Title: Return Ticket Author: Jon Doust review Publisher: Fremantle Press Genre: Historical fiction Favourite quote: “Perhaps I wash the dishes the way I do because it suggests a way I might have lived – ordered, structured, careful and meditative” After reading this line at the conclusion of Return Ticket’s first chapter, I was hooked. Perhaps…
How to Write Horror, by Shelley Timms
Image from Pexels free images What makes a good horror story? Is it the shocking gore, or the slow burn of psychological torture that the reader is subjected to? In my experience, both types of horror can have similar effects—it is how the author constructs the story that matters. With the Underground Writers Horror issue…
Review: The History of Mischief by Rebecca Higgie, by Dylan Dartnell
Title: The History of Mischief Author: Rebecca Higgie Publisher: Fremantle Press Winner, Fremantle Press, The Fogarty Literary Award 2019 Introducing Rebecca Higgie and her award-winning work, The History of Mischief (Fremantle Press, 2020). The manuscript won the 2019 Fogarty Literary Award and let me be one of the many to tell you, it is well-deserved. Jessie…
“I had to do justice to this story”: An interview with Danielle Binks, by Max Vos
Danielle Binks is a Melbourne-based author and agent, who recently published her debut novel The Year the Maps Changed with Hachette Australia. Underground Writers had the pleasure of interviewing her about her work, and the inspiration behind her novel. So, I wanted to ask you what the process was like for publishing your first…
Opportunities for Writers September 2020
Image from Pexels free images Kill Your Darlings First Nations Editor-in-Residence ‘We are now accepting non-fiction pitches and submissions from Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander writers wanting to work with Jasmin McGaughey, Kill Your Darlings’ First Nations Editor-in-Residence. For more information and to pitch or submit your writing to Kill Your Darlings, visit our Submittable…
Meet Our New Junior Editors: Lauren Pratt & Grace Wholley
Underground Writers is pleased to welcome Lauren Pratt and Grace Wholley to the team as Junior Editors for the next six months. They will be part of the editorial team for Issues 32 and 33, while also producing listicles, interviews with Australian authors, and reviews of Aussie debut books. Get to know our new editors…
Reviews: ‘under/Limelight’ and ‘Kindred: 12 Queer Stories’, by Jess Rae
Reading has been a tricky task for many during isolation. We think that because we have way more free time we should use it on all the things that keep getting put off, like exercising, or learning new recipes, or (god forbid) writing. Within this reading slump I’ve found anthologies to be a great pathway…
Upcoming New Releases We’re Looking Forward To, by Jemimah Halbert Brewster
Here at Underground we’re always hearing about new and exciting books being released in Australia. There’s always a delightful and relevant combination of fiction, non-fiction and poetry titles from new and emerging authors available, and now is also a great time to get your hands on #ownvoices works and stories from marginalised voices around Australia…
Interview: Charmaine Ledden-Lewis, illustrator of Bruce Pascoe’s ‘Found’, by Ebony Bryant
Illustrator Charmaine Ledden-Lewis Charmaine Ledden-Lewis makes her debut into the illustration world, capturing the vivid beauty of the Australian Outback, in Bruce Pascoe’s new children’s book Found. As the 2019 recipient of the Kestin Indigenous Illustrator Award, Charmaine was given the opportunity to flex her artistic skills and captivate readers in an emotional story of…
Issue 31: Sci-fi has arrived!
Cover art by Lola Issue 31: Sci-fi can be downloaded for FREE here Issue 31: Sci-fi features short stories from Jake Dean, Rachelle Erzay, Rob Johnson and Kirstie Nicholson, exploring themes of futurism, technology, space, voyages, and robots, but also families, friends, communities, and living beyond survival. Inside you’ll also find a book review of…
Opportunities for Writers August 2020
Photo by Anastasia Zhenina from Pexels Pulch Magazine open for submissions Seeking submissions of ‘anything and everything, from politics, to culture, to identity, fictional short stories, poems, screenplays and experimentative writing. We are particularly interested in stories that include marginalised or minority voices and themes. We encourage you to keep your piece between 1000 and 2000 words, however…
Review: How to be Australian by Ashley Kalagian Blunt, by Jemimah Halbert Brewster
Title: How to be Australian Author: Ashley Kalagian Blunt Publisher: Affirm Press Favourite quote: “I couldn’t do the PR application, and more urgently, I couldn’t do life. I couldn’t bear that if Steve and I managed to stay married, one of us would one day bury the other, that each day we moved closer to…
Review: Fire Front poetry anthology, by Shelley Timms
Title: Fire Front: First Nations Poetry and Power Today Editor: Alison Whittaker Genre: Anthology/Poetry collection Publisher: UQP “Our legacies become futures, written from and for anywhere.” Evelyn Araluen, Too Little, Too Much “When non-Indigenous people tell us to move on, they assume we want to be stuck in a painful place. That we love having…
How to Motivate yourself to Write during Lockdown Ease, by Kate Lomas Glendenning
Image from Pexels free images Although this year feels like it has been ripped out of a dystopian novel, have you managed (amongst the Netflix binges and copious amount of chocolate consumption) to keep up with your own writing? I know the time I carved out for my own writing and reading was knocked about…
Opportunities for Writers July 2020
Image from Pexel free images Red Room Poetry Object for Australian students, U18s and accredited teachers Red Room Poetry Object is Australasia’s largest free poetry-writing competition for young people and their teachers. Poetry Object ignites imaginations by inviting poems inspired by treasured, curious, everyday, extraordinary, interplanetary, or talismanic objects. You must be an Australian…
8 Aussie Sci-Fi Authors Whose Books You Should Read, by Jess Gately
Marianne de Pierres Where better to start than with this boundary-crossing writer who has graced Australian publishing over and over again. Since 2003, Pierres has made a name for herself as the award-winning author of the Parrish Plessis, Sentients of Orion, and Peacemaker series. Also publishing under the pseudonym Marianne Delacourt, she has multiple Aurealis Award nominations and…
Review: The Coconut Children by Vivian Pham, by Ebony Bryant
Title: The Coconut Children Author: Vivian Pham Genre: YA, coming-of-age, urban fiction Favourite quote: ‘The coconut children on the trees need to drop into the water. That way the ocean can carry them to another island, where they can grow.’ When offered the chance to review The Coconut Children, I jumped on it right away….
Self-Publishing Series Part 4: Typesetting and internal design
A post by Jess Gately Cover image by Mali Maeder on pexels.com While many authors are excited about the cover design of their book, the internal design is one of the most important aspects of maintaining a professional looking book that ensures an easy-to-read experience. Designers working on books must consider the type size and type…
Overcoming Shiny Object Syndrome, by Jess Gately
Image by Myriam Zilles from Pixabay We’ve all been there. You’re down to the nitty gritty bits of your manuscript. You’re not quite sure how your character gets from A to B, you’ve written yourself into a corner and don’t know how to get out, and your enthusiasm just seems to have stalled. And then, lo and…
Opportunities for Writers June 2020
Cover image from Pixabay free images Bloodaxe Books Sri Lankan Poetry Anthology Callout “Editors Vidyan Ravinthiran, Shash Trevett and Seni Seneviratne are seeking submissions to an anthology of post-Independence Sri Lankan poetry, and the poetry of related diasporic communities, to be published by Bloodaxe Books. Contact them at outofsrilanka@gmail.com if you feel your work should be considered,…
Self-Publishing Series Part 3: Choosing how to self-publish
A post by Jess Gately Image from Realistic Shots free stock images We’ve said it already and we’ll say it again: self-publishing involves a LOT of research. It’s a long process, and choosing how you’re going to publish your book is one of the most important decisions you’ll make. As self-publishing has grown in popularity, platforms…
Years later: Reflecting on your own writing, by Jess Rae
I read a short story I wrote 10 years ago and I have some thoughts… COVID-19 self-isolation has meant spring-cleaning time for my family and I. For clarification: we have a shed that is the family’s dumping ground. In the midst of cleaning it recently we came across boxes of all our primary school documents…
6 Australian Book Awards to Follow if You’re Not a Literary Fiction Reader, by Jess Gately
Book awards are a great way to find new reads from authors you may not have heard about, and also provide an easy way to distinguish, with so many new books coming out all the time, which books you might choose over others. The longlists, shortlists and eventual winners of these awards provide booklovers with…
Review: An Inheritance of Secrets by Sonya Bates, by Shelley Carter
Title: Inheritance of Secrets Author: Sonya Bates Genre: Historical Thriller Publisher: HarperCollins Australia (2020) After the horrific death of her Oma and Opa, Juliet Dunne must trace her family history and uncover secrets that were supposed to stay buried forever. She discovers that her grandfather, Karl, somehow had a connection to the Nazi party before…
Six Historical Fiction Books by Aussie Authors, by Shelley Carter
When I’m in a reading slump, or feel as though I need an escape from the world, I tend to gravitate towards historical fiction. There’s something about diving back into a different era that makes me forget about what is happening in the real world, and helps bring back my passion for reading. I have…
Review: The Salt Madonna by Catherine Noske, by Jess Gately
Title: The Salt Madonna Author: Catherine Noske Publisher: Picador Australia Genre: Thriller, literary fiction This review was first published in the Underground zine, issue 30: Thriller ‘Faith has preconditions in need and hopefulness. It doesn’t re-quire actual hope, just willingness for it, and the need for change. We all of us had need.’ Written with a…
Issue 30: Thriller is here!
For your reading pleasure we are pleased to present issue 30: Thriller, hot off the virtual press! Interview Coordinator Shelley Carter compiled and edited the issue, which contains new original creative writing by Underground debut writers Justine McGinnis, Tara O’Brien, and Camille Booker, and we’re pleased to welcome back Esme Lee Wilmot, who was also…
Opportunities for Writers May 2020
Cover image from Pixabay free images The Bird Makers Project ‘Through the remnants of shared experience, each stitch becomes bigger than the self. Suitable for beginner and advanced sewers, you will be guided through online resources to create a single black bird made from your own donated piece of black clothing. These black birds will…
Review: In the Dark Spaces by Cally Black, by Jemimah Halbert Brewster
Title: In the Dark Spaces Author: Cally Black Genre: YA Sci-fi Thriller Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont Cally Black’s debut YA novel, In the Dark Spaces, is, in a word, intense. Teenager Tamara is a stow-away on a space freighter, living in a tiny cabin with her toddler cousin, Tamiki, while her aunt, Lazella, works as a…
Review: The Year the Maps Changed by Danielle Binks, by Max Vos
Title: The Year the Maps Changed Author: Danielle Binks Publisher: Hachette Australia Fred has to get used to a lot in 1999—her family is changing and so is her hometown, and there are going to be growing pains. Despite being set over two decades ago, The Year the Maps Changed by Danielle Binks provides a…
Review: The Valley by Steve Hawke, by Kate Lomas Glendenning
Title: The Valley Author: Steve Hawke Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Fremantle Press(2018) I have never quite read a mystery novel like Hawke’s before. What stood out to me was not the setting of the Kimberley, or that it is a multigenerational book, or that is was a slow-paced mystery unfolding over generations; what stood out to…
Thriller Sub-Genres You May Not Know About, by Shelley Carter & Jemimah Halbert Brewster
When you think of ‘thriller’ as a genre you might think of a mystery set against the clock, unexpected twists that raise the stakes, or a tense show-down that ends on a cliff hanger. Most people might also think of internationally best-selling novels such as Kathy Reichs’ Temperance Brennan series (which the TV show Bones…
Dylan & Jess G on West Australian Authors
Dylan Dartnell and Jess Gately recently appeared on Six Minutes For Me’s #AussieApril Camera Flip series to help viewers find more Aussie authors to read. Our team decided to focus on a selection of recent releases from West Australian authors. You can watch the full video below. Did you know that we now have…
How To Support Yourself and Other Authors While Self-Isolating by Jess Rae
Image from Pixabay free images We’re in an unprecedented time. Stores, restaurants and entertainment venues are closed; people have lost their jobs; we can’t see more then one person without being fined. It is a truly scary and lonely time. I don’t know about you but I’m attempting to use this extended ‘me-time’ as a…
Review: The Fragments by Toni Jordan, by Jemimah Halbert Brewster
The Fragments by Toni Jordan is a brilliant novel incorporating themes of coming of age, taking charge of one’s destiny, and learning to love again, all centred around a fictional historical literary mystery. The fragments are seven charred pieces of text, representing the only surviving remains of a much-anticipated second novel from celebrated novelist Inga…
Self-Publishing Series Part 2: Beta Readers & Editors
A post by Jess Gately Image by Anne Karakash on Pixabay In the traditional publishing process, a lot of the editorial process is undertaken by the publishing house that decides to accept your manuscript. But when you decide to self-publish you need to undertake this process yourself. At different stages of your manuscript development, it’s recommended…
Opportunities for Writers April 2020
Cover image from Pixabay free images A Journal of the Plague Year: An Archive of COVID-19 “The Melbourne History Workshop in the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies has launched the Melbourne node of ‘A Journal of the Plague Year: An Archive of COVID-19’ in collaboration with colleagues at Arizona State University, who initiated the project on…
Social Media Finally Invests in Wellbeing by Dylan Dartnell
Cover image from Pixabay free images My uncle has lived a life of first-class flights, with contacts and friends in every country around the world. He has been retired for a number of years but still has a robust calendar of luncheons and ceremonies, and holds a mentoring role for many members of his former…
Bookish Bullet Journal Spreads by Jemimah Halbert Brewster
Image from Canva free stock images Bullet Journaling has been around for a while now, and there are many niche areas you can delve into if bullet journaling is your jam: mood tracking; activity and exercise mapping; garden journaling; cooking journals; art journals; heck, even witchy journaling in a Book of Spells! But my absolute favourite spreads…
Review: The Daughter of Victory Lights by Kerri Turner, by Shelley Carter
Title: The Daughter of Victory Lights Author: Kerri Turner Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: HQ Fiction, HarperCollins Australia imprint, (2020) After serving her country proudly in World War II, Evelyn Bell is not ready to go back to a life of domestic duties. The independence she gained as a member of the all-female 93rd Searchlight Regiment introduced…