I knew that the Stella Prize was an Australian literary prize for writing by women but what I didn't realise was that they are so much more than that! Indeed (if I'd just read their website more thoroughly) they are an 'organisation that champions cultural change'.
There are a number of ways they do this - one, the prize itself - as can be seen here the current disparity between recognition of male and female writers, then there's their schools program and workshops! Plenty to inspire, aid and abet young (and marginally older) authors!
Last Thursday I attended the first in the 'Provocations' series which was a panel of Rebecca Lim, Leanne Hall and Alice Pung discussing 'There is no one way to be Asian in Australia'. It was an insightful and interesting topic that touched on issues such as the homogenising of Asian Australian authors into a singular narrative. The trio talked about how they had never been on a panel together before as they were sort of seen as 'interchangeable' despite all coming from wildly different Australian Chinese backgrounds - one whose family came as refugees, another as economic migrants and finally another whose families (both Chinese and Anglo) had arrived in Australia in the late 1800s. Another interesting point made was that in the absence of stories they felt they could relate to, they would often turn to writings on other cultural experiences such as writings by Jewish writers or about the Civil Rights movement in the USA. There will be a number of panels and then subsequent relating blog posts too.
Personally, I just want to read a book for once where the story and life goes on but the character just happens to be of Asian background and it's not focused on as a major part of the story. I 100% see the value and benefit that migrant stories bring to Australian literature and indeed they should be told and shared but why can't there be stories about other themes as well? Benjamin Law said of his TV show The Family Law (loosely based on a book) that it's actually a story about a family going through a divorce and relationships rather than about being Chinese. This is what we should be reading and watching (not necessarily about divorce but whatever is applicable).
Which then makes me think of 'if it's not there then write it yourself!'. As I've touched upon before, for me it's the challenge of remaining committed to the story and sitting down to write. I've started doing a bit of non-fiction which I think is easier for me to put down on paper.
Luckily aforementioned author Rebecca Lim has begun a great writing initiative for children's to YA aspiring/authors called Voices from the Intersection with a publisher pitching event on March 5 (find out more here).
Otherwise there are a few other publications/groups that tackle the arts from a diverse range of backgrounds. If there's anymore that you know of/frequent please comment them below!
Peril Magazine - Writings on Asian Australian areas of interest
Still Nomads - Nomadic culture '
Or you could always write your own zine...
Oh! And this is our 100th blog post! Celebrate :)
There are a number of ways they do this - one, the prize itself - as can be seen here the current disparity between recognition of male and female writers, then there's their schools program and workshops! Plenty to inspire, aid and abet young (and marginally older) authors!
Last Thursday I attended the first in the 'Provocations' series which was a panel of Rebecca Lim, Leanne Hall and Alice Pung discussing 'There is no one way to be Asian in Australia'. It was an insightful and interesting topic that touched on issues such as the homogenising of Asian Australian authors into a singular narrative. The trio talked about how they had never been on a panel together before as they were sort of seen as 'interchangeable' despite all coming from wildly different Australian Chinese backgrounds - one whose family came as refugees, another as economic migrants and finally another whose families (both Chinese and Anglo) had arrived in Australia in the late 1800s. Another interesting point made was that in the absence of stories they felt they could relate to, they would often turn to writings on other cultural experiences such as writings by Jewish writers or about the Civil Rights movement in the USA. There will be a number of panels and then subsequent relating blog posts too.
Personally, I just want to read a book for once where the story and life goes on but the character just happens to be of Asian background and it's not focused on as a major part of the story. I 100% see the value and benefit that migrant stories bring to Australian literature and indeed they should be told and shared but why can't there be stories about other themes as well? Benjamin Law said of his TV show The Family Law (loosely based on a book) that it's actually a story about a family going through a divorce and relationships rather than about being Chinese. This is what we should be reading and watching (not necessarily about divorce but whatever is applicable).
Which then makes me think of 'if it's not there then write it yourself!'. As I've touched upon before, for me it's the challenge of remaining committed to the story and sitting down to write. I've started doing a bit of non-fiction which I think is easier for me to put down on paper.
Luckily aforementioned author Rebecca Lim has begun a great writing initiative for children's to YA aspiring/authors called Voices from the Intersection with a publisher pitching event on March 5 (find out more here).
Otherwise there are a few other publications/groups that tackle the arts from a diverse range of backgrounds. If there's anymore that you know of/frequent please comment them below!
Peril Magazine - Writings on Asian Australian areas of interest
Still Nomads - Nomadic culture '
Or you could always write your own zine...
Oh! And this is our 100th blog post! Celebrate :)
