Friday 16 July 2010

Fiction Hits the Streets

On Monday the special fiction edition of the Big Issue officially hits the streets.

Vendors will be selling a magazine that includes new pieces from Michel Faber,Toni Jordan and Christos Tsiolkas. Deputy editor Melissa Cranenburgh reckons it’s one of the Australia’s most widely read magazines still publishing short stories. “With a readership of more than 154,000 the Big Issue’s fiction edition is one of the most widely read fiction magazines in Australia,” Cranenburgh says.

Last year the fiction edition sold out and this year they’ve crammed in another 8 pages to accommodate all the new stories. But as with every edition of the Big Issue, Cranenburgh is keen to point out that the five bucks cover price is a “chance to support the vendor standing in front of you.”

Melbourne Writers Festival Tickets on Sale

Got your copy of the Melbourne Writers Festival Program yet?

The hottest ticket is bound to be Joss Whedon’s keynote address as he talks about everything from Buffy the Vampire Slayer to his latest project, the Avengers movie. By the time you’ve read this it probably will have sold out – that’s how hot these tickets are.

But that’s the second keynote. The first keynote earlier in the evening of the 27th of August has eight writers talking about “Eight Ways of Being Human” including Cate Kennedy and Alex Miller.

The Schools program has been released for a while, but the Big Ideas for Schools section has great range as it raises political careers, media representation and the environment with Tim Flannery kicking proceedings off.

But it’s also a program with great skills on offer. The regular session The Whole Shebang is a full-day look behind the scenes of publishing including publishers like Michael Heyward and Bob Session as well as writers like Toni Jordan. There’s plenty of other chances to get involved though with a creative non-fiction workshop with Simon Winchester or poetry with August Kleinzahler, plus masterclasses in biography with Francis Wheen or fiction with Barbara Trapido. It’s looking like the biggest year yet.