Podcast - Interview with Anjum Hasan.

This is an interview with Anjum Hasan from some years ago. She has a new book on its way out, The Cosmopolitans and as I work through my archive of interviews it is timely for me to post this one.
   Anjum was visiting Australia for a festival and we chatted about her recent work and the novel Lunatic in my Head (Brass Monkey Books, 2010).
  Anjum has been longlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize, shortlisted for The Hindu Best Fiction Award and shortlisted for The Hindu Literary Prize. She is currently Books Editor for The Caravan.

Listen to the podcast here.

First broadcast on The Book Show, Edge Radio, 2011.

Books are nice to look at - the library at Wat Buddha Dhamma

Wat Buddha Dhamma was started by a wonderful, renegade monk called Phra Khantipalo and a feisty renegade nun, Ayya Khema. They both practised and taught in the tradition of Theravada Buddhism and founded this monastery which, since its 1970s inception has had a number of incarnations.
There is an enticing library in the monastery. When I practice meditation intensively I do not read and the library, during my stays at the monastery, has been both enticing and an opportunity to note my desire (my craving) to read.
This is a recorded interview (a podcast) with resident teacher, Ajahn Khemavaro and Venerable Passatika about the library, its books and book learning in the realm of Buddhist practice.
It is from a good few years ago, I think the time where I stayed a month.
"I am not a comfort eater, in this hollow life, but I am a comfort reader," said Venerable Passatika.
Here is a link to the coincidence of Brama Viharas we discuss. 

August Paige Turner column

It was a ripper night at the pub last night and some mates and I have begun to devise PRANKFEST (watch this space). Later in the evening I picked up a copy of the latest Warp, for which I write a monthly column and was slightly perturbed to see that my August Paige Turner column was not there, that March had been re-published. So here's August folks! With hyperlinks. Modern technology sends me all aquiver. 

Tasmania has a new bookshop. I am so delighted to type that sentence, I did not believe I would, ever. It takes the form of Collins Booksellers and you’ll find it in Launceston, in the site of the former Fullers du Nord.

Undertow, is an exceptional cultural magazine that pops up now and again. This time they’ve made the wise decision to retail at various outlets, including Fullers, The Gentle Void and Sticky Institute. In this issue they have spoken to Calypso Brown, Hobart Hackerspace and Visual Bulk. It also has work from Mish Meijers and Tricky Walsh and an advice column. Worth it at $5 a pop.  

There is a selection of widely varied literary events happening around the state, ranging from football: with an instore signing with AFL legend Mark ‘Bomber’ Thomson at Not Just Books in Burnie, between 11am-1pm on Monday, August 22^nd. Thomson played in three premierships with Essendon and coached Geelong to two premierships. I’d be willing to bet there’s a book involved too.

Fullers are also launching How Far Can You Go by John Maclean on Wednesday, August 17 at 7pm and on Thursday, August 18 at 5.30 they are hosting the launch of The Game of Their Lives by Nick Richardson. A week later, on Thursday, August 25^th Wild Island by Jennifer Livett will be launched. Please rsvp@fullersbookshop.com.au

To – Mt Field, with the release of The Field of Dreams, a new book from Mark Clemens. The release of this book coincides with the 100 year anniversary of Tasmania’s oldest National Park, Mt Field and follows Clemens’ award winning publication, The Mountain. Clemens is also running a crowdfunding campaign to support the launch of this book. The celebration will happen on August 29 at the State Cinema. The book will be launched by Aboriginal elder and playwright, Jim Everett and there will be an auction for six limited edition framed prints from this gorgeous book (pictured). 


Now we travel slightly further afield to Marina Abramovic and Tasmanian writer, Heather Rose’ new novel, Museum of Modern Love. At the time of writing, it is rumoured that the launch will take place at Hamlet Café in Hobart on Friday 26 August. Heather has been working on this, her seventh novel, for many years and the publication is highly anticipated.

At Fullers in Hobart, they are excited about the forthcoming release of the music CD of The Mathematics Book. This book continues being a best seller, it has a strangle hold on the non-fiction #1 spot. Beyond me, but I do love this kind of collaboration, the liminal soaring space where art and science deepen each other.

Forty South, Tasmania’s biggest publisher have an event in collaboration with the Tasmanian Writers' Centre on Saturday 20 August at Hadleys in Hobart from 5pm. The first part of the program will be a panel discussion on 'Writing for Tasmania 40°South - our state's iconic magazine’. This panel will include editor, Chris Champion and regular writers Nicholas Brodie, Carol Freeman, Mike Kerr and Clarissa Horwood. The second part will be the launch celebration of the Forty South Short Story Anthology 2016 to be launched by Chris Gallagher, Director of the Tasmanian Writers' Centre. Event details can be found on the Writers' Centre website.

Aleesah Darlinson, winner of the 2015 Environment Award for Children’s Literature, (non-fiction) and author of over thirty-five books for children and young adults has a new picture book titled Stripes in the Forest: The Story of the Last Wild Thylacine. It’s coming out in time to commemorate the 80^th anniversary of the extinction of the Tasmanian tiger on National Threatened Species Day. Aleesah is touring Tasmania during August and September and will be running an Adult Writing Workshop titled ‘Writing Narrative: The Art of Story’ at 1:30pm on Friday, 5 August at Scottsdale LINC Library.

The Tasmanian Writers’ Centre continue to offer a great program through Twitch, the young writers’ wing of the organisation, including Youth ARC freecreative writing workshops for anyone and everyone aged 12-25.   The workshops are on every Tuesday in August from 3.30-5.30pm. More info: 
And the August Twitch Tuesday will feature one of the best short story writers in Australia, Adam Ouston. He’ll be discussing how to write short stories.


The Youth Arts and Recreation Centre magazine Platform is providing an opportunity for writers aged 12-25 with any level of experience who are interested in one-on-one mentorship with a professional journalist (Warp writer Stephanie Eslake) through the interview and feature writing stages. You will have the opportunity to have your writing workshopped and published in the magazine. All invited, express your interest this month to Melinda Antal, antalm@hobartcity.com.au or call 6231 5150.

Straight, able bodied men need not apply for Loud Mouth Theatre’s "Not You, Paul" writers' forum and EOI evening. This is a free event with playwright Finegan Kruckemeyer and plans to develop a process that counters alarming disparity in the arts. This evening will include a call for expressions of interest for six writers visible in the Hobart writing for performance community to work with twelve writers from diverse cultural and experiential backgrounds, over a number of weekends throughout a twelve month period to all share skills and develop new works. Monday August 8th, 7pm, Peacock Theatre.