Community Publishing in Regional Australia
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communitypubinaus.bsky.social
Community Publishing in Regional Australia
@communitypubinaus.bsky.social
44 followers 48 following 53 posts
Researching how community groups in regional Australia are using digital technology to publish and distribute books. 2023-2025.

https://linktr.ee/communitypublishinginaus
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communitypubinaus.bsky.social
Registrations are now open for our (free!) upcoming symposium! 🥳 It will be held on 24th November, running approximately between 10am and 4pm AEDT (Syd/Melb Time). It is shaping up to be a great event full of SUCH interesting research on Reading, Writing, and Publishing in Regional Australia.
The image has a bright yellow and orange background, with dark green bold text. In the bottom left corner there is an illustrated image of a microphone. The text says: Registration now open! Reading, Writing and Publishing in Regional Australia Online Symposium Monday 24 November 2025
November 11, 2025 at 3:00 AM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
The CFP for our upcoming online symposium has officially closed!

Didn't manage to get your abstract submitted in time? No worries! Caitlin will still accept abstracts until early next week - so you still have a few more days to get yours in.
The image has a bright yellow and orange background and dark greed text. An illustrated image of a megaphone is in the bottom left corner, it is also dark green. The text reads: Online Symposium. Reading, Writing and Publishing in Regional Australia Monday 24 November 2025 Abstracts Due: 10 October 2025
October 10, 2025 at 6:00 AM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
Our latest journal article has been published and is available to read now!
The image is of the first page of a journal article published by Media International Australia. Title: Towards a comprehensive picture of Australian literature beyond the publishing capitals. Authors: Alexandra Dane, Beth Driscoll, Caitlin Parker, Sandra Phillips, and Kim Wilkins. Abstract: This article details the independent, small press and community publishing in Australia that is occurring outside the two major metropolitan publishing centres of Sydney and Melbourne. Guided by Mary Graham's articulation of the significance of place (2007) and drawing on a dataset constructed from the AustLit database from 2013 to 2023, we identify a high quantity of varied publishing activity in Australia's regions. The result is a comprehensive picture of writing and publishing that covers publishing location, form, and genre. Our findings illustrate that each state and territory has its own profile of activity: while there are some broad trends that characterise publishing across the continent (such as the popularity of children's picture book publishing) there are also differences, such as the high proportion of poetry published in South Australia and the relatively high number of reference works published in First Nations languages in the Northern Territory. Our research thus offers new understandings of regional and community publishing and demonstrates the central role of place and community as a driving force of writing and publishing.
October 2, 2025 at 2:47 AM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
Thrilled that our article 'The significance of place in book publishing: Insights from community publishing in regional Australia' is out and available to read now!

doi.org/10.1177/1367...
The image is a screenshot of the abstract of a scholarly article. The title is 'The Significance of place in book publishing: Insights from community publishing in regional Australia.' The authors are Beth Driscoll, Alexandra Dane, Sandra Phillips, and Kim Wilkins. Abstract: This article argues for the importance of place in the study of contemporary publishing activity. We offer insights from a research project into the production of books by community groups and individuals in regional Australia, with a focus on four sites: Alice Springs/Mparntwe, Broken Hill/Willyama, Winton (on the lands of the Koa people) and Ayr (on the lands of the Bindal people). Our design is informed by place- and relationality-centred Indigenous research epistemologies, and also makes use of Western methods including interviews. Our research findings confirm that place is highly significant for some kinds of publishing activity, as writers and publishers are motivated to tell local stories, draw on local print businesses as well as digital technology, and share the resulting books with family, friends and close networks. These findings demonstrate alternative power relations to those that structure the mainstream publishing industry, where power is supposed to concentrate in global literary centres such as New York and London and writers from the margins struggle for recognition. Our research demonstrates that a focus on local places and community publishing can tell a new story of the future of the book by recognising divergent and locally specific practices.
August 25, 2025 at 6:12 AM
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Phillip Leighton-Daly is an author based in Moss Vale NSW. Phillip writes meticulously researched books about local history, and YA fiction: ‘This isn’t just storytelling. It’s history, heart, and hard-hitting fiction—crafted by a man who’s lived a life worth writing about.’
The image has a bright yellow background with bold white text. The text reads: Phillip Leighton Daly Author Spotlight. In the centre of the image are three books, positioned so they progress diagonally from top left to bottom right. The books are: Against the Tide, The Prince who wanted to live forever, and The Crinkling on the Pie. Each book is by Phillip Leighton-Daly
August 1, 2025 at 4:00 AM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
Elephant Page Publishing is an exciting new publishing house in Perth (Boorloo). The press is run by students under the guidance of a team of publishing professionals, and their mission is to “to uplift new voices and talents on both sides of the publishing process.”
The image has a lavender background decorated by white splotches like paint strokes. In the centre, there is a black logo of a stylised elephant head that resembles a capital 'E'. Next to it is text saying: Elephant Page Publishing.
July 18, 2025 at 4:41 AM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
We have a new article by team member Roseleigh Priest up on the Self-Publishing Australia blog! The article explores the experiences of indie authors, with insights from Kathleen Ryder, a wonderful indie romance author the team interviewed in Alice Springs.

selfpub.com.au/2025/06/we-s...
The image has a turquoise background and white text saying: "Article Publication! Click the link in our bio to read. 'We should be paying more attention to indie authors - here's why' Roseleigh Priest." In the middle of the image, there is an illustration of a white picture frame containing the logo for Self-Publishing Australia. It is a white square with large black text saying: "SP Aus"
July 4, 2025 at 6:01 AM
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It's here!!! Our DIY Publishing Toolkit is now freely available to read. If you're a writer getting ready to embark on your publishing adventure, this is the guide for you. Check it out!

hdl.handle.net/11343/356821
The image has text saying: "It's Here! Follow the link in our bio to read our new toolkit for aspiring authors." Next to the text is a book cover. It has a dark yellow background, and a circle in the middle with a yellow-to-orange gradient. The circle contains an illustration of an open book with flowers growing out of it (the Community Publishing in Regional Australia logo). The cover has text saying: "The community publishing in regional Australia project. DIY publishing Toolkit. Beth Driscoll, Kim Wilkins, Sandra Phillips and Alexandra Dane."
June 23, 2025 at 7:19 AM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
Get ready! On the 23rd of June we will be releasing a DIY Publishing Toolkit. If you're interested in publishing a book, no matter the genre, this toolkit will set you up for success!

Check back next week to read it for free!
The image has a yellow and teal cartoon of a calendar page. The text says: "Get Ready! 7 Days Left Until our DIY Publishing Toolkit."
June 16, 2025 at 8:33 AM
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Swallows Part One is a fabulous graphic novel by Tasmania based artist Joshua Santospirito. The novel follows Joshua’s grandfather as he built his life from a working child in the streets of Melbourne to the King of Flowers on Flinders Street.

www.sankessto.com/product/swal...
The image has a light blue background decorated with white silhouettes of flying swallows. There are two white bubbles shaped like clouds, containing dark blue text that says: 'Swallows Part One, Joshua Santospirito, San Kessto Publications.' A book cover is on the right. It is illustrated in dark blue and has a sketched appearance. It contains a nautical wooden structure, resembling a frame or ship window. There is a circle in the middle containing text, which says: "Swallows Part One, Joshua Santospirito."
June 12, 2025 at 6:18 AM
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Based out of the Federal Box Factory in Adelaide, Friendly Street Poets is Australia’s oldest open mic, poetry reading and publishing group. Dedicated to promoting South Australian poetry, they host monthly readings and publish annual poetry anthologies.

friendlystreetpoets.org.au/publications...
The image has a dark blue background and is decorated with three cartoon roads. In the middle of the image, there is a squiggly black line containing green text that says: "FRIENDLY STREET POETS."
June 9, 2025 at 3:51 AM
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Laugh Out Loud - Funny Things DO Happen is a collection of true, funny short stories by author Duncan Russell. Duncan lives in Milang, South Australia, and the stories in this collection capture the fantastic humour of everyday life, the funny things that happen to all of us.
The image has a white background. On the right, there are two brown lines resembling paint. They contain text that says: "Duncan Russell, Laugh Out Loud." There is also a cartoonish 'HA!' A book cover is on the left of the image. It also has a white background, with brown text saying: "Laugh Out Loud, Duncan Russell." The 'O' in 'Out' is an illustrated donut.
April 24, 2025 at 7:32 AM
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AndAlso Books is a Brisbane based small publisher with an amazing catalogue of fiction and non-fiction revolving around art, history, and music culture.
The image has a dark teal background. It is decorated with two groups of light green diagonal lines, and three white irregular circles. Two of the irregular circles, one in the top left corner, the other in the bottom right, have text in them. The text says: "Publisher Spotlight. AndAlso Books." Featured in the middle of the image is the logo of AndAlso Books. It is a black circle containing a connected white ampersand and 'a'.
February 21, 2025 at 4:26 AM
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Madelaine Dickie is an author not to be missed! In the last twelve years, she has worked out of Jakarta, Broome, Wyndham, Tokyo, Exmouth, and Arnhem Land. Madeline’s novels are published by Fremantle Press, in Western Australia.
The image has an orange background and text in the top right and bottom left corners. The text says: "Author Spotlight, Madelaine Dickie." Two book covers are featured, both in white frames. On the left, there is a black cover with two fish: one orange fish, and one fish sculpted from a silver can. The text is grey and says: "Red Can Origami, Madelaine Dickie." On the right, there is a cover depicting a young blonde woman diving beneath blue water, holding a long stick/spear. The text is white and says: "Winner, City of Fremantle T.A.G Hungerford Award. Madelaine Dickie, Troppo."
January 23, 2025 at 11:37 PM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
The Search for Time Warp Tommy is written by Jim Sinclair and published by Moonglow Publishing, a press based in Macclesfield South Australia.
The image has a yellow background and contains blue and white text that says: "Jim Sinclair, Moonglow Publishing, The Search for Time Warp Tommy." There is a white radio wave in the middle of the image, placed horizontally. A large book cover is featured on the left side of the image. It has a dark purple background and an illustration of a boy and an old radio flying in the air far above a cargo ship. It has wavy blue and white text that says: "The Search for Time Warp Tommy, By Jim Sinclair."
January 17, 2025 at 3:32 AM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
We're starting the New Year with a spectacular publisher!

Night Parrot Press is a not-for-profit independent publisher based in Perth that specialises in finding writing hidden in the periphery.
The image has a blue-green background with thick stripes of white at the top and bottom. It is decorated with two dark yellow parrot silhouettes flying in opposite directions. At the top of the image, there is text saying: "Publisher Spotlight." In the centre of the image, there is a large black logo. The logo features a black circle with the profile of a parrot cut out of it. Next to that, there is text saying: "NIGHT PARROT PRESS."
January 9, 2025 at 11:24 PM
communitypubinaus.bsky.social
If fun and fast-paced fantasy is your genre fancy, then Krake may be the author for you – her novels are jampacked with witches and demons, myth and treasure, clever heroines and nefarious villains.
The image is has a teal and yellow background, with many white stars placed aesthetically. The text reads: "Author Spotlight Kate Krake." The image includes the covers of two books: "A Maze of Murder by Kate Krate" which features a black cat and a witches hat on the cover, and "Night Shift at the Shadow Bay Hotel by Kate Krake" which features a haunted house with light shining from the windows.
December 16, 2024 at 12:08 AM
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"Know your Granny" and "At the River" are two children's picture books created by the Yiyili Community, located roughly halfway between Fitzroy Crossing and Halls Creek in the Kimberley, West Australia.
The background is white, and the text says: “Independent Published Books, Yiyili Community.” There are three images featured. On the left, there are two book covers, one above the other. Behind the covers, there is a waving dark green column. The top cover is of “Know Your Granny.” It is an illustration of nine Aboriginal people, including men, women, and children. They are dressed in yellows and oranges and stand together in a white and red landscape. The cover's text says: “Know Your Granny, Yiyili Aboriginal Community.” The bottom cover is of “At the River.” It is an illustration of an Aboriginal woman and child sitting together by a river bank. The woman is fishing and the child is patting a dog. The cover text says: “At the River, Joy Warring and Mervyn Street.” The last image, under the text on the right, is an illustration by Doreen Quilty of bush tucker. The image is from “Know Your Granny.” It includes three rows of edible Australian plants and animals.
December 5, 2024 at 6:46 AM