I'm bringing together leaders in the Australian literature sectors for a big discussion as part of Parramatta's Lit! Who are the "must have" people to be invited to this table? (The Champions/ Changemakers/Culture Shapers) I'm keen to hear your thoughts on who, and why. #ParramattasLitRoundtable

Hey Ku-ring-gai Council... Have you heard? The community wants their theatre back! #saveMarianStreetTheatre gofund.me/8016ab4a9

Donate to URGENT: Save Marian St Theatre – We have until Sunday, organized by Jessica Blaxland Ashby

This is the most important week in Marian St Theatre's histor… Jessica Blaxland Ashby needs your support for URGENT: Save Marian St Theatre – We have until Sunday

gofund.me

So excited to announce the Playwriting cohort for The Parramatta Play Project Workshop. 💙Jasmine Baker 💙Sunny Grace 💙Pirie Outridge 💙Linh Pham 💙Josephine Lee 💙Kobra Sayyadi 💙Dilroop Khangura 💙Kate Jirelle parramattaplayproject.com/project-2-wo...

I've just read a much awaited Australian book. It's launching in August. I am always a little sad when a book doesn't "live" at the line level. When the book's language is without elegance, and knows neither muscle nor grunt. There is no sweat or steam. I am aggrieved.

I am proud of my typos... I always have been. I made them. www.wired.com/story/more-t...

More Typos, Fewer Em Dashes: Writers Are Creating an Anti-AI ‘Literary Counterculture’

Novelists, journalists, and power LinkedIn posters are embracing first-person narratives and idiosyncrasies to avoid being mistaken for chat bots.

wired.com

"Words fall through me and always fool me/ And I can't react" music.youtube.com/watch?v=n8Gb...

Falling Slowly

YouTube video by Glen Hansard - Topic

music.youtube.com

NOW OPEN! Parramatta's Lit! is offering 11 Writers in Residence + 1 Editor in Residence for September 2026. $500 residency stipend for writers / $1,000 Editor in Residence Hosted by leading literary & cultural orgs in Parramatta Apply by 13 Aug 2026 parramattaslit.com/in-residence...

I want to confess. I am 46 years old. I have an infinite capacity to listen to and to tell stories. But I have no idea who would win in a fight between a bear and a lion.

NEWSFLASH! Women theatre artists and production crew of Australia - you are finally able to rest! You will not be inconvenienced by having a job! Unlike the movie it was based on (Jaws) The Shark is Broken will only be hiring 1 woman for this show! More details here www.sharkisbroken.com.au

The Shark is Broken | Australia

The Shark is Broken is coming to Melbourne and Sydney in 2026! Tickets are on sale now. This extraordinary play takes you behind the scenes of the making of JAWS. Co-written by Ian Shaw. son of JAWS a...

sharkisbroken.com.au

The @asauthors.bsky.social CEO is in Canberra today fighting against the ongoing theft of our books, stories, and illustrations to feed LLMs. Sign the open letter from Australia’s creatives: www.surveymonkey.com/r/WBXGKN7

www.smh.com.au/culture/thea...

Three generations of Jessica’s family have waited for this theatre’s revival. Now it’s been mothballed

Playwright David Williamson has called out a council’s funding of sporting ovals while delaying a start on a new home for Marian Street Theatre.

smh.com.au

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

Anna Funder: ‘I clearly didn’t know what I was doing … but always knew I was going to write’

The writer and newly installed University of Sydney professor on the lure of Berlin, authors versus AI, and writing ‘from a place of admiration’

theguardian.com

I'm at the launch of Madness Then & Now by Roby Raeburn and Claire Chang, the history of Australia's second Lunatic Asylum in Liverpool. Launched at Liverpool Library, published by Liverpool City Council. Fascinating to hear about the influences of Madness on the colony of Australia.

When "done" is better than "ready" We all lose out. Artists are treated like machines, and audiences left wondering if the whole point was to sit above the art judging it not in it, experiencing it. How many times does this happen in Oz Theatre? All.The. Time. www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...

Australia is publishing books too quickly – and everyone is losing out

Thanks to rushed deadlines, financial pressure and overworked staff, titles are going to market before they’re ready – and then sliding from view immediately

theguardian.com

"Reading is having a moment,’ according to Tinder. But do its users actually appreciate books, or just talk about them to get dates?" Asks @theguardian.com

Booksmaxxing: how reading became sexy

‘Reading is having a moment,’ according to Tinder. But do its users actually appreciate books, or just talk about them to get dates?

theguardian.com

I think what confuses people so much is when someone is doing something not for money, but for the cultural good or the social/artistic good. Those that treat art like a transaction and not a relationship completely miss the point of art.

Martin Shaw@thebooksdesk.bsky.social · 2mo ago

"What are ppl consistently getting wrong about...agenting today? The assumption that they only care about $ – 15% of a small book deal & NYC rent are genuinely incompatible. But there are ppl in this profession who are deeply committed to the literary future" www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/...

I think there has been such a cultural and social shift because of the harmful pokies of the past - as a nation we have become greedy and selfish hoarders. I don't think there is anything clever about creating mortgage stress and a housing crisis - for our fellow citizens.

Martin Shaw@thebooksdesk.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Makes me think of the creative exodus from OZ among those who have been / are able; whatever "fall" there is in house prices is not going to reverse that. And those who can't abandon or reduce their creative practice. A "long road to repair" on that front too then www.theguardian.com/business/gro...

Such a lovely night at the WonderPlay Studio May Writers' Residency Readings, sharing a couple of excerpts from my new full length play, Three Reasons Why. Thanks to Jane Phegan and Julian Colman for adding voice and breath to my work - total legends!

I am watching the Kylie Minogue Doco and I must admit that I feel strangely moved and in awe of her. And in an era of cynicism and sarcasm, there is something incredible about a person who is that particular shade of sunshine and vulnerability.

What a gift it is to spend time with this gentleman - his strength & kindness, good-natured humour & infuriating consistency. I soak in his kindness, his calm, his wit. If you can, friends, get yourself a @thebooksdesk.bsky.social to work alongside, to plot, plan & imagine with...It is liberating!

Dire Straits released their fifth studio album “Brothers in Arms” on this day in 1985. It would become the first album to sell over one million copies in CD format. Thoughts? Favourite tracks? #DireStraits

Tourism, diplomacy and the arts... themusic.com.au/industry/del...

Delta Goodrem Funding Underlines Economics Of Eurovision

As Australia readies itself to watch another year of Eurovision, we've received another insight into how the economics of Eurovision operate.

themusic.com.au

I’m delighted to be leading the Lake Macquarie Play Project Workshops as part of this year’s Dobell Festival thanks to the incredible support of Lake Macquarie City Council Over 2 half days we will be generating new material inspired by place & community. Register: www.lakemac.com.au/Events-direc...

Great men of Industry - @thebooksdesk.bsky.social and the mighty Wayne Marshall post celebratory launch of Henry Goes Bush published by @picadorbooks.bsky.social

Last Saturday I was honoured to receive recognition for my support and dedication to the writing community of the Romanian and Australian Anthology of Contemporary Poetry and Prose, led by Mihaela Cristescu at The State Library of New South Wales.

Looking forward to spending some time in a gorgeous artist-led space where the needs of artists are prioritised and creativity is nurtured. #writerinresidence

I'm so pleased to be selected as an inaugural Writer in Residence at WonderPlay Studio on William Street, Darlinghurst. #writerinresidence

Archibald prize 2026 finalists: Virginia Trioli, Jan Fran, Ahmed al-Ahmed and more – in pictures www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...

Archibald prize 2026 finalists: Virginia Trioli, Jan Fran, Ahmed al-Ahmed and more – in pictures

More than 1,000 portraits have been whittled down to 59 finalists for this year’s Archibald. Here is a selection

theguardian.com

"As the sun sets, the moon rises and the birds call the stars out of hiding I'm breathing in insect songs Breathing out stringy barks Turning right at no left turns And keeping on at keeping on" Thanks to @thebooksdesk.bsky.social for taking me on our evening constitutional!

Shout out: @thebooksdesk.bsky.social was an excellent official theatre "+1" last week: 🤍 New Aussie play "The Roaches & The Boot" @ FlightPathTheatre 🤍An Urdu/English Aussie play "KaMeeNi" by Abida Malik 🤍 The River @sydneyoperahouse.bsky.social 🤍 My Brilliant Career @sydneytheatreco.bsky.social