Hit List: Australian Crime Writing
It’s no mystery that Australian crime writers are on some kind of a rampage – some kind of a spree – filling bookshops, racing up bestseller lists and taking over big and small screens across the globe.
Liane Moriarty’s Big Little Lies has been a major TV hit. The series’ executive producer, Reese Witherspoon, is now working on a movie adaptation of Jane Harper’s The Dry. Local audiences have been glued to the Jack Irish ABC TV series and to podcasts such as Trace and The Teacher’s Pet, and the last few years have seen a juggernaut of local book sales for established names and newcomers alike.
In our second Group Texts event, celebrating great Australian genre writers, we’ll hear from some of the stars of Australian crime writing; writers of thrillers, true-crime investigations and classic whodunnits. Each writer will share a short reflection or provocation on the crime genre, followed by a panel discussion. Our speakers will discuss thrilling sub-genres, ethics and aesthetics, the rise of ‘outback noir’ and more. They might even reveal how and where they’re planning to strike next.
Sun Bookshop will be our bookseller for this event.
Featuring
Emma Viskic’s critically acclaimed Caleb Zelic series has been published world-wide. Resurrection Bay won the Ned Kelly Award for Best First Fiction and an unprecedented three Davitt Awards. It was shortlisted for the UK’s prestigious Gold Dagger and New Blood Awards and the USA’s Barry Award... Read more
Garry Disher has published fifty titles across multiple genres. His last standalone novel, Bitter Wash Road, won the 2016 German Crime Prize, a prize he has previously won twice. He’s also the recipient of two Ned Kelly best crime novel awards and last year he received the Ned Kelly Lifetime Achie... Read more
Sulari Gentill is the award-winning author of 13 books including the Rowland Sinclair series. Her book Crossing the Lines won the Ned Kelly Award for best crime novel in 2018. Sulari was born in Sri Lanka and grew up Brisbane. She graduated in law but later left her legal career to write books. She... Read more
Rachael Brown is an investigative journalist with the ABC. She’s held several postings, including Europe Correspondent from 2010-2013. She’s the creator, investigator and host of the ABC’s pioneer true-crime podcast, Trace. Rachael’s review of the 1980 cold case of Maria Ja... Read more
Laura Elizabeth Woollett is a Melbourne-based author. Her short story collection The Love of a Bad Man (2016) was shortlisted for the Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for Fiction and the Ned Kelly Award for Best First Fiction in 2017. Her latest novel, Beautiful Revolutionary (2018), follo... Read more
Mark Brandi’s bestselling novel, Wimmera, won the coveted British Crime Writers’ Association Debut Dagger, and was named Best Debut at the 2018 Australian Indie Book Awards. It was also shortlisted for the Australian Book Industry Awards Literary Fiction Book of the Year, and the Matt R... Read more
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