feminist writers festival networking day · pdf filefeministwritersfestival.com!...

FEMINISTWRITERSFESTIVALNETWORKINGDAYPROGRAM–FRI26AUG2016

8.30am Registration

VictoriaRoom NetworkingSpace

9am Poetryandperformance

Our incrediblewomenwordsmithsring inthefirstFWF,withtheirpowerfulspokenwords.WithEmilieZoeyBaker,MaxineBenebaClarke,KoralyDimitradis,NayukaGorrie&LianLow

FbeforeG:feministgenrewriting

Crimefiction,sci-fi,fantasy,romance,horror.Thispanelexploresthetransformativepoweroffeministvoicesingenrefiction,aswellassomeofthetechnicalandethicalchallengesfacedbywriters.Wewillquestionwhethergenrefictionisitselffeminised,consideredlessworthyofseriousattention,anddiscussthegenre’sappealtowomenreaders.WithCSPacat&AngelaSavage

10am Writingpolitics,writingfeminism

Australianpoliticsisaknownboys’club,butfeministwritershavebeenchallengingthisculturefordecades.Threefeministwriterswithvariedexperiencesandperspectivesofwritingaboutpoliticsleadthispanel.Whatdoesafeministlensbringtopoliticalwritingandwhataresomeofthepoliticsoffeminismitself?WithEvelynAraluen,ClementineFord,JennaPrice&LouiseTaylorEvelynAraluenappearscourtesyOverland

Writingforkidswithafeministlens

Inthissession,writerswilldrawontheirownexperiencesandpracticetodiscussthechallengesofwritingfeminismforchildrenandyoungadults.Whatarethemosteffectivewaysofengagingwithyoungpeople,andwhyitisimportanttoinitiatediscussionsaboutgenderequalityateveryage?WithSimmoneHowell&AilsaWild

10.50amMorningTea

11.10am Feminismandpublishing

Feministwritersneedfeministpublishers.Butnotallfeministwritingisamanifesto,andnotallfeministswouldagreewithitanyway.Sohowdoeditorsnavigatethecomplexitiesofpublishingasafeministact?WithSusanHawthorne(SpinifexPress),ZoyaPatel(feminartsy)&MarisaPintado(HardieGrantEgmont)

Buildingfeministcommunity

Feministwritersaresubjectedtounusuallevelsofscrutinyandabuse.Thereissecurityincommunity.Howdoyougoaboutfindingorbuildingyourfeministfamily?Andhowcanweensureourcommunitiesareasdiverse,inclusiveandstrongastheycanbe?WithMaxineBenebaClarke,LefaSingletonNorton&KarenPickering

12.10pm Feminismthroughfiction

BarbaraKingsolveronceargued,‘Goodfictioncreatesempathy.Anoveltakesyousomewhereandasksyoutolookthroughtheeyesofanotherperson,toliveanotherlife.’Inthissessionweexploretheapproachofthreenovelistswhohaveusedthepoweroffictiontoenablereaderstoseethroughtheeyesofwomenandseetheworldalittledifferently.WithEmmaAshmere,MerlindaBobis&PenniRussonEmmaAshmereappearscourtesySpinifexPress

TearingEachOtherApart

Thispanelwillexplorethewayswecanwriteanddebateproductivelyasfeminists.Issomethinggoingwrongwithhowwedofeminismonline?Istheproblempartlythatwearealwaysseekingperfectioninourwork?Isthedesireto'getitright'stiflingdebateanddistractingusfromconstructivediscussion,oristhistensionhealthypartoffeministactivism?WithClemBastow,MonicaDux&AndieFox

1pm Lunch

2pm Thepoliticsofpersonalwriting

In1969,CarolHanischwroteThePersonalIsPolitical,arguingthatpersonalproblemsarepoliticalproblemsrequiringcollectivesolutions.Thisconceptresonatedthroughthefeministmovementandcontinuestoinform.Howevertherearecoststopersonalwritingandwomenareoftenpushedtorevealallregardlessoftheirdesiretotakealessconfessionalapproach.WithStephanieConvery,MariaTumarkin&FionaWright

Motheringfromthefringes

FeministsfromSimonedeBeauvoirandAdrienneRich,toAnneEnrightandRachelCusk,havecritiquedpatriarchalconceptsofmotherhood.Thispaneldiscussesthewaysfeministwritersarechallengingtheracist,heteronormative,andableistconceptsthatshapeourimagesofmotherhood.WithShakiraHussein,AnastasiaKanjere&MiriamSved

3pm Whatisfeministwriting?(andfindingyourfeministvoice)

Thispanelwillexplorethequestion‘whatisfeministwriting’?Doeswritingneedtoexplicitlyconcernfeministissuesinordertobefeminist?Andwhatabouttheaudience?Towhomshouldfeministwritingspeak?WithLianLow,EmilyMaguire&JeanTaylorThissessionissponsoredbyWomankind

Decommodifyingfeminsim

Whathappenswhenfeminismgetstoocosywithcapitalism?Inanerawhenwetendtofocusonindividualexpression,itcouldbearguedthatfeminismisseenmoreasanidentitythanasphilosophicalframework.Isthisallbad?Howdowefindapathbacktocollectiveactionandcare?Andisall'internetfeminism'preoccupiedwithpersonalityandlikability?WithPetraBueskens,AndieFox&VivSmythe

3.50pm AfternoonTea

4.10pm Queer,transgender&feministwriting

Howdoqueerandfeministwritingtraditionsoverlap,andhowcantheyworktosupporteachother?Howintersectionalisthefeministwritingcommunity,andhowtoincreasethevisibilityofqueerandtransfeministwriters?HereweconsiderthecurrentandfuturestateofqueerandtransfeministwritinginAustralia.WithAlisonEvans,AmyMiddleton&AlyenaMohummadally

Feminismthroughnarrativenon-fiction

HistoriansClareWrightandLizConorspeakabouthowtheyapproachhistoryasfeminists.WhatarethechallengesandjoysofquestioningpopularunderstandingsofAustralianhistory?Joinusforadiscussionofthepowerofnarrativenonfictiontoshineaspotlightonwomenotherwisebeignoredbythe‘greatman’approachtohistory.WithLizConor,SerpilSenelmis&ClareWrightThissessionissponsoredbyUWAPublishing

Programaccurateattimeofpublication,butnaturallysubjecttochange.

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Emma$Ashmere’s!short!stories!have!appeared!in!various!publications!including!The$Age,!Review$of$Australian$Fiction,!Griffith$Review,!Sleepers$Almanac$and!Etchings.!She!has!a!PhD!from!La!Trobe!University!on!the!use!of!marginalised!history!in!fiction!and!worked!as!a!researcher!on!a!book!

about!women!and!empire!and!on!two!Australian!gardening!history!books.!The$Floating$Garden$is!her!debut!novel.!emmaashmere.com!

Emma$appears$courtesy$Spinifex$Press!! $

Evelyn$Araluen$is!a!PhD!candidate!and!educator!working!with!decolonising!methodologies!and!Indigenous!literatures!at!the!University!of!Sydney.!

She!is!a!founding!member!of!Students!Support!Aboriginal!Communities,!a!grassroots!network!of!student!activists!in!NSW.!Earlier!this!year!she!was!

named!runner!up!in!the!Nakata!Brophy!Prize!for!Young!Indigenous!Writers.!Her!father's!people!are!Bundjalung!and!she!lives!

between!Gadigal!and!Dharug!land.!!!

Evelyn$appears$courtesy$Overland$ ©$John$Janson$Moore$

Emilie$Zoey$Baker!is!an!awardOwinning!poet!and!spoken!word!performer!who!has!toured!internationally.!She!was!the!winner!of!the!2010!Berlin!

International!Literature!Festival’s!poetry!slam!and!was!a!2014!Fellow!at!the!State!Library!of!Victoria.!Baker!has!been!the!poetOinOresidence!for!

Museums!Victoria,!coordinator!for!the!National!Australian!Poetry!Slam!and!worked!on!the!annual!spoken!word!program!at!Canada's!Banff!Centre.!

She!teaches!poetry!to!both!kids!and!adults.!!

emiliezoeybaker.com!|!@easybee! $

Clem$Bastow!is!a!cultural!critic,!screenwriter!and!awardOwinning!journalist.!Her!work!appears!regularly!in!The$Age,!Daily$Life,!Guardian$Australia,!The$Saturday$Paper!and!The$Big$Issue.!In!2015!she!received!a!Wheeler!Centre!Hot!Desk!Fellowship!to!work!on!a!comedy!screenplay!inspired!by!

Aristophanes'!Lysistrata.!In!2016!Bastow!is!undertaking!a!Masters!in!Screenwriting!at!VCA.!Her!feature!screenwriting!debut,!Farewell$Tour,!is!currently!in!development.!!

clembastow.com!!

Maxine$Beneba$Clarke!is!an!Australian!author!and!slam!poet!of!AfroOCaribbean!descent.!Her!short!fiction!collection!Foreign$Soil!won!the!2015!ABIA!Award!for!Best!Literary!Fiction!and!the!2015!Indie!Award!for!Best!Debut!Fiction,!and!was!shortlisted!for!the!Stella!Prize.!Her!memoir,!The$Hate$Race,!her!poetry!collection!Carrying$the$World,!and!her!first!children’s!book,!The$Patchwork$Bike,!will!be!published!in!late!2016.!!

slamup.blogspot.com!|!@slamup!

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Dr$Merlinda$Bobis$is!a!trilingual!writer!(English,!Filipino,!Bikol),!performer,!scholar!and!honorary!senior!lecturer!at!the!Australian!National!University.!

She!has!published!novels,!poetry!books,!a!collection!of!short!stories!and!various!literary!and!critical!texts.!She!has!performed!her!dramatic!works!in!

Australia!and!overseas.!Her!latest!novel,!Locust$Girl:$A$Lovesong,!won!the!2016!Christina!Stead!Prize!for!Fiction.!Bobis!has!taught!Creative!Writing!for!

21!years!at!the!University!of!Wollongong.!!

merlindabobis.com.au!!$

Dr$Petra$Bueskens$is!an!honorary!fellow!in!the!School!of!Social!and!Political!Sciences!at!the!University!of!Melbourne.!She!is!a!psychotherapist!in!

private!practice!and!writes!about!motherhood,!feminism,!gender!relations,!social!and!political!theory!and!psychotherapy.!

Bueskens!edited!Mothering$and$Psychoanalysis:$Clinical,$Sociological$and$Feminist$Perspectives!and!her!next!book!is!Modern$Motherhood$and$Women’s$Dual$Identities:$Rewriting$the$Sexual$Contract.!

petrabueskens.com!|!@PetraBueskens!

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Liz$Conor$is!an!ARC!future!fellow!at!La!Trobe!University.!She!is!the!author!of!Skin$Deep:$Settler$Impressions$of$Aboriginal$Women!and!The$Spectacular$Modern$Woman:$Feminine$Visibility$in$the$1920s.!She!is!editor!of!Aboriginal$History!and!a!columnist!at!New$Matilda.!Conor!is!a!community!activist!

who!has!campaigned!about!media!portrayal!of!rape,!maternity!leave,!native!title!and!guerrilla!theatre!campaigns!Climate$Guardian$Angels!and!the!John$Howard$Ladies’$Auxiliary$Fanclub.!!!!

@LizConor! $

Stephanie$Convery$is!a!MelbourneObased!writer!and!the!deputy!editor!of!Overland.!Her!work!has!appeared!in!The$Guardian,$Overland,$Meanjin,$ABC’s$The$Drum,$Kill$Your$Darlings,!The$Lifted$Brow,$The$Big$Issue$and!other!local!and!international!publications.!!

gingerandhoney.com!|!@gingerandhoney!!

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Koraly$Dimitriadis!is!the!author!of!Love$and$Fuck$Poems!which!has!been!translated!and!published!in!Greece!and!is!soon!to!be!released!in!the!UK.!She!is!an!opinion!writer!and!has!contributed!to!publications!such!as!Daily$Life,!The$Age,!SMH,!Rendezview!and!The$Saturday$Paper.!In!2016!her!theatre!show!Koraly:$I$say$the$wrong$things$all$the$time!will!premiere!at!La!Mama!Theatre.!

koralydimitriadis.com!|!@koralyd! $

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Monica$Dux!is!a!columnist!with!The$Age,!and!the!author!of!Things$I$Didn’t$Expect$(when$I$was$expecting),!coOauthor!of!The$Great$Feminist$Denial,!and!editor!of!the!anthology!Mothermorphosis.!She!can!be!heard!regularly!on!ABC!radio,!and!has!published!widely,!especially!on!women’s!issues.!Monica!

is!a!founding!board!member!of!the!Stella!Prize.!!

monicadux.com.au!|!@monicadux!

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Alison$Evans!is!the!author!of!We$Go$Forward!and!the!forthcoming!Ida;$coOeditor!of!Concrete$Queers,!zineOmaker!and!lover!of!bad!movies.!Their!work!

has!been!published!in!various!Australian!and!international!magazines,!literary!journals!and!zines.!!

alisonwritesthings.com!|!@_budgie!!

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Clementine$Ford$is!a!MelbourneObased!feminist!who!writes!for!Fairfax's!Daily$Life.!She!appears!regularly!on!ABC!774!and!Channel!Ten's!The$Project,!and!presents!a!podcast!called!The$Misandry$Hour.!Clementine's!first!nonOfiction!book,!Fight$Like$A$Girl,!will!be!released!in!late!2016.!!!

clementineford.com.au!|!@clementine_ford!

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Andie$Fox!is!a!writer!and!economist.!She!has!written!a!weekly!column!for!Daily$Life!and!contributed!to!The$Guardian,!The$Huffington$Post,!the!Wheeler!Centre,!SBS!Comment,!Feministe!and!Meanjin,!and!is!a!frequent!guest!on!ABC!Radio's!Parenting!Panel.!Fox!is!a!contributing!author!to!several!books,!including!The$Good$Mother$Myth!and!Mothers$at$the$Margins.!!

bluemilk.wordpress.com!|!@bluemilk!

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Nayuka$Gorrie!is!a!Gunai/Kurnai,!Gunditjmara,!Wiradjuri!and!Yorta!Yorta!woman!who!works!in!the!youth!notOforOprofit!sector!as!a!facilitator,!

program!manager!and!consultant.!She!is!an!activist!and!writer!passionate!about!climate!justice,!feminism!and!black!selfOdetermination.!!

@NayukaGorrie!

©!Kiernan$Ironfield$

Susan$Hawthorne!is!a!poet,!novelist,!political!commentator!and!publisher!who!has!worked!in!publishing!for!more!than!30!years.!She!coOfounded!

Spinifex$Press!with!Renate!Klein!and!is!English!language!coordinator!of!the!International!Alliance!of!Independent!Publishers.!Her!most!recent!book!

is!Bibliodiversity:$A$Manifesto$For$Independent$Publishing.!Hawthorne!has!written!numerous!articles!on!feminist!publishing!and!made!submissions!to!

government!about!free!trade,!copyright!and!parallel!importation!restrictions.!!!

susanspoliticalblog.blogspot.com.au!|!@susanha!! $

Simmone$Howell!writes!realistic!teen!fiction!about!outsiders!and!obsessives.!Her!novels!Notes$from$the$Teenage$Underground,!Everything$Beautiful!and!Girl$Defective!have!won!awards!and!been!published!internationally.!She!lives!in!Melbourne!and!teaches!creative!writing!and!mapping!workshops!

in!schools!and!community!groups.!She!is!a!Stella!School!Ambassador.!

simmonehowell.com!|!@Postteen!

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Shakira$Hussein!is!a!research!fellow!at!the!University!of!Melbourne’s!Asia!Institute.!She!is!also!a!regular!commentator!on!issues!of!gender,!Islam!and!

multiculturalism!in!Australia.!Her!essay!about!her!experiences!of!postO9/11!Pakistan!and!her!multiple!sclerosis,!Non^Elevenths,!was!selected!for!inclusion!in!The$Best$Australian$Essays$2011.!Her!book,!From$Victims$to$Suspects:$Muslim$women$since$9/11,!was!published!in!February!2016.!!

@shakirahussein!

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Anastasia$Kanjere$is!a!writer,!mother,!activist,!and!academic!who!lives!on!Wurundjeri!land!in!Melbourne!with!her!partner!and!daughter.!She!is!

currently!writing!her!PhD!thesis!at!La!Trobe!University!on!the!intersecting!discourses!of!race!and!innocence.!She!is!also!working!on!a!critical!memoir!

about!motherhood!and!depression.!Her!various!writings!on!race,!gender,!and!motherhood!can!be!found!at!!

Going$Down$Swinging,!The$Pin,!Writing$from$Below!and!Crossborder$Operational$Matters.!!

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Lian$Low!is!a!writer!and!spoken!word!artist.!From!2010O2014!Lian!edited!Peril,!Australia’s!leading!online!platform!for!Asian!Australian!writing,!arts!

and!culture.!From!2013O2015!she!travelled!to!Singapore!and!Malaysia!for!research!and!created!siteOspecific!spoken!word!performances!Melaka!Art!

and!Performance!Festival.!She's!currently!working!on!a!travel!memoir!about!this!journey.!!

lianlow.weebly.com!|!@Lian__Low!!

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Emily$Maguire!has!twice!been!named!one!of!the!Sydney$Morning$Herald’s!young!novelists!of!the!year.!Her!articles!and!essays!on!sex,!culture!and!literature!have!been!published!widely,!including!in!The$Age,!The$Australian!and!The$Monthly.!She!is!the!author!of!five!novels!and!two!nonOfiction!books,!her!latest!being!the!novel!An$Isolated$Incident.!!

emilymaguire.com.au!|!@EmMaguire!!

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Amy$Middleton!is!a!Melbourne!based!journalist,!writer!and!founding!editor!of!Archer$Magazine,!an!awardOwinning!publication!about!sex,!gender!and!identity.!She!has!written!and!edited!for!many!publications!including!The$Bulletin,!Rolling$Stone,!The$Guardian,!The$Lifted$Brow,!The$Big$Issue!and!others.!She!produces!a!women's!current!affairs!radio!show!on!3CR,!and!was!named!among!Gay$News$Network's!Top!25!people!to!watch!in!2015!and!Melbourne$Writers$Festival's!30!under!30!in!the!same!year.!!

archermagazine.com.au!|!@Moodleton!

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Alyena$Mohummadally!is!a!PakistaniOAustralian!queer!Muslim!woman!who!spent!many!years!as!a!community!legal!centre!lawyer!before!retraining!

as!a!primary!school!teacher.!She!founded!the!Queer!Muslims!in!Australia!Yahoo!!group!and!had!a!long!tenure!on!the!Australian!GLBTIQ!Multicultural!

Council!Inc.!She!is!currently!writing!a!cookbook!on!modern!Australian!cuisine!with!a!Pakistani!twist.!

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Lefa$Singleton$Norton$is!a!freelance!writer,!editor!and!producer!from!Melbourne.!Lefa!has!been!an!editor!of!titles!including!Rabelais,!Green,!Green$Agenda!and!Limited$News;!contributing!author!to!two!books,!The$Emerging$Writer!and!The$Noobz;!and!has!been!published!in!SBS,!Overland,!The$Big$Issue!and!The$Age!amongst!many!others.!She!was!the!creative!producer!at!Express$Media!for!three!years.!In!2015!she!founded!Women!in!Literary!

Arts!Australia.!

lefa.com.au!|!@LefaSN$$

CS$Pacat!is!the!author!of!the!bestOselling!Captive$Prince!trilogy.!Initially!published!as!an!originalOfiction!web!serial,!Captive$Prince!attracted!viral!attention!before!being!acquired!by!Penguin.!The!Captive$Prince!trilogy!went!on!to!become!a!USA$Today!bestseller!and!has!been!published!in!multiple!

territories!to!commercial!and!critical!acclaim.!

cspacat.com!|!@cspacat$ $

Zoya$Patel!founded!online!feminist!journal!Feminartsy!in!2014,!following!four!years!as!editor!in!chief!of!Lip.!She!was!highly!commended!in!the!Scribe!

Publishing!NonOFiction!Prize!in!2015,!was!the!2014!recipient!of!the!Anne!Edgeworth!Young!Writers’!Fellowship,!and!was!named!the!2015!ACT!Young!

Woman!of!the!Year.!She!is!also!the!inaugural!ACT!Stella!Prize!Schools!Ambassador.!!!!!

feminartsy.com!|!@zoyajpatel!! $

Karen$Pickering!is!a!Melbourne!based!writer!and!the!creator!and!host!of!Cherchez$la$Femme,!an!unapologetically!feminist!monthly!talk!show!of!

popular!culture!and!current!affairs.!She!cofounded!the!Girls$On$Film$Festival!and!was!its!first!director!and!is$a!founding!organiser!of!SlutWalk!

Melbourne.!She!is!the!editor!of!Doing$It:$A$Sex^Positive$Anthology!and!is!currently!writing!a!book!on!menstruation!and!menopause!in!collaboration!

with!the!Victorian!Women’s!Trust.!

cherchezlafemme.com.au!|!@thatpickering!!$©$Laura$Du$Vé$

Marisa$Pintado$is!the!publisher!for!children’s!and!young!adult!fiction!at!Hardie!Grant!Egmont.!She!works!with!a!variety!of!emerging,!commercially!

successful!and!awardOwinning!writers,!including!Sally!Rippin,!Peter!Helliar,!Em!Bailey,!Melissa!Keil!and!Erin!Gough.!In!2011!Marisa!started!the!

Ampersand!Prize!for!debut!novelists,!which!has!rapidly!gained!recognition!as!Australia’s!leading!award!for!unpublished!writers.!She!recently!spent!a!

year!in!London!with!Egmont!UK’s!children’s!fiction!team.!!

hardiegrant.com.au/Egmont!|!@pintadoguy! $

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Jenna$Price!is!a!Fairfax!columnist,!academic!at!UTS,!feminist,!family!member,!PhD!candidate,!and!coOfounder!of!Destroy$the$Joint.!

@JennaPrice!

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Penni$Russon!was!born!in!Tasmania!but!has!spent!most!of!her!adult!life!in!Melbourne,!reading,!writing,!teaching!and!editing!fiction,!mostly!for!

young!adults.!She's!currently!doing!a!PhD!in!creative!writing!and!interdisciplinary!collaboration,!working!with!researchers!from!the!arts!and!the!

sciences!to!solve!problems!of!engagement!in!youth!mental!health.!

eglantinescake.blogspot.com.au! !|!@eglantinescake $

Angela$Savage!is!an!awardOwinning!Melbourne!writer!who!has!lived!and!travelled!extensively!in!Asia.!Her!first!novel,!Behind$the$Night$Bazaar,!won!the!2004!Victorian!Premier's!Literary!Award!for!an!unpublished!manuscript.!All!three!of!her!Jayne$Keeney$PI!novels!have!been!shortlisted!for!Ned!Kelly!Awards!and!she!won!the!2011!Scarlett!Stiletto!Award!for!short!crime!fiction.!Savage!is!currently!studying!for!her!PhD!in!Creative!Writing!at!

Monash!University.!!!

angelasavage.wordpress.com!|!@angsavage!! $

Serpil$Senelmis$is!an!Australian!broadcaster!with!Turkish!heritage.!The!West!Australian!Academy!of!Performing!Arts!graduate!has!worked!behind!the!

microphone,!in!front!of!the!camera,!and!behind!the!scenes!of!radio!and!television!programs!across!Australia.!Most!recently,!she’s!been!presenting!

The!Sunday!Sesh,!on!ABC!Local!Radio,!airing!nationally.!She’s!also!Senior!Producer!of!Radio!National’s!Sunday!Extra!program.!

soundcloud.com/serpilOsenelmis!|!@soipl!

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Viv$Smythe$founded!feminist!blogs!Hoyden$About$Town!and!Finally,$A$Feminism$101$Blog!under!the!pseudonym!'tigtog'!in!2005.!She!contributed!to!

blogs!the!Feministe,!Geek!Feminism!and!Larvatus!Prodeo!back!when!blogging!was!still!a!vibrant!community.!Smythe!writes,!sings,!codes!and!enjoys!

watching!live!comedy.!!

viv.id.au!|!@vivsmythe!!!

$©$Angharad$Nettle^Smythe$

Veronica$Sullivan!is!Prize!Manager!of!the!Stella!Prize!and!Online!Editor!for!Kill$Your$Darlings$journal.!In!2015!she!was!one!of!Melbourne!Writers!

Festival’s!30!Writers!Under!30.!She!was!a!Creative!Producer!with!the!2014!Emerging!Writers’!Festival,!and!has!written!for!publications!including!

Overland,$Right$Now,$The$Lifted$Brow,$Archer$Magazine$and$Feminartsy.!

@veronicaahhh!

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Miriam$Sved’s!debut!novel,!Game$Day,!was!published!to!critical!acclaim!in!2014.!She!has!coOedited!and!contributed!to!the!anthologies!Mothers$and$Others:$Australian$writers$on$why$all$women$are$not$mothers$and$why$all$mothers$are$not$the$same!and!Just$Between$Us:$Australian$writers$tell$the$truth$about$female$friendship.!She!is!currently!working!on!her!next!novel.!

miriamsved.com.au!

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Jean$Taylor!is!a!radical!lesbian!feminist!writer!and!activist!who!has!been!writing!and!publishing!in!Melbourne!for!more!than!forty!years.!Her!most!

recent!book,!Lesbians$Ignite!$In$Victoria$in$the$1990s,!is!the!third!in!her!Archives!Trilogy!which!also!includes!Brazen$Hussies:$A$Herstory$of$Radical$Activism$in$the$Women's$Liberation$Movement$in$Victoria,$1970^1979!and!Stroppy$Dykes:$Radical$Lesbian$Feminist$Activism$in$Victoria$During$the$1980s.!

dykebooks.com!

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feministwritersfestival.com!

Louise$Taylor$is!a!proud!Kamilaroi!woman,!a!lawyer!and!the!Deputy!Chief!Executive!Officer!of!Legal!Aid!ACT.!Louise!is!passionate!about!access!to!

justice!for,!and!the!empowerment!of,!Aboriginal!women.!A!former!specialist!family!violence!prosecutor,!long!time!Convenor!of!the!ACT!Women’s!

Legal!Centre!and!former!Chair!of!the!ACT!Ministerial!Advisory!Council!on!Women,!Louise!is!currently!a!member!of!the!Law!Council!of!Australia’s!

Indigenous!Legal!Issues!Committee!and!an!associate!of!UNSW’s!Indigenous!Law!Centre.!!

@MsLou27 $

Maria$Tumarkin$writes!books!(three!to!date,!fourth!on!the!way),!reviews,!essays!and!pieces!for!performance!and!radio.!She!teaches!and!translates,!

and!collaborates!with!visual!artists,!psychologists!and!pubic!historians.!Her!work!has!been!published,!performed,!carved!into!dockside!tiles!and!set!

to!music.!Maria!currently!teaches!creative!writing!at!the!University!of!Melbourne.!!

mariatumarkin.com! $

Ailsa$Wild!is!a!writer,!performer!and!community!artist.!She!is!the!author!of!the!beloved!Squishy$Taylor!series!about!the!adventures!of!daredevil,!problemOsolving!Squishy!and!her!bonus!sisters.!Ailsa!loves!collaboration!and!makes!stories!with!scientists,!musicians,!kids!and!circus!performers.!Her!

first!publications!were!science!adventures!starring!microbes,!molecules!and!mucus,!where!the!bacteria!are!the!heroes.!Her!work!has!appeared!in!

Meanjin,!The$Monthly$and!on!stages!across!Australia.!!

ailsawild.com!|!@ailsawild!$

Clare$Wright!has!worked!as!a!political!speechwriter,!historical!consultant!and!radio!and!television!broadcaster.!Her!essays!have!been!published!widely!and!her!first!book,!Beyond$the$Ladies$Lounge:$Australia’s$Female$Publicans,!garnered!critical!and!popular!acclaim.!Her!second!book,!The$Forgotten$Rebels$of$Eureka!won!the!2014!Stella!Prize!for!Women’s!Writing!and!has!recently!been!published!in!a!young!adult!edition,!We$are$the$Rebels.!She!is!currently!an!associate!professor!in!history!at!La!Trobe!University.!

clarewright.com.au!|!@clareawright!!$

Fiona$Wright!is!a!writer,!editor!and!critic!from!Sydney.!Her!poetry!collection,!Knuckled,!won!the!2012!Dame!Mary!Gilmore!Award!and!her!book!

of!essays,!Small$Acts$of$Disappearance,!was!shortlisted!for!the!2016!Stella!Prize,!the!NSW!Premier’s!Douglas!Stewart!Award!for!nonOfiction!and!the!

Kibble!Prize.!She!has!recently!completed!a!PhD!at!Western!Sydney!University’s!Writing!&!Society!Research!Centre.!!

@WritesFiona!

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