Recommended Reading
Making Art from the Outside – On LitHub, Ellena Savage ruminates on making money from art, when making art leaves one on the outside.
The Importance of Telling Women’s Stories – In this interview for the Victorian Women’s Trust, Lauren Meath talks with award-winning producer Sue Maslin (The Dressmaker) about her insider’s view of gender bias in film.
GriffithReview‘s The Novella Project VI – Be sure to check out the winning entries in Earthly Delights, GriffithReview‘s fourth compilation of new Australian fiction. Suzanne McCourt ruminates on sexual taboos, Melanie Cheng discusses inspiration and desire in life and art, and there’s also the late Cory Taylor‘s final work of fiction, a wonderful conclusion to her enduring legacy.
Stella Sparks – For reading recommendations, we can’t go past this year’s Stella Prize Stella Sparks campaign, celebrating nonfiction by Australian women. Claudia Karvan‘s top pick is Chloe Hooper‘s The Tall Man, while Jamila Rizvi loves Maxine Beneba Clarke‘s The Hate Race. Readers are encouraged to share their own favourites using the #StellaSpark hashtag.
Creativity is Not a Sedentary Act – Over the summer, we enjoyed this fabulous interview with the incomparable Joyce Carol Oates,on the intersections of writing and social media.
10 Overlooked Books by Women – Just in case you needed another great list to get through, here are some highly recommended titles released by women in 2016 that you may have missed!
Recommended Listening
The joy of podcasts… While we wait for Crabb and Sales and Fran and PK to return from holidays, may we draw your attention to newcomers Sisteria, in conversation with Hannah Kent, as well as one of our fave podcasts on women and creativity, Unladylike, which recently featured Anita Heiss and Jessica Walton discussing labels, identity and writing.
Upcoming Events
She Leads In-Conversation Series – YWCA Canberra’s first She Leads event for 2017, designed to amplify women’s voices to address gender inequality, features Yassmin Abdel-Magied. Wednesday 22 February, Canberra.
Rack Off! 2017 – YWCA Victoria’s annual fundraiser and IWD celebration Rack Off! is just around the corner. Saturday 4 March, Melbourne.
Opportunities
Call for Pitches: Women in Sport – The Lifted Brow are seeking pitches for an upcoming online commentary series on women’s experience and representation in sports and sporting culture. Pitches close 31 January.
The Kill Your Darlings Unpublished Manuscript Award – If you have a fiction or nonfiction manuscript banging about the bowels of your laptop, now is the time to crack it out for a chance at $5000 and a much-coveted mentorship with Rebecca Starford or Hannah Kent. Entries close 31 March.
Digital Marketing Coordinator @ MWF – The Melbourne Writers Festival are looking for a creative and data-driven digital marketer to work on this year’s festival.
The Calibre Essay Prize – The Australian Book Review presents the eleventh Calibre Essay Prize, open to anyone in the world writing in English. Entries close 15 March.
Short on new year’s resolutions? How about going the Australian Women’s Reading Challenge? Choose your reading level and blog, tweet or Instagram your reviews, and help promote Australian women writers.
New Books We’re Excited About
January
The Trapeze Act – Poet Libby Angel‘s first novel explores the shadows of a family’s past in 1960s suburban Adelaide; this is prose not to be missed.
Ida – FWF panellist Alison Evans‘ debut YA book Ida explores the struggles of choice and parallel universes.
February
An Uncertain Grace – Set in the not-too-distant future, this thought-provoking novel from Krissy Kneen probes the darker side of ourselves.
A Footy Girl’s Guide to the Stars of 2017 – Thanks to Nicole Hayes and Alicia Sometimes, your footy-loving kids can get the lowdown on the stars of the AFL Women’s competition, including stories, facts and interviews.
The Case Against Fragrance – In her latest book, acclaimed novelist Kate Grenville turns her formidable talent to nonfiction, investigating the dangers of fragrance chemicals and their pervasive presence in our everyday lives.
Feminist Writers Festival 