reveals a literature deeply engaged with the world and with writing beyond our shores.Dr Mykaela SaundersDr Mykaela Saunders is a Koori/Goori and Lebanese writer, critic and editor. Mykaela’s debut speculative fiction collection ALWAYS WILL BE (UQP 2024) won the David Unaipon Award, was longlisted for The Stella Prize and was highly commended for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Indigenous Writing. Mykaela is the editor of THIS ALL COME BACK NOW (UQP 2022), the world’s first anthology of blackfella spec fic, which won an Aurealis Award, and was highly commended for the Small Press Network Book of The Year and the Booktopia Favourite Australian Book Award. Mykaela has won other prizes for fiction, poetry, life writing and research, including the Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize and the Oodgeroo Noonuccal Indigenous Poetry Prize. Mykaela is a postdoctoral research fellow at Macquarie University, working on the project LAYING DOWN THE LORE: a survey of First Nations speculative, visionary and imaginative fiction. Yumna KassabYumna Kassab is a writer from Western Sydney. She is the author of The House of Youssef, Australiana, The Lovers and Politica.  Her latest book, The Theory of Everything, is available from Ultimo Press. Her books have been listed for a number of prizes including the Miles Franklin Literary Award and the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards. She is the inaugural Parramatta Laureate in Literature. Dr Lynda NgDr Lynda Ng is a Lecturer in World Literature (including Australian Literature) at The University of Melbourne. She is the editor of Indigenous Transnationalism: Alexis Wright’s Carpentaria (2018), and is the recipient of an ARC Discovery Grant for a collaborative project on J. M. Coetzee and the Margaret Church Memorial Prize for the best essay published in MFS: Modern Fiction Studies. Her research frequently considers Australian literature within a transnational paradigm, touching on the intersection between economics and literature as well as the environmental humanities. She is currently completing a project on Chinese diasporic writing. Readingsa...