The Newcastle Writers Festival is a highlight of my year. Held the first weekend of April, I’ve been involved in every festival since it started in 2013. It’s now one of the largest regional literary festivals in Australia, and I know I’m biased but I feel like the vibe is just perfect – down-to-earth and very accessible while still being grand enough to attract some of the biggest names locally and internationally. I also love how the NWF gives plenty of airtime to local writers, and has worked very hard to make the festival accessible, with all main venues are accessible by wheelchair. This year I have 3 events including:
April 5th, 1pm: Ailsa Piper talking about her gorgeous new book For Life.
April 5th, 3pm: I’ll be hosting a launch of five new books from Flying Islands: The Heart’s Lush Gardens by David Adés; Tadpoems by Tug Dumbly; Bitumen Psalms by Lizz Murphy; Filmworks by Brian Purcell; Separation Blues: Poems 1994–2024 by Nathanael O’Reilly; and Stranded by Bronwyn Rodden. Plus I’ll be launching the new 100 Poets Anthology.
April 6th, 2:30pm, Writing Identity and Inequality with Jumaana Abdu, Eda Gunaydin, and Paris Rosemont.
All my sessions are free – first in best dressed and I suspect the rooms will fill up fast so best to arrive a little early!
For all the details including the full program, visit: https://www.newcastlewritersfestival.org.au/
I’ve got 3 poems in the invitation-only Live Encounters Feb edition. Live Encounters is always a delight to read and this issue is particularly stunning with a rich variety of poetry from some of Australia’s most illustrious poets. I’m proud to be included. You can check out the whole issue here and once there, you can either flip through like a magazine, or click on a name to go straight to the poet’s work.
On Wednesday the 12th of March I will have the great pleasure of being the guest speaker. The date is the SWW Centenary – that’s 100 years – no small achievement, and I’ll be following on from a poetry workshop by Judith Beveridge and Sophie Masson member spotlight. For more details visit: https://womenwritersnsw.org/literary-luncheons/workshop-literary-event-wednesday-12-march-2025
I’ve been invited to participate in a collaborative project based on the Telephone game, and if you’re an artist/writer of any kind you can also join. This is the third round and the way it works is a secret message is ‘whispered’ from art form to art form. You sign up, and if you’re accepted, you receive a prompt which might be an artwork, a video, a piece of writing or even dance. You have to create your work in response within a limited timeframe. The results will be published as a digital exhibition in September 2025, open to the public. Curious? Sign up at this link: 
Three of my poems “
My poem “Tumbling into the Ocean” has been published in the inaugural issue of Splinter Journal along with work from Anthony Nocera, Brooke Dunnell, Dominic Symes, Finbar James, Frank Marrazza, George Titheridge, Hossein Asgari, Jane Rawson, Jayda Wilson, Jill Jones, Karen Wyld, KT Major, Lauren Poole, Muiz Ọpẹ́yẹmí Àjàyí, Paris Rosemont, Patrick Marlborough, Ryan J Morrison, Sam Elkin, Sam Twyford-Moore, Sara M Saleh, Seamus Lonergan, Susie Anderson, Thom Sullivan, and Yirga Gelaw Woldeyes. Splinter is published twice a year, and is edited by Farrin Foster. Find out more about the journal, how to submit, read and subscribe here: 
Three of my poems, “Free Association”, “Sylvia”, and “Bhakti” have been published in the 15th Anniversary edition of Live Encounters. The full issue can be found here: 