Backstory: Recent Episodes
RRR - Triple R
A show about books, stories, the craft of writing - and the people behind the lines.
The intro and outro theme is Soft Illusion and was generously provided by Andras. https://andras.bandcamp.com/track/soft-illusion
Presenter Mel Cranenburgh winds up 4 years of presenting Backstory today, and joining her are two highly accomplished authors. First, Phillipa (Pip) McGuinness discusses her book 'Skin Deep', which deals with beauty, ageing, health, illness, and interrogating white fragility. Mel and Pip touch on writing about race, skin cancers, and the challenges of mixing history, journalism, interviews, and cultural studies into one book. And author Toni Jordan tells Mel about her book 'Dinner with the Schnabels', a big family drama-dy filled with wit and arch observations. They talk about setups and structure, simile and metaphor-filled character descriptions, world-building, and doing the wrong thing for the right reasons.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
'Loveland' follows the story of May, who travels from Australia to Loveland, Nebraska to claim a house on a poisoned lake as a part of her grandmother's will. As she seeks to escape her controlling husband and repair the old house, the secrets of her grandmother's life are slowly uncovered and parallel May's own life in many ways. Author Robert Lukins and host Mel Cranenburgh discuss why small towns make a good backdrop for gothic subject matter, escapism, writing as "thinking on a page", and disconnection between generations in a family.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
'Found, Wanting' is author Natasha Sholl's memoir about attempting to rebuild her life in the aftermath of her partner Rob's sudden death at the age of 27 years old and deal with cultural assumptions and expectations about the "right way" to grieve. Author Natasha Sholl and host Mel Cranenburgh explore writing about grief before and after experiencing it, objectivity in memoir, faith and ritual around morning, receiving feedback from others who are grieving, and hope.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Winner of the Victorian Premier's Literary Award for fiction, 'Smokehouse' is a collection of interlinked short stories all set in a small-town community in Southern Tasmania. Author Melissa Manning's book follows a fundamental point of change in each of its character's intersecting lives. Melissa Manning and host Mel Cranenburgh talk about creating a sense of place, leaving space in storytelling for readers to speculate on the future, and what characters do when they are "out of scene".
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Author and award-winning poet Omar Sakr discusses his debut novel ‘Son of Sin’. This coming-of-age story follows a young queer Muslim boy as he contends with an intergenerational legacy of family ties and ruptures. The novel explores faith, the supernatural, silence, memory, and rumour. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Vanessa Len chats to Mel about her debut novel ‘Only A Monster’, a gripping young adult fantasy that is the first of a trilogy. It follows the tumultuous journey of a half-human, half-monster heroine who, after learning a secret that unravels her reality, must embrace the monster inside her. Out now through Allen & Unwin. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
‘Cold Enough For Snow’ is Jessica Au’s tightly crafted, award-winning second novel that wrestles with the tension that comes with words unspoken. As mother and daughter travel through Japan together, the unbridgeable emotional distance between them unravels; as everything is awakened in that which can’t be said. Out now through Giramondo. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Australian author Diana Reid delves into her debut novel ‘Love & Virtue’. The novel introduces Michaela and Eve, two fellow college students in Sydney who come to know the privilege, power and male-dominated culture that wreak havoc in such institutions. Amidst a social minefield, the two girls navigate consent, sex, feminism, class, love and envy. Out now through Ultimo Press. With presenter Elsie Lange.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Award-winning writer of ‘Burial Rites' and 'The Good People’, Hannah Kent, gives thoughtful insight into her latest novel, ‘Devotion’. Her lush descriptions of nature, religion, land, ghosts and queerness intertwine with the power of love, as we hear from the unique perspectives of three women. With presenter Elsie Lange.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Walkley Award-winning author Delia Falconer chats about her fourth book, ‘Signs and Wonders, Dispatches from a time of beauty and loss’. Comprising thirteen essays, it delves deeply into the human impact on the climate crisis, whilst appreciating the beauty and wonders of our ever-changing landscape. With presenter Elsie Lange.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Stella Award-winning novelist, Emily Bitto delves into her new novel ‘Wild Abandon’. It follows Will, as he journeys to America in an attempt to mend his broken heart and hopefully find some peace and wisdom along the way. The trip takes surprising twists and turns, with hedonism, masculinity and capitalism all in the mix, softened by the innocence and tenderness of lion cubs. With presenter Elsie Lange.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
In her latest book, two-time Miles Franklin award winner, Michelle de Kretser explores the ‘Scary Monsters’ of racism and misogyny. It follows two distinct novellas based in different times and places, though linked by migrant experiences. Out now through Allen & Unwin. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Award-winning author of nine books; poet, essayist, historian and activist, Tony Birch joins Mel for a special ‘In Conversation’ event about his latest book, ‘Dark as Last Night’. It is a collection of short stories, encapsulating the complex layers of the human condition; especially aligned with finding resilience and strength in positions of adversity. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
In her seventh book, ‘The Three Burials of Lottie Kneen’, Krissy Kneen introduces her late grandmother and family matriarch, Lotty Kneen. Her passing sparked Krissy’s quest to uncover more about her family. Using prose, poetry and imagery, Krissy's journey takes on a paradoxical tapestry of themes like gruesome fairytales, serendipity and secrets. Out now through Text Publishing. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
In Jacquie Byron’s debut novel ‘Happy Hour’, we peer through the lens of 65-year old, newly-widowed Franny as she alternately revels in artistry and aloneness. Despite her escapist tendencies, her need for community evolves and she finds solace in new friendships. The book is out now through Allen & Unwin. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Miles Allinson’s second novel, ‘In Moonland’ explores three timelines that draw on seeking answers to their past and grappling with a turbulent future. It's the follow-up to his highly acclaimed debut novel 'Fever of Animals'. Both novels are out through Scribe. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Award-winning author Mark Brandi explores his new psychological thriller, ‘The Others’. Tensions rise in isolated rural Tasmania, as 11-year old Jacob’s curiosity and desire to discover what lies beyond his restricted world, boils to the surface. Out now through Hachette. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Artist, lawyer and women’s health and safety activist, Amani Haydar, gives a confronting and powerful insight into her memoir, ‘The Mother Wound’. After losing her mother and grandmother, she divulges the brutal terrain in building resilience amidst family breakdowns and a sea of legal, Islamaphobic and misogynistic battles. Out now through Hachette. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Introducing her debut novel, 'Small Joys of Real Life' Allee Richards talks us through the nuts and bolts of her writing. Set amongst pre-pandemic Melbourne, the novel explores how life can take us on unplanned journeys, which inevitably shape who we are. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Award-winning novelist Michael Muhammad Ahmed provides insight into how he went about writing his new novel, ‘The Other Half of You’. Caught between his desire to reject oppressive traditions and live on his own terms, we peer into lead character Bani’s lens as a young Lebanese Muslim Australian man. Out now through Hachette.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
In her third and latest novel ‘The Newcomer’, Laura Elizabeth Woollett intertwines fiction and reality. Deriving elements from a real murder in 2002, she brings us into a fictional Fairfolk island filled with unanswered questions. Out now through Scribe.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Award-winning author Larissa Behrendt takes a deep dive into her new novel, After Story. It follows a mother and daughter as they grapple with grief and loss, while reflecting on their cultural history through a literary tour. The book is out now through UQP.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Award-winning author of ‘The Trauma Cleaner’, Sarah Krasnostein, weaves us through her new book ‘The Believer’. From a death doula to a ghost hunter, to a woman facing death and another woman released from prison, we follow six peoples’ stories and their encounters with love, death and faith.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Journalist Rick Morton combines memoir with journalism in ‘My Year of Living Vulnerably: A Rediscovery of Love’. Whilst reflecting on childhood trauma and its resounding impact into adulthood, the book also explores loneliness and masculinity. The book is out via Fourth Estate.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/podcasts/backstory
Author and editor Rebecca Starford walks us through the The Imitator, her new historical novel which weaves through pre, mid and post-war periods, through the lens of a MI5 wartime spy. Out now through Allen & Unwin. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Now That I See You has won the 2021 Australian / Vogel Literary Award. Listen as the woman behind the words, Emma Batchelor, unravels this part-truth, part-fiction book; exploring the way her lens on life shifted enormously in the wake of her partners’ transition and their relationship demise.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Award winning author and journalist Susan Johnson goes into her epistolary novel ‘From Where I Fell’, which follows two women who find solace in one another after an accidental email unites them; and writer and critic Oliver Reeson discusses their Sydney Review of Books essay ‘Not Who But How’, which dissects Craig Sylvie’s book ‘Honeybee’ and it’s controversial impact.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Australian writer, director and actor, Madeleine Ryan, chats about her debut novel ‘A Room Called Earth’. Taking the reader on a journey through the mind of a woman in the space of one evening, it questions and critiques our social world and unveils some hidden truths about it. Out now through Scribe.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Writer and music and cultural critic Anwen Crawford talks about her new book ‘No Document’. The book-length essay weaves together narratives that explore grief, art and activism with themes of war, immigration and stolen land. Out now through Giramondo.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Claire Thomas delves into her latest novel The Performance, following three women whose lives undergo revelations as they watch a play; and author and performance artist Fiona McGregor discusses her collection of essays, Buried Not Dead and the artistic lives that informed it.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory.
Elizabeth Flux is Editor At Large for the Melbourne City of Literature Office and an award-winning author whose fiction and non-fiction has been widely published. In this long-form interview, she discusses her recent non-fiction piece ‘Doctored Results’, published in this year’s Autumn edition of Meanjin. The piece reflects on her experience as a student in Australia’s medical industry, the lack of mental health support and the pressure of success in this realm.
Please note: This episode includes references to suicide and suicide ideation. Please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Switchboard Victoria on 1800 729 367 if this conversation brings up any issues for you.
With Presenter Fi Wright filling in for Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Zoya Patel is an award-winning author, editor, founder of a feminist literary organisation and Chair of the 2021 Stella Prize judging panel. Discussing emerging themes in the stories shortlisted for the Stella Prize, from investigative journalism to imaginary worlds, she praises the works of a diverse variety of female voices.
With presenter Rashelle McHugh filling in for Mel Cranenburgh.
Award-winning novelist, poet, playwright, editor and critic Alison Croggon delves into her new book Monsters in a long-form interview with Mel. The book takes the form of both memoir and essay, confronting a painful conflict between sisters, and explores the ways in which colonial patriarchy has moulded our lives in a way that is inescapable. Out now through Scribe.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Lorraine Peck talks about her debut novel, The Second Son, a gripping, action-packed crime thriller; and Christy Collins discusses her beautiful and thought-provoking debut, The Price of Two Sparrows. With presenter Rashelle McHugh filling in for Mel Cranenburgh.
Martin McKenzie-Murray has worked as a teacher, Age columnist, and adviser to the chief commissioner of Victoria Police. But it’s his work as a scriptwriter that inspired his debut work of fiction. The Scriptwriter skewers Australian bureaucracy and political lethargy, taking readers on a frantic, funny, and surreal journey through the corridors of power.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Kavita Bedford, an Australian-Indian writer with a background in journalism, anthropology and literature, talks about her novel, Friends and Dark Places, a novel of love and loss, of constancy and change, and looking for connection in an estranged world. Out now through Text Publishing.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Adam Thompson, an emerging Aboriginal (pakana) writer from Tasmania, joins Mel for a longform interview about Born Into This, his “engaging and thought-provoking” collection of short stories out now through the University of Queensland Press.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Craig Munro discusses his new book, Literary Lion Tamers: Book Editors Who Made Publishing History; and Kate Torney, Chief Executive Officer of the State Library of Victoria, chats about the 165th anniversary of the venerated institution, its past, and its post-pandemic future.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
In this long-form interview, Helen Garner talks about her recently released book, One Day I'll Remember This: Diaries 1987-1995, the second volume of her diaries which sees her contemplating the ethics, difficulties and rewards of love and relationships.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Ewa Ramsey is an emerging writer and her debut novel, The Morbids, has been described as ‘a lively and often very funny book, and one that is hopeful and heartfelt.’ She talks about the joys and pitfalls of submitting an unsolicited manuscript and the process of crafting her first book.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Rochelle Smith, director of the Word for Word Non-Fiction Festival, talks about this year’s program Life, Changing and explores the relationship between literature and non-fiction writing; and Australian cultural historian, essayist and novelist, Maria Tumarkin, discusses her State of the (Writing) Nation oration delivered for The Wheeler Centre and available now on YouTube.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Miles Franklin Award-winning novelist Sofie Laguna talks about her new novel Infinite Splendours, and performance poet Andi Stewart joins the show to talk about Word Travels’ Story Week, an online, week-long event that brings together writers from across Australia and the world for a celebration of both new and traditional forms of oral storytelling.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Jane Harper, award-winning author of The Dry, has written a new novel, The Survivors. Described by one critic as “yet another perfectly balanced, finely honed, deliciously atmospheric thriller”, it is a stand-alone mystery set on the Tasmanian coast. She talks about the book, shares thoughts about writing crime, and reveals tips for crafting thrilling narratives.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Author Robert Dessaix chats about his latest book, The Time of Our Lives: Growing Older Well, a reflective journey across the landscape of growing older and the importance of cultivating a rich inner life; and Nikki Anderson, Director of the Feminist Writers Festival, talks about the highlights of this year’s forthcoming event.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Tegan Bennett Daylight discusses her new book, The Details: On Love, Death and Reading, a collection of essays that examines the connections we form with literature and, in turn, with each other; and Evelyn Araluen, poet, researcher and co-editor of Overland Literary Journal talks about the new issue, where multiple writers tackle questions about health and (un)wellness in the time of Covid.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Yarra Plenty Regional Library librarian Patrick Jovaras talks about coordinating this year’s YPRL Booklovers Festival and making the In The Good Books podcast, and the challenges and joys of getting books into the hands of avid readers during the pandemic.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Author Kate Mildenhall talks about her latest novel, The Mother Fault and her new project about writing, writers and books,The First Time Podcast, co-hosted by Katherine Collette. And writer Lia Hills chats about Put Out Your Poetry, a new initiative by Yarra Ranges Council which invites residents to share their unique experiences of COVID via haiku.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Author Jock Serong talks about his latest novel, The Burning Island, the follow up to his critically acclaimed thriller Preservation; and novelist Laura Elizabeth Woollett chats about her essay ‘Award Rate’, her contribution to the Sydney Review of Books series, Writers At Work.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Editor, Michael Mohammed Ahmad and contributor, Kaya Ortiz Lattimore, discuss After Australia, a new essay anthology that features twelve Indigenous writers and writers of colour exploring the world we are handing down to the next generation; and newly appointed Voiceworks editor Adalya Nash Hussein chats about the latest issue, ‘Butter’, and the unusual Covid style cooking-show literary-event digital hybrid launch that accompanied it’s publication. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh. Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Victoria Hannan talks about her debut novel Kokomo, a story of estrangement from kin, friendship, love, self and country; and Jess Hill, author of the award winning See What You Made Me Do, discusses both her book and her role in this year’s Melbourne Writers Festival, which is running online now. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Robbie Arnott joins Backstory to discuss his second novel, The Rain Heron, an allegorical, cautionary tale which has been described as “a journey into a perilous world where the horror of human greed collides with the eloquence of nature”; and Elizabeth Flux talks about 'This is not a Eulogy for Hong Kong', an essay in the latest issue of Kill Your Darlings, where she reflects on her rage, despair and helplessness while watching the crisis unfold in her homeland from afar.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Mia Walsch’s new book, Something For Nothing, has been described as a ‘captivatingly honest memoir about surviving, sex work, friendships, drugs, mental illness and need’. In this long form interview, Mia discusses the challenging process of writing a memoir, the necessity of focussing on your own lived experiences, and how to remain considerate of others who have shared those experiences with you but may have chosen to not make them public. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Author Kate Grenville talks about her latest book, A Room Made of Leaves, a work of historical fiction that questions how and by whom our histories get constructed and reconstructed; and poet, educator and researcher, Evelyn Araluen Corr chats about the latest issue of Overland, which she co-edited with Jonathan Dunk. The new issue focuses on themes of Resistance. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Author K.M. Kruimink talks about winning the Vogel Award for her debut novel, A Treacherous Country, and Caro Llewellyn, the newly appointed CEO of Melbourne’s The Wheeler Centre, discusses what she hopes to bring to the role. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Novelist Chris Flynn talks about his new novel Mammoth, which is narrated by a 13,000-year-old extinct mammoth; and Sarah Walker speaks about her essay on the loss of a parent, in the latest issue of the Australian Book Review, ‘Contested breath: The ethics of assembly in an age of absurdity’. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Website: https://www.rrr.org.au/explore/programs/backstory
Author James Bradley talks about his new novel Ghost Stories, and librarian and author Sarah Schmidt tells us about Yarra Plenty Regional library’s book valet service, matching readers of all ages to books that they’ll love.
This week’s Comfort Read is ‘Love in The Time of Cholera’ and Mel shares her thoughts on re-reading the classic novel.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Editors Evelyn Araluen and Jonathan Dunk discuss the upcoming issue of Overland literary journal which aims to bring the focus of the journal back to its radical roots while engaging with contemporary provocations, and author Laura Jean McKay tells us about her new book, The Animals in That Country.
This week’s Comfort Read is ‘Love in The Time of Cholera’ and Mel asks listeners to share their thoughts on the classic novel using the hashtag #loveinthetimeofbackstory on Insta.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Author Pip Williams chats about her new novel ‘The Dictionary of Lost Words’; and Matilda Dixon-Smith talks about her serialised rom-com ‘The Broken Heart Brigade’.
This week’s Comfort Read is ‘Love in The Time of Cholera’ and Mel asks listeners to share their thoughts on the classic novel using the hashtag #loveinthetimeofbackstory on Insta. Meet Me For Launch features Karen Turner’s ‘Stormbird’, out now through Fisher King.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Author Alice Williams chats about her self-help memoir 'Bad Yogi'; and playwright Hannie Rayson talks about being the Festival Programmer for this weekend’s Yarra Valley Writers Festival.
This week’s Comfort Read is ‘Love in The Time of Cholera’ and Mel asks listeners to share their thoughts on the classic novel using the hashtag #loveinthetimeofbackstory on Insta. Meet Me For Launch features Chris Flynn’s ‘Mammoth’ out now through UQP.
With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Ronnie Scott talks about his new novel The Adversary, and Anna Spargo-Ryan discusses what led to the publication of her essay A Conspiracy of Witches, out now in the latest issue of Meanjin. ‘Comfort Reads’ features the classic Gabriel Garcia Márquez novel Love In The Time of Cholera and ‘Meet Me for Launch’ gives a shout-out to speaker agency Booked Out’s new initiative Reaching Out Online. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Sophie Hardcastle talks about her novel Below The Deck, and writer Jane Rawson from Read Tasmania talks about the #LockdownReadingGroup. Jane also shares her 'Comfort Reads.' 'Meet Us for Launch' celebrates Thrill Me: Suspenseful stories, edited by Lynette Washington, out now through Glimmer Press. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Mel catches up with Anna Blackie, author of How to Adult: A Guide To Not Being A Trash Human And Other Life Lessons and chats to singer-songwriter Nicola Watson, whose album Welcome to the Bunker, Baby is out now on Bandcamp.
This week’s Comfort Read comes from Donna Ward and Meet Me for Launch celebrates the release of Laura Jean McKay’s The Animals in That Country, out now through Scribe.
Literary critic turned poet Thuy On talks about her debut, Turbulence,a collection of poetry that explores loss, separation, renewal; and writer Wayne Marshall talks about Shirl, his collection of stories. Plus new segments 'Comfort Read' and 'Join Us For Lunch' feature contributions from Jo Case and Poppy Nwosu. With presenter Mel Cranenburgh.
Author and journalist Liam Pieper chats about his latest book, Sweetness and Light. Set in India, Liam says he wanted to tell a modern, subversive story about a vast and varied country with more nuance than the fetishised view of some other Western writers. Liam's first book, The Toymaker,was long-listed for best debut fiction by the Indie Book Awards and won the Fellowship of Australian Writers Christina Stead Fiction Award.
Backstory host Mel Cranenburgh and author Donna Ward share an extended chat about Donna's memoir, She I Dare Not Name: A spinster's meditations on life, 'a compelling collection of fiercely intelligent, deeply intimate, lyrical reflections on the life of a woman who stands on the threshold between two millennia'.
Mel Cranenburgh is joined by Mandy Beaumont, author of Wild, Fearless Chests (published by Hatchette), 'a timely debut short story collection that breaks open the idea of women from a powerful new Australian literary voice'. Freya Howarth then talks to Mel about literary awards and why they matter to up and coming writers.
Mel catches up with J.P. Pomare, author of In The Clearing, a taut and unpredictable thriller, out now through Hatchette Australia.
Dr. Lucy Buzacott and Associate Professor Larissa McLean Davies then join Mel to discuss the cultural cringe and the current teaching of literature in our educational institutions.
Mel talks to author Laura McPhee-Browne about her debut book, Cherry Beach, described by one critic as 'an acute and gripping novel about being made and unmade by first love'. Mel's then joined by Simon Conlon and Meadows Primary School students Cleo and Tana to chat about 100 Story Building's Story Hubs project.
Host Mel Cranenburgh returns for 2020 and her first guest is Ursula Dubosarsky, children’s author and recently annointed 2020–21 Australian Children’s Laureate.
Mel is then joined by Kamilaroi water scientist, Bradley Moggridge and, author of The Glad Shout, Alice Robinson to talk about Bush Nights: Stories from the Water hosted by Bush Heritage Australia. They will both be appearing at the first of this three part series at the Mechanics Institute in Brunswick on Thursday 13 February. More details here.
Mel Cranenburgh and Beth AQ team up for this special Backstory/Glasshouse extravaganza marking the final show for each program in 2019. They are joined by author Favel Parrett to discuss her latest book, There Was Still Love and Angela Meyer comes in to chat about her novella, Joan Smokes.
Beth and Mel talk about their highlight ‘reads of the year’ and tell us what they hope to be reading over the summer break.
Helen Garner has a well established reputation as one of Australia’s best writers. A novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist, Helen’s work spans fiction, non-fiction and reportage. Her latest book, Yellow Notebook Volume 1, is an edited selection drawn from her personal diaries spanning 1978 to 1987.
In this extended interview, Helen joins Backstory host Mel Cranenburgh to reflect on her practice, the craft of writing both fiction and non-fiction and the pleasure of ‘filleting the junk off the muscle that holds a good story together’.
Jane Sullivan, author of Storytime, joins Mel Cranenburgh to discuss her latest book where she takes readers from Wonderland to Narnia; is enchanted by Winnie-the-Pooh and the Magic Pudding, amazed by Enid Blyton and frightened by the Tales of Terror. And then there are those stories made tricky by often posthumous revelations about the author’s lives….
Mel is then joined by Associate Professor Leonie Rutherford to discuss how digital platforms might inspire a new generation of young readers who aren’t getting what they want from the printed word.
Mel is joined by Curtis Sittenfeld, the acclaimed New York based author of Eligible, Sisterland and American Wife. Her latest publication, You Think It, I’ll Say It, is a collection of short stories that demonstrates, in the words of one Washington Post critic, Curtis' 'astonishing gift for creating characters that take up residence in readers’ heads'. Curtis is in Melbourne to appear at the inaugural Broadside feminist festival at the Wheelers Centre on the 8 - 9 November.
Jade Walsh from Toot Artspace also joins host Mel Cranenburgh to talk about Low Fi High, an exhibition of the 'art, zines and publications of artists that explore high and low culture'. The show is on at the St Kilda gallery from 31 October to 16 November, 2019. Jade talks to Mel about the role of the zine in the digital age and some of the artists that are featured in this exhibition.
Word for Word is Australia’s only non-fiction writing festival. It’s a unique annual literary event showcasing non-fiction writing in all its many facets and forms with world-renowned writers, dynamic panel discussions and “in conversation” sessions.
The theme for this year is Nyaal, a Wadawurrung word that means ‘open your eyes’. As Festival Director Rochelle Smith tells Backstory’s Mel Cranenburgh, this year’s event aims to showcase the many hidden and unheard histories of this country.
Acclaimed author Elliot Pearlman joins Mel Cranenburgh to discuss his latest novel, Maybe The Horse Will Talk, a searing but darkly funny look at the vicissitudes of life inside corporate capitalism in the era of the MeToo and Time’s Up movements. In this extended interview, he tells Mel about how his own experiences as a lawyer helped him to get inside the head of his main protagonist, Stephen Maserov, a former teacher and second-year lawyer whose life is spirally slowly out of control until he hatches a daring plan to keep both his career and his ethics on track.
Elliot’s previous novel, Three Dollars, won The Age Book of the Year Award, the Betty Trask Award (UK), the Fellowship of Australian Writers' Book of the Year Award and was shortlisted for the John Llewellyn-Rhys/Mail On Sunday Book of the Year Award (UK) as well as for the Miles Franklin Literary Award. Elliot also co-wrote the screenplay for the film of Three Dollars, which received the Australian Film Critics' Circle Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as well as the A.F.I. Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Author, editor and publisher, Hilary McPhee, joins Mel Cranenburgh to discuss her new memoir Other People’s Houses. Fleeing the aftermath of a failed marriage, Hilary began the project in the Middle East where she had travelled to write about a member of the Hashemite royal family. The book that emerged from this was not the book she had anticipated but instead became a welcome exploration of the changes that she underwent at this time in her life. The result is, as one reviewer notes, ‘inspiring’.
Mel is then joined by Lucy Treloar, author of Salt Creek (2015), winner of the Indie Award for Best Debut, the ABIA Matt Richell Award and the Dobbie Award, and shortlisted for prizes including the Miles Franklin Literary Award and the UK's Walter Scott Prize. Her latest book, Wolfe Island, has been met with similar acclaim with The Age describing it as ‘deeply moving’. Set on a dying island sinking into the wind-lashed Chesapeake Bay, the main protagonist, Kitty Hawke, confronts a fraught world - one that threatens all of us - with flight, exile and bewilderment.
Mel Cranenburgh chats to author Anna Krien. Anna's latest release, Act of Grace, is a meditation on inheritance: the damage that one generation passes on to the next, and the potential for transformation. Anna is also the author of the award-winning Night Games and Into the Woods, as well as two Quarterly Essays, Us and Them and The Long Goodbye.
Sonja Dechian was recently announced as the overall winner of the 2019 ABR Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize for her story ‘The Point-Blank Murder’. Sonja’s short story collection, An Astronaut’s Life, won the 2016 UTS Glenda Adams Award for New Writing and was shortlisted for the Steele Rudd Award the same year. She joins Mel Cranenburgh to discuss the award and her writing process.
Francesca Rendle-Short, Michele Lee and Rajith Savanadasa join Mel Cranenburgh to talk about The Near and The Far, Volume II: more stories from the Asia-Pacific region.
Spanning fiction, nonfiction, and poetry from the Asia-Pacific’s finest writers — including Christos Tsiolkas, Alice Pung, Norman Erikson Pasaribu, Han Yujoo, Ellen van Neerven, and Ali Cobby Eckermann — the collection, edited by David Carlin and Francesca Rendle-Short, invites readers on a unique and unforgettable journey.
https://scribepublications.com.au/books-authors/books/the-near-and-the-far-vol-ii
Dr Alexandra Dane then joins Mel to discuss the ramifications of the decision of the judges of this year’s Vogel Literary Award to withhold the $20,000 prize and coveted book deal with publishing giant Allen & Unwin. Australia's most prestigious award for an unpublished manuscript, the award has helped kickstart the careers of many great authors. It is only the third time in the Vogel's almost 40-year history that a winner hasn't been chosen.
Josephine Rowe’s, Here Until August, is a selection of superbly crafted stories follow the fates of characters who, by choice or by force, are travelling beyond the boundaries of their known worlds. Josephine joins Mel to discuss this new work. Josephine’s novel, A Loving, Faithful Animal, was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award, selected as a New York Times Editors’ Choice and led to her being named a 2017 Sydney Morning Herald Best Young Novelist.
Lisa Dempster is the Executive Manager Public Participation at Yarra Plenty Regional Library. She was formerly the Artistic Director/CEO of Melbourne Writers Festival and she joins Mel to talk about the Yarra Plenty Regional Library 11th Annual Booklovers Festival. Chock a block with great activities across nine libraries, it truly is three weeks of book loving goodness for anyone living in the Yarra Plenty area (and anyone who isn’t!).
Meg Mundell is a New Zealand-born writer and academic based in Melbourne. Her first novel, Black Glass, was shortlisted for two Aurealis Awards, the Barbara Jefferis Award and the Norma K. Hemming Award. She joins host Mel Cranenburgh to discuss her new book, The Trespassers.
Joanne Ramos’ novel The Farm is described by The New York Post as ‘brilliant’ and by NPR as ‘heady [and] chilling’. She joins Mel to discuss her work which pushes to the extremes our thinking on motherhood, money, and merit and raises crucial questions about the trade-offs women will make to fortify their futures and the futures of those they love.
Nina Kenwood’s Young Adult novel, It Sounded Better in my Head, has been described by The Age as ‘a sweet, funny and relatable account of the dramas of those grappling with late adolescence’. She joins Backstory host Mel Cranenburgh to talk about the genesis of the book and the enjoyment she got from writing it.
Joey Bui then joins Mel to talk about her riveting first book, Lucky Ticket, a highly original collection of stories by a talented young writer.
Angela Savage discusses her novel, Mother Of Pearl, which explores the ethical minefield of international surrogacy through the stories of three women.
Mel Campbell and Anthony Morris, both Melbourne-based freelance journalist and critics then join Mel to talk about their second collaboration, Nailed It!
2019’s Miles Franklin award winner, Melissa Lucashenko, joins Mel on the line to talk about her novel, Too Much Lip.
R.W.R. McDonald then drops into the studio to tell us about his debut novel, 'The Nancys', a refreshing take on the popular Nancy Drew novels for a new generation.
Mel chats with Alice Bishop, author of A Constant Hum, a moving collection of vignettes that grapples with the aftermath of the Black Saturday bushfires. As one critic notes, some of the vignettes ‘cut to the bone; others are empathetic tales of survival, even hope’.
Lee Kofman and Romana Koval then join Mel to chat about their new anthology, Split, a collection about loss, leaving and new beginnings.
Writer Amra Pajalic tells Mel Cranenburgh about her new book, Things Nobody Knows But Me, a memoir about being parented by mother with bi-polar disorder who is from a non-English speaking background. The book was published by Transit Lounge in 2019.
Peta Hanrahan and Anna Kennedy then talk Mel through a new production based on Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own, adapted by Sentient Theatre and showing at fortyfivedownstairs.
In this episode of Backstory, Nicola Redhouse joins host, Mel Cranenburgh, to talk about Nicola’s latest release Unlike The Heart: A Memoir of Brain and Mind, a memoir which explores post-natal anxiety through a psychoanalytic lens.
And author Meg Keneally joins Mel to discuss her first solo novel, Fled, an epic historical adventure based on the extraordinary life of convict Mary Bryant.
In this episode, author Mark Brandi joins Mel Cranenburgh to talk about his new novel, The Rip, described as'an urban crime novel that slowly and masterfully hooks you in... then shocks with the horrific crime and the dread that the characters you care about aren't going to make it out alive'.
Then Melbourne-based animator, comic artist and zinemaker, Peo Michie, and multidisciplinary artist, musician and writer, Heather Joan Day, come by to chat with Mel about Interstitial, an event exploring life between cultures from the Emerging Writers Festival and Liminal.
In this episode, Bren MacDibble, author of the award-winning How To Bee, joins host Mel Cranenburgh to talk her new book, The Dog Runner,and what it's like to write for the 'middle audience' - those young readers aged between 9 and 12.
Plus, we hear from Glen Eira Storytelling Festival Festival Director Suzanne Olb about this year's event, a cultural extravaganza of music, comedy, stories and workshops held from 22 June to 7 July.
On this episode, Fiona McGregor, author of A Novel Idea joins host Mel Cranenburgh to chat about what life is really like when a writer sits down to stare down the blank page.
Katie Smyrk, deputy editor of The Big Issue, also joins Melto review two books you need on your to-read list.
In this episode of Backstory, host Mel Cranenburgh is joined by author Wayne Macauley, whose latest book Simpson Returns. 'A concise satire of Australian platitudes about fairness and egalitarianism, it is timely, devastating and witheringly funny'. Released in time for 2019's Anzac Day 'celebrations', it has been received to critical acclaim with the Australian Book Review noting that 'they should teach this book at school.’ https://www.textpublishing.com.au/books/simpson-returns
Mel is then joined by Izzy Roberts-Orr, Artistic Director of the Emerging Writers' Festival. They talk about the themes of the 2019 iteration of the festival which is held in Melbourne from June 19 - 29 at the Wheelers Centre. For more details, visit https://emergingwritersfestival.org.au/events/festival/2019/
In this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh talks to 2019 Nature Writing Prize co-winner Jenny Sinclair about her book An Orchard For My Father. Jenny’s previous non-fiction books include Much Ado About Melbourne (Affirm Press, 2015) (first published as When We Think About Melbourne, 2010) and A Walking Shadow (Arcade Publications, 2012). As a journalist, she has been on staff at The Age and at local newspapers, and written for a wide variety of publications.
Mel’s then joined by author Alice Robinson to chat about her novel The Glad Shout, set in a frightening future Melbourne where storms and floods have ravaged the city; families have been separated, and food and water supplies are limited. Alice’s first novel Anchor Point was long-listed for the Stella Prize.
On this episode of Backstory, Mel Cranenburgh chats to writer Melanie Cheng about her debut novel, Room for a Stranger Melanie is best known for her award winning collection of short stories, Australia Day. Then Julie Ganner and Sarah Runcie drop in to talk about the launch of Inclusive Publishing in Australia: An Introductory Guide.
On this episode of Backstory, host Mel Cranenburgh chats about two new novels: one from Andrea Goldsmith titledInvented Lives and another from the one and only Melina Marchetta, The Place on Dalhousie
Mel Cranenburgh is joined by two special guests. Graeme Simsion talks about his new novelThe Rosie Result- the final in the widely acclaimed Rosie trilogy.
She's then joined byVicki Leaveau-Harvie, whoseStella prize winning, beautifully told memoir,The Erratics, explores the universal ways in which aging parents, mental illness and addictions complicate families.
Host Mel Cranenburgh catches up with novelist Kate Richards about her debut novelFusionand writer/critic Mel Campbell reviews Annaleese Jochem's novelBaby.
In this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh is joined by author Carrie Tiffany to talk about her latest novel, Exploded View. Spare, poetic and intensely visual,Exploded Viewfollows on from Carrie's previous works,Everymans Rules for Scientific LivingandMateship with Birds.She is one of Australias most celebrated writers and winner of the inaugural Stella Prize.
Mel is then joined by Beth Wilkinson,the founder, editor and creative director ofLindsay, to talk about the latest issue of themagazine which is based in Melbourne but celebrates the importance of culture and place across the planet.
Editor Louise Swinn and contributors Amy Gray and Monica Dux join Mel Cranenburgh to tell us about their powerful new collection of writing, Choice Words. Including fiction, non-fiction and poetry, the collection explores the dominant narrative and taboos surrounding abortion and gives invaluable insight into how this impacts on Australian women today.
Mel's then joined by City of Yarra Mayor, Cnr Danae Bosler, and writer and musician Justin Heazlewood (author of Get Up, Mum) to hear about the Fitzroy Writers Festival. (https://library.yarracity.vic.gov.au/fitzroywritersfestival)
On this episode of Backstory, CEO of Readings Mark Rubbo drops in to speak to Mel Cranenburgh about the 50th anniversary of the flagship Carlton store.
Plus, scholar and writer Julienne van Loon discusses her latest book,The Thinking Woman.
On this episode of Backstory, host Mel Cranenburgh chats to Danish author Mads Peder Nordbo talks about his arctic crime thrillerThe Girl Without Skin.
She's then joined by local author Ella Holcombe to talk about the recent release of her Young Adult fiction piece,The House On The Mountain, a beautifullypoignant portraitof one family's experience of the Black Saturday bushfires.
Sonia Orchard joins host Mel Cranenburgh to tell us about her new novel,Into the Fire, out now through Affirm Press. Into the Fire is Sonia's third book and second work of fiction that authorRosalie Ham (The Dressmaker) has described as 'a perceptive, provoking story of friendship and intimacy'.
Mel is then joined byMatters Journaleditor Megan Anderson to chat about their new issue (https://mattersjournal.com/shop/issue3) and the pleasures of reading long form articles away from the screen.
This week on Backstory, host Mel Cranenburgh talks to author, Emily Brewen, about her latest novel, Small Blessings, a poignant and uplifting tale of secrets, motherhood, innocence and heartache, and ultimately what were willing to do for love. Small Blessings is Emilys second book following up from her first novel, Hello, Goodbye, which was described as a powerful debut that will capture your heart. In the interview, she and Mel discuss the genesis of the novel, her writing process and what it takes to kill off a character before they make it to the final draft.
Mel is then joined by filmmaker Charlie Turnbull, whose documentary The Bikes of Wrath (http://bikesof.wrath.squarespace.com) retraces the journey the fictional Joad family undertook in John Steinbecks The Grapes of Wrath. Armed with 420 dollars, 5 bikes and 2 guitars, Charlie, co-conspitator Leon Morton and several friends travelled 2600kms from Oklahoma to California talking to real Americans about the same themes that characterised Steinbecks novel: migration, inequality, the wealth gap and their experiences of the so-called American Dream.
In this episode of Backstory, Melissa Cranenburgh is joined by Elise Valmorbida, the author of the novels Matilde Waltzing, The TV President, and The Winding Stick, as well as The Book of Happy Endings.Her most recent work, The Madonna of the Mountains received the Prize for Fiction at the 2019 Victorian Literary Awards.
Mel is then joined by Sam Cooney, head of the not-for-profit independent publishing organisation that produces the quarterly literary magazine The Lifted Brow, publishes books under its Brow Books imprint, posts new pieces of commentary and criticism online every day or two, stages events, awards writing prizes, and does a whole lot more.
On this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh talks to Markus Zusak, the author of six books, including the international bestseller, The Book Thief, which spent more than a decade on the New York Times bestseller list, and is translated into more than forty languages - establishing Zusak as one of the most successful authors to come out of Australia.
His latest book, the much-anticipated Bridge of Claywas released in October 2018 in the USA, the UK and Australia, with foreign translations to follow.
Mel Cranenburgh returns to Backstory and catches up with award winning author Toni Jordan to talk about her latest book The Fragments, a superbly crafted and captivating literary mystery about a lost book and a secret love.
Mel is then joined by The Small Press Network's General Manager Tim Coronel and Dr Rebecca Giblin, an ARC Future Fellow and Associate Professor within Monash University's Law Faculty, to talk about all things independent publishing including the challenges facing small presses in the digital age.
In this episode of Backstory, while Mel takes a short break, the lovely Mia Timpano takes the reins to interview some heroes of local independent magazine publishing. Kimberley Thomson (co-founder/editor of @swamplandmag - and one-half of punk band @shrimpwitch); Isabella Trimboli (co-editor/co-founder of @gushermagazine, joined her over the phone from Sydney); and Pino Demaio (editor-and-chief and creative director of @mattersjournal).
On Backstory this week, Mel Cranenburgh is joined by author, Moreno Giovannoni, whose book The Fireflies of Autumn:And Other Tales of San Ginese explores tales of war and migration, feasts and misfortunes - of a people and their place over the course of the twentieth century in a Tuscan village. Moreno Giovannoni was born in San Ginese but grew up in a house on a hill, on a tobacco farm at Buffalo River in north-east Victoria. He is a freelance translator of long standing.
https://www.blackincbooks.com.au/books/fireflies-autumn
Mel then speaks to Michael Veitch, performer, writer and broadcaster, about his latest work Hellship which documents the fate of the emigrant clipper Ticonderoga and its passengers. Shortly after crossing the equator, typhus had erupted throughout her decks, and in just a few weeks, one hundred of her mainly Highland Scots emigrants had perished, hastily buried at sea with what little ceremony could be afforded. Forbidden to enter Melbourne, the Ticonderoga was made to offload her human cargo onto a small beach inside the heads where, for the next six weeks, a makeshift quarantine hospital was established. Through the tireless efforts of the ship's young surgeon, Veitch's great-grandfather, aided by a handful of passengers, including a courageous young Scots woman from the Isle of Mull (his great-grandmother), many lives were saved. Hellship is a book, a play and has a soundtrack by Veitch's son, Thomas Veitch and Rose Hampton.
https://www.hellshipticonderoga.com/
On this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh is joined by celebrated author, Rosalie Ham, whose book The Dressmaker was turned into a successful, international film. Her latest book, The Year of the Farmer, also explores the vageries of life in a small Australian country town.
Mel is then joined by Melanie Cheng, author of 'Australia Day', and the facilitator of the opening event at the Brimbank Writers & Readers Festival, Celebrating Migrant Voices.The Festival is an annual event that encourages a love of reading and literature, celebrates creativity and diversity, and promotes lifelong learning. Read more about the festival here - https://www.brimbanklibraries.vic.gov.au/writersfestival
In this episode, Mel Cranenburgh is joined by singer, songwriter and novelist, Holly Crosby, to talk about her new novel Cedar Valley, a follow up to her bestselling 2016 novel Goodwood. Described as a "distinctly Australian coming-of-age story...balancing carefully evoked dread with genuine warmth", Holly and Mel explore the influence that Holly's love of TV series Northern Exposure has had on her storytelling and the mystery of the Somerton man, a gentleman found dead in Adelaide in 1948 whose case fascinated her because of its bizarre circumstances.
Mel is then joined by David Innes, one half of comedy duo Innes Lloyd, to talk about their upcoming performance of The War of the Worlds Anniversary Broadcast at The Butterfly Club on 29 October.
On this episode, Mel Cranenburgh discusses with Krissy Kneen her latest book, Wintering, a supernatural thriller set in a remote community in Tasmania. Krissy Kneen is the award-winning author of memoir-Affection-and fiction: An Uncertain Grace, Steeplechase, Triptych, The Adventures of Holly White and the Incredible Sex Machine, as well as the Thomas Shapcott Award-winning poetrycollection Eating My Grandmother. She has written and directed broadcast documentaries for SBS and ABC Television.
Mel is joined by Artistic Director of the The Digital Writers Festival, Izzy Roberts-Orr. The Digital Writers Festival is an online writers' festival dedicated to celebrating the work of writers from Australia and across the world, and fostering new relationships through collaboration between writers, where ever they may be. It is a product of the Emerging Writers' Festival, a not-for-profit organisation whose foundations are built on supporting emerging writers. The 2018 Digital Writers' Festival runs from Tuesday 30 October - Saturday 3 November http://2018.digitalwritersfestival.com/program/
This week, Mel Cranenburgh spends some time, metaphorically, in New York, New York.
Mel speaks to Alice Nelson about her novel The Children's House, which has been described as "a love song to the idea of families in all their mysteries and complexities, their different configurations and the hope that creates them".
She is then joined by Madelaine Lucas on the line from New York, whose short story Ruins won the Australian Book Review's (ABR) 2018 Elizabeth Jolley Short Story Prize. Madelaine wrote Ruins while living in Brooklyn but it is very much set in Australia.
This week, author, screenwriter and biologist, Margeret Morgan joins Mel Cranenbugh to discuss The Second Cure, a provocative debut novel about control, courage and belief with a decidedly sciency bent,
She's then joined by well known social commentator and broadcaster, Jane Caro, to discuss Just Flesh and Blood, the final novel in Caro's trilogy about monarch Queen Elizabeth I.
In this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh is joined by new Australian writer, Katherine Collette, author of The Helpline, a sharp, witty, big-hearted comedy about people power and brain power-and the difficulty of getting them to work together.
She's then joined by Liam Amore, improv actor and cast member of Murder Village which featured as part of this year's Melbourne Fringe Festival.
This week, Melissa Cranenburgh speaks to Stuart Kells about his new book, Shakespeare's Library: Unlocking the Greatest Mystery in Literature, a new take on the endless mystery of who or even what was Shakespeare, taking us through both different conceptions of the man himself and the library that purportedly constitutes his works.
Mel is then joined by Astrid Edwards to talk about Shaun Tan's children's book Cicada as well as Jessica Townsend's Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow series. They then swap notes on what it takes to do a good literary interview.
In this edition of Backstory, host Melissa Cranenburgh is joined by Majok Tulba, author of When Elephants Fight, a haunting coming of age young adult fiction about the hardships of life as a refugee. Majok Tulba's debut novel, Beneath the Darkening Sky, was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and likened to the work of Nam Le, Markus Zusak and Primo Levi. https://www.penguin.com.au/books/when-elephants-fight-9781926428437
Mel is then joined by Sharon Galleguillos from the Indigenous Literacy Foundation to talk about Indigenous Literacy Day, a national celebration of Indigenous culture, stories, language and literacy. You can find out more at https://www.indigenousliteracyfoundation.org.au/how-you-can-help
On this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh is joined by Brooklyn based author Maria Dahvana Headley who was in town for the Melbourne Writer's Festival. They talk about Headley's most recent book The Mere Wife, a modern-day re-imagining of Beowulf. Described by critics as "exquisite and imaginative" and "on-point and thought provoking", The Mere Wife is a "wild adventure; a celebration of monsters, myths, and the power of mother-love".
She is then joined by Dr Sanaz Fotouhi a dynamic writer, filmmaker and the director of Asia Pacific Writers and Translators to talk about the Melbourne City of Literature event, A Persian Feast with Iranian Thinkers.
On this episode of Backstory, Mel Cranenburgh is joined by Sally Piper, author of The Geography of Friendship, a story about fractured relationships, hiking and the reclamation of space by women.
Then Rebecca Hanson from the Centre for Youth Literature joins Mel to talk about the Inky Awards. The Inky Awards recognise high-quality young adult literature, with the longlist and shortlist selected by young adults, and the winners voted for online by the teen readers of InsideaDog.com.au. There are two awards: the Gold Inky Award for an Australian book, and the Silver Inky Award for an international book.
In this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh is joined by Gerard Elson, bookseller at Readings St Kilda, and the 2015 recipient of the ABA Penguin Random House Young Bookseller of the Year award to discuss French Basque writer Marie Darrieussecq's latest novella Our Life in the Forest. They are then joined by Marie from Basque country to discuss her writing.
On this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh is joined by Angela Myer, publisher at Echo Press, to talk about Angela's debut novel, A Superior Spectre.
Ginny Maxwell, co-editor of the much loved literary journal, The Lifted Brow, then joins Mel to talk about her thoughtful piece, "Labour Failures in the Arts Industry", published in early 2018 in The Saturday Paper.
In this episode of Backstory, Mel Cranenburgh talks to James Christina about Antidote to a Curse, his debut novel. She is then joined by Robbie Arnott to discuss his latest novel, Flames.
Enza Gandolfo joins Backstory with Melissa Cranenburgh this week to talk about her second novel The Bridge. Drawing on the true events of Australia's worst industrial accident (the collapse of The West Gate Bridge), a tragedy that still scars the city of Melbourne. The Bridge is a profoundly moving novel that examines class, guilt, and moral culpability. Yet it shows that even the most harrowing of situations can give way to forgiveness and redemption. Ultimately, it is a testament to survival and the resilience of the human spirit.
And we catch up with Khalid Warsame from West Writers Forum. The Forum is an annual event that aims to encourage diverse and critically engaged conversations between writers/storytellers, readers and industry members. The forum includes panels, workshops, performances, installations and story walks and is held from the 27 - 29 July at Footscray Community Arts Centre.
This week, Mel Cranenburgh talks all things crime writing with Christian White whose debut thriller, The Nowhere Child, is a "combustible tale of trauma, cult, conspiracy and memory".
Mel is then joined by Jacqui Horwood, the chief judge wrangler of the Sisters in Crime Davitt Awards, which will be presented on Saturday 11 August at Swinburne University.Since 2001, the Davitts have played a pivotal role in getting women's crime writing published and better recognised and Mel and Jacqui discuss the amazing work being done by female writers in the crime genre.
Get literary on Backstory this week as Jenny Ackland swings by to chat about her new book Little Gods: a novel about the loss of innocence and the mess of family, and Festival Director Rosemary Sorenson drops by to talk about the 2018 Bendigo Writers Festival Program.
On this episode of Backstory, Mel Cranenburgh speaks to writer and cultural historian, Maria Tumarkin about her extraordinary new book, Axiomatic, described by Robert Dessaix as "a brilliant kaleidoscope of arresting observations on suffering and innocence in modern times". She's then joined by Backstory's podcast producer, Lisa Gye, to talk about their shared experience of coming from mixed race families in the context the ongoing white washing of Australian history.
On this edition of Backstory, host Mel Cranenburgh talks to Young Adult fiction writer, Clare Strahan, author of The Learning Curves of Vanessa Partridge as well as the program director of Melbourne Rare Book Week, Professor Chris Browne.
In this episode, Mel Cranenburgh is joined on the line by author Intan Paramaditha whose short story collection Apple and Knife was recently translated from Indonesian so that English language readers can now enjoy her eerie, gothic tales which infused with a decidedly feminist edge.
Mel also chats to Willy Lit Fest Director, Lorraine Callow and beloved kids' book author, Andy Griffiths who tell us what to expect from the western suburbs literary festival that's celebrating its 15th year.
In this episode of Backstory, Mel Cranenburgh talks to Gideon Haigh about his latest book A Scandal in Bohemia: The Life and Death of Mollie Dean and Lachlan Carter, CEO and co-founder of 100 Story building, a centre for young writers based in the Melbourne suburb of Footscray.
In this episode of Backstory, Melissa Cranenburgh talks to publisher Phillipa McGuinness about her recently released book The Year Everything Changed: 2001, a deeply personal but simultaneously political narrative about a year when McGuiness' world was transformed by both intimate, private events as well as national and global happenings. Melissa is then joined by Christos Tsiolkas to talk about his surprising and provocative essay on Australian novelist, Patrick White, a new edition to Black Inc's series, Writers on Writers.
In this episode, host Mel Cranenburgh chats to Sophie Black, Head of Publications at the Wheeler Centre, about their new funding initiative for aspiring writers. The Next Chapter is an unprecedented new way of supporting writers and Sophie explains all the ins and outs of the scheme. Mel then talks to S.A. Jones, author of The Fortress, an absorbing, confronting and moving novel which asks questions about consent, power, love and fulfilment.