Sydney Writers' Festival

On Friday 15 March 2019, an Australian-born white supremacist entered two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand and massacred 51 Muslims peacefully conducting their sacred Friday prayers. One year after the Christchurch attacks, Muslim writers in Australia and around the world have confronted such heinous crimes with the most powerful tool at their disposal: the pen. In this urgent public dialogue, some of our greatest writers discuss the role that literature plays in defeating the rise of white supremacy, Islamophobia and xenophobia within modern western societies. Journalist and editor of the 7am podcast Osman Faruqi speaks with New Zealand Greens MP and author of Know Your Place Golriz Ghahraman, journalist and author of the critically acclaimed book White Tears/Brown Scars Ruby Hamad, award-winning author of The Tribe and The Lebs Michael Mohammed Ahmad, and writer and Sweatshop Women contributor Naima Ibrahim.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jo Lennan and Laura Jean McKay have written two brilliant, wholly original books that examine humanity and animality as a wave of extinctions gathers force. They are joined by the Wheeler Centre’s Veronica Sullivan to discuss how their work invites us to rethink our relationship with animals and why our fate is tied to the creatures we share the planet with. The stories in Jo’s In the Time of Foxes are united by the clever, dangerous spirit of the fox. Laura’s The Animals in That Country conjures an Australia in which the victims of a pandemic begin to understand the language of animals. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Twice shortlisted for the Booker Prize, David Mitchell is beloved by millions of readers around the world for his spectacular, visionary books including Cloud Atlas, The Bone Clocks and number9dream. In conversation with Michael Williams, David discusses his enthralling new novel, Utopia Avenue, which celebrates the power of music to connect across divides, define an era and thrill the soul. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2018, Layla F. Saad ran a 28-day Instagram challenge under the hashtag #MeAndWhiteSupremacy, designed to encourage those with white privilege to unflinchingly examine their complicity in upholding an oppressive power system. The challenge catalysed an awakening for thousands and led to the publication of Layla’s Me and White Supremacy, “an indispensable resource for white people who want to challenge white supremacy but don’t know where to begin” (Robin DiAngelo, White Fragility). Layla provides insight into her work in conversation with Rachael Hocking. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Women and Leadership, co-authored by Julia Gillard and acclaimed development economist Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, combines research with interviews with some of the world’s extraordinary women leaders. It examines the influence of gender on women’s access to positions of leadership, the trajectory of their leadership and the circumstances in which it can come to an end. Julia talks to Jacqueline Maley about the radical shift required to close the gender gap, and her inspirational new book that she hopes will provide an action agenda for change.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The dark arts of online deception run the gamut from love rats and confidence tricksters to dedicated political disinformation campaigns. Hear memoirist Stephanie Wood (Fake) and Soviet-born British journalist Peter Pomerantsev (This is Not Propaganda) in conversation with Rebecca Giggs. They consider the scale of these manipulations, how they impact personal lives, and how identity – and intimacy – are changing in the information age. Together, they examine our faith in facts and the difference between self-promotion and outright deception. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Clive James died in November 2019, leaving behind an unrivalled legacy of books, poetry, prose, essays and memoirs, as well as golden moments of television broadcasts and cultural criticism that showcased his gift for the knockout aphorism. Join a panel of Clive’s friends and fellow writers as they read a selection of work from the ‘Kid from Kogarah’, share stories and celebrate his life. Featuring Paul Muldoon, Peter Goldsworthy, Kathy Lette, Richard Glover, and host Trent Dalton.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Golriz Ghahraman’s memoir Know Your Place tells her powerful story of becoming the first refugee elected to New Zealand’s parliament. Since her election, the former UN lawyer and Iranian-Kiwi asylum seeker has received a barrage of hate that intensified after the Christchurch terrorist attack, impacting her life, employment and wellbeing. In conversation with Roanna Gonsalves, Golriz shares her story and reflects on how the freedom of speech debate is silencing those without power while amplifying the voices of those who already have it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Based on almost a decade of immersive research, Lisa Taddeo’s Three Women is a bestselling work of narrative non-fiction that traces the private lives of three ordinary American women. Its many fans include Elizabeth Gilbert, who called it “a non-fiction literary masterpiece at the same level as In Cold Blood – and just as suspenseful, bone-chilling and harrowing”. In conversation with Sophie Black, Lisa offers insights into her groundbreaking portrait of sex and love, which illuminates unmet needs, unspoken thoughts and unrelenting obsessions. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Delicately balancing Hawaiian myth and the broken American dream, Kawai Strong Washburn’s Sharks in the Time of Saviours has been hailed by novelist Marlon James as a “ferocious debut” in which “old myths clash with new realities, love is in a ride or die with grief [and] faith rubs hard against magic”. Kawai joins Winnie Dunn to discuss his lush, virtuosic portrait of Hawaiian identity, mythology and diaspora that examines what it means to be both of a place and a stranger in it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Writer Tony Birch talks with singer, songwriter and national treasure Paul Kelly about his new collection, Love is Strong as Death: Poems chosen by Paul Kelly. Featuring more than 300 works from a range of ancient and modern authors, the deeply moving anthology speaks to the themes that have proven so powerful in Paul’s own music: love, death and everything in between. Hear Paul discuss this lovingly curated tome and reflect on how poetry has influenced his life and music. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since writing Puberty Blues as a teenager, Kathy Lette has seen her definitive story of Australian teenagers navigating the chaos of life adapted into a cult movie and a major television series. Kathy has gone on to pen 11 global bestsellers, including Mad Cows and The Boy Who Fell To Earth, a story inspired by her son Julius, who lives with autism. Ever entertaining, Kathy discusses her storied life, her pioneering of popular feminist fiction and her newest novel, HRT: Husband Replacement Therapy, with ABC Radio Sydney’s Wendy Harmer. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a session dedicated to the craft of genre writing, two experts join ABC Radio’s Rhianna Patrick to uncover what it really takes to deliver a tightly plotted narrative. Sarah Epstein (Deep Water) and Astrid Scholte (The Vanishing Deep) have made an art form out of testing their characters’ limits and finding new ways to torment both them and their readers. Find out how the tropes and narrative devices familiar to lovers of fantasy, science fiction and thrillers allow these writers to carve out inventive and thrilling plots of their own. This conversation is part of our YA podcast series. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A leader in Australian noir, bestselling Scrublands author Chris Hammer is the winner of the Crime Writers’ Association John Creasey (New Blood) Dagger award. In Silver, flawed protagonist Martin Scarsden returns to his hometown to discover his former school friend lying on the floor of his girlfriend’s house with a knife plunged into his back and a postcard in his hand. Chris talks with Guardian Australia’s Paul Daley about his enthralling and propulsive new thriller. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A vivid picture of Cabramatta, The Coconut Children is a powerful ode to modern Australia by debut novelist Vivian Pham. It has elicited praise from the likes of Dave Eggers, who hailed it as a “deeply felt and intimate coming-of-age novel” by “one of the indispensable voices of her generation”, while Paul Kelly called it “fierce, frank and funny”. Sheila Ngoc Pham joins Vivian to discuss her urgent, moving and wise debut by an exciting new voice in Australian fiction. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.