Meet the Mentors
Meet the Mentors
The Next Chapter is about providing new writers with the time and space to craft their voice and career. It’s about investing in a new generation of writers who will reflect the diversity of Australian identities and experiences. Below are The Next Chapter mentors, who work with writers over 12 months to develop their work and help connect them with publishers and readers.
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2021
Activist, poet and academic Natalie Harkin is mentoring Anne-Marie Te Whiu
Novelist Peggy Frew is mentoring Brooke Maddison
Writer André Dao is mentoring Jose Da Costa
Author Bella Li is mentoring Josie/Jocelyn Deane
Novelist Hannah Kent is mentoring Jumaana Abdu
Academic and poet Alison Whittaker is mentoring Luke Patterson
Writer, poet and academic Jeanine Leane is mentoring Micaela Sahhar
Writer and editor Zoya Patel is mentoring Monikka Eliah
Author and academic Beth Yahp is mentoring Mykaela Saunders
Author and academic Tony Birch is mentoring Tristen Harwood
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2020
Novelist, essayist, and researcher Maria Tumarkin mentored essayist and screenwriter Oliver Reeson
Novelist Mirandi Riwoe mentored memoirist Sharlene Allsopp
Writer and poet Maxine Beneba Clarke mentored poet, editor and curator Bigoa Chuol
Poet and researcher Evelyn Araluen mentored writer, editor, and arts worker Lujayn Hourani
Cartoonist and educator Sarah Howell mentored comic artist and zine-maker Mia Nie
Journalist, essayist, poet and fiction writer Anna Krien mentored writer and editor Timothy Loveday
Memoirist Kristina Olsson mentored writer and teacher Khin Myint
Author Bruce Pascoe mentored writer Jonathan Slottje
Writer and theatre-maker Claire Christian mentored editor and writer Allanah Hunt
Novelist Shane Maloney mentored writer Angelina Hurley
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2019
Educator and arts programmer Michelle Fracaro mentored memoirist, performer and musician Racheal Oak Butler
Novelist and non-fiction writer Chloe Hooper mentored writer and community lawyer Sam Elkin
Novelist, storyteller and human rights advocate Arnold Zable mentored memoirist Arthur Bolkas
Non-fiction and science writer Rebecca Giggs mentored essayist Dan Hogan
Writer, editor and lawyer Alice Pung mentored memoirist Faina Iligoga
Novelist and non-fiction writer Melissa Lucashenko mentored young adult fiction writer Jasmin McGaughey
Poetry, prose and film writer Romaine Moreton mentored poet Lorna Munro
Artist and writer Sally Morgan mentored comedic fantasy writer Jasper Wyld
Poet and novelist Ellen van Neerven and poet, performer and children’s book writer Tusiata Avia mentored poet and critic Meleika Gesa-Fatafehi
Academic Duncan Campbell provided translation advice and assistance to fiction writer Grace Lee
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2018
Poet, short-story writer and novelist Tony Birch mentored poet Evelyn Araluen
Playwright, theatre-maker and memoirist Michele Lee mentored memoirist Giselle Au-Nhien Nguyen
Author, cultural historian, and creative writing teacher Maria Tumarkin mentored memoirist Jean Bachoura
Award-winning short-story writer Nam Le mentored short fiction writer Ennis Cehic
Poet, essayist and legal scholar Alison Whittaker mentored non-fiction writer Nayuka Gorrie
Young adult writer and advocate Rebecca Lim mentored young adult speculative fiction writer Lian Low
Memoirist and oral storyteller Sisonke Msimang mentored memoirist Yamiko Marama
Humorous fiction writer Nick Earls mentored comic fiction writer Ara Sarafian
Award-winning fiction and non-fiction writer Melissa Lucashenko mentored young adult fiction writer Adrian Stanley
Acclaimed novelist, poet and short-story writer Cate Kennedy mentored short fiction writer Adam Thompson