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austlit.bsky.social
AustLit
@austlit.bsky.social
850 followers 160 following 140 posts
AustLit is a bio-bibliographical database of stories by Australians and about Australia.

https://www.austlit.edu.au/
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austlit.bsky.social
How AustLit actually works:
October 15, 2025 at 11:29 PM
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austlit.bsky.social
So happy to share that AustLit features in UQ Arts Fund for #UQGivingDay – Wed. 15 Oct.! Gifts support AustLit's work, from maintaining the database to building research partnerships. Today, gifts are matched $-to-$ by UQ (until allocations are exhausted!), doubling your impact!
#AustLit #BlackWords
UQ Arts Fund - The University of Queensland
UQ Arts is the creative heart of UQ – where art, music, performance, writing, history and culture come together to spark new ideas and inspire change. Gifts to the UQ Arts Fund will be directed to exh...
givingday.uq.edu.au
October 14, 2025 at 10:44 PM
austlit.bsky.social
So happy to share that AustLit features in UQ Arts Fund for #UQGivingDay – Wed. 15 Oct.! Gifts support AustLit's work, from maintaining the database to building research partnerships. Today, gifts are matched $-to-$ by UQ (until allocations are exhausted!), doubling your impact!
#AustLit #BlackWords
UQ Arts Fund - The University of Queensland
UQ Arts is the creative heart of UQ – where art, music, performance, writing, history and culture come together to spark new ideas and inspire change. Gifts to the UQ Arts Fund will be directed to exh...
givingday.uq.edu.au
October 14, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Reposted by AustLit
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
'Towards a comprehensive picture of Australian literature beyond the publishing capitals' is the culmination of years worth of work analysing data from the @austlit.bsky.social database. It's available open access from @mediaintaus.bsky.social - follow the link to read!

doi.org/10.1177/1329...
Towards a comprehensive picture of Australian literature beyond the publishing capitals - Alexandra Dane, Beth Driscoll, Caitlin Parker, Sandra Phillips, Kim Wilkins, 2025
This article details the independent, small press and community publishing in Australia that is occurring outside the two major metropolitan publishing centres ...
doi.org
October 2, 2025 at 2:47 AM
austlit.bsky.social
Just a reminder: we're an excellent list of your articles (provided they're within our scope!). Check your record on AustLit!
(And email us if we missed something. We love that!*)

*not sarcasm. We do!
dranitaheiss.bsky.social Dr Anita Heiss @dranitaheiss.bsky.social · Aug 21
This is an extraordinary story of what happened when a writer asked Chat GPT for a little help putting together a portfolio of her articles. It’s insane. And compulsive reading!! It’s not long, so do read through to the end.

www.ourgreaterdestiny.ca/p/diabolus-e...

@austlit.bsky.social
Diabolus Ex Machina
A powerful 'lesson' for everyone, not an essay.
www.ourgreaterdestiny.ca
August 21, 2025 at 12:59 AM
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dranitaheiss.bsky.social
Register now for Indigenous Literacy Day and learn more at ILF.org.au/ild

@austlit.bsky.social

#ild2025 #indigenousliteracyday #readingopensdoors #mobsky
August 20, 2025 at 12:03 AM
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jntod.bsky.social
Famously, between the first and the second act of Waiting for Godot, the only difference in the stage set is that a previously bare tree ‘has four or five leaves’. So what’s the main note to self I found in this copy which seems to have belonged to a stage manager called Nigel...?
Faber paperback edition of Waiting for Godot with STAGE MANAGER'S COPY / NIGEL written on the cover in pencil End of Act 1 of Waiting for Godot: beneath 'CURTAIN' someone has written the capitalised words, in pencil, 'INTERMISSION / DO LEAVES'
August 13, 2025 at 10:16 AM
austlit.bsky.social
Favourite cover of the day: Krystal Sutherland is usually treated well by her cover artists, but wow do we especially love this Spanish edition of The Invocations.
Against a red brocade wallpaper, a young girl with black hair, wearing a dark blazer and light blouse, is staring down at the bottom left hand corner of the book, presenting the viewer with a three-quarter profile. Her face is very pale. Her eyes are red-rimmed and have dark shadows under them. Her lips are slightly parted. Two grey-skinned hands with long fingernails reach over her shoulders in the direction of her gaze: the long, thin fingers are reddish. In the bottom foreground, a single candle burns.
August 13, 2025 at 10:50 PM
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dranitaheiss.bsky.social
Lists are subjective, but there's a few in this one that are my faves too. Esp love Samuel Wagan Watson's SMOKE ENCRYPTED WHISPERS!

"Australian Poetry Month: 10 essential Australian collections that will change how you read"

www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...
Australian Poetry Month: 10 essential Australian collections that will change how you read
The artistic directors of Red Room Poetry share a list of unmissable titles for seasoned readers and newcomers alike
www.theguardian.com
August 6, 2025 at 7:38 AM
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dranitaheiss.bsky.social
Congratulations to all those longlisted for the 2025 Mark and Evette Moran Nib Literary Award. It's very special to be on the list alongside so many extraordinary authors, including my own Bundyi author, Tasma Walton.

@austlit.bsky.social

#dirrayawadha #riseup #nibliteraryaward #longlist
August 6, 2025 at 5:50 AM
austlit.bsky.social
Today's favourite book cover: this absolute stunner from Nicolas Rothwell and Alison Nampitjinpa Anderson.
Just published!
Red-orange cliff-faces rise up on the left and right hand side of the cover, with a red dirt road running between them. The space between the cliffs is filled with black sky and a multitude of stars. At the end of the road, facing the viewer, is a car, with its headlights on high beam.
July 29, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Reposted by AustLit
dranitaheiss.bsky.social
Please join Amy Barry, Stacey McEwan, Steffanie Holmes and me for some ROMANCE WRITING REVELRY at Fullers Bookshop, Hobart on August 25. It’s going to be a blast!

Tix on sale now: www.fullersbookshop.com.au/event/romanc...

@austlit.bsky.social

#romance #romancewriting #blueskybooks #booksky
Romance Writing Revelry
www.fullersbookshop.com.au
July 28, 2025 at 5:55 AM
austlit.bsky.social
Coming soon: a *free* two-day in-person symposium on Imaginative Literature for Children and Beyond: Australia, Japan, and the World. Author talks, translation workshops, and more. There are QR codes in the poster below, or check the link to register:
languages-cultures.uq.edu.au/event/11005/...
Poster for the upcoming two-day symposium: includes QR codes for registration (all information in the image, including registration, also available in the link in the text of this post).
July 24, 2025 at 5:18 AM
austlit.bsky.social
New on AustLit: a new BlackWords information trail drawing on the ATSIS Unit at UQ's Music & Language pilot program on the role of music in language reclamation.
Explore at: www.austlit.edu.au/musicandlang...
This trail was developed by AustLit intern Clare Glassock, as were these lovely tiles!
A brown background, with the white text Music & Language. Below, some grey parallel lines split into chaotic harmonics. The bottom line reads 'a new BlackWords information trail. A background image looking across the Snowy Mountains from the Mount Kosciuszko lookout. A series of harmonic lines in brown are at the top and bottom of the page. Below the top set, a headline reads 'ATSIS' Music & Language Pilot Program'. The main text reads, 'The role of music in sustaining our languages and cultural practices is so important. It gives us a sense of connection. Also I think it’s that continuation of oral history that we've always done through dance, song, ceremony, lore.’ (Deline Briscoe) Funded by the Centre for Digital Societies and Cultures at the University of Queensland, this pilot project by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Unit (ATSIS) undertook 5 case studies with individual Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people to document the ways they are using music to preserve and sustain languages in their professional and personal lives.' Below this, the Blackwords logo of a red figure emerging from a blue wave against a green hill appears, and the text 'AustLit and the BlackWords team have created an information trail inspired by this research.' On a brown background with pale grey harmonic lines, the cover images appear for four books: Music, Dance and the Archive; I Am Me; Words to Sing the World Alive; and Tjitiji Lullaby. The text, curved around the harmonic lines, reads, 'Taking cue from ATSIS' Music and Language Pilot Program, this trail is composed of fiction and non-fiction works on First Nations language and music. Explore now: https://www.austlit.edu.au/musicandlanguage On a grey background with white harmonics lines, the covers of CD releases by Aboriginal bands appear: Warumpi Band's Papunya Sessions 1982, Go Bush!, and Big Name, No Blankets; Yothu Yindi's Freedom and Tribal Voice; Kuckles' Bran Nue Day; and Us Mob and No Fixed Address's Wrong Side of the Road. Text reads 'discover more @ austlit.edu.au'
July 24, 2025 at 12:29 AM
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dranitaheiss.bsky.social
Elevate: First Nations Storytelling and Literature Fund

$10,000 grant for career development, open to Australian First Nations writers, poets, editors, illustrators, journalists, arts workers, and groups in the literature sector.

creative.gov.au/investments-...
Elevate: First Nations Storytelling and Literature Fund
$10,000 grant for career development, open to Australian First Nations writers, poets, editors, illustrators, journalists, arts workers, and groups in the literature sector.
creative.gov.au
July 23, 2025 at 3:13 AM
austlit.bsky.social
First Nations writers! Have you seen Magabala Books' callout for a First Nations romance anthology? Edited by BlackWords Coordinator Melanie Saward, Ambelin Kwaymullina, and Kate Cuthbert.
Details below. Submissions due by 31 October 2025.
magabala.com.au/blogs/news/s...
Submissions open for inaugural First Nations romance anthology published by Magabala Books
Magabala Books is excited to announce a call for submissions of short works of romance fiction by First Nation writers for a world-first anthology, edited by Melanie Saward, Ambelin Kwaymullina, and K...
magabala.com.au
July 21, 2025 at 12:37 AM
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dranitaheiss.bsky.social
Proud to be a contributor to Rivers Flow: Reflections on the songs of Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter
Edited by Kim Scott & Casey Mulder. Published by Fremantle Press, with book club notes. Released this coming October.
You can pre-order now
fremantlepress.com.au/books/rivers...

@austlit.bsky.social
Rivers Flow: Reflections on the songs of Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter - Fremantle Press
Rivers Flow honours the profound musical and cultural legacy of Archie Roach – a Gunditjmara, Kirrae Whurrong/Djab Wurrung and Bundjalung man – and Ruby Hunter – a Ngarrindjeri, Kokatha and Pitjantjat...
fremantlepress.com.au
July 15, 2025 at 2:56 AM
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magabalabooks.bsky.social
It's launch day for these two deadly titles! 🤩

🖤 'Cloudmaker' by Helen Milroy

🖤 'Old Days Imanka nurna laakinha nitjaarta' by Marjorie ‘Nunga’ Williams

Congrats to both 📚
July 8, 2025 at 7:43 AM
austlit.bsky.social
NAIDOC spotlight: the most recent work added to BlackWords is Mitch Tambo's forthcoming picture book (pub. Sept. 2025), I Am Me, which was indexed yesterday morning.
Cover image of Mitch Tambo's picture book I Am Me, showing Mitch Tambo dancing in the centre of the image, with a young Aboriginal girl dancing on either side of him.
July 8, 2025 at 9:52 PM
austlit.bsky.social
We witnessed the line dancing at the UQ launch, so we are here to endorse that there will definitely be line dancing!
July 8, 2025 at 6:20 AM
austlit.bsky.social
New for NAIDOC Week: a BlackWords information trail exploring strength (and sharing culture), vision (in looking forward), and legacy (when looking back). This trail was compiled by current winter scholar Clare Glassock, who also created these lovely slides.
www.austlit.edu.au/naidoc2025
On a brown background, the cover images for Everywhen: Australia and the Language of Deep History, Ceremony, and This All Come Back Now, as well as the logo for ABC's Little Yarns, and a small screencap from Big J and Little Cuz. The text reads '50 Years of NAIDOC. Strength and sharing culture.' On a green background, the cover images for Edenglassie, Weaving Country, Moonlight and Dust, Our Flag, Our Story, and part of Drop Bear. The text reads, '50 Years of NAIDOC. Vision in Looking Forward'. On a blue blackground, the covers of Yarn Quest, Dirrayawadha, and Words to Sing the World Alive, as well as small images from two theatrical performances, and a banner image of the First Nations Classics from UQP. Text reads, '50 Years of NAIDOC. Legacy when looking back'.
July 8, 2025 at 1:54 AM
austlit.bsky.social
NAIDOC spotlight: young-adult fantasy and speculative fiction from First Nations authors. One of our favourite genres--and one which is incredibly rich and rewarding right now! These are the merest sampling: check BlackWords for more.
Cover of Lystra Rose's novel The Upwelling. Black background with a swirl in different colours of blue, overlaid with white and blue drawings. Cover of Lystra Rose's Washpool. Two young Aboriginal girls, one in profile and one in three-quarter profile, looking out to the right-hand side of the cover, on a pale pink background. The cover for Jasmin McGaughey's Moonlight and Dust. A young Torres Strait Islander girl, who appears to have lightning running under or across her skin, looks directly at the viewer. Behind her is an enormous full moon, with three palm trees silhouetted against it. The cover is in shades of purple. A young Aboriginal girl stares directly at the viewer: her head is lowered so she is looking up from under her eyebrows, and only half her face is visible. At the bottom of the cover are three silhouettes of leaves in brown and white.
July 7, 2025 at 11:20 PM
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lewwelchthepoet.bsky.social
Yes, and they’re incredible.
austlit.bsky.social AustLit @austlit.bsky.social · Jul 7
NAIDOC spotlight: have you checked out Comics on Country?
Includes the Indigiverse (Dark Heart and Dreamwalker), but also much much more.
comics.org.au
Home - Comics On Country
First Nations creators telling their stories through the language of comics.
comics.org.au
July 7, 2025 at 6:26 AM
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dranitaheiss.bsky.social
This is tomorrow! Wednesday. And we'd love you to join us as we talk First Nations storytelling and publishing and Tasma's breathtaking novel I AM NANNERTGARROOK.

It's online and free!

With thanks to the Australian Society of Authors.
July 7, 2025 at 9:11 PM
austlit.bsky.social
NAIDOC spotlight: have you checked out Comics on Country?
Includes the Indigiverse (Dark Heart and Dreamwalker), but also much much more.
comics.org.au
Home - Comics On Country
First Nations creators telling their stories through the language of comics.
comics.org.au
July 7, 2025 at 4:52 AM