Tony holds the Boisbouvier Chair in Australian Literature at Melbourne University. He is the author of four novels, five short fiction collections, and two poetry books. He most recent book is the novel, Women and Children (UQP). He is a founding member of the anti-colonial collective, Melbourne School of Discontent.
Tony will be appearing twice at Literary Allsorts, once hosting Nam Le, the other in conversation with Daniel Browning.
Nam’s poetry has been published in The Monthly, The Paris Review, Poetry, The American Poetry Review, Bomb, Conjunctions, Boston Review, Lana Turner and Tin House. His short story collection The Boat received numerous major international awards, including the Australian Prime Minister’s Literary Award, the Melbourne Prize for Literature, the PEN/Malamud Award, the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award. The Boat has been republished as a modern classic and is widely translated, anthologised and taught. Nam Le lives in Melbourne.
Nam will be appearing at Literary Allsorts in conversation with Tony Birch.
Jessie is the author of four books. Her first novel, Darkness on the Edge of Town, was shortlisted for the 2013 ALS Gold Medal and longlisted for the Dobbie Literary Award. Her second novel, Deeper Water, was released in 2014 to critical acclaim. Staying: A Memoir was longlisted for the 2019 Colin Roderick Award and shortlisted for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Non-Fiction. Her new memoir, Desire, A Reckoning, is out now.
Jessie will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the Life Story: Memoir Panel
Hayley writes young adult novels full of heart and hope, often inspired by her work as a lawyer. She lives in the seaside town of Port Macquarie with her five wild daughters where she stays up too late, too often, writing into the witching hours of the night. Her novels have been shortlisted for the Children’s Book Council Awards, The Vogel Literary Prize for young writers, and in 2023, her novel The Other Side of Tomorrow received an Honour Award from the Children’s Book Council of Australia.
Hayley is our Writer in Residence 2025 Mentor, and will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of Meet the Resident Writer Panel.
Daniel is the ABC’s Editor Indigenous Radio overseeing the longstanding flagship programs Awaye! and Speaking Out as well the language revival podcast Word Up. A visual arts graduate, Daniel also presents The Art Show podcast and is widely published as a freelance writer on the arts and culture. His first book, Close to the Subject: Selected Works won the Indigenous Writing Prize at the 2024 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards.
Daniel will be appearing at Literary Allsorts in conversation with Tony Birch.
Melaina is the author of 68 books, published nationally and internationally, a trained teacher, manuscript appraisal consultant, and an oral storyteller who performs in Australia and overseas. As well as facilitating programs for Writing NSW, TasWriters, Northern Territory Writers Centre, Queensland Writers Centre, Outback Writers, Kyogle Readers and Writers Inc, he is also an ongoing mentor for the Byron Writers Festival Storyboard program.
Melaina will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of our KRAW School’s Program Showcase.
Sharlene was born on Bundjalung Country into the Olive mob. Her debut novel The Great Undoing, released with Ultimo Press, won the QLD Literary Awards Fiction Book of the Year 2024. She is currently studying for her Masters in Creative Writing and developing her next novel. Sharlene lives in Meanjin/Brisbane with her family and beloved doggo—Morty.
Sharlene will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the Local Writer: First Book Panel
Angela is a well-known Australian broadcaster and media veteran. She has presented numerous programs across the ABC broadcasting channels.
Angela will be appearing at Literary Allsorts, hosting the Local Writer: First Book Panel
Jane has worked extensively in the Northern Rivers as an independent producer, Festival Producer for Boomerang Festival, and Programming Manager for NORPA. From 2014 to 2018, she was General Manager for BlakDance, prior to that as Ex. Producer for the Australian Performing Arts Market (APAM) in Brisbane. She has been Executive Director of Arts Northern Rivers since 2021. Jane will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the presentation
Jane will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the presentation Who We Are: A profile of the Northern Rivers creative sector
Tandi is a researcher specialising in culture, creativity and community. She is Director of Patternmakers, a social enterprise using research for good. Now based on Bundjalung Country, Tandi worked previously at Creative Australia and Nesta (UK). Her work has been featured in ABC News, SMH, The Guardian and the Echo.
David is a memoir writer and author of Fantastic Street (Picador, 2003), State of Origin (Puncher & Wattmann, 2019), and Host City (Puncher & Wattmann, 2024). Shorter pieces have appeared in Best Australian Stories, The Lifted Brow, and The Monthly. Host City has been nominated for a Victorian Premier’s Literary Award, 2025.
David is appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the Life Story: Memoir Panel
Vincent regularly performs at and assists in the running of poetry events around the Northern Rivers and Southern Queensland, Australia. He has won People’s Choice Award at the Nimbin Performance Poetry World Cup [[2016, 2019] and been a finalist 2022, 2023, 2024, Vincent has been a NSW Finalist in the Australian Poetry Slam many times.
The second edition of his first book ‘SIMPLE POEMS FOR COMPLEX PEOPLE-VOLUME ONE’ has just been released on Amazon.
Annika is a freelance writer living in the rainforests on Bundjalung Country. Born in Brisbane, she studied a Bachelor of Business Communications which took her around the world as a copywriter and Creative Director. Her debut novel Downstream was published in 2024. Her short stories have also won awards and appeared in anthologies.
Annika will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the Local Writer: First Book Panel
Jarrah was raised on Bundjalung country in the Northern Rivers region of NSW. His debut novel Hey Brother, about the challenges faced by a teenage boy when his brother returns from war in Afghanistan, was selected for a Byron Writers Festival Residential Mentorship, a Varuna fellowship and shortlisted for the Australian/Vogel Literary Award. Jarrah is a board member for WritingNSW and a current Creative Australia grant recipient.
Jarrah is convening the KRAW Writer in Residence Program and will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the Meet the Resident Writer Panel.
Maggie is a mother of three young adults children, and has been in the Northern Rivers for over 15 years. Her debut memoir SPLIT is an international winner of the 2024 Goodie Awards for psychology and self-help. Maggie regularly shares her story, dispelling myths around complex trauma and reducing stigmas around mental health.
Maggie will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the Local Writer: First Book Panel
Hani is a Somalian poet living in Sydney. Hani is an honorary member of PEN International, a lead member of Writing Through Fences, and an Ambassador for the Refugee Advice and Casework Service (RACS). Her work has appeared in ABC, SMH, Shark Island Productions and has received numerous awards for her community work and creative art.
Hani will be appearing at Literary Allsorts as part of the Life Story: Memoir Panel
