Compulsive Reader Talks

The author of Through the Trapdoor reads from and talks about her new short story collection. We cover such things as how the collection came together, the interconnectivity of the stories, the title and the many trapdoors in the book, some of the key themes especially migration, memory, transformation, and the epiphany. We also discuss the publication process, the book's illustrations, the short story form, and lots more. Through the Trapdoor is now available at Paperchain Bookstore: https://paperchainbookstore.com.au/book/through-the-trapdoor.do and will soon be available at Harry Hartog ANU (Canberra) and Harry Hartog Miranda (Sydney), and the National Library of Australia Bookshop.

Angela Costi joins us to read from and talk about her latest poetry book The Heart of the Advocate. We talk about many things including how the book came together, the hybrid nature of the book, the nexus between poetry and law, her use of language, point and counterpoint or strophe and antistrophe, layers of ekphrasis - including the book The Art of the Advocate by Richard Du Cann, her use of Greek Mythology, Philoxena or the love of strangers, and much more. Purchase the book here: https://liquidamberpress.com.au/product/the-heart-of-the-advocate/Find out more about Angela here: https://www.instagram.com/angelacostipoetics/A few of Angela's references:Jordie Albiston: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordie_AlbistonAlison Whittaker's Blak Work: https://www.magabala.com/products/blakworkMartin Espada: http://www.martinespada.net/Yiannis Ritsos: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yiannis_Ritsos

Bob Rich joins us to read from and talk about his new book, The Hole in Your Life: Grief and Bereavement. He talks about the narrative of the book which is a combination of personal and clinical experience, about the 7 magic bullets which underpin the book, about why he defines himself as everyone's grandfather and the nature of empathy, about the mess we're in and why, about universal love, his newsletter Bobbing Around, now in its 14th year, and lots more. Get a copy of The Hole in Your Life on the relevant Amazon site.

Katia Ariel reads from and talks about her new book Ferryman: The Life and Deathwork of Ephraim Finch. We talk about her unique way of engaging with her subject, about creating biographies that are respectful, open, and true, about Ephraim's role in the community and the way in which Ariel universalises it, about ancestry and inheritance, grief, death and love, and lots more. Find out more about Katia Ariel and her books at: http://arielediting.com.au/Ferryman book page at the publisher's site: https://www.wilddingopress.com.au/shop/p/9781925893861

Ashley Kalagian Blunt joins us again to read from and talk about her book Cold Truth. We talk about such things as the Winnipeg climate which is such a feature in the book, along with other aspects of the city and fun facts, the relationships between characters, about becoming the cyber crime/tech noir queen, the optioning of her previous book Dark Web , the new book out very soon, Like, Follow, Die!, narrated by Claudia Karvan, and lots more including some of her upcoming events. Find out more about Ashley at her website: https://www.ashleykalagianblunt.com/Grab hold of Cold Truth: https://www.ashleykalagianblunt.com/cold-truthFind Like, Follow, Die!: https://www.ashleykalagianblunt.com/like-follow-die

Paris Rosemont reads from and talks about her new poetry book Barefoot Poetess . We cover such topics as how and why she began writing, the notion of poetic 'play', the balance between confession and performance, the joy of theatre and its relationship to poetry, her work-in-progress, and lots more. Find out more about Paris her website: https://www.parisrosemont.com/Buy a copy of Barefoot Poetess: https://www.westwords.com.au/product/barefoot-poetess/

Terri-ann White, founder of Upswell Publishing, reads from and talks about her own book Finding Theodore and Brina. We talk about how the book came about, how her relationship with the book and its characters have changed over time, notions of memoir, memory, writing place, on what can and can't be known, the power of stories, reclamation, The Swan River, time, and lots more. To obtain a copy of Finding Theodore and Brina visit: https://upswellpublishing.com/product/finding-theodore-and-brinaVisit Upswell: https://upswellpublishing.com/

In this episode, Phillis Levin, the author of six poetry collections, offers an in-depth look at her newest book, An Anthology of Rain, published by Barrow Street Press. A “poet’s poet,” Levin discusses her career, including her previous works such as Mr. Memory & Other Poems (Penguin) and her accolades, which include the Poetry Society of America’s Norma Farber First Book Award, a Fulbright Scholar Award, and fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. Phillis shares her creative process, her inspirations drawn from her childhood, and her experiences traveling around the world, including her time spent in Slovenia and Japan. She also reflects on the significance of poetry in different cultures and offers insights on the importance of “cleaning the palate” in her writing routine. The episode concludes with Phillis’s reading of the title poem, “An Anthology of Rain,” providing a glimpse into her intricate and profound poetic voice.About Phillis LevinPhillis Levin is

Andrea Goldsmith reads from and talks about her. new novel The Buried Life. We talk about the delicate dance between death and life in the book, about the characters and their arcs, the importance of friendship, Mahler, cheese, rapture, and lots more. Find more about Andrea's work at: http://andreagoldsmith.com.auGrab a copy of the book at: https://transitlounge.com.au/shop/the-buried-life/Compulsive Reader review: https://compulsivereader.com/2025/02/19/a-review-of-the-buried-life-by-andrea-goldsmith/

Dr Karen Pearlman, director of the new film Breaking Plates, talks about the making of her latest film, the inventive ways she engages with Cinemas First Nasty women archive, her use of dance, song, visual collage, slapstick, splicing, intertextually , feminist theory, humour , her excellent actors, on working with her talented family team, and lots more. More on Breaking Plates: http://physicaltv.com.au/breaking-plates/Physical TV’s many projects http://physicaltv.com.auCinema’s First Nasty Women Archive https://wfpp.columbia.edu/cinemas-first-nasty-women/Breaking Plates will have its Australian Premiere on Saturday February 8, 2025, 1.15pm, at Dendy Cinemas Newtown, on the shorts program of the Antenna Documentary Film Festival. Info/Tix: https://tinyurl.com/BP-Antenna

Damen O'Brien reads from and talks about his latest poetry book Walking the Boundary. We talk about such things as the way the book came together as a collection, the joy (and horror) of wriggling creatures, inheritance, apocalypse, humour, and lots more. Find out more about Damen at his website: https://www.dameno.org/ Buy a copy of Walking the Boundary at: https://pittstreetpoetry.com/book/walking-the-boundary/

PS Cottier and NG Hartland, authors of The Thirty-one Legs of Vladimir Putin, read from and talk about their new book, which won the Finlay Lloyd 20/40 publishing prize for fiction. We talk about some of the key themes in the book like identity, semblance, what's real and what isn't, the book's prescience in dealing with power dynamics and image, their writing process, characters, works-in-progress, and lots more. More information on The Thirty-One Legs of Vladimir Putin can be found here: https://finlaylloyd.com/product/the-thirty-one-legs-of-vladimir-putin-ps-cottier-ng-hartland/ PS Cottier's website: https://pscottier.com/

John Kinsella reads from and talks about his new short story collection Beam of Light. We talk about the use of furniture in this book, the connective themes, its malevolent undercurrent, the importance and beauty of a sentient landscape, his characters and their struggles against the colonial mindset, what poetry and fiction can do and why he might choose one form or another, and lots more. For more on John and his extensive body of work, visit: ⁠https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Kinsella_(poet)⁠ For more on Beam of Light visit: ⁠https://transitlounge.com.au/shop/beam-of-light-stories/

This was a special zoom session of poetry to mark the 10th anniversary of Girls on Key featuring Sophia Wilson, Mikaela Nyman, Kiri Piahana-Wong, Patricia Sykes, Nancy Holland-Shroder, and open mic readings from Anna Forsyth (GoK founder), Lou Steer, and Magdalena Ball (host) Video link: https://www.facebook.com/830439988/videos/1307289250655911/ Girls on Key: https://girlsonkey.wixsite.com/.../copy-of-girls-on-key... Sophia Wilson: https://sophiakwilson.wordpress.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bluetree_poet/ Sea Skins: https://flyingislandspocketpoets.com.au/?s=Sophia%20wilson Mikaela Nyman: https://www.otago.ac.nz/.../otago.../robert-burns-fellowship https://www.read-nz.org/writers-files/writer/nyman-mikaela Kiri Piahana-Wong: https://www.anahera.co.nz/books/tidelines Patricia Sykes: https://www.spinifexpress.com.au/patriciasykes Nancy Holland-Schroder: https://www.instagram.com/nancylouiseholland/?hl=enhttps://www.aucklandacademyofdance.co.nz Lou Steer: https://www.facebook.com/lousteerartist/

Sarah Temporal is a prize-winning poet, producer, and educator who runs the well-respected regional arts initiative Poets Out Loud. She joins us to read from and talk about her debut book Tight Bindings. Visit Sarah’s website at: https://sarahtemporal.com/ Watch videos of Sarah performing and order Tight Bindings: https://puncherandwattmann.com/product/tight-bindings/ Damien Becker’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seasaltskin?igsh=MWVqNDFkYzR0M3J1MA==

Patti Miller joins us to read from and talk about her book Writing True Stories which has just been extensively updated and extended. She talks about what has changed in the 30+ years since she started teaching Life Writing, the impact of technology, her best tip, her own work in progress, and lots more. Find out more about Patti and Writing True Stories at her website: https://lifestories.com.au Find a copy of Writing True Stories here: https://www.routledge.com/Writing-True-Stories-The-Complete-Guide-to-Memoir-Creative-Non-Fiction-Personal-Essay-Diaries-Biography-and-Travel/Miller/p/book/9781032765631

Julia Levitina reads from and talks about her new book The Girl From Moscow including such things as how the book came about, why fiction, how the book follows her own departure from the Soviet Union, the importance of 1983 as her setting, inherited trauma and her protagonists, antisemitism, the theatre, her work-in-progress and lots more. Find out more about Julia at her website here: https://www.julialevitinaauthor.com/

Omar Musa joins us to perform from and talk about his new album The Fullness. We talk about collaboration and his amazing collaborators, pushing into liminal spaces of multiple identities, leaning into grief and joy ("our lives given shape by shadows"), ego deflation, how some of the songs on The Fullness were created, the percussiveness of rap and its conjunction with poetry, the alchemical process of art, the dissolving of borders between artforms and nationalities, the resonance of the mother tongue, poetry as a language of feeling, the value of working on multiple projects at once, and lots more.  Listen to The Fullness: https://open.spotify.com/album/4KTsmsM6AlcoZbno4rlpax?si=91db8a8708684c52 Omar's website: https://www.omarmusa.com.au/

Kent MacCarter joins us to read from and talk about his new poetry book Fat Chance. We talk about Kent's process, about having written the "feel bad book of the year”, his journalistic process, the nature of Gossypiboma (retained medical objects), memoir, reverse ekphrasis, and lots more. For more information or to purchase a copy of Fat Chance visit: https://upswellpublishing.com/product/fat-chance Kent will be a guest at this year's Brisbane Writers Festival. For details about his two events, visit: https://bwf.org.au/2024/brisbane-writers-festival/artists/kent-maccarter

Robbie Coburn reads from and talks about his new book Ghost Poetry. Topics covered include the many ghosts that haunt the pages of the book, dreams and nightmares, the relationship between horses and people, subject and object, the subconscious, confessional poetry and the creative act/the artifice, horses, gothic country as a genre, and lots more. Where to buy the book: Upswell - Ghost Poetry (upswellpublishing.com) Robbie's website: Robbie Coburn